Hellobee

We finally finished up with Noah’s nursery! My goal in the room design was to have the space feel bright, cheerful, happy, warm, boyish and welcoming. I decided to go with a nautical theme this time, whereas Paige’s nursery didn’t have a set theme. I wrestled with the idea for a while because I didn’t want the space to feel unoriginal or boring. So, I decided on the green and orange color palette to go with the Robin’s Egg blue walls (that we kept from sister Paige’s original room). I also decided to go with a more preppy look for the space, again trying to avoid obvious solutions. My original idea was to do lime green and navy blue together, but the navy just seemed so dark and moody. Thus, the orange came into play.

Without further ado, here it is!

The first item I decided on was the roman shades. I chose a sort of preppy yachting stripe but in a lime green. I ordered the fabric and had them made. The rest of the room design evolved around those shades, since they are a focal point. I then chose the rust-orange striped rug to contrast with the shades. I knew the patterns were very strong, so I decided to go with solid colors for the crib, changing pad, and glider. To add interest between the windows, I found some white wooden letters for Noah’s initials at the craft store. I spray painted them with a glossy pumpkin orange color. I suppose they add a preppy factor to the space? I’m not very preppy so it’s hard to say!

I thought there was a lot of white going on in the space, and I wanted to add a more nautical dark wood color here and there… evoking an old fashioned ship. The steering wheel was a start, but I also added a dark basket hamper (seen above) and found a matching magazine holder (seen below) to use as a trash can.

We chose the accessories that went on the walls last, to give the room nautical and preppy touches. Mr. Hide and Seek caught the Dolphin fish hanging over the crib in Bermuda 24 years ago. It’s been hanging in his parents’ house in his original bedroom, so we reclaimed it and put it here. Don’t worry, it’s secured very tightly and expertly!

We then found buoys, a life preserver, a ship steering wheel and a cool seagull hand-screenprinted poster by Wayne Pate.

The rocker/glider decision was tough. I wanted lime green because I didn’t want a neutral color like most chairs come in, but most places didn’t have one that was affordable to us. So, we went with orange in an affordable style. I was disappointed to find, when the chair finally arrived, that the white piping it was supposed to have was also orange. Oh well. I didn’t want to send it back and wait another 2 months for it to be fixed, so we’re living with a solid orange chair. No biggie, I suppose. The white piping would have added that preppy edge I wanted though. I added a lime green pillow to break up all that orange. It’s a comfy spot for feeding, reading and snuggling, and that’s what I care about most after all.

I needed a nightlight of some sort and I remembered my parents had a light-up globe for us kids while growing up. Luckily, they still had it stored away! It was just what I needed to fill the space in the corner under the whale to add some interest. At night, it adds a low peaceful glow. Perfect for feedings and diaper changes without being too bright!

The green whale decal completes the look. I tried to keep the accessories to the orange and green theme where possible.

The lamp and dark wooden base once belonged to Mr. H&S’s beloved grandmother. I added a new shade and lined it with some green ribbon decorative tape (for interest).

So, that’s the grand tour! I hope you like it! I love being in there. That middle-of-the-night feeding isn’t so bad when I have such a cheerful and cozy space to look at.

Here’s a photo of Paige’s nursery before everything moved to HER new room so you can compare the 2 different rooms:

Sources are below:

- Wall color: #618 Benjamin Moore “Robin’s Nest” (we painted in 2008, so I don’t know if it’s part of their program now?)
- Crib: Oeuf Classic (we got it as a gift from my in-laws when our first little one was born)
- Dresser: IKEA Malm Dresser (we covered the drawers in a natural seagrass wallpaper I scoured online for. Can’t remember the source for the wallpaper now though! sorry)
- Bookcase unit: IKEA Expedit
- Glider: Buy Buy Baby
- Roman Shades: Windows by Melissa, custom creation (she was great to work with!)
- Striped Rug: Rosenberry Rooms
- Changing Pad cover: Buy Buy Baby
- Crib Bedding: Carousel Designs (they make custom crib bedding and you can choose any combinations of things! Love the website and the swatch came within 2 days!)
- Toys in Crib: Both the Fox (the large version) and the Monkey rattle came from Bla Bla
- Willow Hamper and Magazine Holder: Pier One
- Light up Globe: It’s from my childhood, so all kinds of countries are on there that don’t exist anymore. U.S.S.R?
- Whale Decal: Little Lion Studio
- Life Preserver: Nautical Decor Store
- Ship Steering Wheel: Nautical Decor Store
- Buoys hanging in corner: Nautical Decor Store
- Dolphin Fish: Mr. H&S caught this Dolphin fish in Bermuda 24 years ago now
- Seagull Screenprinted Poster: by Wayne Pate
- Wooden Initials on Wall: Michael’s Crafts
- Lamp: Family heirloom, shade is from the craft store and the ribbon tape is by the Martha Stewart line at Michael’s crafts
- Toys on Bookcase: Blue knitted bird rattle: Bla Bla, Little green car and little red fox pull toy: Grasshopper store