Adventure Nursery Reveal!

Many, many months ago, I dreamed of an adventure themed nursery with hot air balloons and airplanes, vintage maps, and suitcases. And after many months of planning, hammering, painting, sweating, sewing, and fixing, Baby R’s room was finally (pretty much) complete! At times our progress felt painfully slow, but it has been so rewarding to see this space come together.

One thing I didn’t anticipate during this process (other than about 8 million trips to Home Depot) was how many of our friends and family would take our theme and run with it. We received so many thoughtful handmade gifts and they’ve made this room so very special. Baby R is one lucky little man! So without further ado, here’s a peek inside our nursery!

Adventure Theme Nursery | NeighborFoodBlog.com

We wanted the nursery to have a fairly neutral wall color, so in case we have a girl someday we don’t necessarily have to repaint. We chose this calming, serene gray and I love it. But we couldn’t resist throwing some color up on the ceiling, so a bright sky blue it was. I love how it opens up the space and makes you feel like you’re sitting under a perfect summer-blue sky.

And that chair?? Oh my word, I could sit in that chair all day. We bought it at La-Z-Boy, of all places, and I am completely in love with it. It’s soft, it rocks, it glides, AND it’s a recliner. It’s my favorite perch for nursing, dozing, and making ridiculous faces at our little one.

We took FOREVER to settle on curtains for the space, but ended up loving these arrow curtains from Overstock. They’re greener in person than what they look like in these photos (chalk that one up to my inability to photograph or edit anything other than food).

My best friend and college roommate snagged that killer Festival of Ballooning poster at a Goodwill. I love how it ties all the different colors together!

Adventure Themed Nursery + Changing Table Makeover | NeighborFood

This is our changing table station. We took an old dresser and overhauled it completely. That project was my labor of love and I couldn’t be prouder of the way it turned out. An artist friend of ours painted the puppy portrait to look like our boxer, Oscar. Could it be any cuter?? And the fun vintage map pennant banner you see hanging on the top was made by some crafty friends for one of my baby showers. LOVE!

Here is the before and after of the dresser:

dresser-changing-table-makeover-nursery-DIY

I used this Zinsser Bullseye 1-2-3 primer so I wouldn’t have to sand the dresser, and it worked like a charm! I ended up sticking with the original drawer pulls and love the way it turned out! I also discovered wax paper works great to make old, sticky drawers slide easily again.

Here’s a little peak on the inside:

changing-table-organization

The first drawer is loaded up with newborn diapers, wipes, cream, waterproof pads, and a few other random baby hygiene items. The next 3 drawers each house clothes–the first is 0-3 months, then 3-6, and then 6-9. I found rolling the teeny baby onesies was much easier than folding them and will hopefully make them easier to see and access quickly when we need them. I can’t believe our little guy will be out of all of these clothes in less than a year! He’s already growing up too fast!

A quick note about the dividers. I was hoping to buy some pre-fab dresser organizers, but since the dresser is older than dirt, none of the pre-fab compartments I found fit the space. So I had the Mr. cut a few spare pieces of old paneling a tad shorter than the depth of the drawers, then slid them between two pieces of sticky felt for a tight fit. It’s kind of a janky solution, but it works!

Alright, onto my favorite part of the nursery: the reading nook!

DIY Nursery Reading Nook | NeighborFood

These cube storage solutions are so versatile. We could probably use one in every room of the house. The unit is from Target and we found these bright colored bins at Meijer. Right now, most of them are empty, but I’m sure they’ll be filled with toys soon enough! We put a few of our favorite books on the wall (shelves also found at Target), and added the hot air balloon canvas painted by my niece. This is by far my favorite wall in the nursery, though the crib has a lot going for it too.

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One of the things I love most about this space is that nearly every blanket, piece of art, stuffed animal, and decoration has a story or a dear friend behind it. My mom made the fabric pennant above the crib, and we picked up the art prints at a thrift store during our babymoon in Charleston. You may remember the picture of Oscar from our pregnancy announcement back in February. I love that he’s already standing guard over the crib.

DIY Homemade Hot Air Balloon Mobile | NeighborFood

I made the hot air balloon mobile from this tutorial. I am not super crafty, and this project took WAY longer than I expected, but it wasn’t terribly difficult and I do like how it turned out. Just don’t look too close at my super uneven stitching. On the bright side, I don’t think we have to worry about this ever turning into a craft blog.

There’s still one more wall of the nursery that’s unfinished. We have a giant old vintage map we’d love to hang there, but the big box stores were charging an ungodly amount to have it framed, so it’s still rolled up in the corner. If anyone knows a way to get a large piece matted and framed on the cheap, please share!

Thanks for sticking around to take a peek at our nursery! I’ll be taking some time off the next few weeks to spend some time snuggling with our tiny, but I have several guest posts lined up so you’ll have plenty of deliciousness headed your way!

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7 Comments

  1. Courtney, the nursery looks as good in the photos as in person! It is beautiful! You guys did a great job!

  2. Courtney, this is un-freaking-believable! Sooooooo gorgeous, the most amazing nursery I’ve ever seen. i love every single element – the curtains, the paint colours, that incredible dresser (way to go, lady, on the DIY!), that adorable mobile, all the sweet touches by friends and family, and of course, anything Oscar related. You deserve a beautiful space to enjoy your first foray into motherhood. I’m in complete awe of you, Courtney!

  3. COURTNEY. This is one of the best nurseries I have ever seen. Ever. You did an amazing job! That blue ceiling is my favorite. If I have another baby, I’m hiring you to decorate a nursery. Also…I think our babies should have a play date at some point ๐Ÿ™‚

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