Shark

When a repeat client comes to me and wants help turning a “toy/storage/catch all” room into an actual playroom, the answer of course is always yes!  I always start my projects with a design concept and after a bit of back and forth with the client, we aligned on “surfer boy” as our theme.
The space needed to be practical, comfortable and of course, playful for these sweet three boys.  I instantly new of a few products that would work but before I went into the details, I had to find my design moment.  Meaning, there is typically a point in the process – researching, dreaming, brainstorming – where I have an item, a color, a pattern or something that is the centerpiece for everything else in the room.
In this case, it was the wallpaper.  After a mishap with a previous wallpaper I had sourced, I decided to design my own, specific for this client, these boys and this room.  Waves, my first wallpaper collection, was birthed and will be available in  May!  And the best part is this wallpaper is customizable – it has the ability to be monogramed with 1 letter and here we have it with an “e” as all three boys’ names start with an e.  SWOON!
Once I had the wallpaper as my muse, the other pieces came naturally.  I love the Crate and Kids storage piece.  And FLOR carpet squares are always a hit for kids spaces because of how practical and durable they are (plus their designs are amazing).  The lounge-y cushions that act like a sofa are a perfect place for reading and, ahem, wrestling because come on, it’s a boys playroom.  Add some sharks, art and bookshelves and this room is complete!

Although we live in Upstate New York, my husband is from San Diego and I wanted to pay homage to his hometown and a beloved activity of his: surfing. I didn’t want to go overboard with the theme and be too beachy or nautical, since I want this room to grow with my baby boy. The result was “classy coastal”. There are some beachy elements and some nautical elements. I love to play around with patterns and textures so you can see that throughout this room. The first two things I chose that inspired the whole nursery were the Serena and Lily wallpaper, and the surf car print from Minted. I hope you love looking at these photos even half as much as I loved creating it!
 
*All photos taken by Michelle Lange Photography
**I’ve tried to link all items below but some were not available online

When my son told me he wanted a shark themed birthday party, I won’t lie, I was a bit stumped. Having never planned an animal/fish/mammal party before, I decided to start with the venue. It was important to me to have a space where kids could enjoy the party, have an activity to participate in, but more importantly, burn off some energy! (I mean, we are talking about Kindergartners here!)
After talking with the folks at the aquarium, I decided that location would best suited for a smaller group. Next on my list, The Aqua Shop. I gave them a call and visited the store and was sold! This place was perfect. It’s an indoor surf shop with a retail section as well. The Aqua Shop has bounce houses, a back room for parties, and indoor surfing. I booked the shop and began to think about the invitations.
I am a huge fan of adding “bling” or “flare” to all my invites. It’s the extra detail that really makes the invitations special. For this invite, I chose to do a 4 x 9″ so I could add my “flare” aka plastic shark to the back so each kid would have something to remind them of the cool party about to happen. I also hand cut shark bite marks into each invite. (Again, it’s all about the details!)
Since this party was on location at The Aqua Shop, I decided to keep the dessert table simple. I ordered wave patterned fabric and had a table cloth made. The party favors were super fun sharks, sunglasses and a shark tooth candy necklace. I used the party favors to decorate the table. I had custom m&m’s made, which were a hit to kids and grandparents alike! I also used Swedish Fish to accent the table.
The party was during lunch, so I brought Chick-fil-A nuggets in with chips and juice boxes. And let’s not forget the fruit! I made a watermelon shark and added green grapes. I found the tutorial here. The kids were in awe (and it was SO easy!).
I ordered a sheet cake from my local bakery and asked them to make the icing look like waves because I had a great idea brewing in my mind. I found a plastic shark at Toys R Us, cut it in half like I did for my dino party (see the tutorial here), and had the cutest cake!
To get some cute pics, I ordered a diecut shark head and a personalized wooden surf board. Using these simple props made the pictures more fun to take and the kids were really interacting with each other.

My son requested a shark themed 4th birthday party!

As soon as I learned that our twins were both boys, I knew I wanted to create a shark-themed nursery for them.  With cheeky artwork and “shark-tooth” chevron patterns, it was easy to convey a theme without being overkill.  I’m a minimalist, so naturally I didn’t want an eclectic, whimsical feel.  Instead, I chose a very classic design using trendy art, patterns, and furniture.

We knew our son Jack would have a pirate party at some point, but we wanted to wait until he was old enough to appreciate it. He had so much fun! This whole party is DIY.