Make the bed carry the bedside storage
Each headboard has an open shelf for a few books and a small personal object. That removes the need to squeeze two bedside tables into the narrow space between the beds.
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ROOM 84 · Children's Room
Two siblings, two colours, one clear floor
Published
A compact shared bedroom in a suburban semi
Sharing a bedroom need not mean agreeing on every colour. Two shelf-head beds give each child a small territory, while one common chest keeps the floor in front of them worth sharing.
See the product sourcesTHE DESIGN
Two beds are only the beginning of a shared-room plan. Add two bedside tables, two storage units and two sets of things that must stay within reach, and the useful floor soon disappears. This room starts by asking what can be shared and what needs to feel personal. The answers are different.
The Maine bookcase beds keep bedtime books at the head of each mattress. Their identical frames make the layout legible, while rust, blush, stripes and checks give the two places different characters. A single six-drawer chest handles everyday clothes. Three drawers on each side provide a simple starting point for sharing it; the low top need only hold a few things.
The arrangement keeps the largest clear patch at the feet of the beds. That is where dressing and play can happen without everyone standing in the narrow gap between mattresses. Small Noko wall lights leave the headboard shelves free, and the framed drawings introduce personality at a scale the room can afford. In a real installation, check drawer clearance, secure the chest to the wall and arrange the lights and blind controls for the children using the room.
WHY THE ROOM WORKS
Give each bed a personal edge and let the larger storage work for both.
Colour palette
- Rust
- Dusty blush
- Apple green
- Chalk white
- Pale timber
Share the chest, divide the drawers
One wide chest puts six drawers in two columns. It offers an obvious way to divide everyday clothes without buying a separate unit for each child or filling the remaining wall with cupboards.
Use paint to mark a place
Rust and blush distinguish the sleeping ends without building a screen between them. The white bed frames and common skirting keep the colour change connected to one room.
Protect the floor at the feet
The generous-looking part of this small room is the floor in front of the beds. Keeping furniture at the perimeter leaves that patch available for getting dressed and playing, rather than treating every empty corner as a storage opportunity.
Let interests change cheaply
Small frames hold a beetle and a kite here; the contents can change far more easily than the furniture. The same principle applies to bedding. Personal choice happens in pieces that are straightforward to replace.
WHAT TO BORROW
Share the expensive, space-hungry pieces. Give each child choice through a small shelf, a colour and something they want to look at; preserve a patch of floor that belongs to both.
THE PIECES BEHIND THE DESIGN
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