Colin is our oldest by one minute and he has never had his own room until now. He and his twin sister, Shire, shared a room until they were about 3-4yrs old, and then Shire and Mason, our youngest, switched. Colin and Mason are just under 17 months apart and they have shared a room for the past decade. And I gotta tell you, it has really been a gift in more ways than I could have ever imagined. They are very different from each other, yet they’ve built a closeness that has been established over ten years of extreme laughter as well as frustration they’ve had to work through together. Their bond to one another is one of the sweetest gifts to my heart, and when we were able to give them their own room after the work on our home was complete, I felt some grief welling up! But as they grow up and use their spaces very differently (Colin is a collector of all kinds of things and Mason doesn’t like clutter), it became apparent that being in their own space would give them each the chance to establish themselves more fully in this home. Colin now has more freedom to spread out with things he draws and creates without closing in on Mason. I love that they still choose to spend the bulk of their free time together and I often see them coming out of each others rooms for a visit before bed.
Colin’s room is Colin in every way. This room was incredibly tender for me to put together as he didn’t want to leave his old room (now Shire’s room), so making sure it felt ‘him’ was a must. He picked everything in here - much of which we had already! The rug and the flag are the only purchases we made for this space, but everything else was used elsewhere in our home before. It was fun shopping around our home and showing him things we had that he could use if he wanted!
As a history lover, this flag with the dying words of US Naval Captain James Lawrence in 1813 was perfect for our Colin. Colin is unflappable, hard working, and has tremendous perseverance.
This room didn’t come together with any particular plan but rather as we collected what was needed. We moved things around trying to figure out what might fit where and tried to leave plenty of space open for play. One of my favorite things about Colin is his variety of interests! He has a naturally curious nature and seeks to understand various species in the wild through books and drawing. But he also loves sports, is a gifted athlete, and could probably tell you the roster of every NFL team!
Colin’s room is a direct representation of what hes drawn to and is one of my favorite rooms in our home. I’ve learned SO much from him! Things I never would have been interested in on my own have captured my heart because Colin loves sharing new things he’s learned.
I adore this kid so much and was worried he would just miss his old room too much to feel at home in here! It feels wonderful to know Colin loves this room. He truly loves it. I love catching him in here drawing and creating things as he’s loved to do for most of his life now.
Thank you so much for stopping by! More finished projects and rooms are just around the corner! In fact, I’m heading to DC tomorrow to photograph an incredible home I’ve had the pleasure of working on this past year. Get ready for wallpaper and bold walls!
