Nursery Dreams

I have a confession to make. I have an addiction to nursery bedding. My child closing in on 18 months and I am still looking. It began about two years ago, soon after my 8 week sonogram, instantly I began to wonder, “Where will this little angel rest its head, play and grow?”

And so began my search for baby bedding, both boy and girl (at the time). It started as simply as seeing some else’s beautiful nursery, and the mother telling me it was inspired by Serena & Lilly. “Hmmm, what's Serena and Lilly,” I thought as my fingers ran across the key board searching Google. After discovering this Mecca of inspiration, I came back to reality with sticker shock, and decided it was best to wait until after we knew the sex (and where we would be living) to look any more seriously.

When we discovered we were having a girl, I gave myself the green light to start asking other mom’s about what sites and what products they liked for their own child’s nursery. There seemed to be too many options to make this decision alone!

Other new mom's pointed me to some of their favorites; the list included: House by Annette Tatum, Whistle & Wink. Baby Box. PB Kids. Land of Nod, Target...all of these great choices just left me more confused.

Originally, when I drafted this post, I traversed my ups and downs for you of my very confusing, and ultimately disappointing experience to justify why I still look at baby bedding. Ultimately, I made rushed decisions and didn’t follow my gut. So let me see if I can help a few moms-to-be out there with things that I learned along the way, and hopefully, some moms will chime in with other suggestions and even post images of their own nurseries.

1. Bumpers, if you put them on, come off once your baby can pull up. Don’t plan everything around the bumpers. They can be a great inspiration, but make sure you love the sheets and the skirt.

2. Start with a rug, a curtain, a picture or a color as an inspiration. You may find it much less restricting than if you pick a very specific theme (I spent tireless hours looking for the “right” bunnies, and ended up not liking that at all once it was in the room.)

3. Be realistic about your budget. Pick something that you will spend more on, and things you will spend less on. Don’t feel like this is the only room you will ever decorate and go for broke. Chances are when your baby moves to a bed…and it happens faster than you will believe…you may be making room décor changes anyway.

4. Wall Decals are a great alternative to wall paper or stencils. Lots of companies are selling them now and they are very wall friendly—easy to apply and take down.

5. If you are unsure of the fabric, and you are shopping online, do not purchase unless you know you can return the item. Last thing you want is your baby to have stiff fabric on/near his/her skin.

6. Benjamin Moore makes a great no VOC paint. Not sure what VOC do or don’t do to you, but the extra cost is worth it if you are pregnant and around paint or have a new baby and will be near the paint. Warning, there is no “newly painted” smell to it, which is strange, and great.

7. Sample the paint colors on the walls. My daughter’s bedroom is Pink Cadillac, when on a paint chip looks to be faint pink…there is nothing faint about this pink, and I have been struggling to tone it down for months. Again, I rushed and just put the color up and man did I regret it. Same thing happened to a few other mom’s I know…one with a room too blue, another the wrong shade of orange.

8. Custom doesn’t always mean more expensive. There are a ton of companies that make baby bedding and they are comparable to some of the mid-range off-the-shelf products.

What did your nursery look like? Share pictures to inspire other moms, and share your own nursery decision struggles now!

Changing Table & Glider

Changing Table – Those of us that actually have changing tables have ones from Pottery Barn. Those of us that don’t simply placed a changing table pad on top of a dresser in the nursery. Whatever you do, remember to register for multiple changing pad covers as there will be pee and poo all over everything in the beginning!

Glider/Rocker - You will need a comfortable place for feedings, rocking to sleep, story and quiet time. And for the first few months it is sure to double as a “bed” for mom or dad at some point! Whether you use something you already have or purchase a new chair, it is nice to have a chair that actually moves (whether it be gliding or rocking) as your baby will be soothed by the motion. Some Mamas use their gliders all the time, while others use them more to throw dirty laundry on. These can run you up to $700 for a chair and ottoman set, so you might want to look into getting one second hand, because at this point you don’t know if you will use it or not.

Other – Other items you might want, but aren’t necessary, to have in the nursery are a dresser and bookshelves.

Accessories – Laundry basket, soft lighting, humidifier

Cribs & Crib Bedding

Cribs - You don’t need to spend a ton of money to get a decent crib. For anywhere from $199 - $399 you can get a good looking, good quality crib, that your little munchkin will be more than happy in. You don’t need anything huge and grandiose, as your baby won’t know the difference! Babies R Us has a nice selection, ranging from cheaper portable cribs to more fancy solid wood cribs. Remember to register for a crib mattress as they are sold separately. Here you don’t need to spend a ton of money either!

Bedding - There is such a wide range of crib bedding out there, we aren’t sure what to say here! You can get it basically anywhere baby items are sold, and can spend anywhere from $60 to $1000 on it. But again, will the baby really care if you buy the best, softest bedding available? We have had ours hand made by our moms, purchased from Pottery Barn, bought at Target and Babies R Us to name a few. The only items you really will need are a bumper and a fitted sheet.

Accessories – Sleep sheeps are a must! This soft adorable creature can be attached to the side of the crib, and plays soothing songs and sounds to lull your baby to sleep. We also like Tiny Love mobiles!