When we talk about child-friendly homes , we generally mean two things- houses that appeal to the kids and houses that are safe for kids. Today, we're focusing on the latter as it's an integral part of prepping your home before the new addition arrives. A new baby means that you need to see your home in a new light, as you will definitely have to add a few important things and do away with some. So besides decorating your house in a baby-friendly way, you also need to make it childproof to ensure that it does not act as a potential hazard to your kid.

Here are a few things you can do to make your place appealing and safe for the young ones: Remove all sharp and fragile objects and place them where your child cannot reach.

Kids are generally inquisitive by nature and love to play with almost everything. It's therefore important to remove from easy reach anything that could be easily broken, or could potentially harm your little one. Children are also naturally curious and will want a taste of everything new they see - keep poisonous substances (even regular cleaning products apply here!) and even small objects out of the way, which could cause choking. Choose furniture that can play many roles.

Once you have a child, bid goodbye to your formerly neat-as-a-pin home. However, don’t lose sleep over the clutter they create. One of the smartest ways to handle the clutter is to invest in furniture that has multiple uses. A side table with roomy drawers, and storage trunks or dressers as changing tables are fine examples of pieces in which can hide all the overflow, without having it take over the rest of the house. Make sure you have only heavy furniture in the house.



While that delicate-as-paper console would look divine in your foyer, and the coffee table made entirely of glass will surely up your home's glam quotient, it's probably best to look past those to furniture that is sturdy, steady, and reliable. Children are like little powerhouses of energy and as soon as they are able to move around and run into things, they will. Nothing is safe when a pair of curious little hands is around - do yourself and your child a favour by buying pieces that aren't potentially dangerous to have in the home. Use stain-repellent fabrics.

Rest easy and let your children play with abandon by investing in stain-repellent fabrics that can cover all your large pieces of furniture. These days, stain-repellent carpets are also readily available which will help when kids are leaving scuff marks and accidentally dropping juice on your lovely rugs. Use the same kind of fabric for curtains, bed covers, and any other soft furnishings that are susceptible to kiddie wear and tear. Use advanced sockets with built-in automatic shutters to prevent accidents.

Children seem to be attracted to power sockets like bees are to honey! To avoid potentially hazardous situations, install advanced sockets with built-in automatic shutters, that are safe from prying little fingers. Create more open spaces.

Smartly curate your home and discard anything that seems to have outlived its purpose. A table that has outgrown its use, or a large showpiece in the corner that takes up more room than it should all have to go. Give your child as much open space as possible within which he or she can crawl and play. Use materials that are sound-proof.

Children’s ears are highly sensitive; it is therefore important that you use soundproofing materials to shut out loud noises like the incessant honking of cars on the street below, or processions and festivals that seem to take place every second day. Seal doors with rubber strips and use cork or rubberised flooring to help prevent sound from entering your child’s room. Take the advice of an architect before opting for any solution. So there you have it! A few tips from the Discern team on giving your home a safety makeover for your child. If you have any additional tips or advice, we would love to hear from you in the comments section!