One of the things that we liked the most about this home when we first saw it was the big basement. Gone would be the days of toys up in the family room…or so we thought. I’ve come to admit, and appreciate, that your kids just want to be with you. And try as you might as a parent, you can’t escape the Lego/Barbie/puzzle/bricks/trucks/rainbow loom, no matter which room you come and go from. The compromise for us as parents was to create a family room that was to our tastes, but was totally child friendly.
There is nothing worse than worrying that your furniture is going to get trashed by sticky fingers and sippy cup spills. When we redesigned this room, we were sure to include fabrics and finishes that could stand the test of time, more or less. Nothing is too precious or off-limits anywhere in our home and the family room is where we all gather at the end of the day. We needed it to be stylish, but still offer some space to play with some storage for toys.
The old pine dresser stores videos, books, and some toys for the babies. It is a vintage piece that belonged to my Great-Grandmother. My mom refinished it years ago, stripping off years of paint and leaving the old knobs. You can’t ruin this piece…it’s seen years of love, and thus is forgiving for things like scratches and dents. Colouring books, pencils, puzzles and the like get stuffed into drawers, and then are hidden from view. The tables are glass topped…and wipe up fast! There size, 36″ round, is perfect for puzzling, and they aren’t too big to store junk atop of them. A small, contained table to play on? Sign me up!
The chairs are comfortable and are fairly stain resistant. In addition, since there is a pattern in the fabric, they are a little forgiving when sticky fingers leave their imprint. The rugs are jute, easy to vacuum and easy to clean. Not too pretty or too fancy, and entirely durable and surprisingly comfortable.
Family rooms are just that…for your family. Might as well embrace everyone in the family and create a warm and welcoming area to entertain even the messiest little people! Since we have two ‘zones’ in this room, this area serves itself best as the zone for fun.
There is only one rule…the chair side is for play. The other side of the room is for chilin’ out, lying down and watching movies and for tidy tabletops…momma needs her flowers after all! You can have order in your home with your babies, so long as everyone’s needs are considered 😉
Make it Your Own, and You Make it Your Home.
Categories: Contemporary Styling, Decorating, Vintage
Stylish Life & Home 
I keep saying how wonderful the house is. It’s beautifully decorated but most importantly is extremely comfortable and friendly. Not shy about coming in and sitting down. A welcome place for all of us. Job well done!!! Ma.XO
Date: Fri, 13 Mar 2015 14:43:03 +0000 To: toni.gourley@sympatico.ca
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Thanks Mom. In our home, we live what we learned…
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It’s also a great conversational area seeing how the chairs are set up 😉
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Absolutely! We love it, both kids and adults 😉
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Great to hear 😉
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