The 12 best ideas for the darker months
Autumn brings not only cooler temperatures, but also a cosier atmosphere. As the days get shorter, it’s all the more important to make your home cosy – especially in the children’s room, where a feel-good atmosphere and a sense of security are particularly important in autumn. What’s more, the chance to play outside often falls through. With a few simple IKEA hacks and craft ideas, you’ll be all set for autumn and can transform the children’s room for the darker months in no time at all. It’s not just about cosiness, but also about creating space for creativity and play when outdoor activities become more difficult. With our IKEA ideas, you’re guaranteed a cosy atmosphere – even on the greyest of days!
Fun and games in autumn weather
We’ve put together a few ideas for you to make sure there’s never a dull moment in the children’s room, even on rainy days!
1. Pure cosiness in the KURA cosy reading nook
As the days grow darker and colder again, we all long for a cosy retreat. With this IKEA upgrade, you can create a wonderfully cosy snuggle corner for your little ones under the KURA bunk bed. Simply fit our curtains to the KURA bed, then arrange and decorate it however you like!
2. Book storage in the children’s bedroom
One of the most popular pastimes when the weather’s bad is probably reading. But the little ones’ books need to be stored somewhere. We’ve put together some IKEA hacks for you on how to cleverly store those often oversized books at a child-friendly height. A book rail on the KURA bed is a wonderful way to turn your cosy corner into a reading nook. We’ll also show you how to build a handy, portable book box from an EKET shelf and how to display books like little works of art on picture rails.
3. Play kitchen: Autumn is baking time
When the temperatures drop outside, it’s time for cosy afternoons in the kitchen. If the little ones can’t help out in the main kitchen just yet, they can get creative in the play kitchen and ‘help with the baking’.
A particular highlight: with our autumnal adhesive films, you can spruce up the kitchen and conjure up an autumnal atmosphere in your home. Autumn also offers new ideas for ‘cooking’ in the play kitchen: perhaps you could invent a new recipe using chestnuts you’ve collected yourselves? During the colder months, the DUKTIG kitchen becomes a versatile favourite spot where little ones can let their imaginations run wild.
4. Mud kitchen: DIY hack for autumn weather
Autumn weather and mud just go hand in hand. With this IKEA hack, you can build your very own ‘ mud kitchen’ for the garden or balcony in no time at all. All you need are KNAGGLIG crates and TROFAST boxes from IKEA, as well as our adhesive films. In the mud kitchen, the kids can ‘cook’ to their heart’s content – with sand, water, leaves and chestnuts.
And if the weather gets a bit too autumnal, you can simply bring the mud kitchen indoors! Sand in the children’s room?! It works with homemade magic sand – as the sand made from flour isn’t as sticky as real sand. So it doesn’t make such a mess and is also suitable for playing indoors.
5. The practical DIY ‘ play shop
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With this clever IKEA idea, your TROFAST shelving unit will be transformed into a space-saving ‘ play shop’ in no time at all! The trick: the market stall consists mainly of wall stickers, so it takes up hardly any extra space in the children’s room. With the checkout conveyor and cute accessories such as vegetables or baked goods, the play shop looks even more realistic. This transforms the children’s room into a little market on rainy autumn days – and the kids have plenty of fun and things to do, despite the bad weather.
6. FLISAT sensory table: Experiencing nature in the children’s room
The IKEA FLISAT table is the perfect base for an autumnal sensory table. The built-in boxes are ideal for collecting natural materials such as colourful leaves, chestnuts or pine cones – allowing your child to experience autumn with all their senses. Your child can stand safely and comfortably at just the right height to feel, sort and experiment. After playtime, simply close the tabletop again and everything stays neatly tidied away. It’s a simple way to bring seasonal nature experiences into the children’s room.
7. Even more fun with the LACK table
IKEA’s iconic LACK table can be transformed into a versatile indoor playing surface in no time at all with the matching play table sheets. Whether it’s a street scene, a football pitch or a board game – these handy sheets transform the table into an interactive play world that encourages children to let their creativity run wild.
An autumnal look for your home
8. Autumn-themed toy storage with TROFAST
With our adhesive films, you can easily bring an autumnal atmosphere into your child’s bedroom! The decals bring autumnal colours and designs into your home – perfect for brightening up the darker months. Whether it’s warm autumnal shades, playful patterns or cute designs – the decals are a breeze to apply and transform furniture into real eye-catchers. A quick and clever way to give your home an autumnal and cosy feel.
The TROFAST shelving unit makes playing indoors – and, above all, tidying up – a breeze. Toys can be stowed away in the large boxes in no time at all.
Craft ideas for autumn
Crafts are probably the best indoor activity for rainy days. Not only do they help your little ones learn to work creatively and independently, but they can also help to brighten up your home.
9. Get creative with salt dough
With salt dough, you can easily conjure up little works of art to decorate your home in a cosy, autumnal style. Whether it’s cute pumpkins or other figures – there are no limits to your creativity. Salt dough is quick to make and perfect for modelling figures. Once baked, they can easily be painted however you like. What’s particularly handy is that the finished creations last a long time and can easily be kept for next year. We’ll explain exactly how to make the dough and have a few design ideas for you too!
10. Learning through play with the cycle of the year
With our craft guide, we’ll show you how you and your kids can easily make a cycle of the year. This is a fun way to explain to the kids why the lovely weather is now over. They’ll learn when the months and seasons follow on from one another, whilst having fun crafting at the same time! All you need is our printable template and a cork coaster. It’s that easy to conjure up a colourful annual cycle!
Looking forward to the festive season
When autumn is in full swing, it also means that Christmas is just round the corner! We’ve got a few ideas for you on how you can start getting ready.
