creating a space for the twins

creating a space for the twins

• 10.24.2017

Alternate title for this post would have been "The Nursery" but for whatever reason, I feel awkward about referring to the twins' room as the nursery. So instead, we've taken to calling it either "their room", "the babies' room", "the twins' room", etc.

When we first moved to SF, a 2 bedroom apartment was a non-negotiable. We know lots of new families who make a 1 bedroom work for SF when they first have a baby...but 2 babies? Not really possible. Luckily, we were able to find a place with 2 small bedrooms so that the tiny aliens can have their own space (and we can have an extra closet for storage).

I knew from the beginning that I wasn't into the whole "nursery theme thing". I didn't want to spend a bunch of money on specific decor that didn't have a function. I also didn't want to over decorate the space or make it feel cluttered. I wanted to keep it really clean, functional, and minimal. And I'd like to think that I achieved that goal! It's easy to get in way over your head with all the Pinterest inspiration but I tried to avoid getting sucked in.

So here's a little tour of their room:

The dresser is the Hemnes 8-drawer from Ikea that everyone raves about for baby rooms and works great with a changing pad on top. It's holds a ton of stuff and works great in the space. Pro Tip: We hired someone to build the dresser because...no. I was not about to do that 7 months pregnant. The chair is the Ikea rocker that we found on Craigslist for $50!

The shelves above the dresser are also from Ikea and I like that they serve a functional purpose and are also decorative. The baskets, stuffed animals and lamp are all from Target. The pink and grey baby blankets were knit by my mom! 

The print is a painting done by one of my coworkers from a photo I took while we were in Africa. As much as I didn't want to do too much of a theme, there's a bit of an African vibe throughout the space.

The baby safari animals are from an adorable Etsy shop. She makes so many amazing prints. I had them printed at Staples and put them in the Ikea Ribba frames. Craig meticulously hung them with precise measurements.

The rug was an amazing find from a Canadian furniture brand that we stumbled upon during a trip to West Elm. It was one of the first things we bought for the room. It's a $600 rug that we got for $99! It's so soft and cozy and will be a great spot for the twins to crawl around. 

We went with the Ikea Sundvik crib because they were inexpensive and because we're not planning to save these for years and years. Maybe we'll convert them to toddler beds at some point but you just can't beat the price. The mattresses are also from Nook.

Since earthquakes are a thing here, it's apparently not a good idea to hang something hard or heavy above a crib lest it fall on the baby (the baby animal prints were originally hung there). I wanted to put something on the wall that helped fill up the blank space but was also soft. Pinterest (and Erin!) helped lead me to the craft project pictured above. I ordered a bunch of fabric from Joann's, tore it into strips and then tied it to some string. I love how it turned out because it adds a textural element to the wall without being overpowering. 

For carseats, we chose the Uppa Baby Mesa mostly because we knew we wanted the Uppa Baby Vista stroller and I didn't want to deal with different adapters. These snap into the stroller frame tandem style (front and back). 

Along the same lines of using something functional as decor, I wanted to incorporate a way to store books that also served as a bit of a design element in the room. These Ikea spice racks were the perfect solution. I love that the bare wood ties in with the other bare wood elements in the room. 

The books were either gifts or sneaky finds at the $1 book sale that we went to in the Marina the other weekend. 

You can also see the stroller frame in this photo which I'm sure won't spend much time folded in that corner and has now found a new temporary home in the closet. It's not the lightest but it's super functional and sturdy. It has two "regular" seats as well as a bassinet.

The quilt is one that my Aunt made me when I was a kid and I've had it for as long as I can remember. 

And that's it! Really neutral and simple in my opinion. It feels calm and not overwhelming but still cozy. I hope the twins love it!