Do It Yourself Jungle Theme Nursery Ideas

I love a jungle theme and it is what we decided on for my first baby, before we knew the sex. This theme is great for both boys or girls and I think this is why it appeals to so many new parents. When we had our first, we were living in an apartment and our baby room was also a guest room, which meant I wanted to preserve some sense of "grown up" style in the room too. I didn't want cartoon characters all over the walls because I know just how short lived it would be.

Going with this theme allowed me to select additional decor items to match, like lamps and curtains that would stand the test of time and last far past the infant stage. This is a theme that can grow with the child.

We had mismatched furniture (armoire & storage cabinet) that I painted white and then added touches of dark brown and tan to, to tie them together and to match the other dark brown elements in the room. Again, these are neutral colors and starting with just white it will be easy to repaint them other colors as the room changes.

I also stained the bookshelf (it was a light pine before) to match the dark wood color of the crib.

As you can see in the photos above, I choose neutral bedding for the guest bed that went well with the rest of the room. You could imagine this room to be for a much older child as well as a baby, which is exactly what I wanted! Wicker baskets, pictures of palm trees, monkey figurines and palm tree lamps were other touches of detail that will last a long time.

Your own paintings are a great way to decorate the walls. I took inspiration from the bedding set we had and used those characters on large canvases. That largest painting (the turtle one) is still in my eldest son's room in our new home. You can sketch the design with pencil first and then paint over the sketch.