Shelter Reveal: The Nursery

This room, this room is the one that really gets me. Not that the nursery is perfectly designed or because it's going to blow your mind with its innovation, but this room means that there will be one less young, scared, single mom putting her newborn to sleep at night in the back of her car or in a tent on some sketchy street. That image is what made me want to do this ENTIRE project as I can't imagine how that mom feels. So I'm happy to present to you the nursery in the shelter. This room is just for one family, typically a single mom, for the first couple months of her newborn's life. When I was finishing up the job at the shelter, stuffing pillows and arranging kids books, I would overhear the phone calls and almost all of them were moms of newborns with nowhere to go. I just can't imagine. After just having a baby, with as many resources and help from family and outside childcare as I have, I'm STILL so emotional and I still get scared, sad, and irrationally emotional. Not to be a total downer, but the point is that this room provides so much more than a place to sleep. It's a room where a scared mom can bond with her newborn and feel safe, warm and cared for. So was I excited to design it? YOU BETCHA.

Its a tiny little room, sure, but it can house a baby and her mom super comfortably. In usual EHD fashion our goal was to make it feel happy. No matter what style it is, that's usually my MO, and Ginny who was the lead designer on this project, did such a great job.

The before pics are obviously just the new construction. We tried to stop that paint color but it had already been donated and was underway when we were brought in. It is Swiss Coffee by Behr I believe, and it should never exist on anyone's walls in my opinion.  UPDATE: it is NOT swiss coffee by Behr. It's Swiss Coffee by another company. So don't blame Behr :) Meanwhile the reason its bad is that it has so much green and brown in it so in person it washes everyone out in a weird way. 

The new color is Leisure Green by Benjamin Moore, and it's extremely happy, calm and gender neutral. Since the space was small we stuck to furniture that was just white and simple, most of it donated from some VERY lovely companies that were so generous.

I love the family room and the kids play area so much (and the bedrooms), but this room is the one that makes me want to cry, and does. You walk in and you can feel the sweetness and happiness of those first few months and you get a sense that this room, that art, those curtains, that cute daybed, are all going to play a part in that.

I'm certainly extra emotional now since I just had a baby, but NO mom should have to put her baby to sleep at night in the back seat of a car. It's just not the way a life should start and it makes me want to take a much bigger role in this particular area of need. There are multiple rooms for families in the shelter, but there is only one newborn room, and the amount of need out there is insane. The level of vulnerability you feel as a new mom, again one that has resources like myself, is insane. You just feel scared and you need help. Some friends of friends mine have started the Alliance of Moms which is a group of women that raises money and awareness to help foster teen moms with all their parenting needs, resources, education and products. If and when y'all are ready to open up a home for new moms to stay, I'm your girl.

On that note, if you want a simple, happy nursery then here you go. I want to do a quick shout out to the companies involved since this is the last shelter post (I'm talking to you Serena and Lily, Target, Wayfair, Deny Design, Minted and CostPlus). Thank you so much. We raised money (over $30K) but this project was HUGE and that 30K needed to cover a lot more than just decorating. These companies were insanely generous and so easy to work for. No one was trying to push their "spring line" or control any social content, it was just ‘here's a budget, order anything you like' sort of thing. So thank you, thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart. xx

1. Port Wall Shelf | 2. Floral Pillow | 3. Dresser | 4. Distant Island Pier by Julia Contacessi | 5. English Garden Curtain | 6. Floral Art by Kiana Mosley | 7. Geometric Vase | 8. The Blues by Adriana Rojas | 9. Seersucker Blue Pillow | 10. Quilt | 11. Bed | 12. Striped Duvet Cover | 13. Books

*Before photos by Jessica Isaac for EHD. After photos by David Tsay styled by Ginny MacDonald and Brady Tolbert. 

David Tsay, I love you and thank you so much for shooting the shelter. I will forever be in your debt.

See the beginning post here, the first update post here, a last little nudge to our indiegogo campaign here, an art roundup of our favorite work from the artists that have donated here, a big thank you to those who donated here, the family room reveal here, and the playroom reveal here. And check out our feature in the Los Angeles Times!

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