We live in a one bedroom apartment and our 2 year old, Moses, sleeps in a closet off the living room. I haven’t posted pictures of Moses’ closet in a year or two (it used to look like this) so I thought I would share a few. Notes and sources below.
We recently installed a custom toddler bed that Paul built. It was a happy coincidence that a crib mattress is the exact length of the closet. The artwork is a print I blew up from a book called The Architect’s Brother
The orange stripe bedding is from Ikea, I had to modify the twin set to fit a toddler bed.
The “It’s beautiful here” coatrack is made by South African artist Heath Nash. I love love love it. (I got it a few years ago from Anthropologie.) The monkeys I bought while on vacation in Tulum, Mexico. The wall color is Benjamin Moore’s Celery Salt that we had leftover from painting our bookshelves. (IT isn’t as bright as it appears in these photos.)
The light fixture I bought from the Flea Market a few years ago. Although you can buy a similar one from Amazon right here.
The little red shelf is from Ikea, we painted it red. The artwork is a McSweeney’s cover and the toys pictured are both also from a trip to Mexico. I laughed because I left the room for 1 minute to change a poopy diaper (glamorous, I know) and when I came back this is what my perfectly styled photo had become.
4 month old Roman will soon join his older brother in the closet, we’ve hired a wood worker to build a custom bunk bed crib that will lift open from the front. Anytime I start to feel badly that they sleep in a closet I remember what Kacy said, “Harry Potter also lived in a closet, and he grew up to be a fine young man.”
j. vorwaller
June 8, 2010
Oh I adore absolutely everything about this room! The bed is gorgeous and cozy looking too – I love the blonde color of the wood with the rest of the space, way to go Paul! And the celery color on the walls with the neutrals is great… it's a color I use a lot in my decorating too – a favorite.
I was curious about the printing source as well, did you go with a local printer? (When you have images blown up that big from books, it's rare that they look as fantastic as yours!)
toddler bed furniture
June 8, 2010
I like the color and the design of the toddler bed. This is nice stuff.
mrs boo radley
June 8, 2010
I can't wait to see Roman's crib when it's done! This is amazing!
mrs boo radley
June 8, 2010
The house we lived in until I was 10–mybedroom was less square-footage than my closet in the the house we moved into later! Nothing but good memories from the first small house.
katie
June 8, 2010
not bad for muggles. but seriously, that is extremely creative & ingenious! can't wait to see the bunk-bed-crib.
dearjoeloverosie
June 8, 2010
it looks perfect, jordan! my good friend did the same thing in her 1br san fran apartment for her little boy and it was such a cute and cozy little room!
Jenny, the Bloggess
June 8, 2010
Absolutely magical. Although monkey on the left scares me a little. I think he needs pupils.
oldbluesocks
June 8, 2010
If Harry's closet had looked that cute and cheery, he may never have left for Hogwarts 🙂
ThePeachy1
June 8, 2010
Full of awesome ! When my oldest 2 were little the cribs and toddler beds were in the closests. The room had 2, this left all the floor space open for play areas. Now we have a huge house with a HUGE master closet and my youngest likes to "camp" in there, it's very magical like a tree house or fort but inside.
Kristin
June 8, 2010
What a brilliant use of space. I truly love it!
justine and jordan @ chance press
June 8, 2010
i'd also love to know more about how you went about getting the picture blown up, and how much it cost.
jordan
June 8, 2010
On blowing up the picture: It wasn't cheap. It has been a few years so the exact details are foggy but we got a few quotes from different companies and went with the cheapest. We had it printed on canvas and then bought stretchers from an art store and used a staple gun to secure it.
raya manna
June 9, 2010
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TX Girl
June 9, 2010
My son sleeps in the hallway. We closed off a long hallway (we just take the long way around to our bedroom), made your sister's fabulous toddler bed and added a bookcase and whatnot. He has his own little nook and loves it. The horrible hallway lighting is our only issue, but he has a sweet little lamp he can turn on and off and boy does he ever. He doesn't care at all that he sleeps in the hallway, because to him, it is his very own room and he even gets to clean it.
Ariel
June 9, 2010
So inspiring! Our son also sleeps in a closet (http://offbeatmama.com/2010/05/nursery-walk-in-closet) and it's great to see the idea translate for a toddler!
un hamac
June 9, 2010
it's a GREAT space. and i love the quote from kacy.
betsey
June 9, 2010
So inspiring to me! Thank you so much for posting this. It makes me feel excited about moving to Hong Kong with my family (including two young children) in a few months. They are going to have a similar room arrangement…
peapodsquadmom
June 9, 2010
i LOVE it! little kids don't need much room anyway. we lived in a 750 sq. ft. apartment when our TRIPLETS came along. we managed just fine. i think families who live in smaller homes are sometimes more connected to one another because they have no other choice…maybe not a bad thing.
and that closet is AMAZING.
Bridget
June 9, 2010
closet or not, that place rocks.
Kacy
June 9, 2010
I'm picturing the bunk bed crib. It's a cage.
Marisa
June 10, 2010
This is amazing! What an inspiration.
Mary
June 10, 2010
The space is cute, but what about a fire? There's no window for your children to get out — that seems completely unsafe.
