8 Easy & Sustainable Ways to Refresh Your Child's Bedroom this Spring
Spring is here to stay - bringing with it a host of golden daffodils, the arrival of the dawn chorus, and the return of vibrant green leaves to the trees and bushes which stood bare over winter. This gradual change of season presents to us longer days, bringing us out of the darkness of winter and offering a sense of renewal.
This sense of renewal provides us with inspiration and opportunity to create something new and refreshing for the spring and summer months, and where better to start than with your little one’s bedroom? In this month’s blog post, we’ll be taking you through eight easy and sustainable ways to refresh your child’s bedroom, ready for the summer months.
1. Add a Fresh Lick of Paint
Adding a fresh layer of paint to a room is a great way to refresh the feel of the space on a budget, without having to drastically change any furniture or other room arrangements. Our friends at Edward Bulmer Natural Paint make natural paint which is free from synthetic dyes & plastics, instead made from naturally-occurring elements and coloured with a combination drawn from just 12 natural & earth pigments.
Mama Sparrow's twin bedroom looks divine in Edward Bulmer Naples Yellow and Spanish White
Colour blocking is a great way to create uplifting and fun interiors with a modern twist and is perfect for growing little people.
“Naples Yellow is an eruption of colour. It is a strong colour for those brave enough to couple it with other gutsy colour tones and individually designed pieces. It will wake up the senses and lift the spirits, appealing to the architect designer as well as the confident home owner” - Edward Bulmer
What’s more, using these beautiful natural paints means your walls will not give off any harmful toxins, and your little one can go to sleep the same day as painting with its odourless finish. For more information and colour inspiration, visit Edward Bulmer’s Instagram or order a free colour chart. Image credits: Mama Sparrow (@mamasparrowblog on Instagram)
2. Update & Upcycle Old Furniture
If you’re thinking of throwing out an old suitcase, sideboard or bedside table, think again - because a fresh coat of paint can give a new lease of life to an otherwise undesirable piece of redundant furniture.
Sarah Kirk (@godsavethescene on Instagram)'s gorgeous antique cot with an upcycled storage trunk below.
For example, take this amazing upcycling project from Sarah Kirk (@godsavethescene on Instagram). Inspired by an old case she saw at the Cotswolds Reclamation Company, Sarah took it upon herself to masterfully upcycle an old suitcase of her own into a new storage trunk for her son Julian.
On the exterior, Sarah started by reproducing the painted band she saw on the original piece, going for a combination of blue & white. We think that the stripe works really well, but the possibilities here are only limited by your imagination - some 60s-inspired flowers could look equally striking here!
After adding Julian’s ‘JIM’ monogram, Sarah turned to the interior of the case - using fabric paste to line it with an aptly-matching blue & white gingham fabric, tying the whole piece together throughout.
With that done, it was just a matter of filling the box with - as Sarah puts it - ‘toys, sheets, nappies, junk, whatevs’. We absolutely adore this project, as such a simple way to renew an old piece of furniture and turn it into something wonderful.
Looking for more upcycling ideas? Pinterest and Instagram are great places to start searching for inspiration. If you’d like to give upcycling a go, but don’t have any old furniture to hand, we recommend visiting a reclamation centre, your local recycling centre, or a local furniture charity shop such as British Heart Foundation.
3. Replace Their Mattress
With all the heat and humidity of the summer on its way, now is the best time to get ahead of the curve and think about a new, breathable mattress for your little one. The natural fibres in our range of nursery mattresses make for supreme comfort and natural ventilation, with absolutely no synthetic chemicals or other treatments.
All of our materials originate from organic, local and sustainable sources, making Naturalmat nursery mattresses the perfect natural solution for those warm summer nights. Shop our range of nursery mattresses here.
4. Change Out Their Duvet
As we approach those warmer summer months, it’s important to make sure your little one doesn’t overheat in their bed. There are many ways to do this, but perhaps the easiest way is to replace their winter duvet with a more appropriate summer one.
A selection of Naturalmat childrens' Duvets.
Our hypoallergenic Organic Wool Summer Duvet is packed with a thin layer of organic sheep’s wool for the best in natural insulation, keeping them warm during those occasional cold spells during spring, and dispersing heat appropriately during the hotter summer months to ensure they stay nice and cosy. For a more luxurious option, our Goose Down Summer Duvet provides loft and structure with the added opulent comfort of a traditional feather duvet.
5. Add a Rug or Wall Hanging For A Quick & Easy Room Update
A rug or wall hanging is another great way to change up your child’s room without breaking the bank or drastically altering the feel of the space. What’s more, a rug or wall hanging can double up as a play area, as well as a talking point for your little one’s bedtime stories.
We love this great example of wall decor by Micaela (@babyjesseandme on Instagram) - the maximalist coverage creates a jungle-like feel, perfectly chiming with her son Jesse’s love for animals. If you’re looking for some natural & sustainable decor, OYOY Living Design has an amazing range of natural rugs & wall hangings to spice up your little one’s bedroom for less.
6. Renew Their Bedding
The perfect companion for their new duvet is new bedding, and our range of unbleached and undyed organic cotton bedding is the perfect match for your little one’s needs.
Our Organic Cotton Bedding is brilliantly soft to the touch.
All of our childrens' bedding is GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) certified by the Soil Association - meaning that our bedding is made to the highest ethical and organic standards, containing absolutely no synthetic chemicals, making it ideal for babies and children with sensitive skin or allergies.
Organic cotton is also softer to the touch than heavily processed cotton, so it’s just perfect for children’s sensitive skin. Our natural baby bedding range also includes organic wool pillows, pillowcases, duvets and duvet covers made in the UK, available from cot bed size (for toddlers) all the way to double size and beyond. Shop our range of Organic Cotton bedding here.
7. Visit A Charity Shop
Visiting a charity shop is one of the best ways to shop responsibly and sustainably. Charity shops work by accepting physical donations from individuals and businesses, and selling those donations on for a profit which is then responsibly invested within the charity.
There is a great selection of furniture-led charity shops across the country.
In other words, charity shops breathe a second life into what would otherwise be thrown away or, at best, recycled. Therefore, a charity shop is a great place to pick up trinkets, books & decor for their bedroom, as well as clothing and accessories for the whole family.
Oxfam, The British Heart Foundation, Sue Ryder & British Red Cross are great places to start your shopping journey, but be sure to check locally for resident charities in your area.
8. Invest In Some Blackout Curtains or Blinds
Some new window treatment - be it a pair of curtains or a new blind - is a great way to add a splash of colour to their bedroom. From nautical stripes, to bold colour blocking, to a repeating motif of their favourite animal - the possibilities are endless. Our friends at Loom & Last (@loom_and_last on Instagram) have a great selection of roman blinds, roller blinds & curtains for your little one’s bedroom, made from sustainable and natural materials where possible.
We love this pair of curtains in Loom & Last's Paradise print
The longer evenings brought on by the changing of the clocks add valuable hours to the day, but they can also cause havoc to your little one’s sleep schedule. While you’re thinking about window treatments, why not invest in a blackout lining? Blackout linings are great for blocking out sunlight in the morning & evening, as well as creating a thermal barrier to keep heat out of the room. All of this will make for a more restful night for your little one, and therefore for you as well.
That’s All - Now It’s Your Turn!
Feeling ready for a change? We hope that this post has inspired you to refresh & renew your little one’s space this spring - if you do try out any of our ideas, be sure to share them on Instagram and tag us on @naturalmatbaby so that we can reshare!
