nursery | art, tails and polka dots

At the end of July, Paul was on a roll putting frames up for me.  So I put him to work in the nursery.  We finally got the frames off the floor and onto the walls.  The room looks more spacious without all the clutter.  And Little H likes to look at them when he wakes up.  He's especially drawn to the Alphabet poster. 

I volunteered to hang these hooks myself.  Sadly, one of them already fell off and Paul's going to need to screw them in more securely.  Fail!

This mold of Little H's hand was taken on his half birthday and hangs right above the light switch.  My future sis-in-law bought this molding kit from Ross.  Score!

And last but not least, I bought four knobs at Anthropologie, on sale for $2.99 each, and changed the knobs on the top drawers of the dresser.  I think it gives it a nice pop of color.  I might change the rest of the knobs if I can find a good sale again.  World Market has quite a selection too.

I still need to figure out what to do with the wall above the dresser.  I'm thinking about putting a mirror or a series of two to three frames.  A floating shelf would also be nice to display some toys and books.  I also purchased a curtain from Ikea, but forgot to buy a curtain rod.  Awesome!

Those are the quick changes that we've done so far in the nursery.  Hopefully I'll have more for you soon.  Click here to read my first post about the nursery. 

Sources | Forever Young Print, Be Brave Print, (both were on sale at Brickyard Buffalo), Happy World Poster, Alphabet poster and Wooden Toy Camera (purchased on sale at One Kings Lane), Dinosaur Print (gifted from my sister), Owl Pillow was a Home Goods find

nursery revealed

At last, I can finally show you pictures of Little H's nursery.  Again, it's not completely done, but I'm pretty happy with it so far.  So without further ado...come on in!

 

antique cradle

I've been in love with this cradle ever since I bought it last week from my coworker's stepdaughter.  They picked it up at an antique store last year and she used it for her son who was born last December.  I was a little hesitant to get it, but after my sister-in-law convinced me (and it didn't take much) that I'd need a co-sleeper for the first few weeks, I ended up getting it for $40.  I took it home last Tuesday and I couldn't be happier with how it looks!

I'm having a hard time finding a mattress cover since it's a little bigger than a changing pad, yet smaller than a crib mattress.  So I wrapped it in a throw blanket temporarily until I find the right one that fits. 

I'm hoping this will save me some sleepless nights, but somehow I doubt it.  We're keeping this in our bedroom for a few weeks while the baby sleeps with us.  This is truly a timeless piece that I'm sure I'll enjoy using with Baby T and future babies to come!

Pregnancy Update:  I'm 35 weeks today!  Paul assembled the stroller this past weekend and even installed the carseat in my car.  His fatherly instincts sure kicked in!  As excited as we are to meet this baby, we want him stay in just a little while longer until he's "well done."  We're so smitten with him already!

dream nurseries

Lately, I've been dreaming about the perfect nursery.  It's a little frustrating not having a nursery to start decorating in preparation for Baby's arrival.  I'm sure it will get worse once I'm in the "nesting" phase (when does that kick in anyway?).  So for now, Pinterest has become my place to gather my ideas and inspirations.  And since I don't know how to create a mood board yet, I'll just dump pictures of the ones I love here.

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I love everything about this nursery - from the gray walls, curtains, turquoise chair and that retro dresser!

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 I also thought about painting the walls this dark teal color.  Too dark?  I think picking the right shade, like Benjamin Moore's Calypso Blue would do the trick. 

 

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I love this whole dresser/changing area.  We're planning on getting this exact Hemnes dresser from Ikea, either in this color or black-brown to match the crib that we picked at Babies R Us.  This color is more appealing though, that way it's not so matchy matchy.  This is a great piece of furniture that will grow with the baby.  And I would love to do a gallery wall like this, but I'm a little nervous about it being so close to the baby's changing pad!

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This bookshelf is happening!

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I think I've almost convinced Paul to let me paint stripes in the Baby's room!  If he completely vetoes the idea, I have a back up plan:

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Striped curtains from Pottery Barn Kids.  It's a little less dramatic but still makes a statement.  I think I'll be pretty happy with either one.  But I WILL have striped walls somewhere in the house!

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Lastly, I'm in search of a really good, stylish rocking chair like this one, but one that's a little easy on the bank account.  This pretty one is $800 - eek!  And I would also love an ottoman like this.  Hopefully they've got it at a Home Goods somewhere.

If you have any favorite nurseries that you stumbled upon lately, or any suggestions on where to find any of the above I mentioned, please let me know!