Week 27 ~ Order Furniture
Most baby furniture sets typically take about 10-12 weeks to deliver so its important that you order early. If you do not want to get a customized set you sometimes have the option to buy floor samples from these stores, which are usually on sale. Some stores (not usually boutiques) have cribs and changing tables in stock and you can actually take them home with you in the box and set it up yourself.
As I am sure many of you can relate, when you were expecting your first child, your inner decorator itches to rear its ugly head. The sky is the limit with all your great ideas on furniture, bedding and decorations for the new nursery. In my case, I did not care how much it was going to cost.I was going to find a way to afford the exact furniture and bedding I wanted, after all, how many first children does one have? After all was said and done, new carpet laid, new crib and furniture all set up from the high end local baby boutique, and the most adorable, yet expensive baby bedding I could find we were out of money. How can you really put a price tag on a labor of love, was my rationale. I loved the way the nursery looked and my daughter took to sleeping in her crib the first week home from the hospital. How could I really regret the money spent, I would get over it.
No sooner did I have my beautiful nursery set up, my mother decided that she needed her own crib, baby furniture and bedding for their house in the event that my daughter needed to take a nap or spend the night. I knew that she was not going to spend the money that I did on my nursery, but I couldn’t help but wonder what her decorating plan was, especially for a room that was to be so seldom used. Within a few days she had bought a new crib, changing table and bedding all for less money than I spent on my daughter’s bumper and bed skirt. And needless to say, the nursery looked equally adorable.
The moral of my story is that there are great deals out there for furniture and bedding, you just need to do your research. If it’s not in your budget to do a decorator’s nursery, you still have great alternatives. Your end product will look very much the same but you won’t break the bank getting there. For my second child I went the more wallet friendly route on the nursery. I decided that the entire room did not need to be bought from one single baby boutique, but combining inexpensive pieces from one store and more stylish, high end-pieces from another, I could get the look I wanted for the same budget as my mother’s nursery for my daughter.
After you have done your research and have found the look or designer for the furniture or bedding you want, use the internet. I can not stress enough how enormous your savings will be. Ebay and Craig’s List are amazing resources for both new and used furniture and bedding. Many designers will throw brand new, discontinued patters or items that just need to be turned over fast onto Ebay. I bought a brand new crib bumper from a store that was selling a few pieces of left over inventory on line at a 50% discount. If you choose to shop this way you should be open to different ideas, you probably will not get as good a deal if you are looking for something very specific. Craig’s List is a great place to find inexpensive baby furniture, the only draw back is that you will have to go pick up what you buy. I found the exact same furniture set that I bought for my daughter on Craig’s List. I spent over $2,000 on baby furniture for my daughter’s nursery brand new from the boutique, and then I saw the exact set on Craig’s List a year later for $400. If used furniture is not your thing, that’s fine too. A brand new, gorgeous, plain white crib and matching dresser can be bought at a discount store like Baby Depot for $400 and no one will be the wiser, unless you choose to brag about it.
My last tip for nursery furniture is to mix it up a bit. Go to a store like baby Depot for your crib and then go to an unfinished wood furniture store for the rest. You can pick up a raw wood dresser for $100, paint it white once you get home, buy a changing pad to put on top and Voila! you have a brand new dresser/changer combo for next to nothing.
I hope this helps. Just keep in mind when you are about to break the bank on a new nursery that you have other options. The room will still look amazing, you will just have to do a bit more research. Just think of all the other things that you can now do with the money that you have saved!
