Part of a series showcasing different client projects by individual rooms to share a glimpse of the design process

At the time of designing the Chipman St. residence, their son was 19 months old and in dire need of his own playroom. My daughter, Maison, was quite a bit younger at that point so I didn’t fully realize how important the concept of a playroom was then (more on that down below!) — but I was thrilled to design a fun space for my clients.

There was a bright, sunny room at the front of the house, most likely designed to be a sitting room of sorts, that soon became the perfect toddler haven. One wall was designated as the focal point with a storage and desk combo (Fun fact: after so much research, I found out the ‘desk’ portion is actually just the outer shell of the storage unit sans drawer!) and two of the most adorable fox and bear stools! All items are linked below.

Striped Jute Rug // Storage and Desk Set // Fox Kid’s Chair // Bear Kid’s Chair // Footed Planter // Wooden Grapat Toys // Montessori Bookshelf // Woven Storage Baskets // Lion Circle Pillow // Pear Storage Basket // Color Blocked Kilim Pillow // Vintage-Inspired Racecar // Nursery Shelves // Wall Ledge

The window treatments are Smith & Noble‘s custom top down bottom up shades with decorative drapery panels on the sides. We opted for TDBU shades because they provide the most optimal use of privacy and light-filtering qualities combined. They’re such great linen-like quality and are perfect for privacy especially since the windows face the street!

As you can see in the illustration, there’s also an awesome mountain wall mural by the company Pearl Walls behind the desk unit. They can create custom murals in sizes and colors of your choice. Below is one of their decals as the backdrop of an adorable playroom.

speaking of mais & playrooms…

As someone who loves living both meaningfully and minimally, I didn’t think much when it came to having the same mindset re: motherhood. Why would it be any different just because I had a child? The idea of having hoards of toys and stuff scattered about the house seemed out of the question as I resolved that it couldn’t possibly be that difficult to keep things in order. (Laughing at my ignorance as I write this…) Fast forward 19 months and needless to say, I’ve been immensely humbled by the realities of having a — very active/curious/adventurous/insert every synonym possible — toddler in my home.

Since we’re currently living in a temporary residence, it was a challenge to designate a room for Mais to have her own space aside from her bedroom and the communal areas (living, kitchen, dining rooms). Once the realization set in that either something had to give or our entire house would turn into one giant playroom, I finally decided to compromise with splitting the dining room up so that it’d serve a dual purpose as her play area as well.

Creating a place for Maison’s things and having an intentional space for her to freely play has completely changed the overwhelming feeling of everything being everywhere all the time. Although it would’ve been the most ideal to have the whole room for her, it just wasn’t a feasible option for our needs and I wasn’t willing to compromise that much. I find that the key is to have beautiful storage that you’re happy to constantly use, and to stick to the routine of cleaning up (numerous times) each day to create some order out of the chaos. Oh, and less toys, too.

If you don’t have kids, or yours aren’t quite at the 18 month mark yet, you may not realize how having a designated room for these littles can really alter the level of zen you feel on a daily basis! If you’re limited to the number of rooms you can spare as I was, I’d highly recommend assessing which space(s) you can compromise and divide to create a little more peace in the midst of everything else. It also provides a great sense of ownership and responsibility for the children as well, with the bonus of a hidden toy stubbing a toe or two by my husband or myself once the night has wound down.

If you want to see more from the Chipman St. project, check out this post for their master bedroom that I designed.

x GLL