Thank you, The Cotten Thread, for sponsoring this post, How to Personalize Your Baby's Nursery with The Cotton Thread. I was selected for this opportunity by The Cotten Thread; the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.
When it came to decorating Lillie's room, I honestly had the hardest time. I am not sure why but it took me months and months to be able to visualize her little nursery. I adored Ollie's nursery (and still do) so I had set myself up for having a really high bar. I wanted to reuse a lot of the baby items from Ollie's room so we did not have to buy everything new; however, I still wanted it to have its own style and personal touch.
Of course, I did like most gals would do, I headed to Pinterest to look for inspiration. What I found though was a lot of the same styles. They were cute, but just not me. They were far too girly. Too many frills, too much lace, far too much pink. I was already working with a navy blue and teal pallet from Ollie's nursery and I just could not find anything that helped me transition his things to her room.
After some digging though, I found a few great tips through the process that I used to help personalize our nursery without it looking like everyone else's.
Pick a basic color scheme.
This one was easy for us. I already owned quite of bit of the basics from an Oh Joy! Target line from the summer of 2016. This is what I used for Ollie's room and I kind of over bought a little when it came to linens. Because of this, I knew I would have plenty of sheets for the both of them with neutral colors like gray, aqua, and yellows.
Ollie's main nursery colors are navy blue and aqua with a hint of grays. So I knew that I would want to use that same navy blue and aqua in Lillie's room. From there, I hunted down the girl and neutral colored bed set and scored them both on resell or super clearance sales. We didn't know that Lillie was going to be a girl at this point so I wanted to be prepared. I ended up getting both remaining sets from that Oh Joy! line for less than we purchased Ollie's new.
Now with all three sets of bedding and multiple extra sheets, we are set with the basic colors without having too much of a theme. There's only about one sheet set from the girl's line that I wouldn't use in Ollie's room and the same for Lillie's with a boyish looking sheet. Everything else is versatile.
Find a few key statement pieces.
With Ollie's room, we used that Oh Joy! Target line to help us define his space. The boyish looking sheet has lines of city scapes on it so we went with the idea of travel; however, the girl version of that same bedding is merely just polka dots. Not wanting a polka dot themed room, I decided not to really go with much of a theme, just coordinating colors. This required me to find some key statements to bring the room together.
For her room, I found a few pieces that I loved but the color was just wrong. I found this doll house bookshelf off of a Facebook swap and sale local site and this circle shelf at Target. Both great pieces, but neither of them were ideal for our room because of the color.
Thankfully, all it took was some paint and we fixed the problem. I went with navy blue for both of these pieces to ensure that pink did not "take over" her room and I think they look great!
Over her crib, I also found this piece at Hobby Lobby that filled in the large blank wall. Again, I avoid the pink here. And then I had a friend gift me with this circle string art piece with her name on it. Gah! I'm in love with it!
Sprinkle in your personality.
Add a few touches that make the room yours. This can be a token from a family member, an art print that you love, or a stuffed animal from your childhood. I sat back and asked myself, what could I add in her room that wouldn't be in anybody else's nursery to make it ours?
Some of our personality sprinkles include Lillie's Minnie ears from Disney World, the print from Coffee and Crumbs to commemorate our miscarriage with Ellie in 2015, and a few words of truth from She Reads Truth's website.
Make it yours.
One of the things that I wanted to ensure for Lillie's nursery that it did not look like just another nursery on the Internet. No shiplap. No lace. No pink from wall to wall. No vintage modern with unpractical decor pieces once that baby starts crawling...
I wanted it to be usable, grow with her, and ours. By adding some statement pieces and sprinkling our personality while sticking to a few key colors, we were able to make a nursery that didn't look like anything else I had seen.
Add a quote that you love.
Finally, add yourself a quote that you love.
I'm all about quotes so you will find a few of them in Lillie's room. I already wrote about her wooden farmhouse quote previously; however, after a few weeks of actually living in her room, I felt like her gallery wall over her changing table needed one more thing.
The gallery wall was a bit lopsided and then I found The Cotton Thread.
I don't know what it is about embroidery hoops, but I love them. And yet, I do not have them anywhere in my home. One of the things that I love most about them is that they add a softness to a room. They have the ability to add a quote, name, or artwork to a wall without hanging another wooden frame with harsh edges and straight lines. They are each a one of a kind, and there is no other one like it in the world.
