We all want our kids to have the most amazing, imaginative, fantastic bedrooms possible. However when you go to the store, the kids decorative sets are priced through the roof, forcing you to pay a variety of middlemen just because a blanket or a poster has a specific characters image on it. Luckily this is not your only option, and if your willing to be creative and crafty, there are a variety of methods available for producing beautiful and elaborate themes in your kids bedrooms, based on just about anything the two of you can imagine, and for a fraction of the cost of using store bought items.

While the trade off in cost is the amount of time you will have to spend on the project, you should make the most of that time by having the child actually help you with the task. No matter how much money you spend, no decorative effort will mean more than a room that they helped create with their own two hands. And even more, the memories that you form working with them, spending time with them, and getting to know them, will last for a lifetime, and will be reflected every time you walk into that space.

Some of the best, inexpensive decorating materials that you can find are simply different types of paper. From construction paper, to regular printer sheets, each piece is a canvas across which you can create a variety of images and patterns. Find coloring book pages online to match your theme, and print them out. Then work with your child to color them in, and carefully cut them out. At that point you have a character that can be taped or adhered to the walls to start populating the theme of the space.

Paper can also be used to make more dimensional objects. Large sheets of construction paper can be rolled into tubes to create trees for a jungle or forest theme. If the paper has trouble standing up dimensionally, use cardboard bases, or possibly a cardboard spine to give it added strength. Rolls can also be cut from smaller pieces to make towers for a tiny palace, or even taped together to make elaborate rocket ships which can be hung from the sky.

Cardboard tubes are also great tools for creating an inexpensive theme in a kid’s room. Take old wrapping paper rolls and cover them in colorful paper to make bamboo shoots or small plants throughout the space. Bend them into segments and paint them green to make slithering snakes, or chop them into four parts to make the legs of any number of wild jungle animals. Boxes of any size and shape can offer you the raw material for creating a thriving metropolis. From a medieval village overlooked by a towering castle, to a modern urban landscape, complete with towering sky scrapers and elaborate bridges, cardboard boxes can help you to create a theme which is truly unique.

Boxes can be saved from cereal and other food purchases, or can be acquired by going to grocery stores and other vendors and asking if you can take away some of their old cardboard cartons. Make sure to spray any recycled cardboard with disinfectant before using it.

Cover the box material in an appropriately colored construction paper, or even in tin foil to give it a futuristic look. These materials can also in turn be drawn on with crayon or marker, to add details to the specific elements. Then stack the boxes, adhering them using glue or tape, to form the structure of your thriving city.

Creativity is always the key when decorating a child’s bedroom. Using a little imagination, some craft materials, and recycled cardboard containers, you can develop just about any theme in this space that you can imagine, and can even have a fun bonding experience with your child while doing it.

This article was written on behalf of PebbleZ.com’s line of absorbent sandstone drink coasters, which help prevent spills and stains by soaking up the moisture from a sweaty glass. The author is Joey Pebble, an artist that has helped to designed PebbleZ’s entire line.