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BobWheelerJr t1_j48wz90 wrote

For a minimal amount of money you can buy a laser projector that will cast constellations on the ceiling, and it's bad to the bone.

Also cheap but cool: NASA logo vinyl wall sticker.

I'm not sure what you're doing the rest of the time, but this makes me think you're pretty damned good at parenting.

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abslte23 OP t1_j48xeia wrote

Didn't think of that and just happen to have a short throw laser projector in the closet. I could create a playlist of ever changing scenes. I guess I could download full res images from NASA?

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Ghrrum t1_j490xuq wrote

James Webb posts most of its images online.

There are a lot of other telescopes that NASA runs that also share to the public.

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Secondly, while stick on stars are great. Glow in the dark paint is better, small dots done to look like the night sky on her birthday strikes me as a winning idea. Stellarium and a lot of other applications out there to help you with the time and star placement.

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abslte23 OP t1_j49aodq wrote

And this is why I came here. Awesome idea

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Ghrrum t1_j49gy5h wrote

If you want to hide the stars you can get just the pigment powder on ebay or such and mix it with the wall/celing paint color already there.

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dthol69 t1_j49txdf wrote

I second the idea of the James Webb photos. The images are free and I got them professionally printed for reasonably cheap. They look awesome as a pair or 3-piece.

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Ziggy_has_my_ticket t1_j48vdvv wrote

Blind the windows. Turn down the heat. Vacuum seal it and draw all the air out.

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abslte23 OP t1_j48vkds wrote

Hey now she has to sleep in there

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RogInFC t1_j491mfc wrote

Look on the bright side: no mosquitos. I hate those guys. Maybe I should sleep in space ... at 5000 feet of altitude, I'm halfway there.

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JohnCena_770 t1_j48xash wrote

Don't forget the gamma rays. Lots and lot of gamma rays.

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abslte23 OP t1_j48xk82 wrote

So your saying it's possible she could be she-hulk?

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psgrue t1_j48waii wrote

For my kids, I once made a space scene with acrylic paint on black fabric then framed it with a piece of 4x8 rigid styrofoam insulation to look like a ship’s port hole. Lightweight wall hanging you can easily take down later.

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DNathanHilliard t1_j48y62m wrote

Glow in the dark stars on the ceiling is a must. Even better if it corresponds with a skymap.

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phasechanges t1_j48yn7z wrote

I'm here to upvote this. Loved it as a kid growing up (many years ago)...and also did this for kids and grand kids.

GITD stars ftw!

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SpaceInMyBrain t1_j498okk wrote

Definitely! My niece put these up as a kid and loved them all her teen years, and more.

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RSwordsman t1_j48uvkb wrote

Stick-on glow stars for the ceiling would be cool if available. Otherwise maybe a dark or medium blue for the walls with nebula/galaxy designs?

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disaster357 t1_j492f34 wrote

I'd say take it a step further and put them on the walls too. Like you're IN space

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abslte23 OP t1_j48vhle wrote

The paint is going to be the hardest part I've learned over the years. I like the nebula idea would mind doing that if it reacts to blacklights

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RSwordsman t1_j48vl5p wrote

I'd find it really hard to believe if they don't have decals for that sort of thing. Hand painted would be awesome but not everyone is able to do that well hehe.

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Ohmmy_G t1_j49izfj wrote

If you put white paint on a paint brush and flick the bristles, it creates pretty nice looking stars. The second method in this video:

https://youtu.be/nrsl5oCQoBg

Maybe use a dark color that glows under black light for some of the stars. Cool lesson to show that not objects in space are seen using the visible light portion of the electromagnetic spectrum.

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Sirenista_D t1_j49su33 wrote

I did a garden-themed room for my girl when she was small. Light blue with white clouds on the walls and ceiling. Used glow in the dark hobby paint to outline the clouds and added a bunch of glow star stickers. It looked freaking AWESOME at night! I would literally lay on the floor and just stare up "at the stars"

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Dr_Hoffenheimer t1_j492pyr wrote

I don’t know if self promotion is allowed, but back in college I did a lot of spray paint artwork and added the pictures to society6. I have them as cheap as possible, I probably make like $1-3 per item sold. Most of them are space themed and I have the originals hanging in my bedroom.

