They Put a Box Bed in This Bedroom, and Now It’s 100x Cozier and More Functional

Smart storage makes all the difference in a kid’s room. When there’s a spot for each clothing item, book, toy, and trinket — and when that storage situation can evolve as the kid grows — the room just really works. When Patty Hampton, head of design at Refresh Your Space (RYS), was tasked with redesigning a 9-year-old girl’s bedroom in the Silicon Valley, creating ample, thoughtful storage was a top priority.

“[The family] wanted the design to have longevity, and to be sophisticated enough for [the daughter] to enjoy it until she’s a teenager,” Hampton says of the clients’ hopes and dreams for the space. “We also designed it so that it can be modified to be more mature as she grows. Additionally, they wanted more storage and to utilize previously wasted spaces and corners.” 

Toward the beginning of the redesign process, the client — aka, Mom — presented her daughter with two mood boards to decide between, each with a different palette. The winning aesthetic includes soft pinks, purples, and floral patterns, while the walls are painted Benjamin Moore’s “Acadia White,” and the case goods are in Sherwin-Williams’ “Natural Linen.” That means that, as the daughter gets older and her tastes naturally evolve, the room’s palette can easily be adjusted by switching up details like the upholstery and linens.

The star of the new and improved room is the box bed, with its dusty pink upholstery and perfectly built-in storage. “We added drawers at the bottom of the bed, which is usually wasted space, and created open shelves instead of a traditional headboard,” Hampton says. “She also wanted the bed to feel enclosed for a sense of coziness, and we added an arch at the top to soften the look.” 

Directly attached to the bed is a built-in wardrobe, and across the room is a coordinated banquette with drawers. The design takes advantage of every corner and every wall, optimizing vertical space and, as Flynne Nathanson, RYS’s head of marketing and operations, puts it, “delighting her and her cats (both real and stuffed).”

The family wanted the space to feel “light and joyful,” according to Hampton, and it’s safe to say they seriously succeeded. The best part of the space? How wildly functional it is. “We considered her development and focused on key areas that she would be comfortable in: a reading nook, a lounge corner where friends can come to hang out, and a wardrobe area for dress-up with recessed LED channels that turn on when the door opens,” Hampton says.

The one thing the 9-year-old was disappointed about? She couldn’t be there for the “after” photo shoot. (She was at school!)