by Jemma Pearson MPP shows you how to create a stylish and functional teenage retreat that your adolescent will love.

Designing a bedroom for another person is not an easy task. Designing one for your teenager that is practical and meets with your approval – as well as your little angel’s – is a challenge that even the most seasoned home renovator and stylist can find difficult. What looks great to you might be met with disapproval from the person who has to live in there. So how do you get it right? The first step is to sit down and chat to your teenager – ask what she wants to see in the room and how you can accommodate her wishes in the context of your entire interior plan.

Colourful ideas

While your 14-year-old’s favourite hue might be black, blood red or lurid green, you might have other ideas for the colour scheme of her retreat. If you have images of white walls and simple lines while your little goth-to-be wants various shades of black, there is a way to keep her onside without compromising your interior aesthetic. Try incorporating her colour choice in a feature panel, a favourite chair or a funky piece of art. If you plan to paint or paper the walls, get your teenager involved – she may grump about the extra work involved but she’ll appreciate the room even more if she has had a hands-on go at creating it.

Family planning

We all know a bedroom is the place you retreat to after a hard day, and as such should be uncluttered, tidy and clean. But these rules don’t apply to teens. While you might have images of tranquillity, your teen needs a room that is a study, hangout and storage centre as well as a place to sleep. Think about how to get the most out of the space when laying out the room. If you can, place the bed away from other furniture and keep the desk in a nook on its own. If you have the space, include a lounge chair where your teenager can relax while listening to music or tinkering on her guitar.

Sit and sleep

A decent bed is essential – teenagers spend half  their lives asleep, so it’s a good time to invest in a new bed. Other furniture you’ll need are a desk and comfy office chair, a beanbag, a couple of mirrors, and task lighting – a desk lamp, reading lamp by the bed, and maybe a floor lamp in the corner. If you are shopping for new pieces, take your teenager along – even if he proves unhelpful, he’ll appreciate the gesture. Other bits and pieces will depend on the teen’s interests and hobbies, so check with him on other essentials such as music stands, a fish tank, reading chair or artwork.

If you have space, include a lounge chair where your teenager can relax while listening to music or tinking on her guitar

Put it away

Provide plenty of cupboard space for the growing number of clothes, shoes and accessories your teenager is accumulating. Make the most of available storage with dividers and shelving in the wardrobe. Consider investing in blanket boxes – these can double as storage and a spare place to sit – beds with extra storage drawers underneath, and plenty of bookshelves. But remember, most of his clothes will end up in a pile on the floor or flung over the backs of chairs, so don’t stress if your precious one doesn’t use all your clever storage solutions.

What the tech?

If you’re concerned about your kids being overexposed to technology it’s reasonable to keep computers – and the internet – in a communal space and out of the bedroom. But your teenagers still need a place to do homework and keep their bits and pieces in order in their rooms, so a decent desk and chair is essential. Limit technology by all means – no phones, internet or TVs is a perfectly reasonable rule – but an MP3 dock or stereo to listen to music is a must for a teenager.