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!’
Deborah Butler (@SuperBusyMum) says
That rainbow nursery is just gorgeous! Oh to have another little one to decorate a nursery for!
Hannah Denton says
I adore the grey and white striped theme! It’s beautiful! Very current
Rebecca | AAUBlog says
I much prefer a gender neutral setup, the colours are much more appealing in my opinion
Sarah Bailey says
I’ve never really thought of this due to the fact I don’t have kids, but I’ve always thought if I did have a child I’d want the gender to be a surprise so I would have a gender neutral nursery too.
Ana De-Jesus says
I personally love Gender Neutral rooms but then again I wouldn’t think anything of putting a boy in a pink room! Its a great colour!
Rhian Westbury says
I think gender neutral spaces are always good especially when there’s more than one child like a friend or cousin coming round. I love the rainbow detailing x
Elizabeth says
Now that I think about it, all three of my children’s nurseries/bedrooms have always been gender neutral. Lots of bright colours to stimulate, but nothing typically ‘boy’ or ‘girl’. Love that wallpaper with the birds though!
jadelikessheep says
I personally think people look into gender way too much my children have never had anything pushed onto them but my son loves trains, diggers and monster trucks (5) and my 1 year old when a selection of toys is about will always go for the baby dolls and picnic sets. I think people should just decorate a room on how they like x
kirstyralph11 says
I think it’s lovely to have a neutral nursery. We did the same for our baby. We opted for a green instead of pink or blue (even when we knew the sex) I love the addition of colour to brighten it up x
adriana says
I agree! It does make things easier. It’s often fun to go all out for your baby boy or girl though!
CurvyGirlThin says
I really love these ideas – I’ve always liked the idea of a little fox motif in a nurse (potentially as we had foxes on our wedding stationary).
C x
Laura Dove says
I love a gender neutral nursery, I’m not a fan of pink or blue and I think grey is always the perfect choice for little ones!
Emily Leary says
The idea behind it really appeals and if I’d only seen the photos I don’t think I would have thought anything other than ‘what a lovely nursery’, which I think is great.
Home and Horizon says
Such lovely things all together in one room. I love it. It’s somewhere in the middle really – not girly or boyish for any one. Nice ideas!
Hannah says
I think it’s all down to personal preference and I personally like the idea. X
Katrina says
My nursery is gender neutral and I love the style of it
melissazia90 says
I much prefer the more neutral colour rooms. These nurseries are nicely decorated