Now that our little girl is here, I figured it was time to give you guys a little tour of her nursery! We actually managed to finish the nursery only a few days before Juniper made her arrival, and I’m thankful I snagged some pictures that day, because it’s definitely hard to keep it neat and tidy with all the activity that goes on in there (and she isn’t even sleeping in there yet).
Worth noting, this is the hardest room in the house to get pictures of because it is super dark in the summer! Even though an entire wall is floor-to-ceiling windows, it’s nestled back in a wooded area, which means that even if you take photos on a bright and sunny day (with a tripod and a trigger) like I did, it’s still really dark. Great for a sleeping baby, not so great for photography. Bear with me!
When we were originally planning for the nursery, we had set ourselves a nice budget to really deck it out with some fancy furnishings, but then we had an unexpectedly large tax bill and suddenly, our nursery design budget was drastically cut. Which meant it was time to do some thrifting, repurposing, and DIY—which, honestly, we ended up liking even more. Our style is definitely eclectic, and running out to Babies ‘R’ Us and buying a matching set of furniture just wouldn’t have really been “us” anyway.
We knew we wanted the room to be bright, colorful and fun—and it was important to us that this be a room that she could grow up with. I’m not clueless – I know that we’ll probably have a few design reworks between now and the teenage years – but we’re hoping that this not-so-cutesy style can at least keep our girl happy through toddlerhood.
As far as the furniture, it’s almost entirely hand-me-downs (with a couple of thrifted pieces in there, too). The crib is a hand-me-down from my sister. Even though the nursery is right next to our room, our plan has always been for her to sleep in a bassinet with us for quite a while. But even still, it’s nice to have the crib all ready for her. I made the crib skirt, and Craig painted the crib (it was originally black).
We also did the two cut-out topographic prints above her crib—one is of Lake Monroe and the other is of Lake Superior—an ode to her two middle names, and the two lakes that Craig and I both grew up on. We snatched the ginormous J on clearance from Hobby Lobby!
We made sure to secure all three of these with screws in studs plus big long strips of heavy-duty mounting tape, so there is no chance they’re coming down. And just to be doubly safe, we pulled the crib out from the wall a bit.
And the quilt was made by my Mama. Amazing right?
The changing table was also a hand-me-down from my oldest sister, which we painted.
We actually originally had a different changing table in there (a hand-me-down from my other sister—there are benefits to being the last sibling in your family to have kids), but the drawers ended up being too shallow to hold cloth diapers, so it’s now in my crafting area. This one has a lot more space for fluffy bum covers.
As far as art in the room, we did all of it ourselves. It’s either things that I designed and printed, illustrations Craig did, or items that are mementos. We did all the art in the room (including buying the frames) for less than $20.
The rocking chair is the same rocking chair that my Mama used with both me and my brother. I love that it has some history. We didn’t do anything to it but clean it up a bit and oil some of the squeaky joints. I made some pillows as cushions, knitted the footstool pouf myself, and made the pinwheel mobile. We also set up a side table we had on hand so I have a nice little nursing nook. The quilt on the back of the chair is a beautiful, thoughtful, handmade gift from my dear blog friend Melissa. It’s amazing!
Because the room is really large, we also have enough space to have a futon. We really like the idea of having seating for multiple folks in the room as well as having an additional sleeping space for guests (we have a true guest room upstairs). Plus, having a futon to sit or lay on is just a nice change of pace from the rocking chair sometimes! I loaded up the futon with some fun pillows I made. Behind it you can also see the blackout curtains and pom-pom garland I made.
Baby girl has a huge, massive, giant closet (it’s bigger than the one in our bedroom!).
So we divided it up. One half holds her clothes, with some plastic drawer carts for teeny tiny things like socks, hats, and onesies.
And the other half is for more bulky storage—carriers, big toys, extra blankets, etc. It’s actually pretty empty now, but I’m sure as she gets older and we accumulate more stuff, we’ll have no problem filling that space up.
And the space between the two closet halves is perfect for a little thrifted bookshelf we found. We went back and forth about painting this, but ended up leaving it as-is because we loved the rustic look of it. We’re hoping to keep on filling it up with more and more books!
We also DIYed our own ruler growth chart (more about how we did that in a later post) so we can track Baby J’s height from her first day home.
And we threw in some hooks alongside the door to hold…well, anything! Right now, we use them to hold slings and jackets, but one day, I’m guessing they’ll hold a backpack or two. Let’s talk about how cute baby jean jackets are, k?
Our favorite part of this room is that we still have a ton of floor space! We intentionally left a huge amount of floor space clear so in the future, we can easily get down on the super cushy rug (which we got on 75% off clearance—it’s this one from Home Decorators Collection) and play with our little girl. There is so much space for toys and crawling and fun!
Feel free to ask any questions about sources for anything (although admittedly, my answer will probably be either “thrifted” or “we made it,” but I can try). I know our crazy colorful, eclectic style isn’t for everyone, but this room feels so much like our family! We are in love with it.
I absolutely love your sense of style, for one! I adore the wall color and the Big J 🙂
Absolutely love it! Especially the colors, quilt, and mobile.
It’s adorable! And I loved learning more about where her names came from. I love meaningful names.
At some point in the future, I would love to hear about your thoughts/experience with cloth diapers. I don’t have kids yet, but cloth diapering is something I would really like to do when I do have kids. I’m just a little intimidated by it.
Wow, this looks amazing! I especially love the frames and the measuring wall.
It’s so beautiful! I love it.
Is this the room that used to be the office? I bet an office/finished nursery comparision picture would be entertaining!
That wooden Indiana art piece with the heart – details, please!
It was actually a clock that we found at the Goodwill! We just took the clock part out of it and covered the hole with a wooden heart we bought at Hobby Lobby that we painted yellow.
