You assume this kid is actually going to be left alone. I doubt it.

I guess this back and forth begs the question, Who is a nursery for the child or the grown ups? For the child a room need be very functional SAFE and inspirational. IMHO. The room in the initial post would get a 1 out of 10 on all standards, if I were doing the "grading". Babies come with A LOT of stuff. There is no room in "their" room for extra beds, couches, standing lamps. Where is the rocker, the swing, the diaper pail, the stacks of diapers, the toys,the books, the monitor,blankets..... This is maybe passable for a baby's room at Grandma's as long as the baby is not yet mobile. And I disagree this is reminiscent of a nautical theme..unless by nautical you mean underwater cave. This designer found the least desirable color in an ocean and went over board with it. Lets hope this is just for "suggestion" and no real baby is growing up in that dank space.

I saw the room on their show "Guiliana and Bill" It looked much prettier on the t.v., although not to my taste at all. The bed is for the nurse who will sleep in the room with the baby "Duke". I enjoy the show, they're a lovely couple.

DISLIKE. The mirror over the changing table would freak me out. What if it fell? I am paranoid about hanging mirrors in a location where a child might actually bump it. I know there are good ways to secure a mirror, but are there 100% secure ways? (And if so, I want to know.)

I get the same vibe you do. Depression. This does not look like a sunshine-filled place. Does not look happy or child-like. It looks like the room of someone who almost resents having a child change his/her style . . .you know how some people think that a baby is an accessory vs a person?

I am OK with the sofa in there, as it's a good place to nurse the baby (I never had a glider).

All in all, it's an OK place for a newborn but not really beyond that, especially because someone paid money to have it done this way.

I posted about this mama on another thread, but this is a much more kid-friendly place to be. (Link below-- they've since moved from this place.)

Here is a link that might be useful: Soule Mama

The monogram is way too over the top for me. It's a baby for goodness sake. My favorite quote came from Violet Crawley (Downtown Abbey) this past Sunday "Nothing says success like excess". Priceless. Love her.

I don't like the poufs, but otherwise, the room doesn't really bother me. I wouldn't make the same choices, but there is no law that dictates the nurseries be filled with pastels and cutsey stuff. I think the room needs to be pleasing to the parents first.

My children didn't play in their nursery. There were no toys and no swing. We kept those sorts of things in the family room or the playroom. I'm guessing the diapers will be stored inside the dresser/changing table. Who wants to look at them? Maybe the diaper pail hasn't been purchased yet, or it's in the closet. My rocker went largely unused. I preferred to feed my children on the sofa in the family room rather than being sequestered away from everything. My children's rooms are still really only used for sleeping and changing clothes. I like them to spend their time interacting with the rest of the family and not shut off in their rooms.

The floor lamp has got to go.
Nothing says entitled like a monogrammed crib.

I think Soul Mama's place looks like a breeding ground for ADD. Kids have too much stuff and stimulation today, imo. They really shouldn't need that much stuff in order to entertain themselves.

Who knows, maybe baby #1 will be very calm and laid back. More mindful than stimulated by outside forces. It does look like it's a restful place for sleeping. We often read, when designing our bedrooms, to keep the tv, work and other stimulating things out of the bedroom. That's a good plan and will ingrain good habits.

But an interesting design question.

This post was edited by snookums2 on Wed, Jan 9, 13 at 13:56

Not everyone has a ton of stuff in their newborn babies rooms. I sure didn't w/ any of ours.

Diaper pail lasted for the first kid only - too much of a hassle. Trash got taken out on a regular basis so did the diapers.

Our kids didn't play in their rooms until they were old enough to be unsupervised so their toys and swings were in the family room w/ us where we played w/ them. The most time our kids spent time in the nursery was nap/bedtime routine and sleeping. PorkandHam seems to have summed up our household too.

There was a crib, floor lamp, dresser, rocker, bookcase and trash can. Diapers left in the bag beside the dresser. Communal laundry pile in the hallway.

Oh - I did have a daybed in the room w/ the first one. I sometimes napped when he napped in the room w/ him in the beginning.