The page is: https://society6.com/bhhoffman

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abslte23 OP t1_j49b0bt wrote

Bookmarked this is her style actually

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omsnoms1 t1_j48yf06 wrote

dammit i wish my parents were as cool as you man

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abslte23 OP t1_j48ywcu wrote

I wish mine were too bro. They all get a grown up room with a theme they choose for their birthday. She chose something I've always been interested in just followed loosely. I'm on a crash course now but at least I have till May.

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omsnoms1 t1_j48z8tf wrote

i’ve always loved space too, i have a UFO tattoo and plan to get a solar system one.

keep up the great work im sure your kids really really appreciate it :)

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LibraFive t1_j4958ig wrote

She was a galaxy and I was an astronaut lost in her.

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SpaceInMyBrain t1_j499xp2 wrote

What age range are we talking about? I have some good ideas but they're more for a 10-12 year old. Maybe an 8 year old. Know a good source for infographic posters and photo posters. More in line with STEM and rockets and spacecraft (real ones) than planets and space itself.

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abslte23 OP t1_j49aj8q wrote

She is 7 but has been asking for a few years now. I plan on this being a room to suit her age as well as something to grown into finding Easter eggs if you will . Start with paint, decals, an interesting piece to gain/keep interest and add in from there

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SpaceInMyBrain t1_j4a0x20 wrote

A poster of the solar system is always good. A long one with good detailed renderings of the planets, maybe with facts next to them. She can get into the facts at her own pace. There are almost too many to choose from when "posters of the solar system" is googled. Here's one, although there may easily be others with more visual impact.

You can't go wrong with the classic full photo of Earth taken by Apollo 17, or "Earthrise over the Moon" by Apollo 8. A less frequently seen one includes the Apollo 11 lunar module as it ascends from the 1st Moon landing. That odd looking spacecraft could spark questions over the years that'll lead to many long answers.

For rockets and spacecraft I suggest the forward looking ones that will be around while she's growing up. The newest current one is the Dragon capsule on top of the Falcon 9 rocket. It will be flying crews for the coming years. Photos of it are not rare. The forward looking one is the SpaceX Starship, it's trying to leap two generations of design and technology. It also looks awesome. The SpaceX official Flickr site has some crazy good recent photos. Afaik the file size is good enough to print, if you know someone/some store with a largish format photo printer. Yes, those are real photos, not CGI. If you're not familiar with Starship: it's the tallest and most powerful rocket ever, it's fully reusable (both parts come back to land), and the first flight will be by March.

An iconic picture or two from the Apollo era will be nice but she should be looking forward. The Artemis program will be unfolding into her teen years but I'd downplay the SLS rocket and Orion capsule. They won't be flying for long if Starship is successful. They're here for the present but in design and concept they're old tech, backward looking tech.

My favorite source is Tony Bela, an awesome old-school illustrator who is very up to date. His site has plenty of infographic posters, not too large. I used to love the infographic illustrations in magazines when I was a kid during the Space Race, at 9 or 10 years old and onward. I'd pore over them over and over. Maybe good for her now, or maybe better for later.

If you're not into rockets you can still leave one Easter egg for later. She'll think it's just a cool imaginative picture - and be very surprised to learn at some point it's for real and launched in 2018. Actual astronaut not included, lol.

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abslte23 OP t1_j4a2mcz wrote

Thanks for putting the effort into this post. It's helped organize some of my thoughts around rockets. I remember watching the Tesla launch hard to believe it was 4 years ago.

Model rockets (Estes) were a hobby of mine as a child. I wonder if they have any SpaceX models. I think I saw a few in the past from other suppliers but they were pretty pricey. Off to Google I go

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SpaceInMyBrain t1_j4a3km5 wrote

I appreciate being appreciated. :)

Check again, I just added some stuff about specific pics of Earth taken by Apollo missions.

