BEAUTIFUL KIDS TOYS YOU’LL ACTUALLY WANT TO DISPLAY

Oeuf bookshelf for kids

I think we can all agree that kids toys tend to get a bad rap. This post is about to change all that! Known for their impossibly bright colours and often less-than-subtle design, kids toys can become an eyesore in your living space as they find their way outside the playroom (if you are lucky enough to have one).

But friends, it doesn’t have to be that way. Constantly hiding toys doesn’t have to be the norm. Believe it or not, you’ll find quite a few beautiful pieces for your kids if you look in just the right places. I’m talking toys you’ll actually want to leave out when guests stop over. And toys that blend with your design aesthetic in the most seamless fashion.

Where do you find these unicorn toys, you ask? They’re right here in my roundup sorted by colour to suit every taste and style.

Browse for your favourites, PIN THEM and kiss those toy battles goodbye.

NATURAL WOOD

natural wood toys in kids room

Note to all design-savvy parents: you can never go wrong with natural wood. Whether it’s baby teethers, toddler blocks, or big kid puzzles, wood tones complement any color palette and provide a timeless sense of style. I also love that you can pass these down for generations to come.

natural wooden toys for babies and kids

01. // Riga Roo Rocker; 02. // Tegu Magbot; 03. // Hippo Ride On; 04. // Stacking Wheels Toy; 05. // Percussion Set; 06. // KEVA; 07. // Puzzle; 08. // Mozartkugel Music Box; 09. // Castle Box; 10. // Goose Toy Figure; 11. // Doll House; 12. // Cubebot; 13. //  Story Car 14. // Baby Teethers.

MUTED TONES

muted pink girls room

I love colour, especially in tones that blend with our own home decor. Strike just the right balance with muted tones like soft pinks, blues, yellows and greens for a look that feels tasteful yet fun.

Pastel hued toys for kids

01. // Silicone Rattle; 02. // Pastel Blocks; 03. // Mouse Soft Toy; 04. // Superhero Mouse; 05. // Porcelain Tea Set; 06. // Giraffe; 07. // Jamm Scoot; 08. // Gallop Horse; 09. // City Blocks; 10. // Rabbit Hand Puppet; 11. // School Bus; 12. // Tool Bench; 13. // Rainbow Tunnel; 14. // Tea Trolley; 15. // Baking Playset.

BLACK TOYS

A favourite for a reason, black is the toy tone that brings a modern touch to any room. Not only will the clean lines of black and white toys add visual interest, but the high contrast combo is particularly great for developing babies.  

dream big and nesting dolls in vancouver kids room
black coloured toys for kids

01. // Nesting Dolls; 02. // Stacking Game; 03. // Wood Teether; 04. // Rocking Donkey; 05. // Tool Playset; 06. // Tambourine; 07. // Polar Bear; 08. // Stacking Tunnel; 09. // Building Blocks; 10. // Rocking Horse; 11. // Contrast Art Cards; 12. // Ricepapa Plush; 13. // Activity Mat; 14. // Teether Toy; 15. // Teepee.

WHITE

canvas teepee in children's playroom

Nothing adds to a room’s light and airy appearance like white-toned accessories—toys included. Don’t be afraid to hunt around for your little ones’ favorite playtime pieces in their colorless counterpart. You’ll be pleasantly surprised to find white toys add some much-needed calm to chaotic kid spaces.

White toys for kids

01. // Rocking Horse; 02. // Wooden Camera; 03. // Celia Doll; 04. // Wood Easel; 05. // Mini Guitar; 06. // Canvas Teepee; 07. // Stuffed Bunny; 08. // Teether Rattle; 09. // Play Kitchen; 10. // Modern Slide; 11. // Micro Scooter.

 



GIVEAWAY!!!

If you've been following along on Instagram, you'll know I have a GIVEAWAY going on in collaboration with the timing of the Vancouver Home and Garden Show. We were given 2 Ikea crates, a $50 Visa gift card and some Rustoleum paint to create anything! I designed this little shelf for a nursery or kids room that you can see in person at the Home Show this week at BC Place and that will be GIVEN AWAY to one local follower.

IKEA hack with KNAGGLIG crate

The IKEA knagglig crates are only $6.99!!! Create the look for yourself by shopping the items below.

IKEA knagglig crate creation for kids room

01. // IKEA crate; 02. // Magic bunny; 03. // Bunny softie; 04. // Penguin softie; 05. // Dream sign; 06. // Sweet book; 07. // Outdoor book; 08. // Star garland

GET THE LOOK {KIDS ART STUDIO}

giant pegboard wall decor

I am beyond thrilled that our kid's creative art space inspired some of you to think about creating nooks for creativity in your own homes! I find so much joy in knowing the work I do helps your little ones. I have been getting questions about where various things are from so thought I would share where to find the basics of this room!

