There was a time when mothers were unable to find out the gender of their baby until birth. Now a days, most pregnant women have the luxury of being able to find out the sex of their baby anywhere from 12 weeks, but generally from 18 weeks pregnant. Some opt to find out the sex of their baby as soon as they can while others prefer the surprise at birth- ‘It’s a ___!’. If you are like myself and you prefer to keep your little bundle of joys gender a surprise, you are still able to create a warm and welcoming nursery by using a neutral color palate.
Setting up a nursery allows you to prepare for your baby before their arrival. It allows you to create a space that is calm and soothing as well as somewhere that is feeding friendly. The following topics will hopefully help you plan out a neutral nursery before the birth of your baby.
Neutral Nursery Furniture
If you are not finding out the gender before the birth of your baby plain white, grey or wood furniture works with most color schemes. I personally went with a grey and white color scheme with hints of mint throughout the room.
Nursing chair
If you plan on breastfeeding your baby it is important to have somewhere you feel comfortable to do this. Even if you plan on bottle feeding, a rocking chair can also come in handy as newborns can feed as much as eight times a day. On trend are grey upholstery nursing chairs and we are loving them here at Baby Momma Blog. Something similar to the following is perfect as you are able to sit back and rock while it is still padded on all sides.
Crib
These days cribs come in every style and color you can imagine from wood to metal. Within a neutral nursery wooden and white cribs are generally used as other furniture pieces are then easily matched up. Depending on the other furniture you wish to have in your neutral nursery will generally make the decision on the color of crib you will choose. For my sons neutral nursery I went with a white wooden crib that eventually can be modified to be a toddler bed. This way it will save me money in the long run. Something similar to the crib pictured below works well with most colour schemes.
Change Table
Change tables are not only great for changing your little one but if you opt for one with shelves it makes for great storage aswell! Some people are not fussed on purchasing a change table and prefer to do changes on the bed but for me I found having a change table was easier as i was able to store nappies and wipes underneath.
Rockers & Bouncers
Whether you decide to go for a simple floor bouncer or an electronic side to side rocker there are many that will suit both genders. For me I found the simple floor bouncer worked out perfectly as I was able to have my newborn right by my side on the couch as well as easily move it around the house. I purchased a fisher price bouncer which also had a vibrating option which my newborn loved to doze off to sleep with. The Geo Meadow Bouncer by Fisher Price pictured below is perfect for a neutral nursery.
If you prefer a larger side to side rocker I have personally used the Fisher Price My Little Lamb Cradle n’ Swing. This is a popular swing and coincidentally is perfect for a neutral nursery as the majority of the swing is white in color. This baby cradle has multiple speeds and settings that can be adjusted for your baby depending on their age and size.
Theme Ideas
If you want more than just a color theme for your nursery some of the follow might appeal to you:
- Animal theme- common animals used include rabbits, giraffes and bears.
- Scandinavian Inspired
- Nautical
Color Scheme Ideas
It seemed that yellow used to be the only color that anyone associated with gender neutral but nowadays gender neutral nursery’s come in an array of colors. Currently on trend is the color mustard in nursery’s which I have included in the color palate below. Attached are example nursery photos so you are able to grasp what these color schemes look like when used in a real nursery.
On trend – Mustard
Classic light lemon yellow
Yellow and grey
Yellow and mint/aqua
Grey and white
Grey and mint/aqua
Grey, mint/aqua and white
Grey and red
White and black
Plain White
Cream
and these are just a few of the color schemes that would suit either baby boy or baby girl.
Baby Momma’s Nursery
The following images are of a neutral nursing that I created prior to the birth of my son. I used mint, grey and white with intent to add in shades of pink if I ended up having a girl. I opted for white wooden furniture which I felt worked well with the grey and mint decor.