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Monday, April 18, 2011

the nursery diaries, Chapter 1

 

I can’t believe I’m almost 22 weeks pregnant and just got around to buying the very first thing for the nursery, the crib bedding, last week. I love decorating and I love nurseries, I previously would have thought I’d be knee deep in changing tables and crib sets by now.

Nurseries have been an obsession of mine for a looooong time. I would probably have to say it started the second I saw the nursery in “Father of the Bride Part II”.

 

It oozes preciousness.

 

As Franck {Martin Short} says in the movie to Steve Martin’s character:

“Welcome to baby land…”

 

Sadly, I don’t have a room this large for our child to rest his precious head in, nor will our nursery have room for two area rugs, French doors, a fire place, TWO gliders with matching ottomans… seriously? I don’t think I’ve ever really thought about how unrealistic this room was untill I started analyzing it for this post.

However, I did think I could replicate the colors and soft feel of “Baby Land” in my own nursery, much like these other rooms I’ve drooled over in the past:

 

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Luxury-baby-girl-nursery-Notte-Fatata-by-Savio-Firmino-1-554x412

nursery

 

But now I’m having second thoughts on that soft, creamy color pallet I’d been dreaming of for so long…. has anyone been watching “Pregnant in Heels” on Bravo? I’ve been waiting for this show to premier and I’m loving it! Lots of helpful tidbits for this mother to be, as well as lots of laughs at the spoiled rotten rich preggos featured =)

One important factoid I took away from the first episode was that color stimulates a child and their growing brain. Duh, right? But I hadn’t been thinking of creating a stimulating room, only a peaceful, relaxing atmosphere instead.

Somehow, I’ve got to find a happy medium between the above and below:

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This room is gorgeous but I don’t have plans to take the color to quite this level. I have completely changed my take on the nursery from “Baby Land” to more of “Kid Land”. Forget too many pastels, I’m looking for COLOR ---- in splashes. It will be a balancing act, a hodge podge that I hope comes together sweetly in the end.

For now, I’ve got the bedding and a rug – it’s a start. After HOURS, seriously, probably 10 hours of searching through every website that offers crib bedding, I finally found the one. I wanted to start with the bedding and have the colors for the rest of the room go from there. I had a blast custom designing it with their program at Carousel Designs. Sounds fancy schmancy, but it’s actually going to be much less expensive than the favorites I had picked out online and it’s going to be EXACTLY what I want since I put it all together myself. Win-win!

The company sends the fabric swatches in the mail and lets you confirm it’s what you want before beginning the job. I just received mine today:

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Sorry, I could only take a picture of the computer screen with my iPhone to try to show you the proposed finished project:

crib bedding

I ♥ chevrons!

What do YOU think? I haven’t confirmed the order yet and I adore all of your opinions. Let ‘em rip!

 

I just ordered the rug today from Overstock.com – this will be my SEVENTH rug purchase from them and I haven’t regretted one yet! This one had almost a hundred positive reviews for it being so plush, and just like your opinions, I shop based on reviews. The customers sold me on it. I can’t wait for it to come in so I can sink my piggies into it!

I wanted the rug to feel like walking on a cloud and to look like one too. We’ll see… a lot of the reviews said it looked much better in person as well:

We have a jumping off point – FINALLY.

 

It’s baby time in the Roberts’ Love Nest!!!

xoxo

25 comments:

  1. Love the bedding you chose! So classic, yet perfect for a baby boy. And the rug looks so soft & plush. I could easily rest my head on it & take a little nap! :) Looking forward to seeing your finished nursery.

    Oh, and I LOVE Father of the Bride I & II!

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  2. we ended up buying our bedding at the same place! I love their site, so user friendly!!!

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  3. the bedding is beautiful! i love chevron too :) i just got yellow/white chevron pillows for my bed!

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  4. LOVE chevron! Super cute so far!

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  5. The bedding is really cute and that rug looks perfect for a nursery! Thanks for the link to that site, I love it!

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  6. I love ALL of these. I've been obsessed with the FOTB2 nursery ... so help me, I'm dead set and determined to make it happen!

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  7. I'm an interior designer and your bedding is a WIN! Loves it!!!!! (And the fact it has MONKEYS (my favorite) incorporated!!!)

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  8. Gorgeous!!! I am SO excited to watch this nursery come together. We are just starting our nursery plans (since our adoption will take longer than a 9 month pregnancy, we are going slow and steady, ha) so I can't wait to see what you do!

    Much love,
    Future Mama
    http://expectingablessing.blogspot.com/

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  9. I love the idea of the custom bedding! Beautiful choices!

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  10. It looks amazing. I too, have always been obsessed with George' design in the nursery. I really like a calm, neutral nursery, but I love how you have incorporated some soft hues. It'll be a perfect palace for you and your new baby, and the Chevron is a very fabulous touch!

