baby nursery

There’s plenty of inspiration out there for those who love the traditional and antique-inspired nursery for baby girls, but what about those of you who prefer a more modern look? The tenets that categorize modern design – cool, clean, streamlined and low-profile – aren’t necessarily synonymous with the soft, cuddly and nostalgic emotions associated with newborn babies.

Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to decorate a baby girl’s nursery without having to suffocate in ruffly bassinets or first-edition prints of Precious Moments artwork. Here are 10 ideas for keeping a baby girl’s nursery on the modern side of things.

1. Stripes on the walls. Look for striped or geometric wall paper prints in colors that you like. Or, if you are feeling truly inspired and brave, you can opt to paint them yourself. Even one single accent wall will add a modern aesthetic and it’s something your baby girl can grow into.
2. Stay away from soft pastels. One way to bunk the traditional girl’s nursery is to stay away from the softer pastels and, instead, choose slightly bolder versions of the same color(s).
3. Use a non-traditional color. I love this baby girl’s nursery that used a beautiful deep dove gray, almost charcoal, for the base color and then added swatches of a dusky pink as the contrast. It’s decidedly modern but maintains a completely girlie aesthetic.
4. Use stencils. I think stencils are a wonderful way to jazz up any room in the house. Using a relatively generic stencil, like a tree, a paisley, or some other gender-neutral shape, allows you to glam it up girlie for now but also leaves room for interpretation for potential future buyers or should you convert that room into a study or guest bedroom later on.
5. Mirrored furniture. Metallic finishes and mirrored furniture and furnishings are  trending right now. Look how the mirrored dresser/changing table in this nursery keeps the softer elements of the design from going too traditional.
6. Enjoy a mix of patterns. You have so much room for pattern opportunities in nurseries and children’s bedrooms. Kids are high energy and fun – and their bedroom designs can reflect that. Mixing patterns can be a bit of a challenge but a nursery is a great spot to begin experimenting.
7. Use black. Black is both modern and chic – and it’s rarely used in a nursery design, especially a girl’s. Choosing to use black furniture and accents in your little girl’s nursery will certainly put you on the cutting edge and the results can be visually stunning. Plus, babies don’t see in color very well at first, so you’ll be doing her a visual favor as well.
8. Choose an atypical crib. Keep your eye out for a more uniquely shaped crib. This circular crib is modern in its design and allows for a whole different furniture layout in the nursery since the crib can be placed in the center of the room, or off-center – freeing up a significant amount of wall space.
9. Go neutral. Perhaps the most modern idea of all is that girls and boys don’t have to align themselves with gender-specific colors. A neutral nursery provides the opportunity for you to create a soothing space, filled with books and toys that all children love. Your daughter can pepper her nursery-slash-bedroom with accents of her choosing as her tastes grown and evolve on their own.

Traditional nursery designs are sweet, but they can also lend themselves towards the feminine. For this reason, I’m noticing more families asking about modern nursery ideas for their soon-to-be baby boys.

The following are 9 ideas that can help to keep your nursery a little more masculine and may also help you to transition your baby’s space into a little boy’s space and beyond with the right planning and color coordination.

1. It’s never too early for geometry. Skip the cuddly, soft pooh-bear motif and head straight to geometry. Whether you like stripes, checkers, angles or all-of-the-above, using geometric patterns on the walls, via an area rug or for the bedding will add a more modern and mature element to the bedroom, saving you the hassle of a re-design in a couple more years.
2. Pattern layering. Mixing and matching different patterns is a fun and high-energy way to add a more contemporary design idea into your nursery space. If you’ve never done it before, stick with just a few different patterns and make sure they’re connected via similar color families.
3. Choose a neutral theme. Instead of teddy bears or bubbly planes, choose a design theme that can be taken into the future. Nature themes or adult versions of trains, planes and automobiles can all be done to suit a nursery space without being too cutsie.
4. Go neutral in general. This can be especially beneficial if you are a renter or aren’t sure how much longer you’ll be in your general location. Choosing neutral colors, accents and accessories will yield a tranquil nursery space that can be added to little by little as your child develops his own tastes and color preferences.
5. Use vintage boy decor. One of my favorite things about choosing a vintage design is that there is a hint of the traditional but the result looks modern and hip. The vintage lettering, cool retro dresser and the geometric area rug in this design make for an eye-catching nursery.
6. Choose fun color combinations. Ditch the more traditional hues, like a pastel or navy blue, and choose slightly more bold and unique color combinations like aqua and orange or green and black.
7. Add black. Speaking of black as an accent, using black in the baby nursery can be visually stunning and certainly adds a chic and modern touch. There are so many things done right in this baby’s nursery, including a dreamy paint scheme that creates the illusion of clouds and the black window trip and accents that pepper the room. Also, babies see black and white patterns best for the first few months so having a little black-and-white in the space will provide visual stimulation.
8. Keep it basic. There’s no need to go completely crazy with the nursery. In fact, odds are the baby won’t be spending as much time in there as you think since much of the feeding, napping and changes will happen elsewhere in your home or on the go. This sweet and simple nursery shows that only the basics are required to yield an attractive, contemporary nursery design.
9. Wall stencils. I am a fan of wall stenciling. By choosing a more generic shape or pattern, like this series of trees, you gain a unique and modern aesthetic as well as a design that can be grown into or will appeal to the masses if you end up selling your home down the road.