kids room Archives - Joanna Anastasia

kids room

Toddler room update

February 20, 2020 / Home decor / 0 comment

This past weekend I decided that it’s time for a little toddler room update! We where all a bit tired with the blue mural that was on the wall and while I’m not ready to take Julien out of the crib- he’s a year an a half and I still need him contained in that crib – he does need more space for toys and play.

When I first design this room over a year ago, I wanted a statement wall that would set a tone for his room. But the thing is that sometimes statements are a bit too strong, and after awhile you get tired of them!

So this past weekend, with a bit of help from my mother in law, we did a makeover in Julien’s nursery!

We painted the walls this fresh mint green, that funny enough was not my first colour choice! It’s actually a proof that sometimes design mistakes are positive coincidences! See, I was picking up paint on a whim, with 3 kids in tow, and was sure that the sample I choose was more blueish and greenish. I compared all the samples in pale natural light of my local Canadian Tire and decided that this should do. And while this is not the pale bluish green I was going for, and it’s definitely mint and nothing else, in end we all like it anyway !

Then we moved furniture around, and all of the sufdden the room feels much bugger!

And I added these rainbow decals from Rocky Mountain Decals! They where super easy to instal, and I think they look really cute in here! Best thing about these decals is that they are easy to take off and stick somewhere else, so for a serious redecorator like me they are the best option! ( plus, they don’t damage walls!)

I’m really happy with those colourful rainbow decals and the half wall of colour – they’re fun together and add character to this room- but don’t overwhelm the space as the big mural did!

And now this room feels fresh, is more toddler friendly and definitely feels a bit bigger! ️And all it took was a bit of paint and fun decals!

Vintage floral girls bedroom makeover

June 18, 2019 / Home decor / 0 comment

As you know ever since we had our third baby we had to get really creative space wise. We live in a rather small city cottage, and before starting basement renovations we had three bedrooms in between all the kids, us two and the playroom ( plus the living /dining room). So last year once I installed the nursery in the upstairs room next to our master bedroom, I had to put together a shared bedroom for my girls with all their toys and all their clothes in it. I went for the bunk beds and decided to organize a transitional room, that will be for both sleep and play, deciding that the moment our basement will be finished we’ll separate once again the playroom from the bedroom.

Well, we couldn’t be happier- this moment has come! No more mess of toys mixed with clothes, no more bed-changing acrobatics ( bunk beds are the worst if you ask me) and no more uncomfortable story time time on the lower bunk bed.

Here’s the before photo of this room- yes it was cute, but no, it wasn’t what was working for us at all!

Girls where asking me to get them two beds to be able to cuddle with us right after I got them the bunks, and I just love the look of two matching beds- because let’s be honest, two matching beds mean double the coziness!

So since this is supposed to be their calm place for sleep , reading and snuggles, I decided to go for a more sweet & vintage vibe.

Not to mention the fact that my girls really asked for a girly room. So the floral decals from Urban Walls have set the tone for this space- with their soft pinks and peaches they look absolutely gorgeous! I love how they are printed, looking almost as if they where painted on the wall, and they where so easy to install – I was done within an hour!

The choice of new girls beds was a no brainer- I wanted a pretty vintage frame, preferably white and most importantly extendable- so I could save as much space as possible!

And the only place offering these kind of beds is Ikea! I love how these beds can be set on three different lengths ( toddler/ big kid/ teen) and that in the end they will turn in to regular twin size!

They come with an extensible mattresses that my girls have unanimously called most comfortable ever- so I’m assured they will sleep well in here!

I have also changed a lamp, for this simple Ikea one– I love the soft light and the classic design of it! See, I wanted something that would lead your eye up ( which always gives an impression of a bigger room) and simple enough to give the new beds and the floral wall all the attention they deserve.

I also added this new wardrobe for all the dresses and sweaters my girls own- it fits perfectly behind the doors and it’s so spacious inside!

As for the little night table I got it from my neighbors who where cleaning their basement and have left in in front of their home on the sidewalk! If you ask me I think it looks so cute with the new metal beds, it adds a bit of whimsy vintage vibe- I couldn’t be happier!