Okay, the room is dull, but god--this is a b1tchy thread.
To pull that tripod lamp over a toddler would have to defy the laws of physics. Is a monogrammed crib any more entitled or narcissistic than "Ethan" or "Ella" (or whatever the overused name of the 2010s is) spelled out in letters from Pottery Barn? If you look at the rest of the house which is the same dull palette it looks like they were actually kind of cheap-practical and outfitted a former guest room to act as a nursery without turning it into Barbie's orgasmatron nursery. So, what? It will be redecorated with the rest of the house by the time the baby is in a youth bed instead of a crib.

RE: I think Soul Mama's place looks like a breeding ground for ADD. Kids have too much stuff and stimulation today, imo. They really shouldn't need that much stuff in order to entertain themselves.

I have never heard her place described as such. She unschools, has no TV, has her own homestead, her kids are out with her chickens, gardening, etc. Kids are BUSY. I have 5 of them, and so does she. You need to provide them with things to do, and she does . ..open-ended, natural toys, plenty of space and time to be creative. It's easy to judge when you don't have kids. I used to-- I was the perfect parent until I gave birth.

OK, I have to admit that I read bee's initial post and though "Ouch, she's outing someone she knows by name, that's not like bee", then I realized these people are actors (downthread someone said they are on TV), I never heard of them before.

As to the room, as has been said, it's kind of blah and boring, but with some nice elements. arcy, frankly I don't agree with you often, yup, I think nurseries are decorated for the parents, not the kids. But, we co-slept with our kiddo and she didn't sleep in her own room till she was 1 or so and stopped nursing at night, so our "nursery" was the spare room with a crib in it for naps. Our kiddo is now 14 and has just recently started spending extended time in her room, when she was small she dragged everything down to the LR to play with it.

sandyponder

I'm with Bronwynsmom. Me thinks the new mom underestimates how many hours she will spend rocking a sleepless baby in the middle of the night.

Where's the rocking chair?!

That couch doesn't look too comfy for holding and feeding a baby.

Maybe her baby will sleep all night the first night home.

This is the nursery, not the playroom- that's different.
I'm surprised at the dislike of the monogram, that's one thing I like a lot.

"RE: I think Soul Mama's place looks like a breeding ground for ADD. Kids have too much stuff and stimulation today, imo. They really shouldn't need that much stuff in order to entertain themselves."

"I have never heard her place described as such ... It's easy to judge when you don't have kids. I used to-- I was the perfect parent until I gave birth."

This thread is about judging, as I see your own post was. The photo, below, from her blog is the description of her place I'm referring to and comparing to the other extreme in the initial post.

Kids having too much stuff or overstimulation being valid concerns today isn't news, with ADD being overdiagnosed. It's actually a problem for adults as well.

I think it's okay but kind of blah. But wouldn't the squid be disturbing to a baby? At first look I didn't realize the pictures were all of the squid, I thought it was an octopus in the middle and sea snakes on the sides.
(Or, maybe the squid wouldn't be disturbing until phobic adults like me modeled it!)

Other pictures of the nursery do look to have more color in the blues and greens than the original photo which was very gray, as I recall.

Yeah, a baby doesn't know what a squid is. It's not "pretty" but I don't think the image looks frightening. Might be seen as interesting or unusual shapes. Until they learn about the boogey man, lol.

I took a look at the SouleMama's link. Basic early childhood ed in her home- housekeeping, a (very) enriched dress up area, manipulatives etc. I suspect she has a creative art area somewhere as well as a nice wide open back yard to play. Def. not GW decor, but I applaud her efforts to stimulate her children in an age appropriate way. Don't see a TV btw.

I think the art is soft and shows shapes, this uk article shows another view of the nursery, it has layers of fibers and texture, as someone said above it probably presents better on film than in pictures, since it's all neutrals.

Here is a link that might be useful: nautical nursery

This is the picture I saw, showing it much more green blue than the above link.

