KIDS SAY DECORATING OWN BEDROOM MORE IMPORTANT THAN FIRST DAY AT SCHOOL

Dulux has teamed up with Child Development Psychologist Dr Sam Wass and TNS to launch a Kids Bedrooms campaign encouraging parents and children to decorate together. The campaign highlights the developmental benefits it can have on a child to have a say in their bedroom design. 

Aaron helping me to paint his room

I can whole heartedly agree with the philosophy behind this as Aaron did indeed help me paint his bedroom as regular long time readers will remember. We painted it last year in Dulux Quintessential Blue but I just looked back through my tweets and discovered we bought it in August 2014. Ooops I had chronic fatigue at the time and literally sat on the paint for a few months.

To launch the campaign, the leading paint brand has conducted a survey of 2,000 parents and children. The children surveyed ranked decorating their bedroom as the second most important milestone to achieve as a child, beating losing their tooth and their first day at school.

As part of the research study, as above, Dulux asked children aged 4-8 to draw sketches of their current bedrooms and their newly decorated bedrooms as well as write ‘Dear Bedroom Letters’ expressing what their new space means to them.

• A whopping 92 per cent of kids would spend more time in their room if they could help decorate it
• Three quarters of parents don’t involve their children in this crucial creative process
• Expert Developmental Psychologist Dr. Sam Wass says, “It’s vital to children’s development to sometimes let them be in charge for a change”

An overwhelming majority of kids (92%) would spend more time playing in their room and doing their homework if they had a say in how it’s decorated. 

Research commissioned by leading paint brand Dulux found a whopping number of children value being part of the decorating process, with the majority saying it was the second most important thing they had ever done – even more important to them than their first day at school or losing their first tooth.

The study of 2,000 families shows that children also found decorating with their parents a really positive experience, with 65 per cent saying they felt happy and 58 per cent excited at the prospect of helping mum and dad.

Additionally, parents commented that decorating together helped to increase their child’s sense of ownership, pride and opportunity for creative expression. Some parents said it even ensured rooms were tidier, because they wanted to show it off to their friends and family.

Surprisingly, however, whilst an indisputable 92 per cent of parents believe that decorating their child’s room is important, the study found that only a QUARTER of parents actually consulted their kids or involved them in the process.

Most attributed this to time pressures, saying it would be quicker to make decisions themselves, while two thirds admitted they preferred to match the bedroom to the style of the rest of their house and according to their own personal tastes, rather than the preferences of their child.

When asked to use their imaginations and think about the one thing they most wanted in their room, an ambitious ‘treehouse’ came out as the most popular result from children. Such creative responses further supports comments from participating parents, who expressed the impressive creativity of children in comparison to adults, who tend to let their imaginations be restricted by the limitations of what’s easily achievable.

The top ten creative ideas children want in their bedrooms:

1.    Treehouse

2.    Slide

3.    Narnia style wardrobe

4.    Swing

5.    Trap door

6.    Glass ceiling

7.    A stage

8.    Jungle

9.    Space rocket

10. Pirate ship

While decorating together was expected to be a stressful activity, parents admitted afterwards it had actually been a hugely positive experience because it gave them the opportunity to spend quality time with their kids.

Commenting on the research findings, expert Developmental Psychologist, Dr. Sam Wass, states:

"Children typically create little things, but the bedroom is the first real, permanent thing that they can influence. Involving a child helps them to establish their own inner space and the image that they want to project to others. And for parents, having a chance to work together with their children can really help to establish a stable, respectful relationship.

“This new study by Dulux confirms this. Children, when given a chance to be in charge of their bedrooms, respond positively: they feel a sense of pride, they spend more time in their bedroom, and they become more inclined to keep it tidy to show it off to their friends. For these reasons, and more, I think it would be wonderful if more parents involved their children when decorating their bedroom".

Marianne Shillingford, Creative Director at Dulux adds:

“When you’re sent to your room as a child it’s often because you’ve done something naughty. But when you’re an adult your bedroom becomes a sanctuary, a place for relaxation and creative expression. That’s why we want to make being sent to your room a rewarding and positive experience for children. 

“Interestingly, if kids have a say in what their room looks like they’re more likely to spend time in it. But it’s not actually about how it looks - it’s doing it together that’s really important. If you’re already decorating their bedroom and you want them to get the most out it, simply involve them in the decision making process.”

Dulux has created a range of fun YouTube videos to inspire parents and children. Demonstrating impressive, impactful but completely achievable techniques that families can replicate at home, transforming your kid’s bedroom couldn’t be easier.

The videos are well worth a visit 
and 
have been designed around kids’ passion points
from avid bookworms 
looking for a place to spark their imagination to 
would-be astronauts 
looking to jet off to galaxies beyond. 

Visit 
Whose Room is it Anyway?
at 
www.dulux.co.uk/kids-rooms  
to watch the great videos in full.

Disclosure: this post is a collaboration with Dulux although it is a subject I am passionate about having painted Aaron's bedroom with him (well 3 walls, Daddy did two coats on the final two walls alone). I know 3 + 2 = 5 LOL but it is because there is a diagonal on the back wall, making it five. Actually the fifth wall is the one featured in the picture at the outset of this post. Aaron's bedroom makeover from last year can be seen here.

I can imagine him outgrowing his room in the coming months/years and wanting something more like this SPACE Dulux bedroom makeover: