Creating a boy and girl shared room can be challenging, especially as kids get older. You don’t want things to be too girly or too masculine, but you also want it to be memorable and fun. I get it. I have four year old boy girl twins, and they’ve shared a room from the beginning.
The great news is that they both love their space and have never asked to have their own rooms. Over time, I’ve been able to create a cute boy and girl shared room without spending a ton of money.
Since we just updated their room with big kid beds, I wanted to share its most recent transformation with you. No longer do we have two cribs or two toddler beds. We have super tall four year olds who are sharing a very small room in a small house, and they didn’t last long in toddler beds.
This is where my first tip comes in. Find something in the room that can be your focal point, something fun and memorable. For us, that was their beds.
Make it Fun
Because our home is just over 1,000 square feet, there isn’t a lot of room for large furniture. In fact, we couldn’t find a way to fit two twin beds in their small room. So, enter the bunk beds stage right.
Now, I totally fell in love with the bunk bed at Pottery Barn that looks like a playhouse. It’s actually called the Tree House bunk bed, and it’s just so gorgeous, but also very expensive at $1,900. It’s just not a cost I could justify, so I started looking for something similar.
After searching for a few months, I came across these bunk beds
However, once I read the description and realized the camouflage curtains were removable, I started to see the potential. In fact, with the curtains stripped away, it looked really similar to the Pottery Barn version, without the expensive price tag.
I kept an eye on the price, and right after Christmas I bought them when the price dropped under $600 (usually around $800.)
Here’s what the bunk beds look like in their room:
As you can see, these beds are really fun. It made the kids so excited for their big kid room. Having a large piece of furniture in a neutral color set the tone for the entire boy and girl shared room.
What I Love About Bunk Beds
What I love about the beds is that each kid gets to have their own space within the room. My daughter has the top bunk and calls it her “castle.” My son calls his bottom bunk his “cave.” They both think their space is super cool, and we’ve customized it for each one of them. We installed really simple Ikea floating shelves so they can put the books and trinkets they like near their beds.
The mattresses on the beds were generously provided by Tuft & Needle. I wanted to get them the Tuft & Needle twin mattresses
My kids were decent sleepers as infants. We sleep trained them to be on the same nap schedule and same night schedule. But, as they got older, they started climbing out of their cribs, and transitioning to toddler beds was a nightmare. They kept ending up in our bed.
Eventually, I gave up and asked Tuft and Needle if they’d consider sending us a king mattress to try so we could have more space. They very generously agreed, but I waited a full year to let you know so I could make sure to give you an accurate review!
Initially, I was nervous to get the T&N mattress at first because I like soft mattresses. Some of the T&N mattress reviews said it was too firm, so I was worried I wouldn’t like it. But, it’s perfect. I’ve had ours for over a year now and the kids have had theirs for almost 6 months. So, I’m finally confident enough to say that we’re really happy with them. After a year of sleeping on it, I have no complaints, and the kids seem to sleep well on them too.
The great news is that once the twins got their bunk beds and their own Tuft & Needle twin mattresses, they finally wanted to stay in their own beds! Now, don’t get me wrong, I still wake up and find one of them next to me from time to time. But, for the most part, getting them bigger mattresses and a cooler bed made them want to stay in their room. This means more and better sleep for everyone.
Create a Cohesive Look
If you’ve been reading from the beginning, you might remember that my twins had a travel themed nursery. Their nursery walls were grey, and this was before grey was cool, y’all. My mom and mother in law were horrified I was going to paint the walls grey. I did it anyway, though, and everyone eventually loved it.
Because we’ve lived abroad and love to travel, we filled their nursery with maps from all over the world. We also included pictures of us when we lived in the Caribbean, and lots of other fun mementos from friends who live in other countries. I hate to call it a “theme” because it might make people think of a tropical themed bathroom or a Mickey Mouse themed birthday party. So, let’s just call it a cohesive look.
It turns out, the travel photos and artwork were a great choice because all of that has carried over to now at age 4. This means I didn’t have to buy anything new to decorate their room, and I didn’t have to replace nursery art with big kid art.
One of my favorite parts of the room are these scratch off maps
And here are just a few more pictures of the space:
Overall, I think it’s a room that will definitely grow with them. And, they really enjoyed the freedom to add their dolls and toys and books to their own individual bunk beds. This makes them feel like they get to have somewhat of a say in how their personal spaces are “decorated.”
Really, our only cost in this big kid room update was the bed. We already had their dressers, artwork, and IKEA floating shelves from their nursery. (And, we’ve brought all of it to three different states now!)
I’m hopeful that these two will keep sharing a room for a long time. I just love their bond and their friendship. And, if I can help facilitate that by making their shared room fun, I’m more than happy to do it.
Do you have a boy and girl shared room in your house? If so, how did you decorate it?
lovely choice:D