So when I began searching for decor for Parker’s nursery I had this grand design planned out in my head but couldn’t find what I was looking for. I was very picky about the bedding. I didn’t want the typical boy themes: jungle, transportation, aviation, sailboats. Nothing against them. I just didn’t want them. So after hours and hours of sitting in bed on the internet at night, I finally found it! It was perfect.
And of course, it was expensive. Now with the first child, nothing can cost too much. But once you are on your second, reality kicks in and you start to “budget.” Or at least I did.
So anyways, I found this bedding from Carousel Designs.
I was determined that it would be mine (or his rather). Oh look at these adorable coordinating drapes.
But wait. . . $59 for ONE PANEL. Not even to complete one window, but 1/2 of a window. That’s $236 to decorate the windows in this nursery. Are you kidding me? No, I’m not doing it, no way!
And the pillows, something like $40 per pillow?!
No!
So I did my homework. First I searched Ebay to see if I could find any window treatments made with the fabric. No luck. However, i did find the fabric!
Both the toile and the stripe accent, and it was cheap!! I spent $80 on ebay for all the fabric to make the curtains and pillows and still had enough left over to make a lampshade cover and a Christmas tree skirt!
I am by no means a seamstress. I have had a sewing machine for about 10 years, and I love to use it, but I really can only do the basic, geometric shaped items. Pillows and curtains!
So I did. . .
The only difference (besides some not-so-perfect lines) was that I used ribbon to tie the panels to the rod instead of fabric.
Theirs $246 Mine less than $80
I was determined to have this nursery.
In then end I found a way to make it happen. The nursery turned out just as I had imagined.
The Bumper and bed skirt are from Carousel. I made the pillows (with the exception of the monogrammed pillow) and the mobile I bought on Ebay (cheap) and re-designed. I wish I had a before/after photo of that.
Parker’s black and white newborn photos now hang on each side of the initial “P.”
Also from Carousel, the diaper hanger ( I added the bow to the front) and the blanket hanging on the chair. I made the pillow, covered the lampshade on the tall dresser and made the mirror out of an old window. To see that tutorial, click here.
I love the way this nursery turned out. I saved boo-coos of money and I did it myself!
This is BEAUTIFUL!
I feel the same way about being a seamstress…I've had my sewing machine about 10 years and only just took a beginners sewing class and started really using my machine only a few months ago!
I hope I can bet this crafty when we have a nursery to decorate!
Biz
Wow! Your nursery is amazing! It looks like something out of a magazine or catalog! Nice job!!!
http://www.inspired2cook.com
This is so beautiful & amazing!!! Omgoodness! Love it, good job!
you're welcome for you feature :).
dominiquescraftcouture.blogspot.com
This is SO sweet. You did a fabulous job! I saw you on the Tattered Tag – your blog is charming!
craft-interrupted.blogspot.com
Oh my word, this is STUNNING!! You did an amazing job…I just LOVE it!! So glad you stopped by my blog so I could also find yours – I absolutely love it!! You should submit your nursery to Spearmint Baby and/or Design Dazzle. They feature nurseries and I know would love to feature this!
Love this room. I like it how it feels peaceful when you walk in 🙂 Parker must be sleeping very good at nights 🙂
what a beautiful nursery. I love the bedding and your pillows…and personally, i think your drapes look better than your inspiration photo.
Such cuteness, such personality, such fun! You did an outstanding job.
I luv luv your colours better, that room looks mahvelous..
Don't forget to link it in our linking party this week.
http://www.passionatelyartistic.com/2011/02/fun-ideas-for-valentine-day-2011be.html
Maggie
Sheesh, girl! You've got MAD SKILLS! The room is completely wonderful! What a lucky lil guy. Thanks for sharing!
I saw your link over at Transformation Thursday. I LOVE LOVE what you did. What a great job you did creating the look you wanted for so much less. Gorgeous nursery. I am your latest follower. I would love if you would come and check out my blog and follow me back at http://www.diybydesign.blogspot.com. Thanks. Looking forward to keeping up with your blog.
I love the nursery, you did such a beautiful job. Well done!
xoxo
Angela.
You did an amazing job!!
It's gorgeous! Great work! Love the colors and pattern 🙂 I'd love to see you at my weekend linky party starting Friday!
I absolutely love this!
Did you sew any part of the curtains or use hemming tape? I still need to make curtains for my whole house (how overwhelming)!
