Creating a Nursery: My Experience and Tips

I finally finished Ava’s nursery. This is my first child, so I had a lot of fun creating a special room just for her.  This is how I went about doing it:

The first thing I did was pick out a bedding set because everything in the room tends to match it. I looked at various baby stores online and soon came across a beautiful set called Sugar Plum by Cocalo.  I  fell in love with it right away. I loved the quilt design, various colors and butterflies.  I was also pleasantly surprised to find out the bed set was just one item in a huge Sugar Plum themed set. This really made my life easier and is perfect for a busy mom-to-be! I didn’t have to go through the trouble of finding things to match the set. I bought the matching, wall decals, lamp, hamper, shelf, and wall border. Delivery was fast and I was extremely happy with the quality of the bed set. The only thing I was not impressed with was the shelf. It came with glue 🙁 Once, I screwed in the screws the areas I had glued detached. Not smart.

The obvious next step was picking out and buying paint for the walls. I decided to buy a low VOC paint because I read it was best to put on the walls of a baby room. I used CIL’s low VOC paint.  This paint was absolute garbage. I got my husband to paint the room while I was away and once I came back and saw the room I had a pregnancy breakdown. The color coverage was horrible and patchy.  It looked so horrible I thought my husband had done a half-ass job. I got so mad! Poor hubby 🙁 Anyway, I soon realized after applying two more coats (on top of the first two) that this paint was crap. It also smelled worse than the BEHR paint I used in all my other rooms. The smell stayed for days too.  Luckily, only the tops of the wall would not fix because I bought a border to cover that area.  The border by Cocalo was great, but I didn’t buy enough roles.  So, I had to get more.

Okay, lets get on to the crib and dresser.  I knew what I wanted right away! I wanted the crib to have a design carved out of the wood. Finding, this was not so easy. I went to countless baby stores and eventually believed it would be impossible to find.  One day, I was driving on the highway and I happened to notice a baby store. I decided to check it out and was floored when I found exactly what I was looking for. I couldn’t believe it! I must have passed this particular store countless times without noticing it.   The brand is Munire and the set name is Savannah. I really love that the set is not too babyish and will convert nicely into a toddler / Teen set.  It was a little more than I wanted to pay, but how could I say no to the crib of my dreams? I also bought the matching dresser.

I suggest buying the crib early because most stores have to order it and that can take a long time.   I was so happy when I received the crib that I did not notice how many cracks and problems it had.  I think it was defective because the design in the wood was also messed up. I called the store and they replaced the crib. They had to order it again! So,  I had to wait for it again! That is another reason I suggest buying the crib early. I know other girls who had the same problem with other brands.  Anyway, the second crib was everything I dreamed of and I am super happy.

I wanted to organize her closet perfectly too.  I found a great organizing system at Babies ‘R’ Us.  I love it! It’s great quality and I love that it hangs with metal pieces. There is an area to put cute sundresses and other clothes at the top. Under are six cubbies to put other things. I put her shoe collection. Yes, even baby girls need a shoe collection 😉 On the other levels I put washcloths, receiving blankets, bibs, medical accessories, wipes and diapers. My closet also fit a portable bath tub that hangs up.

Lastly, I should mention purchasing blinds can be complicated if you have big windows like me. I couldn’t find blinds to fit anywhere. I looked at specialty shops, but they wanted to charge me an arm and leg. Finally, I found an online store called Select Blinds that sold blinds at a cheaper price.  They came well packaged and are good quality.  I did have a problem with the wand though. It would not open and close the blinds. However, they had a representative come and fix it fast.

Creating a nursery for your baby doesn’t have to be complicated.  I found it super easy besides dealing with the crib and blind issues!