Snips and snails and puppy dog tails… little boys are made of that and a whole lot more. While every parent of a son knows how challenging it can be to raise a boy, they’re also aware of the high points and the fun of having a little guy (or more than one) in the house.

Boys’ rooms are lots of fun to decorate, but there’s also a lot to consider when designing one. You’d think that boys would be easier than girls – after all, most of them don’t care much about colors and wall hangings – but then you’d be wrong. If you take the “boy factor” into account when you’re brainstorming, that mini man-cave will be both easy on the eye and easy to live in.

Reinforce it

Make sure the furniture’s sturdy. Boys tend to test the strength of their beds, their dressers, their window sills and ceiling fans. Boy-proof it!

Plan ahead

If your little man loves Lego, army guys, airplanes, fire trucks, or some other theme and you don’t mind redecorating a few years down the line, go ahead and have a blast theming his room.

But you’re probably better off designing a room that can grow with him. Go with strong neutrals and bold accents.

Sure, when your son is a baby you think that girls obviously need much more storage space than boys. After all, they have a lot more clothing and accessories, right?

Wrong! As that boy grows he will accumulate enough stuff to rival most of the neighborhood girls’ collections. Rocks, sticks, bugs, broken and dissected toys… you name it, he’ll hoard it. Make sure you have enough space to store all of the “stuff” he’ll pick up. Closed storage is best – then you don’t have to look at it.