henry’s nursery {the reveal}

stick a fork in it, it’s finally done. i’ve shown you bits and pieces, from progress pics to project posts, but now it’s the big reveal.

here’s what we were starting with. a small, beige box. not normally this messy, or in the middle of a paint job, but i forgot to take pics of the guest bedroom acting as a guest bedroom.

my to-do list was quite long, but i’ve finished every last thing, even projects not the list, except for a mobile. (who needs a mobile anyway?)

if you remember my inspiration board, i was headed towards a nautical ‘overtone’.

i didn’t end up getting an anchor in the room, but i have plenty of stripes and a couple whales.

come on in!

i love it. i could probably tweak it forever (like the placement of the pennant banners – still not sure about those), but i’m at the point where i’m done. over perfecting it. i’ve loved creating this nursery for my little man, but i’m just ready for him to be here now. hopefully i won’t have to wait long – the countdown to d day is only 7 days now (yippee & yikes).

{justine}

resources:
wall color: bunny gray by benjamin moore
crib: babyletto modo, from overstock
crib bumpers: diy (blue seersucker from joann fabrics, orange seersucker from fabric.com)
crib skirt: diy (navy blue and white striped fabric from tonic living)
side table: owned; diy dipped legs
glider: benji glider recliner by best chairs, ordered at twinkle twinkle little one
dresser: edland from ikea (unfortunately apparently discontinued)
whale poster: society6
orange striped rug: west elm
bookcase: expedit from ikea
pillows: diy
henry art: diy (tutorial to come)
gray storage bins: container store
tray on dresser: salvation army, repurposed

update: i’ve had several emails/comments asking me about how i liked the best chair benji glider, what fabric it is, how does it clean, etc.  i wanted to put the answers here in case others have the same question.

what is the fabric? i do not know the fabric name, but the sample i have from the manufacturer says “31213″. hope this helps!

how does it clean? i use it all the time for nursing, and sometimes reading books, but other than the occasional spit up, nothing comes on it that would stain it. the spit up has wiped up pretty well with just some water right away. i did scotch guard it when i got it (though i should probably do another application).

how do i like it? i love it! as i mentioned above, i use it all the time and am so glad i bought it. when henry was younger i didn’t always nurse him in it, but now that he is highly distractable when nursing, i nurse him every feeding in it, which is four times per day right now and it’s very comfortable. while it’s not the most modern design on the market, the fabric choice, tight back and same color piping help it look clean-lined. i sat in several other more modern designs and they just weren’t as comfy. when you sit in it for hours a day (and in the middle of the night!) comfort is king. i initially wanted no recliner and an ottoman, but ryan got his way and we got the recliner version i put up the foot rest while i nurse, though i don’t put it in recline ever – i just think some sort of foot rest is key, whether it’s an ottoman or the recliner version.

let me know if you have any other questions!

(also want to give a shout out to my mother-in-law and ryan’s grandpa for helping make this possible, financially. we’re very lucky!)

linked to: southern lovely

featured on: buy modern baby blog (thanks for the wonderful feature!)

weekend recap {progress and celebrations via instagram}

{first ticket bought ever. was hoping henry would bring me luck – nope}

{nursery painting done!}

{the crib!}

{happy 1st birthday delainey!}

{ikea}

{happy 87th birthday grandma!}

{snuggles}

{assembly}

{cutest load of laundry of my life}

hope you had a good one! did you check things off your to do list too?

{justine}

rugs!

{can you tell my lack of motivation for a compelling post title? i went the straightforward route}

one of my biggest indecisions for the nursery is a rug. it has to be a reasonable price (i’m sure my reasonable is different than others’ reasonable) and obviously cute. and preferably comfy, either on it’s own or with a rug pad underneath (not jute, hate jute. have jute in my living room).

in my hunt i’ve come across lots that could work with my wish list above, hence my indecision. i’ve only viewed these online so far, but hope to look at a few in person this weekend to test the comfiness. while i am looking at these for my nursery, these would work anywhere – in fact, i might need to buy two or three of these (which would help in my indecision) to also outfit my living and dining rooms that desperately need a new rug (living room) or a rug in general (dining room).

