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Suzanne's Sophisticated Childrens Playroom Makeover Neutral Kids Blue Grey Emily Henderson-035

A month ago I was at my friend Suzanne's, planning her bedroom makeover when I realized that her playroom was almost blog worthy. So I said, “Hey can I style your playroom and shoot it for the blog and take credit for all the cute things you've done?” She obliged, knowing she would get free styling and some new stuff. The space was great, it just needed some extra help. I'm a good helper.

Here it was before:

Suzannes Child Playroom Makeover Before Photo 1

That is a very unfair “before” shot as that was after Charlie and Townes had played/fought for a 1/2 hour. Just when you think you have the sweetest toddler on the planet, he proves to you that he is really just a sociopath. It takes them 3 hours of fighting to start having fun and sharing toys. Meanwhile someone's home always gets destroyed. This time it was hers. But you get the gist – it was this pretty neutral, rustic, and warm space that could use like 15% styling help. It was open to the living room and dining room so this wasn't the time to paste that tella tubby mural on the walls.

Suzannes Child Playroom Makeover Before Photo 2

This area, towards the dining room, in particular needed more help. She installed those shelves (that she stained herself) and they weren't styled yet and felt empty. In addition she needed more storage, a larger rug, and the sofa needed some softening.

So we took two trips to Target and grabbed a couple plants and quickly fixed all those problems. Here you go:

Suzanne's Sophisticated Childrens Playroom Makeover Neutral Kids Blue Grey Emily Henderson-067

This side of the room changed very little and, like I said, it looks like I styled it when she did the bulk of the work. Sure, we added a plant, styled the books, and rearranged the table to face camera better (which was a cheat as we shot it the other way in the other position). Everything she had done made the room feel as big as possible and reduced the clutter (when there weren't two toddlers destroying things).

Suzanne's Sophisticated Childrens Playroom Makeover Neutral Kids Blue Grey Emily Henderson-024

There are a few things here you should know: 1. She painted the bottom of the Thomas The Train table – a table that Brian and I have debated buying for months based on her recommendation, but we have NO space to put it so we are holding out. I guess typically the base of it is super colorful in a bad way, so she painted it that pretty pale gray and it looks so cute.

The second thing you should know is that she renovated that play kitchen. Like a whole kitchen overhaul on a miniature scale. Apparently this isn't unheard of – check out this post for 10 other ideas for a play kitchen remodel. I was still extremely impressed.

When she bought it, it looked like this:

But she wanted it to look like this, without that price tag. So she painted it, put in a backsplash (subway tile contact paper), installed new countertops (marble contact paper) and reinstalled 'copper' hardware and faucet (spray paint).

Suzannes Child Playroom Makeover Emily Henderson Styling Kids Play Kitchen After 1

I feel like I do a lot in our home and that I'm useful and full of good ideas, but there is no way I would have thought to do this. Ever. She is a very good woman.

Suzanne's Sophisticated Childrens Playroom Makeover Neutral Kids Blue Grey Emily Henderson-095

Now the other side of the room looks pulled together. The bookcase looks like a combination of playroom and grownup family room.

Suzanne's Sophisticated Childrens Playroom Makeover Neutral Kids Blue Grey Emily Henderson-087

Here's what we did:

1. Added closed storage for the unsightly toys (the pretty linen storage bins).

2. Displayed the cute toys like the trucks out as “objects” on the shelf.

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3. Added some art to help take up some real estate (so it didn't look so bare), and art in the back of the shelf always adds depth.

4. Threw in some lamps to bring light over in that area during evening play hours (and strung the cord behind the vertical shelving pieces).

5. Displayed books with cute bookends or horizontally.

Suzanne's Sophisticated Childrens Playroom Makeover Neutral Kids Blue Grey Emily Henderson-108

Suzannes Child Playroom Makeover Emily Henderson Styling Kids Shelf Organization After 2

The sofa was perfectly simple and functional but felt sad, so we added that pretty throw and some pillows.

Suzanne's Sophisticated Childrens Playroom Makeover Neutral Kids Blue Grey Emily Henderson-098

As any mom of toddlers know, you want as few pieces of furniture possible in a playroom because those kids need space. No coffee table or unnecessary side tables were added – just a cute pouf (kids love to play on or around poufs) and textiles.

