This post is a bit delayed, but I wanted to share some of my favourite elements from Lily’s nursery! I decided on a colour scheme of taupe, gold and pink, with lots of sparkles thrown in (I know – huge surprise, right).
The first thing I did was contact a friend of mine who is a graphic designer. I had an idea in my mind of phrases and pictures that I wanted to hang in a some sort of collage…but I needed a creative, talented mind to execute it, which brought me to Karen. She’s also the creative genius behind my logo. She is fantastic at bringing thoughts and ideas to life, even without specifics. She met with me and came up with some great ideas that incorporated both our thoughts. I wanted the pictures to be the focal point of the nursery, and I am so thrilled with how they turned out. Karen did a fantastic job, and even had them all framed for me, so all I had to do was hang them. She was absolutely fantastic, and I can’t say enough good things about her! If you have any projects like this requiring a graphic designer, don’t hesitate to contact her (she even does invitations, etc). You can reach her at karen.promm@gmail.com.
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Lily’s Custom Nursery Artwork
After Ryan painted the nursery, the first thing I put in it was a lamp that was probably my most successful DIY project to date. The only lamp I could find was a Pottery Barn lamp that seemed so pricey for a baby’s nursery, so I did some internet research and figured I would try to make one myself! I headed to Walmart and bought a plain white lampshade, a clear base, and some gold glitter paint. When my husband saw me setting up my supplies, he had serious doubts (and if I’m being honest, I did as well). I told him the parts only cost $20, so worst case scenario is that the lamp is awful and I just buy a new white shade for it. Surprisingly – the lamp turned out exactly as I expected, and I couldn’t be happier with it!
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I used Martha Stewart metallic gold glitter paint and applied it with a little round foam brush that I also picked up at Walmart. The whole project only took about 30 minutes, cost under $30, and so far it seems to be holding up well!
At about 38 weeks pregnant, I realized I needed more than a lamp in the nursery, so I headed out shopping to pick out a few things to cover the last wall. I picked up the shelves and porcelain lamb from Bouclair, the gold polka dot teacup from HomeSense, and the glittery ‘L’ was another last minute project. I picked up the plain white ‘L’ from Walmart and used the leftover paint from the lamp to completely paint in and then covered it in gold glitter. I’ve been meaning to put some sort of protective coat over it but haven’t quite gotten around to it yet. The ‘Lily’ canvas was a gift to Lily from my thoughtful cousin – who somehow had time to paint this for Lily while taking care of her own newborn baby!
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The final piece that was added into her nursery was a surprise from a close friend of mine, but is stunning. This beautiful Swarovski crystal monogram hangs above her change table, and is absolutely gorgeous. It is made by Whitney of Flora Italia (check out her website here). Flora Italia makes custom crystal art and jewellery. Her work is so feminine and whimsical, I wish I could have an entire wall of crystal art!
Her nursery is still a work in progress – I still have to do curtains on the windows. I plan to buy white sheers, and I am on the hunt for (and I don’t actually know if these even exist, please let me know if you have seen them!) curtain rods with big crystals on the ends. If all else fails, I think I will just buy plain white and use my trusty gold glitter paint again!
My hope for this nursery is that it can transition into her big girl bedroom once she is out of the crib. I loved Andrew’s nursery but seemed to babyish for a toddler, so sadly we re-decorated. I hope that we can just update furniture and bedding for Lily once she reaches that stage – because I really do love it so far!