Halloween Nursery

At first, I wanted a mermaid-themed nursery because, in my stupidity, I decided I would only take infant girls.  But after hearing in foster class one that waiting for a baby -- any baby -- would be a long, long, long, long wait, I decided that I would make something a little more gender neutral.

I've never been one for pink and blue.  In fact, my daughter wore so many pairs of overalls in her infancy that, paired with her lack of hair, she was called a boy until she was almost two (Sorry, T.)

I wanted something that fit into the decor of the rest of our house, something that reflected the personalities of the rest of the family, so I decided on 

a Halloween-themed nursery!

(Side note:  I've been wearing all black since I was 16.  I met my husband standing in line at a Ramones concert in 1989 in NYC.  I still, in my 40s, wear Doc Martens and heavy eyeliner)

That being said, I wasn't about to go all goth nursery with a coffin crib or anything (come on now, people!)

Instead, I decided to take inspiration from Nightmare Before Christmas.  I painted the walls in varying thick stripes of mat black, grey, and white.  It was quite striking without being too dark.  I put up sheer white floor-length curtains to let in maximum light.  The woodwork was already painted white, so I left that.

Next, I started scouting Facebook Marketplace ads for furniture.  I wanted white to offset the dark walls.  I found a guy who sold me a nearly new matching set that included a crib with a new mattress and changing table with drawers underneath for $150 (he was asking $200 but gave it to me cheaper when he found out that I was a foster mother).  I bought a white three-shelf bookshelf at Walmart for $15 and a used chair glider and ottoman for $20.  

The entire room was furnished for under $200.

Next I bought linens (and I didn't skimp there).  I bought grey organic sheets and bed linens from Burt's Bees Baby with match changing table pads.  I put two floor lamps I had in the attic in opposite corners.  It was a gorgeous room!

I bought a pack of square canvases from Joann Fabrics and painted them the same black and grey from the walls.  Crafty friends of mine used their Cricut to craft friendly/spooky characters:  the moon, bats, a haunted house, a cat, a ghost, and a pumpkin.  It made the room even more unique.

The room was finished and gorgeous and it was only the end of September.  I still had two months of foster class to go before I was even qualified to become a foster parent.  

Still, the nursery was gorgeous!