Using Creative Art for the Nursery

When decorating a new arrival’s nursery, you don’t have to stick to the usual teddy bears and pastels. There are so many more options available today. Research has shown that bright colors, especially black, red and white, are better for eye development in the early months. Big bold shapes are also good, as they help with focusing.

Here are a few creative art project ideas you can easily make for the baby’s nursery.

Fabric Letters
Get some red, black and white fabric and cut out shapes, numbers and letters – or the child’s name -- and arrange them on the walls. Try to use fabric that doesn’t fray (ask the clerk at the fabric store for assistance in the choice). By soaking the pieces in liquid fabric starch (a spray starch works well), the pieces will stick to the wall after it dries, without damaging the surface. This is great to use in an apartment where you may not be able to use nails.

Handprints and Footprints
Decorate the room with the baby’s handprints and footprints. Make a stencil of the print, or if the baby cooperates, actually put the paint on baby’s hands and feet and press on the walls. Each month, you could make a new set of prints to add to the design, to watch your child’s growth. Write your baby’s age on each footprint, so you can see the change.

Family Photo Tree
Paint a simple tree on one wall. Collect nice pictures of the family: parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles and cousins. Hang them on the tree. There are a lot of attractive and inexpensive picture frames that would work nicely. If you don’t want to purchase frames, you could even use different color photo mats, and use those to attach the pictures to the wall.

Wall Quilt Collage
Collect baby wallpaper samples to create a “wall quilt” collage. Lay the wallpaper pieces out, and try to use as much of a variety as possible to create a nice pattern. Options: If you’re in an apartment, the samples can be attached to poster board and then hung on the wall. Or, instead of using wallpaper samples, gather the cards from your baby shower and use those instead. “Frame” the art with ribbon to make it look like quilt binding.

With a little time and creativity, it doesn’t have to cost a small fortune to have a unique nursery.