By Melissa Moog
Preparing for a new baby’s arrival can be overwhelming and on top of that becoming a new mom or dad can be very stressful. There will be many things you have to think about before your little bundle arrives. With that said I think one of the most enjoyable moments of pregnancy is being able to design your baby’s nursery and seeing your creative ideas come to life. To help get you started in the right direction I wanted to share some important tips to consider when designing your baby’s nursery.
When I was deciding what our twins nursery would look like our interior designer, Julianna Verboort from Best Dressed Nest asked me to think about the following:
- Inspirational pieces that trigger a theme
- Color palette
I came up with Isabella’s (my 4 year old) art pieces which she made at Summer Camp, an elephant mosaic and flower. Both included the blue color palette and one of my favorite colors aqua/turquoise. Additionally, we had just taken a family trip to Maui and were inspired by the Hawaiian Beach theme so needless to say the aqua color and elements of the ocean truly inspired me to go with an ocean, beach theme. I think there’s also so much more meaning in your design when you can use pieces that inspire and/or have a special meaning behind them. In our case Isabella’s artwork were put to good use and not to mention Big Sister was able to feel like she was an important part of designing her siblings new nursery.
So, by using Isabella’s art pieces Julianna helped me choose the most appropriate paint colors by having me review various swatches. We were able to see how the colors would reflect against the carpet. After choosing the colors we painted test samples on the wall in order to make sure we picked the best colors. Julianna also suggested we paint the ceiling a different color from the walls which was a new concept for me and in the end would bring another dimension to the room. We also decided to do a window covering which would add softness and texture to the room.
One very critical element we worked on during this initial design phase was laying out the room with nursery furniture and taking measurements to make sure the pieces used fit appropriately in the space. With twins especially we needed to make sure two cribs could fit in the space.
The essential furniture pieces for your baby’s nursery:
- Crib
- Dresser/ Changing Table
- Area for Storage
- Glider or Rocking Chair
- Accessories/ Textiles (valance, bedding etc)
- Lighting
So, after you have figured out your inspirational pieces, color palette and furniture layout its time to get the real work done! My next post will show the before and after photos of our twins space and the steps taken to finish the nursery.
I know personally that I couldn’t wait to see the finished room. It was really exciting to see the room come to life with Julianna’s interior design work each day. In my mind I knew that having the twins nursery done would make the idea of their arrival into the world so much more of a reality as their beautiful new space awaits them!
