8 Favorite Toddler Beds

I'll admit that I originally thought that toddler beds were a complete waste of money - why have an extra piece of furniture that your child will quickly outgrow when you can go straight to a twin bed? But then we made the switch with Violet and I changed my tune. She just didn't feel comfortable at all in a big, tall twin. As soon as we purchased her little toddler bed from IKEA you could instantly see her relax and get excited about the prospect of a big girl bed for the first time. While it may not be for everyone, if your kid is anything like mine you will be in need of one of these pint-sized life savers, so here are eight of my favorites:

1. Kalon Studios Caravan Divan Toddler Bed: $595
2. RH Baby & Child Tate Toddler Bed: $399
3. IKEA SUNDVIK Toddler Bed: $149
4. Oeuf Classic Toddler Bed: $648
5. Land of Nod Jenny Lind Toddler Bed: $399
6. IKEA OVRE Toddler Bed: $139
7. Kalon Studios Echo Toddler Bed: $1045
8. Ados & Co Handmade Massive Lime Junior Bed: $845

We went with the IKEA SUNDVIK for Violet because we loved the look AND the price, but if I had a little more wiggle room in the budget I probably would have sprung for the Tate or Jenny Lind toddler bed. The others are way out of our price range, but they're oh-so-pretty! The other thing I like about the toddler bed is that when Violet does finally outgrow it, it will fit quite nicely in our tiny nursery. So how did it go for you? Did you kid go straight to the twin or did you need a transition piece? I'm hoping that the big girl bed transition goes a little smoother for Lucy when the time comes! xo, Lauren

5 of My Favorite Cribs Under $1000

And last but not least, if you can afford to splurge on a crib, here are five of my favorite cribs under $1000!

1. Kalon Studios Caravan Crib: $695
2. Dwell Studio Mid-Century Crib: $980
3. Nursery Works Loom Crib: $649
4. Oeuf Sparrow Crib: $760
5. Oeuf Rhea Crib: $670

P.S. 5 Favorite Cribs Under $400 + 5 Favorite Cribs Under $200

5 of My Favorite Cribs Under $400

In my last post I chose my five favorite cribs in the under $200 price range. But if you've got a little bit more wiggle room in your budget it can really open up your options in the crib arena. Here are five beautiful cribs under $400:

1. Babyletto Hudson 3-in-1 Convertible Crib: $379
2. Honest Collective Crib: $399 (I love that when you purchase one of these cribs, The Honest Company will donate one to a family in need)
3. Babyletto Skip Convertible Crib: $299
4. Karla Dubois Oslo 3-in-1 Convertible Crib: $399
5. DaVinci Highland 4-in-1 Convertible Crib: $389

P.S. 5 Favorite Cribs Under $1000 + 5 Favorite Cribs Under $200

5 of My Favorite Cribs Under $200

When we put Violet's nursery together, we were on a shoestring budget, especially when it came to home decorating. But that doesn't mean that you can't have a stylish nursery. I did a lot of shopping around, made use of hand-me-downs and yard sale finds, and did a few DIY projects in order to decorate the space within our means. Sometimes I feel like I see all of these gorgeous modern cribs in my favorite nurseries, and their price tag is like a mortgage payment. If it's doable for your family financially, I say go for it, splurge on the crib of your dreams! But if not, don't despair - these five cribs are all under $200, look great, and will be perfectly lovely for your little guy or gal:

1. The Classic Jenny Lind - This one is definitely a favorite for me (obviously since it's the one I chose for my girls' nursery!) - I love the classic look and its versatility. The Jenny Lind will look at home in most any space - whether the style is modern, eclectic, classic, or vintage, the Jenny Lind is kind of a chameleon that can hang with most any look. At $159, it's a little more expensive than the one we purchased (it was made by Delta and we paid $103), but that one doesn't seem to be on the market any longer.

2. The IKEA SNIGLAR - Clean lines, warm wood tones - simplicity at its best. This is my favorite crib from IKEA, and at a price tag of $69.99 it really can't be beat.

3. The Baby Mod Modena - This is another crib that would work well in a lot of different nurseries - modern, woodsy/rustic, or even traditional. It comes in a variety of colors and sneaks in just under the $200 mark at $199.98.

4. The IKEA SUNDVIK - At $119 this is a little pricier than the SNIGLAR, but it comes in gray-brown, white, and black-brown, so if you're looking for a non-wood toned option, this is a great bargain.

5. The IKEA GULLIVER - The most expensive of the IKEA cribs, this one is $129, which is still one of the best looking and most inexpensive cribs out there - really IKEA gives you, as always, a lot of bang for your buck. It is available in both white and birch.

And if you're looking for more options, check out my favorite 5 Cribs Under $400 and 5 Cribs Under $1000.


P.S. 6 Tips for Decorating a Nursery on a  Budget and 16 of My Favorite Sources for Crib Sheets

Elsewhere

Sorry for the silence this week! It's been a rough one for me and my family. Nothing we can't handle - just been a little overwhelmed lately by life. In the meantime here are my posts for the week from over on Apartment Therapy Family:

Creative Solutions for Small Space Play

A Nursery Starts with Art: Inspired by Banquet Atelier & Workshop's Cactus Print

Happy Friday! xo, Lauren

Violet's Bedroom

We've been working for what feels like ages on my daughter Violet's big girl room. It was a slow transformation from what I've dubbed a 'zebra bordello' to what we have today. (If you're curious you can see the before's over on my personal blog here). With a toddler running around we don't have much time, and our budget was tight, so we did things slowly and over time.