My brothers and I tried a few small Estes rocket but didn't catch the bug.

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abslte23 OP t1_j4a4yaa wrote

I loved them and used to be able to shoot them off at a local school. Years later I took my son to shoot them off there. A lot had changed the woods were turned into a development. We shit off a 6' rocket and a gust of wind grabbed it. Took it over a soccer field, two baseball fields, and a street or two into the new development. I was worried about recovering the rocket cut my son loved it. So we went looking for it and found a nice black gentleman mowing his yard with his son playing with it. I asked for it back his words were "I'm black I thought Obama was targeting me with a drone. I didn't think he would do this to me." It was funny in the moment anyway

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JohnCena_770 t1_j48xrof wrote

A few of these planet night lamps would look pretty damn cool in a dark room.

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Awkward-Butterfly893 t1_j48yesu wrote

I have this little moon light in my room. It hangs on the wall and changes phases throughout the night. Its really cool.

Glow in the dark stars also work if she wants to arrange them into constellations.

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abslte23 OP t1_j48z5md wrote

I have a moon similar to that but we lost the remote :-(

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AtHomeInTheUniverse t1_j498mh4 wrote

I did my dorm room once using the constellations as they appeared at the moment I was born. You can find free websites that will plot the sky as it appeared at any time and place. I used little glow in the dark star stickers, and a black light to charge them. I even had a little dot on a string attached to a motor that made a satellite fly across the sky.

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abslte23 OP t1_j49b73p wrote

Falling in love with this idea. Wonder if I could transition this to fiber optics

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AstrophysHiZ t1_j49fsbr wrote

NASA has a wonderfully evocative series of 14 posters illuminating a grand tour of the solar system, shown at

https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/galleries/visions-of-the-future

They are free to use, designed to be printed at a 20 by 30 inches size, and could be printed and placed on the wall in a poster frame. They might be something that she could grow into over the years, perhaps starting first with one in her current favorite colour scheme?

I feel that they capture a wholesome and optimistic view of exploration very well, and are inspirational.

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hailbeavis t1_j48wf0k wrote

There are some cool light projectors out there that can display images of stars and nebulae on the walls and ceiling. There's at least one on Amazon that's shaped like an astronaut. I'm an adult and I love them, my daughter does too.

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Unlucky-Ticket-873 t1_j48xwav wrote

I have 3 of them as a 31f lol. I got a ball that looks like a planet that glows different colors when you throw it too. It’s really neat.

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dempower1 t1_j48x7wj wrote

Etsy has tons of cute space stuff. Also if you want to do it inexpensively Amazon has nice poster sets of the solar system and space themed bed spreads.

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Lovingmyusername t1_j48xdr5 wrote

There’s tons of wall decals (basically big stickers) on Etsy! Way easier than wall paper.

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PoppersOfCorn t1_j48y19g wrote

There are "galaxy" night light/projectors that cast a light on the ceiling/walls. Relatively cheap, and there no need to redecorate if they change themes

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Seandude_ t1_j493chh wrote

We did my son's room spaced theme and we have these replica blueprint patents of the shuttle, Mars rover, space suit, and space capsule. They are really cool and nice for a side wall

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abslte23 OP t1_j49fycv wrote

I do like the blueprint idea. Is there a magnetic Kerbal Space Program style rocket builder? Hmmm

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eyesRus t1_j495fcw wrote

Both Crate and Barrel Kids and Pottery Barn Kids have a lot of cute space-themed items!

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SportulaVeritatis t1_j495inn wrote

So in my current house, the fan in the bedroom has a light painted to look like the Earth. There's also those glow in the dark stars on the ceiling, though if you're feeling adventurous, I bet it wouldn't be too hard to put some LED stars in the ceiling.

When I was growing up I had some framed pictures from Cassini in mine. Now I'm an engineer in the space sector, so I'd say that worked out.

