DIY: Simple Infant Bedroom/Nursery

Lets talk about nurseries and infant bedrooms. Some people go completely over the top in decorating their little ones bedroom. Why? They won't know the difference!! To me, simplicity is the key! It helps keep things organized, looking fresh and comfortable. When I was pregnant with Baby A I went to the baby section of Burlington Coat Factory almost every day and looked at the bedding I was registering for. I had his bedding picked out before I even know what he was! I instantly fell in love with Eddie Bauers Enchanted Hollow and I had to have it for my potential little boy. Lucky for me, Baby A turned out to be a boy and he got the bedding I was hoping for! Up until we moved, Baby A always shared a room with me. We went from a one bedroom townhouse, to literally one bedroom, so I was never able to decorate a nursery for him. When we signed the lease to our house and I stepped foot into his new bedroom, I was instantly excited. There are tons of components you will need to create your perfect simple nursery or infant room all of which will be outlined below. The three furniture essentials (in my opinion of course) for a nursery or infant's bedroom are a changing table, a crib, and a twin sized bed.

You may ask why you would need a twin sized bed in an baby's room, so let me explain. First and formost, it's an extra sleeping area for guests! That to me is a no brainer, the more the merrier in my house so an extra place for someone to sleep is an added bonus. Second, your baby unfortunately is bound to get sick, meaning you will be up when they're up throughout the night. Having a bed in their room makes it easy for you to catch some Z's while you can. It also helps if you have a colicy baby, or a baby who frequently nurses. Again, you'll be able to fall asleep quickly while still being close. Third, your child won't be in a crib forever and when it's time to make the transition to a "big boy" or "big girl" bed, you won't be scrambling for money to go out and buy one. In my opinion, toddler beds are POINTLESS and a complete waste so just graduate them up to a twin and you won't have to buy them another bed until they're a teenager (or at that time they can buy their own bed). Above the bed, I have Baby A's name up on the wall as decor. I bought the blocks at Walmart for under a dollar each, painted them and put them up on the wall. It's a simple yet adorable accent to the room.

Obviously, while your child is still little you will need a crib for them to sleep in! Cribs come in so many different colors and styles, it's hard to choose which one may work best for you. Lucky for us, we were given a beautiful hand me down crib (and matching change table) so we were able to cut the cost of those items and not have to choose colors! It made it a lot easier for us! Whether you get a hand me down set or go buy your own, always make sure it is safe for your child before using (obviously!). Baby A's crib has his Enchanted Hollow bedding and mobile, along with some stuffed animal and blanket essentials (the things he most loves). Above his crib I have chosen a simple print in a mat frame to hang as decor. Since it is essentially paper and cardboard it is not harmful to him if it somehow falls or he pulls it down. I highly recommend not putting anything heavy (not even a photo frame) above your childs bed, in the event of a natural disaster (ie; earthquake) it could be extremely dangerous. The print I chose is a quote from Winne the Pooh saying "Sometimes the smallest things take up the most room in your heart". I found it fitting.

Next to the crib, I have a three drawer stand that I use for Baby A's little things such as hats, socks, and "quick grab" blankets. The bottom drawer is left empty because someones obsessed with opening and closing it. On top of the stand I have Baby A's piggy bank, his baby moniter and a nightlight. The main reason I chose that spot for the stand is because it covers the electrical outlet that have his moniter and night light plugged into it. Using tape to corral the cords and the stand to cover the outlet, he has to way to get ahold of anything that could potentially be dangerous. Next to the stand I chose a clear rubbermaid container in place of a toy box or basket. I did this because my son is very visual and likes to look into his toys and pick out exactly what he wants. We have a toy basket in the living room and he gets so frusterated that he cannot see whats in it. Having this toy box clear makes him really happy and he can easily grab what he wants. He also likes it because it is light weight making it very simple for him to dump the toys. Now, behind the toy box as you can see there is a phone jack outlet "out in the open". I unfortunately have not seen any safty protectors for a phone jack outlet so what I did is layered scotch tape over the opening so that he cannot stick his finger in it. If I remember correctly, there is about six layers of tape over the hole. Thankfully, he has not even noticed it yet but when he does, he won't be able to harm himself on it!

The Changing table I have has three drawers beneath the changing area and a cabinet to the side of it. I love that it doubles as a dresser! The first drawer is cloth diapers, the second is shorts and shirts (onesies), and the third is PJs and pants. Having everything organized makes it so much easier to grab what you need! The cabinet is used for storage of shoes and other baby things. On the table part of the changing table I have placed his wipe warmer, his rooms light, lotion, powder and diapering essentials. I use a custom made wipes case as my holder for all of his ointments and other little things we may need while on the changing table (nail clippers, nose aspirator, etc). Having everything in a little box helps keep your changing table clean so you can quickly move the dirty diaper onto it or have a clean one on it! Above the changing table we found a more creative use for the comforter that comes with the crib bedding. I knew that we would never use it, so Mr. Hunky nailed it on the wall as a decor. Not only does it look great, but if Baby A pulls on it while I'm changing him, it's soft and securely on the wall so it wont fall.

In Baby A's room, I've used the space on either side of the changing table for a specific purpose. Between the bed and the changing table, all of Baby A's book are in a basket or on the floor so he can easily grab them and play (or chew, or open the pages) with them. He loves books and having them on the ground makes it so he can always access them. He usually goes for the books moreso than his toys. On the other side, I keep his diaper genie (for dirty wipes and poop) and spare wipes in case the wipe warmer runs out!

For the longest time, I couldn't figure out what to do with Baby A's closet. I decided to put in a rubbermaid three drawer set for his linens and blankets, his laundry basket sits on top of it so that he cannot play with his soiled clothes! I do have a couple of things hung in his closet such as sweatshirts and jackets, and baby shower gifts but aside from that his clothes go in his changing table/dresser. On the shelf of the closet I store my diaper bags that aren't being used and also the baby books that were given to me during pregnancy (such as What to Expect When You're Expecting and Dr. Spocks medical book), and some VHS tapes for Baby A to watch once daddy replaces our VHS player. The closet is also home to his air purifier, his fan and spare clothes that he hasn't quite grown into. Make sure to keep anything potentially harmful off of the closet floor since eventually they figure out how to slide open the closet door (yeah, thats a fun game!).

The most important aspect of your infants bedroom will be the floorspace. You want to make sure you create a safe environment for them to play in, but you also want there to be room for them to crawl around, make a mess, and have fun. It was difficult to get a full picture of the bedroom but I hope that I did an okay job at portraying what it looks like through the collaboration of photos!

I hope this DIY tutorial has inspired you with your little one, or soon to be little ones room! Questions are more than welcome so feel free to comment below!