Kids and clutter seem to go hand-in-hand which can make maintaining a beautiful family room a challenge. If you have kids, you do not have to sacrifice on style! Here are five tips to keep in mind when creating a family room that everyone can enjoy.
Kid-friendly Walls
Choosing a washable paint sheen is a great way to kid-proof your paint job. A paint color in eggshell, satin or semigloss will easily clean up with mild soap and a damp rag. If you prefer a matte finish, flat paints have the benefit of touch-up painting without the presence of brush marks. There are even new “washable” flat paints on the market that allow for damp sponge clean-up. Â Chalkboard, magnetic, and dry erase paints can be purchased at your local home improvement store to create a fun opportunity for kids to safely write on the walls.Â
Chalkboard gallery wall strip via Shelterpop.
Kid-friendly Couches
Leather couches, slip-covered furniture, and sunbrella fabrics are all fantastic options for your family room furniture! Many furniture companies offer stain-resistant fabric options, or will Scotchgard your furniture for an additional fee. Keep in mind that darker colored furniture will typically wear better than lighter furniture; however, white slipcovers can be bleached.
Couch above in sunbrella fabric. Picture via Nest Egg.
I purchased leather couches for our living room eight years ago (when I found out I was pregnant). Eight years, two boys, and two dogs later, they are still in good condition!
via Home Stories A to Z
When I’m craving a lighter look, I simply place slip-covers over the sofas which can be washed and bleached as needed.
Kid-friendly Coffee Tables
Almost every parent has had the experience of watching their toddler fall, or near-miss the corner of a coffee table. In order to create a safer environment, consider using a round table, upholstered ottoman, or a few poufs in place of a traditional rectangular coffee table.
via myhomeideas.com
Tip: If you have a wooden rectangular coffee table, you can turn it into an upholstered ottoman! To see how, follow this step-by-step tutorial by Five Days 5 Ways.
via Five Days 5 Ways
Kid-friendly Flooring
Dirt, spills, dust, dog hair, and crumbs are typically part of family life. Keep things simple by installing washable flooring such as tile, wood, laminate, and vinyl. If you prefer carpet, you might want to consider carpet tiles which enable you to clean soiled squares or replace as needed.
Good options for family room rugs are natural fiber rugs such as seagrass or jute as well as indoor/outdoor rugs which are durable and easily cleaned.
 
Kid-friendly Accessories
The family room should be a place where everyone in the family feels welcome; therefore, I love the idea of incorporating a gallery wall which features both grown-up and kid artwork.
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Beth,
Thanks for the tips. I love the idea about going with certain kid-friendly paint colors. I mentioned your ottoman suggestion in a post on my site today about my favorite chlid-friendly coffee table: http://hintmama.com/2013/09/16/todays-hint-a-more-child-friendly-coffee-table/
Thanks for including our Sunbrella sofa image! Great post!
Wonderful inspiration. Thanks for sharing with us, Beth!
My favorite is the upholstered coffee tables. I would love one of those. Although at this point, I would take any coffee table as we still do not have one. I need to make one!
All great ideas! With an almost 4-year-old at home, I’m always looking for ways to keep the decor as stress-free as possible. So, I’ll be keeping all of these tips in mind.
Also, I just joined up with Darlene’s Master Designer Blog Roll and I wanted to go around and “introduce myself” to everyone. My name is Alana and I blog at Domestic Bliss Diaries about making and managing home: http://www.domesticblissdiaries.com. I can’t tell you how honored I am to be a part of a group of such talented women, like yourself. I’m so pleased to “meet you”.
It’s time for us to get new couches, and keeping it kid friendly is the main concern. My two top choices are leather, or slip covered, I loooove how you got the best of both worlds!!
Thanks Jenna. I’m actually thinking about rearranging the furniture on our first floor and a sectional would work for our space much better than two couches. I’m torn though to move away from the leather/slipcover thing I have going on now!
hi, Beth,
Perfect timing for me! Thanks for the post. I love the coffetable with the tucked-in seating! And the pouf as coffee table… any ideas on wear to score these for cheap? 🙂
Hi Shelley, Just the usual places: Overstock, HomeGoods, Target, Ross, and sometimes ebay.
Loved this post! We just converted our sunroom into a nautical/ beach inspired play room for our three boys. One thing we did was utilize shower curtains as drapery all the way around the room. we used PVC pipe as curtain rods and cafe clips to hang the “panels.” It’s looking pretty good and I love that the fabric is easy to keep clean! This was the first time I decorated using our memories of past tips to the beach as inspiration. The entire family was able to come shopping with me and find great pieces that will forever provide a reminder of a special time we enjoyed in the OBX together.
Sounds like a special space Heather!
love this…no munchkins running around in my house currently…but i love these ideas for my house anyway!
CHeers
~ jillian
http://www.hersplitends.com
Thanks Jillian! I think the tips work for anyone who wants to keep a fuss-free family room or someone with fur-babies :).