Nursery Color Inspiration (I need your help!) + 19 Weeks!

As you may very well know, John and I are not finding out the sex of our baby. AH! I know, right? Trust me, I am dying to know, but I know that the surprise in the end will be TOTALLY worth it.

Well, we’re in the process of starting to think about our NURSERY and, well, I really want to prove that gender neutral nursery’s don’t have to be boring! They don’t have to be “conventional” – and so John and I decided on the theme for our nursery and we are so excited.

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you know how much Kenya means to us. I’ve been back twice and my husband came with me this year and a huge chunk of my heart is in that community of Kiria. Well, I’ve taken A LOT of photos on my trips back to Kenya, and we thought what better than to do a KENYAN-THEMED nursery?

We’re going to blow up photos I’ve taken and put them on canvases or large prints and hang them around the nursery. And what better way to tell our child about Kenya and the people and our experiences AND the animals than to surround him or her with photos and memorabilia?

Well, although I have photos picked out, we still have not settled on an overall color palette for the room. And so, I’ve gathered a few of my favorite photos that I’ve taken in Kenya and made color palettes out of them for inspiration.

So, I want to know: which one is your favorite?

[Option ONE: The Crowned Crane]

Kenya & Safari Inspired Nursery Color Palette

[Option TWO: The Watering Hole] Kenya & Safari Inspired Nursery Color Palette

[Option THREE: Zebras] Kenya & Safari Inspired Nursery Color Palette

[Option FOUR: Tiny Santa] Side note: this is probably my favorite photo I’ve ever taken. I took it through the window of our bus on the way to the village one day and I just love the story it tells. Kenya & Safari Inspired Nursery Color Palette

So seriously, which one is YOUR favorite? What do you think would look best in the nursery?

Now for my 19 week update!

still being molly - maternity style: purple blouse, maternity jeans, red TOMS, red bow bagHow far along: 19 weeks!
How big is baby: An heirloom tomato or small cantaloupe
Weight gain: At the doctor’s last week it looks like I’m right on track at about 10 pounds.
Sleeping: Sleep? BAH!
Food cravings: This kid loves milk, ice cream, cheese – anything dairy. But my latest craving this week has been blueberry waffles with powdered sugar on top! NOM NOM NOM!
Food aversions: Still no desire to eat Tokyo Express. Sad times.
Symptoms: Pretty much all the same.
Doctor’s appointment: We go for our anatomy scan next Thursday! I had my 18 week checkup last week and the baby’s heartbeat was steady at 140.
Wedding Rings: Still on!
Movement: On and off. Nothing consistent yet, but when I ate [B]Ski’s for lunch this week the baby was moving like CRAZY afterwards. It’s really all hit or miss.
Best moment of the week: My mother-in-law is coming to visit tonight so I’m really looking forward to spending time with her!
What I’m looking forward to: Our anatomy scan next week! YAY!
What I did / Got for baby: My new mom car!
What I learned this week: The baby can yawn, smile, and frown in the womb right now. SO CUTE.
Prayer requests: Still praying for sleep and better rest. I’m just dragging all the time. I also would love continued prayer for the health of the baby – I’m still in that stage where I’m just so careful about everything and I just want this baby to be strong and healthy.

132 Comments

  1. Pingback: Gender Neutral Nursery Inspiration for Baby #2 - still being [Molly]
  2. Pingback: 19 Week Bumpdate – still being [Molly]
  3. Pingback: The Kenya-Themed Nursery Reveal
  4. Pingback: DIY No-Sew Curtains | Nursery Project
  5. Pingback: The Kenya-Themed Nursery Reveal | still being [Molly]
  6. Pingback: Cheap and Easy DIY Nursery Closet Clothing Organizers | still being [Molly]
  7. Pingback: Nursery Update: Help Me Pick Out a Rug! | still being [Molly]

  14. Hi Molly,
    I vote for #2 because it is the most soothing. Call me traditonal but I think the baby’s room should be a restful place. I hope you are feeling well!

