Girl on the Hudson

Just before my son turned four, we decided to upgrade his room from a nursery to a “big boy room.” This meant giving him a real bed(!) and adding some touches and accessories to elevate the space from a calming nursery to a room that really reflected his personality and interests. He LOVES animals so the first thing I did was to hang this jungle peel-and-stick wallpaper on the largest wall of his room. The wallpaper is adorable but what I love most about it is its neutral color scheme. Most of his room is blue, gray and cream, so this coordinated perfectly (and matched the paint color of his remaining walls, which is Benjamin Moore “Silver Chain.”
We have a kid-friendly sofa in the room that we use for our nightly story time, and which he can eventually use for sleepovers (it pulls out into a twin-size bed!)
I also replaced the original dhurrie rug from his nursery with this plush braided wool rug, which is so, so soft. We spend a lot of time up here doing puzzles, playing, and reading and this rug makes it so much cozier.
One of my favorite ways to decorate a kid’s room or playroom is to add acrylic wall shelves for books, artwork, and dolls. These shelves have always been in his room but we’ve since replaced the baby toys with big kid books that double as artwork for the wall. I regularly swap out the books based on season/holiday so we always have “new” ones to choose from.
I kept the remaining walls simple by adding a large hare print (no longer available, unfortunately), some fun accessories like a felt animal head and “Imagine” pennant, and DIY’d a Peter Pan quote to go over his bed.
One last project that we did together was to use our leftover wallpaper from the accent wall to wallpaper the inside of his closet, which is a fun little surprise every time you open the door.
Jacob loves his big boy room and we do too!

We moved into our new house about a year and a half ago and left this room untouched, assuming it would eventually be for baby #2.
So as soon as I found out we were having a girl (our first is a boy), I immediately got to work brainstorming up a space that would be fun, imaginative, and a little bit girly — but could still grow with her throughout the years.
I repainted the grey walls a pale pink (Behr “Illuminated”), and since I’m averse to too much color, I wanted everything else in the room to feel neutral, light and airy — so I stuck to a palette of whites and creams and added texture with pillows, blankets, and acrylic pieces.
In terms of statement pieces, I installed a beautiful chandelier from Serena & Lily and chose an acrylic dollhouse floor bookcase, which not only holds a bunch of books and toys, but can also be used as an actual dollhouse when she gets older.
The result is a soft, feminine nursery that’s still modern and fits nicely with the rest of our home. I absolutely love it.

Our son Jacob is obsessed with all things trucks, so for his 2nd birthday, we decided to throw him a construction themed party at our house! We kept the decor simple by placing bright yellow trucks, balloons and banners throughout our home.
The color scheme for the party was blue and yellow — Jacob’s favorite colors. For dessert, I ordered a simple grocery store cake and asked the baker to spray paint the icing it light blue. When I brought it home, I added yellow trucks and crushed Oreo cookies to mimic dirt, and topped the cake with a big, gold “TWO” cake topper. We also offered guests cupcakes with a variety of truck toppers, as well as gingerbread cookies.
Since we had so many two-year-olds attending the party, I set up a few kids tables and stools so everyone could easily sit to enjoy the food and treats.
For party favors, each child was given a personalized construction hat as well as a bag of yellow and blue M&Ms and a mini truck.
Everyone had a ball and the party was a success!

For Jacob’s very first birthday party, we decided to play homage to his favorite things: barnyard animals. Despite living in the city (and having no outdoor space), we turned our home into a “barnyard” where family and friends celebrated Jacob special day.
We chose a traditional barnyard color scheme of red, white, and blue — and added pops of gold. I threw red and white gingham table clothes over pieces of furniture to create “picnic tables,” and accessorized with crates and actual bales of hay. Paper pinwheels in blue and gold were hung on the walls, along with a “ONE” balloon.
For food, we ate “piggies in a blanket” (aka mini hotdogs), “rabbit feed” (aka salad), “garden fresh veggies” (aka crudités), mac ‘n cheese, mini meatballs, and an assortment of cheeses (for the mice). Our “watering hole” of beverages included homemade spiced apple cider, champagne, and beer that we drank out of mason jars. For dessert, guests feasted on bales of hay (rice krispie treats) and carrot cake cupcakes accessorized with sugar barnyard animals. My favorite part of the party was watching Jacob enjoy his homemade smash cake, which was decorated with cream cheese “grass” frosting, a brown fence, and a duck and a pig (Jacob’s favorite animals).
Everyone had a blast and Jacob loved being the center of attention. Such a special day that we’ll remember forever!

When my friend found out she was pregnant with a baby girl, we immediately began brainstorming ways to transform her den into the perfect little nursery!
We chose shades of pink, peach and gray as a base for our color scheme, and since space was limited, we decided to keep the furniture minimal.
A Babyletto Hudson Crib in white, a gray vintage upholstered rocking chair from RH Baby&Child, and a repurposed white bookshelf were added to the room. And since there is no built-in closet, we opted for a very large dresser from Restoration Hardware, which doubles as a changing table.The natural wood of the dresser contrasts beautifully with the white furniture without being too matchy-matchy (and will work just as well in a big kid’s room one day!).
We both love The Animal Print Shop, so we chose six photos of baby animals and framed them in a grid to fill a blank wall. We also added two Moroccan poufs in light pink and gold to add pops of color, extra seating, and a place to put your feet up. Instead of hanging artwork over the crib, we found an oversized pom pom mobile on Etsy in shades of pink, peach, and gray that fit beautifully in the room.
Despite having no windows, the nursery is bright and airy and will be a perfect place for my friend’s baby girl to sleep and play. We can’t wait for her arrival!
 

Right from the start I knew that I wanted to create a serene nursery for our son that was a calm, inviting retreat from city life.