A Nerd Like Me

Westley’s Simple Eclectic Nursery

The nursery is complete! To tell you the truth, I’ve been done with all of my crazy nesting for a few weeks now, but I was patiently waiting on Westley’s painting to arrive so that the room could finally be finished. One important thing to note about my choice of decor is that every single thing in this room has meaning. Sure, the modern nursery art you see so much of these days is super cute, but I wanted everything to have a purpose and a story. So what do you think?

Crib: Baby Mod Olivia from Walmart. Baby Mod is known for their modern nursery furniture. I saw this one and fell in love.

Painting: Made just for Westley by John Sandy. John is a fantastic artist and an old friend of the family. You can email him at johnsandy1153@yahoo.com if you are interested in some art of your own.

Chair: Best Chairs. This chair swivels, rocks and reclines. It is so comfortable for both me and Drew, which is a big deal because he is so tall that the back height really mattered.

Bird Pillow: An awesome flea market find!

Owl Night Light: Lamps Plus. How cute is that? Of course the birds had to represent in this room. Unfortunately, this night light and the pricier one at Land of Nod is no longer available.

Lamp: Target

Guitars: Drew and I both own guitars and thought that they would be the perfect addition to our tiny man’s room.

Book “Table”: All antique hand-me-downs, mostly about birds and art. My favorites!

“Have Big Dreams” Art: Handmade for Westley by a dear friend.

“As You Wish” Embroidered Circle: My mom ordered this for Westley, as a little reminder of his namesake from The Princess Bride. It was ordered from Etsy, but I’m having trouble finding the link to the store right now.

Antique Buffet: This beautifully worn down piece of furniture once belonged to my great-grandmother. Although she’s no longer able to know the amazing man that I married or meet her newest great-great-grandchild, there is still a piece of her in this room. I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Solar System Mobile: Handmade by us. Pinterest, and our love for all things nerdy, definitely inspired us here. I used this as inspiration and this as a guide for making the planets.

Bike Spokes Painting: Also by me. One of my absolute favorites.

Platter: This was a Christmas gift from my grandmother. I knew it would make the perfect addition to the nursery, as well as help keep the changing area organized.

There you have it! I love this space so much already. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve just gone in there, sat down, and imagined my life with a little baby boy in my arms.

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Help!

Dear loyal blog readers (and mostly lurkers…I see you’ve been here, but you stay eerily quiet), I need your help! I can’t decide on a rug for the nursery and every time I make a decision, the Hubs just knocks it back down. I would like to think that I have a vision that he just doesn’t see, but he could be totally right in the end. So if you could give me your opinion, that would really help me out a ton.

First, here’s the nursery as is…

The decor is pretty plain and will mostly remain that way, with the exception of a yellow blanket on the crib (white sheet) and a very colorful abstract painting above the crib, similar to this one here:

This means that the rug can either be colorful and patterned to bring an extra pop to the room, or kinda plain. I could go both ways here. Rugs are expensive and I don’t want to spend the money on something ridiculous looking. One last thing before I show you my choices – I want the rug to be round, because of all of the angles and hard edges in the room. So here they are, starting with my most favorite of the moment (it changes every day):

5′ aztec rug from Urban Ourfitters, $59

The pattern in this rug not only appeals to me on an aesthetic level, but it just screams “boy.” I also LOVE the price. Cannot beat that for a 5 foot rug.

6′ yellow striped rug from Overstock, $139

I just found this today. It caught my eye because it has a subtle pattern, is not girly and will bring more of that yellow element into the room.

6′ off-white shag rug from Overstock, $170

For a plain rug, I’m a fan of this one. It’s soft and understated and will do a great job of covering up the stains in the carpet. I’m not a huge fan of the price, but that comes with the territory, I suppose.

6′ gray patterned rug from Overstock, $199

The price may have something to do with why this one is close to the bottom of my list. I like that the colors don’t pop much, but there’s still a pattern in there to offset the plainness of the room.

5′ gray shag rug from Overstock, $115

I love the price, but is it too plain? It’s definitely soft and fluffy, which I’m sure my little man will love during play time.

Ok, time to cast your vote! Which one will it be? (Geez, I’m spending way too much brain power on this. Just help a girl out, mkay?)

