After our original plans for the upstairs renovation had to be shelved – at least for a while – my family and I were moving forward with our plan B for the kids’ bedroom renovation. The plan: create an amazing joint space for my two boys and include den-type beds and a great play area with ample storage for toys and books.

The structure for the kids’ bedroom renovation was now all there and the plastering had been finished. Next I needed to choose some flooring, radiators and new windows. The windows were a simple choice because I wanted them to match the rest of the house, timber with old-style handles.

My partner Tony and I also knew that we wanted some radiators to match those in the living room. We were now in a better position than we had been before – we had a list of contractors and tradespeople to call on when we needed them. The builders we had chosen for this part of the project were great and came back regularly to finish the odd jobs that needed to be done.

The flooring was more tricky because we weren’t quite sure what would be best in this space. I knew we needed something hardwearing and the option to strip back the floorboards, like we had done in the master bedroom was not possible as the boards were in bad condition.

We looked at rubber flooring, carpet and real wood but eventually opted for white wood-look laminate because it would be warm and solid enough for the boys to play on. Tony fitted this himself and I’m really pleased with the finish.

We had to shop around for the low bed frames and mattresses to go inside the den area – it turned out that Amazon had everything we needed in all different sizes. I painted the inside of the den area a really dark blue, Rumour from Graham & Brown, so that it could be like the night sky. My plan (which I have got around to yet) is to have planet stickers on the ceiling here – I love these from Etsy.

Reading has always been very important for us, we read at least one story every night, so I wanted to create a reading corner. I would still like some comfy beanbags here and some more shelving for more books. We use this space so much!

Although we weren’t able to add the extra bedroom we had hoped for, this kids’ bedroom renovation alternative has been perfect for our family at this stage in the boys childhood. They have the space to play and learn and also a really fun sleeping area. I think we have really made the most of the space we had.

Read more First Time Renovator blogs in the series.

Featured image: The before and after are quite a transformation.