Wonderland at home

Delhi-based housewife Sameera Kapoor recently bought a pink teddy bear bed for her five-year-old daughter Diya.

The bed has a teddy's head adorning the headboard, while it's two huge paws act as detachable side railings. The cost: Rs 6,000.

Similarly, Luv and Kush the three-year-old twins of Ankur Jain, an executive with a multinational firm, have a table with two chairs "" one shaped like a cow and the other a pig. The cost: Rs 3,600.

Welcome to the world of designer furniture for your kids. Gone are the days when the only thing distinguishing a kid's room from that of an adult were a slew of toys scattered on the floor.

Now everything from fancy cribs to designer bunk beds are available in the market. And if that's not enough you can have chairs, tables and cabinets in different colours and themes.

Says Deepika Goyal, the exclusive distributor for the Thai furniture brand Popcorn, "Nowadays kids are very particular and know their mind. So parents are spending more on doing up the kids' room than on their own room."

Popcorn furniture, currently available only in Mumbai and Delhi, comes in knock-down form. A little chair is packed in a small box no larger than 1 ft by 1 ft. The legs and the back have to be screwed to the chair base.

The furniture is available in various themes such as farm animals, pets, sports etc. A table for four with four chairs each shaped like a sports ball "" basketball, baseball, football and a rugby ball "" costs Rs 6,000.

If your little girl wants something slightly different, you can buy a ladybird stool in bright red with black spots for Rs 885 and a matching table for Rs 2,000.

Besides the tables and chairs, there are also book cases and toy boxes. All the furniture is made of recyclable wood and is non-toxic.

Child safety is given prime importance and all precautions are taken. For example, the furniture does not have any sharp edges and no nails are used, only screws.

The toy boxes have special features "" for example, the lid comes down gradually and does not fall on the child's hand.

OK Play is an Indian company which manufactures plastic furniture for kids. It has tables and chairs where the table doubles up as a blackboard and the kids can draw on it.

The set costs Rs 2,000. Their teddy beds meant for kids upto the age group of 8 years are available in pink and blue.

The Ok Play furniture comes with a life time warranty and in case of any breakage or defect, repair takes place within two days.

But if you are looking for furniture for your teenage children and want something classy and international, take a look at the Ad-Hoc range introduced by Interiors Espania which sells designer Spanish furniture.

A complete room can be furnished starting at Rs 79,000. This includes a bed, a wardrobe, storage and desk. The furniture is aimed at six to 16 year olds.

Says Nitin Bhayana, vice-president retail, Interiors Espania, "The USP of the furniture is that a lot of it can fit into one room without making it look crowded. So it's ideal for small rooms."

Recently, the store has started using a European software called Decodam with the help of which you can see in three-dimensional form what your room will look like after it has been furnished.

What's more, as and when a new piece of furniture is added the total cost of the room flashes at the bottom of the screen.

So if it exceeds your budget, you can select another piece of furniture to make it fit within your budget. Everything from windows, doors, electrical wiring etc. can be fed in the software to make it come as close to the real room as possible.

All the furniture is in veneer and is available in seven colours including orange, red, lilac and green.

Says Bhayana, "We don't have Mickey Mouse on our furniture but bright colours are used to give the place a cheerful look."

Maybe it is time for you to give your child's room a second look.