I grew up with a sister, and I've always been a girly-girl, so when we found out we were expecting a little boy in 2017, I knew it was going to be a new adventure. I was excited about it, and honestly, soon after knowing I was a "boy mom" I could feel God starting to uncover new parts of my heart.

When it came to the nursery, I wanted to create a space we could all enjoy. It needed to be peaceful, pleasant, perfectly boy, good for a baby, but not so "baby" that it couldn't grow up with him for a few years.

I'm naturally drawn to florals and feminine colors, but I think our baby boy nursery is where my love of the color blue was born. There isn't a ton of blue in his room, but I just learned to love so many different shades of blue through the process, and I incorporated them along the way. A space fit for a boy was a design challenge for me, but it was fun to dig deep to bring together a room that would honor our son and be a space where he could feel loved and comfortable.

The walls were already gray (SW Repose Gray), so we stuck with that. I loved the white and natural wood of the Babyletto cribs, and this choice set some direction for the room. We ended up accenting the room with wood and neutrals, some pops of kid-friendly color, and blues in artwork and accents.

We found the felt cactus at a local art show, the pillow was a gift, the lamp and throw are from Target, the rocker from a local furniture store, Barnett's, and the Peter Rabbit plate is an heirloom from Woody's childhood. I love mixing in new and old, store-bought and handmade, and most of all, meaningful pieces anytime I design a room.

I saw the idea for the floating shelves as a bookshelf and loved it. Being able to display the brightly colored books was exactly the kind of pop I was looking for to keep a mostly neutral space fun and kid-friendly. We found our shelves at Ikea. The painting above the crib is by a local Birmingham artist, Jayne Morgan, which I had commissioned as a gift for Woody our first Christmas together. I love the playful images and colors, and having original art in his room was important to me as it is throughout our home. The crib sheets are another fun pop, and the little brown bear was one of my favorite friends when I was little.

baby boy nursery neutral with pops of color

I really hoped to find a dresser for Fox that he could use throughout his life. I looked for solid wood, classic pieces, but I just could not find one I loved in our price range. So, we ended up going practical and economical with an Ikea dresser. It's worked wonderfully with plenty of space, and I love the look of it, too.

His gallery wall is made up of a combination of original art, prints, and a couple architectural pieces. I also adore his Letterfolk board, which we used for his monthly photos.

Better than any piece we ever could've found for his nursery, was finally getting to be in that space with him in our arms. We had dreamed about him, talked about him, and carefully curated all his items awaiting his arrival. Getting to finally enjoy the room with that little person that all the preparation was for, was the sweetest part.