Colorful Circus Gender Neutral Nursery

A Project For: Conner
Age: 1 month
Location: California
Description:
- We worked on a budget and DIY most of the elements, the room that we started with did not have lights besides a very small one right next to the entry door, so my husband and father-in-law worked on adding can lights, book shelves and closet. I was in charge of the smaller projects being my first ones the elephant lamp along with the "K" light. The most meaningful project has to be the bathroom door, I painted a section of North America and South America and added hearts to where Santiago, Chile and California, USA are so we can show our little baby Peanut where Mom and Dad are from =]
- The very last project I worked on for the room was the cardboard name sign on top of the crib, since we didn't know the sex of our Baby, I waited until after delivery, I had already set a side a big box that I was planning on using, but that same week I had planned to start with the sign my Cousin send us the tall giraffe, so I used that box instead, which allowed me to make the sign a lot bigger than my initial plan.
Design Inspiration:
The inspiration for this nursery came from my personal love for carnivals, circus and animals =] from the beginning we knew we wanted to keep the sex of our little peanut a surprise, we wanted a theme that was gender neutral, modern and very colorful, so the Circus fit perfectly! For more information and pictures of the room visit this post.
Project Details:
- - Chair and footstool - Ikea Poang (found on Craiglist - $20) - Recovered
- - Dresser - Ikea Aspelund - $179 with fabric on drawers
- - Toy bench - Ikea: Expedit, Capita legs and Drona bins - $84 using Ikea family discount
- - Watercolor animal prints - trafalgarssquare on etsy - $38
- - Crib - Craiglist find - $60
- - Rug - The home depot - $80
- - Wall paint - Behr Ultra - Quietude (770E-1) and Pewter Mug (770E-3)
- - Closet paint - Behr Ultra - Fireglow (200B-7)
- - Inside closet - Closetmaid system - The home depot - $89
- - Bookshelves - DIY by father-in-law
- - Giraffe stuffed animal - Family present
- - Dumbo stuffed animal - Ebay - $19
- - Rainbow Wishes Print & Hot air ballon "Dream big... little one" - Now available in my Etsy shop
- - Gigant Bear stuffed animal - Costco - $29.99
- - "K" Marquee light, name above the crib, bathroom door map, crib bedding, changer cover, boxes in changing table, curtains and all fabric projects were handmade by yours truly =] along with all the ones listed below:
- - Elephant lamp - Made with styrofoam and wall mud (drywall compound)
- - Hot air ballon mobile - Made with felt, an embroidery hoop and corks (tutorial)
- - Circus ticket pillow - Tutorial and template
- - "Sleeping Baby" door banner - Download it as a print
- - "You are so loved" print - Download it for free in different colors
- - Wood tricycle - Thrift store restoration
- - Chair and footstool - Recovered with paint and new cushions
- - Toy basket with appliqué - Made with an Ikea Fyllen laundry basket
- - "K" marquee light - Made out of recycled materials
Favorite Items:
it's very hard to pick because I loved all of our DIY projects but I think I would pick the Elephant lamp, the K marquee and my son's name above the crib.
Advice:
You can't go wrong when you are inspired by the things you love, focus on the details that would make you want to spend all the time you can in that room and don't be afraid of color ;)

Jan

Love It! It is so colorful and the gray is just the right shade! I do not like it when I see nursery’s with dark gray….It looks to dark for a baby. I prefer softer colors for the walls.

How did you do the name above the crib? I also like what you did with the bumpers….it keeps them from looking so plain. I looks like a set! Every thing looks just perfect….the reading nook with the shelves…the Hot Air Balloons above the crib….the pic above the dresser….the orange closet. Every thing looks so thought out! Your little boy is adorable!
http://www.facebook.com/people/Andrea-Lowe/100002051938016 Andrea Lowe

Such a beautiful and fun room! I like that it’s so spacious, with a reading corner and library. I love the hot air balloon mobile and also love how you did the name sign.
Bree

Love everything I your this room. Please can you share how you made the k marquee light and the bench cushion? I would be sooo happy :)
Joy Kelley

Hi Jan! Thank you for the compliments, you are so sweet =] I am writing a post explaining in detail how I made the cardboard sign above the crib, so you can check out my blog next week for it.
Joy Kelley

Thank you Andrea!
Joy Kelley

Hi Bree, I have the post explaining how I made the marquee light as a draft, as soon as I have time I’ll post it on my blog! Sadly I didn’t take pictures of the bench cushion process but I basically sewed stripes of gray and white together and then cut it to the size I wanted, added a back and zipper in one of the sides, I used a 3″ foam that I wrapped in batting for the inside, hope that helps!
houseofwebb

Hi there! Did you make the rainbow “say I love you” print or purchase it? I would love to print it out for my baby daughter’s room. I just love it!
Joy Kelley

Hi =] The print is now available in my Etsy shop: https://www.etsy.com/listing/117043980/paper-print-rainbow-wishes-85×11

Have a great day!
valontheroad

Beautiful room!!! the map is so cool!!! Fantastic idea!!!!
http://twitter.com/HowJoyful Joy Kelley

Thank you =]
mostlysunny

I love it!!!!! So cute:)
Denise

I absolutely love the detail of this room! Amazing! This room could definitely grow from a baby’s room to a child’s. Which is a added bonus because our little angels grow up so fast! Beautiful!
naomi

This is a wonderful and happy space for a child to grow up and play. Love it.

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Colorful Circus Gender Neutral Nursery

Project By: howjoyful