a room to reveal

So, you know how it takes a really long time to film a show and then go back and edit and piece things together and make sure all the right shots go in all the right order? Well, let’s just pretend like that’s what I’ve been doing since the last time I blogged. I really am pretending like this is a show about us moving into a new house. So, why not take just as long as it would for a show to come out, right?

Ok. Ok. Get on with it already!

I’ve got a room to reveal!! It was the first room finished in the house and probably my favorite room so far. It’s Baby C’s nursery.

For as long as I can remember, I have always wanted to have a pink and yellow little girl’s room. But when we decided not to find out the sex of our baby before it was born, that idea kind of went out the window. I could have painted the nursery yellow and it would have been perfectly gender neutral. But I ended up falling in love with some fish bedding that didn’t use yellow. So, our baby’s first room was green and aqua. I still really love that bedding. I’ve kept it and plan on using it next time.

So, when I had a girl and we decided to move 8 months later, I jumped on the chance of designing and decorating my little girl’s nursery. I searched high and low for a yellow and pink combination that would be perfect for my baby's personality. And I found just what I was looking for at Pottery Barn Kids. Of course I did! Everything they have is so cute and so sweet. And so expensive…. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized I don’t need much. We already had a bumper, we don’t need a crib skirt b/c the crib is so low, and we don’t need the quilt. They are always more decorative than usable. So, I just got a sheet and a little “stroller blanket”. Perfect! Just what I wanted and within budget. (Oh yes, I had a budget and followed it very strictly. I might talk more about that another day.)

So here it is. My jumping off point:

It's the Penelope collection.

I couldn’t have been more excited when this sheet came in the mail! I think Shaun was a little worried that I was getting so excited about little birds on a crib sheet. But, once I had this sheet in my hands I was able to see the exact colors and then I could pick the wall color and curtains and accessories and everything else! So, I started with the sheet and in the end got this:



And this:



Do you want to know about some of the stuff? Ok. Let’s start with that blanket on the back of my rocking chair. Shaun had a student about 3 months ago that was raising money for a mission trip to Haiti. She said she made baby blankets, so I purchased the material and told her what I wanted and then we gave her money for her trip. I LOVE THIS BLANKET! Mostly because I got to pick out exactly what it would look like. And when I bought the material, we had no plans of moving. But I still new I would want it to be yellow and pink for C’s future room. It’s a soft yellow fleece on one side and then pink side is cotton and has little yellow turtles on it. So sweet and perfect.

I’ll also mention the curtains here. I looked EVERYWHERE for affordable curtains. They are really expensive, you know? $20 per panel? And I needed 4 panels! That’s nuts! And honestly, these curtains made me go over budget. But, they are so cute. And they match PERFECTLY!

Curtains - Target



And now that cute print in between her rocking chair and crib. I love this print! It’s perfect for her room with the little bird on it, and I just love where the words are set and what they say. My baby is a pretty little thing and I want her to have fun in this room playing with pretty little things one day. The frame is a vintage frame I found in my uncle’s basement. (you’ll notice as we tour through my house that there are a lot of old things I have found in my uncle’s basement) It had a neat painting in it that was given to my great aunt a long time ago, but the painting didn’t really fit anywhere in our house. So, I popped it out and put in this print. I instantly loved the combination.

Print – Etsy



Do you see a little glimpse of her initials in there? I made these for her old room and explained how to do it in this tutorial. For her new room I just found different scrapbook paper and re-glued the letters on. Each piece of paper cost .30 cents at Hobby Lobby and gave the letters a whole new look!



These little block shelves are kind of behind her door, so I don’t think the above pictures show them. But they just add a little bit to the walls. I bought the little pink birds at Hobby Lobby when I bought the scrapbook paper. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with them at the time, but knew they would be perfect in her room. I finally just hung them a couple of days ago and like how they turned out. The little pink booties in the top right shelf where give n to me by my favorite aunt at C’s first baby shower. We had no idea at that point that she was going to be a girl, but aunt said she just knew. They are vintage and although C never wore them, I love how dainty they are.



One of my favorite things in her room is the print next to her changing table. You’ll notice it says, Suzanna Jade Streetman. That’s me! Someone drew this for my Mom back in 1981 after I was born. It hung in my room all through childhood, and I found it a couple of years ago in my Mom’s attic. When we moved I found it again and knew it would be perfect in C’s room. The little girls hair is yellow and her bows are pink. Plus, it was mine and that makes it extra special. (sorry for the flash glare…)

Also in this picture are these little baskets that I am crazy about! I found them at Home Goods and once again had no idea how I would use them, but knew they would go perfect. The colors match everything so well, and I loved the paisley design. They came in a set of three and I’ve got two on her dresser/changing table holding diapers in one and lotions in the other.



And lastly, the wall art above her changing table. I found some cute scrapbook paper and simply put it in some nice white frames. (Pay no mind to the big gash taken out of the bottom right corner’s frame. Somehow when Shaun was changing C’s diaper she leapt over there and knocked it down. I’m still unsure how this happened because every time I have her up there she hasn’t come close. Whatev…) I’ve had the idea to do something like this for a long time, but never really had anywhere to do it. I passed the idea onto my friend Kari, and she did another rendition of it here. This idea has so many possibilities and can be really inexpensive. That is if the frames can last more the a week on your wall and you don’t have to replace them…



I really, really love her room. Word to future Mommy’s: make your baby’s room a place you enjoy hanging out. You will probably be in there a lot. And make sure that rocking chair is comfy and enjoyable too. I have a beautiful old antique rocking chair (that I found in my uncle’s basement) that I NEVER considered putting in her room. It’s not comfortable. I fall asleep in her rocking recliner all the time. That’s right, rocking recliner. It has come in handy quite often!

But one last thing - she does have a pint sized antique rocker in her room. Shaun’s step-dad refinished and painted his childhood rocker and gave it to us before C was born. She had a fish themed room at the time, so he found cute little fish stickers and added them to the back. They don’t exactly go now, but the chair is so cute. She has only sat in it once, for a picture, but it will be perfect soon I’m sure.

Hope you enjoyed the tour! I’ll get more rooms photographed soon. The house is coming together nicely, but pictures are hard when you have this cutie coming towards you!


(See mini-rocker in background)

And just in case anyone is wondering - the wall color is Lemon Chiffon by Sherwin Williams.