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Are you nervous?

Last weekend, our friends Amanda and Matt visited from the Smokey Mountains to help us finish the nursery. Matt was Drew’s heavy-lifting buddy and Amanda was my giggling partner in crime. We really had a great time seeing our old friends!

About 10 minutes before they left to go back home, Matt stood in my kitchen, eating a gloriously warm cinnamon roll, and asked, “Are you nervous? About the baby?”

Oddly enough, nobody has asked me this yet. I started thinking about it and quickly answered in the negative. No, I am not nervous about the responsibility of becoming a parent, as I’m sure most first-timers are. Somehow, my mind is at ease when it comes to thinking about holding that little boy in my arms, feeding him in a way that only I can, and loving him more than I ever thought I could. I’m not even nervous about how little sleep I will get or how busy my life will become, or how those cloth diapers aren’t going to wash themselves. Those everyday responsibility issues? Not a problem.

But I am nervous. I’m scared out of my mind about the bad stuff that can happen. My thoughts linger on the morbid side of things a bit too often, so you can imagine the possibilities running through my head. Basically, it’s the uncontrollable things in this world that make me nervous.

But that’s ok. We’ll get through it. I can already tell that Westley is a strong little boy, and he does have the most amazing parents ever (totally kidding). We’ll get through it.

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Nursery – Phase II

Just as I was concerned that we wouldn’t have anywhere to put all of the crap that was in the nursery closet, I was also worried that turning our guest bedroom into a bedroom/office combo would just not work.

Our office space was so perfect. It was the first room in our home that we ever fully furnished and decorated. However, the location of the office made it the prime destination for Westley’s room, so changes had to be made. Our guest bedroom, a.k.a. “the junk room,” pretty much consisted of a bed…and junk. The room is quite small, with 2 large windows and 3 doors, so I was concerned with how everything would fit. But I was just not willing to give up the only spare bed in the house right before we have our first kid. People might actually want to visit us now!

But look how it turned out!

It’s a bit of a tight squeeze, but I actually LOVE it! I love all of the natural light that comes in from the windows in the morning (my favorite internet-roaming time). I love that we now have a bed to lay in when we want to watch something on Netflix. I love that, for the first time ever, our guest room actually feels like a completely put together guest room. I’m definitely a happy camper!

Next weekend, our friends from Tennessee are coming into town to visit and help us move Westley’s furniture in (Phase III). I can’t wait to see my old friends! We even gave them (almost) a blank slate to start with for the nursery:

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Nursery – Phase I

This picture makes me so happy! We’ll be turning the office into the nursery over the course of 3 weekends, beginning with yesterday’s closet organizing. 24 hours ago, this closet was filled to the top with storage boxes and did not have that shelving system. Now, I can’t stop smiling every time I walk into the office and see those sweet little clothes hanging there. And as you can see, we’ve been given so much already. Best part? About 90% of what you see (clothes, car seat, etc) have been previously owned. This is way more fun than I thought it would be!

I’ll keep you posted on the progress. Until then, “Rest well, and dream of large women.”

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Mischief Managed

I’m so making this. Love.

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DIY Chevron Stripes

After recently redecorating our living room and bedroom, I see that we need some splashes of bright colors and patterns to balance out the comfy and plain. This chevron painting is the first splash, and I hope to collect some colorful pillows and a throw for the bed in the future. A little bit at a time. I may even get a wild hair up my ass and paint those bedside tables teal. For some reason I see that happening. Crazy?

I’m going to walk you through this incredibly simple process. Here’s what you need:

• Something to paint on (I used a piece of framed art that I couldn’t stand anymore. Just flipped the plywood over and painted the back.)
• Yard stick
• Pencil/chalk
• Base paint color
• Stripe paint color
• Paint brush
• Painter’s/masking tape

1. Paint the base color. I had to paint multiple layers of white since it wasn’t a primed piece of wood. Let dry completely.

2. Measure and mark where your stripes will be using this how-to guide via Apartment Therapy. This is not the kind of project that you can just paint freehand. You need to measure. Trust me. My lines are two inches apart, but I wish I had made the zig-zags a bit further apart. They are almost plain stripes. Oh well, I still love it.

