Sweet Ideas for the Parent: Curtain Room Dividers in Studio Apartments
By Christa TerryHow much space is necessary to raise a child? I would never claim to be an expert, even with a child of my own. Some days, I feel like we could happily roam the country in an RV. Other days, my little Cape Cod house feels almost too small to contain the twister that is a tantruming toddler. If you’ve ever wondered how someone could possible cope with raising a child in a small home, it may surprise you to learn that I’ve known a few people who’ve shared studio apartments with partners and toddlers. And successfully, too. Could I do it? Sure, Do I want to? Nope! With a baby, maybe, but not with a toddler. Sometimes – very occasionally, promise – it’s that cheap hollow door between her and me that keeps La Paloma on this earth.
IF I was going to move into a studio loft apartment with my family, I think I would at least need something, anything to differentiate my space from kid space. Maybe that space would be a corner for a grownup bedroom or a built in reading nook or even a biggish closet with the doors taken off that’s just big enough to hold a desk. But whatever it was, there would be curtain room dividers. Nice heavy, drapey ones that you couldn’t see through. DIY drop cloth curtains, perhaps. If you think hospital curtains when you think curtain room dividers, don’t! Curtain room dividers for the studio apartment family, even the single gal or guy, can look pretty darn good!
Super small spaces can benefit from a couple of curtains
Even if all that's blocked off is the bed...
You could SO DIY this one
What else is great about curtain room dividers in small spaces? In addition to looking good, they provide you with another degree of flexibility when it comes to how you utilize the available space. And they’re a lot less expensive than bookshelves and standing room dividers. Installation can be super easy, too, and there’s the fact that there are a bunch of different ways to hang a curtain in a rented space that won’t make it so you lose your deposit.
While a curtain room divider may not be as good as a wall when it comes to putting yourself in time out so you don’t FedEx your kids to Dubai, they’re still better than nothing!
April 27th, 2011 at 8:00 am
Okay, I know this post isn’t about this, but MAN! that turquoise/tan combo in the first picture! I don’t even like turquoise and that is sucking me in.
April 27th, 2011 at 8:27 pm
Your post reminded me of a hilarious story from one of my friends. My friends had their first child while living in a 2BR house, where the second bedroom is the home office from which they run their shared business. So the baby slept in a crib at the foot of the bed. She told me over dinner one night how she knew they really had to get a move on to get the baby his own room. “Well, you see, we thought he was asleep. And my husband and I were… together… and, well, [son] is really into *mimicking* right now…”
It killed the mood.
May 5th, 2011 at 6:33 am
In fact homemade room dividers are an easy and fun project you can do yourself..Do your children share a room with each other and you want to be able to give them the privacy that they deserve? A portable room divider is a great way to make sure that each person sharing the room will be able to have a private moment alone if needed.