that nursery!

   

Last week I posted pictures of a darling nursery.  I went back to give proper credit to the homeowner/designer and in the process lost the post.  Well, now I'm back with even more info and photos!  Special thanks to the girls at The Estate of Things for putting me in touch with the baby's momma.

Laurie Rhoney is the momma and designer.  She and her husband (Andy) together have Rhoney Design in Hickory, North Carolina.  Here's a little Q&A I did with her I think you will enjoy...   

Tell us a little about you and your husband and your professional lives?

Both Andy and i grew up and still live in hickory, NC.  sound familiar? It is also known as the "furniture capital of the world".  The Hickory Chair plant is a few miles up the road, Century, Mitchell Gold / Bob Williams, Henredon, and Bernhardt are all just a stones throw away. I hold degrees in Historic Preservation and Interior Design.  My husband has worked as an art director and a freelance branding consultant.  I started my career in the furniture industry, designing and installing retail spaces and showrooms.  Now my focus is mainly residential design, though I must admit, this project has sparked a new love of design for younger clients!

Did you know you were having a girl or was this designed as a unisex nursery?

No, we didn't know...we always wanted it to be a surprise.  My family and friends thought I was crazy, especially considering my borderline OCD tendencies for planning and preparation.  But, there are just so few surprises like that in life.  And I'm so glad we waited.  However, I won't lie, when we started planning the nursery it was mighty hard not to bite the bullet and find out.  I saved a few of the decisions until after our daughter arrived--like the chandelier and some of the accessories/art pieces.

 

What was your inspiration for the nursery?  The wallpaper on the ceiling?  What is it and who installed it?  Was it the starting point for the design?

After spotting the Julia Rothman wallpaper at Hygge and West, I couldn't get it out of my head.  I had the blue colorway (with peach birds) on my bulletin board for months.  When I found out we were pregnant back in November, I knew I wanted to incorporate it in the nursery design.  The way the birds were oriented, it just seemed natural to put it on the ceiling.  The blue was a little too bold, I felt, but the yellow version was perfect for the nursery After this selection, the color scheme for the room evolved from the wallpaper. Having never hung wallpaper myself, I treated myself (and my back) and hired my wallpaper installer who owed me favor.  He was happy to tackle the job...I gave him a big tip and some Advil!

 

Did you set a budget for the room?

The wallpaper and custom bedding/window treatments were my biggest splurges.  Everything else we had to get a little creative.  A lot of the pieces and accessories are from our local antique/junk mall (changing chest) and etsy.   An Ikea bookcase and rug were other bargains. Even Walmart of all places was where I finally located just the right crib!  A friend of ours sold us the mid-century rocker for a steal, which we recovered. With the room being so small and narrow, a larger glider was out of the question--the scale of that rocker is perfect for the room. 

An often overlooked area in nursery design is art.  I think even little eyes need to be exposed to great art.  We pulled some of our own pieces from other rooms in our house to adorn the walls in our Mallory's room and we even created a few original pieces just for her.

Did you make the roman shades and crib skirt yourself?

Heavens no! I'm embarrassed to say I can't even sew  on a button, but I did design them and promptly gave my sketches to my seamstress to execute.

What is that fabulous fabric and trim you used?

The yellow stripe is called "Tamaron" in Raffia by Pindler and Pindler.  Finding just the right blueish-gray trim for the bedskirt was more of a challenge.  I scored just enough of a discontinued trim at a local fabric showroom, Mary Jo's.  I think it was Kravet.  That trim was just a little too busy on the edge of the roman shades, but I needed to find a flat tape that matched the pom-pom trim of the skirt.  I never could find just the right shade so I actually used fabric to band the bottom.  It's also a Pindler & Pindler fabric called "Westley" in Spa.  This was also used on the bumper along with a few leftover remnants I had from another job (a natural cream chenille and yellow polka dot embroidered linen).

 

How long did it take for you to pull this design together?

Several months.  I wish I could have focused on this project solely, but like yourself, I'm afraid my little girl's room was squeezed in between completion of other projects and free time on the weekends.  I wanted to clear my schedule entirely so I could spend as much time with her when she arrived.  My husband, Andy, was very involved too.  We loved hitting up yard sales or the Metrolina Antique Show (in nearby Charlotte, NC) on our free weekends.  I related so much to your own nursery diary post about painting.  We painted our entire baby's room twice!  Originally we went with the blue-gray color, but it competed too much with the ceiling. I lived with it for a week or so but it just wasn't right.  Pregnancy hormones and paint drama do not go together!   So my sweet husband repainted the room a warm Antique white, keeping the blue-gray color only on the changing table wall so that the Jonathan Adler sconces would pop. 

More info and resources on the nursery can be found at their website: Rhoney Design!

 

Comments

[Sarah]

This is definitely one of my favourite nurseries! So many people don't use the ceiling as another wall. I love when designers paint or wallpaper it. Very sharp!

Thanks for sharing this Erika! :)

[The Countess of Nassau County]

ADORABLE beyond words. I love all of it, wonderful post.

[Rebecca]

amazing nursery!
I was just browsing my local craft store and found bird houses like that. I too am going to incorporate them into my nursery!

thanks for sharing!
Rebecca

[Louisa]

Erika,

What a beautiful nursery. I love the swallow wallpaper and putting in on the ceiling was genius!! I also love the framed prints over the crib and am going to see if there's more info/pictures on their website.

