How To Decorate A Baby Boy Room

When I was pregnant and found out that I was having a boy, all of my parenting dreams disintegrated on the spot. Adorable dresses, slumber parties, Mommy-and-me trips to the nail salon – all gone.

I had grown up, loved, and worked in the fashion and beauty industries for years and just assumed that I would have a girl. It was preordained, the divine order of things. And, as an older Mom, I knew this was my only shot. I went home, stared at the wall and cried.

Then, I had my son. Of course, I was head over heels in love with him and became quickly convinced that boys are the best (they love their Mommies). And while I remained wistful for precious party dresses and tea sets, I learned that baby boy clothes and room decor could be pretty fun (though rumor has it there’s been a distinct uptick in the fab factor since Robot Bunnies came along).

So, without further ado, I offer my experience as a boy Mom, former fashion-and-beauty-industry publicist and current owner of an awesome baby brand to the topic of decorating a baby boy’s room.  

THE PROCESS

1. Select a theme (vehicles, cowboys, sports, etc.), feeling (soothing, fun, quirky) and/or color scheme (neutrals, black & white, primary colors) that you want the room to have. This will be the baseline against which all style choices will be measured. Does it fit or not?

2. Gather images and inspiration. Search Google, Pinterest, and Instagram hashtags, running various terms related to your basic concept (ex. there are 5000+ posts under #safarinursery on Instagram).

3. Use the images you collect to create a working mood board for the room. There are a number of ways to approach this:

• Gather images in a Pinterest board.
• "Screen shot” images and collect them in a file folder on your desktop or print them out and stick them on a foam core board.
• Personally, I like to use an ingenious, layperson-friendly graphic design program called Canva to arrange images into collages as I’ve done with my sample rooms below.
• The main items to consider will be a crib, changing table/dresser, rocker/glider, rug, wallpaper/paint, bedding, curtains/shades, and artwork. Your choices for these items will go a long way towards expressing your chosen theme.

Here are some baby boy decor boards I put together. I hope they provide a bit of inspiration:

 Theme 1: BROOKLYN BABY

Theme 2: BOSS BABY

Theme 3: SOUTH WESTERN BABY

Theme 4: SAFARI BABY

Finally, the most important thing is not to get overwhelmed and to HAVE FUN! Remember, the baby doesn't know much about interior design yet and, depending on how you plan to organize the early days (i.e. co-sleeping), you and the baby may not spend much time in this room initially. Also, once you do decorate the room, it will likely stay that way for quite a few years. So, don't stress. Let it be a work in progress. 

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