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I don't consider myself an expert interior decorator. In fact, I'm quite an amateur, but do enjoy do-it-yourself home decorating. When my husband and I found out we were expecting twins, we were both very excited to decorate the babies' bedroom.
My husband and I compromised on a nursery theme. We agreed that even if we had boys (which we did end up having--two!), that I could decorate the nursery with a Beatrix Potter theme, but after two years it was my husband's turn to re-decorate their room with a race car or airplane theme.
We started out by choosing a paint color for the walls. We chose "Pooh Bear Yellow" made by Behr paint. We painted all of the walls yellow. We then painted a white strip, approximately 12 inches wide, all of the way around the room in the center of the wall (see photo). Above the white strip we sponge painted white paint over the yellow, and below the strip we left the walls yellow. The white sponge painting gave the walls a cloud-like look. Never tried sponge painting? It's easy! Here's how: http://www.frugal-home-decor.com/articles/080501b.shtml.
We decided to decorate the nursery with white furniture, which gave the room a very clean look. We purchased two white cribs, and painted two old wood dressers white. Grandma bought us a white changing table as a gift.
While shopping on Ebay, I found some Beatrix Potter cutouts to decorate the walls and furniture. Do a search on Ebay for "beatrix potter wallies", and you will find what you need. These are great! You just wet them and stick them where you want them, and they are removable. We placed these in the white strip on the wall. It looks like Peter Rabbit is hopping around the room. We also put them on the white dressers we painted (see photo).
I also purchased some Beatrix Potter poster prints on Ebay. I bought some white wooden frames for them at a local craft store, and they turned out beautifully.
I decided to sew new curtains for the windows. At Walmart I found some very inexpensive yellow fabric that had tiny little bees on it. It is so cute. I just sewed a casing at the top for the curtain rod and hemmed the bottom and they were done. You can tie them back with ribbons or knot them in the middle.
Last but not least, we found some Beatrix Potter bedding sets for the cribs. One set I purchased at a local consignment shop that sells baby furniture and clothing. I purchased the other set on Ebay.
When your baby is older and starts standing up you'll find that you might have to move some of your nursery decorations. As soon as one of my boys was old enough to reach out and grab at objects he was pulling the bunnies off of the walls. I figure after the bunnies are all gone it will be time to re-decorate!
Note: Photos for article here: http://www.frugal-home-decor.com/beatrix-potter-nursery.shtml
Rachel Paxton is a freelance writer and mom of four. For easy do-it-yourself home decorating ideas for busy moms, visit http://www.frugal-home-decor.com
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