I am not a Pinterest mom. At all. The term DIY alone makes me want to open a bottle of wine. Don’t get me wrong, I wish I was good at it. But when it comes to creativity I am more of a conceptual creative. Too impatient and unskilled for the executive part. I suck at sowing cute pillow cases, baking terrific birthday treats, fabricating adorable vases and making homemade whatevers. I just can’t. But when I was pregnant I did have a lot of ideas about what I wanted for my daughters nursery. And I couldn’t find these ideas materialized in any store. So I did the unthinkable. I DIY’t. It’s far from perfect and there are a thousand moms out there who would do way better. But I love the things I made for Aya, imperfections and all. So, if you want some easy to achieve DIY inspiration for your baby’s nursery, then keep on reading!

The Baby Nursery Bookcase

“The books transported her into new worlds and introduced her to amazing people who lived exciting lives.” – Roald Dahl

I love books. I have three big bookcases filled with the most amazing books and I want to transfer this love – this comfort really – onto my daughter. So the first thing I bought her was a book (ten really) and the first thing I made her: a bookcase. I had help from my father, because I was eight months pregnant and am NOT a handyman. I handed him a drawing of what I wanted. He made sure it became reality.

How to DIY a baby nursery bookcase:

• An idea of how you want your bookcase to look. I went for a thin design, about a meter and a half high. Draw it out or have someone help you.
• Take your drawing to the store and get the wood sawed in the measurements you need. Or in my case: send dad to store with drawing.
• This bookcase has two side panels, a bottom shelf and then three regular shelfs. It also has a (thinner) back panel.
• Measure everything out and (have dad) screw everything into something that looks like your drawing.
• Pick out paint. Because I was pregnant I chose plant based paint in powder pink. This is non toxic, so you can use it when you are pregnant and around your child.
• Polish the wood, then paint your bookcase with as many layers as necessary.
• You can decorate the bookcase with wooden flowers or butterflies or whatever you like! I chose to put her name on it.

The Wall of Family

“Time it was and what a time it was, it was, a time of innocence, a time of confidences. Long ago it must be. I have a photograph. Preserve your memories, they’re all that’s left you.” – Simon & Garfunkel

Unfortunately Aya doesn’t get to see all of her family all of the time. Some live a little further away. But to ensure she doesn’t forget them, I made this wall of pictures for her. It is very simple, but my first time using an electric coping saw. It is super uneven and far from perfect, but Aya loves it when we stand in front of it in the evening, name everyone and say hi.

How to DIY a baby nursery picture wall:

• Get a big fiberboard (not too thick, around 7 cm), polish it and paint it the colour you want.
• I wanted the edges to be round, so I used the coping saw to achieve that, sort of.
• Pick out frames. I chose frames of different sizes, but from the same range. The side edges are pink so they go with the colour of the board. You can also choose different shapes and styles to create some dynamic.
• Hammer some nails (tiny ones) into the board and put your pictures up.
• Hang the board up on the wall. Or in my case, ask partner to do this, please.
• I added a little angel on the upper right side, for the family members who have passed away but should not be forgotten.

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The Doll House

“The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge, but imagination.” – Albert Einstein

So first thing about this doll house: I didn’t make it myself. It’s from Ikea. All I did was paint it that same pinky color and put her initials on the roof. You can obviously decorate it any way you like. The design of this doll house is super simple, so if you fancy a challenge then you could definitely build it yourself. My wife put it up on the wall and my mom found Aya the most adorable furniture and dolls to put inside. Aya loves it! When she’ll become to old for it, it can easily be transformed into a little cupboard or bookshelf.

The Baby Headband Collection

“A woman whose smile is open and whose expression is glad has a kind of beauty no matter what she wears.” – Anne Roiphe

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Full disclosure: half the time Aya doesn’t like wearing headbands. Or anything in her hair for that matter. But she looks so stinking cute whenever she allows me to fix her hair. So ‘of course’ she has a lot of headbands. And ‘of course’ these needed to be stored somewhere. When Aya gets older we can change the clips and she can use it for necklaces and bracelets.

How to DIY a headband holder:

• Pick a piece of wood you like to use for your headband holder. I used something I found in the pantry. But if you are a little more creative and a little less lazy you can definitely cope saw a lovely design. Maybe a heart or a flower or a star.
• Polish and paint in the desired colour.
• Decide what you want to use to fasten the headbands to. I used Niffy clips. But you can also use little hooks or DIY your own cute little clothes-peg, with washi tape.
• Secure the clips or hooks (I used wood glue).
• Hang up on the wall, et voila!