While sites such as Ohdeedoh are wonderful for nursery inspiration and exposure to baby/kid-oriented furniture and decor, it’s no secret that the majority of the stuff they feature are…well, expensive.
It was never our intention to go all-out on Claire’s nursery, the reasons being that the rest of our condo doesn’t contain high-end furniture (95% of our stuff is from IKEA), and she really wouldn’t care what her room looks like because she’s just a baby.
That being said, Claire’s room has become quite a cozy nook. It was completed on a low to mid-range budget — we spent less than $500 total, but if we include gifts it would total a little less than $1,500 — and I feel that it’s not too hideous. Since this is a nursery budget range that is not found often on the web, I wanted to share it with my readers, complete with the prices for each item (if available) and where we acquired them.
First, here are some pictures (sorry for the quality — they were taken with my camera phone because someone brings the camera with him to work every day):
I wish we had pictures of what the room looked like pre-baby, but I unfortunately do not. Suffice it to say that it was a typical guest bedroom with a queen-sized bed and a dresser-mirror unit. It also housed my digital piano. The walls were painted a pale green by the construction company before we moved in, and we haven’t touched it since.
As you can see from the pictures, the only thing we moved out was the bed. We kept the dresser-mirror and placed a changing pad on top. (This was a great idea because not only are we saving space, the mirror keeps the baby occupied during changings.) We have no room for the piano elsewhere in the condo, so we decided to keep it in the nursery for the time being.
All the stuffed animals and wall hangings were off-registry gifts, so I will not be listing them below.
Here are the items we received as gifts from our registry:
- Newco Jayden Glider/Recliner, Babies”R”Us, original price $399.99 but $320 with 20% off coupon which my mother used.
I love this chair. It’s super-comfortable even for this short-legged gal, glides and reclines (the bottom part folds open like a La-Z-Boy), and I honestly couldn’t tell the difference between this glider and some of the more expensive, $1,000+ gliders. The few times that we experienced minor spills, the liquid beaded up on the micro suede fabric and so the clean-up was quick and painless. The color looks a bit greenish in the pictures, but in real life it looks very close to how it is pictured on the BRU website. - Simmons Beautyrest Beginnings Sophisticated Crib and Toddler Bed Mattress, Babies”R”Us, $179.99
I just picked out the firmest mattress they had at the store. It does its job, and I can’t complain. - Natures Purest® Hug Me Organic 4-Piece Crib Bedding Set by Summer Infant®, buybuyBABY, $199.99
The design and color are very gender-neutral and the fabric is super-soft. The crib bumper has an adorable (but not over-the-top) swirly design that Claire loves to stare at while she is drifting off to sleep. This was definitely one of the more luxurious items on our baby registry. - Summer Infant Day & Night Handheld Color Video Monitor, Babies”R”Us, $179.99
Unless you are planning on co-sleeping, I very, very strongly recommend a video monitor! This one isn’t too fancy (our friend has one that can be moved with a remote), but it does what it’s supposed to do. - 2-Sided Contour Changing Pad by Colgate, buybuyBABY, $39.99
A typical changing pad. Nothing special. - Natural Organic Cotton Velour Changing Pad Cover, buybuyBABY, $14.99
We registered for two of these and received two so that we can change them out every couple of weeks. Again, nothing special but nothing to complain about. - Crane Adorable Penguin Ultrasonic Humidifier, buybuyBABY, $34.99
It does its job. I need to get some humidifier cleaner because it’s starting to develop some calcium scales.
Total: $984.93 (We are blessed with very generous friends and family!)
Items we purchased ourselves:
- Graco Lauren Classic Crib, Babies”R”Us, original price $179.99 but purchased for $144 with 20% off coupon
Very solidly constructed and perfect for our budget and minimalist tastes. - NYFORS Floor Lamp, IKEA, $79.99
We wanted a floor lamp with a dimmer and this does the job. - ALVE Laptop Table, IKEA, $69.99
I have wanted this ever since it was released two years ago. Right now it serves as a side table that folds out for extra space, and I figure that I can use it as an actual laptop table for myself once Claire gets older. - RiverRidge Kids Horizontal Bookcase, Target, $49.99
Not the greatest quality product but it is the right size and suitable for our needs. - Thermal Insulated Blackout Curtains, Overstock.com, $54.99
I wanted cheap blackout curtains, and J wanted something red (what do you expect from a Chinese dude?). ‘Nuff said. - MINNEN Toy Box, IKEA, original price $14.99
So I just noticed that the website depicts the box with a fabric lock. What the? We got no lock with our purchase! - Fisher-Price Precious Planet 2-in-1 Projection Mobile, Amazon, $36.54
Everyone raves about the Infant Stim-Mobile, but Claire was bored by it and liked the rotating animals, moving projected images, and sounds of this mobile much better.Last, but not least…
- FABLER rug, IKEA, original price $34.99 but purchased for $20 at IKEA’s semi-annual sale.
Again, the crappy phone camera does not do it justice. It’s freakin adorable in real life. It’s also the only rug in our condo, and as such, Comang is in love with it. Homeboy thinks it’s his personal throne.
Total: $470.49
Oh, the speaker on the bookcase and the controller beside it are part of the Sonos Wireless Multi-Room Sound System, which was previously in our bedroom. We decided to move it to the nursery so that we can listen to tunes while playing with her. And if need be, we can control it from our computers from a different room.
I think I covered everything. Please let me know if you have any questions, or if I missed any items!
