The Baby’s Room – A Close-Up

I still cringe a little when I realize that I really can’t take credit for making most of the super cute things I see when I look around Austin’s room. Things I can take credit for: knowing awesome people who made or gifted us with some of these super cute things, and memorizing my debit card number so that it was a breeze to buy stuff online without even having to get up and get my wallet. As for the creative side of it though, shame on me. All I could take credit for was making some of the hoop art creations (see earlier post), painting some furniture, framing some pictures, buying random foxes and other fun things at every store I entered as well as from every website I could think of, and finally putting it all together.

Deciding on colors for the nursery was a somewhat painstaking process in itself, and once I finally made that decision I had yet another decision ahead of me – what color was I going to paint all the random furniture I had accumulated? I should mention here that I’m personally not a big fan of matchy-matchy – you won’t find any matching bedroom “sets” in our house. I think a good mix of this and that when it comes to furniture really makes a room shine. Austin’s room was no different.

I knew what crib I wanted because it was the only vintage-looking crib I could find, probably because the style (Jenny Lind) has been around since forever. Finding the perfect crib sheet was proving to be the ultimate headache until I stumbled upon PeasnCarrotsBaby on Etsy. Cutest. Sheets. Ever. https://www.etsy.com/shop/PeasnCarrotsBaby

 

My mom found the changing table at the local Goodwill (that’s right). It was in perfect condition and just needed a light sanding and a couple coats of paint. I love it because it’s not the typical changing table that I was seeing in all the stores – the design is so unique. My son 100% agrees. I finally settled on Sherwin Williams Gulfstream for this piece.

The rocking chair had been in my husband’s family for a while. I loved the idea of an actual rocker versus one of the newer plush chairs you see in every baby store these days. Not quite as comfy, but who doesn’t put aside comfort for coolness every now and then? I decided to keep it simple for this piece and use Rustoleum Dark Brown (yes people, that’s a spray paint – another obsession of mine). A good sanding job and a couple coats later … so long flowers (it was actually a nice-looking chair but I didn’t think Austin would appreciate the flowers).

I pulled the small side table and footstool from other rooms in the house and sprayed them with the Rustoleum Dark Brown as well. I’m failing to mention here that I went through 2 other colors on the side table before settling on the simple brown. Paint’s not permanent, thank God. I’d be in big trouble if it was. I lightly sanded the top of the table (which happens to be wicker) and just sprayed a couple coats. The footstool had to be sanded a good bit due to wear and tear, largely in part due to a beloved dog I had in college.

My mom (once again to the rescue) made the adorably short curtains. She also made a chair pad for the antique rocker and a cushion for the footstool using curtains from Target! We scoured places for fabric, but finding a pattern with the right shade of orange was not an easy task.

The dresser and the bookcase were from my husband’s younger days. I went with Sherwin Williams Gulf Stream for the bookcase. I should add that this is not the first color I tried for the bookcase. See a pattern here? I actually decided to leave the dresser as it was. I liked the contrast of the lighter brown dresser with the darker brown crib.

The shelves of the bookcase were filled with books, foxes (can you believe it?), and vintage toys that had been my dad’s when he was a child. The metal bicycle came from an antique shop – whether or not it’s actually an antique remains a question. For the top of the bookshelf, I framed some cute quotes in a variety of wooden frames, along with a picture of my sweet child. A polar bear my husband made out of clay when he was a child also sits on the very top. It’s not a fox, but I told him it would do 🙂

His toys are contained in the adorable fox canvas tote that my friend, Emily, bought, and his little reading corner consists of one of those old school bedrest pillows adorned with some stuffed animals. It’s definitely a space I can see him spending lots of time in (as well as my husband, who I’ve caught looking quite comfy while he’s supposedly playing with Austin). Can you blame him?

As you can probably gather, I don’t like getting rid of a decent piece of furniture because you never know when you might need it … and it really doesn’t matter what color it’s painted or if it’s got a water stain on top of it – you can change all that. You can even change the knobs if changing the color’s just not enough to make you happy.

There are a couple other small “crafts” I did get around to doing for Austin’s room. Soon before my dad passed away in 2013, he had given me a lamp he had as a child when he was cleaning out his house. I’m pretty sure he intended for it to go in his grandchild’s room that I had not yet blessed him with. I decided to do just that; however, because the lamp was painted in all the colors that did not make an appearance in Austin’s room, I painted over it with acrylic paints and sponge brushes. I’m not partial to any brand of acrylic paint – you’ll find Craft Smart, Apple Barrel & Folk Art in my craft closet. I decided to go with acrylics for one main reason – if I ever regret covering over the original paint job, I can easily remove the acrylic paint from the lamp. I found a small burlap shade at Target and put my husband to work fixing the plug parts.

My mom found an adorable owl container at Pottery Barn right after Halloween. She picked it up since Austin’s nursery was adorned with forest creatures and told me I could probably paint over it so it didn’t look so Halloween-y. It was black and orange so it was pretty Halloween-y. I whipped out my acrylics once again and sponged my way to an owl that matched the rest of the room.

And now for some more credits …

Props go out to my friend, Emily, for making this awesome piñata. Yes, this is the same Emily who bought the adorable fox canvas tote (isn’t she great?). I mean, seriously, what’s a nursery without one of these? I will never be able to bring myself to actually use this for its intended purpose. It is way too perfect.

My mother-in-law made the cutest board to hang pictures on – I could not have found a cuter one if I tried. I absolutely love changing out the pictures from time to time to see how much Austin’s grown. Of course I’m usually about 6 months behind on that, but who’s counting?

The mobile and canvas were both Etsy purchases (thank you OllieandPenny and Houseof3 for your wonderful creations). I originally thought I would get a mobile that played music, but as soon as I saw this one on Etsy, shopping was done. It was the perfect fit.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/OllieandPenny

I thought a night-time prayer on canvas would be a sweet addition above the crib as well. Luckily I stumbled upon Houseof3 on Etsy and was able to get custom wording and colors on canvas.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/Houseof3

As for the foxes … all the way from the stuffed animals, figurines and ornaments, to the music players and light machines, many people blessed us with those. Moms, aunts, friends, mom’s friends, sister-in-laws, my bank account … Did I really say I didn’t want a fox-themed nursery?

I’m proud of the way Austin’s room turned out, even if he was 3 months old when it was finally complete, and even if I didn’t do as much as I one day dreamed I would, a long, long, long time ago, when I had a tad bit more free time 🙂