A couple of weeks ago, I shared all of our favourite art books for kids as I felt it deserved a post of its own! I've also been asked to share how we made the pegboards; these were a project themselves but turned out so well. Holes were individually drilled into two sheets of plywood (with a piece of wood wedged in between) so that the dowels would be able to support a good amount of weight.

Many of the big pieces are IKEA as this room is a basement rough space, and we decided we wanted pieces that truly didn't matter if paint was splattered on!!! As this is a space for the kids to be free, the point is that it IS messy...and that's ok.

get the look of Melissa Barling's creative art space for kids

01. // Clear acrylic shelves; 02. // Multi-sized paintbrushes; 03. // White wipeable chair; 04. // Ceramic wall vase; 05. // Graphic laundry basket; 06. // White drawer storage; 07. // Cactus art print; 08. // Clay rolling pin; 09. // Wipeable art table.

If you have questions about any other item, please leave them in the comments and I can answer for everyone to read. More than happy to share.

May your weekend be full of creativity and a little messy playfulness :) Happy Friday everyone!

OUR SUMMER LEMONADE STAND (USING IKEA KIDS TABLES!)

They say it's a right of passage to have a lemonade stand as a child. I say throw two IKEA LATT kids tables together, paint them white and you're set to go!!!

Our daughter Noelle, who is 6, told me a few nights before school started that having a lemonade stand was on her list of 'must dos' for the summer and she seemed pretty set on it. Without having much time to think about it, we put the kids to bed, I found the two IKEA tables in the basement and a few pieces of scrap wood and set to work (big thanks to my hubby for screwing the wood into the tables enabling a stand to be made). 

kids lemonade stand

Our IKEA kids tables mainly get used for parties or when kids come over for playdates and were definitely not in the best shape, so after finding the pieces of scrap wood to use as the 'stand', I used some leftover paint from my playhouse project last summer and quickly painted it all. You can see how dark it was when I snapped a photo once the paint was on. This is devoted parenting at its' best, right?! Ha!

BEFORE...

before ikea tables
before ikea table hack

AFTER...

lemonade stand

I made the 'LEMONADE' sign the next morning by cutting out large triangles from card stock and sticking some gold foil letter stickers on. I already owned the drinks dispenser that we use all the time for parties and playdates and apparently now lemonade stands too!!! The adorable silver star garland is from Pearl and Jane on Etsy. The girls and I walked up to the flower shop to choose some flowers for the stand and they picked out this sweet combination themselves. They also drew, coloured and cut out the lemons and stems to stick onto the stand for decoration. Aren't they the cutest?! This is definitely my favourite detail of all!!!

pouring lemonade
kids having fun at summer lemonade stand

Everyone who came by commented that at 25 cents, our lemonade was the best deal around. I guess we wanted the stand to be about having fun and not making money and we even had a jar of quarters for anyone who came by who didn't happen to have change with them. This turned out to be a great idea as we could then give out free lemonade (therefore getting more 'customers') while the kids could transfer a quarter from our money jar to theirs. Watching the joy on their faces when their neighbourhood friends stopped by was priceless; such a great summer memory.A win win for everyone!

sign for lemonade stand
dulton kitchen scale
summer flowers
lemonade-stand-kids

We have owned this little silver scale for years and it made a perfect accessory for the stand. The kids filled their own glasses up more times than I was willing to count but I suppose that's half the fun, isn't it??!!

Noelle filling up lemonade
Cutie Xav
bags of lemons

So, there it is. A summer bucket list item ticked off for the kids and hours and hours of fun for us all. Who else has a couple of IKEA kids tables kicking around?

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ART ON YOUR WALLS {WITH TOI ART GALLERY}

Art print in kids' room

When you think back to your childhood home, what do you think of? What graced your walls? Was it family photographs? Or nothing at all? In our home, it was art. Art that had meaning to my parents and had been collected over years. Art that I remember. So when I came across Toi Art Gallery and their collection of special pieces from artists all over the world, I was excited to add some of these beautiful prints to our home collection and thought you might like them too.

Art prints from Toi Art Gallery in a kids room

 Art is almost always the hardest part of the decision making process for clients. There is so much significance in the pieces chosen, knowing they will form a part of making memories for your children.  Choosing original prints is always worthwhile, showing little ones the beauty in the story of the artwork and how they too can aspire to create their own stories in the art that they make.

sweet prints from Toi Art Gallery
handmade doll in basket

I love that Toi have highlighted the artists by name and give a snapshot of their history in each bio.  When I showed the prints to our kids, I could explain where the artist Maria Elina (who created our prints) is from, show them her photo and tell them a bit about her background. The kids loved this and it really brings a meaningful story to the pieces. There are also gorgeous softies in the gift section, including this sweet doll and cozy lamb; perfect gifts for new babies, a child’s birthday or that Christmas stocking (shhh...no, I'm not talking Christmas just yet)!

After all, it’s the little memories, like art on the walls that will last a lifetime. What do you remember from your childhood walls? Tell me in the comments below!

*This post was created with Toi Art Gallery. 

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