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As the name suggests, a living room should be where all the family congregate in the house to relax during the evenings. Making a living room safe for children is therefore a must, and can be easily achieved without compromising on an adult’s need for style.
How to make a Living Room Kid Friendly
The living room, as with any room in a house, presents a myriad of hazards to a child, such as sharp edges on furniture, coils of cables, electrical outlets and small objects that can be swallowed.
When buying furniture, try to find items that have rounded edges. This will be safer than angled corners, perhaps only resulting in bruises rather than cuts and abrasions when children fall against them. If there are angled corners on furniture, cover them up with specially designed foam pads.
Tidy up and make safe your technology by enclosing all those boxes and the television in a media center. This not only clears cables up off the floor, removing trip hazards, but also improves the look of this area and provides an extra surface for ornaments, such as picture frames. In regards to ornaments, thin these out and place them high up, out of the reach of little hands.
With families, plenty of seating is a priority. Make the best use of available space with a corner sofa, also known as an L-shaped sofa. This can be positioned up against the wall or in the center, helping to create a focal point in the room. Because children often have messy and sticky fingers, leather is a good choice for seating, as it can be wiped clean easily.
One thing it is impossible to have too much of these days is storage. Some sofas now come with inbuilt storage, and a large footstool with a storage capacity is a good idea. Place bookshelves along the wall, for books of course, but also for small storage boxes that can take small items such as remotes and toys.
Decorating to Suit an Adult’s Taste, not the Child’s
Most children will not really care about the interior decoration of a room, but kids do present adults with an excuse to go bold with colors and design. Family rooms need to be inviting, so should incorporate some ‘warm’ colors, such as yellows, reds and greens. Try painting one wall a striking color to make a feature out of it, or paper it in a bold pattern. As children have a tendency to write on walls, use one of the new types of matte paint that are wipeable. Avoid using gloss or satin emulsion, as these will make the living room look institutional.
Big, plump cushions on the sofa and other seating will make the living-room inviting, as well as being an opportunity to place some accent colors. They will also be good for throwing on the floor to provide a bit of comfort for children if seating space becomes low.
Lay down laminate or wood flooring, as it is much easier to clean up spills on this than on carpet. Carpet harbors nasty dust mites and other bugs; so wood flooring is a healthier choice too.