It’s time for a long overdue playroom update. Back in October, we shared that this would be our next project. A few weeks later and we had almost everything here from the mood board I made:
My next task was picking a paint color. I really want to go darker since this is our media room, too. And then we started talking about just doing the back wall dark so the girls’ art really pops against it and then we started looking at colorful sectionals for the media room side and maybe we should just wait until we get a sectional to pick a paint color?
Really, a paint color has never taken this long but this room is kind of tricky. The carpet needs replaced, the corner fireplace (see below)? We’re talking about tearing it out entirely and squaring off the room.
We’d also really like to add a big slide on the wall, but that might be phase 2 as well. Winters are long here, and we want to make sure these girls have a place to play (this room) for the next couple months. So the goal for phase one is to create storage for toys, pick a paint color and get something on the walls–even if it’s just the back wall (where the fireplace adjoins, make the fireplace work for now. Phase two we’ll tear out the fireplace, get new carpet, recessed lighting and add a slide.
We just installed the lights above the craft table and tore out the old fluorescent light that was there and it instantly feels better in here. Greta really wanted a pink rug, which usually isn’t in my wheelhouse, but I found this amazing one from Rejuvenation that we both love. It incorporates a lot of fun colors that we can work in elsewhere in the room.
I snapped this photo with my phone a couple weeks ago. The teepee is a hit! Greta slept in it the first night we had it. This room is rather large and the girls already spend so much time down here having the best time, so I don’t want to interfere too much. Anything we do down here is a complete bonus to them no matter how necessary it feels to me. Haha. It’s an important lesson I’ve learned.
See the mood board with links to everything you see right here. The rug is the Skyline rug from Rejuvenation.
I love this design so much that I am planning to emulate it closely for my own basement! Can you let me know what size of rug you used for this space?
Thanks!
8×10
Julia:
I’m a long-time follower and just love how your style and selections have evolved. I’m a mom who lives in a cold weather climate as well, so I can related to the need for indoor physical play space. Your kids will remember that teepee forever, what a wonderful childhood memory!! I wish I had thought of that when my kids were young. My kids are in their teen years now, so if I might, here are a few words of advice – art – hang lots of it, but use plexiglass instead of glass. I have no idea what really happens down in our playroom (and I’m not sure I really want to know!), but I do know that my picture frames have taken a beating but nothing has actually broken yet (YET!) because of plexi! The favorite toy in our house has always been some kind of punching bag. Santa brought us one that had adjustable heights (the bottom filled with sand) – and the kids used it for years and years to get out their ya-yas on cold days. I love your idea of a slide and would add you might want to investigate climbing walls. This has also provided hours and hours of entertainment – our ceilings aren’t super high in the playroom so it’s more of a bouldering experience. http://www.rockandice.com/Article-Images/Metolius-How-to-Build-a-Home-Wall/How-to-Build-a-Home-Climbing-Wall.pdf – this is a cool diy. We had someone build ours as a surprise for the kids when they came home from 4 weeks of summer camp. This looks right up your alley, as Chris is so handy! I just love how your blog is evolving and can’t wait to see what’s next for you! Happy New Year!
Julia and Chris are creating a beautiful home and are sharing their journey with us. I’m very grateful for the inspiration, whether I can afford exactly what they buy, are gifted or DIY. However, their ability to put beautiful and unique pieces together is bar none, and I think they try to be upfront about what is purchased, gifted or DIY. I like that. I like getting ideas from their home decor ideas and I will continue to come back for more! Keep up the great work, Chris and Julia! I love watching your space transform through time and effort. You inspire me to take my own home remodel one step at a time. Thanks!
The playroom looks amazing! We also have a teepee in our playroom that my boys just love. I made it on a pretty low budget and love how it turned out (one of my few DIY victories lol). Is that a floor pillow inside yours? I recently put a little wooden table and chairs set inside theirs but I’ve been really considering swapping it out with one of our floor pillows. Less messy than blankets but still a cozy place to hang.
It is! We got it from Land of Nod. They sell them separately from the teepees, but it sounds like you are handy enough to make one!
I completely agree with what others have said. I read blogs to for ideas and inspiration on décor and DIY ideas for my own home. To be perfectly honest average people cannot afford to put these type of finishes into a playroom, atleast not those who are reading blogs for ideas. I had been on the fence about continuing to check in and see what you were doing after the kitchen renovation, then seeing this, glad I read the comments and can see I am not the only one feeling this way. It’s just not for me anymore, the average person doesn’t get all these things “gifted” so I need practical solutions and ideas. I do love your style and good for you that you are able to get all these things for free, I just cant relate anymore. I am looking for real ideas for people with real budgets.
I didn’t use the word outrageous but they are definitely not within the realm of a modest budget. $900 rug, pendant lights at $299 each, etc. Just saying that the average person does not get these things given to them for free so the usefulness of coming to a blog for ideas is lost. Most bloggers openly disclose sponsored posts or “gifted items”. I think that makes the world of difference. Just saying that things have changed from when I first started visiting and I can no longer relate. Best of luck to you.
I, too, am on the fence about this blog. It just doesn’t seem authentic anymore to have EVERYTHING gifted to them. It’s not realistic (i.e. a free $900 rug for a kids playroom) and it’s hard to discern the quality/value of an item when their sponsors give it to them. But, I like the look so I just pop in every once in awhile for inspiration and take everything with a grain of salt.
Was the rug a perk? I didn’t see that mentioned anywhere in the post and assumed that was a legit purchase. If it was a gift from the company and not a real purchase, that info is definitely relevant and I would’ve appreciated that being mentioned in the post (and maybe it was, and I’m having a reading comprehension fail). I really don’t have a problem with bloggers accepting free stuff if they are really upfront about it every time. Even if the items they are gifted are way out of my budget, I can get behind it from an aspirational perspective (but only with full disclosure).
I’m not sure what kind of outrageous finishes you are referring to?? But, I wish you the best of luck in your search and with your own home!