When we were planning Lucas’ nursery, I knew I didn’t want it to be too ‘boyish’, I wanted something that would grow with him as he would, not that I would need to change once his personality had developed. I also didn’t want to surround him with too many stereotypical boy items. We went with a nautical theme, I bought wallpaper that is blue, adorned with white birds. I don’t see the blue as a boy colour but the colour of the sky where the birds are flying.
We also considered a woodland theme. This owl mural is from Wallsauce.com and gives a touch of colour and personality without being overpowering, you can order the mural to the size of the wall ensuring it fits perfectly. With both nautical and woodland themes I think colours and items can be added as the children grow and develop their own personalities.
What do you think of gender neutral nurseries? Do you prefer them or would you like a baby’s room to be typically a boy or girls room? I have asked a few bloggers what they think are the benefits of gender neutral.
Hannah thinks it gives your baby/toddler an opportunity to develop their own style and preferences. They see so much stereotypical ‘boy’ and ‘girl’ stuff on TV and in shops that she thinks it’s a good idea to have a more creative and free approach to decorating their bedroom.
Jemma didn’t find out the sex of either of her children before they were born so they went very gender neutral (cream with a jungle mural and lots of animals). It also meant that when the second came along and they had to reshuffle the rooms, the nursery was still perfect for the newborn. They had a girl first and a boy second.
Lucy said ‘We did most of the decorating before she was born, and even though we thought she was a girl, we didn’t want to make it too feminine just in case!
I was never a “girly” girl, and always wanted a blue bedroom myself. It’s entirely possible she’ll follow in my footsteps. My husband had a real vision for what he wanted to do for the nursery, and had since before she was even on her way. He wanted three walls cream and one a dark navy with accurate constellations. He’s not had any strong opinions about decorating the rest of the house really, so he deserved to get this one!’
Jenni said ‘We didn’t find out what we were having either time, so went with neutral colours. But it’s also great for siblings with different tastes sharing a room, regardless of gender. So even after having two boys and setting up there room in our new place after moving house, we’ve kept neutral colours for the boys’ room (white, cream, monochrome) for things like furniture, rugs, storage baskets etc. and then they can stamp their own personality on it with their toys and other accessories. My younger boy loves bold strong colours, like red, blue and green, and my older boy’s favourite colour is pink.’
Raimy ‘I think it’s a great starting point in life. They are told so much what they should and shouldn’t like when they are older so I introduced a gender neutral room that Spike could grow into. It started out with a bright star theme and as she’s got older there’s now a hot air balloon duvet set and pictures and touches that she’s picked out in there’
Nikki thought she was expecting a girl and then a boy came… ‘When I was expecting my baby girl, we decorated everything in pink and pastel shades. Lovely pink ballerina light shade with beaded tassels, pink bedding, cream curtains with embroidered pink stars, you name it. So, when my baby girl was born as a baby boy it was a bit of a surprise. So perhaps a gender neutral room would have been a better plan!’
