Parents of five Courtney and Michael Adamo have lived in Los Angeles, London and now Byron Bay, where they enjoy a more intentional, slower pace. In The Family Home, they share simple ways to foster imaginative play and support togetherness.
Display your children’s artwork
Is there anything more one-of-a-kind than the artwork your own kids have created? We don’t think so. There are lots of great ideas for displaying children’s art in both temporary and more permanent fashions. For example, we like to frame meaningful or milestone pieces like self-portraits, family portraits, hand or foot prints or a piece they’ve devoted a lot of time to creating. But framing does not mean they’re part of our family’s permanent collection. It’s easy enough to rotate artworks in and out of frames. And if hanging them on walls seems too big a commitment, try propping them up on top of a shelf or dresser, or use a wooden clothes peg to suspend unframed works from a string. How you choose to display your children’s art can be as creative as the works themselves.
Toys can be décor too
Some toys are more beautiful than others. We have always kept a small basket of Mader-Kreiselmanufaktur wooden spinning tops on a side table. Not only are they beautiful to behold, they entice everyone in the room to give them a whirl! We also have a marble solitaire game on our coffee table that looks so pretty with its carved wooden board and colourful marbles — it appeals to grown-ups as much as kids. Weaving play into your living space shouldn’t mean sacrificing style.
Make it comfortable
Kids love to be comfy (who doesn’t?). If we create a comfortable play space in our homes, we do more than pamper our children — we encourage sustained, imaginative and engaged play. We do ourselves a favour too, increasing the time our children will play contentedly on their own. This is especially true for young children, who generally prefer to be within sight or earshot of their parents and naturally gravitate towards comfort.
Even without a separate space, you can improvise. Give kids a soft rug and they’ll play imaginative games in the middle of it. Keep a selection of soft, sturdy floor cushions on hand, and they’ll happily take a seat to build a tower of blocks (or turn those cushions into a fort!).
Curate an arts and crafts cupboard
When we lived in London, we had two big craft cupboards filled with stuff: activity books, craft kits, stamps, adhesive googly eyes, colourful pipe cleaners, stickers, loads of crayons and felt pens, several different paint sets. It wasn’t until we packed up our house to leave London that we realised how much unnecessary stuff was in that cupboard, stuff that had never even been used.
It’s easy to be lured into thinking that if we buy loads of art supplies our kids will be much more creative. Based on our experience, we’d argue the opposite is true. Instead of focusing on quantity and variety, we’ve learnt it’s better to have fewer but better-quality supplies. For example, Lyra coloured pencils are great because they don’t break easily and last a long time. For younger kids, we like non-toxic beeswax crayons. One good set will do.
The way you store art supplies makes a difference too. At our children’s school, all primary kids have a fabric crayon roll in their desk to keep their crayons tidy. They take pride in their crayon rolls, and it encourages a more thoughtful, considerate use of the crayons.
The magic of nooks and crannies
Do you remember the allure of nooks and crannies when you were a kid? Those tiny spaces that only your little body could fit into. Whether it’s an empty cupboard or the cavity under the stairs, children are naturally drawn to these special, kid-sized spaces. They love to make dens, cubbies or hideouts and claim them as their own.
Even if you don’t have an empty closet, cupboard or other space to dedicate to your kids’ play, you can encourage them to co-opt less obvious spaces like the corner of their bedroom or the hidden gap between the back of the sofa and the wall. Supply cosy cushions, blankets and rugs, and kids will find a way to fashion a fort. Add fairy lights or a torch and these spaces take on another dimension of magic.
Take your time
When moving house or redecorating, it can be tempting to buy things quickly to fill an empty space or to feel like you’ve completed the project. Often when you take this approach, it makes your home feel impersonal or disconnected from the people who live there. The items you acquire in this way rarely hold the emotional value or long-lasting appeal of the pieces you’ve searched and saved up for or found in a serendipitous way.
We’ve boxed up our possessions and moved house enough times to know that our impulse buys are usually the first to go. It’s not a nice feeling taking them to the op-shop (or worse, having to dispose of them because they’re falling apart), but it can be a poignant reminder. These experiences have reshaped the way we buy and have saved us money over time.
Edited extract from The Family Home by Courtney & Michael Adamo, published by Hardie Grant Books.
Photography Amelia Rushforth
The post Design tips for imaginative family living appeared first on homestyle magazine.
