Tips and Inspiration for Decorating a Nursery

 

Interior design by Sarah Richardson

 My sister is about to have her second child, a boy, and our whole family is happily anticipating his arrival. His nursery is all set up and ready to go and now we are left to sit on pins and needles until we are finally introduced to him! Decorating the nursery is one of the biggest jobs for an expectant mom, but also one of the most rewarding. There is so much that needs to be finished, and there is a serious deadline looming! Luckily there is that extra burst of energy at the end of the pregnancy that enables moms to complete their to do lists just in time. Newborns require very little in terms of gear. There are only a few things that are necessities. All the rest comes down to style.

Interior design by Elizabeth Kimberly Design

 When working on our client’s Calgary renovations we are often asked to help design the baby’s room. It is so exciting when we are able to work on a nursery since it is all about fun and our imaginations can run wild! There are only a few things that I feel are vital elements for a nursery. Here they are:

 1)      Change Area – a safe place to change the baby with nearby storage for diapers, creams and other accoutrements. Think about reusing an existing piece of furniture with a change pad on top, or a dresser that can be later used as the child grows.

2)      Storage – a well-organized closet with double hanging rods is ideal along with shelves for books and toys.

3)      Firm Crib Mattress – it might not sound very comfortable, but a firm mattress is better for baby’s back.

4)      Black Out Lined Window Coverings – a dark room makes it easier for baby to go to sleep during the day or in the summer when the sun sets late. Watch out for the pull cords on blinds and have a method to get them out of the way.

5)      Comfortable Chair – this doesn’t necessarily have to be located in the nursery, but make sure you have a comfortable chair to feed the baby in. Avoid those ugly gliders – there is no reason why you can’t have something nice to look at that is comfy too!

6)      Safety – make sure any bookcases are bolted to the walls if you have a climber! It’s a good idea to have a professional check your room for hazards and help you make this room as safe as it can be.

 And now on to the inspiration! A baby’s room is the perfect opportunity to try out some color and pattern. Go for a mural, grid of color or add wallpaper. Don’t forget about the ceiling – some of these rooms have some ingenious ceiling details that can’t be missed.

 Photo from Domino Magazine via Habitually Chic

Photo from Domino Magazine via Habitually Chic

Photo courtesy of Ohdeedoh

Interior design by Windsor Smith

 Interior design by Sarah Richardson

Interior design by Sarah Richardson

 Photo courtesy of HGTV

 Interior design by Jeffers Design Group

 Image courtesy of Spearmint Baby 

 Interior design by Little Crown Interiors

Interior design by Little Crown Interiors

Interior design by Little Crown Interiors

Image courtesy of Parents Magazine

Image courtesy of Parents Magazine

Image courtesy of HGTV

A baby’s room that is fully decorated and organized is an expectant moms’ dream come true! Having a special place for your little one is a real joy. There’s no better way to welcome your new family member to your home then to have a special place that is all their own.

Cheers!

Wallpapered Ceiling – Hot Trend for 2010

Wallpaper is a terrific way to add instant personality. Recently, there has been a lot of buzz in the design world about wallpapering your ceiling. The alluring patterns, colors and textures of wallpaper make it a perfect choice for adding an unexpected design element to your rooms.

Lombardia Amati wallpaper from Nina Campbell’s wallpaper collection.

Recently, a client of ours in the Calgary neighborhood of Elbow Park decided to wallpaper the ceiling and walls of her dining room. A coffered ceiling and a tall wainscoting detail wraps around the room. Since the wainscoting is so high, we opted to wallpaper the remaining walls and ceiling too. It will be elegant and interesting and I can hardly wait to see the final result. The wallpaper we chose is the one shown above by Nina Campbell. The silvery metallic background and gold geometric print will be the perfect thing to enliven this room!

Photograph courtesy of Spearmint Baby

This nursery by Rhoney Design is so precious and charming. Much of that is due to the yellow wallpaper a flutter with swallows. This paper is adorable on the ceiling, and really is the thing that makes this room.

Photograph courtesy of Simplified Bee

Suzanne Kasler is an extraordinarily gifted interior designer and one of my personal favorites. This foyer she designed sports lovely red and white wallpaper on the ceiling. Without this detail, the room would be bland and uninteresting. Since foyers are your first glimpse into your home it makes sense to do something bold and show off your personal style.

Photo courtesy of Design Crisis

This application is cheeky and fun! The combination of white, pink and black is youthful and unexpected. This black and white wallpaper would look lovely with many different wall colors. I especially like how the designer chose a pendant light whose shape is similar to the pattern on the paper. Very clever!

Photo courtesy of Country Living.

This simple geometric print is elegant in a foyer. Choosing a paper with a metallic background or print will sparkle up your ceiling when light is cast upon it.

Photo courtesy of Canadian House and Home

Here is another example of a simple geometric print on a bedroom ceiling. I like the idea of papering your bedroom ceiling. How delightful to look up to a pretty print!

These wallpapers would be marvelous on a ceiling too:

Herrick by Osborne and Little is available through interior designers.

Brockhampton Star by Farrow and Ball is available in Calgary through Maria Tomas.

Crown wallpaper represents this beautiful line from Ulf Moritz. It’s a hard to tell from the photo, but the paper is metallic and the pattern is created with tiny glass beads glued to the surface. In person, it is luminous and twinkles like starlight!

This elegant pattern is perfect for a dining room. Topkapi from Crown Wallpaper is also available through interior designers.

Imagine how dramatic a ceiling would be with this high contrast ribbon-like design by Cole and Sons called Sutherland Large Swirl. I would love to use it on a closet ceiling!

There are endless choices for striking wallpapers that would be appropriate for a ceiling application. Ceilings are often forgotten about, so instead of leaving them plain dress them up in rooms where you want to make a lot of impact, like a dining room, powder room or front entry. Also, think about using wallpaper on bedroom ceilings because they are the first and last thing you see every day (if you are a back sleeper of course!). If you are looking for a way to add some excitement to your rooms, think of wallpaper and look up!

Cheers!