Cindy had fun making a room for her daughter Sarah, but then plans changed and she had to make a quick adjustment. We loved that she made a mood board to keep herself on track, and hunted things that she loved until she found some great deals. Here’s her letter:
Hello John & Sherry! I want to share the latest update in our home. In the beginning of the year we decided to let our kids have their own room. Around March of last year this room became our little girl’s bedroom…
A couple months after finishing this room we found out we were expecting #3 and since our home is a three bedroom home that meant the baby had to share a room with one of his siblings. Since my daughter is the youngest we chose to re-do her room once again so that she can share with her baby brother, Levi. It was a little hard trying to design a shared nursery for both a baby boy and a toddler girl, but I came up with this design board…
I pretty much stuck to it and here is the room now…
I fell in love with this giraffe as I was browsing through nurseries on pinterest. I looked to see how much they were and almost didn’t end up getting it because it was a bit too pricey for me but then I found this one on Amazon here for half the price! It’s one of the first things I purchased for this room.
One of my favorite parts of this room is the mobile. It is the inspiration for this nursery..
It’s crazy how much this room has changed in just one year! I tried to re-use many of the items I had purchased for the first makeover but sadly had to take all of the pink away and store it. My princess still LOVES her room though and she is very excited to be sharing it with her little brother! – Cindy
Looks like a pretty rocking shared room to us. It’s awesome how just a few tweaks gave it a fresh new life (without even painting the walls!). If you want to see more photos of Cindy’s makeover, check out her blog. She also has a full source list outlined here. Thanks for sharing Cindy!
Psst- Looking to make a mood board yourself? We make ours in Adobe Photoshop (after bringing a bunch of our favorite items into Photoshop, we size ‘em, cut them out, and add some numbers) but if you don’t have access to Photoshop, we’ve heard great things about OlioBoard, Polyvore and MyDeco so you might want to check those out.
Diana P. says
I love this nursery! When I turned my daughter’s room into a boy/girl shared room, I used an identical rug! Black and white Chevron is a great neutralizer.
(Here is my nursery with the rug: http://dianadroppings.blogspot.com/2013/05/lorelei-and-ashers-nursery.html)
YoungHouseLove says
So cute!
xo
s
Sarah says
How do you and others create the design/mood boards? Is it a certain app or program?
YoungHouseLove says
Good question! We use photoshop, but if you check out our FAQ page we link to other free sites that we hear are awesome for making them. I’ve just updated the post with that info as a p.s. for anyone else who’s wondering :)
xo
s
Cindy M. says
I also use photoshop but I have used polyvore in the past and love it!
Sasha says
I thought I would share a little trick I tried. I currently don’t have photoshop – though I would love to get my hands on it ;) – so I thought I would find another solution.
I remembered Microsoft years ago had a program called Publisher. I searched for it, but came up a little empty handed, that was until I realised that Microsoft had incorporated it into the newer versions of Word. It takes time getting to know it, but it works. It can remove background (far from the sleek looking results in photoshop, but gets the job done), cut, turn, layer etc. I have myself used it for all the moodboard a on my blog, so if you have a newer version of word (2007->, I think :/) it’s just a chance to get to know your Word a bit better :)
YoungHouseLove says
Love the tip! Thanks for sharing Sasha!
xo
s
bridget b. says
I use Microsoft PowerPoint and they come out great. It gives you the freedom to move elements wherever you want on the page and also has features to cut and paste items and erase their backgrounds. http://623designs.tumblr.com/post/16877994950/little-a-s-nursery
Julie says
This is perfect because I’m planning a shared girl/boy nursery right now. My daughter is sad to be losing the dream of a pink room but excited to be a big sister, too!
V says
confused why she would combine a nursery with a little girl’s room. I LOVE IT visually, but logisitcally won’t the baby keep the toddler up? Seems like it would be more logical to have the two existing children share a room, and have a nursery on its’ own. Just my two cents. gorgeous room though, and love the design.
Lori S says
I was always worried about that too, but my cousin did the same thing with their children and it worked out really well. The toddler comforted the baby when he moved from his parent’s room to the crib in the shared room. They talk each other to sleep when one or both are scared or sad. It’s actually kind of sweet and has the potential to foster a really special sibling relationship!
