Teen Rooms on the Cheap!


How to decorate a teens bedroom is one of the most common questions I receive. Especially for those on a budget, this can seem like a daunting task! Never fear, The Budget Decorator is here!

Teen rooms are different for kids rooms in that they should be treated more like an adult space, but with a fun flair. Involve your child and come up with a theme that helps to express who they are. (NOT what you want for them!) Be sure to give the theme a name, even is its something like "Modern Plush in Blue", or "Country Princess" - whatever will give it life!

Let your teen choose their colors, but give them some guidance. Buy a decorating magazine, and have them choose a color theme out of the pages, or surf decorating sites on the internet. That way, they feel they have chosen themselves, but you are assured you two have chosen a proven color scheme.

Now, use these quick ideas for transforming your teens room, on the cheap!

1.PAINT!!! Perhaps a teens room is the most important room you could consider painting. Teens are very sensitive to color, and they are much more free with their sense of adventure. Use a bolder color on the wall behind the bed, and you have instant drama and a great focal point! (Teens LOVE instant gratification, the paint will be one of their favorite parts of the decorating project!) Cost of paint: around $12.

2. Bedding. The bed is usually the focal point of the room, and a favorite hangout spot for teens to read, do their fingernails, talk on the phone - so it definitely deserves some attention. An easy way to update bedding on a budget is to create covers for the old comforters. You can do this quite easily with two flat sheets the same bedding size as the comforter. Flat sheets are cheap, you can pick up twin size at your local discount store for less than $5! Sew the sheets wrong side together on three side leaving one short side open. Turn right side out, the add Velcro, ribbons, or snaps to the inside of the short end. Insert the old comforter, and close! Easy, quick, and cheap! Throw pillows can easily be made out of flat sheets as well. Try using bright, funky colors on the bedding to make a real statement. Cost of four twin sheets for comforter cover and pillow - $20.

3. Windows. Light control and privacy can best be met in a teens rooms with vinyl mini blinds - they are cheap, and easily replaceable. If an extra boost of color or softness is desired, add simple curtain panels over the blinds. Keep it simple here, fussiness is rarely a quality teens are looking for in their rooms. Remember those cheap sheets? These are great for sewing curtains because of their large size - no piecing panels of fabric together. You also don't need to worry about quality of fabric as much as color, after all, the blinds are really providing the light control. Cost of sheets or blinds - less than $10.

4. Accessories. Punch up a teens room with some funky details to add drama and style. Pick up some cool (and maybe a little tacky) fringe or beading from the clearance table at the craft store, and glue around the bottom edge of the lampshade, the hems of the curtains, even onto shelf edging. Save all those free cd's from Aol and the like, and then turn them over to the clean side and glue to the frame of a mirror, or to cover a closet door. Glue together in an overlapping fashion to make faux frames for all your kids inevitable posters. Pick up wooden letters from the craft store in their initials, or to create a significant word or phrase, then paint one of the brighter accent colors of the room and hang over the bed, window, or doorway. Use old sports equipment picked up at a yard sale as curtain rods, hat racks, or magazine holders. Even hung on the wall as an art grouping, sports memorabilia can be meaningful for a sports buff. Total cost - can be done for less than $15.

5. Finally, personality. Inject your child's own special personality into his special place. Hang those ribbons and certificates, frame a few personal photos of family vacations, or find a shelf for those special stuffed animals they aren't quite ready to part with just yet.

Use this opportunity to recognize your childs individual gifts, and celebrate them. Cost - not a thing. As the commercial goes; memories - priceless.

Kathy Wilson is an author, columnist, and editor of The Budget Decorator. For hundreds of free budget decorating ideas, and to sign up for her free online newsletter and free ebook, visit her at http://www.TheBudgetDecorator.com


MORE RESOURCES:

Talking Business: Carpet One closes Longview shop
Longview Daily News
Columbia River Carpet One Floor and Home shut down its Longview interior decorating store last month and consolidated its merchandise and services at its original Rainier location. "The economy won't support two of them. The builders aren't building ...



Christina's on Magee offers upholstery, home interior services
Danbury News Times
Christina Spano Manowitz poses for a photo at her upholstery and custom interior decorating business, Christina's on Magee, on Wednesday, February 1, 2012. Photo: Lindsay Niegelberg / Stamford Advocate | Buy This Photo Christina Spano Manowitz poses ...

and more »


Business Insider

Gingrich's 'Modest' 5000 Square Foot House Has Issues According To Interior ...
Business Insider
AP Newt Gingrich lives in McLean, VA, in a house that can only be described as modest, considering real estate values in the Washington DC Beltway suburb. But it's pretty clear that the former House Speaker wants to trade up. Campaign website photos of ...

and more »


Divorce Claims Man's Star Trek Apartment
Seattle Post Intelligencer
By Joyce Eng, TV GUIDE One man boldly went where interior decorating had never gone before - until divorce snatched it all away from him. After separating from his wife, Georgina, in 1994, British DJ/die-hard Trekkie Tony Alleyne spent 10 years and ...

and more »


Mission in Milot
U-T San Diego
MILOT, Haiti — The first lesson that 10 students from the University of San Diego's Hahn School of Nursing learned on their weeklong immersion into community health care in Haiti was interior decorating with mosquito netting. The exercise, which took ...

and more »


Boston.com

Standout symbols of a program on the rise
Boston.com
But he did find time to do a little interior decorating. Hang a left when you walk through the doors, and there on the wall are super-sized photographs of Patriots defensive back James Ihedigbo and Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz.

and more »


TV Guide

Divorce Claims Man's Star Trek Apartment
TV Guide
by Joyce Eng One man boldly went where interior decorating had never gone before — until divorce snatched it all away from him. After separating from his wife, Georgina, in 1994, British DJ/die-hard Trekkie Tony Alleyne spent 10 years and $150000 ...

and more »


Farmington Valley women meet in Avon
Foothills Media Group
Club members participated in a hands-on class in interior decorating. Each participant had the opportunity to create their “fantasy room”. They were provided with a floor plan, templates, and wood, paint, carpet and fabric samples.



Rumors of Alcoa's Demise Might Be Exaggerated — Maybe
Investorplace.com
Interior decorating taste aside, he's made a compelling case that I can't criticize too much — if only for the reason that he's the one who hired me. I'm not as convinced, however. I'm not sure you should be jumping in with both feet.

and more »


Divorce Claims Man's Star Trek Apartment
abc40
By TV Guide News - email One man boldly went where interior decorating had never gone before — until divorce snatched it all away from him. After separating from his wife, Georgina, in 1994, British DJ/die-hard Trekkie Tony Alleyne spent 10 years and ...


Google News

Interior Design Dallas | Home Decorating Ideas | site map
Web Design | Search Engine Marketing
© 1998-2008