Decorating a kids room can be a rewarding experience for both parents and children. It's not just a matter of choosing colours for the walls, curtains and other interior decor, though. A child's room needs to be as well planned as a kitchen if you want it to be an enjoyable place for children to play, study and sleep.

Three Secrets to Decorating a Kids Room

Many top interior decorators say there are just 3 secrets to decorating a kids room:

1. Colour
2. Storage
3. Comfort

Colour in a Kids Room

The adage, "pink is for girls, blue is for boys" is outdated. Today's colour palette includes a rainbow of options. As a rule, young children tend to prefer cheerful primary colours. However, painting a boy's room his favourite fire engine red or a girl's room bright pink won't create a relaxing atmosphere they can live or sleep in. When choosing colours with children, a little subtle compromise is needed. You can choose a toned down version of their favourite as the main colour for the walls or you can use the "bubblegum pink" as an accent colour.

A great way to provide colour and give the kids a play space at the same time is to paint a section of a wall with chalkboard paint. No longer just black or pea green, you can buy chalkboard paint from a paint supplier in a number of standard colours or have them mix a custom colour for you. A chalkboard wall is a great space saver, too, eliminating the need for an easel in the middle of the room.

Storage in a Kids Room

Children tend to accumulate more "stuff" than adults do. They don't, however, like to spend a lot of time putting everything back in its place when they're done using it. The easier it is for them (and you)  to store toys, books, clothes and other "stuff", the less time you will be tripping over it when you walk into their room. When looking for shelving & storage solutions for kids rooms, keep them at a level they can reach and as safe and easy to open as possible.

Here are some storage ideas to consider:

• A toy box works better than shelves for larger toys. It needs to be at a height they can easily reach into and not have a lid that can pose a danger to them. If it does have a lid, make sure it's a childproof lid that can't slam shut on little fingers.

• For smaller toys, a nest of boxes gives the kids easy access to the toys and provides organised storage.

• Store children's books in magazine style racks that display their covers rather than on a bookshelf where only the spines are displayed. Richly illustrated children's book covers are great decorative accessories and seeing the book covers encourages children to read them.

• Store decorative items on adult height shelves.

Comfort in a Kids Room

The difference between comfort in a kids room and a comfortable living room for the family can be summed up in one word: activity. A child's room is one of both activity and rest. The best way to make a room comfortable for activity as well as rest is to take an age-related approach to furnishing and decorating:

• Very young children prefer to play on the floor. Leaving a designated space open and uncluttered, with easy access to their toys, will make them feel comfortable playing in their room.

• When the child is a little older, they may prefer working at a child-height play table.

• After they start school, the play space can be converted into a study area.

Once you've covered the necessities, the fun part of decorating a kids room can begin. To create a theme for the room and make it appear larger, take your child to your local wallpaper supplier and choose from the hundreds of new wallpaper designs that are available. Choose a pattern or design that has 3 dimensional depth or a wallpaper that tells a story. Just a few of the possibilities include underwater scenes, world maps, favourite cartoon and storybook characters, and dinosaurs.

Furniture retailers sell almost as large a variety of furniture for kids rooms as they do for adults. As the largest piece of furniture in the room, the bed is particularly important. For a smaller room, a simple frame is probably best. If your child has outgrown his or her bed and you need to find space for a desk, check out some of the raised beds that are available. Like bunkbeds without the bottom bunk, they are at the perfect height for slipping a desk underneath and creating a kid's pocket office. Coordinate the colours and patterns of the bed coverings and curtains to give a sense of continuity to the room.

Above all, when decorating a kids room, have fun. It's the perfect opportunity for you to spend time with your child and let your "inner child" out as well. Between your parental practicality and your child's imagination, you can turn their bedroom into a magical wonderland you will both love.