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Green and Blue Nursery with Monkeys, too!

Description

A happy, hand-me-down green and blue nursery for our little baby boy.

Design Inspiration

My husband and I definitely had different visions for the nursery. I was drawn to blue and green and bright, bold patterns. He wanted to do a jungle theme. So I ended up using blue and green as the base of the design (carpet, lamp, curtains, etc.) and added the jungle theme in the accessories (wall decals, prints, etc.). I think that the blue and green base will transition well when Logan is ready for his "big boy" room.

Decorating Style

"Make it work!"

Like many new parents we didn't have a big budget for our nursery. We were blessed with a lot of hand-me-downs that I decided to "make work" even if they didn't match my style (or each other) perfectly. Our crib and glider, two of the biggest pieces in the room, were hand-me-downs. As were most of the toys, books and stuffed animals on the shelves.

To keep the room cohesive, my general rule was for each color in the room to have at least one partner. For example, the green on the glider cushions matches some of the leaves in the wall decal, The green bins on the shelves match each other and the green basket on the floor. And the wood on the crib matches the changing table and the baskets.

Two pieces helped to pull all the different colors together: the handmade quilt that my sister gave me and the letters above the bed that I painted. Both have bright bold colorful patterns and add cohesion to the room without being too matchy-matchy.

Project Details

Rug: Target

Crib: Hand-me-down

Glider: Hand-me-down

Changing Table: Babies R Us, I think. (It was a gift.)

Jungle Blanket (in the green basket): Amazon

Changing Table Caddy: Amazon

Brown baskets, green bins, green basket, white and wood picture frames: Target

Wall Decal: Etsy (the shop I purchased from has since closed)

"Dream Big" Print: EchoBravoCharlie on Etsy

Giraffe and Elephant Prints: PrintSomeLove on Etsy

Police Officer Print: PrincessSnap on Etsy

Most of the toys on the shelves: Hand-me-downs

Blackout curtains: Amazon

Blackout shades: Bed, Bath and Beyond

Quilt: Gift

Letters: DIY from Michaels

Wall hooks (for the quilt): IKEA

Favorite Items

The quilt my sister made. It is truly a work of art and really brings the room together. She incorporated fabric with roosters for my mom, elephants for my dad, and cameras for myself. I have spent many nights rocking my little guy to sleep while looking at it.

My favorite purchase for the room was the carpet. It makes a statement and adds a lot of energy to the room. I definitely hope we can incorporate it into Logan's big boy room when he outgrows the jungle theme.

Advice

Be practical. I see a lot of beautiful nurseries that would be a headache to use in real life. As tempting as it can be, don't sacrifice function for form. I really wanted to hang all the changing supplies on a pegboard above the changing table but opted for the quilt instead. I am so happy that I did because my little guy would have had a field day pulling stuff off a pegboard.

Get organized. One of the best things I did in the nursery was set-up baskets on the shelves for frequently used items. There is one for bath time (towels, wash clothes, extra bath soap), one for feeding (bibs, burp cloths), one for swaddle blankets, and one for jammies. All the major necessities are right in reach. After a year of use, these baskets are still going strong. The only change I made was switching out the swaddle blankets with socks once Logan outgrew them. Another tip for staying organized: put a box in the closet for "outgrown" clothes so you can keep the outfits that no longer fit separate from the ones that do.

Have fun. If you're like me, you'll be spending a lot of time in this room so you might as well make it a room that you love and enjoy being in. Your baby won't really care whether there are decals on the wall or whether your crib matches your glider. These things are for you and that's okay. Being in my son's nursery has cheered me up on many hard mama days.