Creatively decorating your baby’s room

The birth of a baby usually generates a happy environment. In general it is accompanied by positive emotions, well wishes, excitement and celebrations. “Children are a beautiful blessing from God’, as the saying goes, and therefore they deserve the best. You can start giving your baby your best by ensuring that his/her first experiences on earth are welcoming and beautiful Decorating your baby’s room should be an exciting experience and you can begin shopping as early as nine months. If you are lucky, and your baby receives baby presents that correspond with the theme of the room, it will reduce your costs in décor. Like everything in relation to children, when decorating your baby’s room, safety and comfort come first, so remember, before you buy any bedding, furniture or other accessories to ensure that they will not be harmful. Decide on a Theme As part of the preparation for the arrival of a new baby carefully choose a decorating theme that you can stick to. This will save you time and money from continually changing the decor. All the same, as your baby grows, you may have to make some minor décor changes such as replacing the cot with a bed, or changing the wall colour. Decorating the room with a theme in mind will make your job fun and consistent. However, since your new born baby will not be old enough to tell you what theme he or she likes, it will be up to you to decide. If you choose to seek the services of a professional interior designer , you may prefer different themes but do ensure that your interest and tastes are clearly expressed and carefully considered. Once you decide on a theme, you can proceed to buying the bedding, furniture and other items for décor.Options for themes are countless; some are gender specific while others are unisex. When decorating a room for a baby girl, an ocean or beach theme is a great choice. It is a calm yet fascinating decorating idea for a baby girl’s room. There are endless possibilities when it comes to imagery which range from seashells and different varieties of fish, to dolphins, waves and sand. It is best to make the dominant colours pale blue and yellow in order for the room to reflect this theme successfully. Another theme to consider for a baby girl’s room is flowers. Here you are provided with many options in relation to variety and colour. For example, you can chose subtle and light colors for natural looking flowers, or wild and energetic colours for bright flowers. Imagery can come in the form or photography, wall art, paintings or drawings. For a baby boy’s room, a great theme to consider is the safari look. Look for unique, colorful fabrics of animal prints or imagery. Paint the walls blue, ivory, or green. Make pillow covers with fabric cut outs of various animals sewn into them. Have a variety of stuffed animals dangling over the cot; frame some colourful childlike artworks of a few animals, a lion, giraffe and a zebra. This theme comes with many decorative options, avoid the temptation to go over the top, rather keep it clean, simple and calm. Choosing Colours Remember that colours communicate different moods; therefore colours you chose will have a tremendous effect on your baby as he or she grows. Green and blues are calm colors that will offer a peaceful and laid back atmosphere. Rich and vibrant colours like red, orange, and yellow communicate a sense of energy and warmth into the room. Paint colours will change slightly with the light, and so before you decide on one, paint samples on small sections of the wall, or if you prefer, place boards in the room and paint the samples on them. Be sure to check on them during the course of the day to observe the effect of sunlight on them.You can introduce colour into the room with other elements such as bedding and furniture. Also use pillows and cushions to give the room a cozy feeling and to highlight your main colours. Depending on the size of the room, place a few colourful rugs on the floor. Ideal places are near your baby’s cot, in front of a chair or in the centre of the room. This will have a transforming effect particularly if the floor is dull and unattractive. You may want to start decorating when it is too early to know the gender of the baby. If this is the case, choose colours that are not limited to a particular gender, such as green or orange. If you don’t feel that you must stick with predictable colours, like blue for boys and pink for girls even if you know the gender of your baby; there are endless possibilities of available colour schemes to choose from so don’t limit yourself! Make the walls part of the DesignUsing the walls in your baby’s room is a great way to personalize the space through colour art and accessories. Depending on what your chosen colour scheme is, don’t hesitate to paint the walls with neutral or bold colours. If you wish, you can go on to paint imagery on a specific section on this plain coat. Imagery can vary from butterflies to simple shapes such as circles or squares. The use of photographs is another way to make use of wall space. Set aside a section and gradually fill it up with adorable photographs of your baby, this will bring a smile to your face every time you walk into the room. Unlike more formal rooms in your home, you can have a lot of fun when decorating your little one’s room, plus you do not have to spend a lot of money to have great artwork on a baby’s walls. Art comes in many forms and you can get it from different sources. You can frame a colourful piece of wrapping paper, or a few boldly printed fabrics for quick artwork. You will be surprised with the different options that you can create if you allow yourself to think outside the box!If you are the creative type or on the contrary are not, but would like to try something out of your comfort zone, attempt to make your own art! It can be as simple and playful as you like. When your child begins to draw, frame his or her paintings or sketches to inject more personality and character into the room. It is true that a new born child will not care much about what his or her room looks like, however, there is nothing wrong with decorating your baby’s room to suit you. Hopefully your baby will appreciate it as she or he grows and becomes more observant! ms.efuahagan@gmail.com The author specializes in Interiors and Fashion.