DIY Nursery for Two

Making a nursery for two posed a few challenges. One I had no budget which  means spend almost no money. Two I have an apartment, so I can't paint walls,, put in built-ins to conserve space etc.  Three the room is small.

Friends gave us a toddler bed which saved us from buying a new crib or toddler bed.  My crib is a converter crib, but my 18 month old needed to move out for the baby.  Now all we need to buy is a new mattress for the crib.

All of my furniture was mismatched either pieces that were given or craigslist purchases.  Also, I can't brag about the quality of any of these pieces, so painting them was a more than viable option.  I chose to paint all of them white not only to save on cost of only having to buy one color but also to create cohesion in the space.

To add a little spice to my plain white furniture, I painted a bold green stencil on the baby-doll cradle and the end table.  The stencil was a find while going through my parents basement c. 1983. I'm not a big fan of stencils, but I wanted something graphic and bold.  Forcing myself to choose from my already acquired acrylics also helped saved me from spending money.

Space is a HUGE issue in this room.  Using a dresser as a changing table helps.  Keeping baby toys to a precious minimum is also a huge space saver.  A 18 month old only needs so many toys of each variety.  Utilizing closet space well keeps clutter out of the bedroom.  I love using wicker baskets to hold diapers, burp cloths, etc.  The key to good space management is to rearrange  rearrange, and rearrange furniture.  One must find a furniture placement that fools the eye and still lends to a good flow.

I want to give a special thanks to my sister and friend for spending well over 8 hours painting this furniture for me.  :)

Nursery in the Bedroom

My apartment is a functional one bedroom apartment.  When it was rehabbed, the owners turned a spacious one bedroom into a tight two bedroom apartment.  It worked decently using the living space solely as a dining room and the "2nd bedroom" as a living room.  However, I had to get creative when it came time to putting a third person (baby) into my apartment.  I chose to share the bedroom with the baby.

I used a long dresser for myself and one drawer for the baby's onesies and sleepers.  Storage is very limited in my home so I decided to use wall space to hold my cosmetic items.  Baskets worked wonderfully, and they were affordable do to a 50% off sale at Michaels.

The crib had just enough space and an additional piece of furniture doubled as a shelving unit for more baskets filled with baby belongings and a nightstand for myself.

Hanging Laundry Indoors Revisited

Remember this post Drying Laundry?  Well our drying laundry indoors has come a long way.  I have four hooks drilled in the upper corners of the room.  From there rope is strung and clothes pins do the rest.

Drying Laundry

I moved into this new apartment with laundry facilities, which is AWESEOM.  Unfortunately the laundry costs $1.5 a load to wash and $1.5 a load to dry.  Which is way too much. 

Here is me being frugal.