Excellent organization and storage space is a must for any child’s room, particularly if more than one child shares the bedroom. With all the toys, books and clothes a child accumulates over time, it`s easy to end up with a cluttered, messy bedroom. While classic organization and storage strategies may work up to a point, you may have to think outside the box if you want your children to keep the room neat.

Sturdy Bookshelf

A bookshelf may seem obvious, but what you need is a small, well-made bookshelf in a neutral tone for your children to display their prize possessions on. The look of the bookshelves will change over time, reflecting your child’s interests, if the pieces are neutral and don’t detract from the shelved items.

For shared bedrooms, you could get each child a small shelf or assign a shelf to each child on the same bookshelf. This gives each child personal space despite the shared room and a spot to store important objects.

If you can afford it and the bedroom layout permits, install a built-in bookcase to enhance storage space even further and add a bit of modern flair to the bedroom. Built-in bookcases are a solid choice if you’ve got children sharing space.

Portable Storage

A fun way to add storage to the room while inspiring your children to keep the room clean is portable storage. Consider personalized metal containers, which you can have customized for each child. You can then assign specific toys to the bucket for storage. For example, the stuffed animals your child must have in bed at night could stay in the bucket when not in use.

Polished wooden crates and boxes are another way to maximize space. Each child in the room can slide their crate or box under their bed when not in use, cutting down on floor clutter.

Wall Options

Wall-mounted hooks are an easy way to keep your child’s coats off the floor and out of the way when not in use. You can add your child’s name to a hook with a backing piece to eliminate confusion over which hook is which in a shared bedroom.

Wall shelving is a good option for a small room. Install wall shelves over each child’s bed to create special, dedicated storage space. Your child can store special objects here if the bookshelves are too full or if they want the item nearby at bedtime. Personalize wall shelving by painting or adding removable decorations that reflect the interest of the child.

Unique Pieces

Don’t be afraid to consider unique storage pieces for your child’s room. Children are more likely to use and respond to storage or organizational aids that are creative and fun. Try asking your children what they would like to have in their room for storage and use elements from their ideas.

Jazz up traditional organizational aids or storage items to make cleaning fun. For example, you could paint bookshelves with colors that reflect the items that belong on the shelf or use sponge paints to add to the design for the items. Before painting, make sure the other coverings in the room, such as the curtains or Venetian blinds, complement the colors you’ve picked for the storage solutions.

Another baby on the way? Then maybe it’s time to search for a bigger house. But if you are struggling to sell the place you’re in, then my advice is to do a lot of work, spend a bit of money – but don’t waste big money on the structure as the likelihood is you won’t get it back.

But you don’t need to take my word for it. According to a recent study by HSBC Bank, there are lots of things that do add value to your home and they’ve helpfully put an average figure on each. The list looks like this:

• Loft conversion £20,876
• Room extension £16,069
• Conservatory£8,233
• New kitchen £5,617
• New windows £5,265
• New bathroom £3,351
• Redecorate house £3,229
• Re-surface driveway £2,876
• Re-carpet house £2,153

Now bear in mind this is an overall average; so you really need to judge for yourself how much any of these changes will add to the value of your home. But if they aren’t going to add as much to the value as they’re going to cost, then they simply aren’t worth doing – even if they help the place sell. You’d be far better advised to drop the price a little and save yourself the hassle.

But there’s a major exception, for me, from the list above – which is redecorating. Redecorating needn’t be complex and involved; most of us can have a go and do a reasonable job in the process. For the sake of a few tins of paint and some elbow grease, the increase in value and improvement in a home’s saleability is quite remarkable.

The other thing that can’t really be priced accurately is ambiance. By kitting your place out with new furniture (after you’ve decorated) that, remember, you’re going to take with you to the next place – you can really make a difference to the feel of a place. So a quick trip to the sofas sale to pick up something you really like –or perhaps a cheap dining table and chairs can really make a difference to the ambiance, help you sell – and you can take it with you; something of a “win-win” as they say!

