Today – Decorate your baby’s room on a budget
Guest post
All expectant parents want to give their precious babies the best possible nursery. In these tough economic times, however, the costs associated with giving birth have never been higher which means that there is less money left over in the pot for decorating and furnishing baby’s room. But do not despair! With the investment of a little imagination, ingenuity, elbow grease, and time baby can have the nursery he or she deserves.
Decorate your baby’s room on a budget
Decorate your baby’s room on a budget
Keep it simple
Rule number one is to keep things simple. For example, expensive wallpapers with intricate designs and decorations are certainly attractive, but with a little work you can easily make the nursery walls look just as good, if not better, for far less money. Use child friendly (lead free) paints to colour the walls, choosing neutral shades that will stand the test of time. To apply decorative effects to walls, source stencils and self-adhesive decals; by stencilling attractive baby designs straight onto the painted walls, a stimulating and cheerful design will be achieved for a fraction of the cost of pricey wallpapers. Additionally, creating the designs yourself is far more personal and allows you to tailor the room uniquely to one very special baby. This low-cost decorating method is very adaptable, giving parents the ability to change the décor as baby develops.
Saving money
Many expectant mums get hoodwinked into buying ‘essential’ baby kit they later find that they hardly use. Yes, a cot, a car seat, and pushchair are all stuff that baby will need, but is a designer changing table really necessary? When trying to keep the budget down, think carefully about what is really needed in the nursery. To use the above example, changing a baby’s nappy can be done just as well on a simple, inexpensive changing table, or even on an adapted chest of drawers or dresser – just fix a padded, wipe down changing mat to the top and presto, you’re ready to go!
A great way of saving money is looking for second-hand baby gear – there are some incredible bargains to be found on eBay and other on and offline sources for those willing to put in the legwork. Pushchairs, baby clothes, high chairs, and all manner of infant gadgetry can be sourced second hand at cheap prices. Once families have moved out of the ‘baby phase’ they are usually keen to get rid of bulky equipment to free up space – so get the haggling hat on and drive a hard bargain.
Sleep time
Once baby has arrived it is important to establish good sleeping habits. Newborns spend a lot of their time feeding and sleeping, and not doing much else. To encourage sleep make sure the nursery is calm and quiet, and kept at a comfortable temperature. Blackout blinds are an effective way of shutting out the light and can provide a tranquil environment in baby’s room at sleep time. For an attractive and longer lasting window treatment, interior shutters by California Shutters are an option well worth considering. These people provide all the shutters for B&Q and make controlling the light that comes into the nursery child’s play.
All new parents want their babies to have the very best, and will move heaven and earth to get the most special things for them. It is important to remember, however, that what a baby needs most from his or her parents is to be cherished and loved, and it is impossible to put a price tag on that.
I hope you have enjoyed this post on how to decorate your baby’s room on a budget – you can see more of my money-saving posts here
You might also like this post on nursery wall stickers
