10 Tips to Make Your Apartment a Better Space to Raise Kids
Raising children is a tall enough task without throwing in the extra element of residing in a space designed mostly for adults. Few apartments are set up specifically with kids in mind, but that doesn’t mean you can’t transform them into child-friendly spaces. Just follow these 10 tips to make your existing apartment much more welcoming to little ones without renovating or moving:
- Bring an outdoor rug inside. Since they’re crafted to endure the elements, outdoor rugs are more durable than typical carpet or area rugs. That’s what makes them such an obvious choice for families. Kids can rough them up, spill, and play as much as they want—outdoor rugs can take it.
- Add floor seating. Children don’t experience the same aches and pains as their adult counterparts, so they’re perfectly happy to curl up on the floor. Add a few poufs or oversized pillows to your living room so that pint-sized guests can sprawl out when there’s not enough room on the sofa.
- Make a children’s library part of your decor. You probably have a slew of picture books scattered around the apartment right now. Instead of fighting an uphill battle to keep them tucked away in a chest or drawer, display the colorful covers as decorations. Devote a set of built-in shelves to a decorative children’s library, or buy a bookshelf for the same purpose.
- Designate a play area. Your apartment may not have an extra room to spare for the sake of the kids, but you can still section off a designated play area. Use a rug or pieces of furniture to box off a corner that’s specifically for toys and playtime so that your kids can feel like they have their own space in the apartment.
- Baby-proof. A big part of parenting is keeping your kids safe, so even if they’re a little bit older, make sure you’ve sufficiently baby proofed the apartment. This means putting locks on any floor-level cabinets that contain harmful cleaners and chemicals, as well as keeping medications well beyond arm’s reach.
- Frame their artwork. Kids want to feel like the apartment is as much their home as it is yours, so help them put their stamp on the place by framing and hanging cool pieces of art they make.
- Add greenery. Houseplants do more than just add color to a home. They can also teach children about responsibility if you task them with watering and caring for the plant. Plus, many common houseplants purify the air, which is just another added bonus.
- Regularly get rid of junk. Even kids don’t like clutter, though they might be more prone to letting it build up than you. Avoid this problem by going through your toys on a regular basis and donating any that the kids no longer use.
- Mix and match according to personalities. Even if your kids share a room, you can still pay tribute to their distinct personalities by decorating different sides of the room with disparate decorations. Use wall decals to add some temporary flair in each child’s favorite colors.
- Keep it comfortable. First and foremost, a child wants to be comfortable in her home. So no matter how you decorate your apartment, ensure that there are plenty of throw pillows, extra blankets, and other comfy elements.
10 Tips to Make Your Apartment a Better Space to Raise Kids In [New York Family]
How to Make Your Apartment More Kid-Friendly [Renter’s Insurance: Coffee Table]
10 Family-Friendly Decorating Tips You Didn’t Know [House Beautiful]
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