My baby girl turns 9 in just a few days. I always like to look back at old photos around this time of year and now that she’s older we look together. It’s amazing that places and things I thought she’d never forget, she has forgotten. I decided write a post showing the transformation of her room from Nursery to Tween; it would be fun to do and great for her to look at too. I came across some decent vintage photos last week, although I never had publishing them on a blog in mind when I took them, I think they are good enough to share. What is most important from this post is that you will see how I took Macy’s nursery design to a toddler design; to a whirl wind of changes during our moving adventures; to what she is now an: 9-year-old on the brink of a being a teenager or whats now called a tween. Her colorway has not changed in these 9 years but amazingly enough I have made it work and grow with her. We’ve had some major transitions in our lives but I’ve always made sure that no matter the space, size or shape she has had a familiar room that she was proud of. Now that she has become older with less toys and her own taste we have promised her a design change this winter. She wants blue and I dont blame her! She’s been surrounded by pink for 9 years & I want a change too!
Macy's Nursery 2002
Summer Fruit Bedding From Pottery Barn Kids
Macy’s Nursery
There was no theme for Macy’s nursery. I simple picked what I liked based on colors. Her bedding was Summer Fruit by Pottery Barn Kids and although it set the colorway for her room I didnt add fruit anywhere else. I had a logical reason for choosing a butter yellow color for her walls, I knew the rest of the room would have entirely enough pink in it. From toys and clothes to accessories and art, I didnt need to be surrounded by it on the wall too! But I couldnt resist, the top 20 inches of her wall was a cotton candy pink! It said “baby girl” without screaming it.
Macy's Toddler Room 2006
- Kasey Quilt and Madeline Bed from Pottery Barn Kids
My DIY Version of a Land of Nod storage unit
Macy’s Toddler Room
Out with the baby gear, in with toys! While Macy was still in her toddler bed I created a toy storage unit to vertically house her bulging toy boxes. This is a copy from a storage unit in Land of Nod but mine was custom designed to match her room by me! It was available for years but is gone now so if you like it you’ll have to make it and dont worry, its sew easy! I bought the wire shelving from Bed Bath and Beyond, its not cheap but its sturdy and can be used anywhere later on if you decided to do away with the cover. I made the cover out of 2 pairs of cotton duck cloth drapery. I actually only used 3 of the panels and opted to not cut the 4th because I only needed a small section for the top of the unit. (I saved the 4th panel and used it a few different ways in her room you will see) I added a coordinating stripe fabric on the top, scallop and inside front, but that was all extra and not necessary. I came up with the idea to use drapery because it has a good hanging weight and its already hemmed on the sides and bottom. It also proved to be cheaper than buying fabric by the yard.
When Macy was 3 1/2 she got a big girl bed. The Madeline canopy bed from Potter Barn Kids. To avoid changing the wall colors and the rest of the rooms accents, I went with a quilt and sheeting that had the same yellow, light pink and dark pink combinations. I guess I made a good choose because her Kasey quilt and Madeline bed are still a staple of PBKs collection. The transformation of her room literally happened in a few hours. The white glove delivery put together the bed and we rearranged the room. I made a few additions like the dress up wall but that was basically it, everything else already matched! Her dresser became the nightstand, the rug was a neutral, the shades with ric rack that I sewed on still matched and the yellow fabric and striped fabric on the toy unit were a perfect match to the quilt! Here I used the extra drapery panel on the canopy at the headboard to block an unsightly electric panel.
Macy's Mini Bedroom
Macy's Full size Manhattan bedroom
Macy takes Manhattan
Not long after Macy got her big girl room we had to pack it up and put it in storage :( We moved to NYC and lived in corporate housing that was fantastic but not meant for a child. Macy was small enough that she could fit back into a toddler bed temporarily and we were able to give her a slice of her bedroom design in the corner of our one bedroom luxury apartment in Lower Manhattan. Look at how cute she was! She only had to endure this “mini bedroom” for 5 months until we made NYC our permanent home and transferred our own furniture there. I feel that decorating in a small space is more about editing than adding and although I didnt attempt to do any painting to the 13 foot walls, her beautiful furnishings made her room her own.
Macy 2nd Manhattan bedroom with the view of Trinity Church
Trinity Church bedroom view at Christmas
Macy's 2nd Manhattan bedroom gallery wall
Macy's Manhattan Playloft
The Pottery Barn Kids Kitchen in the Playloft
Macy’s 2nd Manhattan Bedroom
While on our first tour of NYC we moved into a second apartment within the same building and Macy got an even better bedroom. This was her view! A 13 foot window and balcony view of Trinity Church. It was breath-taking during all the seasons, especially winter when it looked like a gingerbread castle dusted in powdered sugar. Her room was similar to the first apartment just bigger. Big enough that we put the christmas tree in there instead of in the living room. This time I did do some decorating on the walls, still not painting but a gallery wall that also had an Ikea shelf as a writing ledge. But most fantastic about this apartment is that Macy got a playloft! Lucky Duck!! It was her little hide away or tree house we called it sometimes. She had so much fun up there!
Macy's Tween Room 2010
Macy's Tween Room Storage Unit and Cafe Table
NC children's bedroom gallery wall
Chinese lanterns over the canopy
Macy’s Tween Room
For our 14 months in North Carolina, Macy’s room was updated from a toddler style but had the same foundation in colors. She had new polka dot sheets instead of fish but we kept the Kasey quilt and pink gingham duvet. We gave her a bolder pink wall and a fabulous chinese lantern installation over her canopy! The largest lantern was illuminated with a switch that she could operate while in bed. We gave her PBK kitchen to my niece Emma, but Macy kept the food and dishes, I couldnt get her to give those up as she still likes to play pretend sometimes! The toy unit was still in use but its near the end of its life and the girly cafe set from Target that she got for her 2nd christmas is soon to be replaced this christmas with a modern boy version for Hudson. And I finally used that 4th drapery panel on a window!
Now that we are back in NYC, Macy and Hudson share a room but their bedroom styles remain separate. She has her half of the room and he has his. We have painted his side but are refraining on hers since she will get an updated look very soon. Check back this winter to see how it turns out!!
