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A Young Explorer’s Big Boy Outer Space Bedroom

We recently embarked on a mission to create a bedroom for a creative and curious young boy that is inspiring, comfortable, and fun. I want to encourage my children to reach for any dreams they have, no limits, even beyond the stars, and I envisioned the bed of a future astronaut…it would be one where he could gaze out the window at the great big night sky while the moonlight streams in as he falls asleep, dreaming of what is out there:

outer space bed for kids

I knew the Essence Collection from Raymour & Flanigan, an espresso dark wood twin bedroom set for young boys or girls that is rich and beautiful, would perfectly bring it to life for our young explorer. It’s very versatile, and could really help transform a room into anything, so many directions to go in terms of room decor options…a pirate theme? sports? young scientist? anything! I loved the sleek and simple lines, and I definitely have a preference for dark wood. It’s very rich and well-made, so once I saw it in the showroom at Raymour & Flanigan, I just knew.

Our room tour begins with, of course, the bed. The headboard we chose features curved slats (there is a second version, but this one caught my eye) in a merlot dark wood in twin size. We transformed what we saw in the showroom:

essence boys bedroom raymour flanigan

into what I saw in my mind:

outer space bedroom bedding

Since the room decor was focused on astronomy, outer space, rockets and planets, we found a beautiful embroidered bedding set in rich colors that looked wonderful with the Essence Collection. It is designed with our solar system, and rocket ships, and stars, to inspire him to think outside the box to what is beyond, and out there…no limits! Raymour & Flanigan White Glove Service delivered our set to us and put it altogether, so we didn’t have to worry about putting anything together or any heavy lifting…we just got to decorate and enjoy it.

At the foot of the bed is a seriously cool trunk. It’s huge, what I envisioned Harry Potter to bring to Hogwarts every year to store his cauldron and leather bound books and quills. My son fills it with his building blocks, all kinds- magnetic, wooden, plastic, fiberglass, etc…he likes to build and create so we pretty much stocked his trunk with all of it so it’s easily accessible by him, and the lid closes slowly so no caught fingers. It’s quite heavy and built to last, and holds sooo much.

treasure chest coffee table

treasure chest toy storage

The night table is really cool, it features a single electrical plug that splits into three, one with a dimmer, so he can hook up multiple gadgets, have control over the brightness of the light, etc all while only requiring one outlet in the wall. All the drawers of the Essence Collection are English dovetailed for strength and durability, and both the night stand and dresser come with felt-lined valets.

three section outlet with dimmer nightstand

english dovetail drawers
three section outlet with dimmer nightstand

The matching dresser and mirror has the same curved detail, just beautiful, as well as seven large, roomy drawers with English dove-tailing, a felt valet, and a central drawer that opens forward without requiring that you pull it out. The drawers are barely half filled now with his small clothes for a three year old, so it’s clear this set will accommodate him for years to come, as he grows older and bigger.

essence dresser and mirror
essence merlot dresser
felt valet in drawers

The Essence Collection doesn’t have a book case, so our sales associate Anthony helped us find a matching book case that coordinated beautifully our bedroom set. I chose the Urban Crossings 60 inch bookcase (the shorter of the two options this bookcase is available in) so our son could reach the top and use it as a display area for larger items (trophies? right now it stores his glow in the dark globe that shows our night sky and constellations when the lights are out).

book shelf
urban crossing books shelf

We decorated the walls with Outer Space decals in fun colors that evoke our own solar system, with colorful renditions of our planets, rocket ships and satellites, and stars.

outer space bedroom ROOM DECOR
astronomy inspired room decor
spaceopoly-2
rocket ship planets nightlight ceiling light
rocket ship decals

We placed a satellite on an outlet as though it had just happened to land there, but later realized the nightlight made it look intentional because of how it lights up at night…rather serendipitous, sort of told us it was meant to be there and we chose the right decor and furniture for his room. And of course, since our sons like games, we filled the room with space games and silly things that evoke space travel…it all worked together wonderfully!

What do you think of our Big Boy Bedroom makeover? Quite a difference from his train-themed nursery room!

This is a partnered post.




  • Kait

    I love that trunk. It’d be perfect storage for anything!

  • Crystal

    You selected beautiful pieces. I tried to select furniture that would grow with my children, as you’ve done.

  • Tammy

    I love the look of that dark wood. The decals on the wall are so cute, much better than wallpaper since they are easier to take down later!

  • HilLesha

    I really like it! My son really gets into astronomy, and I can easily see him wanting something like this for a bedroom theme in the future. 🙂

  • Andrea Kruse

    Love the whole collection. The curved lines are really fun. I am getting set you To design my eldest room from shared with a toddler bed, to bug boy soon. Love seeing what you created.

  • Ty

    Wow, what an amazing looking room. I love how everything came together.

  • Anne

    Beautiful and looks well made. This should last him a while.

  • Raijean

    This is perfect, the boychild would love this space room.

  • Stephanie

    So cute! I don’t think of a single little guy who wouldn’t go CRAZY for this decor! Looks awesome!

  • Danielle K

    This is a lovely looking bedroom set. The space theme is so cute – my son’s nursery is space themed and I love to see how it can grow with him as he gets bigger.

  • Trey

    his room is so cute! and so organized, very nice 🙂

  • Jacqui

    What a nice bedroom! I can’t decide what I like best a bout it! I love the bedding and the dresser set.

  • Ellen Christian

    That’s absolutely gorgeous. I really love the decor you chose!