I knew I had to have one for Lillie.
The Cotton Thread does custom & designed one of a kind embroidery hoops for your home and mine. Owner, Gretchen, puts in so much care into her work. Once I received my hoop, I knew it was the perfect piece to complete Lillie's gallery wall. Plus the quote, "Isn't she lovely", is something that I want her to ask herself every single day. I want Lillie to believe that as she's going up... she is lovely.
It is perfect.
As you know I love to support small shops, and The Cotton Thread is no exception. Gretchen's art work is so perfect. Her stitches are tight and detailed so I know that the hoop is going to last for years and years to come in Lillie's room. Her shop is filled with so many different designs, from quotes to monograms to flowers and more, each design is gorgeous. It was the best final touch for Lillie's room.
If you are looking for something special to finish off personalize your baby's nursery or needing a personalized baby gift for a friend or family member's baby shower, The Cotton Thread is definitely a shop I would suggest checking out. Her styles are gorgeous and much more versatile than just a nursery. You can find wedding gifts, graduation gifts, birthday gifts for your mom or sister, and more in her shop.
With any small shop, I always love the story behind the store front, so I sat down with the owner of The Cotton Thread, Gretchen, and dug a little deeper about her, her shop, and what keeps her business success!
How did you get your shop started?
Embroidery is actually something I've been doing since I was a little girl. I started with cross stitch and loved to pick out different thread color combinations as well as create my own patterns and designs. I picked it up again as an adult and realized that with it being such a unique style and talent I could totally sell my pieces. And that's when The Cotton Thread was born.
What is the hardest part of owning a shop?
I would say the most difficult part of running my Etsy shop is simply making the time to keep up with my orders. I put hours of work into each and every hoop and am a huge perfectionist...so if it doesn't look the way I want it to I will take out the stitches and do them again until its just right. If I could, I would stitch hours on end every day...but I have a house, a husband, and three kids who need my attention as well.
What is one thing unique about you?
One unique thing about me is that my children all have Beatle's inspired names: Jude, Lucy, and Lennon.
What is the best part of owning a shop?
Something that I love most about owning my own shop is that I can add to the finances of my home while doing something that I completely love. Not only that, but I can express myself artistically and spend time on a hobby that is relaxing and enjoyable for me. Aside from the shop, I am a stay at home mom which takes up most of my time. So having The Cotton Thread is a great outlet for me personally and creatively.
How did you get your shop name?
As far as my shop name goes, I wanted something that flowed and was also somewhat related to the product I was offering. The Cotton Thread is representative of my work and I liked the way it sounded.
What is one way that you keep organized?
As my business began to grow, I knew that I needed to figure out how to stay organized both technologically speaking in terms of orders and finances, but also physically speaking in terms of supplies and workspaces. Etsy has a wonderful seller app that has been huge in keeping the organization of orders and communication easy. I usually have about 6 orders in my line up and I work on one at a time in a constantly rotating fashion. So as I complete orders, I have new ones coming in. Luckily, my customers understand that the hoops take time and they are all very patient and understanding concerning my 4 week turnaround time. In terms of supplies and workspace, I use my profits to purchase my neverending list of supplies. I make several trips to Joann's and AC Moore and Hobby Lobby each month in order to collect what I need to create my art. I have a carpenters workbench in my house where I set up all my supplies and where I finish and package my orders. The post office knows me well. The Etsy app, my system for keeping orders flowing in and out, and my workspace bench have all been key in keeping me organized and on task!
How do you balance family life and work life?
Finding a realistic balance between work and home is always important. Fortunately, I am able to complete my work right here in my own home. My office is essentially my couch. I work while my oldest two are in school and while my youngest naps. I also work at night after all have gone to bed. Summer is a bit more of a challenge since all three kids are home all day, but luckily I have a husband who is extremely helpful and supportive and he helps me find the time I need to work. When all three are in school I will have more free time to devote to my shop, but that is a few years away, so for now I'm balancing my time accordingly. My customers are so understanding and wonderful to work with and they love the fact that I put so much time into my trade because it ensures that they are paying for a product that they will truly love and be happy with. I will only send out hoops that I am 100% satisfied with and that is something that makes my shop stand out. I truly want my audience to love what they see and I won't settle for anything less. I am so lucky to be able to do something that I love all while being a mom which is the most important job of all.
