You just don’t know what you are gonna get any time you check in here, do you?! One might think that you would get something Halloween related but I am not done with the boys costumes (EEK!)….so today you get a playroom update.
You can just thank me later for keeping you on your toes….keeping you young….agile…gracefully easygoing. I do my best.
Anyhoo….remember when I explained our Great Switcheroo agenda? Basically the rooms in this house were just not working for us….they weren’t serving us well in what we had created them to be…so we decided to switch things up and make the office into a playroom, take the toys out of the living room, and make the sitting room (which nobody ever used) into my office. So far, we have successfully removed the toy area out of the living room and replaced it with a DIY console table, painted and moved my office stuff into the new office and we cleared out the playroom.
Since today is all about a little progress in the playroom….here is what it looked like before. This is when it was an office.
Except it really didn’t ever look like that because my hoarder tendencies. In actuality, it was like a scene from Real World : I don’t know how to pick up all the things Edition.
But still – even that was better than the VERY befores….do you remember what it used to look like way back in the day?!
Yup. You are craving a chocolate cupcake with almond strawberry icing after seeing that paint job, aren’t you?
So much better now that it was painted. All we did so far was clear it out from my stuff. Most of the other items were left because we were playing the ‘figure-it-out’ game. It should be noted that we are trying to save up for a new roof for the Monroe house, so this makeover is gonna be really low budget. Also…the boys destroy most things in their path, so we can’t put anything in this space too precious…or breakable….or susceptible to bite marks.
All that to say….I saw this little bookshelf at a the thrift store. It was outside and I had Jeremy drive by to pick it up. We negotiated the price from $20 down to $15…which I think is fair. It wasn’t perfect but it definitely was narrow and allowed for storage for the BIG books that didn’t fit in Will’s bedroom shelf.
The entire thing is made from plywood and we estimated that it probably would cost about $25-30 to make after you purchase the wood and the veneer edging…so $15 is a good price.
Jeremy sanded it down for me and then I got to painting. I didn’t really think about the color…just grabbed some leftover paint and had at it.
We went with Valspar’s Front Door Red. It was the same color we used on our front door before we painted it black. This color definitely reads differently inside than outside…much more brown and darker inside.
Most of the books that it holds are really large. Will’s normal books are all still upstairs…because we use them during bedtime for reading. These are more activity books/Search and Find/oversized books that don’t fit upstairs.
We also got around to hanging this map of Central America. Yes. I have a thing for oversized maps. I’m not sorry. I love them and this was marked down to $20 at the antique mall with an extra 20% off….making it $16. I can’t beat that with a stick. It did have a tear in the corner but I just put some tape on the backside and attached it back together.
We decided to hang it by stapling it to a long stained piece of wood trim and then screw that directly into wall studs. I LOVE the colors like a fat kid loves Halloween. I kinda wish I had made the bookcase a green to play off of it. Oh well. Maybe there will be a paint job in my future.
We also moved the boy’s train table in here as well as the orange polka dot rug from Will’s room. The blue and white striped rug from the old sitting room is now in Will’s room. I think we are just gonna yard sale the red console table. I like the size but it doesn’t provide hardly any storage. I think it’s always better to have storage in a playroom.
So that’s our update in the playroom…nothing too exciting but I will say that the boys have already started playing in here and it is LIFECHANGING. I can close the door and the mess disappears like magic. I can stand in the neighboring laundry room and fold clothes and they can’t get past me to make a mess of the rest of the house. I can help them in the playroom bathroom and still keep an eye on LJ if he is on the floor. I hope it ends up looking ok…but honestly, even if it looks like a bag of skittles exploded in there, I don’t care because it is functioning so dang well.
Speaking of fun….I hope everyone has a great time tonight and stays safe and all sugared up…oh and hope those kids do too! Happy Halloween!
You’re really making me want a playroom now! The “family room” is really the playroom. It’s honestly a constant source of low-level stress…haha! #firstworldproblems
Sorry I entered too quickly. Have you thought of turning the console into a kids table or shelving on the wall?
looking good! love dedicated spaces like this, especially for kids!
It looks good! The red book shelf is perfect for those large books.
Our kids have their play space in our basement and I LOVE that it is not in our main living areas. We have a few things in our upstairs but as the kids get older I hope to move it ALL downstairs.
Looks like a fun space for your kids! You should make a Dutch for this room. I’ve been obsessed with having one on a play room for so long but my kids play room is open to the living room so it’s a no go for me.
We are in the middle of creating a new play room in our new house. Thanks for the inspiration!!! Love the colors you chose.
