Before this room was the nursery it was our ‘spare’ room. Basically a room where we dumped stuff we didn’t want anyone to see and the occasional guest slept on our probably not very comfortable bed settee. We painted it white last year and that is about it. When our house flooded we had new Windows and a new carpet put in like the rest of the house so the room was a blank canvas ready for a baby.
The first thing my husband and my Dad did was to build a little closet in the room. This room is above the stairs so the top of the stairs had created a box which was a bit annoying. The previous owners had tiled this box and they used it as a baby change unit. We didn’t want to do that so to save space we built a little closet. It has a rack to hang his clothes and coats on (he already has 6 coats!) and lots of room for his nappies and changing things. To go on top and for more storage I bought some really cute fabric suitcase boxes from Ikea that I will use to store some of his extra bigger clothes, nappies and toiletries etc.
I asked my Dad to paint a mural for me as he is a very good artist. I asked for a woodland theme but with more rabbits as I feel that my family spirit animal is the rabbit. It’s a long story but is to do with my husband’s Grandad who is also the namesake of our baby so I thought it would be nice to include that within the baby’s room. I also wanted red and white toadstools. This is a bit odd but when I was a little girl at nursery it was my symbol on my milk and my coat hook and it’s just something I’m a bit sentimental about. Also there are two owls, a ladybird, a tiny mouse, a squirrel and a blue bird. My Dad sketched and painted the tree straight onto the wall and it looks great it’s really artistic and pretty.
My inspiration for the colours in his room came from the ‘Little Bird’ range at Mothercare designed by Jools Oliver. I loved the bright primary colours of red, yellow and blue. I bought the Cot Set for his room which also strangely has the toadstool image on it. I got this in the Mothercare sale for £60. It is now out of stock as of the date of this post but you can still get the accessories.
The cot is from Ikea. We liked it because it was simple and white but also because it has 3 drawers underneath that can store more of his things in. It has three coloured handles as well which tied in with the colour theme. The cot base can be lowered as baby grows and the front railings can be removed to make it into a toddler bed. Very practical. I bought the mattress and waterproof mattress protector for this as well and it was really good value for money.
I also bought our changing unit from Ikea it is the Lakstrom unit which is just one of their basic drawer units and I got a waterproof sturdy changing mat also from Ikea. I was going to buy one of the purpose built changing units from places like Mothercare but the cheapest I could find was £229 which is just above our budget. They were also very large so I wanted something a bit smaller so the room wasn’t overwhelmed. I also think that this chest of drawers can grow with the baby as it is not just a changing unit. I changed the handles to some plain pine ones I bought from Wilkos and painted them the red, blue and yellow of the Ikea Cot so they match. The changing mat at the top is secured with picture framing Velcro stickers so is very safe for baby and will not move. It has all his clothes in it up to 6 months and I have organised these into storage dividers also from Ikea. I think it looks awesome!
I bought a chair for the room from a local Emmaus charity shop. I have always wanted a traditional rocking chair and I saw this as I came in the entrance to the store. I got it for £40.00 and it fits perfectly in the corner of the room. I very made a little foam cushion for the base and covered that in some woodland inspired material that my Mum had from Ikea from a very long time ago. The patchwork cushion at the back is a handmade one that I made a few years ago at a class and the blue teddy is my husband’s teddy bear from when he was a baby. My Mum washed and restuffed him so he can sit in the babies room. I have also put my knitted Bagpuss there that I had when I was a child. My Grandma knitted this for me and I had to fix one of the front arms and clean it up. They are two very special toys to us and we wanted our baby to have them.
The wicker crate we are going to use as a toy box in his room. It used to house my yarn and craft supplies but now it is full of his toys and bits and bobs which I’m sure will fill up pretty soon. We will also be having a smaller toy box downstairs as I want to keep things as tidy as possible.
The Shelves at the back are also from Ikea. They house his soft toys that he got at his Baby Shower. We have also got his little collection of books and albums, his keepsake box and some other decorative things. I’ve also got a grow egg here which measures the temperature of the room.
He has a framed print in his room of the alphabet that I got from Paperchase. I liked this because of the colours and the vintage fifties vibe. I have also hung up his crayola E picture that I made for him. The window sill has some more crafts that I have made for him and a lamp also from Ikea which has a lovely glow to it.
So the room is now finally ready and I am really happy with it I’ve really enjoyed planning for it and shopping around to get the best deal. I also really enjoyed making crafts and love the mural my Dad painted. Although he won’t sleep on it for the first few months I can’t wait to use the room everyday with our new little baby and it finally being used as a proper bedroom. So exciting.
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