Here is a link that might be useful: article

re: "This thread is about judging, as I see your own post was. The photo, below, from her blog is the description of her place I'm referring to and comparing to the other extreme in the initial post.

Kids having too much stuff or overstimulation being valid concerns today isn't news, with ADD being overdiagnosed. It's actually a problem for adults as well. "

You are right-- I am judging, and that is hypocritical. I apologize for that. I also fully agree that ADD is a very real issue, though I am not entirely sure it is a problem (some people w/ADD feel it is either just a difference or an actual gift).

However, I am just very surprised that, of all people, you see the Soule Mama environment as overstimulating. In the photo you shared, I saw seating, some books, a stove (or fireplace?) and a simple play area (wooden kitchen . . .handmade, no plastic, no flashing lights, etc.). I am just not getting how this is overstimulating. If you look at pics of her children's rooms, they are very simple . . .if not almost bare. Minimal toys made out of natural materials, and not too many of them, esp. given the very wide age range of her children. They (at least in blogland) live such a "natural" life . . .of freedom, ritual, and peace. I try NOT to like her (ha, ha, so I won't feel bad!) because my life isn't like this, and I do think it's the best for children, but I still do like her very much, and think I can learn a lot from her.

sparklebread, yup, no TV or video games. As you said, all very typical early childhood setup minus big, overwhelming posters or plastic toys . . .most like a Waldorf school but with print in it! Also, like you said, not typical GW decor, but it is very much my style. I like that it looks so lived in and the items are both pretty and useful (not so staged). Apartment Therapy thought it good enough to feature, too. Certainly can't say that about my own home, but I keep trying!

RE: the squid, who knows what children will be drawn to? I remember letting my then 3 y.o. pick out a book from the store, and she insisted on getting a fact book about giant squids. We read that book a million times, and now (almost 8 years later) I still have a certain fondness for squids.

Pal wrote: "Okay, the room is dull, but god--this is a b1tchy thread"

oh come on-- there are some strong comments here but you'll find them all through the site. I've seen worse said to some of our own about their homes and ideas. I am not condoning rude or snippy comments but I take exception to singling out this thread. It's a highly photographed/published room. Some will like it, some won't. Regardless, it's far from a traditional nursery and so it generates some interesting conversation.

Thank you for the appology : )

"ADD is an issue ... though I am not entirely sure it is a problem (some people w/ADD feel it is either just a difference or an actual gift)."

Actually, I totally agree!! But too much stimulation and distraction can be a problem and I think kids/people do need to learn to focus and not feel the need to be constantly stimulated. Some kids rooms aren't geared for sleeping and the initial room was being called bad and depressing for a child. The living room was in contrast to this by example, and some kids rooms look like that. I was trying to point out another extreme.

I look at that living room and see chaos, too much entertainment and visual stimulation (clutter of things to do) in one place. Maybe if some of it was behind doors. I did notice a lot of books. I didn't look around her blog much, only saw some colorful vignettes with lots of little knick knacks. Maybe they made them all together! So, go Soul Mama, she sounds to have a lot of good ideas going for her. We can learn from everyone, imo.

This post was edited by snookums2 on Wed, Jan 9, 13 at 17:34

I like the second set of pics, showing the truer color, pretty!

Yeah sure, except the kid is going to be traumatized by the squid, killed by the floor lamp or the crib and not nurtured by his mother who won't rock him enough.

It's not the critique of the room I am talking about. It's the subtext that the unorthodox choice of color, and octopus, and a floor lamp that an adult might be able to pull over, are all indicators of "poor parenting," sniff.

This post was edited by palimpsest on Wed, Jan 9, 13 at 18:02

For all those who complained that there was no rocker in the room, please note that there is a GLIDER, which current moms feel work just as well, if not better, than a rocker, and is much more comfortable!

Wow palimpsest - your critique of a baby's nursery brings you to the conclusion that they're will be "poor parenting"?

That's more than a bit presumptuous on your part!

That is absolutely NOT what I am saying. I am saying that that is the subtext of some of the snarky posts. Please read for comprehension.

