When I was in fifth grade, I had a really great teacher, Mr. Saffold. I'll be honest: I don't remember a ton of what we studied, but I remember a lot of the daily rhythms that we had in the classroom. Small things that added up to big impressions. The first is every morning, he had a meter stick and would point to various spots around the world on his wall-sized map. Within a few weeks, we could name every major body of water, sea, river, continent, dessert, mountain range and any other various item of note on a map. Each morning, we would start the day with a quick drill of this game, and we loved it. To this day, when I see the Caspian Sea, the Tigris River or the Prime Meridian, I can't help but think of that silly routine that actually made me a bit of a geography champion.

The second thing that he did that stuck with me was that he read to us. Every day, after lunch we would have a small portion of time where he would read aloud to us. We could sit at our desks or lounge around the floor by him. At eleven, all felt a little "too old" to be read to at that age, but we also secretly loved that he would still do it. The only books that he read to us were by Roald Dahl, and his silly voices and daily readings eventually grew a big soft spot in my heart for these books.

I'll never forget hearing Danny Champion of the World, Matilda or The BFG as he read them to us. The words on those pages came alive to me and my mind plugged away all the silly phrases and curious observations that were written within them.

I asked my good friend, Katy Byrne, who is both an interior designer and attended the same little school as I did, to create a children's room based off his books. Is that dorky? Kind of, but I can't help it. Since that age, I've wanted to share his special world with my kids. I can't imagine any human that is half me not being completely enamored by him. Creating a room around his books seems like a pretty good starting point... so, here you have it. Just for fun and for some inspiration. Enjoy!

WHAT KATY SAYS:

Children's rooms can be tough. They tend to walk a fine line between adorable and cheesy. But truth be told, children's spaces are my favorite places to design. I love playing into the imagination while giving a room life, especially for a sweet little one. This Roald Dahl space has the perfect balance of whimsy and sophistication. The punches of pink and green paired with white lacquered furnishings and gold accents result in the perfect blend of color and texture. It's a dreamy space for a sweet girl like Viola to learn and grow!