We’ve made a few small updates to the nursery, and since we’re knee-deep in a kitchen project at the moment (more on that tomorrow morning, hopefully), we wanted to share the gallery wall changes we made in Clara’s room. We’ve always loved the idea of letting her art wall grow and evolve as she gets older, so we added several frames and shifted the placement of a few existing ones to freshen things up.
Below is an overview of what’s currently on the wall, along with quick notes about what each framed piece is and why we chose it:
- John’s baby picture and my baby picture — a playful side-by-side for comparison and a sweet way to show Clara where she came from.
- A doodle of our dog Burger that a friend created on Facebook using the Graffiti tool. We printed it and framed it because it felt personal and fun.
- An Etsy print of a girl and her dog that reminded us of Clara and Burger; it has a warm, nostalgic feel that suits the nursery.
- A personalized canvas with Clara’s name, which adds a custom touch and anchors the gallery as hers.
- A stylized photo of Burger that I edited to create a bright, graphic image of him in a field of flowers — it adds color and personality.
- Two faux butterflies arranged in a small shadowbox backed with patterned paper for a whimsical, dimensional accent.
- A handmade silhouette of Clara cut out and mounted on striped paper — a simple, meaningful piece that’s very personal.
- A giraffe print; Clara loves giraffes (and dogs), so this is one of her favorites to look at during playtime or diaper changes.
- A framed magazine ad with a giraffe — we enjoy framing interesting magazine pages we’ve bought for personal enjoyment.
- A large letter P that we decoupaged with colorful paper to keep things playful and tie into the nursery palette.
- A typographic print of peas in a pod made entirely from repeating the letter P — a cheeky nod to our family name and to Clara’s initials.
- A silhouette of Burger that John had made years ago; we backed it with patterned paper to blend it into the nursery theme.
- Clara’s hospital bracelet mounted on pink paper and placed in a chunky frame — a tiny keepsake that means a lot.
- A framed magazine ad featuring an owl — another small, quirky piece that contributes to the overall collage feel.
We love that several of these pieces cost nothing extra to add to the wall. A number of them were items we already owned or prints we made at home and printed on cardstock, so they were essentially free. That’s one of the great things about gallery walls: you can mix sentimental, DIY pieces with purchased art to create something that feels curated and personal without breaking the bank. Plus, the collage provides a lot of visual interest and keeps Clara entertained while we change her or play with her.
Many of the frames originally hung in Clara’s first nursery as well, though in a slightly different arrangement. It’s fun to reuse favorites and tweak their placement over time instead of starting from scratch. The continuity helps the room feel familiar while the new arrangement gives it a fresh look.
One of the details we love most is having both of our baby pictures on the wall. Clara enjoys pointing at them and saying “Daddy baby!” and “Mommy baby!” It’s been a sweet way to encourage recognition and connection, and we find ourselves comparing features and guessing which of us she resembles. We get asked a lot who she looks like more — some family members insist she looks like John, others see more of me — but part of the joy is in the debate, not the answer.
Finally, a little community note: one of the finalists in a recent design-related contest is a reader named Melissa Matthews. She entered after we mentioned the opportunity and ended up among the finalists, which we were excited to learn about. The contest supports charitable giving: each vote results in a donation to a children’s charity, so it’s a nice way to support a good cause while celebrating creative projects.