For all of my procrastinating on The Acrobat’s nursery, I got everything done just in time for what was supposed to be his arrival date. Now that we’re past that day, the room just sits there empty and mocks me. Okay, obviously that’s not true. Annabel loves going into the nursery, so actually I spend a lot of time in there saying, “Annabel, you should play in your own room.” But I take it as a compliment that she likes spending time in the nursery.
I wanted a travel-themed nursery for this baby, boy or girl, so the sex was only going to influence the color scheme and some of the accessories. I want this baby to have a sense of adventure, and to know there’s much more to the world than what’s right beyond his front door. I started buying things months ago, and put it all together over one weekend (other than the painting). I’m thrilled with how the room turned out, and I thought I’d share it since the intended occupant of the room is still occupying me.
(Nothing in this post is sponsored. Everything was either bought by us, or was a shower gift from family and friends.)
If you go clockwise around the room, you’ll start at what I am calling the rocking corner:
I painted the road with magnetic primer – it took three coats, with lots of vigorous stirring. Then I glued magnets to the bottoms of small cars. The America the Beautiful print is from Target, the numbered cars print is from Luca & Company, and I made The Road Less Traveled print by scanning a map into Photoshop, playing with the tint, and then pasting type over it. The decorated diaper pail is courtesy of Annabel and some travel-themed stickers from my cousin Leah. The boarding pass pillow is from my friend Alison, and the white blanket was a gift to me from Jackie! when I was pregnant with Annabel.
Next is the dresser:
This is the Hemnes dresser from Ikea. It took me about five hours to put it together, with lots of breaks. My mom found the knobs on Amazon, and they worked perfectly.
On top of the dresser I attached a changing pad, and above that I hung this perfect Where Our Adventures Take Us map from our dear family friend Suzan. Next to the changing table is a lot of stuff…I’d like to get a shelf up on the wall at some point for a few of the items:
The novelty globe radio is from my dad’s collection. The bottom suitcase is from Michael’s. The blue suitcase used to belong to my mom when she was a kid, and then my brother and I used it when we were growing up. My mom and I put vintage travel stickers on it to help cover its worn spots. Both suitcases are great for storage! The boat is from One King’s Lane and the lamp is from Fab. The black converse sneakers are from my friend Alyssa, and Mike picked out the brown shoes himself. I made the picture display by covering a bulletin board in fabric and ribbon from Joann. I made the It’s A Small World image on Photoshop in honor of Mike’s grandfather, who adored the ride at Disneyland.
Under the window is this adorable airplane rocker, a gift from my parents.
Above the window I framed three prints I got by Trendy Peas (on sale via One King’s Lane).
Hanging below the pictures is this amazing wreath my friend Diane made from vintage maps:
I love it!
I got this shelf tower a bazillion (twelve) years ago from Crate and Barrel. The map holder was made by Suzan, and the canvas is by Annabel. The plane and globe are from One King’s Lane.
The hollow books are also from Suzan. I currently have all the cards from his baby shower stored in them, along with a few other precious keepsakes. My mom found the bank at a flea market. The plastic plane (sold out) and boat are from Land of Nod. The vintage car is from One King’s Lane. The vintage Kodak camera was a gift to me from my mom, another flea market find. The storage canisters were also made by Diane, and decorated with maps of places of importance to Mike and me. The books were either given to The Acrobat, or Annabel picked them out of her collection to give to him.
I love the crib bedding. It’s all from my friends and family via Land of Nod, and I mixed and matched from the Transit Authority and Come Fly With Me sets. The crib itself is the Sundvik from Ikea. The toys inside are from friends and family, and the dolls are because “My babies are tired, Mama!” I could not resist the hat and glasses. My mom gifted the baby pilot suit, and we found the helicopter stool at HomeGoods.
The Traffic Mobile on the left hangs over the crib, and the Bus Car Bike Mobile
by Trendy Peas (purchased on mega-sale via One King’s Lane) hangs in a corner.
