Organizing Your Nursery on a Budget

Most women enjoy creating a nursery or space for their soon to be son or daughter throughout their pregnancy. This allows the mother to involve dads-to-be and possible siblings-to-be in the process of welcoming a new family member. While it can be easy to clutter the nursery with decorative items, keeping the nursery simple with only the necessities can cut down on clutter and allow you to create an organized and calming space. In this article, we look at a number of ways you can better organize a nursery space without the need to spend excessive amounts of money.

Contents

1 What Should I Include in my Nursery?
2 Steps to Organizing a Nursery
- 2.1 1) Baskets are Your Friends
- 2.2 2) Utilize Walls for Storage
3 Nursery Organization Hacks

What Should I Include in my Nursery?

If you have the space to turn a room in your house into a nursery than you will be able to store most of the must-need-baby items in this area. If you do not have the room for a nursery in your home, perhaps you only have one or two bedrooms, then you may need to make an area in your own bedroom for the newest addition to your family.

Compiling a list of what you actually ‘need’ to include in your nursery prior to starting a baby registry or in-store lay-by will ensure you do not clutter the room with unnecessary items.

A nursery room should include the following baby necessities:

Somewhere that the baby can sleep during the day and at night
- The nursery should be a quiet space where you put your baby down for rest times and bedtime.
- You may choose to purchase a bassinet or a cot with a newborn insert.
- The nursery should have blinds or curtains that can be closed during the day to ensure the room is dark enough for the baby to rest.
- The crib or bassinet should have a mattress, mattress protector and fitted sheet.
- Clutter such as toys should never be left in the crib or bassinet as these as SIDS risks. Only air mesh bumpers should be used, and the baby should be put to sleep flat and without the use of a pillow.
A closet, chest of draws, tallboy or lowboy where the babies clothes and shoes can be stored
- Newborns especially need a lot of changes of clothes and you’ll need somewhere to store them.
- A closest or draws are best to use as many of your babies’ items will not need to be hung.
- You may choose to also store some of your babies’ toys in the closet or chest of draws.
- Ensure the cupboard is secure and where possible screwed it into the wall. As your child grows into toddlerhood, they will attempt to climb or pullover furnishings and it is important that they are fixed in place.
A changing station
- While a changing table is not a necessity it allows you to change your newborn at height rather than needing to bend down. This is especially important for c-section mothers.
- A changing station should have a change mat and a cover so that if there are any accidents it can be washed easily.
- A changing station generally has underneath storage that gives you somewhere to place all of the baby changing essentials such as wipes, diapers, diapers bags, and creams.
Feeding area
- Your feeding area should generally contain a chair or a rocking chair where you can sit, relax and feed your baby.
- You may like to include a side table next to your nursing chair to rest items such as a bottle of water, a snack, a breast pump, a bottle, a nightlight or a burp cloth on.

If you have additional room in your nursery you may also choose to include some of the following items:

A rug or mat
A toy box or shelving for toys
A book shelf
A baby mobile to hang above the crib
A clothes hamper to throw dirty clothes in
A baby monitor
A bouncer or rocker

Steps to Organizing a Nursery

Before you head out to the local baby store and start mass laybying nursery items (it’s very tempting I know!), you’ll first need to clear out the nursery room if it was previously being used for another purpose. Once the room has been cleared out (ensure you ask for help to move hefty items) you’ll need to decide on a theme. If you do not know the gender of your baby you may choose to wait to you find out or create a gender neutral nursery.

Starting with a plain canvas will allow you to better visualize where certain items will be best placed in the room you have. Some nurseries are bigger than others and it’s important to take measurements of the room if you are unsure whether a certain cot, wardrobe or change table will fit.

1) Baskets are Your Friends

Baskets Perfect for Your Nursery Changing Station

If you have an open change table rather than a chest of drawers with a change mat above, baskets will become your best organization friend. Baskets allow you to collect items that share similarities. For example, underneath your change table, you may choose to have six different baskets and they could perhaps be for:

Diapers
Wipes and Diaper Bags
Creams and Ointments
Medical (Thermometer, Nail Clippers)
Baby Wash
Bibs, Burp Clothes, and Face Washers

This allows new moms to also label their baskets so dads and carers of the child can easily locate diaper changing items. Sorting your items into baskets will also allow you to visualize when you are running low on a certain item such as baby wipes or baby diapers.

We’ve listed our favorite four baskets for underneath change tables below:

1: Ikea Variera Box
2: Target Cane Basket White
3: Kmart Rope Basket
4: Kmart Brown Cane Basket

If you decide to use the top of your chest of drawers as a change table, you can potentially utilize the wall to store the necessities. It is important to have all changing items less than an arms reach away because you won’t want to leave your infant at that height especially if they have began rolling.

Utilizing Space Above the Change Table Allows You to Use the Chest of Draws for Clothing Rather than Diapers and Wipes.

Create the Above Changing Station Using the Ikea Fintorp Set.

Before you purchase your baskets for wall brackets or baskets to fit under your change table, work out the total number of baskets you will need. Many mothers find that diapers and wipes will need their own separate basket as these items are used more regularly as opposed to ointments and creams.

Use the Ikea Raskog Cart to Store Your Diaper Change Essentials.

