We bought a new home in September with plans to transform the formal dining room into a playroom. Not only was it the perfect sized room, but it’s location in the house allowed for me to see the kids while I cooked and we could also close it off when hosting company.
Since it was a formal dining room complete with maroon walls and a floral border, my husband and I set aside a small budget to make the space the perfect playroom. We repurposed a few items and bought additional pieces to make the space kid friendly that’s also a room us grownups don’t mind hanging out in.
I always like to start with one piece to work around, and for this room it was this rug. It was colorful and fun, and the right price. We were concerned with the amount of white, but bought Scotchgard to protect it from stains, spills, and dirt. So far, it’s worked perfectly and have had no issues lifting out dirt from shoes or marker.
Since the rug was so colorful, we chose to paint the walls light to keep it bright and airy. We ended up going with Benjamin Moore Intense White as it was the perfect backdrop for colorful artwork on the wall and worked well with the rug. It is a very light off-white with a slight warm gray and a green undertone, so don’t let the website’s swatch fool you!
As for organization, we decided to keep our black Ikea shelving unit. To add even more storage, we bought colorful storage cubes from Wayfair that coordinated with the rug and clear storage bins to neatly hold art supplies. It has kept the room always looking tidy and allows for the kids to easily and quickly pull down and pick up their toys and supplies.
To replace the formal chandelier, we chose a flush-mount fixture from Wayfair. The Theophilia 5-light was the perfect choice to complement our black shelving unit and it had 5 lights to make sure the large room was evenly and well lit no matter the time of day.
My favorite project was the garland. This DIY project was fun for the family and was much cheaper than buying a premade garland. I ordered this 100 piece felt ball assortment and strung them using on-hand embroidery string and a needle. The kids would take turn picking the next color and were proud to see the end result. We draped it across two walls using 3M hooks and are so happy with the end result!
In the end, we ended up spending less than $250 dollars and were able to transform the room from a formal dining room into a bright playroom the entire family likes to be in.
Shop This Room:
- Rug 67
- Lighting Fixture 106
- Canvas Bins 20
- Garland (Felt Balls, String, Needle) 17.78
- Clock – 18.77