3. Connect the dots with masking tape or painter’s tape. You need to be super precise here as well. Don’t worry, the fun part is next.

4. Paint! Now that the tape is down, this is super simple and fun.

5. Pull the tape off immediately after you paint your stripes. If the paint is not too thick, this won’t be a problem for you. I prefer to pull the tape off before it has a chance to dry because I’ve seen the tape pull off freshly dried paint before.

And you’re done! Super easy stuff, friends! But seriously should I paint those bedside tables teal or what? I’m asking you too, Hubs.

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Addiction

{photo credit: There’s a Dragon in My Art Room}

Holy crack, you guys. I’m so incredibly addicted to Pinterest. It is literally sucking all of the time of the day and night away from me, which is exactly why I put it off this long. I KNEW this would happen. I’ve been on Pinterest for one week and am pinning more than any sane woman should.

That being said, HOW AMAZING IS THAT SHIT WE CALL PINTEREST?!?!?!

I’m getting so many DIY Christmas gift ideas.

For the newlyweds.

{photo credit: Cranny Found Favorites}

For the ladies. It’s a $3 plate and a $4 clock kit. Word.

{photo credit: Making Time TC}

For the busy family.

{photo credit: Crossing Fences}

I’m even finding ideas for improving our humble abode on a budget.

Totally painting our outdated, gold-plated chandelier black.

{photo credit: Apartment Therapy}

And I’m sooo adding this above the bed, but with a mustard yellow and white chevron design. Can’t. Wait.

{photo credit: Creative Influences}

You know what the added bonus is? Free therapy. Free stress relief. Bonus.

P.S. If you follow me on Twitter, you will find me on Pinterest. Win/win.

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Makeover

Yesterday, I had a little DIY fun at home. I gave my dresser a makeover. I’ve had this dresser since the 3rd grade (or sometime around then) and it felt oddly grown-up of me to pry off the the little wooden bows on the side and give it a fresh color. But I’m very happy to bring something from my childhood to my adult life. It should be sticking around for many more years.

I remember when my mom bought this dresser. We didn’t have much growing up, but she did the best she could for us. She was so excited to be able to get me and my sister brand new daybeds and dressers. We were excited too, because these weren’t hand-me-downs. There were OURS. Our very own possessions to hold our other possessions. Glorious.

Now, with a fresh coat of green paint and some new copper knobs, this dresser can continue to hold my things for a very long time.

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Comfortable

Comfortable. That is probably my favorite John Mayer song. It is also how I like to live my life (with the exception of 4-inch heels, which are sometimes a necessity). I want my world and my love to feel…comfortable.

When I walk into a room in my home, I need it to feel like a place where I can be myself. Where I can kick my shoes off and lounge and feel loved by my surroundings. I don’t need my furniture and accessories to be top-dollar and all the rage.

So this past weekend, when I was finally given the chance to change up our bedroom decor, I knew exactly what I wanted to do. Unfortunately, the white down comforter and white bed skirt I chose ended up making our bed look like it belonged in a hospital. My misfortune led to a drunken late-night rage, in which I was bound and determined to solve the problem first thing Sunday morning. And that’s exactly what I did.

It’s amazing what a a few yards of cheap burlap can do, especially when combined with a few Goodwill and Target pieces! Our walls were already brown, so I knew I wanted to brighten it up with a very light colored comforter. I stuck a piece of burlap under the mattress for a rough-cut bed skirt and added a piece to the top for some variation (I would eventually like to get a throw to take its place, since burlap is not at all comfy). We bought an old bookshelf from a friend and turned it into two bedside tables, which make my heart sing. Before this weekend, I didn’t have a table and The Hubs had his college trunk, covered with bumper stickers and such. The tables were a very welcome addition. I found the lamps at Goodwill Sunday morning, and purchased a couple of lamp shades and pillows at Target immediately after.

Finally, I very quickly painted the abstract art above the bed during my drunken late-night rage. I’m pretty sure Drew thought I was crazy, but whatevs. I like how they turned out, even though we giggle every time we look at them because our minds are in the gutter. Why don’t you tell me what you see in those paintings? They are, after all, abstract…

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