Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Creating a Gender Neutral Nursery

"We want to be surprised" is getting to be a common answer to the question, "Are you having a boy or a girl?"  Many doctors today say about 50% of the couples they see decide not to learn the sex of their baby in advance.  Although adding an element of surprise to the birth, this decision can present some challenges when designing your nursery, especially if the traditional gender neutral colors, yellow and green, are not your favorites.  Today, there are many other colors available to you.  Gray is a great color to use in the nursery whether or not you know your baby's sex in advance.  Mix it with white or cream to create a soothing feel or mix it with bright colors to add some fun.

But gray isn't the only gender neutral color you can use.  Colors like red, orange, black, and tan don't immediately come to mind as being gender neutral, but they can be easily used to create the perfect nursery for a little girl or boy.  Love red, combine it with white and tan solids and prints for a modern look.  If orange is you color of choice, mix it with yellow and shades of green.  And don't forget black, used with bright colors and prints you can create an up-to-date nursery that easily fits in with your home's decor.  So have fun, it's time to create the perfect nursery!

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Monday, July 14, 2014

Create 5 different nursery ideas looks using the same 5 fabrics
Start with a fabric collection you love.
Choose your 3 favorite prints and 2 coordinating solids
By varying the placement and density of each fabric you can completely change the look of the room.  The slide show below shows 5 very different looks using the same 3 prints and 2 solids.
 

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Thursday, July 10, 2014

Color Blocking your Nursery

 "Color Blocking" your nursery

"Color blocking" is a design concept using multiple solid colors together.  We have seen or heard the term most often used to refer to clothing, but it works just as well when decorating a room.  In fact, the more fabric used in the room the stronger your color blocking statement will be.

Follow the simple steps below to create your "color-blocked" nursery.
  • Start by choosing one fabric print.  This print will act as your inspiration.
  • Next choose coordinating solid colors.  
  • The less you use the print, the bolder your color blocking will feel.  Use the print one or more times, then fill-in the rest of your fabric spaces with the colors you've chosen.
  • Feel really daring, use the print for inspiration only, then fill the whole room with 3-4 solids inspired by the print.  Pull everything together by framing a piece of the inspiration fabric to hang on the wall. Baby Bedding Sets
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Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Decorating Your Nursery



Choosing Fabrics for your Room

I get asked all the time, "How do I put together fabrics when decorating a nursery?"

Starting with a fabric collection narrows your choices and makes decorating your nursery easy. 

A fabric collection is an assortment of fabrics that share similarities in color, and design.  The collection will usually contain solids and small, medium, and large scale prints all supporting a common theme. Most people are happiest decorating the nursery in a style compatible with the rest of their home. Whether your style is modern, traditional, shabby chic, country, or eclectic, you can find a fabric collection you will love.

You can use the following tips when deciding how to put the various fabrics together.
  • Once you’ve chosen the fabric collection, choose 2-3 of your favorite prints in differing scales and design types. So, you may choose a large floral, a medium stripe and a small abstract.  
  • Next choose 2-3 coordinating solids; all together you should have 4-5 fabrics in your mini collection.
Now it's time to decide which fabric goes where.  Here are some of the tricks I use when placing prints next to each other.
  • Choose no more than 4 prints and a total of 5 fabrics when you add in the solids.
  • Place prints of differing scale, differing design, or differing color next to each other.
  • Repeat the use of prints around the nursery to create a coherent look.
For example...
  • Place a large scale floral next to a small floral
  • Place a large floral next to a large scale stripe
  • Place the same print in 2 different colors adjacent to each other




Barnyard Buddies
I own an e-commerce  custom nursery bedding and accessories business.  We craft all of our products from organic materials and we choose vendor partners with a "green approach" to business.  I get asked lots of questions about decorating nurseries and the why's of using organic products so I decided to share those answers with you.  I am also passionate about volunteering and helping those in need, so I will also update you from time to time on one of my favorite children's charities-Project Night Night.



I'd love to hear from you, so please leave your questions and comments and I'll get back to you as soon as I can.