Living room Vs playroom

[MarianneVos]

Which way round would you have this?

YABU: room 1 living room, room 2 playroom
YANBU: room 1 playroom, room 2 living room

Context: 3 DC under 4. So at the moment when they're playing we would all be together in the same room.

Room 1 is accessed off the hall, has door to room 2 and conservatory, conservatory leads into garden. Room 2 is only accessed through room 1, and has double doors into the garden.

Room 1 has a log burner. Both rooms have TV connections.

Room 1 is wider (5mx4m) Vs room 2 (5mx3m).

Originally I assumed room 1 as the adult living room. This has the advantage that we could just shut the door on room 2 in the evenings and ignore the mess/child stuff.

However, I'm now thinking that as the play space will be where we all are, and will be spending a lot of time together especially when it's cold/rainy, the bigger space makes sense, and we could also use the conservatory for bigger toys/toy storage etc.

YABU: room 1 living room, room 2 playroom
YANBU: room 1 playroom, room 2 living room

with three DC of those ages you’re right about making the playroom somewhere comfy for all of you to be, and having overspill for big toys will be useful too. Will be nice to have a separate grown up living room/snug that you can sit in and ignore the sea of kids toys. You can always change it around in a few years time when youngest starts school!

If the log burner is used regularly in winter you can't really have the playroom there in case you need to leave the children unattended for a moment.

Otherwise, just try it one way and if you don't like it, swap. As long as you don't decorate immediately?

If you have guests/ visitors you don’t want to be leading them through the shit room to get to the nicer room. Also harder for the dc to escape into the hallway when your not paying attention from room 2.

Seriously people won’t leave children in a room in their own with a log burner???

Anyway…I’d have room 2 as the playroom for the reasons you initially suggested! We had a larger living room (with wood burner/tv) and playroom to the side and it worked well - toys did come into the living room but they were easily thrown back into the playroom!

Definitely room 2 for the playroom. You can close it off and it’ll feel like a totally separate space.

Room 2 - you can close the door on it (and leave it in a mess) but still have a tidy calm grown up area.

I’d stick with original plan. Kids often like to keep stuff out overnight and finish games the next day and that is far easier if you can just close the door on it than if you have to walk through it to get to your adult space. I know they are small now but in no time they will be big enough to play in their room while you sit in yours with door open to keep an ear out for any trouble. Certainly in lockdown my 3 1/2 and 5 1/2 year old did that a lot while we tried to work

Does the log burner work?
If so, id definitely have that as the living room and make it all cosy. Playroom room 2.

How are you finding 3 DC under 4 :) ? I'm not sure if we're done yet lol hard decision x

I'd have room 2 as the playroom.

Definitely room 2, you'll need the log burner on and safe from kids, just leave the door open and let them bring a few favourite toys into the conservatory and set a routine of taking the toys back in room 2 every night.

Nice for adult visitors to come in to a warm, inviting room with nice view through to the garden

Definitely room 2. You can close it off and leave out train tracks etc. In warm weather you can have the doors open and the children can free flow in and out, meaning you'll be able to find a spot to supervise them all fairly simply.

Room 2

I have a different set up in that the kids’ playroom comes off the living room with just an archway separating them but it does mean I can lead guests straight into the living room rather than clambering over lego etc on the floor to get to the nicer room!

Both have access to the hallway too so can completely bypass the mayhem to get to the wine garden

Just as an aside we had a two and three year old last winter with a log burner (got the log burner when I was pregnant with the second) and no accidents at all. You get a baby fence and secure it to the wall around the log burner at a safe distance. We have a black one which looks nicer than white and are keeping it now for the pets.

Room 2. I love my living room in an evening with the log burner on, and I just shut the door on the playroom so I can’t see the mess

Room 2 for playroom. Tbh I don't see why it's even a question?

Most crap in there, shut the door!

No need to drag visitors through mess.No reason you can't use both rooms to play if you want more space, but all toys back in R2 at night - any 'overnighters' get set up in there!

where's your kitchen?

Thanks. Don't suppose you have a link to the fence?

@TooMuchToDoTooLittleInclination the kitchen is down the hall, so I'm a little wary of them walking through the nice living room to the playroom with drinks/snacks.

DC3 is brilliant, would highly recommend it!

@MarianneVos

there are loads of fire guards if you just Google.

you could put a rug or runner in room 1.

I miss having a fire place or log burner! (Don't miss the mess though!!)

Room 2 as play room ideally with sliding doors between room 1 and 2 so during the day they are one lovely big room with a nursery fire guard like this. Then at night you shut the doors and have a lovely adult room.

Mine never really "used" a playroom - it was more just storage for toys. So I'd have room 1 as the Lounge, and fully anticipate that the kids will drag toy boxes through to 1 to play with. Set 2 up as the place for good storage for toys and books, then over time, add a tv for gaming (when they get older), a desk for homework etc, a sofa for then to hang out with friends.

But every night all the toys would go back into 2.

Sliding doors between is a great idea!

I think playroom in its truest sense is pointless.

I'd see them more as day and evening living rooms. Or even summer/winter in that we sit in our back room in the summer as the late sunshine streams through but tend to be in front room come winter as it has woodburner.

Kids want to be where you are so anytime where you can't sit comfortably on a proper sofa and watch TV or chat to a friend is just expensive toy storage!

I'd use the conservatory for toy storage for the plastic bulk but build/ buy decent storage units for the other rooms to hide smaller stuff.

Mine are now five and nine and having two different places to sit comfortably is invaluable.

Depending how little your youngest is, we bought the metal hexagonal play pen. You then just buy brackets to turn four panels into big fire guard. Keeps them away from logs and all the other stuff too

We've had a Barbie "scene" out for two weeks in our playroom as DD2 is continually playing with it. Room 2 is your playroom OP so that you can have a nice living room too.