Sheridan Life

Styling Series: Easy Kids' Bedroom Ideas

If there’s one thing to know about how to style a kid's bedroom, it's that there’s a lot of fun to be found in creating a space for your little one where they can grow, play and dream — for years, and many adventures, to come.

However, there is always the challenge that what they may love now, might fall out of favour in a week or two. There are also limitations in terms of size, and practicality, and if you’re living in a rental — well, it might limit you to whether or not you can use blue-tack on the walls.

So if you’re wondering how to balance the fun with the functional for your little one’s space, we've teamed up with interior stylist, Fiona Gould to put together a list of kids bedroom ideas you can easily implement — as soon as today (provided it passes their stamp of approval).

Get creative with the bedding

Here’s where you can start with the ‘how’ of styling a kid's bedroom. In fact, bedding sets the tone for the entire room — it really does act as the centrepiece of their space. And it’s a quick and simple task to do. As a mum herself, Fiona looks for unique, playful motifs. In her own words, "when I find a print that's happy and fun in a creative way, it makes my heart sing".

Look for bright colours with bold patterns; like our Calaway Quilt Cover and its reversible dot design — finished with irresistibly cute embroidered cherries. If your young one has a green thumb or just loves the outdoors, try our Emmery Quilt Cover with its hand-painted floral print and classic gingham reverse (think all the happiness of a summer picnic, if you turned it into a kids' bed). And for the beach-loving kids, go bold with the Falco Quilt Cover and its colourful, surf-inspired design.

But the fun doesn’t have to stop there — our Kids Collection is designed to be combined and styled together, so you can pair it with sheet sets that also add impact. Fiona has carried that playful cherry motif from the quilt cover into the sheets, with our Frutti design.

Lean into layering

So you’ve got a few patterns on the one bed — there’s no reason you can’t add more. In fact, layering these different designs and adding rich textures throughout is a key ingredient when it comes to modern kids' bedding. Fiona adds that the creative freedom to play with shapes and go heavy on the pattern clashing is one of the reasons she loves styling kids' rooms.

Together, you and your kid can come up with a colour idea for their bedroom — whether a singular favourite colour, a few different ones or a more overarching theme. And items like blankets and throws can assist you here. Using Fiona's look as an example, our Ocie Throw in ice or Endrik Throw in relish can play those blues and reds while adding a pop of contrasting pattern. Style nonchalantly across a corner of the bed — or, no doubt at some point, it’ll end up thrown or strewn that way, anyway.

Add personality through accessories

If you're not able to (or just not looking to) make alterations to your walls to decorate your kid's bedroom, there are numerous other ideas for styling this space that don’t involve a potentially permanent change to the painting.

Start with something as simple as a rug — protecting that floorboard, but also another avenue to add pattern and colour play. You can even layer multiple options, in different shapes and a variety of textures for a relaxed look.

Other accessories that don’t require permanence include bunting — whether in flag form or pompom form — that can be hung from a bed frame, or along a chest of drawers. If they have open storage cubes, or a bookcase, in their space, this can double as a display cabinet for toys, trinkets, trophies and more.

Create a kids corner

So it’s kinda common knowledge that our bed should just be for sleeping — not every other task on our plates (working, eating, social media scrolling). Even sleep experts say we need to associate our bed with sleep (and nothing else).

And this is something we can implement from a young age — by creating a “play” area for kids, that has nothing to do with their bed. A great idea for your kid's bedroom is to create a “kids corner”; a dedicated area for reading, playing, dreaming, games and more.

You could arrange a play tent in one corner of their bedroom (or even style a Sheridan sheet as a tent if you really want to flex your DIY muscles). The most important thing is that it’s comfortable for them. Reuse old pillows and quilts as padding, ones that have been stored away in the back of your linen cupboard, that haven’t seen the light of day in months.

And on top, for another “how-to” of kid’s bedroom styling? Cushions, cushions galore. Brimming with personality, add our Tami Bolster, Holt and Romi Check cushions to the pile — perfect for potential pillow fights, as well.