How to Paint Stripes for a Modern, Vintage-Inspired Children's Room

When creating a fun children’s room, start with a loose theme to tie everything together, but mix it up. We decided on plaid and stripes, but wanted a modern vintage feel, so we painted a striped wall that looks more retro with a mix of thick and thin stripes. Layer the stripes with artwork that matches the theme, then add a mirror framed by stripes in a different scale.

Children's room with blue and white painted stripes. Red, yellow and blue striped sailboat art on wall, twin bed with plush toys — **Walls** painted in Resene SpaceCote Flat in Resene Merengue, Resene Secrets and darker stripe in Resene Unite. **Trim** Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen painted stripe on Resene Roadster. **Floor** painted in Resene Walk-on in Resene Merengue and Resene Concrete Wax. **Bench seat** painted in Resene Lustacryl in Resene Sunbeam, from Resene ColorShops. Blair Bed, $649 (single king), from Mocka. George Street Linen Duvet, $399 (set); plaid blanket, $395; L&M Launch, $185; Miffy & Friends Mr Maria Luz Estrela, $449; Miffy & Friends Mr Maria Crown, $49.90; Robert Gordon x Claire Ritchie Mug, $45.90 (for two); and Jellycat: The Magic Bunny Book, $41.90; all from Allium. Tassel rug, $1,800 (2m x 3m), from Nodi rugs. Carter Nightstand $59; Elly lamp, $17; bear toy, $9; plush farm donkey toy, $9; mushroom plush toy, $9; plush dog toy, $9; and two-tone mirror, US$45; everything from Kmart. Home Time Sailing art, $302 (framed), from Endemic World.

A great way to start your Resene color palette is to base it on a work of art. We started with the classic red, white and blue of art and then built from there. To match the yellow bedding, we also painted the little bench in beautiful, cozy Resene Sunbeam.

Blue and white striped wall, with brown checkered arched mirror on the wall. School backpack on a hook. Bench painted yellow with teddy bear and book — **Walls** painted in Resene SpaceCote Flat in Resene Merengue, Resene Secrets and darker stripe in Resene Unite. **Floor** painted in Resene Walk-on in Resene Merengue and Resene Concrete Wax. **Bench seat** painted in Resene Lustacryl in Resene Sunbeam, from Resene ColorShops. Rex Backpack, $44.90; Printed photo album, $110; both from Allium.

How to paint stripes

Start by painting the entire wall with Resene Merengue, then measure the soft strip, gluing every 12cm.
Measure the top and bottom, pulling the tape tight to ensure a straight, crisp line. Paint the strip using Resene Secrets. Paint two coats, letting the paint dry between each coat.
Remove the tape, then secure each side of every second strip with Resene Inspire. We made our stripe thinner at 3cm wide, measuring over the area painted in light blue instead of the white stripe. This painting detail makes the overall effect look more like wallpaper than paint and the final result is worth this last step.