KIDS CLIMBING THE WALLS? LET THEM PAINT INSTEAD
Staying at home for weeks on end may have your kids bouncing off the walls, but designer and author India Hicks has a potential solution: Let them paint those walls instead.
A couple of weeks ago, Hicks shared an Instagram photo of her 12-year-old daughter Domino painting a cow pattern on her bedroom door in the family’s home on Harbour Island, Bahamas. Hicks told House Beautiful the project was Domino’s idea, and that she trusted her with it because she has proven to be both sensible and organized.
“My view, basically, whether you’re in quarantine or not, is that kids drawing on the walls is fantastic — at a certain age,” Hicks said.
She also offered a few tips to help keep the wall art looking polished and purposeful.
Stick to a limited area: “I did say, ‘Why don’t we focus it into one area,’ because I know these projects can get bigger and take longer than we imagine,” said Hicks. Plus, children will be able to feel ownership of their space but still respect the areas common to the rest of the family. Think of letting them personalize their bedroom door or perhaps their closet or the area above their bed.
Make a plan: Have kids take time to sketch out the image before they set paintbrush to paint. They’ll be able to adjust their ideas beforehand rather than scrambling to fix something on the fly and dealing with the ensuing frustration. “(Domino) drew it out completely on her own,” Hicks explained. “She found the paint in the garden shed. She started painting on her own, and that was it.”
Have an exit strategy: Make sure the surfaces your kids choose are repaintable. Whether the whole project comes to an unhappy conclusion, or kids have a hankering to paint another masterpiece in the same spot later on, having a re-paintable surface will save stress. You’ll also have peace of mind knowing that the changes won’t be permanent, and they’ll be easy and inexpensive to switch back.
“We have five kids basically under house arrest, and they’re all just reaming for some freedom,” said Hicks. “And if that freedom can manifest itself by painting on their walls. I think that’s fine. I think it should be encouraged because at the end of the day, you can always paint over it.”