You would love to really do something special for your childs room, but you just don't know where to start.  The easiest way to start is to include your child in the process.  This makes the project more successful because your child will feel important and involved.  Now of course if your child is an infant or a toddler, Mom & Dad are just going to have to decide what is best for the child.  But, lets say you are looking to update a space that your 9 year old son or 12 year old daughter use.  You can start with reading design magazines that offer suggestions on how to decorate depending on age or even better take a look at some of the trendy store catalogs from some of the more popular stores such as Pottery Barn Kids or Crate & Barrel.  Take into consideration the activities your child is involved in, sports, drama, cheerleading, softball, music, you get the picture. Cut out pictures and have your child do the same.  Get together with your child and decide on a theme.  My nine year old for example loves anything to do with NASCAR so for me that was an easy choice to decide how we would be decorating his room.

  Once you have determined the theme of the room and your budget, determine what color scheme you and your child are willing to work with.  Many times parents are not as daring as children when it comes to paint color.  I remember asking my child what paint color he was interested in.  Well, his choice was black for all of the walls and although an interesting choice, I did not feel this would work well with the design scheme.  Instead his color was incorporated into the trim color and in the bedding and the valances and an interactive border he picked out.  This is a good way to compromise instead of just saying no. 

I have a friend who was shocked when her teen daughter said she wanted her room painted in lavender, pink and green.  Once we were able to find a bedding set that incorporated those colors, it was much easier on the parents to see how this would work.  We were able to decide on lavender for the bottom three feet of the wall, a pretty green for the rest of the walls and the pink was an accent on the chair rail molding that was also painted white.  The ceiling was white and with a white dresser, nightstand and headboard, the look quickly came together.  Pink sheer bedroom curtains completed the look.

Do not be afraid to try something different than what you would prefer in the rest of your home.  This will be your childs space and should not be your style completely.  Certainly take into consideration how often you are going to be willing to update the room.  If you don't want to update every few years, you have to consider how quickly the theme will go out of style and how quickly your child will be a teen or college student.  A college student may not want superman on the walls.  Going for a more timeless look may be more appropriate for a tween or teen.  Ebay is definately the place to look for all of the furniture and accessories you will need to make this room happen.  Look for used furniture with good bones that can be repainted or even spray painted and then covered in a polyurethane.  Somehow it is not a problem to paint a piece of furniture when you paid little for it as compared to one you paid thousands for.  Once you have come up with the color scheme and the theme of the room, simply do a search on ebay for the theme.  A very popular theme for preschool and elementary age girls is the butterfly decor or the princess look.  You can start by painting the room a soft pink color with white trim and ceilings.  Incorporate white painted furniture.  Add a pink butterfly netting bed canopy over the bed for a romantic look which will also double as a cool fort for a younger child or a romantic getaway for an older child.  Search online for wallies, those wonderful wallpaper cutouts that you apply to the wall any way you want.  They are inexpensive, easy to apply and can quickly be removed if the design needs to change down the road.  Then search for the type of window treatment you want to finish off the look and voila you have a decorator quality bedroom your child will appreciate for years.  Pink twin bed canopy  Wallies  Teen nightstand

I know of a teen boy who once he went on a cruise was obsessed with palm trees.  He wanted palm trees everywhere and that was what we were able to accomplish very affordably.  We started with finding a bed in the bag in the colors he preferred with palm trees.  We painted the room a nice neutral color with a focus wall in a medium blue granite paint from Lowes that matched a color in the comforter for a nice accent.  We replaced his closet door with a tropical themed palm tree beaded bamboo curtain from ebay of course.  Again, we added the wallies in Palm trees all over the room also from ebay.  By adding a coordinating blue ocean color, we were able to incorporate his desk, sitting area and cd storage that would work no matter how his style changed in the future.  By simply removing the wallies which is a simple process and replacing the closet door and bed in a bag, we can create a new look without changing any of the furniture when this look is no longer desired.  This is a great design trick when your child is set on how they want their room to be, yet you know in a few years they will no longer be interested in the same design.Palm tree wallies

Searching on ebay alone can give you great suggestions.  You can buy adorable nightstands that are white but add just a bit of pink and lavender on the drawers for the touch any preteen girl will love.  Yet, when your child is older, the drawer fronts can simply be painted another color and the furniture is still able to work with a new design.  Need a really affordable design idea?  Add round flower power rugs available for cheap on ebay all over a wood floor for a great look.  Paint flowers on the walls and add some matching flower accents pieces you can hang on the wall and a coordinating solid color comforter and curtains.  You can even buy fabric paint and paint flowers on inexpensive curtains you find.  Let your child help with the process and you will see how great this can be.  This really is a safe place for your child to be creative, so why not let them help if they are interested.  You can always repaint and paint is inexpensive.  Simply add some matching flower pillows for the bed and floor pillows for the floor when friends come over.  Quickly and inexpensively you create a look your child will love.  This also works great for an apartment when you are not allowed to change the paint color.  If the walls are neutral, don't be afraid of the pinks and the blues and the greens.  As long as you are recreating the same design and coordinating colors, you will find it will all go.   It is always safe to stick with white or mostly white furniture when going with vibrant colors.

Flower pillow  Incorporate vibrant flower pillows into your design. 

Flower rug

Hopefully I have given you some suggestions that will get you thinking about ways to create a dream room for your child that won't break your bank.  Click on the links for ebay searches to help you find affordable pieces to make the room a reality.  Time goes so quickly when our kids are growing up.  Take the time and do something special with your child.  Your child is going to remember that you helped redecorate their room for years.  Even more important is that they are going to realize that you valued their input in the design process.  Teaching your child to work together towards a goal is never a bad thing.  The value of this project is worth more than any amount of money you could possibly spend on the project if you had hired a decorator.  And, you will end up with a stunning room to top it off!

                                                                                                                  Sport themed bedroom