Decorating your nursery is an important part of welcoming your new baby into the world. Knowing when to start this process isn’t an easy decision; you don’t want to start too early or leave it too late. In this article, we have some useful tips that will help you decorate at the right time.
Painting or wallpapering the room
Painting or wallpapering the room will be much easier before you have the furniture delivered. Having things in the way can make it more challenging to avoid splashes of paint getting on your brand-new furniture. You can, however, opt to keep the furniture in a different room whilst you decorate if you have the space to do this. If not, it's best to decorate whilst you’re waiting for your furniture to be delivered. Some people prefer to wait until they’ve found out the sex of their baby as this can influence their choice of colour and furniture.
If you’re planning on finding out the sex of the baby, you should begin painting or wallpapering after this scan. If you’re leaving it as a surprise, you can start a bit earlier, but we recommend you wait until after the first trimester. Additionally, many women find the first trimester of pregnancy the time when they’re experiencing morning sickness and fatigue; it's also considered the riskiest part of a pregnancy, so waiting until after this trimester to paint is a good choice. Generally, around 18-20 weeks is a good time to paint or wallpaper, just before you order your furniture. This will also allow the room to air out before your baby arrives; always use baby and pregnancy-safe paint that is water-based.
Shelving, curtain poles and any wall fixtures
Once you’ve completed your painting or wallpapering, you should put up any shelving, curtain poles and wall fixtures you need. Doing this before the furniture is in place will make it easier to clean up the dust from the room. You want to avoid getting any dust on your new baby's furniture. Do this step before you put up the furniture in your baby’s room, but once you’ve decided on the arrangement.
Ordering furniture
If you have set furniture in mind for your baby's nursery, check if there is a wait time between ordering and delivery. Lots of furniture will come in a few weeks, but some may take longer. Specially designed furniture could take up to 12-14 weeks to be delivered, so you’ll need to consider this. Around the 20-week mark is a good time to order any furniture that takes a while to arrive, such as a baby cot, crib or nursing chair. By this point, you’ll know the sex of the baby, and you will have completed or begun painting or wallpapering your baby's room. If the room isn’t fully painted or wallpapered when your baby’s furniture arrives, keep it in a different room in the boxes. Only start putting things together when the paint is dry and finished to prevent paint from getting on the new furniture.
Add the fabric furnishings
The next stage, once you have all of your walls decorated and your furniture put together, is to add fabric furnishing and extra touches to the room. This could be the curtains, a nice rug, cushions and blankets. These things need to stay dust free, so waiting until this point is the best idea. You can always wash these things again if you have time before the baby arrives. Always wash any blankets, sheets and clothing before using them for your baby within the six weeks before they arrive. Around the 30-week mark is a good time to add the fabric furnishings to your baby’s room.
Make sure everything is ready
By 36 weeks, you should have everything ready, including enough of your baby’s clothes, washed to last you a couple of days. You can then wash others as you go, as long as you have a system where you can see what has been washed and what needs to be washed before your baby can use them. Getting everything ready for this point will reduce the pressure in the final weeks; if your baby comes early, you won’t be in a position where you have nothing for them to wear.