Ideas for Striped Paint in a Boy's Room

Pin Stripes

• Thin pin stripes are an ideal option for a more subtle, understated look. Start with a white, cream, gray or tan background, and use his favorite color to paint the stripes. Some Major League Baseball (MLB) and National Basketball Association (NBA) teams have uniforms that feature pin stripes, such as the New York Yankees, New York Mets, Chicago Cubs, Orlando Magic and Charlotte Hornets, so you can even mimic the look of your son’s favorite jersey on his wall to create a sports-themed room.

Monochromatic Stripes

• Create a subtle striped look for your son’s walls by using a monochromatic color scheme. Start with your son’s favorite color and choose two shades from the same family. For example, you can use a sky blue and blue-gray, or a sage green and forest green. Use the two shades to paint alternating stripes across the walls. Make the look very subtle by choosing shades that are right next to one another on the paint sample cards available at home improvement stores. For an even more subtle finish, however, choose a single color and use paint in two different finishes, such as a matte and satin finish.

Striped Border

• You aren’t limited to vertical stripes when painting your son’s bedroom. Create a simple horizontal stripe border for the top of the walls instead of using a wallpaper or stenciled border. A striped border is also an ideal way to introduce a bold pop of color to your son’s room, so if his favorite color is bright blue, red or green, you can keep the walls a light, neutral shade and just add a thin stripe of color at the top of the wall. For additional color, you can add a matching stripe border at the bottom of the wall as well.

Racing Stripe Chair Rail

• For a bolder look in your son’s bedroom, try creating a racing stripe chair rail in the center of the walls. It is an ideal option for a bedroom with a racing theme, but the chair rail can add a fun, graphic touch to a plain bedroom. Racing stripes traditionally consist of two shades, with one color in the center and two stripes in the another shade on either side of it. You can use any combination of colors that your son likes, such as blue and white; red and black; or yellow and green. If you are decorating the room with a racing theme, you may want to stencil a circle with a number in the center to mimic the look of a racecar on the wall.