langston's bedroom full of moveable and tactile things.

when I think about the way a baby's room should be, there are very few, but very absolute, words that come to mind: airy, light, tactile, clean and full of wonder. 

when I was a baby, my bedroom was not really a bedroom at all. my tiny room was in this strange, makeshift space that was in my parents' bedroom, that was a closet I think, then it became my mom's sewing room, and then it was turned into a bathroom. but as my baby bedroom, my parents decorated the space in green and yellow because they did not know if I was going to be a young miss or a small suitor, either way, I turned out to be a very happy baby, and also, I am very into the idea of gender neutral rooms.

so for langston's room, my color palate is fairly easy: spring green, blue bird blue, light yellow and orange, and some shades in between. I wanted the furniture to be dark wood and versatile because I wanted to keep the walls cream. we live in a place with a tremendous bit of gardens and large oak trees, so not only did I want to bring the natural world in, but I wanted the room to have great daylight even though there are so many shade trees.

tactility was also on the list. hence the grass green shag rug. also, my mom made the giraffe curtain, which is three d. the giraffe has eyelashes and a mane; it also has ears and a tail that move. mostly, the giraffe is made out of polar fleece, which is so incredibly soft, and the hooves and things are made from faux leather. the other curtain (which she is still making) is an elephant. she is also making three, three d animals (a giraffe, momma elephant and baby elephant) that attach to the walls, and will appear as if they are walking around the room. the wall giraffe is easily four feet tall, and he is going to be bending into the crib,

which my mom also made the spring green bumpers for. I wanted the crib to look like the feeding pens at the zoo: wood crates full of grass and things. I know this concept will be lost on Langston, but I like to imagine things, and I like to bend the world as much as I can to suit my imagination, which is why I love design and aesthetics so much.

over the crib is a mobile, of course, and on the wall are two mounted stuffed animal heads, which I special ordered from my friend, Alicia, that owns Deerly Departed. She is still working on the elephant, which will hang over the zebra. it kind of goes without saying that along with tactility, I wanted Langston's room to be full of homemade things because objects made with love and care can stimulate the same mood and those same feelings.

the rocker is from ikea; the table is an antique, and it was my great grandmother's. everyone thinks it's ugly, but it is one of my favorites. I have been lugging that table from place to place for years. and of course Langston already has a bookshelf; his parents are both writers that learned to read at a terribly early age, and Tim's dad has been bringing Langston books since he found out Tim and I were having a baby.

lastly, I think, would be the lighting, which is kind of a neat surprise. I want the lighting to be soft and neat, and my parents are making some very cool colored wall lights that you would have to see to believe. the only light in the room so far is moveable and wild:

and it is a pretty cool carousel of movable animals, birds and things.

I suppose that's it for today. being so far along in my pregnancy and working full-time is kind of daunting, and I am tired, though I am trying not to be. I appreciate all of my friends, my family and especially my husband, for taking such good care of me and Langston. I've never felt so loved in my entire life, and I know Langston can feel it to.