I really love our downstairs space - nice and open plus an area for the girls to play and an area for us to watch movies. The only thing we've done downstairs since we moved in last July 2012 was have the carpets cleaned. We haven't painted the basement or bathroom walls. It's kind of a North Woods theme. Not a fan. We laid down a rug that we used to have in our old place, and it looks pretty nice. Our old beige couches make up the seating area, but with the beige walls and beige carpet, it looks pretty blah. Since I don't feel like buying a new rug since the one there is relatively new, maybe we will find a new paint color to complement the rug colors. Maybe that's dumb. I don't know. Still thinking of ideas. I kind of like the idea of a stormy gray-blue for the walls and redoing the trim white. Eventually I'd like to replace the furniture because it's not really comfortable and it's cheap. I would love to have a big, comfortable sectional someday since it would be so cozy for watching movies and football games in the fall and winter.
Right now the toys are not organized the best. We have been putting off a trip to IKEA to pick up bins and some kind of organizational system. I also want to get a little craft table/table for Stella to play toys at, color, or paint. For her third birthday I'd like to get her a whiteboard/paper easel from IKEA.
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| Stella doesn't want to get rid of the box that some blinds arrived in - she has decorated it with crayons and stickers, and today it served as a boat for her "friends" as she calls her stuffed animals. |
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| Dinky bathroom with super cheap sink, hardware, trim, door |
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| Those bins against the wall usually aren't there - I've been organizing and going through the girls' clothes |
Also, I am very aware that the concept of playrooms may very well be an American thing. The neat freak in me loves that there is a kid-friendly place for the girls and their friends to play and let loose. We are trying to maintain the upstairs as more of an adult area and try to allocate the toys to the basement instead of having them strewn about the living room. Right now we still have Grace's play gym on the rug upstairs because it's so handy to place her on it when I'm doing something in the kitchen or having to take Stella to the bathroom.
Do you have a designated play area? Do you think playrooms are a predominately American concept?
After traveling some in Europe, I would say that playrooms are not only a universal concept but a true necessity in the dul-drum winters of Minnesota! Totally with you about the rule of no toys strung out all over upstairs ... our upstairs is has a piano and an adult sitting area--one couch and two high back reading chairs w/ ottomans. I want to keep our upstairs inviting for adult conversation and it brings in tons of natural lighting for reading... AND my husband want to continue to NOT trip over our kids toys!
ReplyDeleteGood to know, and that's interesting to know about Europe. I love having the kids' stuff as separate as possible from the other living spaces. By the way, who is this? :)
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