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Model_Rockets t1_j4985za wrote

Stars, NASA posters ( I have shuttle mission posters in my room) a galaxy or something similar to that wallpaper, etc

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thesmokingninja t1_j499az3 wrote

We painted one wall of my son’s room navy and put up a vinyl solar system - pic. We also bought some animal astronaut prints off Etsy and framed them and a wool knitted solar system mobile.

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kpyeoman t1_j49bz9i wrote

Not an ad, but Displate has some really cool official NASA metal posters. I bought my son Artemis I, the Moon, and the Pillars of Creation. They looks great and he really likes them (3.5 yrs old). We’re using them to talk about the Artemis program, the upcoming moon landing and the search for the wonders of the universe with the JWST.

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Shadowwynd t1_j49dlf9 wrote

You can either buy or DIY ceiling tiles with fiber optic wires poking through. You can get your own starfield (My kids pediatrician has this)

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indie_astronaut t1_j49eodr wrote

i painted a galaxy on my ceiling in 9th grade - how old is your daughter? it might be fun to involve her

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abslte23 OP t1_j49hbkb wrote

Turning 7. I would imagine if nothing else a star ceiling would last the longestl

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indie_astronaut t1_j49hs3j wrote

im not home right now but i’ll see if i can find a picture to attach. it only took about two or three days, and i just put old sheets over other furniture so didn’t have to do any major moving. i just did deep blue with gold and silver “stars” - mostly at random but added some constellations i like. i’m in grad school now (for biology) and would probably not love a big nasa sticker on my wall anymore but the sky is timeless and i still love seeing it when i visit home

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indie_astronaut t1_j49i975 wrote

it was also p cheap - just a few tins of paint, a roller, and then a cheap brush or sponge for the stars

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[deleted] t1_j49eqdy wrote

Glow in the dark decals os stars. Mobile(s) of satellites planets. Webb telescope images. Photographer babak Tefreshi

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Idgie-Threadgoode t1_j49ez35 wrote

I’d add in some space themed lego sets she can build and then display.

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abslte23 OP t1_j49f50i wrote

Good idea. I can pass those off as present ideas as well

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WisteriApothecary t1_j49lwjo wrote

My daughter’s room has good space vibes. I got most of it from Chapters, funny enough. If you PM me, I can send you a bunch of links.

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abslte23 OP t1_j48v66a wrote

Has anyone seen a spacesuit of decent quality that is cut in half to fit flush on a wall?

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Notsnowbound t1_j48xqub wrote

They have those star nightlights that slowly spin. Very nice.

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abslte23 OP t1_j48y10x wrote

I was thinking those fiber optic ceilings but I want shooting stars and galaxies

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BassWingerC-137 t1_j490b41 wrote

Dark paint. LED lighting. Black out window shades.

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SkeksoUrsu t1_j49q4wx wrote

So, when we bought our house, one of the walls in my sons bedroom was already decorated with stars. It’s a dark blue background and tons of hand painted stars. It’s cute as hell!! We love space too so we decided to make it a theme. We got big planet stickers to put along the wall and also glow in the dark stars. We got him a night light projector that puts light stars all over. We also bought blue blackout curtains with silver stars on them. Over all super cute. More has been added- a astronaut poster and dress up clothes. We used to have a tent with stars but my husband broke it by accident.

Super cute theme and so much you can do to decorate. I’ll see if I can find a pic to share

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abslte23 OP t1_j49ru1w wrote

You husband tried to sleep in the tent didn't he?

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SkeksoUrsu t1_j49t0p6 wrote

Ugh he was trying to investigate a bee problem we were having on our front porch and decided it would be worth-while to check out the bees from above. So, he climbed out my kids bedroom window onto the roof of the porch…. And when he thought bees were flying at him (he’s allergic!) he bounded into the bedroom window and snapped one of the tent poles.

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jollytoes t1_j49vhij wrote

Somewhere in there use some Black 2.0 paint to do a truly black hole.

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abslte23 OP t1_j49zkq5 wrote

Gonna have to go with Black 3.0 :-p I've wanted to play with this stuff for awhile now I have a reason

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