Cozying up

Matthew’s room began as a blue sea of space.

Almost bare with only boxes after moving in

I had my pegs for it when I selected the paint color, but quickly, somehow, decorating direction changed. It took some time — almost a year — and now it’s come together beautifully.

It began with a bargain find to address the overflow of things that are expected when children are around. Shelves took care of sorting toys and books into little cubbies.

Baskets on the floor

Shelves for (almost) everything

The four shelves cost me a little less that two thousand pesos — a real steal, I tell you. I was ecstatic. And for a while, the space really worked so well. It served its purpose as a play area. And then, I realized that the reading had declined.

It usually took a lot of hopping and stepping over strewn toys on the mat to get to the books. And for my little booklover, it wasn’t worth the hassle at times.

I thought, then, a reading nook was in order.

So last week, I pushed an extra shelf into a corner. Pushed the bed to create a gap, and placed his unused, outgrown crib mattress on top of some extra rubber mats. Moved the books, his CD player (for his music), and pillows.  Voila.

The beginnings of the nook

He slept there that night.

I hung lamps the next day: a moon and a star that were recently passed on to him. The wall, I’ve decided will display images of his favorite books. We’ve started with “Where the Wild Things Are” (naturally) and “Goodnight, Moon”.

What I’m proud about this most of all is how he feels real ownership of his room now. He knows it is his and what he can do with it — the zoning works wonders. We’re shopping for more lanterns to add to his play area and will be on the hunt for a big mirror he can use to observe his own antics. And so, this is only part 1; I can’t wait to see the end result.