Room of the Day: An Ombré Nursery Inspired by a Cold-Weather ‘Babymoon’
A designer with a background in art paints a scene that her baby boy can grow up with
When designer Rebecca Zajac was pregnant with her first child during the summer of 2015, the weather was “about 180 gazillion degrees,” in Las Vegas, she says. For their “babymoon” trip before the baby was born, Zajac wanted nothing more than to get away to a cool place. So she and husband David Zajac booked a trip to Alaska.
One evening in the cool northern state, Zajac snapped a photo of Denali mountain peak, capturing the gradation of sunset colors across it. Inspiration struck: The designer decided to paint an ombré mountain scene on her son’s nursery walls, but with cool tones rather than the oranges, yellows and pinks of the Alaskan sunset.
One evening in the cool northern state, Zajac snapped a photo of Denali mountain peak, capturing the gradation of sunset colors across it. Inspiration struck: The designer decided to paint an ombré mountain scene on her son’s nursery walls, but with cool tones rather than the oranges, yellows and pinks of the Alaskan sunset.
Snapped on the babymoon in Alaska, this is the photo that inspired the ombré mountain mural in Colton’s nursery.
Zajac was eight months pregnant when she painted the mountain scene. She did it all freehand, using zero-VOC paint. The first wall took about three hours, and then once she had the color scheme and balance of the mountains how she wanted them, the rest of the walls took about the same amount of time all together.
Zajac used the existing color on the walls — Benjamin Moore’s Nimbus 1465 — for the second row of mountains down from the ceiling. The uppermost band of color is Benjamin Moore’s Swiss Coffee OC-45. “The top color is the color of the ceiling, so I didn’t have to be really precise,” Zajac says.
The four shades of blue in the mural were taken from a single Behr paint swatch. Zajac chose Behr zero-VOC paint that was thick and didn’t drip much, making painting the mural easier. From darkest to lightest, the paint colors are Smokey Blue 540F-5, Shale Gray 540F-4, Blue Box 540E-3 and Cloudy Day 540E-02.
Zajac added the warm wood crib from the Land of Nod to help balance the cool tones in the room.
Blanket on crib: Roxy Marj; brass mobile above crib: comometalworks, Etsy
Zajac used the existing color on the walls — Benjamin Moore’s Nimbus 1465 — for the second row of mountains down from the ceiling. The uppermost band of color is Benjamin Moore’s Swiss Coffee OC-45. “The top color is the color of the ceiling, so I didn’t have to be really precise,” Zajac says.
The four shades of blue in the mural were taken from a single Behr paint swatch. Zajac chose Behr zero-VOC paint that was thick and didn’t drip much, making painting the mural easier. From darkest to lightest, the paint colors are Smokey Blue 540F-5, Shale Gray 540F-4, Blue Box 540E-3 and Cloudy Day 540E-02.
Zajac added the warm wood crib from the Land of Nod to help balance the cool tones in the room.
Blanket on crib: Roxy Marj; brass mobile above crib: comometalworks, Etsy
Zajac purchased the shelving units at West Elm, and husband David made adjustments to the darker-toned one so that it could hang vertically.
The pouf, from Anthropologie, is taller than an ottoman and provides a comfy place for Zajac to sit while Colton plays on the floor. David is a firefighter, so Colton’s truck has a special significance. “We have a lot of firetrucks,” Zajac says.
Lamp: onefortythree
The pouf, from Anthropologie, is taller than an ottoman and provides a comfy place for Zajac to sit while Colton plays on the floor. David is a firefighter, so Colton’s truck has a special significance. “We have a lot of firetrucks,” Zajac says.
Lamp: onefortythree
The glider is from West Elm. The main rug shown here, from West Elm, is a jute-chenille blend. Layered on top of it is a Safavieh sheepskin rug. The gray sweater-style pouf is from Cost Plus World Market.
Throw pillow: Urban Outfitters
Throw pillow: Urban Outfitters
The room has a niche, and Zajac designed cubbies to fit inside it and surround the daybed. Her handyman, Mike Birdsall, built the cubbies.
The trundle bed is from Ikea and cost less than $600. A similar custom piece would have cost into the thousands, Zajac says. The bed has a pullout mattress that converts it from a twin into a king.
The blue blanket at the end of the bed was made from fabric Zajac buys from the flea market and makes into soft goods. She also made all the pillows, except for the one that’s third from left. Zajac used fabric from Mali and from a vintage Mexican blanket.
The trundle bed is from Ikea and cost less than $600. A similar custom piece would have cost into the thousands, Zajac says. The bed has a pullout mattress that converts it from a twin into a king.
The blue blanket at the end of the bed was made from fabric Zajac buys from the flea market and makes into soft goods. She also made all the pillows, except for the one that’s third from left. Zajac used fabric from Mali and from a vintage Mexican blanket.
Zajac refinished and painted this vintage dresser. The lamp is also vintage, and the alligator is from Anthropologie. The framed prints of animals above the dresser are from the The Animal Print Shop.
“I have an obsession with flamingos,” says Zajac. “If I’d had a girl, I was going to do a pink flamingo-Palm Springs nursery.”
Such a room, like the mountain room created here, likely would not have been too childish. “I tend not to shop a lot at baby stores for nurseries,” Zajac says. “The rug could go in a guest room. Everything is pretty adult, but it still feels playful.”
Flamingo: Target
See more nursery ideas
Such a room, like the mountain room created here, likely would not have been too childish. “I tend not to shop a lot at baby stores for nurseries,” Zajac says. “The rug could go in a guest room. Everything is pretty adult, but it still feels playful.”
Flamingo: Target
See more nursery ideas
Nursery at a Glance
Who lives here: Rebecca and David Zajac and their 8-month-old son, Colton
Location: Las Vegas
Size: 238 square feet (22.1 square meters); 17 by 14 feet (5.1 by 4.2 meters)
Designer: Rebecca Zajac of Design by Numbers