YoungHouseLove says
So interesting! I definitely think every family is different and individual kid-personalities definitely come into play :)
xo
s
Hanna says
Ours shared a room and I was worrie about the same thing. It happened sometimes (and sometimes we would come into the room and find the baby buried in stuffed animals that the toddler hucked into her bed to keep her quiet), but for the most part it worked out. Kids are pretty adaptable and whatever lifestyle you have, or whatever accomodations you have, is just “normal” to them. Plus, a few nights of revoking TV privleges and the toddler was very serious about going right to sleep. :)
Cindy M. says
I got the same question on my blog when I revealed the nursery. Levi (our baby) is sleeping in our room and has been sleeping with us since he’s been born in a pack n play until he sleeps a little more through the night then I will be transitioning him into his crib. We did the same with our other two kiddos and it worked out perfectly. I totally understand your question though! :)
Leah Concepcion says
That’s what I thought too! I have a 2-month old colicky daughter and can’t imagine a crying baby sharing a room with a toddler. But I guess, every family is different and here’s to hoping that their new bundle of joy won’t be colicky.
bridget b. says
Even though we have an extra room, our 3 year old and 9 month old share a room (http://623designs.tumblr.com/post/52864898031/the-girls-room-before). My sister tried the same thing with her 2 kids and they kept each other up.
Every family/child is different, so you might just have to try it out and see. If it doesn’t work, they can always be separated, but our toddler loves having her sister in with her.
christina @ homemade ocean says
I want that giraffe. I have no kids….but I need it….for when kids come visit….or something :)
Rachel says
I love it! I think my favorite part is the mobile, it is just too cute.
Stefanie says
I’m sad that she didn’t think she could keep pops of the pink in the room with the addition of a boy to the space. The room still turned out awesome but it feels a little cold for a toddler/infant shared space.
Angela says
Stefanie, I tend to agree with you here. The pops of pink in the tissue poufs really warmed up the space. It would be okay to make one side of the room decidedly girl and the other side more boy while still making the overall theme of the room cohesive. But it is still a darling room.
Angie says
Agreed! Pink has only been a “girls” color since the 50’s and I’m frankly over the girls vs boy color thing. I’d like to be able to find toys that are so gender specific, for example. So, I think keeping some pops of pink in a shared room is totally appropriate! Many little boys (including my own) love pink! We should not be afraid of that. This is not a critique of the room (which is lovely) or the designer… just of our society, I guess! :)
Holly says
Cute room! Though a little voice inside has me wondering why she couldn’t keep the pink with a new baby boy! Gender norms/stereotypes are silly. :)
Rose says
I agree! For one thing, pink and yellow in the right shades don’t clash with each other, and for another, the toddler who likes pink could actually appreciate it while the baby couldn’t care less and is only seeing a lot of white now. Oh well. To each his/her own!
IndyViv says
I am with you! I found it ridiculous to imagine that a mostly colorblind newborn is already gender insecure, and demanding that pink be vanquished from its presence! I love both rooms, but the ideology behind them frightens me- princess? In 2013? Really?
terryn says
I came to post the same thing, so I’m happy to see others agree! I especially feel this way when I see it come from people who are all about the colour blue for girls (masculine things are enjoyed by everyone – yet feminine things are only fit for girls.) Very nice makeover though :)
Nicole says
I agree with V. This room is adorable, but it seems like the little girl would never get any sleep! Are the parents maybe keeping the baby in their bedroom as a newborn and then moving once a sleep schedule is established?
Heather says
What’s wrong with a boy having pink in his room?
Tammy says
I thought the same thing. Some pink would be cute on the girl’s side of the room, like on her bed. WAlso, think the ceiling decorations from the first remodel would look really cute over her bed and would go well without making the room too girly, but yet would give the little girl her own space to be just that- girly! =)
Erin says
I love the color combos and the patterns! Very similar to our son and daughter’s shared bedroom. Great job!
Teri Pickens says
You did a great job with the new room. I think you are really decorator savvy! I know that the babies will just love it!
Cindy M. says
Oh wow! THANKS SO MUCH for the feature! You guys just totally made my week so much better!! (not having the best week due to two of my kiddos being sick).