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  11. Love the bedding. We are doing a neutral color theme in the nursery, but now I am thinking I may need to incorporate some color. Great job! Cant wait to see it come together!!

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  12. Hi my name is Mel! I read your blog quite a bit. I stumbled on it a couple of months ago and love babyish blogs. I saw your bumper you have planned for your crib and I really would discourage you from using one. A newborn infant doesn't have the mobility to move around in their crib, and even when a baby is older they don't have the force to bump their head hard enough to actually cause them anything more than a bump or bruise. Bumpers look cute, but there is more and more research saying that the less you put in a crib the better. Babies need as much air flow in their crib as possible, and the bumper, which goes around all four sides, and quite high up can diminish that flow. You want baby to have the freshest air they can, and you also want to err on the side of a little too cool not too warm as overheating has been a suggested cause of SIDS as well, and bumpers can hold in more heat along with the recycled air. I sadly know two people who have had to bury their little ones, and though they can't tell if the bumper had anything to do with it they both say they'd err on the side of caution next time. Bumpers are cute, and pull the bedding together nicely, but they're just not necessary for small babies, and its recommended that babies have a nice firm mattress, a sleeping bag, and nothing else in or around the crib. As the baby gets old enough to start rolling around and shoving their cute little legs and arms out you can always buy a mesh bumper, which several of my friends have purchased and like, that keep their little limbs from coming out between the bars whilst still keeping the air flow up. I know it's a nasty thing to think of and is probably harshing your fun baby bedding mellow, but I've become a very very strong believer in bare cribs. It makes sense. The danger of a child re breathing stale air (air that's full of their exhaled CO2 is real (a fan on low pointed towards the baby's crib is great for helping with air flow too), and bumpers just seem way more dangerous than helpful. I don't mean to be negative I just feel better having said that. Here's a site that has suggestions and info for bedding as well as other sleeping safety suggestions!

    http://www.pediatrichealthchannel.com/sudden-infant-death-syndrome/prevention.shtml

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  13. love it all. baby land, chevrons, all of it! clare has a similar rug in her room and its been awesome :) can't wait to see it shape up, I know whatever you do will look gorgeous!

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  14. Honestly, I would not get the bumper. It might look really pretty and complete the look of the room but (in my opinion) you shouldn't use it. I always thought that babies stayed in one spot when you put them down but my 5 month old has been moving around the crib since day one. I've found his head pressed up against the slats before and I would never want to endanger my kid by having a bumper there that could potentially suffocate him. I realize there are plenty of people out there that have used them and nothing has happened but better safe than sorry plus you can save the money for something else. If you really want to use the fabric, make a pillow or something out of it that you can use later.

    I've been reading since your anonymous blog and am excited for you! it goes by fast.

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  15. I love the chevrons!! Also a very happy Overstock customer. :)

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  16. I love the bedding!!!!! Chevrons are just lovely, and is just perfect for a little boy's room!!!!

    I didnt need another show - but I am loving Pregnant in heels!! Just cracks me up!!!

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  17. I love your choices! I've seen that fabric before of the children pattern and dreamed of using it in my own child's room. Maybe for the next one since our son is now 5 months old and I love the bedding we have!

    Hugs and happy pregnancy,

    Gail

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  18. I have actually been looking at the same website, playing around with things for fun for one day when I have another little one :) I love the fabrics you chose and what the bedding looks like, beautiful!!

    Love that rug, it looks so soft!!!

    The nursery will be beautiful!!!

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  19. Very cute bedding! I LOVE Pregnant in Heels! It's soooo funny at times because some of those women are just ridiculous!!!

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  20. I love your ideas- seriously precious! A few things to ponder (I have a 1 yr old- so I didn't know this stuff- take it for what you will):
    1. I LOVE the bumpers. I know that peeps say not to use them for the wee babes but we did at first, then took them out once our son started rolling (about 2-3 mo) and then put them in once he started pulling up/becoming mobile (about 9 mo). I just like the way they look, I just tweaked using them according to my son's stages to keep him safe.
    2. The bumper ties are a pain if you have certain types of cribs. Our crib had no bars in the front (when the bed was at the highest point) so you couldn't tie the bumpers on it. Something to think about when crib shopping!
    3. The crib skirt is also something to think of- we had one, but you couldn't see it with the design of the crib (solid on bottom). I was bummed and never thought of it.
    Can't wait to find out what you name him! I am loving being a boy's mommy and know you will love it too!

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  21. I absolutely LOVE both Father of the Bride movies and that nursery is amazing! I love the bedding you picked out. So exciting!!

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  22. I love toile and couldn't find what I wanted online. I bought a similar toile fabric and had my mother in law make our bedding, I think I bought that same rug from Overstock too...only it's not in the nursery. Happy nesting and nursery decorating!

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  23. I love love love toile! Your nursery is looking adorable already :-)

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I just shared my thoughts, I'd love to hear you share yours! {Besides, I'm tired of listening to the voices in my head.} I kid, I kid... ;)