Get your kids involved in your reno

Home renovation projects inevitably involve and impact the whole family. Whether you’re decorating or renovating your whole house - or simply giving the guest toilet a new look, everybody who lives in the house will be living with the change.

Getting your kids involved in your renovation can be a great way to spend time together as a family, rather than shutting yourself off with a paintbrush - but it can also be a great way to pique their interest in Resene colours, design and the mechanics of DIY. If you’re redecorating a space in your home that your kids use a lot, having them contribute to the project, with ideas or hands-on painting is a great way to get them involved and engaged so you end up with a room you all love.

Projects to try

Resene Colour Consultant Jackie Nicholls says there are lots of fun projects kids can do with leftover paint or Resene testpots, but there are ways they can help with main renovation projects too.

“It might be tempting to think the best way for the kids’ to help in a decorating project would be to send them to Nana and Pop! But with the right guidance, they might just surprise you in how they can help,” Jackie says.

Starting with areas or features that kids are likely to use themselves is a sensible approach because they’ll naturally be more interested and invested in the outcome.

Stencils, masking tape, or freehand drawing skills are all ways your kids can add their favourite colours and their personalities to their own bedrooms. Background wall colour is Resene Black White, with mural shapes in ReseneCoconut Ice, Resene Skylight, Resene Rule Breaker, Resene Tequila Sunrise, Resene Indian Ink, and Resene Roadster. Floor in Resene Colorwood Breathe Easy. Headboard in Resene Indian ink. Bedside table in Resene Baring Head with mason jar painted in Resene Illuminate, bird in Resene Springtime and cactus in Resene Wabi Sabi. Pendant light in Resene Coconut Ice. Bedding from Small Acorns, throw from Spotlight. Project Annick Rennell Image Bryce Carleton

“With the aid of good drop sheets and old clothes, projects like painting a blackboard wall, or turning a wardrobe door into a blackboard would be a great place to start because your kids can have fun with the finished result.”

Jackie recommends Resene FX Blackboard paint which is water-based and dried to a durable finish. Her top tip is to make sure the surface is smooth first by sanding thoroughly, which could be a job older kids can do themselves - while learning the importance of working with a mask on!

“If you’re painting blackboard - or just brightly coloured shapes - on the wall, simply mark them out with masking tape, which is a simple job, and makes the painting very easy,” Jackie says.

If painting over bare wood, apply a coat of Resene Quick Dry Primer first using a small, easy-reach roller. If the surface is already painted, Resene Blackboard paint can go straight on, and two coats (allowing each coat to dry).

“Patience is another good lesson,” Jackie says. “If your little assistants can wait, it’s best to leave the paint a few days, or even a week to harden properly before writing or drawing on it in chalk.”

Top tip: ‘Season’ the paint by rubbing a piece of chalk, flat against the blackboard, leaving a layer of chalk dust on the whole surface. Rub this in with a cloth, then dust off. Now your kids are free to draw to their heart’s content and the drawings should clean off nicely.

Crates and storage boxes would be another great project for kids to help with and can be taken outside to control the mess, Jackie says. “Try using contrast colours on the inside for fun, and your kids can add their personality with the option of easily changing the colours as they get older and tastes change.

“Leftover paint could be dribbled and splattered over canvases for Jackson Pollock-style dribbled artworks!”

Colour control

One of the easiest – and mess-free – ways to get your kids involved in your home renovation is to get them involved in choosing paint colours, or wallpaper patterns. OK, you might not want vivid Spongebob yellow in your elegant living room (Resene Quarter Turbo would be perfect if you do), but any kids-focused zone in your house, from bedrooms and playrooms, to toy cupboards, and family bathrooms can be great opportunities for kids to participate.

Simple shapes on cork tiles add plenty of personality to a room, and can be easily done by small hands. Walls painted in Resene Eighth Bison Hide with cork tile floor border in Resene Top Notch. Cork tiles: star design in Resene Billy, flower in Resene Kombucha and Resene Wax Flower, paw in Resene Comfortably Numb and heart in Resene Wayfarer. Pendant light in Resene Grenadier, desk in Resene Coast, chair in Resene Seachange, pen holder in Resene Moroccan Spice, lamp in Resene Awaken, organiser in Resene Quarter Bison Hide, file holder in Resene Seachange, large planter in Resene Watermark, small planter in Resene Duck Egg Blue. Cork tiles from Mitre 10. Project Annick Rennell Styling Moneuan Ryan Image Bryce Carleton

Get them to choose their favourite colour and feature it somewhere in that space that is relevant to your kids. Even if their favourite colour is purple, and you’re trying for a mostly monochrome or minimalist look through the house, paint the inside of a couple bathroom drawers in Resene Pukeko just for the kids, or paint a laundry hamper in Resene Daisy Bush.

