Walker’s “Little Brave” Nursery

I never planned to do anything for Walker’s nursery—Fletcher’s old crib sheet and floating ships mobile were cute and would work just fine. Once Walker was born, however, the NICU received an especially cute donation of swaddle blankets and the nurses consistently wrapped him in the sweetest designs with little teepees, baby forest animals, modern black and white trees, and tribal feathers. Walker has such a laid back personality, and I found that my “little brave” should have a space that was truly his own. Read on to take a tour!

Inspiration

With the change of plans on a super small budget and almost no time to make things, I tried to use what we already had and search for key pieces with high impact.

One of my larger plants made a home next to the terrarium. We moved my husband’s sitting chair and reading lamp over from the living room, and my cloud garden stool in the master bath to work as a side table in the new nursery.

Storage

There was simply no room for a dresser or changing table, so I took the coffee table that was already in the room which had cubbies and filled them with boxes and containers of his clothes folded KonMarie style. ​

Bedding

The first thing I bought was a fitted crib sheet. Less is more for me when it comes to baby bedding, so I looked for neutral colors to go with the plain white sheet, and navy sheet with white polka dots we already had. A simple navy parquet pattern from Target worked great!

​Adjusting the crib to infant height brought some much needed storage space underneath for diapers and bigger-sized clothing he’s not ready for, but it was driving me crazy how cluttered and unsightly it looked. Instead of buying a crib skirt, I took a twin size crib skirt we weren’t using anymore and folded it so it would work for the two visible sides of the crib. Instant tailored and neat look!

Mobile

I’ve made a special crib mobile for each of our kids’ nurseries, and I wanted to create a feather one for Walker. Going back and forth to the hospital several times a day and pumping took up most of my time, so I looked to buy one instead. Etsy was selling them for more money than I felt it was worth, so I sat on the idea and thought it wouldn’t be the end of the world if I had to finish it after the baby came home.

​One day my lunch order at the hospital café wouldn’t be ready for a while so I wandered down the hall to the gift shop, and chanced upon some hanging dreamcatchers! The mobile version similar to the one I would have tried to make was only $13.50—that’s worth my time alone, plus materials I would have bought.

Stuffed Animal

The biggest splurge I got for the nursery was a special stuffed animal, a tradition that starts for our children when they are babies. Our other son loves his Jellycat Puppy and doesn’t sleep without it. The stuffy is in great condition and has held up amazingly to a very active 2-year-old, so I looked for another animal in the same brand. We landed on a lion since it looked just like little Walker with beady eyes and crazy pouffy hair!

Statement Wall

My preemies are not allowed outside for at least 3-6 months so they miss cold/flu/RSV season. It was important for me to feel that even though I’d be stuck inside for months, there was always a window to outside and I could remember what it looked like. I love the interest that a statement wall creates, and knew this would give the room some dimension I needed. 

For Walker’s nursery I wanted something large and graphic, a landscape or fine art print to match his outdoor theme. I looked into wallpaper, a banister, a poster, or paintings. All were out of my budget or too far away for me to pick up. I diligently checked the thrift store near our home every week, and every time I had a feeling I would find my “it” piece. There were a few close calls where I almost bought something I felt I could settle for, but finally the day before Walker came home I found a perfect fit in a large framed landscape painting by Robert Wood.

I’ve spent countless hours here nursing, changing diapers, bottle-feeding, rocking, singing, changing equipment, prepping before and after baths… I feel so comfortable and happy looking around, and am glad we made an effort to update this room!

Budget Breakdown: ​Navy Parquet Fitted Crib sheet – $8.51. Dreamcatcher mobile – $13.50. Robert Wood painting – thrifted $8. Jellycat Lion – $23.  ​$53 total, not bad!