    Reply

  15. I like them all, but my favorite was the watering hold color combination; with the Zebra a close second. Christopher and I also opted to not find out the gender of little Baby Rice! It has been extremely hard and many people are calling us crazy for doing so. But, I know come his/her birthday it will all be worth it and then some!

    Reply

  18. I like the crowned crane! They are all great pictures, but I like the color schemes the best for the crowned crane for a neutral nursery. Purple always makes me thing girl… And the blues and greens make me think boy. Just my thoughts 🙂

    Reply

  20. I love the bold colors of the crane scheme, but I LOVE that Zebra picture! I like those colors too, but would probably opt for a brighter green and maybe a yellow instead of the purple, to brighten it up a bit? I’m sure whatever you do will look great though!

    Reply

  21. I like the crowned crane colors the best! But I think the other photos are more story-telling. Depends on what’s more important to you 🙂

    Reply

  25. This pictures are beautiful!!! What a great idea to do a kenyan themed nursery. I am in LOVE with the zebra thing. I think babies in purple are the cutest thing ever, boy or girl :o)

    Reply

  26. The Crowned Crane…definitely. It has the perfect balance of neutrals and pops of color (especially the red and chartreuse). I could also see you an outfit using these colors 🙂

    Reply

  28. oh one more reason to do zebra or crane or even watering hole is because little kids LOVE animals when they learn language. they identify animals by the sounds they make. so a good portion of my daughters vocab at 18 months is focused on animals and we look at their pics together and make the sounds.

    Reply

  29. I love the 2nd and 3rd set of colors. Some of it will be determined by the availability of baby stuff in that color. For instance, I love orange but could not find much orange baby stuff anywhere. Like sheets … tend to only come in certain colors. Also my greatest advice is to get fabrics that clean easily or are spill proof AND do not get a lot of solid colored furniture which will show stains. Babies spit up, A LOT and breastmilk stains, so count on it getting pretty much everywhere. Then once they go to formula or regular milk, that also can stain or leave a mark. Here is a post I did on my daughters, non girly room
    http://not-going-out-like-that.com/2012/11/05/wallpapered-furniture-diy/

    Reply

  32. All of your pictures are so stunning and I think any one you go with will be an excellent choice! I love the fun colors and originality and they are all perfectly gender-neutral! However, my fave has to be the zebras because 1) zebras are awesome and 2) I can’t get over how perfect that picture is! It should be a postcard!

    Reply

  34. I love this idea for your nursery – SO cute and original. I think the zebras are my favorite, though I really like all of these photos/color palettes; you took some really beautiful photos!

    Sea and Swank

    Reply

  35. A Kenyan themed nursery?! What a fabulous idea! I know I’ve said this before, but I love these baby updates. It’s definitely a great way for your readers to feel like they know you. Also, definitely zebra!

    -Lacey

    Reply

  39. OMG Yes Yes Yes!!! I have a similar idea for our nursery (whenever God blesses us with that joy) using illustrations and prints from the author/illustrator my mom works for (Steven Kellogg) and vintage toys. I love the crane and zebra! WONDERFUL IDEA.

    Reply

  40. Hello Molly – I too am pregnant – due in July – so I love reading up on your blog!
    I love the Kenya theme. We are having a boy and having a robot nursery. We don’t want a “blue” nursery so we are thinking about at light grey and adding colors with artwork, pillows, etc…..so I think that would go nicely as well with your theme and the great photos!

    Reply

  42. Zebra DEFINITELY! The purple colors bring some calm and “sweetness” to the pallette. Second choice is watering hole. Beautiful!!!! 🙂 The colors of Africa are definitely the best 😉

    Reply

  43. I like the zebra one. We painted my son’s nursery yellow and i love it. Good luck choosing a color.

    Agi:)

    vodkainfusedlemonade.com

    Reply

  47. This is probably the most creative idea for a nursery I’ve ever seen. My first choice would be the zebras, and my second choice would be the crane. I hope you’ll post pictures of the nursery after it’s complete!

