It's a rite of passage. Once you find out you are pregnant, you must immediately begin planning for the nursery. Will you paint or use wallpaper? Maybe stencil? How about the matching lamps, curtains, rocker cushions, wallpaper borders and crib set? It is easy to see how one could drop at least $500 on decorating a nursery. And after all, doesn't the little dear deserve the best?

Most expectant mothers want to begin nursery-planning very early on. Obviously, you may want to go neutral if you do not yet know the sex of the baby. One recent example of decorating a nursery concerns the experience of a recent client. She thought that Noah's Ark was a nice, neutral theme. What she didn't realize was that there are, conceivably, hundreds of different types of Noah's Ark themes and sets. So, as you can see, narrowing down the theme didn't necessarily narrow down the choices! In working with her, I set out to find the "perfect" Noah's Ark crib bedding. I knew I wasn't going with the matching curtains, dust ruffles, and the like. After all, she was in the midst of building a house, and money was in short supply! She simply wanted the "innards" for the crib; sheet, mobile, comforter and bumper. Nothing fancy.

Once you have selected your theme, you will need to decide what you are going to do with the rest of the room. If money is an issue at the time, you will want to keep it simple. For my client, I bought a very pale yellow paint, and painted the walls of the nursery yellow. I did the ceiling white, and used the same lace curtains found throughout the rest of our house.

I had also bought some stencils of the moon and stars to be used as a border. My approach was this - make it look like a nursery for minimal cost and effort. Here are a few suggestions that are creative and inexpensive:

If you have any friends or relatives with artistic abilities, ask if they would consider painting a mural or theme-related pictures on the wall of the nursery. A friend of mine decorated his daughter's room with "life-size" paintings of Donald Duck characters. It was amazing. Once people saw that, many asked if he would do something similar for their child's' nursery. It became his own personalized "baby gift."

If you, a friend, or relative have a knack for sewing, consider making the bedding and curtains for the nursery. Fabric stores have a wonderful selection of materials, and you are also able to mix and match. For example, you may want to have patterned bedding, but solid curtains. Making these things yourself allows for that option. Additionally, you can use flat top-sheets for curtains or comforter covers.

Finally, if you know what you want, and can't afford it all, consider adding nursery items to your baby registry. In fact, you could probably acquire all of the items you need for the nursery by receiving them at your shower.
These are just a few suggestions for cutting corners while decorating your baby's nursery. If you think long and hard about it, you will come up with a solution for getting just what you want. But remember, whether the nursery is decked out from top to bottom, or just a plain white room with a crib, your baby will be happy. So, don't stress yourself out, just have a good time!