Room Reno #60: High School Years

Welcome back to Room Reno #60 here at The Sims Resource! Can you believe we’ve made it to 60 renovations so far? Maybe I’ll have to go back and redo some of the original renos. My skills have definitely improved since then! Alright, let’s get into the build: we have a teen sim who wants to upgrade her babyish childhood room to a cool teen hangout. Let’s meet her!

Meet Kennedy!

Kennedy is actually a Sim from one of my longest-running households. I started with them back when Seasons came out and I’m actually still playing them (even though their save has corrupted a few times). I even built their house from scratch, one of the first houses I ever completely finished with the exterior and furnishings and everything. I don’t know about you guys, but I feel like every Simmer has a preferred build category: exteriors/layouts or furnishings/decor. I fall squarely under the decor category, so I was very proud to finish this house (and all of its many expansions over the years!).

Now, however, it’s time for a renovation. Kennedy recently aged into a teen, so she needs a room that’s not as cutesy as her childhood room. She still loves lots of color–she’s an aspiring artist with a really high level painting skill–but she wants the colors to feel a little more mature and put together than her old, super kiddie themed room. Let’s see what we’re working with!

The Before

This room is very cute–perfect for a child sim! However, with Kennedy growing up, it’s time to get rid of a lot of this stuff. The biggest issues to me are the bed and nightstand. While I think that set from Cats and Dogs is absolutely adorable, it doesn’t quite suit the older vibe Kennedy is going for. The bright purple dresser also needs to go–I want to incorporate color into the final room, but in a slightly sleeker way than the current furniture does.

The room has a lot of potential, though. It may seem small, but there are tons of creative and cute ways to make a small space larger–you definitely know this if you’ve seen any of my tiny home builds and renos! Also, hot take: giant bedrooms are way too intimidating to furnish in this game. I hate when my rooms feel empty, and a lot of the time when the room is too big they do! I end up putting in a lot of non-functional pieces just to fill up space, not because they add anything to the aesthetic of the room. Small bedrooms are intimate and cozy, even if they’re a lot harder to fit everything into. Let’s get planning!

The Planning

As with most small rooms, the planning looks deceptively simple once it’s laid out for you, but in reality it took me a little bit of time to get the placement right. In the Sims, it usually makes the most sense to put all double beds in the middle of a wall so that both sides of the bed can be used by a Sim. In this room, though, I knew that Kennedy would be the only Sim using the bed, so I opted to place her double bed against the window.

Unfortunately, her room is on the east side of the house…time to invest in a sleep mask! Has anyone else always had rooms with east-facing windows? I seem to end up with them everywhere I go, and let me tell you: as a night owl, it is absolutely no fun. I wanted to save some of the space by the window for Kennedy’s easel so that she could take advantage of some of the natural light coming in–the window isn’t all bad! Instead of a bulkier dresser or closet, I opted for one of the new clothing racks that came with the pack. Kennedy can display all of her trendy and aesthetic clothes there…I have no idea where she’ll be putting everything else, though. A desk with a laptop will finish up the room so that Kennedy has a spot to work on homework and catch up with friends. Let’s get building!

The After

I really loved my teenage bedroom set, but this room is making me want to travel back in time and swap it all out. I’m so happy with all the new furniture pieces from the High School Years pack. I think they have a lot of versatility for builds of all types, and the colorful options will help brighten up any space you put them in. The differently colored gaming desk chairs really made me smile, as someone who’s had a few of those throughout the years. If I could find one in the sunflower fabric that I put in Kennedy’s room, I would have bought it in a heartbeat (even though I already have a chair!).

I also love the look of the clothing rack in the room. I know that clothing racks were first introduced in Dream Home Decorator, but the ones that have been added now are free-standing instead of attached to walls, which I think adds a level of versatility. I wish I were neat enough irl to be able to display all my clothes like this. Alas, the capsule wardrobe life simply isn’t for me (seriously, people who do those, y’all are superheros). I added a lot of artistic touches throughout the room, with the idea that Kennedy made a lot of these pieces herself to add a little bit of story. I also made use of some very cool CC neon lights to make her room feel retro-chic, and I think they added a lot of character to the space.

Thanks for checking out Room Reno #60: High School Years! If you liked this blog, check out Room Reno #59: Luxury Bedroom or a one-color CAS challenge.  Looking for something else? Read an update on all the newest game news or about the latest game patch! Have a great day 😎