At first we thought we'd wallpaper the nursery but we never did find a pattern we absolutely loved, nor a pattern that was in our price range. We also considered stenciling the walls but couldn't find a pattern worth the effort or cost.
I have been wanting to do panel wainscoting ever since I tore out a 'how to' article on it from This Old House magazine years ago. It turned out that the nursery was the perfect room to do this. It added a wonderful detail and even better, was very affordable ($200 for materials). The walls are painted with Benjamin Moore's Simply White in flat. The trim, doors, windows and wainscot are painted with semi-gloss Simply White.
You can go here to see what we started with when planning the nursery.
From the very beginning, I knew I wanted the nursery to have a natural earthy warmth. I find rich wood hues provide that warmth, especially with abundant natural light. I used white and gold colors to provide additional lightness to the room. I also thought that this color scheme would offer a nice neutrality for our baby boy and girl.
From the opposite end of the room, you can see the paneling detail and the antique French armoire.
Draped over the chair is my old baby blanket.
Draped over the chair is my old baby blanket.
Update: we added a changing table a few weeks after I took these photos. The talented Patricia Banner from Cottage by Design made this for me!
I wanted an armoire for easy access to baby clothes and linens. I also liked the idea of having a beautiful antique in the room and the rich warmth of the wood.
Baby girl clothes are on the left and baby boy clothes are on the right.
I chose a Da Vinci Jenny Lind crib in cherry to match the armoire and brightened it with white bedding.
I went with basic cotton bumpers to save on cost, but did dress them up by sewing white satin ribbons to secure them to the spindle railings. The second crib is upstairs in our bedroom where the babies will sleep at night.
I love the ornate detail of this antique frame and its beautiful gold glow. To go in it, I ordered a print of The Screech Owl by Albrecht Durer. In addition to the picture rail, we secured it to the wall as an extra precaution.
The art next to the nursing chair is a beautiful watercolor landscape my Grandmother used to have in her bedroom. I've always loved it and knew that one day it would go in our nursery. To freshen it up, I added a new mat.
The armoire mirror reflects the natural light from the windows.
After a considerable search, we finally settled on a 100% jute braided oval rug, which offers a nice softness to the room. We also like that the oval shape leaves more of the original wood floors exposed.
I bought this beautiful antique crocheted baby blanket years ago.
I absolutely love these curtains! They're a very lovely brown and white old-fashioned rose floral pattern.
Putting together the nursery was a unique experience for me. Besides finding the armoire, (which I purchased early on in my pregnancy when I was much more mobile), I wasn't really able to get into Portland to shop for things. All of the items in the room are ones we already had on hand, or were able to purchase online.
I hope that you enjoyed visiting our nursery. We know it will evolve over time and we'll be adding things and making adjustments as the babies grow. We're looking forward to welcoming our babies home very soon. xo
Here is a resource list of some of the items we used:
DaVinci Jenny Lind crib $199. (from Target)
Oval 5 x 8 jute rug $130. (from here)
Jenny Lund slipcover chair $199. (from IKEA)
Floral curtains $24.99 per panel (from here)
Antique brass curtain rod and drapery rings $110. (Home Depot)
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