How to Create a Stunning Neutral Woodland Themed Nursery
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Designing a nursery is an exciting part of preparing for your baby’s arrival. I was so excited to decorate our Woodland nursery in anticipation my son Bryson’s arrival.
My husband, Korey and I, are nature lovers, who love to hike and go on outdoor adventures. So, of course, we ended up going with the woodland nursery theme.
A woodland themed nursery is warm and inviting, bringing the cozy elements of nature indoors. This theme allows for so much creativity, and you’re not boxed into certain design aspects.
In this blog post, I’ll share how I created our woodland-themed nursery to help spark ideas for your own space. These tips will make it easier to bring the woodland theme to life in your baby’s room. You can also use them as a general guide for designing a beautiful and functional nursery.
Our Woodland Themed Nursery Paint Colors & Accent Wall
I knew when picking our paint colors, that I wanted to go with earthy neutral colors for our woodland themed nursery. An earthy green was a must-have color for me. When I think of the woods or the great outdoors, green is the color I think of first.
The main paint colors we chose for the walls were Basil and Alabaster by Sherwin Williams. We added a board and batten accent wall painted in Basil. The rest of the walls were painted in Alabaster.
The accent colors that I selected for Bryson’s Woodland nursery are beige and black. You will see these colors throughout my son’s nursery. I incorporated the beige accent color into the room with beige room-darkening curtains. I also added a matching throw pillow and rocking chair.
Personally, I think you could use Basil by Sherwin Williams in a baby girl’s woodland nursery. However, if basil is too dark for your taste, you may want to go with a lighter earthy green. Colors like Dried Thyme, Evergreen Fog, or Retreat by Sherwin Williams are great colors. Sage paint colors by Sherwin Williams are also some great options for an even lighter accent wall.
Accent Walls
Accent walls are usually one specific wall in a room that differs from the other walls in the room. They draw your attention to one specific area of the room and add visual interest to a room. An accent wall can be as simple as just changing the color of one wall in the room.
My husband is very handy, so we decided to create a board and batten accent wall in our son’s room. The end product of the board and batten is in the photo above.
Here is a list of common accent wall ideas:
- Different Color Accent Wall: just painting the focal point wall in a different color compared to the other walls.
- Shiplap: horizontal boards that slightly overlap and tightly seal.
- An example of this is in the post by Making Joy and Pretty Things called “How to Plank a Wall for $30 DIY Shiplap.”
- Board and Batten: wide vertical boards alternating with narrow strips of wood, which are called the battens.
- Wall decals: very thin sheets of vinyl with one printed side and one adhesive side, like this woodland one.
- Panel Molding: thin strips of trim or molding that look like picture frames on the wall next to each other that creates a paneled look.
- An example of panel molding is seen in this post called “Wall Molding in the Nursery” by the Wood Grain Cottage.
- Wallpaper: a decorative material that comes in rolls and is applied with adhesive to create patterns, textures, or designs on the wall’s surface.
- Here is an example of a nice woodland wallpaper to cover an entire accent wall or part of it.
If you’re up for a more involved DIY project than just painting, consider creating a full accent wall. It’s definitely doable with a bit of time and effort. There are plenty of videos and blog posts online that explain how to create an accent wall. My husband and I watched one on board and batten and were able to recreate the wall.
Additionally, have fun with it, don’t stress, and take your time. It is fun learning something new and feeling accomplished when you make something look beautiful.
Woodland Theme Nursery Furniture
Looking for furniture can be an overwhelming experience due to these following reasons :
- There are so many sites selling furniture
- If you’re on a furniture budget like I was, finding affordable pieces can be tough. It may take time to find quality furniture at a reasonable price.
- The furniture must fit the space
So here are my quick tips for choosing furniture:
- Be patient, don’t just choose any piece of furniture
- Refrain from buying furniture sets in the same color
- Determine what aesthetic you want (modern, boho, traditional, etc.)
- Measure the space before buying
- Don’t buy expensive furniture your child will grow out of
- Get a dresser for changing diapers instead of a diaper changing table because you really can’t reuse a changing table
My goal was to choose furniture pieces that were different colors that had a modern aesthetic. My first quest on the furniture hunt, was to find a forest green dresser.
Changing Dresser
Let me tell you, it was challenging to find a dresser in this color on a budget. However, I dug deep and found this forest green dresser that doubled as a changing table. I absolutely loved the color and the modern aesthetic it brought to the room.
Quest for the Perfect Crib
My next quest was to find a modern light oak crib for Bryson. The crib is usually the central focus of the room. It’s the first piece of furniture that you see when you look into the room.
Take the time to find a crib you truly love. I was set on a neutral, modern, oak-colored crib and kept searching until I found the perfect one.
The light oak natural crib I chose has thin slats and slanted legs, which I paired with this simple mattress. The crib stood out more because of the contrast of the light oak color against the basil board and batten. We added this adorable handmade woodland mobile to the crib and hung it with this Sorel + Fern baby crib arm.
