Tag: Nursery

Eleanor’s Nursery

OK. Let me start by saying that I love my glider. LOVE IT. It takes up half the nursery but it’s my favorite spot in the house. I nurse in it, I rock in it, I sleep in it.

Our changing table is just a changing pad set atop bookshelves with doors. The pink flower knobs help the unit look like it belongs in a little girl’s nursery instead of an office space (which is what it’s meant for). Also, I’m glad my mom recommended getting a lamp with a dimmer. I can have just enough light to change and nurse Eleanor when she wakes in the middle of the night, but I can keep it dark enough to signal that it is still nighttime (and that she should be sleeping!).

Behind the bookshelves you can see the closet and its little built-in shelves. Quite a while back, I had decided to fill those shelves with wooden blocks and spools. I’ve also added a vintage pull-toy that I picked up at a garage sale and a name train that we received as a gift. We’ll have to remove some of these toys once we really start baby-proofing, but for now they all look cute.

Here’s a view of the other side of the room.

Both Brandon and I slept in Jenny Lind cribs when we were babies, and now our daughter does too.

I bought the mobile that’s hanging above the cribthe mobile that’s hanging above the crib a few months ago with the intention of altering it slightly because it was far too big. It’s now much better suited to the small scale of our nursery.

We have some paper suitcases from my shop on top of the dresser that we painted pink. There’s also a big metal ‘E’ and a pink vase from a garage sale, along with Brandon’s childhood stuffed bear. He loved that bear so much he hugged the stuffing out of the middle! It’s incredibly sweet, and we hope Eleanor will love it as much as he did.

The little sunken alcove next to the dresser will be a play space for Eleanor once she’s old enough. I wrote a little more about that back in January.

And now I’ll leave you with this parting shot, the view from the doorway…

I’ve listed all of the nursery resources in a previous post, so take a look if you’re wondering where something in the room came from. Thanks for letting me share Eleanor’s nursery with you!

June 9, 2009
Jenny Lind Style

We chose a Jenny Lind crib for the nursery. I love the classic design, and Brandon and I each slept in one when we were babies.

I chose black, though everyone else seems to pick white. I didn’t want the room to get too pastel and girly, so I figured a few dark brown/black elements would be nice.

Here are a few other Jenny Lind cribs and beds I’ve noticed…

Knock, Knock: Chic Sophistication in Ohio, Finn’s Soothing Sleeper

Sunrise Ruffalo’s Home, Marie’s Memphis Apartment

February 26, 2009
Toy Storage / Play Area

The nursery has very strange little alcoves at each end. One side is setup as a closet, but the other side is just open. It looked like this when we moved in:

I had painted the woodwork white and sewn white curtains to close the space off when we had the room setup as a guest room. It looked much better, but there was still no purpose.

When we talked to the girl that grew up in this house, she mentioned that she had kept her bed down there. We thought that was a good idea for a kid’s room (what kid doesn’t like sleeping in a fort?), but we still wouldn’t be able to use it for several years. Then I started thinking about how well the TROFAST system from IKEA would fit, and I realized that the area would be great for toy storage.

I was lucky enough to have a toy closet as a kid for a few years, and I remember spending hours in there playing. It would get hot and stuffy, but I didn’t care because it was my secret little world.

I carpeted with FLOR tiles, but I could see adding a fluffy little rug and a bean bag chair down there for comfort. I had planned to close off the left half of the opening and build shallow shelves for books, similar to the Catalina Magazine Rack.

Now that we’ve built the crib though, it blocks that whole side. Maybe we should still do it and just leave the shelves empty for now?

I know we won’t be able to use it much at first and we’ll have to put up a child safety gate, but I hope our daughter will eventually love her little play area.

January 15, 2009
Pink Painted Dresser

The dresser for the nursery is finally finished. I never took a true ‘before’ shot, but it was a lovely wood dresser with a poor finish. It was in our garage for a while and then it sat primed in the basement because I wasn’t sure what color to paint it. White would have been a nice, safe choice, but I think pink is much more fun (especially since we left the walls of the nursery neutral).

The doors in the front open to reveal two more drawers. They’re still the original wood color for now, though Brandon thinks they’re a good opportunity to add another (brighter/bolder) color.

I lined the drawers with the crazy lady floral wallpaper that I bought for the dining room (and did NOT use). The teeny tiny baby clothes look really sweet against the lining.

January 14, 2009
Blocks & Spools

I bought some vintage blocks and wooden spools on eBay to test out my idea and see how they’d look in the shelves.

I love it.

I don’t know about you, but I remember playing with spools as a kid at my grandma’s house. Seeing them all jumbled together with the blocks makes me happy.

November 12, 2008
Possible Nursery Design

I’ve ordered the Harrison Vintage Ceiling Fixture, and I already have the gold Syroco branch and birds (which may or may not get spray painted). Everything else is still subject to change. :)

For a boy:

For a girl:

The crib, glider and ottoman, bookshelf, and stuffed dog are the same in both versions. The only differences are the paint colors and fabric choices.

Of course, I chose fabric for both versions, not ready-made crib sets. Yeah. I may not actually be up to making my own bedding. The fabrics are all from Sew Mama Sew if you’re looking for them.

October 22, 2008