Another option opposed to wall storage above the change table is a cart on wheels which you can then fill with diaper change items. The great part about using a cart to store your diaper essentials is that it can be moved all over the house with you and your baby. For instance, if you need to complete a quick diaper change in the lounge room, you’ll be able to simply wheel the cart that contains everything you’ll need. Most carts can be purchased in three or four tears which allows you to separate your creams from nappies.

Baskets Ideal for Toy Storage

While your infant may not own a lot of toys yet, once they reach their first birthday if you do not have storage in place from day one you’ll find it hard to clear enough space to put away your child’s belongings. Open baskets are the best kind of storage for a nursery as the infant (once walking and crawling) will be able to help themselves easily to a toy of their choosing. Many new moms are designing Montessori nursery rooms which basically means all toys and items are at toddler height. A cubed shelf unit often works well to remove mess from the nursery floor. A cube shelf can also double as book storage as you may find many people gift your infant books during their first year of life.

If you have room in your nursery, an Ikea Trofast storage unit and tubs are a great way to store a lot of toys in a neat and compact way. Many moms like to order labels to place on each container so that locating specific toys is easy even for the fathers. Trofast storage solutions from Ikea come in a number of different styles with a range of plastic tubs in multiple colors that fit into each.

If you already have a bookshelf or a cube shelf in your son or daughter’s nursery, purchasing a few toy baskets or simple gender neutral woven cane or wool baskets is a great way of hiding toys away at the end of the day. If you have the budget and room for a toy box, ensure you purchase one with a slow-release lid to prevent little hands from becoming jammed.

Baskets to Organize Baby Clothing and Accessories

Your newborn, unfortunately, won’t stay little forever and with each jump in age, you’ll need to buy new appropriate sized clothing. Rather than just dumping all your newborn’s clothes into drawers, using draw separators or small baskets that are short enough in depth to fit a drawer is an ideal way to separate the socks from mits, or singlets from bibs.

If you have a tallboy for your infant’s clothes, many boxes with compartments from Ikea will be the perfect fit. We’ve listed photos of a few below that may suit the theme of your nursery.

If the crib you purchase doesn’t come with a built-in drawer underneath, using a slimline container can allow you to store bedding supplies such as additional fitted sheets, blankets, and baby sleeping suits. Other moms choose to use the storage space under their child’s crib to store diapers that they may have mass purchased during a sale period.

2) Utilize Walls for Storage

While we do not generally recommend hanging pictures or shelves directly above your child’s sleeping area, if you use the correct brackets and use hanging space that is away from sleeping areas, wall space will allow you to store more items and keep the nursery floor clear.

If you have a built-in closet within the nursery, or a large wardrobe, using the back of the doors to add some containers for extra storage can allow you to neatly organize more items rather than having these items sitting on shelves. The back of the nursery door can also be used for as long as the door can still open and close freely. Back of wardrobe storage is perfect for creams and items that you don’t want little hands to touch.

Nursery Organization Hacks

1) Use Baby Clothes Organizers to Separate Sizes

In your babies’ first year of life they will go from one size to another in a matter of month or two so having hanging clothes dividers can allow you to easily separate one size from another. This is ideal if you buy your infant’s clothes in advance when they are on sale.

2) Use Wall Storage for Books

Books can be stored on wall shelving which you can then screw into the wall at toddler height. This way the books are up off the ground although still easily accessible by your baby.

3) Over the Door Storage Can be Used for Wear Again Clothes and Coats

Your newborn or toddler may wear their clothes for an hour or two before it gets too hot and you end up taking their jacket off. A wear again hook can allow you to hang up clothing that has been worn once and can be worn again by your child. Rather than leaving these clothes thrown over the nursing chair, why not use the back of the nursery door to neatly hang these items.

4) Hang Onesies and Bibs Where Possible

While traditionally baby clothing is folded, hanging onesies and bibs can be a lot easily and more accessible when you are in a rush to get out of the house. Not mention how much drawer space you’ll save by executing this hack. Simply clip the bottom of the onesie over the coat hanger. You can even hang them outside on the coat hanger to dry and then once dry hang them in the closet.

5) Wooden Coat Hangers Prevent Tangling

While wooden coat hangers may cost that little bit more in comparison to plastic hangers, they prevent the tangling in the wardrobe often seen when using plastic hangers. You can purchase a mixture of clip hangers and basic hangers so that pants and shorts can be hung as well.

6) Use Hanging Organizers for Bibs, Socks, Mits and Burp Clothes

If you intend on forgoing a chest of drawers, you may need to utilize hanging space to store more of your baby’s items. Hanging organizers with pockets are great storage solutions for smaller items such as bibs, socks, mits, and burp cloths. Having them all hung up in individual pockets allows easy access to these items without the need to rummage through drawers.

7) Hang Baby Girl Accessories

If you have a baby girl, or you are expectant with a pink bundle of joy, you may wish to purchase a clip style storage solution for all those pink, purple, red, gold and silver accessories. Baby girls often have headbands and scrunchies so it is a good idea to hang these up for easy access. You can create your own accessory storage solution for your baby girl using pegs and a piece of wood or you can purchase a clip system online.

8) Create or Purchase a Soft Toy Zoo

Every child will have a number of fluff dusters, some that get more attention than others. While a toy box can work to store these soft toys, toy boxes tend to take up a significant amount of floor space. A toy zoo in comparison tends to be shorter in width yet taller in height. Toy zoos are designed to be accessible storage solutions that allow little hands to grab out a soft toy at their pleasure.