Baroque Circus Nursery

by Rebecca McFadden
(Westerville, Ohio)

I got the inspiration for our baroque circus nursery while doing a photo shoot with my sister that was the circus scene from the movie "Coraline." We had so much fun creating the space that I wanted that kind of energy in our nursery.


What brand and color of paint did you use?

Benjamin Moore custom turquoise. White that we had matched to the other wood trim in our hallway.


What brand of crib did you buy? Where from?

Storkcraft Venetian from Wayfair.com.


What brand of nursery furniture did you choose? Where did you buy it?

We bought the lingerie chest and the dresser at Sobo Style and I painted the handles with metallic gold paint.

The gold and white chair was a chair that we purchased from World Market many years ago and I repurposed it by painting it white and making the gold brocade slip cover.

The rocker was a gift from my father in law. My husband painted it white and I made the cushions. The fabric I bought on etsy.com.

My father made the turquoise wood cube table for us many years ago and I repurposed it.

The Bead board book shelves are "Good Trading" brand from postfurniture.com.


What nursery bedding set did you use? Where did you buy it?

The mini flag print sheet was a gift from my sister. I think she bought it at "The Land of Nod." The polka dot and zigzag stripe blankets were purchased on etsy.com.


Tell us about your window treatments, nursery lighting, rugs, wall decor and accessories. Where did you buy them - were any handmade?

The window panels are Ikea but I bought them on ebay.

The large giraffe lamp I found at an antique store and painted it. The two smaller giraffes were gifts from my aunt and I painted them as well.

I found a hat box at a vintage store and painted that to look like a circus platform.

I made the trapeze monkey swing.

The sock monkeys I bought at etsy.com.

Faux fur bear skin rug I bought on etsy.com.

The red and the turquoise glass lamps I bought at Pier 1 Imports. The turquoise base lamp on the changing table is from Target.

I made the changing

pad cover with a great pattern I found at aloadofcraft.com.

I used a popcorn container to hold diapers.

I made a wet wipes dispenser from a tupperware container and put it inside the top hat on the changing table.

I repurposed an old chandelier by painting it white with gold accents and put battery powered flickering candles in it.

The large rose on the wall and the frames on either side I bought at Target, and I painted the gold on the rose.

The 3 large pieces of art are done by a talented artist named Jessica Grundy who sells her work on etsy.com and fineartamerica.com.

I painted the vintage frames.


How did you store all your baby goodies? In baskets, on shelves?

I used fabric cubes, popcorn containers, shelves. I also found some wooden cubes on wheels at an antique shop that I painted and added gold rope handles to use them as toy boxes that can roll in and out of the closet.


How long did it take you? Was it easy, fun, difficult? What was your favorite part?

It was a ton of work and it took us a long time. We started when I was about 8 weeks pregnant and finished when I was 37 weeks. I absolutely LOVED every minute of it!!

My favorite part was painting the giraffes andfinding the artwork. The most difficult part was my husband's main contribution - painting the dark wood trim white. It took 6 coats of paint!! I don't think he will be painting anything again for a while!


Did you do the entire nursery on your own or did someone help you? Who? What did they do?

My husband painted the walls, the wood trim and the rockerand assembled and moved all the furniture, came up with the trapeze monkey idea. I did the rest.


What do you love most about your little one's finished baby room?

I love that when I walk in the room it makes me happy!! I hope that my daughter will feel the same way.

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If you want to create a circus nursery, check out ababy.com's circus fun theme section - you get 10% discount if you buy any three or more items from the same theme!

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