How is your nursery coming along? :)

[Dianne]

When are you going to share your nursery all in one post? I'd love to see different views as in this one.
I am praying for you and your sweet family as you welcome this new bundle of joy.

[Kristin]

This is so beautiful! Thanks so much for sharing.

[APT]

Thanks SO much for sharing! I'm trying to put together a nursery for my first baby, and I'm clueless - this is great for inspiration! Thanks! Can't wait to see more pictures of yours...

[A Girl]

I am officially obsessed with your blog. I am adding you to my reader straight away!!!

[Taylor]

I think my heart just gave out. That room is fan-tas-tic!

[Jen]

this is one the best nurseries I've seen! I love the idea of putting that fantastic Julia Rothman wallpaper on the ceiling! looks amazing! and the striped window treatments, wood birdhouse collection, antique dresser — everything works together so well.

[Lisa]

What a beautiful nursery, and strong will power to not find out the baby's sex...I'm not sure I could do that. Love the wallpapered ceiling and the rocking chair, and of course the giraffe sconces!

[Shannon]

i am so obsessed with that nursery! it is just gorgeous! i love when people create their own nurseries with fun fabric and art. this nursery and your beautiful one are just the prettiest little rooms ever. LOVE!

[Jeannie Yount-Hawkins]

I adore the sheet music above the crib! What a precious idea...and would love to know where they came from. From what I can see, the illustrations are priceless. Any info on the music?

[alison g. (brazil)]

I wondered what happened to that post???

I have to say, that roman shade and skirt is like the nursery design heard round the world - I imagine it will be much-duplicated.

Beautiful!!

[amanda]

Glorious nursery! It was just featured on Spearmint Baby too, recently, I think - when are we going to see yours???!!! Dying here...Love the Sharpie too, just picked one up. Enjoy your long weekend(saty cool!_) and hope your little one makes her apperance soon!!!

[Jacci]

That's gorgeous. Really. Gorgeous. You can bet your boots (or booties) that I'm checking out their website! :) Thanks for sharing the inspiration, Erika.

XO,
Jacci

[Molly]

Incredible nursery! Wow! I almost purchased those vintage books pictured on that bird table at a rummage sale!

[Melise]

This is so so so pretty! I love it so much. I just know the post on yours will be as inspiring! Isnt' it fun to see what each individual does differently!?

[Laurie]

Erika,
Wow! Thanks so much for the feature...it is quite a treat to see my little 'ol nursery on one of my favorite daily reads.

The sheet music above the crib came from an out of print book with compositions by Alec Wilder, a family friend who wrote a lot of music with my grandfather. Maurice Sendak (of "Where the wild things...") did the awesome illustrations. I have seen some used versions of the book on Amazon.

[misc.alaina]

Erika,
Thanks for sharing this feature! I can't wait to see the final chapters of your beautiful nursery!

Laurie,
What a beautiful nursery... I wouldn't mind spending hours in there! My parents live right down the road from you in Rutherfordton! Everytime I go home, I have to stop into Mary Jo's. I love that place! Even if I am not shopping for a project I end up buying something.

[Victoria]

Seriously! That is such a beautiful room.
Love your Blog!!
xoxo

[alison]

CUTE nursery! you need to do your ceiling like that - such a cute idea!
xox

[Roxanne]

Never seen such a beautiful nursery!!! Such an unexpected color scheme and love all the special touches...just so creative and well executed. I could live in that room!!!

[Amelia]

This is just unfair...a baby gets a room this stylish!!!

[Susan]

What makes this nursery so amazing is all of the little touches - the art, the accessories, each item's placement . . . I keep going back to the photos to see what I can take away from them! Thanks for sharing again -

[paula]

this is so going into my file folder just in case we decide to have another, ha!

[Darby]

Unbelieveable! I love it! So glad it reappeared!!!!

[Olivia]

What an amazing nursery...I would love to see the rest of the house. Any chance we can see more pics of their digs...you know it must be to die for.

[Ginger]

Seriously, seriously!?! This room is out of control. I just checked out this chick's website and saw more details of the room. She could teach a master's class on the art of placement and accessorizing! I died over her use of the old tool drawer as a display/shadow box with all the little animals and seashells...and that one little teacup! And the vintage deer on that corner shelf...the bamboo easel holding the book...ahhh, loving it all. Bravo!!

[pve]

I love that it is modern, yet ageless and a bit old world.
Baby baby, would I love that to be my crib and my room.
pve

[Kristin]

Those giraffe sconces are so precious!

[Andi]

I really like the use of natural, unfinished wood on some of the pieces...like the birdhouses and the corner shelves. My instict would probably be to paint them the gray or yellow, but it works some mucher better how she did it. Adds a lot of warmth and texture. Just love this room, thanks for sharing.

[Betsy]

Erika!!
Yay.. Its so fun to see the Rhoney Design Nursery on Urban Grace!! and amazing to read all the wonderful comments and compliments...
Thanks for the shout out The Estate of Things!!
We love your blog, just love it.
Thanks,
Betsy

[vintage simple]

Beautiful..! And I love the wallpaper in the ceiling - just perfect!
-maria

[The Lil Bee]

I love this room!