There is nothing quite as exciting as preparing for the birth of a child, especially if it is the first one. Naturally, parents will want to get the nursery prepared in plenty of time – and much planning will go into this.

Many parents, though, make the mistake of not planning far enough ahead. While it is naturally great to have everything geared to dealing with the needs of a newborn baby, complete with cot, baby-bath set and changing table, cuddly toys and cute motives on every bit of furniture and on the walls, parents need to remember that their child will not be this small for long.

Few families can afford to completely change a child’s furniture every couple of years, so it is better to think ahead and buy furniture wisely. A well-organised child’s room will have a good, solid toy box, shelves for toys and books, some kind of wardrobe and clothes drawers and a table and chair. Enough room to replace the cot with a regular bed at some point will have to be allowed for, too.

These basic items of furniture will cater for the needs of a child at least up to the age of 10, leaving only the need to redecorate and maybe change accessories from time to time, as the child grows out of cute teddy bear motives into football, Spiderman, Bratz or High School Musical paraphernalia. Essentially, the main point to remember is that colours need to be bright and cheerful, as they will influence the child’s moods and that space and inspiration to play and be creative need to be provided.

There is a world of different types of kid’s furniture out there, and shopping around a little will not only help parents find the right kind of furniture for their requirements, they will also be able to find some excellent deals. The ability to do much of this shopping on the computer will save a lot of time and legwork, while simultaneously opening up a much wider choice of possibilities.

The best way to go ahead is to draw up a plan of what needs to be purchased immediately, what can maybe be added at a later date and set an overall budget to prevent going overboard to begin, before struggling to add further necessities later. Planning ahead like this, taking the time to compare options and weighing up their benefits and drawbacks as carefully as comparing prices will ultimately help to save a lot of time, work and of course money.

Speaking of money; this may also be a good time to consider some different opportunities of providing for future needs. There will always be something else that needs to be added or changed as a child grows into a teenager. Comparing some good easy access accounts now will help to deal with the ever-increasing demands a growing family will put on the family’s finances.

Ebrar is a personal finance writer specialising in frugal topics, and writes for Savings.co.uk

Parents always want to make a comfortable and special room for their kid’s room, no matter how small their house is. Most of the parents living in small houses cannot afford to allot huge space for their children’s room and they always try to find means to make the available space look bigger and better by the dint of hard work and creativity.

Children’s room is always over flowing with toys which makes the room look even smaller than it actually is. Though, you can try different deceptive techniques with lighting or paint colours to fool the eye. All that can work like a charm but if you won’t make any wise furniture or arrangement related decisions, you might end up messing the look of the entire room.

I am suggesting some tips to play with the furniture of your child’s room to make it look bigger.

Use multi-function furniture

Multi-functional furniture serves many purposes and occupies very less space. You can use a chest that serves the purpose of drawers, bed and sofa at the same time.     Chests can also be used as a tiny dining table. If your children need chairs in the room, then it is best to go with folding chairs which can be tucked away under the bed.

Prefer fixing bunk beds

A bunk bed is a special type of bed, in which one bed is stacked over another bed. A loft bed is also a type of bunk bed in which there is only one bunk at the top with an open space underneath allowing the space to be utilized by placing drawers, chest or study tables. Bunk beds leaves a lot of space and make the overall room look quite bigger.

Fix furniture away from walkways

Don’t block the walkways by placing furniture as it makes the room look cramped. Try to fix the furniture on the sides and along the walls leaving good space in the middle of the room. In this way, you will open up good space which makes the room look spacious. Always use small furniture in the kids’ room according to the size of the room and needs of your children.

Match furniture with the paint
Always match the furniture with the paint of the room. If you cannot match the entire furniture with the paint of walls, try to match at least some pieces. This creates a feeling of comfort and blends even the bigger furniture items into the room to make it look spacious. If you cannot match even a single furniture items with the walls, consider placing matching designs onto the furniture.

