Multifunctional bedroom

[hmm123]

We have a 3 bed semi. Ds is currently in the box room we have a large double and a spare double for when grandparents visit, probably six or so times a year

It seems mad that ds is stuck in a tiny room when we have a spare double and he is now nearly 6 and his friends want to see his room and play In his room even though we have a large downstairs area and he has toys down there

So I thought about making the spare room a room for him and his friends to play and have sleepovers when he is older as it's a double bed which could easily be converted back to a guest room when grandparents stay., when he will sleep back in his old room. I presume he will want to sleep in it from now but he could still sleep in his old room and just play in there if he wanted

So how do I make it serve both functions so it's not too kids room for guests. It's painted white and grey with white Ikea units so a blank canvas . I thought about getting some grey neutral bedding and and curtains and jazzing up with cushions and other accessories Batman for him accent colour for guests or I could get two sets of bedding and swap when guests come

Also maybe some Ikea kallax units with grey boxes, I don't really want him to feel he is being kicked out of his room when grandparents stay and I don't want them to feel like it's not their room when they stay so want to keep it easy to convert back to neutral

Has anyone done this?

Is the box room too small for a double to go in? I'm thinking I already know the answer?

I think you could do it easily. At 6 you can explain that if you have visitors he can sleep in his old room, keep it nice for him.
Or like you say, make spare room a play room with a double bed in it. Both good ideas and perfectly doable.
If I was sleeping over somewhere as long as I have a bed, I dont mind sharing the room with some toys and a bit of bat man decor!
Get a load of Ikea storage so the toys can easily be tidied away but are accessible for ds. The room can still look nice!

I think it's fair for him to have his own room that he doesn't leave when people come to stay

I think I'd set it up like this -

Big room - sofa bed, neutral toy storage as you describe

Small room - bed and clothes storage

It's no different imo than adults having a hobby room, and I think the space is more important than sleeping with toys in the same room. The sofa bed makes it look less like a bedroom with toys as an afterthought and as your son is using it most I think he takes precedence. I'm a big fan of sofas in play rooms. They're nice for snuggling up with a book, and gives the set up longevity - at some point he could have a teenage study/tv room.

When grandparents stay you could pull out a few Kallax boxes of toys and have them in his room or the living room for a few days.

Thanks

Yes I don't want him to feel like he has to be kicked out when guests stay but he would be happy to for dgps and it's only 6 times a year

The alternative is he stays in box room as that doesn't fit double bed so dgps wouldn't be able to sleep in there

I like idea of sofa bed but I don't really want to get rid of double as it's v comfy and hardly used

I would let him have it as he likes. My DH grew up with the "big" bedroom that had to be given to guests and he felt he never really had his own space. If you try to serve both masters you'll end up questioning whether every bit of "his" stuff is allowed on display in his own room. It's a bit miserable.

GPs generally love their grandchildren. Picture yourself 30 years in the future with grandkids. Would you want their bedroom to be kept tasteful, plain and "de-childed" so as not to offend you or would you actually just want your grandson to have it as he wanted? GPs won't be offended by football stickers.

When I was young and the youngest in the family I had the "spare" room with the big guest bed. I don't remember it being a hardship to give it up when family came to stay.

My bedroom was painted pink and had tons of toys and a v girly style furniture set..

What does your son think?

Think of it this way, for 359 days of the year it would be your son's room and for 6 days the spare room.

Sod the guests, make it your son's room, with his decor etc. Do not pander to people who are guests in your house 6 times a year.

It would be very easy to give your son a single bed with a guest bed underneath to give him more playing space in the room. As you mentioned Ikea, my niece has the Hemmes day bed which stores one mattress under the other. Loves it.

I have always decorated my children's rooms for them, including some seriously bright colours. It is their space in the house. I wouldn't want my bedroom to be in neutral colours to suit someone who comes to stay 6 times a year.

@ChalkDoodler that makes me feel better - about to paint dd2s bedroom bright yellow as she's absolutely adamant. The other 2 dc have gorgeous rooms but I think this one will be more like a migraine in a room. That child loves her bright primary colours!

We have 3dc and a 4 bed house so dd3 got to have the bigger room than her twin on the basis she has a day bed that turns into a king size and guests sleep there. She gets a sleepover in her sister's' rooms when guests come but room is decorated for her. Permanent residence take priority and guests fit in or go to a b&b.

@m0therofdragons bright yellow sounds lovely and possibly not as eye watering when all the furniture is back in and curtains up.

I have done acid green (wince) and now the room is peacock blue with black chevron stripes on one wall.

But it is his space, it is paint, so easily changed in a weekend. Other son has grey and bright orange. Mine and Dh's is the same as Stiffkey Blue by Farrow and Ball.

My friend's children all have muted magnolia walls but bright bedding. It is so they blend with the rest of the house. All my downstairs have complimentary tones but upstairs? Nope. That is the part most people don't see. And so what if they don't all match/compliment? Who cares?

Love the bigger room on condition of moving out for guests. I think sleepovers are adventures even if it is just a sibling's room.

Give him the bigger room, decorate it as he wants (within reason, he's only 6) on the understanding that he camps out in his old room when gps are visiting. If a double bed seems too big for him, get a good quality single with pull out guest bed, the kind with legs that bring it up to normal height next to single so they act as a double when guests come.