    Reply

  48. Such a creative idea for decorating a nursery! I Love the crane palette with the fantastic pop of red! I think it would look great.

    Reply

  49. What an amazing idea for a nursery! All of the palettes are great, but I was drawn to the zebra and the crane palettes the most. Can’t wait to see which one you pick!

    Reply

  50. I love this idea! My vote (by a smidge) has to be for Tiny Santa – the picture seems like it might have a bit more meaning behind it and the colors that go with it are vibrant and fun, kind of like you, Momma Molly 🙂 I also really like the Zebra theme colors and the overall graphic nature of the photo. Sending prayers to you and the family.

    Reply

  51. My pick is the Watering Hole – personally I prefer wider shots to close-ups, plus I like the softer colors that go with it! I hate the cartoony nursery themes – I love it when parents do something close to their hearts. What a wonderful idea for a nursery!

    BUMP! So cute! 🙂 I will never get tired of baby bumps.

    Reply

  55. this first one is my favorite!! but I like all of them! 🙂 what a great idea for the nursery!! and I have always loved diary but even more now! not in the first trimester though – all I could eat was carbs. 🙂 but cheese, yogurt, milk I want it all the time!!

    Reply

    1. thank you so much for the feedback, katie!! 🙂 that’s so funny because all i wanted was carbs in the first trimester and now i want dairy all the time, too!!! uh oh maybe that means girl??? hahaha everyone thinks i’m having a boy. this guessing game is fun!

      Reply

  56. i think the last one is my fave……that is the most beautiful and creative idea ever…….that little bump doesn’t even know how awesome their mommy is yet!!!!
    brooke @ what2wear

    Reply

  57. I love the crane picture/color scheme! I think nurseries with grey walls are totally rad these days, and they always look really soothing and make all the colors POP so much! Also, as baby grows, the color is so easy to make into a “big kid” color!

    Reply

  58. Crowning Crow or Zebra – or maybe a combo of the two. The energy of the crowning crow really draws me! Plus the large images of the animals will be easily identified by the baby early on! Add a crisp white/cream/or gray and use the selected colors for a more ‘graphic’ design. You have so many great ideas – have fun exploring them!

    Best wishes!

    Reply

  61. I love the idea! You are so creative. Initially based on the picture I was thinking my favorite was the watering hole, but after looking at the colors that go with them, I’m gonna have to go with the zebra!

    Reply

  64. I totally applaud you for waiting to find out! I love love love the zebra palette! Out of all of them, I think it’s a very subtle balance of the two genders without leaning too strongly either way! Great job pulling colors! That’s definitely something I wish were more of a strength of mine!

    xo

    Reply

  65. I vote for the Zebra theme as well! Love the colors!! By the way – I think it’s GREAT you are going to wait to find out the gender!

    Reply

  66. I couldn’t wait to find out… you have a lot more patience than I have! I like the “Little Santa” color scheme the best. To me, of the options, it looks the most gender neutral. I love that you’re using a theme that means so much to you and your husband. Your kid is going to have an awesome heart because it will have a wonderful set of parents to follow as an example!

    Reply

  70. For some reason, option 2 – the watering hole, really jumped out at me. I guess I’m just a sucker for earth tones.
    Seeing your latest baby info has me thinking that I may know what you’re going to have. I look forward to seeing if I’m right. 🙂

    Reply

    1. i totally love the watering hole one, too!! such a hard decision!! hahaha i would love to know your guess – so many people are guessing boy but then a few others are guessing girl. 🙂

      Reply

  71. I really like the Tiny Santa. Out of them all, it looks the most gender neutral to me. And when the little one gets here, you can always pull out more “gender specific” colors out of the palette. I really love this idea though! It’s awesome you have something that means a lot to you to center the nursery around. It makes it all the more special! Please post photos when the little one’s room is complete, I can’t wait to see it!

    Lindsey
    High Heels and Training Wheels

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.