Truth be told, I’ve probably been nesting for quite some time now – probably, some would argue, well before I even thought about getting pregnant. But once the hormones kicked in, I went into overdrive hitting up HomeGoods in an embarrassingly cliched way.

Once I’d tackled the rest of the house (pics coming soon), I found myself dealing with the very interesting reality of having to make the spare bedroom in our two-bedroom condo (a room we’d been using as an office/closet/dressing area) spacious enough for our own needs and a new baby with an expanding wardrobe that rivals my own – on a budget.

After a little planning and some serious bargain hunting/comparison shopping, here are some pics of the end result. Check out the details and stores I shopped here.

Details: After painting the room a warm shade of grey (and letting it air out a few days), we applied vinyl decals from Blik in a pattern we liked. We saved $200 on the convertible crib by buying it at Burlington rather than a big name baby store. Thanks to IKEA, we scored a clearance-priced wardrobe with adjustable shelves and roomy drawers, which allowed us to keep using the existing closet as our own. The area rug was picked up on a great daily sale by Joss & Main. The rocking chair was graciously donated by a friend who no longer needed it, so ask around and you might be able to save on some big-ticket items. Bedding came from our registry at buybuyBaby by CoCalo, one of the more design-influenced lines I came across. And the hanging bird cages came from Michael’s as part of the decor we used for the garden-themed baby shower. 

For more nursery inspiration, check out Project Nursery.

All images taken by me on an iPhone and dad-to-be Tony Espinoza on a Canon 60D.