Designing A Friend's Modern Nursery
/I teamed up with friends to help them put together a nursery for their first baby! And when I say, “teamed up” I mean that I weaseled my way into their project to help them bring their design together. I’ve never planned a nursery so I jumped at the chance to flex my creative muscles in not-so-familiar ways.
This post is made possible by support from Article, Pom Pom at Home, and Hygge & West who all gifted beautiful products. As always, all opinions are my own. Thanks for supporting the brands that support me!
You might recognize these two from a few months ago when I helped them with the finishing touch on their big landscaping project: beautiful outdoor lighting.
The project started out in February when Martha and Danny were inspired by this nursery by Olive + Oak Interiors. With plans to do an accent closet and a board and batten wall treatment, they asked me for installation advice. I already installed board and batten in my primary bedroom, so I could have just sent them the link to my DIY tutorial. But instead, I offered to help install it with them. I mean, installing wall treatment is my idea of a good time!
We spent a day in early March laying out the design of the wall treatment and making cuts. The plan was to come back and help them install the final boards, support with hanging the wallpaper, or doing any heavy furniture lifting while Martha put her feet up.
Then, the pandemic changed the course of the plans. For the rest of the design process we kept our distance. I FaceTimed with Martha, sent emails with product links, and used my favorite room layout software to help us visualize the space from afar.
Because we did all of our work remotely, I’m afraid I don’t have many progress photos to share with you. But I can show you reveal photos (taken masked, distanced, with ventilation, and as fast as possible) and explain the process and decision-making along the way!
My role in helping Martha and Danny bring their space to life was to provide a few pieces of furnishings and to help with the color palette. Martha has a great eye and was already inspired by this nursery by Hope of Olive + Oak so they were on a great path already.
I got excited about challenging their planned color palette. Their home is a crisp, modern, ranch home with lots of white walls with blues and greens. Initially, Martha was looking at some muted green hues for the walls, but I was like, “Hey, you’re having a boy, why not do pink?!” I like mixing up the stereotypical colors for babies, and I’m also constantly urging friends to paint rooms pink. If I had a dollar for every time Daniel or Natasha said, “just paint your own house pink!” I’d have about seven bucks.
I couldn’t convince them to go pinky pink, but we did go with this peachy hue for the walls paired with complementary orange and blue accents. They had a few key pieces they wanted incorporated into the room that had warm orangey wood tones such as the framed animal prints, the crib, and the original wood slab doors (seen below). I enjoyed playing off of these existing tones to do a warm/cool color combo.
Psst: Article just launched a new collection featuring modern and poppy oranges and blues here. Their other collections are also on sale for a few more days here.
The only “gendered” thing in the room is this wall willy hook on the back of the door.
One of the focal points in the room is this luscious pillow-covered couch. The sofa bed is from Article and the collection of pillows are from Pom Pom at Home. I’ll link each of the linen pillows at the end of the post, but here’s that long blue one, the giant ivory one, and the extra-long body pillow in the back.
P.S. Did you know linen is a low-water, low-fertilizer, and low-pesticide material? I really love Pom Pom’s commitment to ethical practices and healthy materials.
The couch converts from a sofa to a bed so they can get cozy with baby as a whole family. Come to think of it, I see sofa forts in their future, too!
I avoided touching anything in the nursery while I took photos (COVID safety) but Martha assures me that the Pom Pom at Home pillows are as soft, plush, and comfy as they look! I reaaaally wanted to do a belly flop onto them, but I resisted.
We also snagged this basket that’s expected to hold swaddles and burp cloths for awhile, but will later make for a great toy basket.
While I didn’t touch the furnishings or decor, I did touch this rug while I photographed the room barefoot and I must say it’s probably the most comfortable rug I’ve ever set my feet on. Made of wool and cotton, it’s wiiiildly soft and plush. Seriously, it’s like walking on a foam cloud.
On the other side of the room we added a rocking chair and ottoman for a spot that Martha can sit and nurse. We know that gliders are all the rage now, but she wanted something that could move to the living room and be “grown-up” furniture as baby grows. Still leaning into the contrasting blue and orange, we tucked a bright orange velvet pillow on the seat.
Opposite the couch is the closet with a big focal point. Martha and Danny already removed the doors to create an open area that expands the overall space of the room. They installed floating IKEA drawers for storing all the baby gear and clothes which also serves as a changing table. She drew inspiration from Olive and Oak’s nursery closet and DIYed a hanging rod for the cutest of miniature clothing.
But the closet storage isn’t complete without the Serengeti wallpaper by Hygge & West! The motif further ties in the subtle animal theme and makes the room feel playful yet fitting for a growing child. Martha and Danny installed it themselves and report that it’s a very DIYable project!
On the other side of the closet is this plug-in sconce that casts a warm glow that shades baby’s eyes with the black shade. I stand by the idea that every room needs a bit of black - even in a soft, subtle, nursery.
Speaking of lighting, we added this salmon-hued ceramic pendant that casts the prettiest light on the ceiling in the evening.
And to wrap up the room tour, here’s a photo of baby enjoying their new room!
Were you expecting a human baby? Well, this is Anne, their cat who they adopted from us when Ross and I fostered a litter of kittens.
Here’s Wesley!
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