Amy
June 10, 2010
I love it! Can't wait to see pics when it is converted to a shared closet. We are expecting our first and until we can afford to "take over" the whole house, we will be keeping our tenant upstairs. Our little one is going in a closet too! I thought it was the perfect solution, but I'm sure you understand about the looks you get when you tell other people. I'm going to have to start using the Harry Potter quote!
Sabrina
June 10, 2010
What a cute closet! I bet Moses likes it!
Stephanie Sabbe
June 10, 2010
I can not wait to share this with my husband. We live in a teeeny Boston apartment and he is convinced kids need the suburbs and a playroom to be happy. And the fact that you are building Roman a bunkbed crib is SO awesome. I cannot wait to see.
We Joneses
June 10, 2010
Looks like it's working out nicely. I think we'll be moving into a 2 brm after all, though I did get some good ideas from this post. Thanks for the update. 🙂
Kate's mom
June 10, 2010
I love this. So wonderful and cozy. But I love even more that you shared the picture where your perfect styling got messed up. Made me smile.
I'm thinking my little guy needs some of those cute Vans…
Mommy
June 10, 2010
Whoa, I would so live in that beautiful cozy closet!
Summer
June 10, 2010
If the room is for sleeping, it doesn't matter what the size is. What matters is that they have parents who love them. And, if the room is small (and your apartment is small), it forces you to get out! And, you live in an amazing city with lots to do! Besides, living small makes you (and others who live small) carefully assess every purchase which is also environmentally-friendly.
Paige
June 10, 2010
Very resourceful. I love the bed. My cousin lives in SF and her two boys share a tiny room off a tiny hallway. But their room is not as cute. 🙂
Miranda
June 10, 2010
I love it Jordan! Our little boy sleeps in a closet, too. I'll post some pics soon so the boys can compare closets to closets. ; )
BTW, I love the artwork. Great idea!
S.E.Minegar
June 10, 2010
What an adorable space!
kneesee
June 10, 2010
oh my goodness. love.
kiki
June 10, 2010
I really love how you made this space so beautiful and inviting! I am wondering where you had the poster blown up so large?? I love it!
Jaimie
June 11, 2010
Just goes to show you that in a smaller space, you can concentrate on just a few details that make a big impact. Like so many commenters already, I find this inspiring. My son's room is a proper bedroom, but it is definitely on the small side. I love the way we've decorated it, and find it charming, and he certainly (at 21 months old!) finds it perfectly acceptable! I also agree that bedrooms are a place for sleep and quiet reflection, so they don't need to house a lot.
howaboutcookie
June 11, 2010
this is such lovely inspiration!!! thanks for posting. i love all the details, like those insanely adorable houseslippers!!!!
Kimme Rae
June 11, 2010
I love the room, doesn't look like a closet at all! I noticed your son had a sock doll from bla bla. Aren't they the greatest?! My son carries his EVERYWHERE!
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Alice
June 14, 2010
This is just too sweet for words.
Anonymous
June 16, 2010
I just bought the Architect's Brother after seeing your previous post and wanted to know if you lost any resolution when you blew the print up. Also, any reccomendations on where to take the print to have it blown up and mounted? I'd like to do the same thing for my daughter's room. Thanks!
Anonymous
June 16, 2010
My son who just turned one, also sleeps in a closet. While ours is (I think) a little larger than yours. It's wonderful for keeping things paired down. I am a natural pack rat and this small space really seems to help
Joanna Goddard
June 19, 2010
TOTALLY gorgeous!!!! wow, jordan, you have outdone yourself. joannaxo
Sarah
June 20, 2010
Total inspiration! This little room is lovely and adorable! My husband and I are trying to have a baby and we LOVE our teeney one bedroom apartment and never want to move. We think we'll have to section off a bit of the living room to make room for a baby, no closets in this pad! What will you do later, though? Will you all move when they're bigger?
Paper + Ink Studio
June 25, 2010
GENIUS! It's true – kids don't need a ton of room, just a space to call their own. I grew up in an apartment in NYC and it wasn't big and I am super close to my family because we actually had to talk to each other! Besides that, living in a smaller place fosters a good habit of going out and exploring the world. At least I think so!
elizgomz
June 25, 2010
I think it's an awesome little space. My baby lives in a closet too! It has enough room for a crib and a tiny side table with a lamp. Modern art and a gold leaf mirror on the wall. I think it's beautiful.
Heather
June 25, 2010
My 19 month old also sleeps in a closet and you have absolutely inspired me to make it cute. Everything you have done is so cheery and beautiful. I think it is good for kids to see their parents be creative with the space they have and learn how little a person actually needs to live a wonderful life. Thanks for sharing!
Anonymous
June 25, 2010
our son was in his closet (until we knocked the back out to open into another room), but it wasn't a walk-in…just the kind with the sliding doors. we took them off and hung fun curtains in front, he loved it…his little nest. he still misses it.
amyandseth
June 26, 2010
you are amazing… wow!
Sara Clifton
June 26, 2010
Please be sure to post pictures of the new bunk crib when it's finished. My daughter's room isn't much bigger than that, and it sounds like the perfect solution for two. One night, when trying to figure out how/if we could ever squeeze a second baby in there, I had the *brilliant* idea to design/build a bunk with the crib on TOP! Great minds think alike. I can't wait to see your design. Good work.
Sarah Buttenwieser
June 27, 2010
I think I want to live in that closet, please.
Cereal In My Stiletto
June 27, 2010
this is awesome…kind of makes me want to be 2 and live in a closet. 😉