Elliot's Blue and Green Nursery (so far)

Elliot is almost five weeks old (so hard to believe!) and her room isn't quite finished. But, we're getting there (it's not like she sleeps in there anyway). The room used to be the guest bedroom, and we didn't repaint the walls (they are Blue Shamrock by Olympic). We didn't know she was going to be a she, so the goal was to create a simple, serene space that would work for a boy or a girl for under $1,000. We accomplished this by using things we already owned, and not buying an expensive set of brand-new furniture.


I knew I wanted a big piece of art over the crib so I've attempted to start painting it myself. I have the painting skills of a second grader, so please don't judge :) I suppose looking childish is fine in a baby's room, right?


I bought the sconces at an antique shop when little Elliot was just a dream. They were meant to be hardwired, but Wes added the cords so we could plug them in. Only one of them works at the moment, but I'll tell you about that later. We replaced the plastic sleeves, and I still want to do Lauren's trick to make them look like more expensive wax sleeves.


I painted a new white Jenny Lind crib (bought at a local shop) Pumpkin Seed by Martha Stewart at Home Depot. I love the result but it was a major pain. I borrowed a paint sprayer that I think was a little too strong for this project and ended up doing a lot of touching up drips and painting in the nooks and crannies with a small sponge roller. Next time I will leave it to a professional!


The bumper is off-white linen with a small ruffle on top by Pom Pom at Home bought locally at Three Sheets. It's very soft, washable, and is neutral enough for future babies and nurseries (which was the point). The striped crib sheet is by Boppy.


I made the crib skirt out of linen fabric from King Cotton inspired by these two by John and Sherry and Erika. I wanted it to hit the floor now while the mattress is high and later when we lower it. The vintage kindergarten chair came from a local thrift store, and we speculate that it may have from the kindergarten that my mom attended! PS, this is a good photo of the crib and wall colors.


The chest was our first purchase for the room, back when I was just a few weeks pregnant. I knew I wanted to use one in place of a changing table, and we happened upon this one while browsing an antique store in my hometown when we went up to tell my dad he was going to be a grandfather. The turned wood lamp was a clearance purchase at Target a while ago. I swapped a dark shade for a white one and I like it so much better now. The white frames are also from Target and I used fabric leftover from the crib skirt to cover the mats. Elliot's newborn photos will go in them. (Wipe warmer and diaper pail are not attractive, but necessary!)


The chest was wood and the finish was scratched and uneven, so we painted it Pumpkin Seed, too. I knew the details would paint really nicely, and I distressed it just a touch before adding a matte wipe-on poly finish.


The chair was a thrift store purchase (it used to be pink!) that was in great shape. I had it recovered in the same linen I used on the crib skirt and frames. I originally wanted a waterfall skirt, but didn't purchase enough fabric. My upholsterer was extremely affordable but also extremely slow, so when I found this out a week after Elliot was born, I no longer cared and settled for a regular skirt.

The blue and green blanket was a gift from Wes' mom, the pillow came from HomeGoods and the vine floor lamp came from a local consignment shop. We already had the garden stool, and I believe it came from HG was well.

I think that's about it. I'll keep you updated on how things go as we finish up and will post more photos then.

For those curious about how much it cost to bring it all together, here's the breakdown of what we bought.

Jenny Lind crib: gift
Chest: $230
Paint (one gallon for both): $25
Bird hook and hamper: already owned
Crib bumper: $170
Sheet: gift.
Fabric (six yards for the chair and one for the skirt and frames): $27/yard, $189
Chair: $27
Upholstery: $125
Sconces: already owned
Supplies for sconces: approximately $14
Canvas above crib: $12
Kindergarten chair: $5
Rug: already owned
Curtains: $20
Curtain trim: approximately $15
Pillow in chair: $13
Blanket: gift
Vine lamp: $40
Garden stool: already owned
2 white lampshades: $23
3 white frames: $43
White shelf (not pictured): $35
Total: $986 (just under budget!)