Nursery Wall Gallery with a Woodland Feel... A DIY for the baby!

We have a 3 bedroom home, so baby number 4 is bunking with the hubby and myself in his nursery nook in the Master bedroom.  It could have been my nesting hormones taking over or just my need to decorate, but I wanted to have a nursery wall gallery for our sweet little blessing!  Since I was bunking in the hospital at week 32 for our little man... I had to save this for a summer project... consider it my summer project series... I bounce from one to another... leaving some unfinished until I get the fire under my tail to continue... Thank God my husband is patient and feeds my creative soul!

First... I laid out my frames to get an idea of how I wanted to hang things and took a picture of it for reference... some are from Goodwill, the lacey wooden cutouts were clearance from Michaels... the "organic" wooden frames, museum white frame (I will spray paint that), and J are from Hobby Lobby.

Second, I started putting holes in the wall and hanging up pictures... I have to admit, I am a little nervous about placing holes in the wall, but you have to take an attitude that spackle and paint can fix it and to just get going... that doesn't mean be hasty, but just take a deep breath and place the nail and hook.

Third... I started to move things around and hole, schmole... the finished product looks great and there are so many pictures you don't know where my first sets of holes are... so it's a win, win.  Honestly there are some great tutorials on Pinterest on creating wall galleries... I am happy with ours.  Some art I made myself, some I found on ETSY, and the owls are from a garage sale!

This owl is one of my favorites and it was my Mother in Law's... she used the frame for graduation photos of my husband and siblings in their old house... who would have known this sweet print was behind it.  I LOVED the owl print! It is super special... first of all, I just love the image. To me, it represents a momma looking after its youngling (heart be still, I love it so much) and it second... I have a special family member that LOVES owls, plus my Mom-in-law gave it to me. Triple whammy special. Isn't it cool, kinda retro special too!

I still have some spray painting and art and pics to fill, but I am happy with it!  Overall cost is inexpensive too because you print out quotes, make your art and get frames inexpensively anywhere.

Just part of my summer projects... so happy to have something on the wall in our little nursery nook!

Painted Crib: Part 2... working on some details

 The characters for the woodland scene started to come alive. The best advice I can give you is to not be afraid.  It is just paint, if you don't like it... start over, try again, but practice makes perfect and paint is forgiving. I went slow, take your time...

Not everyone feels comfortable painting... no problem... decoupage, stencil, wall decals, stickers... find something you love and run with it.  I was so happy with how it came out, but not at first, so give yourself time. Practice first if that makes you feel more comfortable.  Start with something easy- but it is do able.

Painted Crib: Part 1, how to transform a $20 crib into a $3600 masterpiece...

This beautiful crib can be yours with the bargain price of $3600... I love the handpainted details... so I started shopping online, craigslist that is...

this one had a lot of character for the bargain price of $20.  I love the details on this one, and had a project in mind.  I needed the flat, solid sides... 

I am painting this one gray with a Restoration Hardware finished look, so the gray primer is a good choice.

My husband like the gray primer color... but I have bigger plans.

I added moulding to frame the interior and painted it white, then started to sketch a scene... 

Nesting! Decorating a Nursery and Master Bedroom

My daughter's nursery is a finalist in the Light Division in the Color Contest. If you have a moment, register on Apartment Therapy for great Decor ideas and "Favorite" the room.  The room with the most votes by October 29th wins!  When I had some "Nesting" ideas for our home... my husband said, "Good luck with that!" Well, I called his bluff, and now I am honored with being a finalist!  We have a 3 bedroom ranch... our 2 boys share a room, and our dd has her own little palace, so with Baby #4 on the way... looks like he will be sharing with us for a while until he hangs with his big brothers in their big space!

My "Nesting" ideas entails tackling the Master Bedroom and Family Room, which would then re-shuffling the finished basement.  In my mind it's simple!  Repaint the master with a shade of gray, stencil a focal wall with a damask pattern or even birch trees. There's a great post on stenciling here.

 Get new lighting fixtures, or make them.

I love this Seychelles chandelier from Serena and Lily... 

I really like the idea of some yellow accents... Look at this dresser and the redo here.

And the baby might be with us in the Master for a while... our babies tend to be on the small side and fit the bassinet for a good few months... it's fun looking at fabrics and I completely fell in love with this fabric due in December from designer Sarah Watts for Blend fabrics.

Last, but not least, I would make a mobile from these sweet ornaments found at Pottery Barn.

Baby Brooke's Princess Room, Perfect for a little Girls' Nursery

Brooke's nursery was so much fun to do. Once I chose the rug from Pottery Barn Teen, it was easy to choose fabrics from Bari J. Ackerman and Tanya Whelan! All the rest came from diy projects and repainting pieces from GW, Craigslist and garage sales.  Never doubt the potential a piece might have.  If you like the shape and style... it can be transformed into anything.  In the hopes of helping out another family, I entered our dream come true nursery into Posh Tots Design Dynamo Contest and became one of 10 fabulous finalists! What an honor! It was a close call to the end, and we came in 2nd place .

