design cred?

Today, Etta and Claire’s nursery (in our old house) is featured along with several other twin nurseries in a post on Parents Magazine’s website. That nursery was a real labor of love, and everything in it besides the cribs and bedding was handmade, reused, or repurposed. It will always hold a special place in my heart as the place we first brought our babies home. Timehop just reminded me the other day that two years ago was the girls’ first night in their room in their cribs– they were ready at 3 months, but this mama slept on a futon in there for a week! Time has flown! Side note: does this mean I can add “design work featured by Parents Magazine” to my resume? Ha!

A year ago we said goodbye to our little rental house and moved in to a place of our very own. When we moved, the girls’ room was the first priority– I wanted them to feel comfortable and at home right away. The biggest difference between their first nursery and their current toddler room is that we left the navy floral wallpaper behind, and had their walls painted a lovely lavender. We’ve also ditched the crib sides for toddler beds (love that our WalMart BabyMod cribs converted so easily!), and added things like pillows and comforters now that we don’t have to worry about them smothering in their sleep (seems like just yesterday swaddling was my gospel and pillows were the enemy, now they have actual bedding!). I gave you a peek when we first moved in, but here’s their room as it looks today. Like, right this minute– I found out that the Parents post had gone live and tidied up a bit so I could show you how the nursery has changed to suit two two-year-olds.

A few other tips I’ve learned– blackout curtains are your friend! We actually have two layers of curtains here– the turquoise blackout shades I got at Target, and, hung behind them using bungee cords, some old brown canvas curtains we had in another house. The sun sets on their side of the house, so summer bedtimes would be impossible without some serious shades. Another twins-sharing-a-room-tip: have a pack and play set up somewhere else in the house. Although our girls are good at sleeping through each other’s cries, if someone is having a truly rough night, she gets removed to a pack and play so that her sister can sleep peacefully. And, finally, if you love a gallery wall as much as I do, Command picture hanging strips are your BFF! So easy to use and they prevent toddlers from pulling canvases off the walls.