KidsHaus

Miko Design Kid's Corner

I'm so pleased that Erika from Miko Design let us take a peek into her kids' corners -- I had a feeling they would be fun! Erika is always creating something amazing whether it's screen printed fabrics, flag pendants, t-shirts or putting together a special celebration for her daughters' birthday parties -- she's definitely an inspiration. So, here we go...the first picture is a peek into Sofia's bedroom that Erika designed and built where the little doorway leads to Sofia's bed -- how many kids dream of this? I love the birdhouse and forest scene too. The other photos are of Mila and Sofia's cheerful "kitchen" and doll house which appear to be well organized for plenty of cooking and tea parties. This is inspiring me to revamp our play space that I've been putting off. Thanks to Erika for sharing...

Kids Corners

In our house, we have a few favorite "corners" that the girls' use for reading, daydreaming, playing or whatever strikes their fancy at that particular moment...we know how those moments fleet from second to second. I thought I'd share a few of our favorite corners and hope you'll share a few of yours. I'm also extending an invitation to a few of my favorite bloggers so we can take a peek into those sacred kid corners where the imagination runs wild.

The first photo is a sitting bench in the girls' room that they often use to pretend is a ship and there's hot lava below (I remember those days). The little wicker chair is in our living room and on a rare occasion I'll find the girls' reading a book or simply staring out the window -- waiting for Daddy's car. The bottom two photos are from our sunroom (aka playroom) that desperately needs a paint job and a little love but the girls' use it constantly for everything. It's got so much natural light and is 100% kid friendly -- which has proven essential!


 

Art Space

In the last year, I've been slowly (very slowly) completing my art space in the basement of our house. I wanted this room to function as a space for my girls and I to create art in. It's a room that would be fine if there were spills or glitter strewn about. I finally finished painting this week and it feels good to be near complete. I still want a small carpet under the desk and some shelving to store paints, brushes, pens, etc. But honestly, I'm afraid of not finding the stud in the wall and botching the wallpaper. And yes, that is a hole cut in the ceiling from a recent electrical issue.

Unfortunately, I didn't take any "before" pictures but just imagine a dull room painted in an awful beige color -- I affectionately called it Cover Girl Beige because it reminded me of the poorly tinted make-up I wore in high school. Because the ceilings are low, I thought the Cole & Sons Wood Wallpaper would give this drab room some life and a feeling of height. I painted the ceiling the palest shade of blue and the back wall a charcoal gray. I covered one of the walls in cork so I could hang some of my screen printing projects, sketches and inspiration and so that Ms. Bean would have a place to contribute her works of art as well (as you can see below). It's getting there and I'm sure we'll need to make some adjustments as it becomes a more functioning space.

Perch Lighting

I love these hand-made ceramic lights by Perch. They would be ideal for a child's room with their sophisticated yet playful aesthetic...

Petra Bose

A friend from London sent me a link to her friend's site, Petra Bose. Petra is one busy lady and mother of 2 making everything from wrapping paper, lampshades, clothes and more. She uses a lot of vintage prints and patterns to create these wonderful things for the home.

Via Toy Boxes

Being from Seattle, we like to take mini-road trips to Portland for that sense of escape. Portland is hopping with amazing restaurants, smart city planning and a wave of incredibly creative artists and craftspeople. So, not surprisingly, I discovered Via Toy Boxes out of Portland. Inspired by his daughter, Jon Spencer began building open toy boxes because he found toys were always getting buried in their cavernous toy chest. Via Toy Boxes is a ready-to-assemble modular storage system that allows you to customize any set-up that fits your needs -- check out their website to see the endless variations. Great stuff...

 

Art find: PCP

If you're looking for inexpensive art to decorate your walls with, Los Angeles/Japanese based illustrator PCP has reproduced his beautiful work in poster format -- and they're only $20! Very dreamy and ethereal imagery, his illustrations of forests and animals make you feel calm and happy. With a little luck, maybe some of that calmness will infiltrate into your child's bloodstream.

K Studio Pillows

K Studios is a mother and daughter team that creates quirky and endearing pillows made from sustainable materials such as hemp, organic cotton and recycled wool. The production is made in-house and managed by Mary and Shelly Klein. It's hard to resist buying a couple of these pillows especially knowing who's behind each creation and knowing that they're supporting sustainable living. Their range of pillows can be found at Design Public.

