THOUGHTFUL DESIGN SERIES - HENRY'S NURSERY

I am thrilled to have another guest posting for our Thoughtful Design Series! I contacted Mandy after I saw her nursery on Pinterest and was super impressed. I like to call her a triple-threat since her day job is being a photographer and mother, not an interior designer. What?! This girl is talented! Check out her website to see her beautiful photography and enjoy her thoughtfully designed nursery!
  I love creative projects, and designing Henry's nursery was one of my favorites. There are so many little stories behind the items in his room. My overall vision was to create a beautiful nurturing space for our little boy to grow in, but for us to enjoy as well. We spend a lot of time in there and I wanted it to be an great environment for Joel and I too. This room was carefully crafted. I'll share some of the thought behind the design.

1. I bought Rules for My Unborn Son by Walker Lamond for Joel when we found out Henry was a boy. We had fun reading this to him while he was in the belly. The vibe and feel of this book kickstarted the inspiration! We wanted something vintage, but a real and authentic kind of vintage.

 2. My mom and I made the bedding (material and fabric from Hawthorne Threads and Sew Sheri Designs). After searching, I couldn't find anything that quite matched the vision in my head. So, we decide to make it! Same things goes for the blanket on the glider. Knit that myself. The tedious work really helped me prepare for our little boy's arrival. I could knit and while doing so, envision our new life. Creating things by hand is a big deal in my life. So I wanted hand-made stuff in his room.

3. There are lots of finds from antique/thrift store/family members' basements. There were several reasons for this.
a) The room has a vintage feel. I wanted to select items in that vein. I wanted items with timeless, rather than cutesy, baby-ish, feel. I wanted things that he could continue to enjoy as he gets older. Items that he could grow to love. We didn't want to have to re-do his room when he's no longer a baby.
b) I wanted items in the room that would help pull together the story of our family.
c) I'm really practical. These things were really cheap, or free!
 * The cubby/shelf behind the glider was in my in-laws' basement. It had come from an iron factory/plant in Birmingham, AL. Because it was so dirty and greasy, the plan was to throw it away. However, a can of Clorox wipes later, we had a beautiful shelf. We're slowly filling these shelves with books! Stories/books/learning mean so much to our little family.
* The old baseball glove was from my husbands' great grandmother's basement. Joel played with that glove as a kid and dreamed of being an old-timey baseball player. It's fun for him to remember those moments and pass that on to Henry.
* Found the crib on Craigslist for free.
* The antique letter blocks were from Ebay.
* The armoir came from a thrift store and the changing table from a junk/antique store.
* The Noah's Ark came from the same place as the changing table. The quest to find all these things was a lot of fun and helped us build anticipation for the arrival of our little guy. This is how I pieced together the rest of our home as well. Slowly, but surely find interesting and storied items!  

4. The glider was one thing that I didn't mind spending more money on. I figured this chair will get us through many nights and mulitiple children (hopefully). I wanted a good, durable, comfortable chair.  

5. Again, I'm a really practical girl. The changing table was all practical. I wanted easy access to diapers. But I wanted this easy, practical access to diapers to be aesthetically appealing. The vintage gym lockers above the cubby was about achieving storage in a hidden way.  

6. My husband, Joel, wanted me to mention the deer antlers. He went hunting in Texas once. He says its manly. We think it adds a unique touch. The basket behind the antlers came from Haiti. We spend a lot of time in Haiti and this basket was purchased from a man who was using it to carry jewelry for sale in the market. We said that we actually wanted the basket, and not the jewelry and he was both confused, and thrilled.

If I can help you pull something like this together, let me know!

THOUGHTFUL DESIGN SERIES - CHELSEA FROM YOURS TRULY

Hi there! Chelsea from Yours Truly here. I'm so happy to be contributing to Marianne's blog. It's a favorite of mine, no doubt, and I'm incredibly flattered. When Marianne described her design approach as being thoughtful I thought to myself, "exactly". It's just how I think about designing, and it's most apparent in my daughter, Tate's, bedroom. 

1. We have moved a lot, and since Tate has been born she's moved every year of her life. This house print I loved because it reminds me of all the places we've called "home".

2. In tiny print on the bottom of this print, it says, There are a lot of nice people to meet. The faces are all different kinds of people, from different parts of the world. Tate loves meeting new friends, and I thought this was a good little reminder for her to look at.

3. ABC alphabet canvas, hand painted by my little sister, as a special gift to Tate.

4. One of my favorite artists, Lisa Telling Kattenbraker, painted this. It's a little girl holding a bird cage, and various other trinkets and says "waiting for the party to start". It reminded me of how happy and energetic Tate is- always up for a party:)

5- This wooden cradle is a story on it's own (it came all the way from a tiny town in Marrakesh!), but the doll inside was Tate's very first baby doll, made to look like her, and has a little note from me written on her cotton belly. I love these kinds of things!

When searching for Tate's first bed I came up empty handed every time. I couldn't find anything that I liked. She slept on a mattress on the floor for a while, until my grandma called and said she was ready to part with her childhood bed, and wanted to know if I wanted it. As soon as I saw it I knew it was just what I had wanted all along. My great grandmother, grandmother, and mother all slept in it! Sleeping on the floor was worth this. I love having things in my home that remind me of other people I love. I paired it with the modern striped bedding to bring in a little of Tate's tomboy style:)

1. Her desk/vanity is also a family piece. It was my moms when she was a child. I switched out the drawer pulls to modernize it a bit.

2. This great pink velvet chair was a piece that I just stumbled upon. I was living in Dominica at the time when I read on Caitlin Creer's blog that she had spotted this adorable pink chair on Craigslist (and somebody should buy it!). I called on it immediately, and as soon as I got into town, drove up to buy it. Best $70 I've ever spent! 

3. Her teepee is my favorite spot in the house. It's so cozy in there, due mostly to that cute hand knit rose quilt. It was a gift from my mom years ago, and I'm so happy I hung onto it. It's something I hope Tate will also pass along.

On her vanity Tate displays her most special items (with a little help from me because only so many bouncy balls can be special:)

1. Tate's baby book 2. Our little painted wooden family, a gift from her aunt. 3. Tattered old Beatrix Potter classics, that were my moms, then mine, and now hers. 4. New Beatrix Potter classics that are just Tate's for her to pass on.

This room has been filled over time, and with a lot of love, and that's usually how thoughtful design has to be. I'm okay waiting and sleeping on the floor until that perfect piece falls into my lap. I hope you enjoyed, and thank you again for having me!

xo Chelsea