Elise's delightful playroom works on many levels and reclaiming an unused room is the cherry on top. Erin shares: Our unused upstairs bedroom was the last room in the house to be decorated, and in an attempt to corral our toddler daughter's toys, we decided to turn it into a playroom.

It was formerly a dated and dingy space with blue shag carpet and caramel colored walls. I repainted the walls and trim a bright white and recarpeted with carpet tiles from a local discount home center. I wanted to keep the walls and floor neutral in case we need to shuffle bedrooms around in the coming years.

To make the space more comfortable for adults, I thought it important to include seating. However, our enclosed staircase is accessed by a narrow 23-inch-wide doorway, so we went with a ready-to-assemble option from Overstock.com. It's very sturdy and I don't think anyone would suspect it didn't come into the house as one piece.

The room is equal parts new, repurposed and handmade and was done for around $900. Not exactly bare-bones, but that includes the carpet tiles, the couch and new bamboo window shades. I was able to repurpose several pieces of furniture we already owned, including an old coffee table that became a play table with a chalkboard top.

I made most of the artwork myself, and what I didn't was picked up cheap. One of my best finds was the barn-shaped shelf I got at a thrift store for $3. I assume it was originally made to display country-themed knick knacks in someone's kitchen, but it works just as well for playing with little plastic animals.

Thanks Erin! Readers, you can see many more photos of Elise's playroom (and some before shots) at Lansdowne Life which Erin calls her "personal showcase of arts & crafts, home decor and other creative projects."

(Images: Lansdowne Life)

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