Moodboard: Scandi nursery in monochrome, mint and mustard

How can I be planning and decorating my son’s bedroom already? This is a horrible example of how fast time flies. George is currently just over three months old and sleeping in a bedside crib in our room still, but, if he is anything like his big sister, he will outgrow his bedside crib and be into his own room within the next 5 or 6 weeks. It is simultaneously the saddest and happiest thing to see your child grow and become more independent, but ready or not, I can’t hit pause on his growth curve so I need to get this nursery sorted because George isn’t hanging around waiting on anyone.

With all of the inspiration available to us via Instagram, Pinterest, and the plethora of online shops trading today, it can actually be really difficult defining exactly what you want for any room that you choose to decorate, and George’s nursery has been no exception. For months I have pondered over what I would like, getting myself all confused in the process. I think I always knew I wanted a scandi feel…but did I want woodland, monochrome, adventure? Did I want grey, yellow, blue, or green accents? Do I want wallpaper, wall decals, paint? Honestly, it’s been a bit of a minefield and I realised that I was going to need to make a mood board in order to clarify exactly what I want.

Mint Green and Mustard Yellow

Funnily enough, the thing that ended up helping me define my first accent colour was George’s comforter. I knew I wanted a muslin comforter because the fabric is safest for children from birth and I like to instill good sleep patterns from as early an age as possible, so after some research I eventually picked the Liewood Agnete Cuddle Comforter in Dusty Mint Green.

And, it was from exploring the Scandiborn website further that accent colour number two cropped up, thanks to this gorgeous little cushion:

So, probably not the most traditional of colour combinations, but I like how it clashes. Paired together with a basic monochrome and grey base palette, I think these colours really pop and add some interest. My problem now was that I had a bunny, and a bear, so what overall theme was I going to work towards?

Canadian Woodland

In the UK, when we think of woodland we probably most commonly think of rabbits, squirrels, badgers and deer. But we don’t have that many grizzly bears wandering around…apart from me in the morning after being up all night with the baby! I toyed with the idea of a sort of Never-Never-Land idea and realised that the addition of all those pirates and mermaids was going to confuse me even more, so that was swiftly veto-ed. After all, this room is the size of a postage stamp, there’s only so much stuff I can fit in there.

So, the Canadian Woodland soon became the perfect solution. A lovely mix of the woodland animals we know from the UK, plus a few exciting ones that the kids will recognise from storybooks and Disney movies: raccoons, bears and moose for example.

Wall Decor

These amazing little wall decals from Scandiborn bring all of the animals in a Canadian wood together perfectly. I couldn’t afford enough to cover a full feature wall though, so, I have decided to use them to decorate the walls of a little over-the-stairs cupboard in George’s room that I’m planning to make in to a cosy reading nook for him. But this leaves me with the problem of how to paint the walls of the room itself to best reflect the theme. I have already undercoated them all in white and am thinking of hand painting some trees onto one of the walls using black and grey paints. Goodness knows how that will work out, but lets just see how it goes and if its a disaster then white emulsion to the rescue!

Natural Wood

In-keeping with the desire to have the room feel Scandinavian (despite the Canadian bears, moose, and raccoons, lol!) I have bought several items in a natural wood finish for adorning the walls and displaying George’s little bits and pieces. These spice racks are from Ikea and I’m sure you have all seen the many ways they are used to display other items for the home. The peg rail and the rabbit mirror are both from H&M Home and were an excellent price and therefore ideal for a cost conscious mum on maternity leave.

Bits and Bobs

I think one of the things that make a room feel special are all of the unnecessary bits and bobs that hang and display and essentially offer no function other than to look pretty. Etsy is an absolute haven for this sort of thing. I have my eye set on a pom pom garland, some fabric letters spelling out George’s name, and lots of cool monochrome artwork for a gallery wall. It would be even better if we could find some mono artwork with accents of mint green or mustard yellow in it. I just need to ensure that the little animals displayed in the artwork don’t venture beyond Canadian woodland animals! Ha!

Furniture

The furniture I selected for the room is actually out of stock now. I got it from Ikea and am still trying to locate the matching wardrobe to complete the set. I opted for traditional white furniture because I figured that no matter what it will always match the decor of any future children that we may end up having…sorry Damon, cover your ears!

I would keep an eye out on the Aldi Special Buys offers if you want white furniture for your nursery: they always have some good items on there and they are very reasonably priced.

The Final Look

As you can see from this little moodboard, there are a few other items I have either looked at, pinned or ordered for George’s room including this cute canopy. I would love a mint green one, but these canopies are not totally budget friendly, although I am sure worth every penny they cost, they are just hard to afford on a maternity leave income! There is a beautiful dusty mint canopy that matches the Liewood goodies I have bought for George from Scandiborn which is the one I remain lusting after. Maybe Santa can bring it for him 🙂