YoungHouseLove says
Of course Cindy! Thanks for sharing your mood board and room – it was so much fun to see how you planned it and how it evolved!
xo
s
Elizabeth says
I love the room, but after seeing the “before” I wish some pink had stayed! It does look like the color palatte could easily expand to put some pink/blue in the room too if she wanted.
Lindsey d. says
Agree with previous posters! No need to take a way the pink! Did you know that in the beginning of the 20th century, pink was actually considered a better color for boys than girls?
“For example, a June 1918 article from the trade publication Earnshaw’s Infants’ Department said, “The generally accepted rule is pink for the boys, and blue for the girls. The reason is that pink, being a more decided and stronger color, is more suitable for the boy, while blue, which is more delicate and dainty, is prettier for the girl.”
Read more: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/When-Did-Girls-Start-Wearing-Pink.html
YoungHouseLove says
So interesting!
xo
s
Danielle says
Agreed! It’s 2013 ya’ll! Boys can wear and sleep and, in general, totally rock pink, purple, and any other color they like. No reason to take away something your little girl loved, when your little boy could have loved it too.
Dana says
I don’t know Cindy, but I feel so bad for her. All these negative comments!!I don’t get why people are making such a big deal that she removed the pink. I think it’s prettier with the yellow and grey!! Maybe she just changed her mind about the color scheme! It is house after all!!!
Mandy Grimes says
WOW. This room is perfect. I am going to half to remember it when I start adding little ones.
I can’t wait to see what you and John do for you next bean’s room down the road.
I hope it includes a sheep mobile! Adorable.
Kym V. says
Another good option for creating mood boards is Picasa. They have a feature that let’s you pull a bunch of images you have saved and rotate, size and layer them. That’s how I make mine now :-)
YoungHouseLove says
Sounds awesome Kym! Thanks for the tip!
xo
s
Julia @ Cuckoo4Design says
Love this! Can you believe that I found a giraffe just like this one on craigslist a while back and didn’t buy it? I could still kick myself!!!
YoungHouseLove says
Oh man! How much? Or should I not ask…
xo
s
Sara says
So adorable, Cindy! We have that giraffe as well – our little guy loves him! We call the giraffe Rowdy, after one of our favorite shows, Scrubs. :)
Diana P. says
LOVE the scrubs reference :-)
Manda Wolf says
Awesome job – I always love gender neutral nurseries they always seem more mature!
Kristen S. says
Agreed – This one does it well. Playful yet uncluttered – nice and mod – sleek too!
Kim says
You know those male babies and their hate for pink. ;)
It’s always fun to redecorate, but I don’t think the removal of any and all pink was necessary. (Says the mom of a little brother who loves Ariel and princesses and the occasional dress-up as Snow White right along with Iron Man, Spiderman, riding bikes and playing in his tree house.)
However, I think pink and black go well together too.
qs777 says
Such a sweet room!
I get how (literally) to make a mood board but how do you do it? Do you just pick a bunch of things that you like and try to put them together or are you picking a color first and then only picking things within that color framework? I hope that makes sense. I guess the problem I have is that I like so many things it is too difficult to pare them down. I swear I need a mansion so I can have a room for each!
YoungHouseLove says
I think the way I do it is usually by starting with something I love (ex: a fabric or rug or curtain idea – or even a plush giraffe). Then I open things in a lot of windows and sort of stare at them together and drag them into the board to see how they work together. It’s fun to switch things in and out and it helps me see if I need more texture or color from sort of a global view.
xo
s
Mandy S. says
Thank you, thank you, thank you for posting the link to the giraffe!!! I am snapping one of those up right now!
Krystle @ Color Transformed Family says
I used to worry about kids sharing rooms but then I found out my husband shared a room with all three of his sibling at one point. Now I look forward to the day when my little girl gets to share her room with her baby sister. I know they will have loads of fun together.
YoungHouseLove says
So cute! My best friend and her sister shared a room and I was always jealous (no sisters for me).
xo
s
Wendy @ New Moms Talk says
Cindy,
Superbly well done!
We have the challenge of living in a 2-bedroom place with 2 (sometimes) children who share a room. My hub’s teen son from his first marriage and our infant daughter share a room when his son is with us.