It actually sat around for quite some time in our random decor boxes down in the basement. We saw it down there one day and were all “Hey! Let’s put that in the nursery!”
And yes, it did used to be the office:
http://www.brokenplowblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/office_spr-6.jpg
And a spare bedroom:
http://www.brokenplowblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/spare_bed1.jpg
Gorgeous! You’re lucky it’s big because tummy time quickly takes up more space!
I will say, however, that I could never nurse in a rocking chair like that given how much I fall asleep nursing, still, at 8 months. In the beginning, with those comfort sucking days, I really needed a more comfortable chair.
Love it! All the colors and patterns. You guys did an amazing job!
I’m expecting my first in October and currently researching cloth diapers so I would love a post/email on what you decided to buy. The advice I keep being given is to try out a few different types/brands and then decide what works for us/our baby before committing. It looks like you have a ton of diapers–so how did you decide? Did you get them used? Thanks!
I am seriously obsessed with this room — you guys did an AMAZING job. I’m not a momma yet, but am already scoping out ideas that I like, and there are so so so many awesome parts of this room. It’s warm and cozy and bright and fun. Love it!
I. LOVE. THIS. ROOM!
Wow, absolutely love it! This is the same type of style I`d like to go with for a future nursery(no baby on the way, but hopefully soon!). I know I want a colourful room and to do a lot of DIY as well. Great job guys!
That quilt by your Mama is beautiful!! I love all of the colors and how personalized everything is. I’m tickled by the orange moose on the wall 😉
Gah, I love it so much! I want to live in her room. I love all your artwork!
Omg omg omg. I am in LOVE with this room! You did such an amazing job. I love how it’s not your typical pepto bismol pink explosion (ew). The colors, the handmade touches, everything! It’s so sweet. I just can’t express how much I’m digging everything about this. Stop giving me baby fever!
You two are seriously ROCKSTARS! This looks like a room straight from Pinterest! I love the middle names you picked out – where on Lake Superior did one of you grow up? I live on Lake Michigan!
I’d definitely love a tutorial on the gray pouf. I love those things, but I don’t love the huge price tag on them at the stores!
Adorable!! Do I remember correctly that you made the poof/ottoman by the rocker? Did you use a pattern?
You are my inspiration for the future when/if I have kids and have a kids room! This is absolutely amazing and the thought and care you both put into the details makes it truly special. I love that you did this mostly thru thrift finds or DIY because that makes it that much more personal. SO much better than a Baby R Us decorated room.
Loving the nursery!!! It’s absolutely beautiful, and will be perfect for your sweet girl as she grows. You guys did an amazing job with it. I especially love the color scheme. Soothing, but also fun and bright and invigorating. Beautiful!
I’ve been eagerly waiting for this post and oh my goodness. Her room is divinely lovely! The colors, the art pieces, everything. I love the book choices as well. Those are some of our favorites too. 🙂
Will you please come decorate my nursery too?? 🙂 Baby is due in November… I’m just next door in Illinois. You have plenty of time! LOL
I absolutely LOVE the fact that you didn’t do a pink nursery! I love seeing the bright, vibrant, and beautiful colors that work so well together. It is an amazing nursery and I honestly love everything about it. Might be stealing some ideas from you!
LOVE IT!! So cute! Can’t wait for the post on all the artwork!
You guys! It is perrrrrrfect! I’m in love with all of it! What a great use of the space. Can’t wait to see more pictures of that baby 🙂 Take care!
Absolutely love it!! Baby J is soooo lucky to have awesome DIY’s like you too. Totally love that it doesn’t really look like a ‘nursery’…who can afford to change decor every few years?? Awesome job!!
This is absolutely perfect for you guys! I love the pinwheel mobile and the gallery wall above the changing table. I am impressed that you felt well enough to make all of these amazing things! Good job mama and daddy! Your mother’s quilt is beautiful and I know baby J will cherish it when she is older. Enjoy that baby and snuggle her close! They grow so fast!
I so want this nursery for myself. I need to go back and find the posts you made about painting, as I am loving that color and would love to use it somewhere in my house
I love the nursery and I’ve been looking for a funky teal rug like you have! Which color and size did you buy? Thanks 🙂
I am in love with the look of it – I want it to be my own room. I love how you thought about how the room would grow with her, and that a lot of the stuff was thrifted. It definitely has a cozier feeling to it than being all matchy!
I love the nursery and I love the name!
Blessing to all. You guys rock!
The nursery is gorgeous Cassie!!! And I love the eclectic style.
The nursery is just darling! Definitely pinning this!
What did you use to paint the dresser? Paint? Color? Primer? What brand? It all looks awesome!
curious about the crib. brand? year? drop down?
i’m not one to shy away from hand me downs, and my aunt is offering us her 10 year old crib (want to paint it white) and wondered if you had any concerns with hand me down furniture at all?
oh, and mattress. did you get a new one, or was it the original?
due in march so i fee like i need to start planning the nursery out. love yours btw 🙂 so much light.
Absolutely no idea on the brand or year, and no it doesn’t have drop down sides. The only two things to make sure with a hand-me-down crib is that the slats are close enough together that you can’t fit a soda can through, and that it doesn’t have a drop-side (or at least, you can figure out a way to secure it so it doesn’t drop anymore).
And the mattress was a new mattress, but it was a hand-me-down (my sister had an extra).
Sorry for commenting on an old post, but do you happen to remember where you found the pattern for the knitted pouf? Thanks! 🙂
I mostly followed this: http://www.flaxandtwine.com/2012/04/a-tweed-pouf-ottoman-an-easy-chunky-knit/
What a sweet nursery! Any chance your mom might share where she got the quilt pattern from?