{west elm iznik dhurrie, 5′x8′ $249, 8′x10′ $479}

{west elm gradiated-stripe, 5′x8′ $99, 8′x10′ $229}

{west elm adalusia dhurrie, 5′x8′ $249, 8′x10′ $479}

{dwell studio draper stripe, 5′x8′ $250 (found for $200 on amazon), 8′x10′ $450}

{dash and albert trimaran stripe, 6′x9′ $298, 8’6″x11′ $514}

{crate and barrel olin grey, 5′x8′ $149, 8′x10′ $299}

{ikea stockholm rand, 5’7″x7’10″ $199, 8’2″x11’6″ $349}

{rugs usa moroccan trellis, 5′x8′ $282, 7.5′x9.5′ $488 (+50% off right now)}

{rugs usa chevron, 5’3″x7’9″ $106, 7’10″x10’10″ $215 (+50% off right now)}

{rugs usa homespun chevron, 5′x8′ $288, 6′x9′ $385, 7.5′x9.5′ $506 (+50% off right now)}

thoughts? anyone have any experience with any of these? help! right now i am leaning towards the two orange west elms, the dash and albert navy blue stripe or the navy chevron for the nursery. i think first i have to decide what size i need…

(and seriously, i really need more than one but i guess i have to have priorities, and now it’s the nursery. but then the living room by the time the babe can sit up and play on the floor.)

{justine}

so long drapes!

{i had the hardest time choosing a title for this post. i gave up thinking and ended up with a double entendre. see if you can figure it out…ooooohhh.}

from the day we moved in to our apartment, one of my biggest pet peeves was the drapes in the living room and dining room. they were the steve urkel of drapes.

living room:

dining room:

where’s the flood? not in my living room or dining room. i’m not sure who made the decision to purchase these highwater drapes, but they were not working for me. and the beige color was not doing them any favors, especially since i am not a beige girl.

my original plan was to sew drapes myself, but since we’re renting and will be in a place of our own in less than two years, i was not in the mood to spend all the time and money for drapes that most likely will not fit future windows. so off i went the other weekend to ikea, the king of affordable drapes (seen & featured in the homes of many bloggers), to finally say so long to the bane of my living and dining rooms.

i picked up two pairs of the bleached (white) lenda drapes, one pair for each room.

down came the old, dusty, short and beige drapes and up went the new, clean, long and white drapes.

the drapes are tab topped, but in the living room i hung the them with curtain rings i picked up at ikea by folding the tabs to the back (in black, to match the existing rod).

(seriously, i’m so over my crappy, grainy pics due to having to use a high iso! pet peeve #1: hardly any natural light. have i said that already?)

while at ikea i had a blonde moment (sorry blondes) and only picked up one pack of curtain rings…for two packs of drapes. duh. so the dining room drapes were hung by the tabs. i prefer the rings but not enough to go buy some, so they’re staying mismatched, mmkay?

however, i do now have the opposite problem–my drapes are too (so) long.

i was too eager to get these up in time for book club that i didn’t have time to hem them…and two weeks later i still haven’t made the time to do so. but  i’ll take too-long drapes to too-short drapes any day.

to recap (less scrolling)…

living room before & after:

dining room before & after:

ahhh. white can be so refreshing.

here’s the breakdown:

drapes: $40 ($20 per pair)
curtain rings: $3

$43 for new drapes that don’t make me shudder when i look at them. i don’t think i could have sewed drapes for myself any cheaper. that’s a win win.

do you own any of the ‘infamous’ ikea drapes? do you say drapes or curtains? apparently today i was in the drapes mood but use both phrases. did you catch the ‘so long drapes’ double meaning? i said ‘so long’ to my fugly drapes…but now have ‘so long’ new drapes…wah wah wah.

have a great weekend!

{justine}