Since the room is currently under pre-moving state, no pics. We did find a few things that worked for us:
*a loft bed for the teen (it gives him his own “space” and privacy)
*running a power strip up to the loft bed for all of the teen’s electronics (with velcro strips to a loft bed pole to keep them out of the way)
*1 dresser and the glider hang out under the loft bed
*a storage ottoman keeps everything sane and provides extra seating- plus it flips over for a solid surface when playing chess or cribbage
Oh, and this room is maybe 9×9.
Sheena says
Love, love, LOVE this!!! Great job, Cindy!
Madalena says
Love this shared room! Quick question for you guys: Which version of Adobe Photoshop do you use/like best? Do you find it fairly user-friendly? I’m thinking of buying it, but not sure which to purchase. Thanks for any suggestions in advance!
YoungHouseLove says
We have Photoshop version 12.1 x 64 and we like it! I think you can get Elements to save money if you won’t use as many of the filters/tools, though. Hope it helps!
xo
s
LauraC says
LOVE that you featured a boy/girl room!!! I’ve probably mentioned before that our son and daughter share a room (3yrs, 5 years), and when we split them up, in a couple years when Jonathan starts school, I will be so sad. They love it too. I reduced the amount of pink in the room when Jonathan was born, but didn’t take all of it. We use lots of greens, blues, reds, yellows and oranges. As mentioned several times upthread they sleep just fine. We have been known to separate them if they talk too much or for naps/rest. We just put our daughter across the hall in our bed, works great.
Theresa says
Wow- beautiful!! It seems like there might be something missing up top- a yellow ceiling? :)
Paige @ Little Nostalgia says
Too cute! I love gender neutral nurseries anyway, and this is so sweet.
Cassie says
This is seriously the PERFECT room for a boy/girl shared room. I love everything about it! Would totally want to replicate this if I’m ever in that situation!
Bailey says
I love all the patterns in the room!
xox
Bailey
http://akabailey.blogspot.com
Heather P. says
I love seeing how people work around design challenges like this. It turned out great, and I love that it is a room that can grow with the two kiddos for as long as it needs to!
Elizabeth @ Real Inspired says
I’m going to be planning a combined room for a baby and little boy soon. I have to reuse some of the neutral things from the last one but I have my old colorful mobile as well. I’m not quite sure how to combine everything. I guess I’ll have to get the mood board thing going! Love the nursery!
Whitney says
I’ve been toying with the idea of creating a Polyvore account just to play around for awhile and with your recommendation, I finally did it! Thanks for that little nudge of encouragement :)
Whitney
YoungHouseLove says
Aw, I hope you love it Whitney! We’ve never tried it out but hear awesome things.
xo
s
Erika says
So cute! I had been planning a shared nursery, but recently decided to create separate rooms for my little ones. Seeing inspiration like this makes me re-think my decision!
Skeptic says
Look, I think the room is stunning. But it does make me wonder if the little girl enjoys this room? Is black and orange and white her fav colours? I would have thought she would want some favorite things in the room too!
I love rooms that kids have a say in decorating, those are my favorite and I’d love to see some on YHL.
lscott says
actually on cindy’s blog when she first did the reveal her daughter liked the gender neutral design better which is why she didn’t hesitate to change it. so this is a room where the child has a say.
Madalena says
Thanks, Sherry! I couldn’t respond above, but wanted to say thanks for the info on Photoshop! Have a good night! :)
YoungHouseLove says
You too!
xo
s
JG says
Geez, I knew gender color stereotyping was out of control- but this is really sad! It sounds like the girl wanted pink, and the mom wanted pink, and just because the newborn was a boy he couldn’t be exposed to anything pink?! That is incredibly sad!
Abby @ Just a Girl and Her Blog says
What a perfect boy/girl shared room! I love the playful colors and patterns that are fun but will also grow with them as they get older! We’re going to move our two boys in together soon, and I can’t wait to start designing their new room! Hope you guys are having a wonderful week!
~Abby =)
Lis says
Re: mood board making. I’ve been using Pinterest for that, actually. I don’t have PS or any free programs (though I’ve thought of looking into them). But I’ve learned Pinterest works just fine for my basic needs. I create a new locked/secret board, then add in what strikes my fancy, then edit as I go and see what works and what doesn’t.
