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Before Elliot was even a thought, I had plans to redo the spare bedroom. As you can see it had exploded beyond capacity, complete with the closet rod collapsing right out of the drywall. Things had gotten out of control and it was too much for my Type A personality.
So I had started a vision board of what I wanted the room to look like and had even bought a few pieces. My plan was to keep the existing furniture, fix the closet, paint the walls and choose some new bedding! The idea was to create a warm, creamy, earthy oasis.
Shortly after I started collecting new pieces, I found out I was pregnant. The room went on hold because obviously if this pregnancy was viable we would need a nursery….and I was just too sick to do anything.
Finally at about 12 weeks pregnant I felt good enough to start tackling the project. A lot of reorganizing and purging happened. The closet was the first project:
I repaired the damaged drywall with DRYDEX to the best of my plastering ability and got fresh brackets from Richardson’s Home Hardware to reinstall the shelf unit. I repurposed an old RUBBERMAID CLOSET SYSTEM that we already had to create more storage space. The closet is larger than normal since our crawlspace and attic access are in it.
PAINT
Next the walls were patched, washed, taped and primed for painting. Priming might not of been necessary since the room was light grey, but hey, I’m a little obsessive.
I went with BEAUTI-TONE DESIGNER SERIES Paint & Primer in One. It’s a higher end paint and the coverage is amazing. One coat of the cream colour ‘Smooth Operator’ (DR29-1) and 2 coats of the green ‘Rapture’ (DR108-3).
Finally it was time to remove the tape, vacuum and clean the carpet with my HOOVER SMARTWASH Upright Steam Extractor. I think I love this machine more than I love my husband.
Slowly pieces were coming in to the room. Some items I already had, others were gifted…and well, I can’t resist shopping for pretty baby things. My goal was to purchase second hand or sustainably made products and support independent businesses as much as possible. I tried!
While the spare room was now a nursery, I still wanted the same earthy warm vibes. It worked for a gender neutral theme since we didn’t know the sex of our baby.
I decided to repurpose some PICTURE FRAMES I had by spray painting them with RUSTOLEUM MATTE BLACK. Hopefully they will be filled soon with pictures of little Ellie!
I scored a gorgeous SPARROW CRIB from OUEF CANADA second hand on Facebook Marketplace when I was about 12 weeks pregnant. Super pumped to find such a great quality crib in perfect condition! The CRIB MATTRESS came from Amazon and can transition from a firm newborn side to a softer toddler side.
The ducky sheets are by PEHR from ANTHOLOGY HOME COLLECTION. An ode to Elliot’s dad :).
For now Ellie is sleeping next to us in her HALO BASSINET, which I also found second hand.
The THROW PILLOWS, BLANKET, LIGHT PENDANT and CURTAINS are from IKEA.
The CLOTHES HAMPER, RUG and SIDE TABLE are from WINNERS. The perfect area for a late night story and tea with my SAJE diffuser.
I was most excited about the SNUGGLE ME ORGANIC LOUNGER, which was gifted to us by some girlfriends. Ellie currently lives in that thing and the GINGERBREAD COVER fit perfectly with our colour theme.
*Always remove all items from a crib while an infant is sleeping. Check safety regulations on essential oils before using them on children.*
But my most favourite piece of all…is my grandmother’s wooden rocking chair. It’s over 50 years old. It needed a little TLC, some oil to polish it up and I ordered a CUSHION from Amazon. Eventually that space will become her play/toy storage area.
Elliot’s book collection had been slowly growing since before she was born. Eventually we will need more storage for her library but for now this cute shelf from HOMESENSE does the trick. Some of my favourite sleepers have been the basic neutral ones from H&M and KYTE BABY. They are so soft and look adorable on the tiny WOODEN HANGERS.
My DRESSER I had purchased previously from Wayfair and I added the CHANGE TABLE TOPPER and CHANGING PAD rather than buying an additional change table that I didn’t have space for. I also loved adding the ROLLING CART for all our extra supplies. It helps having them within arms reach for those middle of the night changes. We decided to splurge on the HATCH BABY REST NIGHT LIGHT which can grow with Ellie into toddler years. I love that you can access all the settings from the app on your phone.
Now that Elliot is here I cannot wait to add a few more personal touches that are more specific to her!