How to create the perfect child’s room by Jo Tutchener Sharp of Scamp & Dude

Jo Tutchener Sharp is one impressive woman. Not only is she the founder and former MD of mega agency Beauty Seen PR and the founder of the BRITs Spa, she is also behind the brilliant new kids clothing and interiors brand Scamp & Dude, which is launching next month online and in Liberty. We can’t wait for Scamp & Dude to launch because Jo has seriously good taste. When I first saw pictures of her sons’ rooms on Instagram (@jotutchenersharp and @scampanddude) I instantly fell in love and wanted to know exactly how she put them together. From her Instagram-sourced prints to brilliant toy storage ideas, this is how she did it….

Sonny’s Room

I loved sharing a room as a child so I’m keen for the boys to share too, although at the moment they have their own rooms. Sonny’s room has changed a lot since he was born. It started very white and clean, I had little blue and silver star wall stickers scattered around white picture frames and everything was calm and peaceful. As he’s grown, I have changed his room and updated it depending on his interests and chosen decor to inspire him.

If you had a design plan, what did you want to achieve?

When he was born I wanted a tranquil space, somewhere calming and clean. But now it is more of a playful space, somewhere he loves to be, full of things that inspire him and interest him. An extension to the playroom really.

I recently updated the pictures in his room, I found the most gorgeous new brand called Wonder and Rah via Instagram (@wonderandrah). I do a lot of shopping in the night when up with the boys, always after being inspired on instagram! Wonder and Rah do the most gorgeous prints, very cool stylish pieces, initials or characters mostly monochrome with a flash of colour. They were so helpful and changed the format/size of the prints to fit my frames and also did a bespoke dinosaur print as we wanted volcanos included in the design. They are my current favourite and I already have my eye on a few other pieces.

I also love a wallsticker as you can update them when the kids tastes change. We have a lot of Belle and Boo wallstickers, they do great dinosaur stickers and even a woolly mammouth. We also have a great Dandy Star tiger wallsticker.

For rugs I love Edit 58 (another instagram find) for the most gorgeous rugs, which are chic as well as playful. I always try and find decor that is stylish as well as child friendly so it keeps us both happy! Edit 58 is great for that.

The Wigwam is by Vilac, we also have the most gorgeous tent by Myla & Oscar which can be used in the house or in the garden. Sonny’s cloud bedding and Jude’s cloud curtains are Farg Form (I had the curtains made after buying Farg Form fabric) Sonny’s dinosaur bedding is Lulu and Nat. Our other favourite bedding is Lucky Boy Sunday. The Belle and Boo pirate cushion is also a favourite.

Do the boys spend a lot of time playing in here?

Sonny’s bedroom is basically a second playroom for the boys, they have their Polar Express train set up there. I use it as a calmer play space, so before they go to bed or when I’m trying to get ready in the morning, so there are lots of books, building blocks, train set and the wigwam for playing dens.

At one point, I think you said they shared, but it didn’t work out! Were they just having too much fun in there?!

Oh my goodness, that was a disaster of a night! Neither of the boys are great sleepers, Sonny always sneaks into my bed and Jude is very wakeful. We had just got back from holiday where we were all in the same room and they both slept so much better so I decided to try putting the toddler bed up in sonny’s room and see if Jude would sleep in there. I also fancied Jude’s room as an office if I am honest! So it started well, both in bed, but as soon as I left the room it turned into a big party both of them jumping on the beds. So no….that didn’t work. I don’t think Jude is ready yet. One day….I’ll keep trying.

Jude’s room

As Sonny’s room had accents of grey and blue I wanted to do something different for Jude, so I chose a lovely pale green paint. I added pale grey cloud wall stickers around the cot and some tiny stars.

I got the most lovely cloud mobile that has little stars hanging from it from Baby Jives and found some other similar style mobiles when on holiday in Corsica. I wanted the room to be calming, but inspiring for a baby or small child, plenty to look at, but again a reasonably blank canvas so I could update as he grew.

I bought the ornate side table and the colourful vintage Indian trunk (on which the boys are standing) from Annabel de Rougemont Interiors, she basically goes to all the best antique fairs and brings back interesting pieces and sells them on Instagram (@annabelderougemontinteriors). Both boys have a Miffy lamp in their rooms, I absolutely love Miffy and these lamps make great night lights as they have a dimmer switch. I got a lot of the pictures, cushions and toys from a selection of my favourite kids’ websites including Molly Meg, This Modern Life, Mini Mi, Monkey McCoy, Cissy Wears, Alex & Alexa and Niddle Noddle. The bunting and Jude’s cot bumper is by Nobodinoz.

Is there anything that you learned from putting Sonny’s room together that you changed for Jude’s room?

I learnt to understand that they grow quickly and their tastes will change, so you need to start with a base that you can adapt, so don’t go too baby baby with the nursery, make sure it is a canvas that you can update and change as they do. So keep the canvas fairly neutral, then use wallstickers to dress the space which can easily be removed and updated as their tastes change. Mobiles and pictures can also be updated to suit.

How do you imagine the boys’ rooms evolving over time?

I am always looking out for things to add to their rooms, i like to keep them inspired and excited by their little spaces. I love how much they love their bedrooms, that is really important to me.

Any tips for readers designing a nursery or a child’s room? Is there a secret to making a room child-friendly AND stylish?!

I use stylish ottomans for toy storage, they double as a seats and look great. I also use wicker baskets, which hide all the coloured toys and keep spaces looking tidy. I also found some great vintage Champagne trugs to use as toy storage too! The below ottoman was from Swoon and the champagne trug was from Annabel Rougeman Interiors.