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rawilsonyeager

Kids Sharing Bedrooms

13 years ago
I'm getting married and combining family. We have 4 girls 7,8,9 and 11 years old. Looking for design ideas for the girls to share two rooms. Rooms are 13'x14'. Help! Hoping to create fun, stylish and individual spaces.

Comments (15)

  • 13 years ago
    How well do they get along? I knew a man who married his daughter's best friend's mother and the two girls never got along again. I'd be very cautious before putting two kids who have never lived together in the same room. Try it out for a time.
  • 13 years ago
    I hear ya! 3 of them are sisters and I have an only child. They get along like all siblings...some good days and some bad days. I live in a great family community but the problem is the houses are small and expensive so buying a large 5 bedroom house is not an option. I love these pictures....keep them coming. Thank you!
  • 13 years ago
    last modified: 13 years ago
    Here are some more non-traditional ways to arrange the beds to keep the center of the room open, or back to back (or foot to foot) for more personal space.
    Contemporary Bedroom · More Info

    Colorful Butterfly Girl's Room · More Info

    Crisp Architects · More Info

    Traditional Kids · More Info
  • 13 years ago
    I am thinking of something like this in your kids room.
  • 13 years ago
    With size being an issue, this is a good solution.
    Allison's Room · More Info
  • 13 years ago
    All great ideas. My design juices are flowing! Thanks all for your suggestions.
  • 13 years ago
    Another possibility
  • 13 years ago
    Try to pair the girls according to their design preferences. Do two of them have the same favorite color? Are there two that both like the same style of furniture, or want the same 'vibe' to their room? Then tailor each room to the inhabitants. I wouldn't necessarily try to make the bedrooms resemble each other.

    I imagine with 4 girls those ages, there will be plenty of sleep-overs in the future, so if you're able to put in some extra beds (I know that sounds insane at the moment) go for it. Maybe each room with 1 or 2 sets of bunk beds. That will make it easy for the girls to "sleep over" in each others rooms sometimes too, like if one has a nasty cold, her "roommate" can move into the other room for a night or two.

    Another alternative is to do something like the "Lake House" picture above, with all 4 beds in one room, and use the other room for a study/play/hang-out spot for all of them.
  • PRO
    13 years ago
    Unfortunately, I don't have pictures to show you but I once saw photos of a large shared room where the designer had split the room with a central bunk bed/bookcase column unit. Each bunk had a built in shelving area with reading light at the head. Each bunk had a back wall and two ends and opened to a separate side of the room so each child had private space in a shared room.

    My children shared a bedroom until they were elementary school age. We have 2 secondary bedrooms with the exact same size room, same size closet and 3 identical windows. The only difference is the placement of the entry and closet doors but each child wanted the room at the back of the house. We told them that they would be sharing until they came up with a suitable solution as I didn't want to spend the rest of my life hearing about how "Mom and Dad gave you the better room" The eventual solution was daughter took the front bedroom and the single bed with son taking the preferred room but with the double bed so he had to vacate the room when the grandparents came to visit.
  • 13 years ago
    Here are the photos of each of the rooms of the house we just bought with the Sellers furnishings. Both rooms are the same size. One wall is all windows that start in the middle of the wall up to the ceiling. One wall is a long closet. And one wall has a 5 ' indent (desk nook) and the entrance door. The rooms do not have two solid walls that meet to form a corner. Im thinking of removing the closets and placing bunk beds perpendicular in the closet with some built-ins on the sides. I can make the indent (desk nook )into a closet with a sliding library ladder so we can go all the way up to the ceiling for triple hanging racks and built-ins . I can probably add another free standing closet on the one solid wall if needed...did I mention 4 girls :).
  • PRO
    13 years ago
    Great comments above, I would think storage and space to move around. 4 girls have a lot of things. Please take a look at my photos and let me know what you and the girls like and I can help you make a plan. Thank you.
  • 13 years ago
    Don't pair the girls by design preference, pair them by their ability to get along. I remember having my sister try to lock me out of my bedroom. I was so angry I kicked in the door (it was a weak, hollow-core door).
  • 13 years ago
    I completely agree with Sigrid. How well they get along is crucial.

    I suggest captains beds with storage drawers underneath to save space. Bunk beds and loft-style beds are not going to work with these windows. Look at double rooms in dorms for ideas. Make sure there's a study area elsewhere in the house for each girl, even if it is a shared table.

    At these ages, the girls are forming habits for sorting, keeping and discarding clothes (not to mention learning to wash them). Sharing closets may be difficult at first. One side per girl, separated with a wood barrier or a wood shelf will keep arguments to a minimum. One laundry basket per girl.

    If the girls are likely to grow up tall, buy twin xl mattresses and beds now rather than replace them all when the girls reach their full height at age 13 or 14. If you avoid having a footboard with sharp edges, it is much easier to move around a crowded room without dinging your shins.
  • 13 years ago
    last modified: 13 years ago
    I'm afraid the depth of the nook won't work as a closet unless you figure out a way to hang things flat in the space. They make pull down racks, but for littlest girls they might be too difficult to manage.
    Can the beds fit perpendicularly under the windows in the bedroom on the left, leaving the closet as is?
    Children's Closet - Newport Beach, CA Residence · More Info