{Nursery} Pink & Green Apples: Part 2 The Reveal

The nursery is done! And my baby girl should be here any day!
I had so much fun designing her room.  (Please see yesterday's post for more information about the process and inspiration). 

I am so excited to share her Pink and Green Apples Nursery with you!  

I've have a picture of each area of the nursery, and then I'll show close ups of the some of the details and sources.  

Crib

The quilt was a gift from a family friend.  It has a beautiful flower pattern on it that I just love. 

One of my favorite things in the room is the adorable apple mobile that my friend Lindsay made.  She gave it to me at my baby shower. Isn't it amazing?  Did you notice the one apple that has a worm? :) 

I hired someone to make a crib skirt for me with the fabric that I found.  I ended up having her make the skirt out of 3 panels that are tied to the crib separately, allowing them be adjusted as we lower the crib.  (I found this idea here).  I am so happy with this as it allows hidden storage.  I've got all kinds of plastic storage containers under there, and they'll stay hidden at every crib height without the skirt bunching up.  

Sources: 

Crib: Target

Crib Skirt: custom made by Sharon Bechtol

Crib sheet: Babies r Us

Dresser & Changing Table

We decided to use the top of the dresser as our changing to table to maximize space and function.  I knew I wanted to use a specific dresser from Ikea, and was stoked when I found it at a deep discount and in good condition on Craigslist. 

The curtains were the very first project I tackled for the space.  They are definitely the most complicated thing I've ever sewed.  They make the whole space seem cheerful.  (Just don't look too carefully at the stitching...there's some mistakes for sure!) 

The drawers in the dresser are packed to the brim with adorable little girl's clothes.  So to keep the top of the dresser from getting too cluttered, I made this little hanging pocket for the side to hold some of the diaper changing necessities.  (Thank you to Lindsay for this idea!)

Sources: 

Dresser: Ikea via Craigslist

Changing pad cover and organizer: Babies R Us

Storage Shelves & Rocking Chair

This shelving unit was ideal for this corner. It fit perfectly and gives us lots of storage options.  I love that the baskets hide the clutter of toys and blankets.  I've stashed extra sheets and changing pad covers in there also so I can grab them quickly.  This is definitely a piece that can grow with our baby. 

The chair was handed down from my mom. It was used when I was a little girl. I had the cushions custom made with more of the fabric.  

The heart picture is a pillow case that I found and framed.  

How could I resist this apple?  I'm using it as a bookend for now. 

Sources: 

Shelf: Ikea

Baskets: Ikea

Apple: Home Goods

Chair cushions:  custom made by Sharon Bechtol

The Guest Bed

I mentioned yesterday how we have a trundle bed in the nursery that will act as guest bed. 

I was going to sew some kind of duvet cover with some curtains I had...and then I stumbled upon some pink bedding and sheets that were on clearance.  That allowed me to cross an item off my long to do list.  The bedding was so cheap that if we don't end up using it for long it won't be a terrible thing.  

Though I do have to say that I giggled when one of my husband's friends stayed with us and crawled into the pink sheets to go to bed at night. :)

I used all the time I saved on the duvet cover to re-cover some throw pillows we had. 

And instead of making a duvet out of the curtains, I just shortened one and used it to at the closet. Its kind of small opening to this closet, and there hasn't been a door on it as long as we've lived here.  Now some of the inevitable closet clutter is hidden.  And the extra fabric from the curtain became a throw pillow on the bed.

I also framed some fabric swatches and added pictures of my husband and I and our dog to make a little collage above the bed.  The solid pink framed fabric is from the pillow sham in the clearance bedding set.  The fuchsia fabric is from the back of the heart pillow case framed above the  storage shelf.  No fabric went to waste in this nursery. :)

The two blankets were gifts handmade by my friends Drea and Megan.  I know my daughter will love them as much as I do.  

Do you see the green apples in the circle quilt? Love!

My other favorite item in the nursery is this print I had custom made.  The seller, Fern Tree Studios, was so great to work with!

Sources: 

Bedding: Target

Frames and shelf: Ikea

Apple of my Eye Print: Fern Tree Studio

Now all we need is a baby to add to the finished nursery! ;) 

PS If anyone that lives locally is looking for an amazing seamstress, email me and I'll pass along contact info for Sharon Bechtol.  She was incredible!!

{Nursery} Pink & Green Apples: Part 1 The Inspiration

I'm so excited to finally share the nursery I've been working on for the past several months!

Today's post is to give a little background and share some details about my inspiration.  

 

A few years ago we bought a black trundle bed for the 2nd bedroom to act as a guest bed.  With real estate being so expensive in the area where we live, the guest bed will have to stay in the nursery. So all the nursery furniture needed to coordinate with the black bed.

So the goals for the nursery were: 

1.  Furniture and colors coordinate with the black trundle bed. 

2.  Incorporates a subtle green apple theme. I say subtle because I wanted to incorporate apples, but I didn't want any of the over-the-top apple fabrics that I'd seen.  (There were lots of cute ones, but they were all just too much for anything bigger than a dish towel. And I originally (and mistakenly) thought I was having a boy, and didn't want it to be too girly.)

3.  No traditional bedding sets.  Besides the fact that I've never seen an apple one that I liked, I knew I wanted to do something a little more original and crafty.
4.  Create storage space! I'll say it again: our house is not big. Therefore I needed to create places to store the many items a baby causes you to accumulate.  

5.  Stick to a budget!   I wanted to DIY what I could, look for furniture on the cheap, etc. 

I'd perused a few of my favorite nursery sites for inspiration when I was starting the process. 

In case you are wondering, my favorites are: 

Project Nursery

Lay Baby Lay

Nested

Chic & Cheap Nursery
Spearmint Baby

I was very inspired by this photo:

via Project Nursery

I loved the bold colors, patterned curtains, and the adorable Jonathan Adler lemon pillow reminded me of an apple. 

The day after we found out we were having a girl, I was browsing at JoAnn's fabrics and stumbled upon 2 fabrics that I fell in love with. I wasn't even sure what colors I wanted to use at that point, and was leaning toward some turquoise after the above picture caught my eye. But when I saw these fabrics, I knew this was it.  And they were on sale for 50% off for one more day, so I had no time to second guess my decision!  (Of course, if you remember the posts about my wedding & reception, you'll know that I tend to be drawn to these colors. I just can't get away from them!)

(This is the picture I took on my phone to send to a few girlfriends with a "Should I do it?" text.)

I was a little nervous because it was upholstery fabric (which I have never worked with before, completely novice seamstress that I am), and it had to be custom ordered and was therefore final sale.

But I was lured in by the 50% sale and committed right then and there!

And then the work began... (to be continued)