So, we know some folks who run a great little community church in a tiny town called Wahiawa, on an island in the Pacific called Oahu. {okay, disclaimer – when I say “folks” I actually mean, like, MY folks.} Now, my parents are none too shabby when good design is involved. They’ve got a great eye, which has come in handy over the years and MULTIPLE renovation/remodels we’ve lived through, including the restoration of a 105–year-old Victorian. They’ve recently taken on the renovation of their 50’s-era church building from top to bottom, updating the flooring, paint, colors, etc. They chose a really laid-back, island style, but still hip paint scheme – a rusty orange called “Tibetan Orange” for all the doors and bookcases, a deep chocolate brown for trim, creamy off white for all the walls, and and pale “Green Tea” for accents as well. All the paints are Behr from Home Depot. Their logo incorporates the same colors as well.
Last week, my Mom contacted the {ahem} “offices” of This & That, wondering if we could put together a design plan for the church nursery. It’s in the basement level of the building, so it has a small window that is at ground level that lets in a bit of light, but not much. The walls were covered in a series of {I think} Noah’s Ark murals…which did not help with brightening up the space. She gave us a blank canvas (the creamy white walls) and only a few requirements:
1) Budget. Because the church is small, they don’t have a ton of cash to shell out for high end furnishings. Everything needs to be reasonably priced, or built to last.
2) NO FABRIC. This one is important, and I’ve experienced it firsthand. Everything – and I mean EVERYTHING in Hawaii gets moldy at some point. The mold is invasive, it’s everywhere, and fabric is one of it’s favorite homes. In order to create the cleanest, healthiest environment possible for the sweet babies in their church, we wanted to avoid fabric as much as possible.
3) The walls are cinder block and difficult to drill into for hanging things, so keep that to a minimum.
4) Light & bright! We needed to bring in as much light as possible to keep the space cheerful, bright and inviting.
So, without further ado, here’s what we came up with! Links will follow. Enjoy!
Ok. Ready for the breakdown? Here comes the how, where, and especially, the why. Top to bottom.
I snagged a few colors off of Pantone…{oh, Pantone. to know you is to love you.} The green is called Macaw Green – appropriate, no? It’s a bit brighter and punchier than the green used elsewhere, but I felt like it was fun to juice up the colors a little bit in the nursery. The orange, again, is similar to and compatible with the Tibetan Orange used throughout, but a bit more “citrus-y.” Yep. That’s a word.
The only fabric we chose for the room is a simple cotton rug. The flooring is still being finalized, but it will either be polished or painted concrete, new vinyl linoleum (again, both choices to combat mold), or new carpet. Any of those choices will require a bit of softening up for babies crawling and playing on the floor. A cotton rug can be laundered or dry cleaned periodically to keep it fresh. It also is far more cost effective than a serious wool rug. The inspiration was this beauty from Madeline Weinrib and this lovely from Jonathan Adler. Both gorgeous, and both completely out of our cheap & chic price range. Here are a few alternatives – this rug is under $200 for a 5×8, and this runner is only $45!
To add visual impact and fun graphic interest for the kiddos, I thought an alphabet/typography detail would be fun. The vinyl decal is from an amazing company called Harmonie interieure and you can bet your hiney that at least one thing from this gorgeous studio will be making it’s way to my home soon enough. I think the decal could be amazing on anything – walls, furniture, toy bins.
The artwork follows a similar theme – graphic, bright, happy colors and simple shapes. There are a few places to hang prints, so a nice collection found on etsy would be perfect. These three are my favorites: abc print $39; elephant print $29; giraffe print $29. In addition, this Child of God print caught my eye, but I also think that this could easily translate to a painted installation on one of the walls. Simple colors and a sans serif font wouldn’t weigh down the room.
Finally, furniture. I chose some simple classroom storage shelves with clean white bins from IKEA. At $4 a bin, they can afford to buy a bunch. They’re also wipeable and bleachable, which fulfills the cleanliness requirement. Also, I wanted as much white in there as possible, which sounds crazy, but really will help keep the space light & bright!
And, the biggest challenge: how do you furnish a baby nursery without a rocking chair? Upholstered cushions were about the worst possible choice. I immediately thought about the famous and so classic Eames Rocker. Although gorgeous and oh-so-chic, the $450 price tag for the official Eames reproduction chair was not going to work. I was surprised {pleasantly so!} to find two pretty cute knockoffs – one from the ever amazing Tar-jay, and one on overstock. Coming in around $135-$180 is a LOT more do-able.
So there you have it! Our light & bright, modern and fun, chic and oh-so-cleanable nursery. Hope you guys enjoy! And Mom – call me ::the office:: if you have any questions. 🙂
Sarah
Tags: etsy finds, green, inspirations, interiors, modern, nursery, orange, rockers
Next up: our full post on the shower! It turned out to be SO. MUCH. FUN. We’ve got tons of DIY’s, paper creations, and links to keep your little crafty hearts happy. Coming soon!
thisandthatdesign.wordpress.com 
