14 Teenage Bedroom Ideas to Help Upgrade Your Kid’s Space
Show off your teen's big and bold ideas by creating a room like no other
The eve of teenagehood welcomes a newfound sense of style, creativity, and bold self-expression. What better way to celebrate this exciting time than turning their bedroom into a retreat for relaxation, socializing, and a bit of privacy?
Room inspiration can strike at any time, whether teens are scrolling through social media or watching their favorite show. The key is to collaborate with your teenager to bring their room inspo to life. In honor of the latest season premiere of the Netflix show “Never Have I Ever,” we've compiled 14 teenage bedroom ideas to help transform their childhood bedroom into a personalized haven they'll be thrilled to call their own.
1. Brainstorm the Big Vision
Sit down with your teen and peruse the options they have for their new design—no doubt they have some cool bedroom ideas. At this phase, the sky's the limit. Go bright and bold. Create an online or physical vision board with colors, patterns, and general vibes that catch their eye. Did they save a TikTok with must-have room decor? How about inspiration from a friend's room? Add it all to the board!
Keep in mind that the brainstorming phase is just a launching point. There's no need to latch onto specific products or color choices at this stage of the game.
2. Start with the Furniture Essentials
Furniture will play a large role in the transition from a kid's room to a teenage haven. It’s likely time to upgrade to a full bed, a larger desk for school work, and add functional spaces like a reading corner with a chair and a bookshelf.
Start with the large furniture items so you know how to choose patterns, colors, and other decor items around the major pieces. Take some time to evaluate which items to keep as part of the redesign and which to donate or sell at your next garage sale. Changing the layout of your teen’s furniture can be as impactful as bringing in something new.
3. Designate Playful Spaces
It's time to get creative: Rethink the room to encourage a place for them to tackle their favorite hobby, read a book, chill out with friends, or write in their journal.
Luckily, you don't need a ton of space to pull this off. Area rugs, accent lighting, and creative seating—such as overstuffed pillows, bean bag chairs, and ottomans—can go a long way. You can also borrow the popular cloffice trend of 2020 by turning a closet into a space to do homework.
4. Update the Wall Patterns
Energetic patterns are all the rage now in home design, and there are plenty of fun ways for teens to jump on the bandwagon. If the room currently features the floral, butterfly, and polka-dot aesthetic from their younger years, opt for new textures and patterns that make the room feel fresh.
If they prefer to keep these patterns, consider a complementary design that will shift the look. You can show off patterns by creating an accent wall with patterned wallpaper, adding an animal print comforter, or choosing a simple pattern like chevron to weave throughout the room.
5. Set the Tone with Color
During your brainstorming session, determine a color scheme that either creates a sense of calm or a burst of energy. A teenage retreat will mean something different to everyone, so explore everything from soft pastels to contrasts like vibrant pinks and greens. Once you've chosen your color palette for the walls, look outside the box. Consider painting the ceiling, doors, trim, and other areas that don't normally feature bold colors.
6. Add a Funky Light Fixture
Overhead light fixtures are notoriously simple when you first move into a home or apartment. Swap out the ceiling light cover with a teen-approved light fixture. Go beyond the traditional crystal and gold approach by choosing a hanging lamp with a colorful shade or textured design.
7. Incorporate Lighting Levels
Speaking of funky lighting fixtures: Twinkle lights, light-up garlands, and small table lamps are excellent ways to shift the tone of a space. Providing lighting options lets your teen switch right from homework time to wind-down time. Plus, hanging lights around their room is a fun DIY project that you can complete together in no time.
8. Encourage Your Teen’s Creativity
Add a few spaces in the room that encourage your teen to make changes and show off their work. Sure, you may be focused on incorporating all the trendy teenage room decor you can find, but the room should be sure to show off their personality. Designate one wall for creating a gallery wall, photo collages, showing off artwork from school, or displaying their favorite prints and posters. Floating shelves or deep bookshelves are a great place to encourage creative displays, as is a wall-sized cork board.
9. Keep It Flexible
If there's one thing you can put your money on over the next several years, it's that your teen's preferences will change. Opt for purchases that are easy and low-cost to change if the time comes to switch to a new teenage bedroom idea.
For example, peel-and-stick wallpaper is easier to swap out than adding a new paint color to the wall. Consider blankets with swappable duvet covers, reversible area rugs, and bookshelf decor that is easy to change with the season.
10. Optimize Organization
The uphill battle of keeping a teen's room clean often comes down to having a place for everything to go. Consider furniture and containers that encourage easy organization, especially when decluttering a small space—think beds with built-in drawers, benches and ottomans that double as storage, and desk drawers with organizers. Be sure that the closest offers a clear space for every pair of shoes, scarf, and tie so they don't end up in a pile. And speaking of piles: Opt for the larger laundry bin to prevent overflow.
11. Bring in the Plants
Encourage your teen to grow their green thumb early by adding a few live plants to the space. Not only does this promote a sense of responsibility, but it also offers a handful of health benefits. Since plants are a hip apartment staple, they can feel one step closer to creating a personalized and independent space.
12. Look to the Future
Transitioning from a kid's bedroom to a teen bedroom is a monumental moment, one that will likely not happen again for several years, if at all. That’s why it’s important to consider how the room will serve the upcoming years as well as the current one.
For example, if you're buying a larger bed, consider a choosing queen over a full bed to accommodate another growth spurt. Is your teen becoming more social? Leave space for a hangout area, even if you don't add it right away.
13. Honor the Past
With all this change in the air, the last thing you want to do is design a totally unfamiliar room. During the brainstorming phase, decide what items to keep, what goes into storage, and what you can donate. Does the stuffed elephant get a place with the throw pillows or has it graduated to the bookshelf? They may also want to keep some familiar patterns, colors, and decor in the room to make sure it feels like home.
14. Hire a Pro Interior Designer to Collaborate With Your Teen
Creating a new space for a teen is a thrilling time of transition. But working alongside your teenager to reinvent their personal space isn’t always the easiest task.
If you're looking for the perfect birthday gift or need an expert opinion, consider hiring a local interior designer to help them kickstart their ideas. Let your teenager take ownership over the design process by working with the professional interior designer to bring their vision for their room to life.