If you need playroom storage, I HIGHLY recommend the Trofast collection from Ikea. I am crazy for organization—I don’t like my Legos and Megablocks or Barbies and fairies intermingling. We have Trofast things all over our house, and they are awesome.
In our family/toy room, we have two of the shorter ones back-to-back in the center of the room. This acts as our train/building table. We literally have 8,000 pieces of track and Thomas things, and we could fill a whole room by getting everything laid out. But we keep it to the tops of the Trofasst, and it stays manageable. Plus my 3-year-old can reach it from all sides. Then in the drawer areas, all the types of track are separated, and there is also room for the “destinations.” (I know you know what I mean.) On the other side is room for all our Matchbox cars, Duplos, Megablocks, Planes, and other boy stuff in the drawers. Basically, it’s a boy’s dream come true. And we can totally put the trains away and use the table tops or Duplos or puzzles or coloring.
In my sons’ bedroom, we have more Trofasts for sorting out Legos by color. My oldest is 9, and we have a sh*tload of Legos!! Just you wait, Katie. It will come. We actually built a bedframe over two of the short ones end-to-end to create more playspace.
In my daughter’s bedroom, she has the mid-height ones for sorting her dolls, ponies, animals, and all those girly things.
They make pick up go pretty quick because I assign each kid a bucket from the Trofast and have him/her find that particular group of toys. I *hope* my kids will pick up some sense of the important of organization from this. With 4 kids, and 4 times the stuff, we need all the help we can get!
I’ve been waiting for a playroom update! Hehe. It’s looking fab! I absolutely adored your old office and knew you’d create something gorgeous as a playroom. We are building house and have a playroom but we took the wall out so it opens to the family room. It’s going to be for my now 18 month old so I didn’t want her shut away (our current houses playroom is shut away but it’s for my 9yr old but she will be 10 when the house is ready so she won’t need it anymore) and I want to make it a lovely looking room as guests will see it before they see anything else haha! So will be taking notes from you 🙂
oh man I was totally digging the rustic-sanded barn look before it was painted.
Great find with the bookshelf and I think the play room looks Fantastic!
And so what if it ends up looking like a bag of skittles exploded? It’s a kids playroom and the kids will adore it!
Oh! I love that ottoman/pouf. Where did you get it? I’m looking for something just like it for my sons room. Thanks! 🙂
That bookshelf is neat! I might have to try building my own…
Did you use a poly over the paint? If so, what kind is your favorite?
PS: I’m repairing a crib and would appreciate any advice on paint/poly finishes. Thanks!
That bookcase was a total score! I love the pop of red and that map is awesome! I think it’s the same map we used to have in middle school, you know, before computers! The room is coming along nicely and I can’t wait to see it complete. BTW, I’m sure your boys were adorable in their halloween costumes and I can’t wait to see pics 🙂
Love all the progress you are making in the playroom! When we were renovating our house we made our formal dining room into a playroom and I love having a space for all the toys on the first floor since that’s where we spend the majority of our time☺️ It is so nice to have a designated toy room. I’m sure you are just loving it! Enjoy!
If anyone thinks paint cannot make a difference they should look at your before and after pics of this room. It looks amazing! I also like how you took that old brown book holder and made it brand new and red! Don’t you just love DIY’ing???
Polycrylic is awesome but I also love just regular poly…try to go with a formula that is fast-drying and apply it with a foam brush and sand with 400+ grit sandpaper between coats.
xo – kb
Target!
xo – kb
Great recommendation!
xo – kb
LOVE the playroom progress Katie! But I’d hate to see the red console go 🙁 I love that piece! Did I see a spare shelf underneath it? If the boys have a lot of small toys (Legos, action figures, cars, mr. Potato head & parts) you could organize them in canvas bins and store the bins on the console shelves. It might not be a large toy storage piece but it could save your sanity when it comes to all the smalls 🙂
Great job with that bookcase!
Looks great! What an awesome find for the books. I find books usually are the first to end up on my floor so this is a great idea.
I love the bright colors! And that bookshelf was a great find! It’s so helpful to have a designated spot where the kids can go wild with toys without junking up the rest of the house. I’ve been working on our playroom update as well and sharing the details over on my blog.
I too have a thing for oversize wall maps and I’d kill for that one of central america because we used to live there! Lucky ducky!
A Dutch door that is..
Na. I dont think that the colour will work in the long run. It has a different undertone towards the wall colour. If you are not planning to change that too? But I love the shelf. I would want one for my boys as well. Looking forward to see the rest of the room!
I just love your blog. The end.
I moved an ikea cubby piece in here so that is definitely gonna work for the smalls…I know what you mean though. If only it could hold the bigger pieces like the giant car ramps…
xo – kb