A lot of changes occur when you become a parent – From the physical changes within your body, to your almost non-existent social life and depleting bank balance too. Before you know it, dishes are piling up, you can’t move for all of the toys scattered across the floor and up the stairs (just me?) and mount washmore seems to be taking over the house and life! In all of this, and what I can only describe some days as chaos, it can often feel like your house will never look the same again.
I have a really distinct and bold/funky home style, and there sat day in day out in our neutral lounge, I reached a point where I felt I needed a bit more style to it. Our bedroom is just about done now (post coming soon), and the kitchen too, once I add some prints, but the place where we spend most of our family time just doesn’t have the exciting homely vibe I want from it. As a result, this weekend we cracked out the paint and have begun working on sprucing it up. Whilst we can’t yet afford to fit the much desired wood burner and flooring, painting and a new rug, curtains and accessories mean that it already is feeling a brighter and happier space for us all to enjoy.
With DIY and home style on my mind right now, here are some simple ideas to keep your home stylish when you have kids trying to undo everything.
Choose a dark colour scheme
When you have a house full of little people, choosing the right colour scheme becomes extremely important! Whether you’re raising a nutty, sticky-fingered toddler, or a careless six-year old (not referring to our kids at all there!), it can be hard to protect your furniture and flooring against the constant mess and spillages they somehow manage to create. I find that no matter how many times we say don’t eat in the lounge, or “take your shoes off” muddy prints and sticky fingers appear in those places.
However one thing I have discovered to help with this is a darker colour scheme – it can help you to disguise those accidental spills and stains and it is also very on trend and daring (win win)!
Darker colours such as navy, dark greens or darker patterned wallpapers and dark floral-patterned sofas and chairs, will expertly hide the daily mess kids can create. We recently did this in our kitchen, and I love the navy blue with dark tropical feature wall we went for. It not only brings style and personality to a plain country style kitchen, but it is easy to keep fresh with a young family!
Invest in clever storage
When raising kids, spills are not the only thing you need to worry about. If you are not careful then clutter also becomes a major obstacle in keeping a home looking stylish, whether this is from all of those toys strewn all over the floor, crafty bits and puzzle pieces everywhere, or just the usual clothing scattered around the house. I find that keeping it tidy can prove extremely difficult if things don’t have a place, and that’s where clever storage comes in useful.
In our old house we had a huge basket hamper in the lounge for all of the toys and it was so useful. Now however they have the Killax storage from Ikea in their rooms with toys themed in various boxes inside. Looking out for stylish decorative storage baskets in thrift shops, homesense or at car boots, are also a great idea to keep toys and books organised, or fold in tights and socks on a shelf.
For the porch or bedrooms then you can also invest in stylish clothes rails and stands from a company such as Cox & Cox , and we find our wooden chest really useful to lob in all the shoes in the porch!
Whatever your home style though, you are sure to find lots of stylish storage options out there which can help keep the home looking neat and whilst bringing a piece of style to the room too.
Pay attention to materials
Fabrics are a quick and easy way to bring style and personality to a home! I currently have a few metres of dalmation looking fabric in my sewing box, awaiting to be made into new cushion covers for the lounge. Its is thrifty and effective and I love how personal it feels to make things for my home!
More recently I dyed the kitchen blind navy and added pink pom-poms. These small and cheap things really bring style to a family home on a budget!
If you are not that crafty, then I would advise that when choosing decorative fabrics and materials, it’s best to stick to things that more resilient and easier to clean than others. Vinyl flooring for example or a leather sofa are especially great choices for the busy family home due to their easy maintenance, affordability and stylish design, and if you can simply wipe away spills, or throw fabrics right in the washing machine, it’s going to help to keep the home looking stylish, clean and lovely with minimal effort.
Rugs are another way to add style and cover up stained carpets or protect wood floors with kids around.
Add some plants
Plants in funky plant pots or baskets, along with succulents, are very stylish right now. You can buy them all over (I just got one on Saturday in Lidl for £1.99) and I have a few in each room (and are on the hunt for more – provided I can keep them alive), but I find that plants are a great way to bring style and joy to any home.
These are just a couple of tips you can follow to keep your family home more stylish and clutter free. The best thing about them is that they require very minimal effort and are thrifty ways to make a huge difference to your life and environment.
*This is a collaborative post
