The brief for this project was very close to my heart as it was for my twin sons shared bedroom! Not that being this close to it makes decisions easier - I think it often makes it much harder!! And what do you do when they have very different ideas on how they want the room to look? And you have very different ideas again?!

My boys turned 11 in April and with secondary school looming, it was time for a much needed bedroom update. Their room had been somewhat neglected over the years, in part because they tend to break everything they own, and in part because the years go by so fast!

Their room last had any love directed its way at least 6 years ago. It was superhero themed then, with comic strip wallpaper and decoupage on the old chest of drawers to give it a new lease of life. The bright orange and grey walls were painted using paint leftovers from the kitchen that seemed to work in their room too. They had a tiny wardrobe inherited from their sister’s room, and a few other mismatched bits of furniture (not in a good eclectic way!) most of it broken and not fit for purpose anymore. So all in all it was pretty cobbled together, even 6 years ago. Since then the wallpaper had come under attack and strips had been pulled off, and the ceiling light had been bashed and was falling down.

It was a mess.

My boys are identical twins, and they really are identical in every way but one - they passionately and wholeheartedly support different football teams. One is pro Liverpool and red all the way, and the other is team Chelsea and most definitely blue. This poses a problem when you come to ask them for ideas for their new room. As you can imagine, neither of them wants to give an inch, and to top it off I hate the idea of a football themed bedroom - no matter the team. I can think of nothing worse than a Chelsea duvet cover and curtains and Liverpool wallpaper and rug. So we were pretty much at a stalemate.

Which made the brief a tricky one; find a way to make the room feel football themed, without being tacky or overly supportive of Liverpool or Chelsea. Create a room that suits them now and for the next few years and feels a bit more grown up. It needs to not cost very much, and to take into account that the room is pretty small. We needed to keep the beds - a small double and a single high sleeper. Oh, and probably more than anything else it needed to be robust. These are not gentle boys, but the fighting, climbing and kicking kind!!

Problems to overcome:

Small budget
Small room
Two children to please
Two different football teams and colours
Create a room with some longevity
Not little boys but not teenagers yet either
Keeping existing wood double bed and high sleeper
Has to be robust

So with my thinking cap on and my negotiating skills set to high, I set to work. The one thing that we did all agree on and like in the room was a denim rag quilt that I had made for them during lockdown. It was sewn together from many many pairs of their old jeans that I had saved since they were babies. This could stay and indeed the rich denim blue helped to form a good starting point for colour ideas. And paint in particular. One good tip when money is tight is to consider bolder ideas with paint. Paint is one of the cheapest ways to transform a room and colour blocking can add instant personality and fun. I knew this was going to be the way to add ‘neutral’ interest to the boys room.

The layout had to stay pretty much the same as there was only one way for the beds to go. Simplifying the rest of the furniture though with a wardrobe and chest of drawers gave more floor space and keeping these in a white, simple design ensured they would be suitable for many years to come (providing the boys don’t break them!).

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When I asked them how they wanted the room to look, they said they definitely wanted it to reflect each of them and the things they cared about - football! So to keep it on the right side of tacky but still appeal to them, I looked for some giant wall stickers. They could look dramatic and give real impact, and could be removed at a later date. My Liverpool loving boy instantly wanted a huge Ronaldo sticker and the words Never Give Up. As we seemed to be heading towards a blue colour scheme, the Liverpool themed stickers were a good compromise. And both boys loved an A2 sized drawing of their football heroes they saw on Etsy that was tasteful(ish!) .

So with a few ideas in place we put together a moodboard to see how it could take shape - yes, we really do do this for our own homes too! It’s incredibly useful to see how it all goes together and how each item relates to the next.

Moodboard for boys bedroom blue and red — @the_living_house

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As the room is quite small and east facing, my idea was to go bold with the colour blocking and create a dark, den-like area in the bed end of the room, and a lighter brighter area for the dressing and playing area. To create a cosy, cocooning feel the dark bold blue was to wrap all the way over the coving and ceiling, and the three walls around the bed, and stop exactly at the width of the bed. To enhance this contrast, the large Ronaldo sticker was to straddle the dark blue and light grey. To increase the Liverpool element in the room, a red ceiling shade was chosen, and a graphic design rug for a contemporary feel.

With the plans decided and agreed, all three children wanted to help and set to work with a paint brush. Some were a little more dedicated and skilled than others (naming no names!), but they all had a go! I’m glad the bed can only go in one place as the carpet in the far corner might be looking a bit blue!! Oh well.

Using frog tape I carefully sectioned off a straight line down the wall and across the ceiling. The ceiling was tricky - it’s never easy trying to do something above your head - but after a couple of gos it was straight enough! Once applied it’s very easy to paint a straight line and peeling it off to reveal the perfect contrast is very satisfying. The light grey was also used on the ceiling and coving too to simplify the look - and the painting too, no tedious cutting in!

The stickers came as big transfers. After giving them a good rub with a credit card edge, they stuck well to the wall and were very easy to use. I must admit that I got help to build the furniture from Dunelm in the end. Time was not my friend and the job needed to be finished! The boys had been sleeping in the living room for at least 10 days by now and the disruption to every room in the house was driving me a little insane!! So to speed up the process I paid to get the furniture built and what would have taken me several days took my handyman an afternoon.

With order restored, the boys moved back into their bedroom and they instantly loved the feel of the dark blue around the bed. They put up LED lights on the high sleeper bed frame and declared it the cosiest thing ever!! Success I say, and for less than £500. Of course whether the LED lights should shine blue or red is still being debated...

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