Set furniture along diagonal line
When you place the furniture along the longest straight line of the room, it makes people notice the longest straight line without considering the short walls of the room at first glance. The longest straight line of every room is always its diagonal so set the furniture diagonally. Not only it makes the room look bigger but it also leaves good space on the corners behind the items.
Prefer furniture which leaves free space

Your choice of furniture should be such that it leaves good space in the room. Don’t select tall furniture as it makes the ceiling look lower than it actually is. Kid’s room must have a study table. Try to choose the one with heavy glass which allows light to pass under the table and makes the room look brighter and wider. Moreover, try to fix the chairs with exposed legs that cover minimum space.

Play with the furniture by following above tips and make your children’s room heaven in very limited space.

Susan Smith has over 18 years of experience in wholesale furniture, which he is too keen to share by writing for various blogs frequently. Some of his favourite topics include supply chain management, trading and wholesale trading.

This is a guest post by Katie Miller, an interior architect who regularly blogs about home and interior design topics at Roomations.com. Roomations connects you with interior designers online for personalized design recommendations, including personal shopping lists for products at mainstream retailers like Pottery Barn, Land of Nod and IKEA.

Having two or more kids share a room can be difficult, especially if your kids are different ages or genders. As an added frustration, many parents that didn’t plan to have their kids share a room are now finding themselves in a too-small home as a matter of circumstance. Perhaps you were hoping to sell your starter home and move into a bigger place, or maybe you’ve been forced to downsize or even move in with other family members as a result of the current economy. If you’re in any of these situations, stay positive and focused on the benefits of your kids sharing a room. According to parenting expert Lynne Reeves Griffin, RN, Med, “sharing a bedroom encourages them to learn to negotiate a relationship both can be happy with. How to share or decorate the room teaches your children to co-operate towards a common goal.” To help your kids share and cooperate instead of driving each other crazy, follow these five decorating secrets to a successful shared kids room.

1. Resist the Temptation to Decorate with Matching Items

Decorating a room for two kids would be so easy if all you had to do was get two of everything—matching beds, matching comforters, matching bookcases, matching desks—but its not likely to make your kids happy. Although matching items will certainly make for a well-coordinated room, to your kids it overemphasizes the fact that they are stuck together – not just in space and but also in style. Look for ways to unify the room while still allowing your kids to showcase their unique identities. Let you kids choose the styles they like then coordinate materials or colors to make different furniture pieces look like they belong together in the same room. The bed set below from Rooms To Go is an example of a space-saving furniture piece that has a unifying dark wood finish, but totally different types of beds. The full size lower bed may help an older sibling feel like they are being treated more like a “grown up” while the upper loft bed may be the perfect adventure for a younger sibling.

If one kid likes black and the other likes pink, figure out how to create a color composition for the room that incorporates both, but doesn’t necessarily impose one kid’s tastes on the other. Better yet, have your kids decide on two to three colors that they both like, then let them use those colors in different ways for their bedspread and accessories.

Also allow each child to have some sort of unique theme for their portion of the room. For younger children, choosing a different animal theme or sports team for each is one way to accomplish this. For example, these hanging wall organizers from Land of Nod are similar, but if you let each child choose their favorite animal they will feel a sense of ownership and personal connection.

2. Give Each Child Some Space of Their Own

Having ones own bed, desk, dresser, closet, etc. helps a kid feel like they don’t have to share everything, which is important to getting along with their sibling. It can also help them feel like they have a little bit of privacy. Be sure to set ground rules that help your kids respect each other’s privacy.

This bedroom set from Walmart.com has a built in dresser, desk, cabinet and bookshelf and is a space-efficient way of creating a personal space for a child sharing a room with a sibling.

3. Address Common Causes of Conflict like Bedtimes and Cleanliness

There are a number of common causes of conflict for kids sharing a room, so you might as well address them now. If one kid is an obsessive compulsive neat freak and the other is more, uh, “creative” about where they put their clothes and other belongings, then you’re bound to have conflict. Address this common problem by giving each child separate places to store their belongings, such as separate dressers and closets. If you don’t have two closets in the room, a simple solution is to purchase an armoire, such as the one below from Pottery Barn Kids. Then make an extra effort to ensure that both your kids are cleaning up after themselves regularly.

