Shared Spaces: Oh, Brother

The best part about this shared space is that it works equally well for a 3 year old or a 13 year old. When creating any room, it’s important to think about how your needs and tastes might change as your children grow. That way you can invest in pieces that will transition from preschool to high school.

In this example, the simple pattern on the bedding is a great transitional element. It can be mixed with a variety of blankets and each child can personalize their bed with throw pillows or stuffed animals. It also has a lot of nice colors in it, which you can draw from to decorate the rest of the space.

And, let’s not ignore the obvious shared space solution, a bunk bed. This is a great space saver, and what kid doesn’t dream of having a bunk bed! Just remember that for safety reasons the top bunk needs to be reserved for kiddos that are 6 or older. The option shown here is a twin-over-full configuration. This would be great if you had two children of different ages. Your pre-teen can stretch out on the full size bottom bunk, while your elementary school kiddo can take the top bunk.

The use of a bunk saves floor space, which will allow for bookcases, desks and dressers that you need for the kids. You can also add a storage trundle under the bottom bunk for even more clothes and toy storage.  After all, have you ever met a parent that didn’t want more storage space?

By Danielle Kurtz

Danielle is the Creative Director at Nod and an over-protective mother of two. She’s also completely obsessed with Pinterest, Twitter and her Kindle, but not necessarily in that order. Danielle loves to craft, sew and crochet, but all her supplies have a layer of dust on them about 5-years-thick, wonder if it's just a coincidence that her oldest kiddo is 5 years old?