This post was edited by palimpsest on Wed, Jan 9, 13 at 19:40

well, I criticized the squid and I guess that I could have been implying they were poor parents for choosing it. I don't know, so many beautiful things in the sea, why choose a squid? But I realize beauty is in the eye of the beholder. And it's not my house. Maybe the squid legs (?) actually remind the baby of the umbilical cord. :)

The room is much prettier in the colors shown second, imo

Maybe she prefers to rock in her arms, lol.

squid legs... I mean tentacles.

I don't see PAL making that assumption.

I think the room is beautiful, love the color, and the ceiling, and the boat skeleton. And the kid will not be skeered of the octopus if we don't tell him to be skeered.

Nancy

2nd set of photos much better. The grass cloth is certainly a blue-green.

Dark gray walls just seemed so depressing to me.

Glad they are not gray.

Some people put clowns in their kids' rooms. Clowns scare me. They frighten my children, still. So, I guess it doesn't matter about the squid. Whatever floats your boat.

I had a glider 24 years ago when the first baby was born. It was very nice.

Well I'm definitely not going to sleep after seeing that clown picture!!!

I personally like the squid. I mean really, if you had the same colors, whitish against the blue framed by the white, and the picture was a furry kitten (same huge size), we'd all be saying "oh how cute". Or one of the horse prints that are so popular now, we'd be saying how beautiful. A baby won't know a kitten from a squid from from a horse from an alien. S/he will see the colors and form.

The entire room looks comfortable to me. My son's nursery was tiny compared to this room and allowed for only a crib, dresser/changing table, and rocking chair. But if I had room, I'd love to have had seating where more than one adult could have relaxed.

What a difference in those pictures! The gray is drab and depressing, the green, soothing and lovely.
I love it although it's not baby/kid friendly at all in design which is rather puzzling.

I was criticized for my kids' nurseries not being "colorful, playful, or childlike" enough. I feel it's a bit too personal to post photos of their nurseries, but I did something similar to what the nursery in question exhibits--my son and daughter's rooms do not have posters of cartoon characters, they are devoid of plastic toys, we do not have their names spelled out on the wall, and the colors are not primary or bright. Our daughter is in a room I painted a dark chocolate brown several years before she was born. It has a vaulted ceiling and neither of us wanted to take the time to repaint it. She has raw silk curtains in a very pale pink, and white bedding with her monogram embroidered on it in chocolate brown and light pink. I didn't buy into the pink and brown trend that was going on years ago, but was merely working with what we had. On the walls are framed handmade baby clothes that belonged to my great-great grandmother, a venetian mirror, a watercolor of a family home, and an oil painting of a mother and child. It's not a "cutesy" room per se, though there are some frilly touches. She loves her room, appreciates and comments on the scrollwork on her antique furniture (I got a steal on craigslist), the framed clothes on the wall, and the paintings. She has several small bassinets near her crib where she puts her dolls to sleep and, in all, it looks like a room belonging to a little girl who is not Disney-princess-obsessed, which she is not, thankfully....at least not yet!
Our son's room is along the same lines, nothing commercial at all about it, it did not scream "nursery" when he was an infant, though rather had more subtle touches, i.e., a large framed print of the Mother Goose Anthology that belonged to his grandfather as a child, a collection of antique children's books belonging to family members, and inherited pieces of furniture. He loves his room, it suits him, but many people have commented that it is "too drab" or "too sophisticated." I don't see it that way at all. To each their own.

Hey, this is a real person, with real feelings you are talking about. She took great care in decorating her son's nursery, and she can read your words. You are looking at her home. The place where she rocks her son through the night as his first tooth comes in. The place where she lies awake worrying about the same things every mother worries about. She is no different than you, even though you might have style differences. You might have even been friends...if you had given her a chance.

Uhh, She is quite different than everyone here as we all don't have reality shows to discuss and display every part of our lives. So, for that reason only, discussing the very public design of the nursery and any ensuing comments is fine to me.
If someone is going to be in the public eye on purpose, they need some tough skin.

