Flashback Friday: Tiny Toddler Room

Love That Space: Clio's Brooklyn bedroom, 2009

The Vision: Tribal Beach Cottage

The Elements:
wood blinds, painted vintage dresser, 1950s ceramic lamp, ikea toddler bed, graphic cotton prints (Dwell Studio for Target curtains, coverlet DIY from Ellen Tracy shirting fabric), a pile of handmade quilts, sunny yellow wall, "Dreams Are Real" oil painting, canvas laundry and toy bags, and a graphic African embroidered tapestry as wall hanging.

The Huh? Factor:
Royal Blue carpeting. The rest of the upstairs had been re-carpeted in a sort of mushroom color (which I hated, but at least it sort of disappeared.) This tiny, 6x8 room was inexplicably left with the earlier dark, icky carpet. (I have unpleasant memories of lying on the floor to keep then-2-year-old Clio from getting out of bed, and waking up drooling on that horrible blue floor). But I will say this for myself: the strong colors I put in there sure helped balance it out!

The Analysis:
To be honest, I love this little room. It's our first baby's first room (though not the first version), and since we didn't know the baby's gender, I needed to do something that would work both ways. I've always been glad that it isn't pink! I love that you can use pattern with abandon in a kid's room, and had so much fun doing it here.
Sometimes decorating a tiny space can be rewarding because you're forced to get creative and think about every detail. I love the way the floating shelves offer storage in a way that is visually light and compact, and I'm glad I left the floor rug-free (despite the awful carpeting); breaking it up with a throw rug would have just divided up the space.

What Remains:
The tapestry and the ceramic lamp, though neither is currently in use. (The lamp was once part of a pair, which I would TOTALLY use in my current living room, but one of them broke about 3 moves ago. Booooo.) We gave away the dresser and toddler bed to a very sweet-seeming Mexican family when we sold the house, and though I was so glad to have it go to a good home, these are the pieces that almost made me cry as they went out the door.

Our kids rooms are so sentimental. Send me you favorite nursery shot and tell me all about it! Heather[at]gmail[dot]com