Remember if your child’s favourite shade is “red” or “blue” there are many ways to play with those in different colour intensities and shades, like Resene Red Oxide or Resene Duck Egg Blue, that put a more refined, grown-up spin on the look, while the kids still feel like they’ve had a say.

Letting your kids choose a wallpaper can be another fun way for them to express their personality and have some influence over the look of their spaces. The Resene Wallpaper Collection features a number of quirky, whimsical designs that might appeal to your kids like the safari animals of Resene Wallpaper Collection 363661, the bright coloured landscape mural of Resene Wallpaper Collection IF4-078 or the fun flying machines of Resene Wallpaper Collection 38126-1. A wallpaper design that reflects your kids’ interests can be a great starting point for adding in pops of other matching colours.

Bigger projects

Your children’s involvement in your renovation doesn’t need to be limited to small projects, Jackie says. Larger outdoor areas can also be ideal for letting them get involved.

Garden sheds and playhouses can be good blank canvases for children to get used to painting different surfaces and trying different colour combinations. Painting or using Resene Waterborne Woodsman stain on a wooden fence is a good, fairly straightforward job, where the odd paint drip or spill can be easily cleaned up. Just keep the kids focused on lower parts of the project so they don’t need to be on ladders.

Top tip: Resene waterborne exterior paints such as Lustacryl, Enamacryl and Sonyx 101 are great for projects involving kids as brushes, trays and rollers - as well as spills and hands - can be easily cleaned up with water.

A garden shed can be a fun place to let kids experiment with colour on walls and pots, and try some painting, as well as planting. Walls in Resene Aloe Vera, with floors painted in Resene Double Spanish White. Trolley in Resene Eighth Bokara Grey, Resene Contour, Resene Nirvana and Resene Springtime. Bench seat in Resene Eighth Bokara Grey. Trellis in Resene Amaranth. Small pots painted in Resene Liquid Gold, Resene Summer Rose, Resene Dawn Glow, Resene Rice Cake, Resene Inspire and Resene Rust FX. Gumboots by Resene Living in Resene Aqua, wall vases from Junk and Disorderly. Project Annick Rennell Image Bryce Carleton

If you have a play house let the kids go crazy with colours inside, even if you want to keep the exterior more neutral in something like Resene Woodsman Crowshead. Inside is the kids’ domain so let them experiment with primary shades like Resene Bright Red, Resene Spotlight and Resene Resolution Blue, or maybe try a mural of bold flowers in pinks, purples and greens like Resene Dancing Girl, Resene Smitten, and Resene Dizzy Lizzy. For a personal touch add your kids’ hand prints in their favourite colours - just have water standing by for cleaning up.

A garden bench seat, storage box or planters are other great areas for kids to leave their creative mark on your outdoor spaces.

Teen rooms

Teenagers often have very strong ideas about what they want their bedrooms to look like, and can be a handy extra pair of hands when it comes to implementing them in their bedrooms.

If you still want their rooms to largely remain part of your overall colour scheme, think about giving them one wall as theirs to feature whatever colour, pattern or design they like - then make them project manager when it comes to executing it.

A cosy reading space is a great project for your older kids to paint or stain themselves, with guidance. The cubby inside is stained in Resene Colorwood Limed Ash. The cubby base, drawer fronts and left wall are Resene Bluff. The floor is painted in Resene Half Tana. The right wall and small table are Resene Black Haze. The desk and wall holder are Resene Double Rakaia. Chair from Cintesi Project Kate Alexander. Image Bryce Carleton.

They’ll need guidance and direction when it comes to things like removing older paint or wallpaper, and how to prep surfaces, but let them take the reins on the research design and execution.

For smaller projects let them paint bedheads (real or marked out in paint or wallpaper on the wall), let them upcycle a piece of furniture like a chair or dresser, give them canvases to paint their own designs, or let them experiment with colour on doors, shelves and inside cupboards.