Nursery Reveal Part 1
Designing & creating my baby girl’s nursery was one of my favorite experiences during my pregnancy. Also one of the most challenging, with a big giant belly! The time I spent painting furniture, hanging drapes & wallpaper, placing artwork & accessories, I truly enjoyed each moment and thought about my new journey to motherhood along the way.
Photo credit: Newsday/J. Conrad Williams Jr.
What would she be like? Would she love the same things I do, or be completely different? How in the world am I going to juggle being a mom and a business owner? How is my heart going to make room for a love I’ve never experienced? I’ll never forget the experience and it truly was so much more than just designing a pretty space.
Little Madison is now 5 and a half months and boy did it go quick! We spend so much time in her room now and it feels so warm & special. I feel really blessed that I got the time to do it. And, I’m beginning to get a clue to all those questions I asked myself. I’m loving the answers.
These last 5 and a half months have been so reflective for me. I am so grateful to my team for holding down the fort while I learn this new role as “mommy”. I’ve said quite often these last months that this is the hardest job I’ve ever done. You moms out there, I’m sure you’re shaking your head with an Amen. I really had no idea, nor do I think you can ever really be prepared for it. I think it would be easier to open 17 more stores than decide to have another baby. But I get it now, when people say “I wouldn’t change it for the world”. I have really done my best to be in the moment and take it all in…enjoy every second. Even the toughest moments at 2am…sleep deprivation is hard core.
The whole experience of creating Madison’s room made me realize that what we do, running our stores, isn’t just superficial. That is something which, on occasion I’ve thought about & struggled with. I now believe that having “pretty things” and a “pretty space” isn’t trivial; it is very much an important part of our lives. The spaces we live in have the ability to completely change and enhance our emotions & mood. When you can create a space that you love, with objects & memories that mean something, the emotions you’ll experience in that space are truly wonderful.
Designing & decorating is something I love to do, but with running the shops, it isn’t something I get to focus on as much as I’d like. Although, that may change in the future.
When my family asked what the “theme” of Madison’s room was going to be, my immediate answer was “sophisticated baby”. I didn’t want to really create a “baby nursery” per se. I wanted to create something that she could grow into. And if she decides she hates pink in her early years, well, I’ll happily bust out my paint brush. Don’t be afraid to make a decision and go for it. It’s just paint, you can always paint it again…especially when you use Annie’s paint.
In the next several weeks I’ll share all the juicy details that went into the making of Madison’s sophisticated nursery. I really did DIY just about everything. From picking paint colors, wallpapering the closet, painting all the furniture, making the flowers on the wall (well, some of them ; ), adding little details to lamps and wall decor, and finally, to designing & creating the window treatments; I’ll be giving you the run down on all my techniques and the products (& companies!) I used.
Photo credit: Newsday/J. Conrad Williams Jr.
I hope you’ll join along with me to see how I transformed a blank box, vintage castaways & ready made items to reflect my style and the vision I had for Madison’s space. I’ll even be doing some videos on our Facebook page & YouTube. Be sure to follow us to get all the details!
I can’t wait to show you everything ; )
