Spaces With a Dual Purpose: How to Create Practical, Kid-friendly Spaces and Keep Your Home Looking Pretty at the Same Time!
Do you have a toddler or young children in your household or are you planning to? If you’re looking for ways to make your space more functional and beautiful while raising your littles, then read on! If you ‘re looking for any expert parenting advice, then skip because I am in no way qualified for that (I’m still learning like the rest of us!).
Making a home a space where grown-ups can unwind and children can play is no easy feat. It often feels like parents need to sacrifice their space to a sea of plastic toys, flashing lights, noisy noise, and all sorts of MESS. Fear not, there are a number of ideas I have for interiors that will make parenting easier, in practice and visually (and yes, there will be still be mess, it will just be easier!).
Kid-friendly, beautiful design is possible. These are my top 5 musts for any home with children!
Machine washable rugs.
Machine washable rugs are an increasingly popular option for parents and carers of young children. These rugs feature incredible stain resistance and are able to be spot cleaned as and when those accidents do happen. Not only that, for bigger messes, the rugs can be tossed in a washing machine and line dried. There is no need to bring these rugs to a specialist or book in a cleaner.
How do they work? Machine washable rugs are usually on the thinner side so they can fold up and fit inside a washing machine with ease. However, they can often be purchased with a detachable pad underneath to add comfort and “plumpness” to the rug. In order to wash, you simply remove the rug from the pad and place only the rug in the washing machine at the specified setting.
Pictured: The Gabriella Rug from Dunelm which is machine washable and an excellent option for kids AND kitchens!
These types of area rugs are becoming more and more popular and widely available. Brands like Ruggable, Kukoon, and Dunelm feature these types of rugs. They often feature lovely patterns- solids and traditional patterns in a range of colours.
My take:
As a parent of two toddlers, the only rugs in my home (except for one!) are machine washable. I love our hallway rug (by Ruggable) and our study and kitchen rugs (which were a steal from Dunelm).
While rugs are ideal over wood or tile floors, they could be layered over carpet too to act as a protector from spills and accidents.
2. Hardwood or hardwearing flooring.
Aren’t hardwood floors and tiled floors dangerous for young children?
Our wood flooring is Barlinek Oak Sense Engineered Wood
Installing a hardwood floor or tiled floor is ideal for cleaning up spills and accidents with ease. Often, wall to wall carpeting is suggested for young children to cushion falls, however carpets are difficult and costly to clean. Using hard flooring in main living areas and high traffic spaces is ideal to sustain the wear and tear of young children.
Layering wood or hard wearing floors with washable and cushioned rugs is an ideal choice for parents looking to combine practicality and safety with beauty in their homes- which means hard flooring options are not necessarily more dangerous.
My take:
I find hard floors are longer lasting than carpeting. However, I know this opinion can vary and there are pro’s and con’s to each! I have had carpeting in the main living areas of one home with our children, and it was difficult to keep up with the mess. The carpets ended up needing a professional clean and it was very costly! Using washable rugs and hardwood floors combines the best of both worlds. Though I do believe in using carpeting upstairs as the running around would cause a racket if it weren't there!
3. Slipcovered furniture or very stain resistant upholstery.
Finding upholstered furnishings that can withstand the mess of toddlers can be a challenge- and not to mention, expensive!
Sofa companies offer fabric options that feature stain resistant or family friendly fabric. Some even boast coatings which propel liquid. These are all excellent options if you are in the market for new seating and this is within your budget.
My £50 FB marketplace sofa steal! The discontinued Farlov sofa from Ikea.
Stain resistant fabrics can sometimes be expensive. An alternative would be to find sofa’s with fully removable slipcovers that can be machine washed. Another idea is a budget friendly or used sofa with a slipcover made. A really popular option is to look for a second hand IKEA sofa (they often already have slipcovers) and purchase a slipcover- these are widely available through many brands like BEMZ or on Etsy.
My take:
This is our Ikea Farlov Sofa (Cost me £50 on FB Marketplace!) with a standard IKEA slipcover. White seems dangerous in a toddler friendly home- but we wash this slipcover often and it comes up like new. When we were in the market for a new sofa, we were prepared to spend a lot on a sofa to have stain resistant fabric, but I came upon this option and it saved us lots of money! The sofa is brilliant and will last us years.
4. Design-led playmats.
No longer must play mats be primary coloured puzzle pieces that stick out from your home like a sore thumb (unless red, blue, and yellow is your scheme!). A few companies like Totter and Tumble and Dunelm offer playmats that combine safety for tumbling and jumping with beauty.
These mats feature neutral and appealing designs in a range of colours- lovely for grown ups and children alike- and colours that will fit most interior schemes. For home spaces that feature open floorplans, where a play space is integrated into the function of the open layout, design-led mats are ideal.
My take:
When I became a parent, I loved these types of products which allowed me to create safe and appealing play spaces, in an open layout.
5. Storage and play options that integrate with the room’s design.
Finding storage options is important when you’re dealing with seemingly never ending piles of toys. Ways to organise these toys is important, especially when a space has dual purpose. Many homes either do not have an option for a separate playroom, or the toys just end up in the main living spaces regardless. Additionally, larger toys have a tendancy to take up space. Finding storage for smaller toys and toys that work well spacially in a room is ideal for creating balance between adult spaces with kid-friendly uses.
When adding furniture, it is important to bring in pieces which offer some sort of a dual purpose. In our home, our living room doubles as a play room. Since it is a large room, I have been able to add some concealed storage options- once the toys are away you wouldn’t know its a playspace!
Our Ikea hack window seat contains 4 drawers which have easy push to open mechanisms. We are able to tidy away and organise toys here, but then the kids are able to access the drawers when its time to play. Not only this, it looks beautiful and provides seating. The window seat also sometimes acts as “soft play” which admittedly I did not realise it would, but as you can see its an ideal setup. Love it when a parenting win meets a DIY win!
Our window seat is used for storage, seating, and slide! I found this sofa slide here.
I also upcycled an Ikea Regissor display cabinet to provide storage in our living room. Display cabinets are ideal for storage and beauty. I display some of my sentimental and vintage finds on the upper shelves, but leave the below shelves for wicker and woven baskets containing… you guessed it… more toys! I love this combination of beauty and practicality in display bookcases.
It is really difficult to photograph this bookcase without getting myself in there! Can you see me?
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