I do not decorate a lot, but I decided this summer to help my kids both deep clean and redo their rooms. It’s been only 4 years since we painted, so I didn’t want to do that again, but I figured it was time for a new theme and some deep cleaning. Designing a kid’s theme room can actually be pretty simple and inexpensive with a little planning.
Rather than overwhelming myself, I split the redecorating into 6 weeks. Each week, the kids and I deep cleaned one area of the room and added something according to the theme.
Curtains
First, we cleaned the windows and put up new curtains. The Lego curtains are from some fabric I bought on eBay. I made the mermaid curtains from a flat sheet I already had. Cost: $20, free.
Decals
Next, we scrubbed the walls with Magic Erasers, wiped them down with rags, and put up decals. I had the kids remove everything from the walls that wasn’t in a frame. We scraped off lots of sticky tack, crumpled artwork, and tape. Yuck. I got the Lego and mermaid decals from Amazon. Cost: $12.99, $10.99. (There are 6 Lego decals total. Not all the mermaid decals are shown in this picture. They are located on 3 walls in the room.)
Door Signs
We then scrubbed and wiped down the doors with Magic Erasers and added door signs. I got these from eBay and Amazon. Cost: $9.32, $12.87.
Pillowcases
Next, I washed all the bedding and put on brand new pillowcases (not pictured). The boys’ pillowcases were free from one of James’s students and happened to match the theme of the room. I already had 2 mermaid pillowcases from the mermaid sheet set, so they match the curtains.
Decorated Frames
Then, we decorated picture frames and made name meanings to hang up. The boys chose Legoes for their frames. I used shells from my childhood in Florida to decorate the frames for the girls’ room. All it took was some hot glue and a set of cheap frames from Walmart. Cost: $6.44 (with one frame left over)
Light Switch Covers
Last, we cleaned/organized the closets and installed new light switch covers. They weren’t the cheapest, but they are really cute. Both the Lego and mermaid covers are from Amazon. Cost: $13.95, $10.95.
Finished Theme Rooms
I had the kids choose each week what they wanted to do. Sometimes, it just depended on how much time we had to devote to each task. It was a lot of fun to see the final result, and the kids were more than happy to help deep clean.
More pictures, complete with a cute toddler making silly faces. Despite the glare, he loves the “Ledoes”.
Total cost after tax: $105 for both rooms, or $52.50 each!
Now, what to do with the rest of summer? Making theme rooms was really fun, so I don’t know how we’re going to top that.