The rug worked well with the other rug and was a much better scale in the room (5×7). It is low pile enough so that cars can get rolled over, but still cozy for floor time playing.

Suzanne's Sophisticated Childrens Playroom Makeover Neutral Kids Blue Grey Emily Henderson-109

I love those animal pillows. Ridiculous.

There you have it – a quick playroom refresh before and after.

Suzannes Child Playroom Makeover Emily Henderson Styling Before and After 1

I think that what Suzanne did so well was keep the color palette really simple, neutral, and pretty. The blues, greys, and whites all work with the whole house (which is fairly open) and keep it feeling quiet in what is surely the most chaotic room. I think that if your playroom is separate from your living space, then go for nutty colors for sure; but if it's open like this one, then be inspired by the simplicity here and keep it tonal. The toys and books will add those pops that make it feel playful.

Overall the transformation took a day and while we didn't do anything major, it really is a more pulled together, adult friendly and still a pretty happy place for toddlers to totally destroy.

Enjoyed this makeover post? Check out these: A DIY Kitchen Redo Under $400, Neutral (Well, Mostly) California Nursery, Scott's Bedroom Makeover With Leesa, Moonrise Kingdom Boy's Bedroom, A Rustic Mid-Century Family Room, Sara Updates Her Childhood Bedroom – The Reveal, The Easiest Guest Room Makeover Ever, Brady's DIY Peel and Stick Kitchen Flooring (For Under $50).

The post A Sophisticated Playroom appeared first on Emily Henderson.

cement tiles_roundup_kitchen_design trends_encaustic_bathroom_header

It's national cement tile day and we are celebrating by rounding up our favorite 35 online resources – not 35 tiles, mind you, 35 different designers/makers/artisans and sellers that have many, if not hundreds of cement tiles each. We were so sick of searching for these ourselves so we made it into a post for your (and our) convenience.

First off the rules: I'd warn you to make sure that the style of the house works with the style of the pattern so you aren't dating yourself in 15 years. There are so many patterns out there now that work with almost every style, but my rule is to keep the tile reminiscent of the style of the house that it is in as that will give the tile longevity in style and design. That means don't put something super graphic and modern in an antique craftsman.

cement tiles_roundup_kitchen_design trends_encaustic_living room — *Source*

Kitchens: As we mentioned before the cement tile trend is booming in kitchens and for a very good reason. These tiles whether on the floor, as a backsplash, or even an accent wall are high impact and add instant 'wow' to what can be a typically boring kitchen recipe.

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I used them in this kitchen, above, that was installed in a 1920's Spanish style renovation. It is still one of my favorites. Note: the floor tiles weren't properly sealed the first time (if at all, I don't remember and it wasn't my contractor) so they got really dirty really fast. I had to have them professionally scrubbed and then resealed but they definitely still had a lot of wear from those couple days of no-sealant days. It actually looks great because its an old house but if you had a new house you might not be so into it.

cement tiles_roundup_kitchen_design trends_encaustic_kitchen — *Sources: 1, 2*

Bathrooms: I just installed these tiles from Erin Adams design in my own bathroom and my search for those is what started this whole thing. Most cement tiles will work either on the floor or walls of your bathroom, but check with the manufacturer as some tiles will need to be sealed before they get a lot of foot traffic and water on them. Again, seal them after install and ideally keep sealing every couple years as needed.

cement tiles_roundup_kitchen_design trends_encaustic_bathroom — *Sources: 1, 2*

Entry: Yes. You can put cement tiles in your entry but it certainly sets the vibe for the whole house. If you have again a Mediterranean or a Spanish style house then go for it, but if you have an English Tudor, then be careful what pattern you go for and choose one that has a more delicate, traditional feeling. Also anything too light or simple will get worn easier so go for darker/busier so that the wear and tear doesn't stand out so much.

Cement tile roundup home style decor Emily Henderson 5 — *Source*

Outdoors: This is where we are used to seeing cement tiles because it really does wear so nicely over the years. It can get expensive if you are doing a large area or don't already have a hard surface (concrete) to lay the tiles on, but if you have a small courtyard or a little patio off your bedroom or living room (we can all dream) then cement tile can be just the ticket to create that little bit of visual wow.

Now that they are seemingly everywhere it seemed time to round up the largest resource ever to be on the internet of cement tiles. We chose our favorite from the resources, but there are many more so click on into the site to start shopping.

READY. SET. CLICK.