Nursery Design: The Beginning

So I'm over 24 weeks into my pregnancy, which gives me less than 16 weeks (or 3.5 months for those unaccustomed to measuring time in weeks) to decorate Baby Boy Conn's nursery. To give you an idea of what we're starting with, above is a shot of the soon-to-be nursery. I had considered cleaning the room out first before taking a photo, but I thought I'd best be totally honest with you guys. As you can see, the room is our currently storage room, chock-a-block full of leftover furniture, hand weights, Christmas gifts and baby clothes (largely courtesy of my sister, soon-to-be Auntie Babs).

So the first task, obviously, will be to clear out the space, donate/sell the unwanted furniture and install the ceiling fan that's still sitting in a box on top of that old IKEA ottoman. Once that's accomplished, the room will truly be a tabula rasa for my nursery vision.

As mentioned in previous posts, I've decided to go with an orange and aqua color palette for the nursery, accented with plenty of white. The dominant patterns will be stripes and the alphabet (or typography, really), both of which are currently en vogue but also happen to be (male) child appropriate.

The first task will be repainting the room from its current greige to a soft aqua; I'm thinking of going with Benjamin Moore's Seabrook, but I need to get a sample up on the walls before I make the final call (yet another task for this weekend!).

All of the major furniture pieces will be white and relatively modern in style. Given how dark the room is, I didn't want to drag it down with dark, heavy furniture. The Sparrow Crib from Oeuf has the fresh simplicity that I'm looking for and in person it seemed sturdy and well constructed (added bonus: this one will also convert to a toddler bed, buying me an extra year or two before I have to spring for his "big boy" bed). The Bam six-drawer dresser is similarly clean lined and the sort of piece I can see using in an older child's room in a few years time.

I debated about whether or not to spring for a changing station -- in many ways it seems like an unnecessary expense -- but ultimately I've decided to go with Stokke's care changing station for several reasons: (a) I absolutely adore how tall it is -- the height is way more comfortable for me than the standard dresser or changing station; (b) I'm giving cloth diapers a go and as such will need a designated station near the bathroom for optimal efficiency; and (c) once the kiddo is out of diapers (and the sooner, the better in my book!), this piece can function as an open bookshelf or even a small desk with just a few minor adjustments.

The other major purchase will be a rocker/recliner. I absolutely love the lines of Jennifer Delonge's luxe rocker and the punchy aqua velvet would inject a stylish note into the space; however, I may end up going with a different (but similar) piece that I can test out in person as this baby is, alas, only available online.

For bedding, I'm keeping it simple with Giggle's orange striped crib sheet and forgoing a bumper altogether [aside: a new study indicates that you're better off without one for safety purposes]. The darling aqua/orange blanket not only coordinates with my color scheme but features a pair of darling dinosaurs. (Dave and I were both big-time dinosaur fans as children so I'm rather hoping BB Conn will feel similarly rather than developing an obsession with, say, monster trucks, to which I cannot at all relate.) I'll also be transforming the Alphabet Tales fabric from Osborne & Little's new Zagazoo collection into throw pillows, crib skirt and a pelmet box for the lone window.

To liven up my beige carpet, I'll be laying down DwellStudio's peppy draper stripe rug, a great buy at $200 for a 5' x 8' (and I prefer a cotton flat weave -- much easier to keep clean with a baby than anything too plush!). Among other accessories (yet to be chosen, I'll be honest), I'm thinking of going with this fun orange lamp from Jonathan Adler. Art wise, I've long loved Binth's alphabet poster, with its vintage style and soft orange, blue and gray colors, so of course I snapped it up the first chance I got to actually use it. I'm also adding a pair of letterpress prints from Sycamore Street Press and a beautiful Noah's Ark print from Bold & Noble (not shown in the collage).

Stay tuned for updates over the coming weeks! In the meantime though, happy weekend!