Decorating a nursery can be lots of fun, but at times it can also be a little bit overwhelming. It is a room that you will be spending a lot of time in, and for me it was very much a labor of love for my child. In this post, I wanted to share my top five practical tips that I picked up along the way that are helpful for decorating any style nursery.
1. ORGANIZE YOUR IDEAS
Look for inspiration on sites like Instagram, Pinterest and Houzz, or just save screenshot photos in a file on your phone. You may discover something new that never occurred to you. Originally I thought I wanted to go with clean light neutrals, boho accents and a wood wall. Then I stumbled upon nurseries with royal blue and navy walls with white accents, which I simply adored. For weeks I waffled back and forth with these two seemingly opposite idea. I played around with a photo collage app on my iPhone to create an inspiration board. Soon I realized that there are no steadfast rules – I could have the best of both worlds. Being able to play with the colors and textures together helps you have confidence that you will be happy with the end result.
2. INVEST IN A COMFY GLIDER
At first I was dead against getting a glider for the room, but my husband talked some sense into me and I’m so glad he did. There are a lot of chair and gliders out there today that are equal parts stylish and comfortable. I found this amazing glider at Land of Nod, and still fall asleep in it almost every night when I rock Max before bed. In a few more years, I can repurpose it for another room without it looking out of place. You are going to to be spending a lot of long nights in that chair, and it will be a place where you make lots of sweet memories with your little one. Find one that you will love spending time in for the long haul, it’s totally worth it. (I’m still obsessed with this striped rocker from Land of Nod too!)
3. REPURPOSE ITEMS
While you are set on creating the perfect nursery for your little ones, remember in the not too distant future that they will want to express their own style too – like a bright red race car bed in the middle of the room. In addition to buying traditional baby furniture like crib and comfy glider, I tried to incorporate other items in the room that we can repurpose later in other rooms. Instead of a changing table that has a limited shelf life, consider putting a changing topper on a waist high dresser or hutch. We used West Elm dresser for Max’s changing table. (For extra safety, we recommend anchoring any items that could become top heavy to the wall and permanently securing the changing pad on the dresser.) I use lots of baskets for storage, a wooden shelf as a diaper organizer, a puff instead of the glider footstool, and a funky little tree stump side table. Another favorite is this fun print from Gray Malin’s Parker Series, incorporating our favorite furry little friends at the iconic Palm Springs hotel.
4. SMART PAINT
While some decorating professionals may cringe, one option is to consider at least a semigloss paint. Satins may be prettier to some, but eventually sticky hands, food, crayons and other ooey gooey things will end up on these walls, and a glossier type of paint will be a bit more durable and easier to clean. Whether or not you go with a semi gloss, I always suggest making sure you buy a bit more than you will need so that it’s no big deal to clean up a rough patches that may show up from time to time. (And make sure to keep the name of the color and brand of paint.)
5. USE ETSY
I’ve used Etsy to find shelves, pillows, paintings, signs and curtains for our house. I think Etsy is a great option to find one of a kind pieces for your child’s room that don’t have to break the bank. And it seems that no matter what your style or theme, there will be a shop that offers what you are searching for. One of my favorite Etsy finds are these happy furry friends hanging out in Max’s room by Water In My Paint.
Love love love!!!