I am blessed to have an Aunt Jan that is extremely talented in the quilting department.  She sewed the pillows and quilt, and I sewed the bumper, crib skirt and curtains!

The ceiling medallion is from Lowe's. I hand-painted it with acrylics.

Aunt Jan even did a baby doll quilt!

Little Details: Brooke's Sweet Baby Nursery

In a previous post, titled Sweet Surprises, I shared with you some of the details hanging from the ceiling in our darling daughter's nursery.  Here's a peak at some more of my thrifty finds that made her nursery special.

Artwork found in clearance section of HomeGoods.  I ended up painting the frame pink because it looked better with our minty walls, but this was the perfect piece to go between the two closet doors.

I painted all of the doors a pale pink which really compliments the walls.  Originally I was going to paint all of the furniture a pink, but I decided to keep them an antique white and have pink details elsewhere.

I love the Windborg Sisters Design, so colorful and sweet.  For this spot, I created my own.  The frame and glass is from GW, I used the cardboard inside as the canvas.  First I sprayed a piece of cardboard with adhesive, then wrapped it in blue fabric canvas.  Second, I painted the background with the hues that I wanted in swift strokes.  Third, paint the branches, and last I cut out the birdies and flowers with scrap fabric and scrapbook paper.  I am very pleased with how this turned out.

Found this Cinderella coach in the gardening section at Hobby Lobby and I had to have it for an accent piece.  A can of spray paint and look at what we have... a doll bed.

This dresser was a fantastic find at GW.  $40! I couldn't believe it AND the best thing was that furniture was 25% off, so it cost me a total of $30.  I primed, painted it and the beautiful pink glass knobs are from Marshalls!  Each knob was approximately $2.00 each!  The second row of drawers has a knob on it almost exactly like Anthropologie for $8.00 each!  Don't forget that Hobby Lobby has an awesome section of knobs and handles and they are 1/2 off All the Time!  I plan on painting in that oval at the bottom of the dresser, but I'll save that for another post.

Sweet Surprises, a peak into Brooke's Nursery

This post is for a dear friend that was enamored with Brooke's nursery and is expecting a sweet bundle soon.  Little blessings just warm my heart! After two boys, it was dreamy designing and hunting for finds that would fit a room made for a sweet surprise.  My favorite place for inspiration is PBK. My favorite places to shop... HomeGoods, Hobby Lobby and Michaels, and of course a garage sale or two, Goodwill and Craigslist!  (Always use that 40% off any one item coupon from HL; it is so easy to pull up on a smart phone and competitors honor it.)

First, I saw in a popular children's furniture catalog a nursery that had a crib in the center of the room with a tree branch hanging over it, and I just loved it and thought... if I ever have a girl, I am sooo doing that.  Well this is my finished product.  I purchased the branch from Pottery Barn during Christmas time, and I spray painted it white.  At Michaels, I purchased dogwood branches and used 2 different colored flowers.  The little birdcages are from Michaels too, and I found the two birdies on top at a garage sale NIP (new in package) for $0.25!

When I found this at Hobby Lobby in the gardening section, I knew it would be perfect for a canopy holder.  First, I spray-painted it and then hand painted the little birdie on top.  Look for shapes.  Color can always be altered with a can of spray paint.

I found this at HomeGoods for $4.99 and it was just something I couldn't leave the store without. A good rule for HG is... if you like it, buy it, because if you go back for it, it might not be there. 

 
Some of the finds here were in a Michael's grab bag for $2.00. YES!  During a seasonal change, Michaels had grab bags for $2.00 each and I bought them ALL.  When I tallied all the Original Retail prices it was over $600 of merchandise, and I paid $16!  I can't even tell you how often I use the items I purchased in these grab bags for seasonal decor in rooms, birthday dessert tables, and even Brooke's Christmas tree.  If you ever see the $2.00 grab bags, pick one up, you will be glad you did.  The planter is from Hobby Lobby and I was so happy that I found it!  It is made by a company called 222 Fifth St. and HomeGoods carries a lot of their china.  I don't think they make much that I don't like, but originally we had a salad plate on top of the dresser in the same exact pattern, but it broke.  What a great find and at 40% off, I think it was $8.00.

Brooke's crib bedding, made by my Aunt Jan.

Michaels was the place for the vase, and HomeGoods was where I found this lamp... perfect for this spot, less than $30 and tea light holder that holds some dainty jewelry for B.

Birdcages from Hobby Lobby at 50% off, florals from Michaels, birdies were from a garage sale, and the butterflies are from PBK.  They hang from the ceiling and add a little whimsy to a room fit for our sweet surprise.  When I started to make purchases, the room just came together.  If you find things online that you like, you can put them together and have fun with them at Olioboard.com, be careful it is addicting.  I can't wait to share the rest of Brooke's nursery with you.  We used a lot of paint... Happy Shopping!