The starting point for the room was actually the rug. I had purchased it years ago on clearance from Anthropologie, and while I still love it, it no longer worked in the space for which it was originally intended. So rather than wasting a perfectly good rug, we decided to use it in the one unfinished space in the house - Violet's room. Working around this rug was a bit of a challenge for me. It definitely limited my color palette, as there aren't a huge amount of colors that go with chartreuse green. I was saved when I came across this lovely color palette over on Creature Comforts.

I was actually pretty excited to use pink, as I definitely did not use traditional girly colors in her nursery.   I knew that I didn't want the walls to be pink just in case she got a little older and decided she hated pink, so we went with a creamy neutral. That left me with the bedding and dresser to douse in as much pink as I pleased. I originally scoured Craigslist in search of an inexpensive antique dresser to paint like this one over on Making it Lovely. But when I finally found the right piece, I just couldn't bring myself to paint over that beautiful wood. Despite that I still felt that the space needed a pop of pink, so I painted a color block behind the dresser instead.

On the other side of the room I went in search of pink bedding. I hit the jackpot when I came across this lovely polka dot bedding over on House 8810. I gave Violet a billion pillows, because she loves to have pillow fights and make pillow beds on the floor. (Thanks to her Aunt Nikki and Nonny) I made two of them myself from linen that I purchased at a local fabric store. The sheets were purchased at Land of Nod and the larger sham came from Restoration Hardware (on sale). The smaller pillows were from Land of Nod, Etsy and Pretty Little Things by Lori Marie. At that point the room was starting to feel really traditional, and I prefer a combination of traditional and modern, so I mixed things up a bit with a modern bed from West Elm and bench (actually part of a closet system) from IKEA. I made the bench cushion myself - I purchased two-inch foam (on sale at 50% off!) from Joann Fabrics, used some left over fabric from my daughter's nursery, and pinned it all together. Eventually I'll get around to sewing it, but I ran out of time before we left for our vacation. It's holding up fine for now! :)

On the largest wall I went with a pull-down map that I found on eBay for $5. I had originally purchased it with the plan to paint over it, but the Mister convinced me to save it. (Luckily the colors happened to go quite well in the space). I'd been coveting this Up poster from Fine Little Day for quite some time, so that went up on the wall as well, as well as this Adventurers screen print from Fifi du Vie. These removable wallpaper decals from Love Mae jumped out at me on Pinterest and I thought they'd be perfect in the small space above the bench. The last wall that needed something was above the bed. I really wanted to use this Daydream wallpaper by Julia Rothman for Hygge & West, but I had hit my budget limit at that point. So I decided to freehand a similar mural myself ($2.80 for a paint sample jar from Home Depot) I went with a minty color for the simple fact that I'm completely obsessed with it at the moment.

I didn't have any particular theme in mind for the space - I just put together things that I love and that I thought Violet would love as well. Overall I'm pretty happy with how the space turned out, and Violet loves playing in there until we make the move out of her crib. (Very nervous about that!)

This post got a lot longer than I had planned, so I'll list all of the sources below and if you have any questions let me know!

xo, Lauren

Narrow Leg Bed - West Elm
Dottie Quilt - House 8810
Dresser - Craigslist
Bench - IKEA
Bench Cushion - DIY
Bench Fabric - Jo-ann Fabric
Zinc Letter 'V' - Anthropologie
Gray Sham - Restoration Hardware Baby & Kids
Pink Polka Dot Sheets - Land of Nod
Striped Pillow - Urban Ecology
Floral Pillow - Skinny LaMinx
Star Pillow - Hello Milky
Large Round Pillow - Land of Nod
Small Round Pillow - Pretty Little Things by Lori Marie
Linen Pillows - DIY (Fabric from Joann Fabric)
Doll - Pretty Little Things by Lori Marie
Dancer Bear - Lieschen Mueller
Map - eBay
Adventurers Print - Fifi du Vie
Bear & Antler Hooks - West Elm
Christy's Cottage Dollhouse - Melissa & Doug
Bedside Shelf - Michael's Craft Store
Umbra Horizon Crunch Cans - Container Store
Up Poster - Fine Little Day
Book Shelf - IKEA
Star Pillow - Colette Bream
Swallows Wallpaper Decals - Love Mae
Curtains - IKEA
Large Rug - Anthropologie 
Faux Sheepskin Rug - IKEA
Eleanor Frameless Mirror - Pottery Barn
Star Garland - DIY
Tissue Paper Tassel Mobile - FleurLux
Squirrel Lamp - Anthropologie
Gold Mushroom Lamp - Mokkasin
Handpainted Blocks - How Now Design
Gnome - MOMA Store
Terrarium Postcards - Quill and Fox

Lovely Little Things: Nursery Neutrals

one: Coconut Flower Pendant - Pottery Barn Teen
two: woven hamper - Brookfarm General Store
three: Anne-Claire Petit knitted rattle - Rakuten Global Market
four: NUMERO 74 Taupe bed sheets - Smallable
five: wooden mushroom - Etsy seller Naomi Gallery
six: h-luv Owl - flora & henri
seven: Robin Crib - Oeuf NYC
eight: Moths Print - Sarah Burwash