Tween Bedding: Shopping for a Tween or Teen Girl

Daughters (or, in my case, stepdaughters) can be very difficult to shop for. Not only are they picky about what they like, but what they like changes regularly and almost overnight. A teenage girl's bedroom is very important to her, and it should reflect her personality. (This is why it should always be clean, but instead is it often very messy and unorganized...)

The first rule to picking out bedding for your teen (or tween) girl's room is not to do it alone. It is, after all, her bed and she should pick out something she likes. However, you are the parent and you can say no to certain things. Your teen will likely be drawn to something like: Hannah Montana, Highschool Musical, Bratz, or Bobby Jack. These are very popular trends with both tweens and teens, and these trends can be found in several bedroom accessories.

However, buying anything 'current' or 'trendy' is often a bad idea. As I mentioned earlier, your child could outgrow Bobby Jack or Bratz overnight. They may not agree with you now, if you explain this as a reason not to go with a trendy bedding... but that doesn't matter. If you lay down the right guidelines, your child should be very happy with their bedrooms.

Before moving on I have to mention the other reason that 'trendy' bedding is a bad idea. There is no creativity or individuality involved with a 'branded' blanket. Your child should have a bedroom that is their own, a sublet of their own creative energies... and at the same time a decor that inspires individuality.

A great way to support creativity and a unique bedroom decor is to suggest your child make their own bedding. There are many ways to do this. You can tye-dye plain white sheets and pillowcases. Your child can pick out material from a local craft store to make their own bedding. There are many ways to be creative, but this is only a suggestion. Most children will not like this idea, and that is fine.

Bright colors make for a bright spirit. I can not stress enough that it is difficult to find something that will fit your child's personality for over a year, especially during the time when your child's personality changes overnight. Just because your daughter is a 'girly girl' now, doesn't mean she won't hit a 'tomboy' phase where pink is out.

Using these guidelines, your child may become frustrated when they want a pink, sparkly bedset and you (wisely following this advice) reject that idea. Try to push feminine, yet neutral, solid colors. Try blue or purple.

Alternatively, 'funky patterns' are almost guaranteed to satisfy both your guidelines, and your child's taste. These are very popular and can be found at many local department stores like Target, Kmart, and Walmart. However, to get the best selection of bedding you will will want to look online with your daughter nearby for verification of a winner.

Using my 12 year old as a research partner, I searched far and wide across the internet; and narrowed the results down to the following websites:

Sweet Peaches Bedding
Personally, I think this was the best site to start looking. There is a wide variety of 'styles' to choose from, and this site offers more than just bedding for your teen or tween and her changing taste.

Blanket Warehouse
This website is full of bedding options and although you shouldn't limit your browsing to just the teen bedding section, there are many "awesome" sets sure to satisfy.

Good luck with finding that perfect bedding. If you choose carefully, you won't have to buy a new set next week!