If I hadn’t gotten into the fashion industry, I would have loved to have pursued a career in interiors/home design. I absolutely LOVE design and decorating. As soon as I found out I was pregnant, I began designing the nursery. I knew right away I wanted something contemporary, but with a mixture of different design elements, textures and neutral colors. I wanted a high-end looking nursery but on a budget.

Bring on Pinterest! I created numerous boards and poured over hundreds of photos on my Houzz app. Which was perfect for those sleepless pregnancy nights. I came across the adorable animal print photos from the Animal Print Shop and decided on a “baby animal” theme.

The next decision was furniture. I already had a beautiful natural wood daybed that folds out into a full size bed. It’s great for when guests come over, as it provides extra seating, as well as an extra place for guests (or mom!) to sleep. I also had an ivory dresser from Crate and Barrel that was not being used, and that fit perfectly into the nursery’s theme. I originally wanted all white furniture, but decided to use items I already had instead of sell them. Since the dresser is ivory, I knew a white crib would not look right. I chose the Childcraft Logan Convertible Crib in espresso, because I thought the dark wood would contrast nicely with the pops of gray (bonus- it was only $200 and converts to a toddler bed and a full size bed for when Jake gets older!) We chose the Kelcie glider from walmart.com. It was a bargain, easy to clean and is so comfy! Very happy with this purchase!

The adorable cat chair and bookcase were both purchases I made in college. My mom and I had gone “antiquing” in Havana, FL and stumbled across those adorable pieces. I’ve had them for over 18  years and they fit perfectly in the nursery.

I wanted to keep the colors neutral- mostly grays, taupes, soft blues, espresso,  ivory, silver with a bright pop of chartreuse. To me, this was soothing and comforting for both the baby and me. I love mixing textures and prints.

For the bedding, I registered at Pottery Barn Kids. This is the Harper nursery bedding. I love the chevron print and think it looks super cute in the room. I plan on taking the bumpers out (for safety reasons) until Jake is older, but for now, we are using the crib as a changing area so it is perfectly safe. The mobile with the adorable animals is also from Pottery Barn Kids.

My sister and her boyfriend came into town to help me put the nursery together. We decided to paint the walls gray (they were tan before) and I love the color we chose – Silver Bullet by Behr. Next on our list was to pick out the accessories.

We found the perfect frames for our animal prints from Bed, Bath & Beyond. We also needed blackout curtains and loved the textured ones we found. Now it was off to Target and HomeGoods! At HomeGoods I found the lighted “J” as well as the hassock, giraffe on the dresser, cute zebra and the worded throw pillows. It was all starting to come together!

Our last stop was Target. I could not believe our luck as we found our remaining items! The chartreuse stand, mod lamp, the printed rug, and the remaining throw pillows could not have been more perfect!

XOXO,