Noodle's Bird Themed Nursery

This room has undergone quite a transformation. Here’s what it looked like as we toured our house for the home inspection before we closed on it… I know, you are jealous of that mirrored bookcase and white stripe on the muddy brown walls:

… and the day we moved in:

Soon we painted the walls a yellow/green called “Sassafras Tea”, {carefully} took down those mirrors, added a few more details and it became a hobby/storage room that looked like this:

Which was great for us for awhile, but not for the baby that would eventually arrive! So when I found out we were expecting a girl I got down to business and with a little paint, fabric, and lots of magic it transformed into this:

When I shot these photos, I thought I was taking the last pictures of Noodle’s room before it became Baby Boy’s nursery. But something happened as the camera clicked away. I grew more and more in love with it. When I originally decorated it for her, I sweated every detail. I wanted a girly room that wasn’t too “precious”. I didn’t want to overdo the pink, but somehow I knew it would be her color. As for the birds, well, they were just “her”. I knew it before I even met her!

But life happened, and I remember all too well walking into this room with empty arms after leaving the hospital. When she finally came home from the NICU, she lived in our bedroom hooked up to a feeding pump. After that, a night nurse lived in here 8 hours a day for 9 months straight. It wasn’t exactly the room I dreamed up while I was pregnant with my darling girl!

The day I shot these photos changed that. When seeing the room through the eyes of the camera, it became her room again. I have a few changes planned, but for now I’m at peace with this room and that it represents our daughter.

So, you could say plans have changed. I intend to keep this as Noodle’s room and add “big girl” details later when she switches to a toddler bed.

When it came time to create a nursery, we kept the wall color from the craft room and finally stripped the wallpaper and painted that wall to match. Since we decorated the nursery the same month we were on HGTV’s Rip and Renew, we thought we’d be all fancy and put up moulding now that we were “experts”. It took some time, but the hubs did a great job and we painted a neutral stripe around the room with pink in the middle.

I’m not a huge fan of the curtains, but I had them on hand so I used them. They matched well, but I dream of changing them up some day.

A vinyl decal sits on the windowsill

To the right of the window is a built-in bookcase. Pink boxes from IKEA organize keepsakes such as cards, mementos, and small gifts.

I painted and decoupaged a few birdhouses for the shelves. Easy and inexpensive! {yes, one still needs to be done. I’m dreading the nooks and crannies on it!}

These adorable hand-knit birds sit on the shelf. It ranks high among my favorite shower gifts! The nest is actually a hat, and those birds sat holding the tubes in Noodle’s crib while in the NICU.

As for the books, well, you already know I’m addicted. Sadly, this is just part of my collection. The rest sit safely in the basement. Please don’t judge; I WAS a children’s librarian and teacher so these are my life. Interestingly enough, I’m a pretty vicious weeder when it comes to my own books. But these? Each is so wonderful and unique; how could I get rid of any? Maybe if that shelf bows any lower I might have to consider it.

Not sure if I should admit this. But we have more books on the bottom shelf– some of her board books. Yes I said “some”; the rest are in various places around the house.

Oh, okay. And a few more here, sitting under a few vintage “readers”.

Next to the bookcase is the crib.

You know I like to be a little bit different, so instead of wooden letters I made my own with paper and canvas. Abby? Who’s Abby?

See that quilt on the crib? A friend made it. Isn’t is gorgeous? Noodle (okay, now you know her real name) received bunches of quilts and we use them all the time!

To the right of her crib is the “cuddle corner” with our glider. I walked into Pottery Barn and saw they also had birds as a theme. How could I resist these two little sweeties that hang above her glider?

As for the tree on the wall, I saw a blue version in a Pottery Barn catalog and knew I could make it myself. It took awhile to cut out the tree, leaves, and birds but it was worth it! It’s simply scrapbook paper decoupaged onto canvases painted the same color as the wall stripe.

In the interest of “keeping it real”, here’s what is on the nightstand. I file these under “Mama’s Must Haves”. The Twilight Ladybug was a recent gift, and Noodle loves it! I think it’s the primary reason she now puts herself down for naps… she plays with the buttons and snuggles it before falling asleep. The Homemedics Sound Spa, set to “waterfall”, fills the room with white noise to cover up all the sounds that happen in a busy home while she sleeps.

The ladybug on the “blue” setting (when it’s placed in the middle of the room, the entire space fills with stars. It’s beautiful!):

The door is to the right of the tree, and directly in front is her changing area.

{Edited to add: I updated this area by repurposing a frame into a hairbow holder and adding a few more lanterns! It now looks like this:}

Getting a changing table/dresser was one of the best decisions for this small room. This set will grow with her for as long as she wants it. Once the daily diaper changes are done, presto, this will be just a dresser. By the way, notice that book at the end? Books are the only thing that keeps Noodle from sitting up during diaper changes. Yes, folks, my daughter “reads” during diaper changes. I guess they start early with this whole “reading in the bathroom” thing?!?

I guest blogged the tutorial for the hairbow holder on Ready, Set, Craft if you are interested in making one!

The lanterns are leftover from her birthday party this summer. I glued butterfly cutouts to $1 lanterns and hung them from trees. They matched the party perfectly, and I had to hang then in her room. I actually have two more in the hallway to join these three… just need a minute to hang them!

Here are the lanterns at the party before they found a home above the changing table.

The shoe holder? It has a few {tiny} Noodle shoes, but also holds her legwarmers and loveys.

The bird theme ended up being perfect for my nature girl. Not a stone can go unturned or flower unsniffed when we are outside. As for my dreams for her big girl room, I’ll save that for another day. I’m in no hurry for my little Noodle to grow up!