Nursery.... Mirror Revamp

I love mirrors.  I love how they make rooms appear more expansive.  Babies love mirrors too, and that is why I have had my eye on a round chunky framed mirror for months for the nursery.  I was really hopeful to find a mirror on Craigslist, or Goodwill, but it just didn't happen for me.  Therefore, I spent a little more than I wanted to at TJ Maxx, and found this beauty below.  Of course the color wasn't exactly what I wanted, but with a little bit of spray paint, I was able to transform this mirror.  So I spent quite a bit of time taping the mirror off preparing it for primer.

Once I got the mirror all taped off, I took my respirator and primer into the garage and coated the mirror with three light coats of primer.  I let each coat dry about 1-1.5 hours between applications.  After my final coat, I let the primer sit for 24 hours before I hit it with the final color. 

 I chose to go with a glossy blue hue.  I have used mainly primary colors (red, yellow, and blue) with touches of green throughout the room.  I thought the room needed a little more blue, and that is why I went with this color.  I am so happy with the end results...... The mirror looks perfect in the room.... Now, I just need to get it on the wall, but I will leave that for another day.  Enjoy the sneak peek of the room's progress from the reflection in the room.  Finally reveal coming in a week or so.....

Nursery Update: Bin There Done That Book Bin

The countdown is on..... My due date is less than 30 days away, and we have been working hard completing our nursery projects.  All the baby clothes have been washed, and almost everything is organized and put away.  Our last remaining items are the decor.  For awhile, I have been debating how I wanted to display several of my old Dr. Seuss books from when I was a child on the wall by our changing table/dresser.  I wanted whatever I chose to serve a purpose, but also be attractive.  Enter the "Bin There Done That Book Bin" from The Land of Nod (see below).

In my opinion, it fit what I wanted and needed.  It would allow me to display several different Dr. Seuss books in an attractive way.  At $49 a piece, I thought they were reasonable enough to purchase two which would allow me to display twice as many books.  I figured they had great potential, and would grow with our future child with future room updates.

Before

This was my first purchase from Land of Nod, and I was a bit disappointed that the bins did not come with a wall template to hang the bins up with on the wall.  After a bit of measuring, and double checking, I was able to get the bins up with only putting two extra holes in the wall (a small success in my mind).  Of course, the final product was well worth the extra hassle in my opinion.

 Close up View

Slowly, but surely, the room is coming together.  As you can see, I chose to go with red blackout curtains from Pottery Barn.  More about that, and other decor updates coming later this week.  Stay tuned.....

Nursery Update: The Crib

The crib is in.  Well, sort of.... You see, the furniture store misordered the crib we ordered.  Somehow, this mistake was not caught until the crib arrived the other day.  Man, I was not happy.  I waited 14 weeks for this crib, and was very displeased that it is not right.  The crib they brought is beautiful, it just isn't "my" crib.  After some discussion with the store manager, the store manager decided that we could keep the wrong crib until "our" crib arrives.  The manager is expecting our crib to arrive by the end of September, but I am not holding my breath since we were suppose to get our first crib within 6 weeks.  Without further adio, here is the crib for now..... So here sits the Young America Built to Grow 2600 Panel/Spindle Crib.

Luckily, the dimesions of the above crib are exactly the same as "my" crib the Built to Grow 2000 Slat crib (see below- my version is the cotton finish).  Therefore, I will be able to set-up the room around this crib, and will be able to switch out "my" crib when it arrives in the coming weeks.  I am not freaking out as much about this mix up now that a few days have passed.  Baby N is not due until the end of November so we should have the right crib by then, and if we do not, Baby N will be sleeping in a bassinet for a few weeks anyway.

Therefore, I must day dream what "my" crib will look like for now.  I am hopeful it comes sooner or later, but at this point it is out of my hands.  More updates on the nursery to come... I am currently working on figuring out some artwork options for the space.