Pakhuis Oost

Back in 2003, my husband, Ms. Bean and I took a 10 day holiday to Amsterdam and it instantly became our favorite destination. So much so that we went back in 2005 for seconds! Amsterdam is bursting with great design (bursting!), friendly people and a unique culture. While riding bikes and exploring small shops along the way, we stumbled into a fantastic kids' store called Keet in Huis and it was close to a spiritual experience for me. My husband considered dragging me out of there but, bless his heart, instead allowed me wander for nearly an hour while I gasped and touched everything. Because we had to travel light, we were limited to buying something small. Ms. Bean's item-of-choice was a sparkly little crown made of plastic and sequins (shown below) -- it was a fine choice! So, why do I reminisce? Well, I stumbled upon that sparkly crown over the weekend -- now with a broken arm after being stepped on. On a mission to find a replacement for the magical little crown somewhere in the US,  I was elated to find that Rose & Radish not only carries Pakhuis Oost's crown but also the best squirrel and bird bookends and deer coat hanger. For your pleasure, I'm also showing a few photos from Keet in Huis's website so you can see why I was so enchanted!

 
 

The Bird Has Landed

I ordered a few wall decals from Vinyl Wall Art after writing a recent post about their adorable designs. I couldn't be happier with the outcome after applying one of the birds above a piece of artwork in Ms. Bean's room. She loved it so much that she crafted the bird a train engineer's hat out of construction paper. I'm still working on finding a home for a couple of birds and an owl...

Lighting I Love

A room without good lighting is like a bird without feathers! I love nearly everything Anthropologie is doing these days and their lighting simply makes me swoon. Here are a couple of creations that could easily translate into a child's room.

Shawn Lovell Tree Bed

If we spend 1/3 of our lives sleeping -- why not  invest in a gorgeous bed? Shawn Lovell, a metal worker from California, designed this beautiful bed frame that would make one imagine that they're nestled amongst a friendly little forest. You could certainly design a whole room around this masterpiece. Visit Shawn's website to see more of her work or contact her to make a bed of your own.

When Ms. Bean saw this bed, she immediately  squawked, "I want to sleep in that bed because maybe a little bird will flutter into my room and sleep in that nest". Hmmm...maybe if we leave the windows open.

Litto Kids Crib Set

Litto Kids line of crib bedding is adorable yet a far cry from being too 'cutesy' or gender specific. The color palettes remind me of the 70's (which is not necessarily a bad thing) but the illustrations are nicely modernized. The owl motif is probably my favorite -- because, seriously, who can resist those bright-eyed birds? The Retro mushroom and Silly owl are both available on reprodepotfabrics.com.

Wall Decals (again!)

What is it with my wall decal fascination, you ask? I have no idea! It came out of nowhere. All I can say is that I stumbled upon these wall decals (aka Stickers) from Kapitza out of the UK and was instantly drawn to them. They're a little more sophisticated but they would look lovely in a little girls room or any other room, for that matter.

Wall Decals

I changed my tune since I've recently discovered a few companies creating some lovely wall decals. Apple Pie Design out of Belgium is producing a line of sophisticated, simple wall decals that integrate nicely with the decor. Pink giraffe, anyone?

Avalisa Graphic Prints

If you're looking for bold and cheerful art to liven up your child's room, Avalisa is overflowing with a vast range of graphic prints to choose from -- just look at the images below! I love the mixing and matching of different graphic patterns while using the same color palette.

Glug Baby

I've known Glug Baby to have fantastic t-shirts but somehow their pillows flew under my radar. They're just as cute...

PJ Pocket Pillow

We're off for a mini family-road-trip to Portland this morning. It's such a fun and easy place to escape with the girls. We'll be making a couple of kid-friendly stops that I'll be sure to highlight next week. Until then, I thought I'd leave you with these Japanese anemone boxes so beautifully designed by Modern-Twist. They make a great place to stash stuffies, PJs, toys or a baby sister (just kidding).

Artist: Dave Barnes

I was recently downtown and literally did a double-take as I briskly walked by Dave Barne's art hanging in the salon where I get my hair cut. I came to a screeching halt and was like a moth to the light. I stood inches away in order to see the fine details in Dave's work. He uses scrap wood, canvases and found objects as his base, then layers bold illustrations and collage elements to give each piece character and depth. Either of these would be fantastic in a kid's room...

Vinyl Wall Art

In a recent post about wall decals, I said that I wasn't typically a huge fan of them; however, I think I found a line of wall decals that I'm ecstatic about. Seriously, I may even have to get a couple for the Bean & Mini's room. Vinyl Wall Art is doing a great job at making cute decals that would add a touch of character and humor to any room. In a few of their staged shots, if you look carefully, you'll see a decal subtly positioned in the upper corner of a wall in a kitchen or living room. Well done!