MAKING ROOM FOR BABY

WHILE DECISIONS ON WHAT YOU SHOULD SPEND YOUR DECORATING BUDGET ON CAN DE DIFFICULT, TAKE A LOOK AT A FEW TIPS TO MAKE LIFE EASIER

There seems to be a flurry of people around me having babies and with a newborn comes decisions on furniture, the colour of the room and whether you will have the baby in your room or play tough love and make sure they stay in their own.

I can definitely say that if you create the rules before the baby arrives when they arrive they will almost certainly bring them all undone in a very short space of time.

Here are a few fail-safe tips that I know work (and the baby will be too young to object – in their first 12 months anyway).

COLOUR

Stay away from bold and bright colours. Yellow might seem like a sunny, happy colour but it actually promotes wakefulness and creates restless sleeping patterns. Stick with peaceful colours such as pale green, blue and off-white for your main colour scheme and add your bold colours in your toys, pictures and bed linen. Make sure your wall paint and timber finishes are coated in a VOC-free paint so there are no toxic surfaces and fumes in the baby’s room.

LAYOUT

This will always be about practicality – keep the head of the bed away from light filtering through an open door so you don’t wake the baby as you are checking up on them. Also, if the cot is near a window make sure the blinds or curtains go past the frame to reduce the amount of light that creeps in during daylight naps. Keep furniture to the perimeter of the room, so there is a clear path from bed to door at all times to keep your child safe if they happen to wake up through the night.

DECORATING

Spend the majority of your decorating budget on the items that will give you good bones for a bedroom such as beds, book shelves, chairs and window treatments in simple colours. Then spend the ‘fun-money’ on bold rugs, pictures, linen and lamps.

For more expert Lifestyle advice go to lifestyle.com.au