Before I blogged for Kveller, I was an avid reader of it, and one of the first articles I read was about decorating a Jewish nursery. I’ll admit, I was pretty proud to see three of the ideas I had already incorporated into my son’s space were featured in the article (not bad for a new convert? Eh?)
I didn’t want a nursery that was overly theme-y, kitschy, or with one dominant color (read: a girl’s room that resembles a messy accident at the Pepto-Bismol factory). I wanted a place for my son to learn and explore that was filled with color and meaning. I began thinking of a gender neutral concept and saved countless images and ideas from my favorite children’s design blogs. We knew that we would be moving to a rental soon after the baby was born so I relied more on the design and less on the wall color. We were on a tight budget so I decided against expensive bedding and used a breathable bumper and organic sheet instead. Most importantly, I wanted there to be Jewish touches in the room.
I found the felt Hebrew wall hanging in a tiny Judaica store in Denver. I love all the little felt pieces that come out. My son likes to turn them over in his tiny hands (and our cat loves to bat them around the room!)
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The Noah’s Ark frame was a gift for our bris and the Star of David painting with my son’s Hebrew name was custom made by Paint Me A Picture Etsy shop.
The kosher piggy bank was a gift from my son’s Doda and it goes perfectly in the space. I can’t wait for him to begin saving his tzedakah money in it.
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We hung English alphabet cards above the crib but you could do the same thing with Hebrew Aleph Bet cards.
I found some bookshelves I liked at Pottery Barn but they were WAY too expensive, so my dad made us these three shelves. I filled the shelves with some of our favorite stories including
Goodnight Sh’ma
, which we read every night before bed.
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The changing table is actually a Swedish-style TV stand that works perfectly–especially for a taller daddy. I love how the legs at the bottom angle out and the wood matches the drawer on the crib. I found the baskets at Crate and Barrel and they fit exactly. We fill them with diapers, wash cloths and changing pad covers–very convenient!
One of my favorite tchotchkeys in the room is the Obama wooden airplane; it is hardwood, with non-toxic, lead-free paint and finish. I felt this was a fun way to commemorate the presidency for my son.
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We use the iPod in the nursery every day to play and sing songs from the Oy Baby CD.
I am so happy with our nursery and we put it together for a little over $1000. It is actually my favorite place in the apartment and the time we spend together in here just melts my heart. I love that Jewish symbols are commonplace in our home and feel strongly that visual reminders–even at a very early age–help shape my son’s Jewish identity.
Resources:
Crib is Baby Mod (http://www.walmart.com/ip/Baby-Mod-ParkLane-3-in-1-Convertible-Crib-Amber-and-White/5983290)
Glider (http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3968397)
Train Rug (http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Hand-tufted-Toddler-Novelty-Area-Rug-5-x-76/3351807/product.html)
The prints are custom from Etsy designer Lucky BlueBird
(www. http://www.etsy.com/shop/LuckyBluebirdArt)
The alphabet cards are from Eboo (http://www.diapers.com/product/productdetail.aspx?productid=9102)
Ipod dock (http://www.overstock.com/Electronics/iBoo-IBOO-B-01-Blue-iPod-iPhone-Docking-Station/3979565/product.html)
Yellow table from Urban Outfitters
Toy cube and colored baskets from Target
TV stand (changer) from Value City Furniture