The other side of the room haven’t changed much- except that you won’t find toys falling off the dresser anymore!

I wasn’t as happy doing a makeover in a while now- this room has a vintage floral vibe, is cozy, bright and calming and most of all, well organized!
And my girls are both thrilled to be sleeping in two matching beds in the cutest floral room they have ever seen! And of course, that’s the most important part!

Disclosure- I have been gifted products for this bedroom makeover, all opinions remain exclusively my own.

New shared bedroom reveal

September 28, 2018 / Home decor / 0 comment

With baby Julien joining our family this earlier this summer, it was time for a change – we needed that upstairs bedroom that girls used to share, for a nursery. And so there was no other option then to turn the downstairs playroom/ occasional guest room in to an all in one girls shared bedroom!

However, the biggest challenge was the tight space and the absence of build in closet! Not to mention the amount of toys that it had to fit in (since our basement is still in construction , there’s no other playroom for now!).

But, I knew that with a bit of an effort, this could be a perfect European style, sleep-and play room for my girls!

Here’s how this space used to look only two weeks ago:

And here’s how it looks now:

And here are the changes I made:

I sold all of their bedroom furniture, and some playroom once too, and with that money I got new. No, not because I like shopping that much, but simply because instead of trying to fit in too big furniture in a tight space, I decided to go for the most ergonomic solution possible.
And that leads us to bunk beds! A piece of furniture I never thought I’d get, as I used to think they are too bulky and heavy for our small space. But it was really the only solution, and in the end I love it here! And that leads us to..
All white furniture! This is not a surprise, since I have a lot of white furniture in our home – that’s because, again, our space is small, and with white furniture and colorful accents it feels bigger!
A low six drawer dresser instead of a high one that we had – that as you might notice has not much going on on top of it- that’s because in reality it serves as a space to play with playmobil and figurines – my girls favourite play! Plus, I found these zebras knobs that has instantly added character to the simple dresser.
New reading nook. We have a big collection of kids books, that didn’t fit in this room, so why I decided to re-use the long thin shelves that used to be hanging above their beds in their old bedroom, for the “Books of the month” display. That way every month we’ll be switching the books that we read before bed time, and they’ll actually get to see better what we have ( in stead of reading over and over the same onse!) . And I think this will encourage them even more to sit ( on that adorable donut pillow) and read alone!
Baskets for larger stiffies and dolls – my girls are nowhere close of getting rid of their stuffies collection (that used to just hang out on the guest sofa in here before- aka being a huge mess) Now, with colorful baskets it looks so much more cleaner and is a breeze to clean up!
Big IKEA bookshelf with all the toys hid in baskets. I decided to move it from sunroom here, and boy what a difference it made! They used to have more than half of their toys on display here, that resulted both mess, and them saying “I’m bored” why too often. Because since I stopped with the toy rotation ( the basement renovation made me do it – had no more space to store toys anymore) they would see all their toys at once, and feel overwhelmed. So now, they are all stored and hidden. And it makes clean up easier too.

See, this room is definitely not big, but I think it responds perfectly to their needs: there’s place to sleep, space to read, and space to play. And they still get to be close, which if you ask them, is the best part!

And if you’re curious about the resources then here they are:

Bunk bed, dresser and pink rug- Wayfair
The bookshelf with it’s baskets, shelves, frames and the play kitchen- Ikea
Wall hanging and blue basket- Homesense
Baskets – the yellow one: Lorena Canal rugs; the gold one -Souris Mini
The doughnut pillow :Souris Mini
Prints- mix of free printables ( pinned here) my own printables ( here and here) and my paintings.

What to do when your child has nightmares

October 26, 2016 / Lifestyle / 4 Comments

We all know that real happiness for a parent, is nothing more than a child that falls easily asleep, and stays a sleep all night! And so once the baby phase have passed, I thought that the sleep issues are over. But my both daughters have very vivid imagination, which is amazing during their play time, as they can amuse themselves for hours! But when it’s bedtime, and they can’t fall asleep because they’re scared of nightmares, or they wake up in tears, than it’s rather heartbreaking.