I am in love. This is SO adorable, I want, I want, I want!! Can you put up your pillow tutorials?! I need to make some of those beauties 🙂 I just started a blog (literally, 3 days ago) but check it out if you have a spare minute. krazycraftylady.blogspot.com
This is a gorgeous nursery! Great work…and way to keep the cost down with the DIY!
wow! What a beautiful nursery. You did a great job with it. Well done.
You did a fantastic job!!! And your price is waaaay better. I love how the nursery turned out. When we were expecting Indy, no amount of money was too much, but now, poor little Han Solo (due in April) won't even have a nursery until after we move when he's about 5 or 6 months old. Sadness. I can't wait to get to decorate a nursery for him. I will be doing it on a budget this time though!
Great job! It looks so adorable!
Such a sweet nursery!I love it!
This is so cute. If I ever have a boy I hope I remember this!
Love it! That's exactly what I would have done too! It takes awhile searching all over online for fabric, but it's so worth it. Great job! Would you mind if I featured this on my blog next Friday? http://www.fastdaze.blogspot.com
What a beautiful nursery! Well done! 🙂
The bold striped walls are a fantastic addition, and your pillows are great! What a wonderful job you did!!
Melissa
http://lissalaneous.blogspot.com
Visiting from Shabby Chic Cottage. All I can say is WOW! This is way better than the original! Absolutely beautiful!
This is beautiful! Parker is lucky, I love your take on this girls room.
http://www.worleyhouseblog.com
It is GORGEOUS!! And I love Parker's name (my oldest son is Parker–he's 16 now, it goes by fast!!)
Great job!! I just found your blog from your feature on I heart naptime. I am now a follower. Come check me out if you get a chance.
noplacelikehomeally.blogspot.com
Oh my gosh Jen your nursery is amazing down to every last detail. I know how much blood sweat and tears you put into it. That is how I felt about mine (2 years ago). Every time you go in there your heart will swell with pride having it done it all yourself. It is beautiful. I am sharing on my facebook and twitter.
Beautiful nursery! I think yours looks even better than the inspiration picture. Rug color is gorgeous!
Beautiful!!!
You did such a fantastic job! I love your darker ties on the drapes, and since I can't sew on a button, I am super impressed! And that is the nicest bumper that I have ever seen. Looks like little pillows lined up all around inside the crib. Thanks for sharing!
You did a wonderful job! It is a handsome and serene nursery with a momma's touch. Handmade with love!
What a beautiful job you did! The drapes turned out great. I think using the grosgrain ribbon was perfect. I'm like you … I don't want what everyone else has. Your choices are lovely. I'm your linky neighbor at Be Different … Act Normal and I hope you'll stop by for a visit.
You hit it out of the ball park! HOME RUN!!
Perfect!!! You should be very proud of yourself. Hugs.
What a beautiful and soothing room. I'd want to spend all my time there.
Warmly, Michelle
VERY BEAUTIFUL. Right out of a magazine. well done. winks- jen
beautiful nursery!
found you thru 733!
What a gorgeous nursery!
Baby will love it!
SO BEAUTIFUL! I love the mirror window creation.
SO Fab!!!! I am working on my twins room. I love what you did.
Wow! That looks fantastic!
I love this nursery. Just gorgeous. Thanks so much for joining my blog party. Don't forget to come back and grab my party button and place it either in your post or side bar (and also become a follower if you haven't already). Thanks so much. Again, great job.
Visiting from DIY by Design. You did a FABULOUS job!!! I love everything about it!!
Gorgeous! Well done!
That is perfection! Will you come decorate my life?! If you have not been by yet, I would love for you to come link up! Every month the best link gets prizes!
http://www.thesaturdaymorningsblog.com/2011/02/strut-your-stuff-for-february-round-2.html
Wow, you really did an amazing job! It's gorgeous and looks like it came right out of a magazine! I'm definitely going to save your ideas for the future : )
This is an absolutely AMAZING nursery.
I featured this today! Stop by and grab a button!
I love this! I am featuring you tomorrow on my site. http://www.mycreativeescapes.blogspot.com
Ok. I just have to say. I LOVE YOUR BLOG. And this post, of course. 😉 I love Pottery Barn, and this looks like I just stepped in to the catalog itself! Love it! And you sound like me. lol. I have purchased ALL of my kiddos furniture from yard sales. You would never know. I spray paint, chic it up a bit…and voila! Pottery Barn look a like!
Oh my goodness! This is beautiful. Just precious.
Love it! I'm currently trying to knock-off my dream nursery for my 3rd child (aka, no budget!). So nice to hear/see how you did it! New follower!
Absolutely stunning! Great job!
looks great! nice work!
Just gorgeous! I linked this to my nurseries project post too, well done!