YoungHouseLove says
So smart!
xo,
s
Cindy M. says
First of all THANK YOU to all those who left such sweet comments about our shared nursery! My daughter absolutely LOVES her room and is VERY happy with it! :)
Second I am VERY SAD to see such hurtful comments about why I decided to remove the pink and create a gender neutral nursery. I don’t have anything against colors like pink for boys. I CHOSE to remove the pink not because I felt I HAD to but because I WANTED to. My daughter is NOT upset that I removed the pink. She is happy and that’s what matters the most to me. Princess is the meaning of Sarah’s name which is why I had a friend make that wonderful wood sign for me. I Respect everyones opinion on colors and how they are stereotyped but I feel sad that some left such hurtful comments insulting my choices for this room and even my parenting.
YoungHouseLove says
Oh Cindy I’m so sorry! I think if folks had known you made other mood boards with pink and blue in them and then decided on this color scheme because you loved the sheep mobile and the giraffe’s color palette (as did your daughter) they might not be as attached to the idea that you tossed out pink without thinking (or that it was some sort of gender stereotype thing).
xo
s
Cindy M. says
Oh it’s totally not your fault! I am still very thankful and honored you featured our room! :)
I wrote a blog post about these comments here:
http://www.cinsarah.com/2013/06/words-hurt.html
I went to bed thinking about this and I woke up still thinking about it. I am so sad that my color choices offended people enough to leave hurtful comments but like I said it is totally not your fault. I guess that’s what happens when you post stuff on the internet some will love it , some will hate it and others will judge without even knowing.
Have a wonderful day John & Sherry!
YoungHouseLove says
I think your explanation about the colors you chose and your daughter’s reaction is great. I’m so glad that your daughter loves her room and I’m so thankful to you for sharing it with us!
xo,
s
Kirthi says
I shared a room first with my older sister and then with my younger brother when we were kids. We were a family of five in a three bedroom apartment. And all of us siblings now grown up with our own kids, turned out just fine and even closer. My own kids- a boy who has his own room and two girls who share a room are absolutely fine. It is all about how parents approach the situation. Kids are just fine with the room sharing and amazingly adaptive. Lot of parents do not have the privilege to offer a separate room for each of their children.
Coming to this particular room, it is absolutely fantastic. Loved the color scheme. Wether you have pink in it or not I am sure both the kids will enjoy it. It is not the color scheme but the moments/memories they spend in the room that matters. Good job.
Jessie says
Oh my, Cindy! Nice job! I love it!
We are expecting our #3 soon and although we have a 5 bedroom house, I wouldn’t mind the little ones sharing a room for the time being.
We do not know what we are haiving so it is nice to see that we have great options(such as yours) if we have a girl: our 18 month old is a boy.
Good job, Cindy and thanks YHL for sharing!
LOVE IT!
Annie says
Yes. I found this post kind of offensive. To banish pink because the baby is a boy seems beyond silly and girl things phobic.
YoungHouseLove says
I think if you check out her blog guys she did a number of mood boards and some of them had blue and pink in them, and then she found the sheep mobile and really liked the colors in that (as well as the giraffe) as did her daughter, so she went for that scheme. She chatted a bit more about it on our Facebook page as well if that helps!
xo
s
Lindsey says
Oh my goodness- I adore the black/white/grey/yellow color scheme. I’m gonna have to steal that for a future baby room. And how cute is a sheep mobile?? I’m going to have to DIY one, but replace one of the sheep with a border collie to honor our pooch… thanks for sharing!
Shannon {Our Home Notebook} says
I love seeing shared boy/girl rooms as that’s what our kids have right now. This room is beautiful. I love all the pattern and colour. And that giraffe is really sweet. Thanks for sharing.
Lisa says
This is a beautiful room! The neutral colors, the patterns and that giraffe! WANT! Great job!
Andrea says
I have a secret IKEA wishlist that’s called “future baby nursery” haha ;) It’s all black/white and yellow. I absolutely love this combination for a nursery and I think Cindy did an amazing job transforming the room for her two little ones :)
Petite Peltier says
This is so cute! I love that they made a mood board too. I do that as a designer, not only to show the finished product to my clients, but to help me see how everything is fitting together as well. Great planning and the results are fantastic because of it!