I am going to avoid the whole discussion of kids rooms (although I am on the record as saying there is no reason they should be garish or commercial).

I think the most important take away from this thread is the futility of trying to copy a paint color. I often see posters who want to use a paint because they saw it in another post or a magazine spread.

The colors in Bee's original post are so totally different then the photos posted later in the thread. I wish someone would post them side by side to show how silly it is to try to pick color from photos...

The photos would be a good example for mtnrdredux in her search for nautical inspiration.

My only reaction to that room is that the parents probably plan to move the child to another room once it no longer needs a nursery. Otherwise that's a lot of money to waste on furniture that will get moved out of the room in a relatively short while.

That Soul Mama photo gives me a headache.

Just wanted to point out, as a pediatric occupational therapist specializing in neonates and birth to five, that a young infant can't see much of his/her room decor for a very long time. Babies focus best at 10-12 inches (about the distance from breast to mother's face while nursing, interestingly enough), and they prefer black and white images to color. So if/when the baby could see the large, high contrast squid, it could possibly be a better choice than the colorful, busy, "childish" wall art we typically see in nurseries.

On the other hand, human faces are preferred by babies as compared to other shapes, so maybe that giant clown face Bee posted would be good after all, only in b&w! JK, of course.

I agree with Porkandham.

Any safety concerns can always be addressed later when the baby is moving around more. I noticed a lot of people, in general, don't seem to think of this.

I like the monogram crib but I like monograms. It's not a crib you see over and over.

I'm glad you brought that up Equest.

This post was edited by sheesharee on Thu, Jan 10, 13 at 10:16

The cord on the shades near the crib is a real danger. Not now, of course, and I'm sure they'll fix it.

Babies change,grow, develop FAST. Those that are pointing out the need not to be safe NOW I hope are not suggesting we are to change our nurseries every few months as the child's developmental stages change? As a speech clinician with way too many classes on cognitive development I can tell you then you best stock up, they go by very quickly!! I set my nursery up for the long haul. The hope is to cover a time span until they are ready for a "big bed"--minimally. Safety concerns are forgotten quickly, until the child pulls the cord on the lamp on the changing table, knocks over the standing lamp, scales that free standing book shelf etc. Before the baby arrives is when there is time to think about safety, baby needs, etc. Once baby arrives--there will be many many other things to be attending to.

For sure you never know. My first was walking by 6 months. We were totally caught offguard and had to do a lot of babyproofing quickly! I think the room is lovely.

Then again, my kids are 3.5 and 9 months old and they don't have their own rooms yet. I had planned on it, but it just didnt work out to be the way we wanted to parent. I am sure that makes us seem nuts to lots of people.

I am looking forward to when I can decorate rooms for them.

As for our family room and playroom. Oy! I would never post it here after reading this. if you think mamasoule's room is bad......

I would love to have more room, less toys, and be more organized, but I work a lot, and DH doesnt seem to care too much. I like to spend the time with the kids when I am home, but we are slowly working on organization!

boopadaboo, for sure there is no rush on their own rooms. All our kids have slept mostly with us for a few years except #5. She does not sleep well with us (took awhile for me to figure this out) so she is mostly in her crib. But as others have said, most kids do not spend tons of time in their rooms, esp if you live in a 2 story. I also think room sharing is fine-- or it better be because most of my kids have to share. :)

My objection with the original room was more of a worry of the future, LOL, that it seemed like it was trying to appeal to adults. Sometimes children are seen as small adults (and then unrealistic expectations are set). A room does not have to be garish to appeal to children-- on the contrary. I am assuming unfairly, however, that these parents will view the child as anything other than a child.

I' m still worried about that mirror, though.

Except for the reality tv part, I wouldn't mind being that kid any day, lol.

I'm not suggesting change the room constantly but there are usually small but important changes that can be made that don't take THAT much though or effort. There are things that are more practical to do before like attaching a bookcase to the wall.

I will say I'm someone that doesn't believe in putting 'everything' I own away and padding my entire house for a baby.