How to Set Up a Nursery

You’re expecting a baby! Congratulations! Whether you have six months or one month to go, you know you’re going to need a nursery. It might be in a full, dedicated room, or it might be one half of your bedroom. Either way, it needs to be set up well for you and your child.

The three most important features are safety, comfort, and functionality. Keep each of these in mind when purchasing furniture. Let’s look at setting up the baby’s room in detail.

The Room

Before you start purchasing items for the nursery, consider the color scheme you want. Gentle, pastel colors work well. Make sure there’s enough room for a crib, changing table, and nursing chair, with enough space to walk around comfortably.

The Crib

Purchase a modern crib that follows all legal and recommended safety standards. The good news is that most do follow both. Also, get a high-quality crib mattress. The standard mattress size is 51 ¾” by 27 ⅜”, and it needs to fit snugly, with no extra space, within the walls of the crib.

Buy cotton sheet sets for the crib. When the weather is cold, use a wool blanket, and when it’s warm, cotton.

Also, although having air conditioning to regulate the temperature of the baby’s room is a good idea, make sure at it doesn’t blow directly on the crib. Also keep the crib away from any drafts, and out of direct sunlight.

The Changing Table

When you’re up at 2:30 in the morning to change your crying child’s diaper, you won’t want to walk any further than necessary. Because of this, the changing table should be a few feet away from the crib.

The changing table itself should have a comfortable top portion to change your baby, and two shelves, or drawers, beneath it. The top drawer or shelf should contain diapers, baby wipes, baby lotion, and baby powder. The bottom drawer or shelf is a good place to store extra diapers.

Diaper Disposal

If you plan to use disposable diapers, we suggest you get a diaper pail. These can seal diapers and the smell in until full. The diaper pail belongs next to the changing table.

The Nursing Chair

This space is great for both mom and dad. Get a comfortable chair with low arm rests. This chair is for you to sit in before your baby is old enough to sit on his or her own.

Mom can breastfeed or bottle feed the baby here, and dad can bottle feed. You and your baby should be able to feel relaxed and calm here. Get a short side table that will go next to the chair, where you can put a glass of water and perhaps some snacks for yourself.

The Bath Table

It’s best to bathe your infant in the right sized bath, and baby bath tables make this easy. You can roll it to the kitchen, fill the tub with water, and roll it back to the nursery. Of course, it’s important to know the right way to give a baby a bath! A good baby bath table will have spots for various washing supplies and towels. Once the bath is done and the tub dried out, you can keep it in the nursery.

The Blinds

Your baby won’t have a sense of when it’s day or night for months and can be awake, or asleep, at any hour. Because of this, it’s important to be able to make the room really dark at any hour. Ordinary blinds allow too much sunlight through, so install blackout blinds instead. These are typically wooden and thicker than ordinary blinds, and do a great job making the nursery dark, even in the middle of the day.

That covers the basics, and a little more! Taking care of a baby is tough, but rewarding. Expect to lose sleep, but know that a safe, efficient nursery will help make your life, and your baby’s, more relaxing and happier.