// NEW NURSERY FOR NEW BABY //

Bringing a new life into the world is a pretty big deal… especially when it’s your first. In general new moms are pretty darn excited to put together a nursery for their tiny new little bundle of joy. I guess you could lump it into the “nesting” process; but for me and our first? It was a beast that was longing to be unleashed [read: my poor husband].

With two spare bedrooms, space wasn’t my problem, the endless possibilities I could choose from to design a nursery for myself was [*sigh]… I just love too many things!! One thing I knew for sure was that I wasn’t going to be running out to purchase the latest matching ‘baby farm animals’ at the local big-box store where the crib sheet matches the mobile, that matches the window valance, that matches the lamp shade, that matches the wall decals. Nope. Not this new mom. I wanted a nursery that says something different, and I have the capabilities to do it!

: Before

: Before

After 4 months of ‘storing my ideas in the round file,’ there it was. I found the perfect thing: a crib sheet [thank you Land of Nod] to steer the ship containing my idea of all ideas: “Not-scary Black Swan” [it’s okay to giggle, I do]. I knew I wanted neutral furniture to be able to reuse it for another child or for her to use into her grade-school years. The coral background of the crib sheet was enough to get things going in the right direction. I started off with neutral-gray walls [SW 0055 “Light French Grey”] as the canvas. I was able to pull the touch of purple out in a rug, and the bit of gold out in decorative accents. All that I had left to do was find all these items I was envisioning [ha].

: Design Board

: Concept

: Design Board

Not having had any babies before, I was a little overwhelmed about the whole ‘process’ of it all. I mean, a designers’ goal is to design for the client. In this case my client was my unborn child. I know how to make a room look good, but I had no idea how the practicality of the day-to-day was going to be and what needed to be where to remove any further frustrations [read: fears] of managing a newborn. And now, living with said baby for almost four months here are a few tips I can share to make any new moms’ nursery pro-function and pro-adorbs:

// Group each ‘task’ together. Such as Nursing/feeding, diapering, sleeping, bathing, etc. This makes it easier for you and your partner to guess where things are and where they go especially in those first couple months… and especially in the dark!

// Pick out furniture pieces that accommodate you [the caregiver] like a tall dresser to reach inside without having to bend down; a glider/rocking chair with a stationery ottoman to stay put while you’re trying to rock baby to sleep; a small table next to your chair with a dim nightlight to see what you’re trying to do at 2 am without waking the baby too much and also place to set your bubba-mug sized water jug, atomic clock, coconut oil [used for ev. e. ry. thinnnng.] your eos, hand sanitizer, and your what-ever else-nots.

// Because the crib is the ‘main attraction’ of the nursery – try and locate it where it’s the first thing seen when walking into the room then arrange everything else around it [if you can… I couldn’t]. It’s also a good idea to keep the crib on an interior wall to better regulate the temperature when baby’s sleeping and away from any windows or items with blinds, pull cords, and/or handing window treatments that baby can pull. Because let’s face it – babies are unpredictable and terrifying; so let’s try to keep the ef-ups to a minimum if we can help it, heh?

// Keep your dirty-diaper-can and laundry basket close to the changing table, at least within arms reach. The frustration is real. But then the piles of poopy diapers and pukey jammies are even realer.

// STORAGE STORAGE STORAGE. Holy mackerel babies have a lot of stuff! You’d think they’d only really need a place to sleep and a boob [or bottle]. Um no. Not to mention all their things are so tiny! In an attempt to combat the inevitable baby-explosion where the sock-monster who mysteriously lives in the black hole of every house gobbles up all your newborns favorite soothing things… and keep your life organized and clutter-free, try putting shoe boxes inside your dresser drawers to collect those finger-puppet-sized-socks and to organize your onesies and jammies by size. You can never have enough baskets, bins, cubbies, and compartments to keep track of all-things-baby!

When it’s all said and done it really depends on your style as to how to design your own nursery. I’m not a fan of the cutsie-wootsie baby designs so I designed a room more mature. I took the closet doors off [one less thing to make noise, and I’m the one using what’s in there, so why keep an obstacle between me and what I need?] and arranged her room to how I would use it best. Take a look at how it turned out – I’m happy to say she loves it!! [lol. She has no idea.]

Enjoy!

Until next time… xoxo, MLC

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Melanie Christoff

My entire adult life I’ve been passionate about all things interior design. After receiving my degree in Interior Design with an emphasis in Architectural Design, I have worked in Visual Merchandising, Residential Design and in Commercial Design for a national retailer; my heart is and always has been in any design position that allows me to provide my clients with the utmost stylized space for their taste and function. It has been my pledge for over 12 years to create new spaces by fulfilling the parameters set by the client while communicating openly and working together, to use the most current techniques and strategies to propose innovative designs, and to develop and install new environments with creativity, knowledge and excellence. Nothing makes me happier than to see a client swoon over their re-decorated, remodeled, or renovated area.