How to prepare a baby’s nursery | How to choose a design theme, decor and paint colours for your bundle of joy

The nesting instinct will kick in soon and you won’t be able to help pottering around the nursery cleaning and preparing for your new arrival. The best thing you can do to make it easier for yourself once baby arrives is having the nursery completely ready for them to move in.

Choosing a nursery decor theme

Decorating a nursery is a big task, but a simple one if you have a clear plan. Remember, this is the room you and your baby will use the most, so it’s important to make it cheerful and comfortable for both of you.

Before you begin purchasing items, go through magazines and sites like Pinterest and visit local baby shops to get an idea of what’s available, and what style you like. Keep track of the items that catch your eye, and you should soon see a theme evolving.

Even though you want to give your child the most beautiful nursery, do give priority to practicality over style. Make a list of the essential baby items, such as a cot, chest of drawers, cupboard, and changing table. If you’re lucky, you will get all these items in a common theme or else, pick the item you love the most and use your creativity to mix and match. Another option is to choose plain furniture, and then incorporate your chosen theme with the help of wall decals, printed linen and other accessories.

Interesting Themes for the Nursery

You may choose a favourite cartoon as the nursery theme, so that your baby can enjoy looking at the colourful characters. Animals are another popular choice, but if you have trouble deciding on which one to go with opt for a full-blown jungle theme instead. If you’re a sporting family, you could decorate in a sporting motif, such as football, surfing, car racing or any other sport that your family enjoys. Or lend a softer touch to the nursery by going florals. Once you start looking around, there is no shortage of interesting ideas for nursery themes. The important thing is that it makes you and your baby feel cosy and comfortable.

Future-proofing your nursery

Remember that your baby won’t stay this tiny forever. While buying furniture and accessories to decorate the nursery, leave extra room for expansion as your little one grows. In this way, the amount of money you invested in the nursery will provide value for years to come.

Colour ideas to paint your baby’s nursery

One of the biggest decisions you’ll need to make when it comes to decorating your nursery is the colour of the walls, after all – research has shown that paint colours can have a comforting and nurturing effect. If you know the baby’s sex, you may choose to go for the traditional colour palette of pink or blue. However, there is a large colour spectrum to choose from that can achieve a beautiful and calming environment for your baby.

When choosing which paint colour to use when decorating a nursery you should also consider what the natural light is like in the room and the size of the room. It’s best to avoid dark shades in a small room that lacks light, as this will make the room feel enclosed and claustrophobic. Think about the longevity of the paint colour you are choosing and whether or not this can be easily accessorised to be suitable for your baby as they get older.If you’re unsure you want to fully commit, some like to have a coloured feature wall that the crib stands against. Here are our top picks.

1. Nice and neutral: Neutral shades such as taupe, beige and brown are great for giving baby’s eyes a rest from the bright colours and contrasts that they have been exposed to throughout the day. It’s also perfect if you’re aiming for a gender neutral theme.

2. Serene green: Green is a great gender neutral colour choice for nurseries, often associated with nature and has a very calming effect on new mum’s and babies. Studies into the colour green have found that it reduces anxiety and improves concentration. The best shades of green to go for when painting your babies nursery include earthy shades such as sage, apple, olive and moss green.

3. Lovely lavender & lilacs: Choose pale shades of lavender or lilac for a baby girls nursery. Purple is soothing and feminine whilst benefiting from lacking the babyish look of pink. Accent purple walls with crisp white furnishings for a room fit for your new little princess.

4. Baby blue: The classic baby blue is always a go-to paint colour when expecting a boy. Eggshell shades of blue such as periwinkle, duck egg, powder blue and pale turquoise create a cooling effect on the body and can assist in preparing babies for sleep.

5. Wonderful white: Whilst white may often be viewed as clinical and cold, it can be used to create fabulous nurseries. White can be used with up-cycled wicker, wood or white shabby-chic furniture to create the perfect sleep sanctuary for your little one.  Crisp white walls can also provide the perfect minimalist backdrop for funky wall murals and artwork that is visually stimulating for your baby.

Other considerations in preparing your nursery

1. Flooring options

It’s important to consider the flooring of the nursery because it’s where your baby will spend most of their time playing with toys and learning how to crawl and walk. If you have existing carpet, it’s a great idea to get a professional carpet cleaner in to shampoo it so it’s free of dust, dirt, allergens, and stains.

If you need new carpet, choose one that is good for repelling liquids and for its hypoallergenic qualities. Babies tend to drop their bottles and dummies all over the place, so a spill-resistant carpet made from fabric that prevents dust mite build-up is best.

If you have existing floorboards, you’ll need to look closely for any splintery edges that might have come away. Giving them a new coat of polish will ensure they are smooth and safe for baby.

2. Lighting, heating & cooling

You’ll spend a lot of time in the nursery through the night, checking on your baby, feeding and nappy changes every few hours. This means you’ll need to make sure there’s adequate lighting so you don’t risk tripping on anything like toys left out on the floor.

Look at what existing lighting you have in there – does it need to be brighter? Do you need more lighting options in the corners of the room, not just the centre? Consider where you’ll put the baby furniture as well. Are the electrical outlet plugs in the most convenient parts of the room?

If the nursery is prone to being quite cold in winter and warm in summer, consider installing a heating and cooling system, or give existing ones a service. Some parents like to have dehumidifiers running to keep the air clean in the room as well.

3. Windows

Living in Australia means lots of bugs can get through open windows, such as mosquitoes and spiders. Even cats are a safety problem for sleeping babies if they get inside the cot with them. Consider getting fly screens installed by our window and door experts, and get professional pest control a few weeks before baby arrives.

Even with flyscreens in place, you don’t want to risk your baby going anywhere near a window they can fall out of. Windows must be be child-safe compliant and many parents achieve this by having window opening restrictors installed. Our handymen can help you install the right devices to keep the windows safe.