A Vintage Floral Baby Girl Nursery (Part 1)

Baby girls deserve a nursery as adorable and sweet as they are. When I started planning my baby girls nursery I knew I wanted it be vintage floral themed. In this post I break down how I designed this sweet room, my fave sources for nursery items and what I would do differently NOW.

When my first baby girl was born, we lived in a two bedroom apartment. I desperately wanted to design a sweet, cozy room for her but she lived in the master closet for her first several months of life. (It was spacious, she loved it, ok?) When we purchased our house her room was at the top of my list. It’s the best feeling to have a soothing and calm place to rock your sweet baby.

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A Look Back at Where We Started:

Here is a glimpse of Charlotte’s nursery from our home listing. Besides having the most hideous light fixture known to man, it wasn’t terrible. I love bead board in certain rooms and was originally planning to keep it. Then one afternoon, something came over me and I ripped all the bead board off the walls. I pivoted plans at that point and decided I wanted board and batten.

Board and Batten Transformation:

Board and Batten is probably my favorite wall treatment. I wanted the room to look truly custom and I felt the best way to make it have that feel was to do the entire room instead of just the back wall.

Thing to Consider When Applying Board and Batten:

If you decide to do a board and batten wall in your home, you have to decide if you are wanting to go floor to ceiling, just half or 3/4 of the way up.

It’s also important to consider what kind of crown molding and trim you want to add. I wanted this whole room to have an antique feel so we opted for chunky baseboards and a simple but beautiful crown molding.

The actual process of board and batten is so easy, anyone could do it! It was our first time dealing with a project like this and we knocked it out in about two afternoons. I’ll be creating a Board and Batten 101 easy tutorial another day.

The Perfect Paint for Charlotte’s Vintage Floral Nursery:

I decided that I wanted the whole room to have a very seamless, muted feel. Because of this, I opted to paint the doors and trim the same color as the walls. If doing a monochrome look, I recommend semi-gloss sheen for trim and eggshell for the walls.

Anyone who knows me knows I am not a big pink girl. My wardrobe is tan, gray and black. However, I was determined to not just paint the room white or gray. I wanted it to feel more custom and unique. I found this gorgeous color from Sherwin Williams after testing literally 15 paint colors.

Paint color is: Pink Phenomenon by Sherwin Williams

It’s the softest mauve-y pink shade that brings an absolute feel of sweetness to the room.

Mix New and Vintage Items to Create a Cozy Space

In almost every room of my home, there is a good mix of new items, antiques I found on FB martketplace and thrifted items. I think mixing antiques with new items is what makes a room look cozy and custom. I also love adding antiques because it means there is truly no other room like it!

Something Old…

Here are a few of the antique items I added to the nursery:

This sweet little dresser is from the 1800’s and cost $75 on FB marketplace. My original plan was to sand this down and re-stain it in a walnut color. After sanding it, I could not get rid of the red tones in the wood. PSA to always inquire what kind of wood it is before you purchase! I could have worked on this longer with bleach and pickling stain, but I really needed a quick fix so I opted to paint it white for now.

I’ve hung on to these vintage art frames for abut 6 years now, looking for the perfect spot and hanging above the crib is IT. I’ve seen similar frames multiple times in various antique stores. They are perfection for this space.

This adorable vintage sewing box was $30 at an antique store.

Sweet little details like a vintage sweater, chippy paint, and of course you have to use an antique baby hanger or a wood hanger.

Something New…

There are some items for a nursery I think you are better off buying new. Most of the time, anything upholstered I opt for NEW, especially if my baby is going to be all over it! When selecting a rocker for Charlotte’s nursery, I knew I needed something super functional. A vintage rocker is beautiful but usually they aren’t as easy to rock in/comfy as a newer model.

I ended up selecting THIS ROCKER for the nursery. I absolutely love the sherpa material and haven’t found anything close as far as softness.

THIS light fixture is a dupe of the much pricier Anthropologie version. It’s surprisingly bright and goes perfectly with the floral theme of the room.

If it’s your first baby, it’s worth buying a good quality crib! You can find a plethora of Jenny Lind cribs on FB marketplace. I highly, highly recommend Jenny Lind cribs. They are so easy to style and bring an antique feel to any nursery. You can easily paint them if you change styles later on. The crib in Charlotte’s room is a Jenny lind from FB marketplace I bought for $15. It was white and I painted it black! I’ve had to touch up here and there but for the most part, it’s been awesome!

Another no brainer for this nursery was a Rifle Paper rug. They have the most beautiful floral rugs and wallpapers. This rug is INSANELY soft and perfect for a nursery.

Charlotte’s Vintage Floral Nursery

Here is what we have for Charlotte’s vintage floral nursery SO FAR:

It’s hard for me to share rooms in my house if they aren’t totally done. I still have lots of things I want to add to Charlotte’s room BUT I’m getting comfortable with the in-between! Reality is: projects take a long time, budgets get tight and not everything is a home-run the first time.

That said, I LOVE this nursery. It’s cozy, sweet and my baby girl loves playing in her new room.

I MIGHT close myself in here sometimes when I’m feeling overwhelmed. The whole room has such a calming energy.

Charlotte loves her reading nook!

Links to Charlotte’s Vintage Floral Nursery Items:

• Jenny Lind Crib
• Rifle Paper Rug
• Sherpa Rocker
• Sputnik Floral Flush Mount
• Anthropologie Gleaming Primrose Mirror
• Anthropologie Floral Tapestry
• Plan Toys Dollhouse
• IKEA Picture Ledge
• Large Natural Woven Basket
• Gold Floral Curtain Rod
• Mauve stripe Pillow
• Mushie Crib Sheet
• Gold Brown Velvet Curtains Blackout
• Opalhouse Rattan Weave Lamp
• Rattan Rocking Horse
• Faux Olive Tree
• Kitten Bandit Art Print

If you like this vintage floral style, check out the following blog posts!

10 Vintage Style Flush Mounts

How To Create a DIY Leaded Glass Window

What do you think of Charlotte’s Vintage Floral Nursery so far? Drop your questions below!