Toddler Bedroom Makeover | House Tour

Is it just me, or did your child’s bedroom floor turn into a lake of toys post-Christmas? 

Between all the incoming gifts, the current favourites and the outgrown baby bits that he still had hanging around, Theo’s room was long overdue for a refresh. 

There was stuff absolutely everywhere, with no proper storage and the room was basically still a nursery for a baby – with a cot and an untouched changing table – while our little boy definitely isn’t a baby any more!

It was time for a bit of a rethink, and a dreaded trip to Ikea! 

I’m not a fan of Ikea at all, and in fact I’ve been slowly going through the house replacing everything I’ve ever had from there with stuff that is a lot better made. But for kids toy storage solutions, it’s really the only way. We didn’t want to spend a fortune on stuff that he may outgrow quickly.

As we went for a neutral décor in the room, that didn’t need updating either. We have the same beige carpet throughout the whole house that will eventually be replaced but is inoffensive enough to be quite far down the gigantic list of Things We Need To Do To The House. 

The walls are just white, with one feature wall with grey stripes, and another with wallpaper, and a grey blackout blind, so they all stayed. The goal was simply to create a bright, fun space for a toddler, somewhere that is more geared toward independent play.

By the door as you come into the room, we still have the inbuilt shelves and small cupboard. On the shelves, we’ve just stored some of his toys, such as the wooden bus from ELC, and his piggy bank and other more delicate items. 

The Paddington wallpaper is from Colefax and Fowler, and just injects a little bit of colour into the space to balance the mainly neutral scheme. There is also this fab painting of Theo as a baby that my stepmother did – it really captures his cheeky spirit! The bunting was from B&M and just adds a decorative touch. 

I had a big clearout of this shelving so there’s plenty of free space at the moment to swallow some more toys and books. The cupboard underneath is mostly empty – it only has a storage box for the artwork he brings home from nursery, some of his seasonal gear such as his snowsuit and snow boots and a fan for the hotter months. 

Again, there is now room to expand here as more toys and games come in!

In the corner by the window, we used to have a grey velvet wing chair where I could sit and feed Theo, but that has now been ‘donated’ to his little sister’s nursery to free up space for more play. 

This fab pop-up Circus play tent from Ikea has now taken its place. I’ve filled it with cushions so that Theo can sit in it and play or read his books. There’s also a crawl tunnel from Kid Ninja to play with. The felt lion laundry basket is from Dunelm and adds to the kind of circus theme in this corner. 

And then I bought the small Billy bookcase from Ikea to keep some of his ever-growing storybook collection in order. We still have his dark wooden toy box from Wayfair which swallows a lot of stuff!

Theo’s nursery set was a bamboo-wood set from Kub, and we’ve just taken the sides off and dropped the level to convert it into a bed. He’s been out of his Gro-bags for a while, and now has this duvet set from George covered with his favourite cars and fire-engines. 

We added this fox cushion which was a find from Homesense as well, and he also has this cuddly Lightning McQueen that has a nightlight in that he can turn on and off, which is super-handy.

In the corner, I’ve added the Kallax storage unit with Drona baskets in teal blue and grey and white patterns from Ikea. 

This unit is absolutely ideal – the baskets are huge and fit so much in, and it makes it so much easier to tidy up in his room, plus he can reach and get most things himself. He also has some of the units free to display his trucks, fire engines, wooden rocket and dinosaurs to add a bit of colour and so he can display his treasures. I also picked up a couple of the round Plumsa storage baskets from Ikea to hold soft toys. 

He also has the little wooden stool from Homesense here, and by the side I’ve tucked his luggage – his Trunki for holidays and sleepovers at granny’s house, and his little Cath Kidston rucksack that he takes to nursery or on days out.

 And on the final wall, he still has his Hemnes dresser. This currently holds all of his clothes – he doesn’t have a wardrobe at the moment, but he may need one in the future! 

For the moment, the top drawer holds all his vests, tshirts, pants and socks, the middle one is all of his tops, cardigans and trousers and the bottom drawer has spare sheets and blankets, jackets and gilets and anything out of season like swimsuits and shorts. 

On top, the grey strip storage basket from Homesense has his baby toiletries in and things like bed pads (he’s potty trained now but does have accidents at night). There’s his Perspex lamp, a light-up wooden ‘T’, some glass storage jars that I’m intending for crayons, his Gro-Clock and a little frame with his scan pictures. 

The mirror we bought second hand and sprayed the frame this powder blue colour to tie in with the picture frames on his other walls with his Paddington sketches in.

Hopefully, this makeover has given him a bedroom that is much more suited to his needs now and geared around play rather than baby things. I know he’s definitely pleased with it, and is asking to spend a lot more time playing in here, which is so lovely. 

Theo’s room is the smallest bedroom that we have, but its not too tiny and it’s at the back of the house looking out over the garden and down to the canal where ducks and swans swim by, so it has a pleasant feeling. 

We did consider moving him into one of the other rooms and keeping it as the nursery now that we have another baby on the way, but I felt that would be too much change for him all at once, and I wanted to avoid him feeling ‘pushed out’ of his own space. This project has made the space right for him again.

My next project will be planning and decorating my baby girl’s nursery, which I’m very excited about! I have big plans and can’t wait to give you all a peek when that’s finished.

Are you planning any family room refreshes? Let me know!