Lucas Wren’s Small, Modern Nursery
Name: Lucas Wren (18 months)
Location: Berkeley, California
Room Size: ~150 sq. ft.
When you’ve got 150 square feet and no closet to work with, decorating your child’s room poses special challenges. Lisa Jackson found solutions to these issues with a fantastic blend of high end pieces and affordable design.
As a graphic designer and owner of Good on Paper Design, Lisa pulled from her experience and her love of modern aesthetic in putting together Lucas’s room. The family needed the room to be versatile enough to store all the baby gear and to grow with Lucas as he gets older. By using a muted palette of grays and ivories, Lisa could add bits of color here and there and still leave room for changing up the decor when Lucas’s tastes develop.
How would you describe the look and feel of this room?
The look and feel of this room is modern/neutral with pops of color like orange/coral. For warmth and texture, I added a cream wool braided rug in front of the crib and woven felt toy bins. I would also say it’s a good mix of high end and low end design.
What specific design choices did you make in order to facilitate transitioning from a baby room to a toddler room, and beyond?
I designed the room so that it wasn’t too babyish or cartoonish so that Lucas could enjoy it as he got older. I decided on a gender neutral palette of gray, cream, black and white with pops of color. I framed graphic posters that were not specifically made for kids but still appropriate.
What is your favorite piece or element?
My favorite pieces in the room are the two framed pirate themed screen printed posters. They were designed by creative studio Office for 826 Valencia in San Francisco. It’s a little unexpected but seems to fit just right. Lucas loves pointing to the ship.
What was the biggest challenge decorating this room?
I think the main challenge was the fairly small space and lack of a closet. I found a wardrobe that fits perfectly in the little nook where a closet would go. Luckily there was already a built in shelving unit when we moved in which helps with storage.
What do your friends say about the room?
Our friends are so sweet. They say it’s a room they would want to have for themselves. That’s the biggest compliment.
Do you have any advice for parents who want to decorate using both high end and affordable design?
Think about the items you’ll want to keep for a long time and spend more money on those pieces. Other things like shelving and toy bins could come from somewhere affordable like Ikea or the container store. We also received many hand me downs from friends, family, and neighbors which was so nice. I also bought things that have multiple uses such as the Simple Human garbage bins that act as a diaper bin.
If money were no object, what’s your dream source?
Everything Oeuf!
Source List:
• Crib, Wardrobe, and Dresser: Oeuf
• White bookshelf: Ikea Lack
• Felt toy bins: Parkhaus Berlin
• Alphabet poster above dresser: Binth
• Alphabet poster on the shelf: Present & Correct
• “Things I Like” poster on shelf: Richard Perez
• Hamper: Hable Construction
• Wallpaper near the entrance: Alan the Gallant
Thanks, Lisa!
(Images: Lisa Jackson)
• ROOM SUBMISSIONS Have a kid’s space you’d like to share? In addition to working with some readers to feature full tours, we share the best as “My Room” posts on Ohdeedoh — short, quick tours of great rooms. Submit yours here.