Arlo's room

When we first found out we were expecting, we agreed right away that we wanted the sex of the baby to be a big surprise. So in a culture that loves to code things in pink and blue and princesses and cars, we were faced with the (kinda fun!) challenge of creating a gender-neutral nursery. I think that even if we DID know whether our little one was a boy or a girl, we would have still tried to keep things neutral. Neither of us is big on themes or characters or that pink/blue nonsense. We just wanted a bright, cheerful, and relaxed space for our kiddo to hang out in.

The crib area is my favorite part of the room. Back in September, I wrote about a few simple nursery sewing projects that I did to spruce up baby's little sleeping corner. The little cloud embroideries and the crib bunting make my heart oh so happy. And the blue crocheted blanket seen below was my husband's when he was a baby - so awesome that we can pass it down to our son.

Hanging above the crib is a sweet mobile that we got on our fifth anniversary trip to Orcas Island. We had stumbled upon a most excellent farmer's market, and lo and behold one of my most favorite etsy shops, Bossy's Feltworks, happened to be a seller there. I had been coveting one of their cute felted sheep mobiles for awhile, and there it was, swaying in the breeze, right over my head.

As soon as we got it home and hung it, the cat promptly attacked the two lowest sheep and I had to do some serious reconstructive surgery to get them looking normal again. Sigh.

The only furniture we bought new for the room was the crib. The rest was pieced together with old IKEA furniture on its second (or third, or fourth) life. Instead of a dresser, we took our favorite, heavily used wood bookshelf and added storage bins and baskets. The bookshelf, which is no longer available at IKEA, I think (I don't even know the name of it anymore), is the single best piece of furniture that we've ever purchased there. This is the fifth place we've lived where it's been put to good use.

The decor is a hodge podge of vintage goodies. A wonderful hidden gem of an antique store, just a few blocks from my house, has been an awesome source for good finds like the colorful metal xylophone. (Not pictured: some sweet vintage globes that got added later on.) I also made the round blue gingham-checked fabric bin seen below, which is quite possibly the most poorly-sewn thing that I've ever created. Seriously, if anyone were to deconstruct that sucker, they'd wonder if I let a possum loose with a sewing machine. It's appalling. But at least it looks passable from afar.

The element of the room that took me the most time was sewing the yellow chevron curtains (fabric from fabric.com). I love the cheery bright punch they add to the whole space.

The raggedy chair in the corner is a Goodwill find that we've dragged through two apartments and now to our house. I've been meaning to reupholster it forever, and still intend to. In the meantime, it makes a good snuggling and storytime spot, and the dog enjoys expanding what was once a tiny hole in the fabric of the seat with her claws of death. (Oh animals. Are you sensing a pattern here? Yes. My once-precious fur babies are driving me NUTS right now.)

Last but not least, some sunny artwork by Laura George adds some color to the "library corner," where re-used IKEA bookshelves hold lots of books, thrift store finds, and some mementos from my childhood.

My favorite thing? A tiny travel clock that reminds me of the one my dad always used. It has a nice soothing tick.

All that said and done, now that I'm getting to know this little baby boy of ours a little better, I'd do his room completely different. Crazy. But in his two short months with us, I feel like his personality clashes with the calm, cutesy feel of the room. Sure he has his calm moments, and he is 100% cute, but his personality has an edge to it. There's an intensity about him that I'd love to capture in the next iteration of his room with something bolder and more spirited like the stubborn, insistent, constantly-in-motion, curious fella that he is.

I'm thinking firefighting laser octopus robots. Or something like that. Yeah. That's more like it.