Nursery

Planning the nursery was tricky for us as we do not own our home, but rent it. This limited us a bit. We could not paint the walls so we were stuck with white, and we of course had to deal with the oak trim (not my fave) in the room as well. White walls are not a favorite of mine. It makes everything so plain. But until we own a house (something we were trying to accomplish before we found out I was pregnant with twins), we will just have to live with what we have...white walls!

Finding out we were having twins also put us on a bit of a tighter budget. I couldn't go out and buy all the fancy Pottery Barn Kids stuff I would love to have. So, I had to pick what was really important and then we handmade most of the decor in the nursery (something that makes it really special).

Our theme...I had decided on birds and owls pretty early on (once we figured out they were girls), but I really didn't know where I would go with that. I picked things up here and there and it all came together in the end. Our color scheme came from a few of the items we picked up early on (the window valance was a primary one). We took those color ideas and went to pick out paint which was used to paint frames and a few other things in the room. We picked out a blue, pink and green.

The cribs...I really love white cribs, but white cribs do not look the best against a white wall, so we went with a dark espresso color instead. We got a great deal on them because we bought them during a sale plus we got a "multiples discount." Yes, most baby and children stores offer discounts to those of us with twins and more. The cribs do convert to a toddler bed, and to a full sized bed, but we'll see if we ever use them for that.

The blue curtains were already in the room when it was a craft/sewing room. We made them shorter to avoid little hands tugging on them when the girls get bigger. The owls and birds window valance is from the Pottery Barn Kids Brooke collection.

Hanging on the wall, above each crib, is one of the girls' names. Jon built the frames, painted them and the letters, backed each with fabric and assembled it all together.

Jon also built and painted the frames for the green, blue and pink bird paper my friend, Dawn, found at Papyrus. She saw this paper, took a picture and sent it to me and I knew I had to have it. The birds and design is actually embroidered on the paper. These are hanging on either side of the window...also above the cribs.

The mobiles were something I made...with a little help from Jon. I sewed all the little birds and owls and wrapped the rings with tulle and floral tape. He painted the bird house and moon. They didn't turn out quite like I had originally envisioned, but I'm happy with them. They look much better in person.

This coat rack was all Jon's doing. He built it, painted it and assembled it. I just love it!

This was a shadow box frame we found at Ikea. We sanded it down and painted it blue. I used an owl punch to make owls from all kinds of paper. It adds a little something to the room.

There are several items in the nursery that have more of a sentimental value then a coordinating value. For example...the little dolls (Amanda and Alfie) you see here on the shelf...those were mine when I was a baby and they were my favorite, especially Alfie. The twin girl print, however, is a perfect addition to the nursery. It was a Christmas gift from my brother and sister-in-law (Jesse & Katrina). I love it!

Here are just a few more views of the nursery...

My overall goal was to make a functional nursery that was still fun and cute. I think that task was accomplished.