A Truly Family Friendly Living Room Design
Yep, I’m an Interior Designer. I’ve been working this dream job for nearly 14 years now (with that last five doing exclusively Interior E-Design). But first and foremost I’m a Mom. To a 12, 10, and 8 year old. I joke that I used to be a “Type A” but my kids beat it out of me. 🙂 And my kids are wild, fun, and creative…we always have craft projects going on, outdoor “treasures” being dragged in, and impromptu forts. With all of that, my sweet kiddos have taught me what is durable, practical, and cleanable with kids..and what isn’t. So when my clients with young kids reach out to me…I KNOW I need to design a “Real Life” room for them. A room design that is beautiful but has a secret super power…one that can hold up to real life dirt, stains, and fun.
5 Ways to Create a Family Friendly Living Room
And this Mom cracked me up from the moment I read her Design Questionnaire-and she made it very clear they are a rough and tumble family who needs a space where they can be R-E-A-L. So for this Mama, and all of the other Moms out there, I wanted to share 5 Must Haves when designing a room for a family:
Family Friendly Living Room #1: Use Distressed Finishes
If a piece of furniture is SUPPOSED to be distressed, then you can breathe easy when your kid puts a scratch or scuff in your furniture…it just adds to the character! In this Living Room design, I found this distressed buffet table (#3) and rustic distressed coffee table (#5). I used this Fixer Upper Living Room design (#4) as inspiration for pulling together this casual Living Room space.
Family Friendly Living Room #2: Use Pillow Covers
If you have hung around me for any amount of time, you’ll know I adore using pillow COVERS. Why? Pillows get gross guys. People sleep on them, put their feet on them, sleep on them when they are sick. I want to be able to wash those bad boys! So I always suggest using a good quality pillow insert (I love the Pottery Barn ones) and then zip those covers on. Double check to make sure they are machine washable if that is important to you, otherwise you can typically hand wash them. As a bonus, you can switch up the whole look of your room with different covers in the future.
Family Friendly Living Room #3: Use Slipcovers or Performance Fabrics
A lot of stores carry special lines of “Performance” fabrics-that are more durable, stain and dirt resistant…which is pure joy when you have kids or pets. I especially love the lines at Pottery Barn and West Elm. At my own house, all (and I mean ALL) of my sofas are slipcovered. I have taken them off and washed them a million times. Spills happen during movie night? It is now more of an eye roll versus Mom getting super stressed. If you can’t do either of those, I like using mid to dark colors to help hide dirt and stains.
Family Friendly Living Room #4: Go With Inexpensive Rugs
Rugs are WALKED on. Which means shoes or dirty feet…and kids aren’t thinking about things like not tracking dirt onto your floors. Cats puke on your rugs (mine will walk over to the rug for a soft place to do his business, instead of a cold, hardwood floor!). And spills happen. So I encourage my clients to invest their money in high quality furniture AND save their money on accessories, pillow covers, and rugs. One of my favorite sources is RugsUSA, I have a million of their rugs and use them often. They are beautiful, inexpensive, and you won’t cry if a juice box spills on them.
Family Friendly Living Room #5: Go Light on the Coffee Table Decor
I’m an Interior Designer. And a girl. I love pretty things. And I will decorate all of your surfaces for you. BUT when you have an active family…I tend to either keep your coffee table bare (or minimally decorated). WHY? Because it will always be messy, being used, and kids will move everything. And the last thing I want is to design a room where Mom is always “straightening” and “fixing” everything. That is exhausting. So I tend to use an oversized tray or bowl that is decorative but also practical (you can corral remotes and “stuff” inside).
A huge thank-you for my fun client for allowing me to share her Living Room design with you all today!
More Neutral Living Room Designs
But before we leave, I wanted to share a few other warm, cozy, and neutral Living Room Designs with you! These other Living Room designs are also super kid friendly and durable…see if you can spot these 5 Tips in these rooms as well!
A Farmhouse Living Room on a Real Farm
This client requested a room to hold up to her just-off-the-field farmer hubby. If this room can hold up to farm boots, it can hold up to your kids as well!
10 Ways to Add Finishing Touches to Your Living Room
This will help you take your room from “blah” to “polished”…
Get Free Room Designs
And finally, one last resource for you….I created a Free Resource Library full of FREE Room Designs, Guides, and Shopping Lists. You can find designs for every room of your house! You’ll get an email with a link and a password so you can access it 24/7…Enjoy!
Cheers,
Kristin
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