Youthful Bedrooms

Posters, string lights, and the chair in the corner with a pile of clothes on it.

By the time I graduated high school, I had lived in 8 different places. Almost every year from 3rd to 9th grade, we packed up and moved to another apartment around town. The feeling of setting up my bedroom was always the silver lining of all the moves. How would I configure my pop-punk posters and where would my bed go?

Your adolescent and teenage bedroom is a sanctuary. I remember in 10th grade, I would put on my Ted Leo and the Pharmacists cd and listen to the whole thing, front to back, and pretend to be performing on stage in my bedroom. I did this way too many times to count. We are our secret selves in our rooms; coming of age where we wrote in our diaries and played dress up and took pictures on our digital cameras. We lined our trophies and awards and hid away notes and obsessions.

Kirsten Dunst in her bedroom, 1997.

My oldest kid is now 10, and has moved into the room with the solo queen bed versus sharing with two other siblings. He hasn’t cared much that it used to be his sister’s room, but he has put up a gaming poster and has a mound of pillows to support him while he reads at night. I suspect that if we move in 2 or 3 years, he will want his own room again, and to outfit it with what he likes. As much as I’d like to ‘theme’ my kids’ rooms, the reality is - they don’t spend much time doing anything but sleeping in there, so I’ll save it for when their individual tastes come into their own.

Which brings me to sharing the teenage bedrooms I grew up watching on TV and coveted. Houses in movies and on television are always envy inducing. Cue the Nancy Meyers fandom. But something about the teenage bedrooms - with the open windows and eclectic furniture, had me dreaming then and still now. Here’s some of my favorite rooms and a creative exercise that they inspire.

Clarissa Explains it

I think it goes without saying that Clarissa and her room were the ULTIMATE icons of the 90s. She was so quirky, so colorful, and so creative. Plus her cute neighbor could just climb up the ladder into her window at any time? I dreamed of being as bold as she was when I was a kid!

The checkerboard painted wall, quilt, and car decor details!

Bed, quilt, bean bag, mirror, wall art, lamp, desk, stool, neon sign, throw pillows

Sabrina the Teenage Witch

Melissa Joan Hart strikes again! I loved this show so much. Obviously I wish I had magical powers, but also her aunts were so cool and for being a witch, Sabrina seemed so normal and relatable. I always loved a room with a window seat - where you could look out and wish upon the stars, or talk to the man in the moon, or write with the view as your inspiration. The stained glass windows here help make the room artsy without needing too much on the walls.

The purples and pinks, stained glass windows, and antique furniture!

Bed frame, bedding, storage bench, desk lamp, antique desk, wall art, throw pillow, cashmere blanket, lounge chair

The OC - Summer Roberts

I wanted to be Summer Roberts sooooo bad. Mainly because Seth Cohen loved her but also because she was confident and funny when she wasn’t trying to be. Her room is more feminine than my normal taste, but it looks so real and lived in. You can’t deny the canopy bed and her early 2000’s style TV stand. Minus her family’s issues, Summer was the girl everyone wanted to be and not just Marissa’s (who was a mess!) side kick.

The vision board, the rotary phone, and the clothes pile chair!

canopy bed, vanity desk, glass display case, pillow, bedding set, memo board, Sherpa swivel chair, trinket bowls, floor lamp, rug

What was your most treasured item in the bedroom of your youth? Mine was my CD player!

Until next time,

T.