How to Have the Most Unique Nursery on the Block

Decorating with art and decor that are meaningful to you and your partner is a simple way to infuse your family's personality into the nursery. I've long collected silk scarves, and I wanted to share their style and beauty with my son. I found a circus print by one of my favorite designers and had it framed to hang above his changing station.

When I couldn't find the lighting I wanted within my budget, I began to think of ways to create it myself. Not wanting to get into electrical nitty gritty, I layered two superaffordable Ikea hanging lighting fixtures — a paper lantern to softly diffuse light covered with a natural wood pendant. To make it extra unique, I wove a vintage French ribbon through the wood slats. Sometimes the simplest style is not only easier and cheaper, but it looks better too.

I tried to balance whimsical and sophisticated touches to create a nursery where both my child and I would enjoy spending time. Decorating with a mix of children's and adults' decor was an easy way to achieve this look; for example, a felted wool elephant head ($160) is framed by succulents in contemporary CB2 vases above the mantel.

While I love to browse through the beautiful nurseries in catalogs, I wanted my nursery to have a more unique and eclectic look, so I shopped for a mix of new, store-bought items, like the crib, and distinctive decor, like the blue Moroccan Kilim rug my Laurel & Wolf designer found from a Tunisian rug dealer on Etsy. It was the first piece I purchased for the room, and it set the whimsical tone for everything that came after.

I knew I wanted a high-quality glider, but every style I liked gave me a serious case of sticker shock. While the glider is an important piece of the nursery, it's not one with versatility or longevity, so I didn't want to splurge on it. Instead, I set up a Craigslist alert and pounced immediately when the high-end glider I loved popped up for sale in mint condition at nearly a third of the new price.

As the nursery design process progressed, I fell hard for the timeless yet exotic look of campaign dressers.The initial plan was to purchase an affordable vintage set or DIY my way to the style, but ultimately I decided to splurge on Pottery Barn Kids's Gemma dressers. Their aesthetic was perfect not only for a baby boy's nursery, but could also fit seamlessly into a girl's room, or our own bedroom down the road. The furniture pieces could eventually even be converted into a bar cart or sideboard. The quality, versatility, and storage potential of the campaign dressers made them a worthy splurge.

Rooms decorated with love and care really do feel warmer and more welcoming. To bring all the love the baby's family has for him into the space, his cousins filled the bookshelf with their favorite childhood reads. They even inscribed the inside cover of each book with a special message to the baby.

If you've ever heard the ooing and ahhing that happens at baby showers, then you already know how adorable baby clothes and accessories are. Instead of hiding them in a drawer, I decoratively displayed a few of my favorite pieces, like these knitted booties grandma bought in Ireland, around the room.

Avoid a stale, straight-out-of-the-showroom look by mixing retailers, styles, and price points. From eBay to Land of Nod, I shopped a variety of sources to give the nursery rich, eclectic style and added flair through small, affordable items, like these playfully striped Ikea seagrass baskets ($19) and the fluffy faux fur accent rug ($120).

The room we transformed into a nursery had no closet, but instead of dragging a heavy armoire into the space to store hanging clothes, I mounted a rod into the wall. It not only gave me a place to put all of baby's hanging clothes, it also put some of his most adorable ensembles on display.

Don't rush to fill in every gap in the nursery at once. It's OK if the bookshelf isn't full or there's a blank spot on the wall. Great design takes time, and there will be plenty of opportunity to fill the space with meaningful mementos after the baby is born. Trust me, you'll be glad you waited and did it right the first time.