How childish would you decorate a room for a

[mamatomany]

6 and 8 (7 and 9) this summer girls ?
Neither are into ballet, puppies or anything like that.
They like pink and lilac and girlie things but if I'm really honest I'm doing this for me. For various reasons, renting and funny shaped walls I've never decorated a nursery despite having 4 children, my older child has completely adult taste at the age of 10.
This will be my only chance to do frills and sugar coated.
But equally we need to be sensible don't we ?
Any nice ranges that tick both boxes that people have seen.
The blinds/curtains will be made to measure so I'd like to save a bit on the walls where possible.

[orangepoo]

For my DD, I've done the walls and carpet totally plain and neutral. They won't have to be done again for taste reasons - just when they need it.

You jazz the room up with stuff that is easily changeable - eg I got some Tinkerbell wall stickers (leave no marks) and a Tinkerbell duvet cover. You can get curtains which are plain that don't need changing either - DD has blue.

Did the same for DS's Thomas The Tank room - he grew out of it, just needed new duvet cover and new stikarounds.

[Bunbaker]

I'm with orangepoo on this. At 7 and 9 the girls will probably grow out of childish things very quickly. I think it would be better to accessorise the room with curtains/bedding/lampshades of their favourite interests and then you won't have to redecorate.

[mamatomany]

What colours would you go for ? I'm not sure white is a great idea as I've marked white walls before now never mind the kids.
Thanks

[Bunbaker]

DD (age 10) has pale blue on three walls and pale pink on one. She has covered the walls with loads of posters, mostly of baby animals.

[exexpat]

I'd go with neutral things for walls, carpet and curtains, and leave the girly touches for lampshades, bedlinen, posters etc. If you look online or go somewhere like Matalan you can find things cheaply enough that you won't mind replacing them a few years down the line.

When I was 8 my room was redecorated, and I chose curtains with very cute material covered in labrador puppies among other things. Within a year or so I hated it, but had to live with it till I left home nearly ten years later.... Not a good look when you are a black-clad 16-year-old trying to be cool.

DD's room needs doing this year, and I am trying to steer her towards fairly neutral, adaptable things too. She is 8, and luckily she's not into pink any more. What she actually wants is climbing wall holds all over one wall, but I somehow doubt that is going to happen.

[orangepoo]

Some sort of off white/cream colour for the walls - you can easily dab a paintbrush over any marks you make, lots of paints are quite easy to just babywipe marks from as well.

[Maddikins]

My dds room has a biscuit coloured carpet, white walls, white furniture and white shelving.

I then added the Laura Ashley pink and cream polka dot rug, and cushions and bedding in Cath Kidston type floral and spotty prints (but from Dunelm so much cheaper). The colour scheme is dusky pink, pale grean, cream and white. She has some framed prints on the walls and other things to brighten the room up.

I am just redecorating now and leaving all the walls white except for one which I'm doing in Laura Ashley Shell colour (a kind of chalky pink). I'm going to change the prints for more grown up ones and quite like the Emily Ruffles curtains from Next, or might get similar made.

Imo it is girly without too much pink and easily adaptable as she gets older.

[lalalonglegs]

My daughter (7 next week) has a room with wooden floors, Quartz by Fired Earth paint on the walls - this is actually true of all the bedrooms in the house - and then she has a Cath Kidston(esque) bedspread, a canopy over the bed, Russian doll bunting and some other Russian doll hooks and then all her art work over the wall.

I don't really see the point of going all out for some sort of theme - you wouldn't do it in an adult's room.

[thebountymuncher]

If my DD wasn't such a total slob (sorry DD!) I would love her room to look like this Kylie

I don't usually like Sleb ranges, but making an exception here.

(and my room is a cream and duck egg blue version of it!)

[GrendelsMum]

I'd agree with ExExpat, OrangePoo and the rest.

My parents let me decorate my room when I was 9, and I then had to put up with my 9 year old taste until they eventually sold the house. Absolutely grim. Imagine being 18 with your 9 year old bedroom. They did their best to tone it down with new curtains and a new bedspread at one point, but repapering and repainting was going to cost too much.

I think you'd do better to decorate walls, curtains and floor very neutrally, as though it's a spare bedroom, and then liven it up with a duvet and pictures on the walls. Kids' tastes change so quickly at that age that anything you do now will be an embarrassment a year later.

[Labradorlover]

One wall of DD's room is painted with Crown metallic effect paint in purple/lilac. Rest is pastel pink. It's reverse psychology...I'm hoping by about 10, she'll hate anything pink

[SuperTheoryofSuperEverything]

Agree about making it easily changeable.

DD has cream walls, candy striped wallpaper on one wall, oak floor and a huge rug, spotty bedlinen etc. Lots of little shelves too.

[NotAnotherNewNappy]

Dulux do a paint called 'snuggle up' which is a very pale pink, so will go with your girly accessories for now, but can also pass as a creamy nuetral colour for later. I used to have it in my kitchen, v bright, warm easy to live with - it looks a bit grey on the web.

[Carrotsandcelery]

My dd is 9 soon to be 10. We did her room in a baby pink and minty green paint on her walls. Her curtains are mint green and white gingham and her lamp has a white base with a pink gingham shade. Her carpet is pale beige and she has a pink gingham rug. I made her bunting and storage bags from pink and mint gingham material that matches (laura ashley but from ebay) and some Kath Kidston flowery material which I got in John Lewis. Duvet covers were from Next and we got a heart shaped mirror and a white waste bin with hearts on it from there too. She was given pretty pattterned card storage boxes from Next and some floating box shelves from Next as well. She has a set of flower fairy lights from John Lewis too which are draped round her mirror. We got a throw for her bed from Hippo online as the one we got from Next was too small to use for warmth in the winter.
It was all her birthday gift when she was 8. We had painted the room and had the carpet laid but the rest was a suprise - she went to school on her birthday and when we collected her it had all been put in place.
We hope that the majority of it will see her through a good few years as although it is pretty and girly it is not too childish. She might need a change in duvet covers but otherwise it should be fine until she enters a black phase or whatever awaits us post 16!

[GrendelsMum]

I think you need to be cautious with the very pale pink walls long term - my mum very kindly repainted my appalling room in very pale pink (she intended it as a warm off-white) as a surprise when I reached 18, and the problem was that it didn't go with any accessories except pink, IYSWIM. So the effect was still rather childish, just what she was trying to avoid.

[mamatomany]

I should say i don't expect it to last, we typically redecorate every three years so I wouldn't be worried about doing it again when they are teenagers.
Some great idea's and thanks for the paint recommendations, looks lovely.
Thanks again