This look amazing! I like your better than the original. I'm your newest follower thru Lil Luna!
http://theloops13.blogspot.com/
Just wanted to let you know I featured this today on FTF! Thanks for linking and grab a Featured button if you would like!
SOOO beautiful! I adore it, it makes me want to have another baby soon so I can decorate the nursery myself!! Love it, newest follower:)
This is such an amazing nursery! What a lucky little one 🙂
Thanks so much for the inspiration!
This is the most beautiful baby boy nurseries I have ever seen. fantastic job!!!
btw…
I am your newest fan! I wanted to stop by and say hello! Please feel free to do the same. I am running a contest right now that you might be interested in…
http://ashadeofwhimsy.blogspot.com/
A Shade of Whimsy
ashadeofwhimsy.blogspot.com
Fabulous and inexpensive transformation… I love it. The walls are my favorite part. Great work!
Found you via Tipjunkie, honored to be one of the "decorating tips" with you 🙂
Hi! I'm stopping by from Design Dazzle and I wanted to tell you what a wonderful job you did! Wow! It is beautiful!!! I think it this nursery really touched me becuase it reminds me a lot of the nursery we did ourselves for our first baby. It was green/white toile and a tiny green/white stripe! It was featured in So. Living and it's on my blog! Perhaps you've seen it before! Your baby's nursery is beyond beautiful and you are one talented lady! 🙂
Blessings, cat (www.constantinchaos.blogspot.com)
I LOVE this nursery! Is that wallpaper or did you do the stripes yourself??
Can you please email me @ and let me know if that is wallpaper? Thank u!
So now it's going to seem like I'm stalking your blog. Well you know since it's my first time stopping by today….I have to check out your projects.
LOVE THEM BY THE WAY!
I am expecting a baby any day now….and I kind of laughed when I read your post about the new nursery for Preston. When decorating the new baby's nursery, I didn't want anything "traditional" either.
[that is also about the time when the WHITE FURNITURE OBSESSION kicking in.]. LUckily, I bought white baby nursery furniture and won't have to do a paint project like my 4 year olds room. lol
If you visit my blog http://momsbabypooh.blogspot.com and check down my sidebar, I have some posts about the baby's room.
Beautiful, beautiful! I LOVE how amazing Parker's nursery turned out.
I just love the old window mirror. My hubby makes those.
That belongs in a magazine! What an awesome room for your baby boy. Every little detail stands out and makes you look twice. I wish my babies had that room!
What an absolutely precious nursery. Love the stripes.
This is so pretty! Good for you. So lucky that you found the exact same fabric! I just love all those pillows and fluff in the crib. Really really beautiful job!
Love the curtains! I'm with you about sewing… had my machine for 5+ years and I can only sew straight lines.
Wow! I LOVE that fabric. So sweet and old fashioned – I can see why you had to have it. You did a wonderful job of bringing your dream nursery to life.
Hi Jen!
I LOVE this nursery and will be doing the same for my baby boy's nursery who will arrive Feb.14,2011. Great job!! Thank you for the inspiration!!
Is your baby crib in this picture classic white or off white color? I'm having a hard time deciding if I should get classic white or an off white crib as the closet doors in the nursery room are off white.
*Feb.14,2012*
Nubia, I didn't have your email address to reply, so I hope you get this! I used bright white furniture. I'm very picky about matching whites and the trim in the room is bright white, so I stuck with that. But, that's just my opinion! Thanks so much for your comment!
Jen
Jen! Thank you so much for replying, your respond truly helps! Sorry I didn't leave an email this is my first time commenting on a blog and still learning how to communicate trough this method.
As I mentioned, you have inspired me to do the same nursery decor for my little one and wanted to know if you would kindly tell me what paint colors you used in the nursery. Again, thank you so so much for responding!!
Nubia
You made this all yourself? You are so creative! I have to say I love the pillows, they look like they are store purchased. The whole look is so elegant. Great job! Love.
Hello! This nursery is beyond adorable. I am very in love with the window mirror- I have a window I would like to turn into a mirror but can’t quite figure out how to do it. The link to your tutorial seems to be missing… is there any way I can find out how you did it?
I just recently started looking for nursery inspiration as I am not due until March & I am just in love with what you did with Parker’s room. I will most definitely be borrowing some of these ideas. Do you remember what colors you used on the wall? They are perfect together.
I can not stop looking at what you did to Parker’s room! OMG amazing just beautiful. I love the baby pictures and the lights. Can you tell me what size are the frames and where i can shop for the lights on the wall? I have been teling everyone i know to go on your web site. I look forward to seeing more.