Nursery Tour: Polly’s Vibrant Retro Room

Jane Foster is a talented British artist who lives in Brighton. We have previously featured her work with Clothkits and will be featuring more of her goodies next week. When she agreed to photograph her nursery for this feature we were understandibly excited by the results. Her home is a riot of colour and design which doesn’t stop in the nursery. Her one year old daughter, Polly, is the lucky inhabitant of this beautiful room chock full of stylish detail.

Jane tells us: I wanted the room to be colourful and stimulating. We had quite a small space to work with so we went for tall narrow drawers and shelving. I collect vintage fabrics and love hunting for interesting vintage finds on eBay, at Brighton Boot Sale and second hand shops. I don’t follow any rules, I just buy what I love and like putting lots of colours together. My only rule is that I keep the walls white as I’ve so many pictures. The curtains are vintage Habitat and the cushion on the chair was made from a vintage linen tea towel. Next to the chair is a collection of books that I enjoyed as a child – it’s much more fun re-reading books that you remember and loved yourself.

The pictures on the wall are Dick Bruna and Vitra. There are three mobiles: Flensted Expecting Mother, Djeco Flight of Fancy Mobile and the butterflies mobile is one I made for her from coloured paper with my design. Polly loves mobiles and will often lay in her cot blowing them! The yellow Mac Lamp is a 60s original designed by Terence Conran for Habitat. The dolls sitting on the shelf and bed (below) are the ones I designed for Clothkits along with the orange pinafore dress hanging from the shelves. The toy cats are made by me.

Alongside the drawers is an old 50s hospital bed that we made lower by cutting down the legs. The quilt is from Cath Kidston (in store only) in Brighton and the cushions are handmade from vintage fabrics.

By using lots of tall storage Jane has managed to pack lots into this small space. There is also a cot next to the chair and wardrobe at the foot of the cot. As you walk into the room you see the most open wall space over the bed and drawers which stops the room feeling crowded. By using large storage tubs, toys can be accessed easily and tidied quickly. With white walls and furniture the colour is able to pop without making your eyes pop out. I really love the vibrancy of the colour combinations which is carried right through to the clothes.

The drawers are from IKEA but not on their website currently – you could try the Malm series for something similar. The chair is IKEA’s Lillberg. The shelving (not on website) and clothes rail are from Habitat. To find a simple cot check out our 7 stylish cots feature. You can find colourful tub storage from Tesco for just £4.50. Of course what sets this room apart is the accessories. Carboot sales, eBay and vintage shops are where Jane hunts down her delicious finds and the patience is key here.

If you’d like to get the look quicker, you can find vintage Fisher Price radios, globes and chairs on Olive Loves Alfie. Jane herself sells vintage fabric cushions, screen prints and the cute handmade cats as seen on the chest of drawers. If you want more vintage style inspiration check out her blog for more peeks inside her home.

Thank you so much to Jane and Polly for sharing this room with Bambino Goodies.

Look out for lots of exciting nursery and playroom tours as well as room shots to inspire you. If you’d like to put your child’s room(s) forward, please email features AT bambinogoodies.co.uk

Tagged Dick Bruna, Featured post, Habitat, Jane Foster, Retro Nursery, Small Nursery Inspiration, Terence Conran, Vintage Fisher Prince Radio, Vintage Habitat, Vintage Nursery, Vitra