Another common issue is that kids sharing a room may not go to bed at the same time, or one might like to read before they go to bed while the other likes to listen to music. Get at least two task lights, such as the Snoig lamp from IKEA, so that one child can stay up and read or do homework while the other can sleep in darkness. Also make sure your kids have headphones so they can listen to music without disturbing their sibling.

4. Make the Room Feel Larger with Space-Saving Strategies

Part of the frustration of sharing a room is simply the fact that it’s hard to be in tight quarters with another person. Cleanliness and organization conflicts also get exaggerated when a small space makes one toy left out of place feel like a mess. Many of the images included in this post show space saving strategies, such as loft beds, hanging wall organizers and wall-mounted lighting. Basically, any space saving strategy that you can use elsewhere in the house applies when kids are sharing a room. And because kids often like creative configurations of furniture and accessories, you have even more opportunity to make the room feel larger.

In addition getting things of the floor with loft or bunk beds and wall-mounted lamps or organizers, consider using closet organizers and under-bed storage to get the most of the space you have. If you don’t like loft or bunk beds, consider using a trundle bed drawer as a place for storage. Land of Nod sells organizers designed to fit any of their trundle beds.

5. Have Another Place in Your Home For Your Kids

Lastly, be sure to create other spaces in your home where you kids can spend time either together or separately. Just because your kids sleep in the same room doesn’t mean they need to spend all their time there. Sometimes your kids need to be in separate rooms, if just for a few hours to do homework or spend time with a friend. If you have the space, you might have a room in your house that’s a dedicated playroom. If not, make sure your family room, kitchen table, or computer room is a welcoming place for your kids when they need a spot to hangout with others or just be by themselves.

A lack of hand hygiene can contribute to the spread of seasonal flu and other illnesses, and can be a contributory factor in cases of food poisoning. But in a survey of 3,000 parents carried out by the Co-operative Pharmacy, it was found that 75% don’t remind their children to wash their hands before eating, and one in five parents don’t ensure that their children wash their hands after using the toilet.

Even where parental supervision is spot on, the bathroom can be an unwelcoming place for children: inaccessible and uninteresting. Making a bathroom more child-friendly can help improve a child’s hygiene practices: if a room is set up to make hand washing and other tasks simple and fun, there’s a very good chance that most children will adopt good practices – then stick to these habits throughout their life.

So, what can you do to make a bathroom with fitted bathroom furniture more appealing and user-friendly for your kids?

First of all, the basics. Basins are frequently difficult for a child to reach: a vessel basin sits on a washstand between 700 and 900mm high and, crucially, is also tucked back onto a flat surface that the child must reach across. A simple, brightly coloured step will not get in your way too much, and makes it far easier for a child to get level with the basin. Choose interestingly coloured and scented soap too, in an ergonomically designed dispenser: a sleek, neutral design might look great in your minimalist, pre-child bathroom, but it’s not crying out to be used by an infant!

If you’re refitting your bathroom, choose easy to operate taps so that your child can regulate the flow of water themselves without difficulty – they’ll be more satisfied that they’ve not needed help, and you’ll be happy when they’ve not sprayed water everywhere because the lever was difficult to operate!

In terms of accessories, try giving your children appealingly designed items that are just for them to use – their own bright hand towel (only to be used after they’ve washed their hands properly with soap and water, of course), toys to make bath time a little more fun, and waterproof bath books so you can aim for educational and hygienic in one fell swoop. Remember to keep bath toys clean, though – an extraordinary amount of bacteria or mildew can build up even on a simple rubber duck if you don’t attend properly to cleanliness.

Don’t forget to make sure that potentially harmful items such as medicines are kept out of the way in your child-friendly space: bathroom cabinets are often a child-proof feature of a bathroom, situated high up on a wall, well out of reach.

Tight on space or looking for something unique? More than just a bunk bed, a loft bedroom takes a room to multiple levels, providing kids with extra space for a desk or play areas. Here are some of the best loft designs we’ve seen!

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