I think the best thing I did was figure out my theme in advance, and then took lots of time combing bargain sites (like Fab and One King’s Lane), discount stores (like HomeGoods) and flea markets for treasures (thanks mom!). Whatever I couldn’t find, I made, and of course, we were generously given many items at The Acrobat’s baby shower. We are so loved – what a lucky kid.
I hope this little guy enjoys his room as much as Annie and I do. Speaking of Annie, she is already asking about when we can “decorate my room with princesses and monsters and rainbows.” Should be…interesting.
amourningmom says:
The nursery is amazing! I love all of it especially the bulletin board with Annie and Maddie’s pictures.
Good luck today – looking forward to reading about “the plan”. Sending hope and hugs. Take care. xo
Lilian says:
One word … AWESOME!! Just love what you have done with the room! Now I’m just waiting, along with hundreds, if not thousands, to the happy news of the Acrobat’s arrival. Much love to you all! xxxx
Nellie says:
Wow, I want the Acrobat’s room for myself! Beautifully, fantastically done! I do not have a creative bone in my body but your creativity helps to stir some inspiration within me. Thank you for sharing your amazing room with us — absolutely stunning!
Barb in Michigan says:
Absolutely love it! My Dad was a private pilot.do
So, I love plane related items!
The crib bumper is cute. I’d like to suggest tiring it
on the outside of the crib. Bumpers are a suffocation hazard,
Knowing how prepared you are, I bet you’re planning
on doing this already.
Your precious boy will be sleeping in that beautiful room soon!
Heather says:
Yes, I know. None of the items in the crib will be in there when he’s actually using it.
TracyKM says:
Yeah, I thought you had written that you weren’t using the bumpers in the crib (it’s not just suffocation, it also restricts the exchange of O2 and CO2) so I was surprised to see them in. I loved the suggestion for hanging them below the crib like skirting.
It’s a wonderful room! I’ve never done a theme…our first was painted with a discounted mis-tint from Home Depot….a strange mustard colour LOL! We’re not much into decorating, even for ourselves. Couldn’t be bothered for an infant who can only see about 10″ LOL. Then we were too busy being parents to get around to decorating for them….best to actually do it before their born, but we realized that too late LOL.
Lindsay says:
It’s obviously for the photos! Heather, it looks great and you staged it beautifully! I did the same thing when I took pictures of my daughter’s room before we brought her home.
Saw your FB update, so excited for you all.
Rach says:
Living is a hazard, as we are all well aware!
Mommy says:
So creative and cute! And I love, love, love all the personal and sentimental touches. My boys used to share a room, and we did a nautical theme- when we moved and they got their own rooms they got to pick whatever they wanted and they both picked nautical again. Ha ha. Easy for me and so cute that they didn’t want something different. My oldest has a bed that is in the shape of a sailboat and he LOVES it.
So excited for you and your amazing family. xoxo
Maris says:
I love it. Great job!
Adrianne says:
His room is so amazing, and I love the travel theme! I can’t get over how much thought and creativity went into this nursery. What a special place:)
Jenn says:
Hey Heather!
I LOVE his room!!! It’s so creative!!! I’m sure he’ll love it. I just LOVE nurseries….they are ALWAYS be favourite room in any house especially when people are as creative as you & Mike. The SKY’S the Limit – you just proved that!!!! Thank you so very much for sharing it with us!! I LOVE IT!!!
Next stop on YOUR travels…..BABY BOY!!!!! xo
Madeleine says:
Absolutly amazing! What a wonderful place it will be for all of you to hang out in.
ella says:
i was hoping for a post like this
His room looks AMAZING! And the theme is such an awesome idea.
Lovely you guys, i’m sure he’ll love it just as much!
Karen says:
It looks amazing! I’m so impressed, I’m sure he will absolutely love it.
Laura says:
Awesome job it looks fantastic!
nicole says:
His nursery looks amazing!!