That’s why I’ve been trying for months to find a perfect solution to this problem, and here’s what I came up with:

1. Bedtime routine that involves talking about their day

Small kids need routine to feel secure, and even more so, kids who tend to have nightmares. So make sure your child goes to sleep at the same time every night, and that they follow at least two steps of routine before falling asleep ( like bath, then potty, then story time and cuddle, or potty, washing teeth with mom, story and cuddle) Make sure your child knows what are the steps, and what will happen next.

After you finished their bedtime routine, and once your kid is ready to fall asleep, talk about their day. Ask them what they liked the most and what they liked the least. And if there was something that surprised them or scared.

That’s the opportunity for them to talk about any scary and surprising events of the day. And talking about anything that provoked strong emotions, will help your child deal with it better, and therefore avoid nightmares!

3. Introduce magical objects.

Young kids under six/seven years of age, don’t think with the same logic as adults, which is called magical thinking. (And thanks to that, they can feel reassured with mommy kisses when they’re hurt!)

And that’s why I got a white plush unicorn for my daughters room, and introduced it as a Night Guardian of Dreams! Lili and Rose love it and are convinced now that bad dreams can’t get to them anymore because of Clara, the Night Guardian (yes the unicorn real name is Clara).

I got it from Brooklyns Room, a Canadian based kids accessory boutique ( where you can choose among other animals like flamingos and lions) It hangs upon my daughters beds, and it’s as soft and fluffy as at can get, while being calming and reassuring in their eyes! Honestly it’s one of the best decorating decisions I made to date!

Also, when I ask them with which little animal they wan’t to be sleeping and dreaming sweet dreams, there seem to be some that have more “magical powers” then others. So for example, lately the most magical of all is this little tooth pillow, and they are both taking turns for sleeping with it!

4. Reassure.

Let them know that even if they would end up having a nightmare, they are not alone, and that they are safe. Tell them that they can always come and cuddle you (or call you), and promise to lave that small light on. Tell them it happens to you too, and tell them how you deal with it. ( Do you get up to drink water, do you turn around and cuddle?). Let them know it’s normal and that it will pass.

So know, before falling asleep Lili will always point on the Clara the unicorn and reassure Rose that it will protect them! And while I’m always there for them, I’m happy to see that they feel safer and that they sleep better too.

Disclosure: This article was brought to you by Brooklyns Room, all opinions remain my own!

3 simple ways for adding character to kids bedroom

July 18, 2016 / Home decor / 4 Comments

When I was redoing my girls shared bedroom, I was sure I wanted their furniture and wall colour to be neutral and calm, so I wouldn’t have to redecorate and change the furniture anytime soon. I decided for all white classical style, thinking of it as my first layer of decoration, the layer that’s there to stay. But then, as much as neutrals are gorgeous, I felt like my girls room needed some fun accessories for this extra punch of character!
So here’s when I decided to add colours, and of course accessories.

Because when you need to add character to your child’s bedroom, here’s all you have to do:

1. Choose a colour palette.

Decide on 3 to 5 colours that you’ll be repeating in bedding, prints, pillows and rugs.
My pallet for my girls room is white, pastel yellow, mint, pastel blue and coral.

2. Get cute pillows.

Instead of investing in pricey bedding that you’ll be stuck with once your kid will get bored, get some simple and neutral bedding and accessorize it with cute and fun pillows!

I found mine at Two Little Tadpoles, and my daughters love them! They’re extremely soft, and they add the whimsical touch that this room needed!

3. Let the prints make a statement.

Instead of painting your kids room in flashy colors (that are more likely to annoy you after awhile) choose a neutral wall color and hang lots of fun and colorful prints ! I got mine on Pinterest, all for free! (you can check them here)

And if you’d ask my girls what is it that they like the most about their bedroom, they’d probably say that they love falling asleep in the same room. And waking up to cloud pillow fights!