Any mom of four has to be an expert multitasker and Heidi Klum is no exception. The Project Runway host and America's Got Talent judge just launched her new baby clothing and decor collection Truly Scrumptious for Babies ‘R Us and recently partnered with Shutterfly to show how easy it is to create an affordable and adorable nursery. One idea the mom of Leni, 9; Henry, 7; Johan, 6, and Lou, 3 loves: using canvasses created from her kids' artwork to decorate the walls. We caught up with the designer to find out how she decides what artwork makes the cut, what she's learned as a mom of four and the best advice she got from her own parents.
You've decorated this nursery with canvasses made from your kids' artwork. Do they like seeing their creations on display?
I think it’s important for kids to see their own art on the wall—not just art that you buy in the store or something that was expensive or from someone else. It makes them feel important about what they did.
How do you keep all the art your kids bring home from school organized? To be honest, I just keep the best things. A lot of the time, I open the drawer and get rid of a few things when they’re not looking. You have to. They spit it out so quickly! I keep it organized in their room by showing their favorite things or I have it in the kitchen. There’s also a really long hallway upstairs in our home that’s all their art and I encourage them to paint right onto a canvas—and they put a lot of three dimensional things on their art, too. For example, when my boys had their hair cut, with their big afro, we would paint their face [on the canvas] and then glue their hair to it. It’s a really special wall.
What have you learned as a mom of four?
To just kind of roll with it. There is no book that you can read that tells you exactly how it is…you just have to be free and learn as you go. And you always have to do what your gut tells you to do. People always say “Oh, you should do this or you should do that. Why are you doing this?” You have to do what you think is the right thing. I think as moms, we always try to do our best, right? But everyone is different and at the end of the day you have to do what you think is the right thing.
Do you have any advice from your own mom that has helped you?
My mom was always there when I gave birth. Both of my parents were, which I loved. I loved having them there. I hope my kids will be open enough to let me be there when they give birth. We’re quite close. My mom taught me to be honest in front of my children. My parents always knew who I was. I wasn’t doing sneaky, weird things behind their back—I was always honest.
Lindsay Tigar is iVillage's associate parenting editor. Follow her Twitter, Pinterest and Google+.
A version of this story originally appeared on iVillage.