We needed a piece of furniture to store books, toys, and other items my son received. I added this white cube dresser to the room. It worked perfectly for all of our son’s extra items that we did not have a place for.
What you can expect to receive for your little one that you’ll have to store:
- Books
- Baby Toys
- Stuffed Animals
- Milestone plaques
- Baby self-care items (brushes, thermometer, lotions, pacifiers, etc.)
- Linens: baby blankets, crib sheets, towels, burp cloths, and washcloths
The cube organizer really worked out for all the extra items as we had limited space.
You will spend a lot of time reading, singing, and rocking your baby to sleep. A rocking chair or glider is a must-have item for your baby’s room.
I found our swivel reclining glider on Wayfair in the color cream bouclé at a decent price point. I thought the chair was stylish and perfect for a neutral woodland-themed nursery.
Additionally, I saw many gliders priced close to a thousand dollars. Personally, I thought that was an outrageous price for a chair. The chair is not electric, but I love the chair because of the color, it reclines, and it also swivels.
Nursery Rug
A nursery rug is a great addition to a nursery. It adds character and brings a sense of coziness and warmth. I wanted a neutral rug that had earthy tones.
Always measure the dimensions of the area you want the rug in before buying an area rug. While browsing at At Home, I found our neutral cozy 5×7 area rug.
Although it’s not my favorite store and I’m more of a Target gal, it does offer a wide selection of rugs to match any decor style. The rug we bought is no longer available. However, I did find this neutral area rug, which comes in several sizes.
Woodland Wall Decorations
Choosing wall decorations was probably my most favorite part of decorating my son’s woodland themed nursery. The most common wall decor options you will see in a nursery are the following:
- Kid wall art
- Mirrors
- Shelving
- Decorative items to match your theme or design aesthetic (boho design tapestry, Vintage-vintage wall art)
I decided to add a bookshelf, a mirror, and woodland-themed pictures to the walls. The decor not only matched the color scheme but also fit perfectly with the woodland theme.
Bookshelf Area
For the bookshelf area, I added this once upon a time wood sign and clear shelves to the wall. This reading nook area ended up being one of my favorite parts of the room.
I liked this area so much because the bookshelf was right behind my rocking chair. It made it easy to grab books quickly whenever I wanted to read to my son.
I also would change the books on display on the clear shelves every two-three weeks. This way we weren’t reading the same books all the time. Consider adding a reading nook. Reading to your little one will likely become a daily routine.
Wall Art
I also had this forest picture that I was not using and was lying around the house. It was perfect for the woodland nursery theme, as it brings a sense of nature into the indoors. You can find a similar one here.
When I was looking for artwork, I found these cute woodland animal pictures. I printed them out and framed them with these 8X10 frames. Unfortunately, the Etsy seller that I purchased this woodland animal wall art from is no longer selling these specific ones. However, you can find similar woodland animal wall art on Etsy like this one.
Mirror
I added a mirror to the wall decor so my son could see himself. It also adds a stylish touch to the room.
Earthy Indoor Plants
As you probably can tell from the pictures, I am an indoor plant lover. If you are also a plant lover as well, you can incorporate plants and planters into the woodland theme decor.
You can find cute indoor planters for the nursery that fit your design aesthetic or theme. I found this cute snail planter for my jade plant at a local home decor shop by me. I mean, how cute is this planter?
You can also incorporate planters like this adorable turtle planter or this floor leaf planter.
The decor style for the room was more modern, so I also incorporated modern planters as well into the decor style. I love the look of modern boho planters.
Woodland Theme Nursery Decor Items
Adding woodland-themed decor brings the nursery theme to life. It’s a simple way to enhance the woodland feel in your baby’s room. In my son’s room, there are several decor items in the woodland theme.
A night light is always a great purchase for a nursery. You don’t want your baby to be completely in the dark all the time. So why not find one in a woodland theme? I found this forest night light and had it personalized with Bryson’s name on it.
Adding woodland animal stuffed animals such as bears, foxes, deer, or bunnies is another way to decorate for the theme. My favorite woodland animal is a bear. So I incorporated several bear stuffed animals and this bear laundry basket in the room.
Another addition could be adding woodland themed nursery hooks such as mountains, woodland animals, or pine trees. I found a set of two light oak mountain hooks on Amazon. Hooks are a great addition to a child’s room for hanging jackets, backpacks, and towels.
Conclusion
Decorating a woodland themed nursery was such a fun experience! When designing your own, be sure to consider key elements like wall colors, furniture size and style, woodland decor, and an accent wall if you’d like. Try not to succumb to the furniture set trap and instead mix and match.
If you would like more information about designing and creating a nursery take a look at my post called The Ultimate 14 Step Guide to Designing a Nursery.
Have fun planning and creating a stunning woodland nursery future mama! I hope this post gave you ideas to make this process of creating a woodland nursery much easier for you.
