The task of painting a child’s bedroom or playroom in your Washington DC home is an exciting one, no doubt bringing your inner child to the fore. When the little ones are at an age to make their preferences known, however, it can become an overwhelming project. Here we help you stick to the basics in order to ensure a safe, attractive environment for your child where they can let their creativity run free.
High-gloss finish for easy cleaning
Arguably the most important thing to consider when painting surfaces in a child’s room, but usually not the first on the list, is ease of cleaning. Choosing a paint with a high-gloss finish such as eggshell or satin is perfect for creating a bright, bold environment that will look great for more than a weekend. Ensuring your walls are washable will increase the lifetime of your paint job tenfold when constantly faced with grubby fingers and the odd wax crayon.
Bright colors for a fun and playful environment
Playrooms are havens for creativity and exploration, and the colors of the walls should reflect this. Choosing bright, exciting colors for these areas will stimulate your little one’s mind as they build imaginary worlds, and keep them interested for hours at a time. You can stick with a favorite color throughout, or be daring and combine complementary colors from opposite sides of the color wheel. Remember that primary colors are a good way to go when keeping kids interested, leaving the antique green and brass combination to the grown-ups.
Soft colors for a peaceful environment
Not all of your children’s areas should be encouraging energetic activity, however. Painting bedrooms and reading corners in softer colors, such as pastel blues or yellows, will create a calm, focused environment in which your child can settle down after a long day without too much fuss.
Interesting feature walls
Feature walls are a great way to bring dimension to a room, or demarcate lively play areas from more relaxed reading corners or sleeping areas. A classic go-to in a neutral room is a contrasting wall painted a bright, fun color. You can spruce up the feature wall further with specialized painted murals, or skip the hassle and opt for vinyl stickers instead. Vinyl cuts are easily available in a variety of ready-made designs, but are also widely custom made. Applied properly, vinyl stickers look like paint, but are easily peeled from the wall when desired. They leave no residue, allowing you to change up your child’s room design without the need for a repaint. One can even paint a feature wall with blackboard paint, creating an outlet for both artistic prowess as well as any inclinations towards drawing on walls.
Non-toxic and VOC free paint
It goes without saying that paints used throughout your home should be toxin free to ensure the safety of your family. Often overlooked, however, are VOCs, or volatile organic compounds, which are present in many low-quality paints. These are released as toxic fumes at room temperature, not only in the initial stages as the paint dries, but contributing to indoor air pollution for many years to come. VOCs are especially worrying in children’s rooms, causing respiratory problems, while some are known carcinogens. Be warned that tinting certain low-VOC paints increase their toxicity, so be sure to check with a professional rather than trusting what it says on the tin.