Nursery Update- Paint

We made one giant step in our progress in the nuresry.  It is now painted.  I had difficultities selecting the right color of yellow which delayed the process for a about two weeks.  I finally decided upon Hawthrone Yellow by Benjamin Moore.  I had entertained using Lotus Yellow too, but it seemed a bit too bright, and I also considered using Yellow Lilies, but at times this seems like it might be too pale.  Therefore, Hawthorne Yellow was just right.  We used Benjamin Moore's Eco-Spec paint as we did not want to pollute the air with any VOCs.  All the moldings in the room were painted Decorator's White in semi-gloss by Benjamin Moore, and the closet was painted Decorator's white, but in an eggshell finish.  I went with an eggshell finish with the Hawthrone Yellow too since this will be a child's room.  As for the ceiling, we went with 1/4 of the recipe for Glass Slipper by Benjamin Moore.

Before

After

The lighting is not great since it has been a bit cloudy, and we do not have traditional lighting in here right now.  Better pictures to come in future updates!

It maybe hard to see in the picture, but the ceiling has a small tint of blue to it.  I am considering adding crown molding for a higher impact.

I am hopeful the crib will be arriving in the next week or two.  I am considering adding some red stripes to the wall behind where the crib will be, but since we do not have the furniture placed in it's final resting place, it is hard to commit.  Also, I am not sure if the stripes would be too much. 

I am also wrestling with what type of window treatments to add.  I am considering installing Roman shades in red, but I am thinking long term it might be better to add 2 inch white faux wood blinds, and then pairing these with gigham curtains in red.  Any advice would be appreciated.

Nursery Inspiration

As many of you are aware, my husband and I are expecting our first little one at the end of Thanksgiving.  We decided to keep the gender a surprise until the big delivery day so we needed to go with gender neutral decor.  This was not a hard decision for me as I have had my eye on the Dr. Seuss nursery bedding from Pottery Barn for some time.  Pottery Barn has had me at hello with these pieces.  I just think everything is adorable.

Here is a close up of the bedding:

Here is the PB toddler inspired room........

So there you have it...... A Dr. Seuss nursery coming right up.  We did purchase some of the items that are displayed in the Pottery Barn photos, but I decided against the bumpers as there is still a lot of debate whether bumpers are safe or not for your little one due to SIDs.  I will write further posts about the items I picked, and why I picked them.... Until them, enjoy the above eye candy. :)

Nursery- Part 1: The Cleanup

As I announced a few weeks ago on the blog, I am expecting a little one at the end of November (Thanksgiving to be exact).  Therefore, that means we need to designate a bedroom in our home for the little one.  We have three to choose from (in my mind two since I did not want to convert our newly finished guest room) in the home.  We chose the room closest to our bedroom as I thought this would lessen the steps needed for late night feedings.

Once the room was selected, we needed to get it organized/cleaned out.  This room had been the place everything that did not have a spot went to die.  It also functioned as my over flow space for my clothes.

It is a bit embarrassing sharing with you just how bad I let this room get, but because I know everyone likes to see pics of other people's messy homes, here are a few more....

Now you have a good idea exactly what we were working with to start this project.  We got started by finding new homes for everything that was in the room that was not going to stay in a nursery (which was pretty much everything).   We did a lot of pitching, and a run to goodwill to get rid of some items.  I also returned many items that were in holding for other people.  After a few hours, here is what the room looks like.....

This is the view from the door

View from the corner where the dresser is

Looking towards the door

Opposite corner

There are a few items that still need to find new homes, but overall, it is stripped of the clutter that once remained.  The black piece of furniture needs to be moved downstairs to the basement, but we need to wait until someone is able to assist with moving the piece since lifting furniture is a pregnancy no-no.  The dresser and white book shelf are staying.  I am undecided whether the mirror to the dresser will stay.  Decisions, decisions.....

Stay tuned for my inspiration post for the nursery...... Many, many more nursery related posts to come.... :)