Name: Wyatt (15 months)
Location: Belmont, MA
This nursery is a tiny room that was formerly my closet and it also has a difficult and irregular layout. We made the small space work by using a lot of wall mounted storage solutions like shelves, pegs, and book ledges and keeping the large pieces of furniture to a minimum.
We painted the walls a neutral blue-ish gray and chose all white for the basic furniture and shelves to keep the background light and simple; showcasing the colorful accessories, collectibles, and special pieces like the glossy blue rocker. The palette of primary colors was inspired by the large print that hangs over the crib by artist Brice Marden. We covered the window-wall in colorful floor to ceiling curtains to conceal an unused door and unify the space as well as make it cozy and bright when they're closed and the room is darkened for naps and bedtime.
The nightstand is a DIY project converted from an old skateboard to add extra book storage and also doubles as a walker. We covered the floor in bright foam mats in lieu of a rug and ran them all the way under the furniture for a "wall-to-wall foam" look. The interlocking tiles allowed us to work with the room's odd angles. It's also great to lie down on this soft floor with pillows for family story time, a definite bonus since there wasn't space for any lounging furniture. We all love this fun and colorful little jewel-box of a room.
The rocker is by Inmod (indigo color is discontinued), the curtains and dresser are by Ikea, the foam mats are by Ski-Hop, the mobile is by Flensted.
Thanks Lilly! Readers, visit Lilly at Project Little Smith.
(Images: Project Little Smith)
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That's great but those foam tiles have been found to release formaldehyde gas when stepped on and have been made illegal in a few European countries (Belgium for sure)- so I'll pass...
What a bright and happy room. I really love this!
Yes, please get rid of the toxic foam mat! But, those curtains are AWESOME! I love the splash of colors in this room. Wyatt is one lucky dude : ]
Thanks so much to Apartment Therapy Family for including Wyatt’s little room and @winterviolet I appreciate the sweet remark. Very exciting!
@herselftheelf and @blowingraspberries, thanks also for bringing up such an important point regarding off-gassing. As a designer who spent many years specializing in the specification of healthy and sustainable building products it is a topic dear to my heart. While I completely understand and respect your decision not to use foam mats, I do want to say that we selected this particular mat, manufactured by Skip Hop, after much in-depth research and we are confident that this mat is safe for our home and our son. Formaldehyde is a complicated topic since trace amounts do occur naturally in virtually all materials, yet of course at high concentrations it’s extremely carcinogenic. This is why so many “green” building products which claim to be formaldehyde-free actually do contain trace amounts of formaldehyde and a more accurate term would be “no added urea-formaldehyde” (the dangerous formaldehyde used frequently as a binder in many products). These mats do contain virtually undetectable trace amounts of formaldehyde, as do so many materials. This amount is far below the European safety standards including in Belgium (where they banned foam mats based on other manufacturers that do contain added formaldehyde). After careful research we determined that these mats would actually have less off-gassing once we examined backings, underlayments, and coatings of many alternatives such as carpets that were marketed as “organic” and “all natural”.
Apologies for the long winded response! Again I completely respect your preference not to use these mats and understand the concern. I think it’s an ongoing struggle for all of us to get to the bottom of what products are safe for our families and even when something is marketed as “green” there are so often hidden issues. I know it’s a constant challenge for me.
Thanks again! -Lilly
Lilly, I loved your response. So often comments are made here with a "health" or "safety" veneer by folks who don't have much understanding of the issues involved. You, clearly, do understand them. Your son's room is adorable--you've made a real positive out of what must have been the necessity to use a small space. Looks great, and I bet he has a ton of fun there.
I love this room! And I also want to re-iterate what Lilly said, that while most foam mats are toxic, the Skip-Hop mats are actually not and are not included in the ban in some European countries.
Wonderful, happy room, great use of a small space, and Lilly, thank you for the thoughtful and educational response on the foam mat issue.
Thank you to @herselftheelf and @blowingraspberries for bringing up this concern that I wasn't aware of and thank you to @Mama Smith/Lilly for both being gracious and sharing this healthy alternative :)