First day of maternity leave and no baby. He’s not due for a few more days, but Ethan and I fully expected him to be here by now, so our big to-do lists are pretty much wrapped up. And that includes finishing the nursery. While it’s not 100% finished, I’m pretty happy with where we stand – all the essentials (and then some) have been taken care of – we’re just lacking some artwork and other finishing touches. Since I suddenly have all this time on my hands without the stress and busyness of work, I figured I’d snap some photos to share!
When we found out “baby” was a boy (we’ve yet to decide on a name but we’re down to a few solid options!), we decided this airplane art was a must. Then I hunted down the Land of Nod bedding on Ebay for a steal. I wanted something “boy” without being overly theme-y and the plaid is just perfect. Everything else pretty much fell together from there. The rocking chair was Ethan’s when he was a kid. Isn’t it too cute? :)
I wanted a nice wood dresser that could be used in a non-nursery room down the road, and found this guy on craigslist for just $100. It was in pretty rough shape when we picked it up, but thankfully my carpet vendor told me about Howard’s Restor A Finish and it worked like a charm! I wish I’d taken before and after photos, but third trimester exhaustion got the best of me. Basically, you rub down the wood with the stain and some super fine steel wool. After it’s dry, you buff the piece with Howard’s protective wax and it’s good as new! I think the whole project only took Ethan and his dad around 3 or 4 hours.
Can you tell I’m still experimenting with artwork over the dresser? The green and white pattern in that frame is a fabric sample…one of the patterns I was considering for draperies before I had a complete pregnant-lady meltdown one Saturday and decided I just HAD to get treatments on the window that very day. (As in, I could not have this baby unless the window was covered, end of story.) It’s a good thing High Fashion Home had linen panels in the right color blue. And they were much cheaper than custom draperies anyway!
My sweet friend Hannah got this wood airplane mobile for us and it’s just perfect for above the changing pad! Hopefully this kid will be sufficiently distracted during diaper changes. :) And for all those concerned, it’s really well anchored into the ceiling. Not going anywhere.
My big splurge for the room was the glider and ottoman. I really loved this one from Pottery Barn and this one from Crate and Barrel (along with a few more expensive ones), but just couldn’t bring myself to drop that kind of cash. So I was ecstatic when I found this set at a local baby store for much less. And the neutral linen is perfect for wherever it ends up down the road – I’m thinking a reading corner in our bedroom, one day when we’re past the baby stage. I still need to figure out a skirt/cover for that cardboard base table next to the chair, but I’m just not in a sewing mood…so it will just have to wait.
And I love the little reading wall we made between the two closet doors. I picked up the baskets at Home Goods a loooong time ago, and they’re just been waiting for a home. After getting a TON of books at one of our showers (such a fun idea!) and some inspiration from this blog post, it just came together. Obviously I still need some artwork above the baskets. Just waiting for inspiration to strike…
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Wall Color: Benjamin Moore, November Rain | Crib: Carter’s (via Sears) | Bedding: Land of Nod, Clothes Make the Crib (no longer available) | Airplane Panels: Pottery Barn | Glider and Ottoman: Baby’s 1st Furniture | Dresser: craigslist | Airplane Mobile: Etsy (gift) | Draperies: High Fashion Home
The Dominion Project 