by Rachelle de Bretagne

Created on: October 27, 2008   Last Updated: November 06, 2008

Teens are not quite adults, though they have ideas about where their lives are going, and what they approve and disapprove of. Part of the fundamental stability found by a teen is fed by parental acceptance that their child is growing up and merits consideration as a human being turning from childhood to adulthood. Without this respect, rebellion often seems insurmountable. The bedroom of a teen is their haven. They don't pay the bills, but in this one space in the home, they feel they have that little bit of control over who they are and how they present themselves. This article is written for those facing the difficulty of having to decorate a room which "belongs" to a teen without struggle and strife between adult and child.

*Consultation.

*Sharing of ideas.

*Presenting alternatives.

*Respect for choices.

*The decorating process.

*Communication.

Consultation.

If someone came into your kitchen and remodeled it without consulting you, you would feel that you were out of control of the situation. In the same way, a teen values their room. Even though you may see piles of clothing all over the place, and an element of disorder, that disorder actually means something to the teen. Perhaps it is their way of expressing their identity. Living in a world where every other area of their lives is controlled, many teens resort to the "freedom of expression" approach in the room they consider to be their own.

This isn't strange nor does it mean that your teen will grow into a delinquent. What it does mean is that they have strong character traits which will probably help them to cope with life outside of the nest, and often those with untidy rooms actually turn into home owners later in their lives who care about the way their homes are presented.

Consulting a teen about any changes to their room is vital. It means you respected them, and thought them adult enough to be consulted.

Sharing of ideas.

Let your teen help you to help them. Create a design board, and this really is simple. A clipboard from a stationery shop will act as a design board, and you can talk about their ideas and yours and encourage them to come up with color combinations, adding little cuttings to their board, to establish the kind of style they would like. It is important not to express disapproval at first attempts as we all need somewhere to start from. Look together at wall colorings, curtain alternatives, flooring, bedding and little touches which are personally useful to the child.

Each child is different,

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