Ciara says:
Ok, I want that room, seriously! It’s gorgeous and airy. It’s the type of room that will really grow with the acrobat, he should love it for a long while. Can you please come and decorate my house in Ireland? Pretty please!
Caroline says:
I adore the room!!!!! You are so creative:). Can’t wait to hear the plan for the Acrobat’s eviction. That’s what he needs, an eviction notice!
Glenda says:
Wow! Wow! wow! Amazing and so well put together! LOVE it!!!
Cameron says:
So cute! I love the boarding pass pillow and the prints. I hope he gets his passport stamped soon.
And I know you’re going to hide those lil’ magnets before he gets to the putting-stuff-in-his-mouth phase. I just saw a case where a toddler had abdominal surgery to remove magnets from his gut. Terrifying.
Tara says:
WOW! I love it!
Tami says:
What adorable nursery. I have to agree with the other fans.I love the pictures ofs of Annie and maddie!! He is so loved!! I cant to see pictures of him and Annie.There is going to be so much LOVE…
Chessie says:
I love this!! The whole room makes me think of Carl & Ellie in “Up”. Adventure is out there!
Expat Mom says:
That is seriously one of the coolest nurseries I’ve ever seen! I always wanted to decorate a nursery, but we never had room for it and now our baby days are done and gone. You did a lovely job.
Kristin says:
I am shamed. My son is nearly 6 months old, and I haven’t themed his room at all. I love the travel theme – mind if we steal some of your inspiration?
Annalisa says:
Heather, you have been nesting, whether you were aware of it or not.
I went crazy about prepping my daughter’s room around the 8 month gestation mark, but went nowhere near this level of detail (we went with a purple/nature theme).
For the next one, I’ll probably set up the crib and changing table and then call it done… Not just because we might be moving after he’s born and it would mean packing up an extra room worth of stuff, but because my purple monkey turned into the queen of yellow things, and I’m already exhausted from having to transform her room into something she deems suitable for her station of queen ruler of the household (she’s only 2 1/2, so I’m well aware of how much trouble I’m in for the next 16 years).
JustAMom says:
There are NO words for how awesome this room is!!!! Seriously….. if this blogging gig doesn’t work out, you could be a professional nursery decorator / birthday party planner. Can’t wait for the first pic of your little dude and his big sister in this room!!!
ella says:
what “faulty” nesting gene?! You should do this for a living! PS…mazel tov on the c-section date!! Wahooooooo!
Auntie_M says:
I’ve decided to forego my French(ish) black & white themed bedroom for a more colorful Travel Bedroom based upon The Acrobat’s!!!! What a wonderfully fun room!!! Lovin’ everything in there! You are incredibly clever. And a bit of a liar, Miss “I-don’t-have-the-nesting-gene”…uhhh: what do you call all of this creativity??? MONTHS OF NESTING!!!!
Can’t wait to see Annie’s “Monster Princess Rainbow Room”!!! You’re off to a good start with her reading corner. Now simply add some sun crystals to make rainbows and call it a day!!! (You know, tell her the monsters only come out at night when she’s sleeping…kidding!!!)
Looking forward to seeing The Acrobat in his room, instead of in you.
PS-Love the bulletin board with Maddie & Annie on it…but do feel Rigby is being left off!
Dresden says:
wow. This room is amazing. I love the map theme!
Kim says:
Heather, thank you for allowing us this peek into your lives. I can’t wait to see pictures of the acrobat in his new room, and let me know if you ever decide to open a nursery decorating business – this is amazing!
Jennifer Dawn says:
What an amazing, special nursery! Great job!
Betsy says:
Be careful what you wish for! With one child at college overseas and another planning to spend his next year of high school in a third country, sometimes i wonder what got into us when we tried to instill a love of travel!
Liz says:
What a beautiful room! I love it.
My 3 yr old son LOVES transportation anything. Thanks for some cute ideas for his room!