Allyson's New Room

Where to start . . .  We moved Ally into her room a little over a year ago and we never really made it her own.  She had a crib, changing table and a rocking chair, but we never got around to hanging anything up in her new room.

We decided to move her into a toddler bed (we have one in the garage that needs to be painted white), so I found some bedding that I liked from Pottery Barn Kids.  Let me tell, I am a clearance shopper like no other, but when I found this quilt (below) I just loved it and could not find anything else that I liked.  That's usually how it goes right: you like the most expensive one!!  Shawn stopped by one day after work in early December and picked up this quilt and I ended up purchasing the sham shortly after that.

Hayley from Pottery Barn Kids

We went to Lowe's and matched paint colors.  We had visions of painting one of the trees on the walls and maybe a bird or two.  I would considering myself somewhat crafty, but I definitely have a shaky hand.  Anyway, we must have bought 5 different colors.  We painted her room two different shades of pink the week before Christmas.  (We matched the darker pink to a "Itsy Bitsy Spider" sign I picked up at The Nutcracker Market.)  We didn't want to paint the entire room light pink because we would be moving up an armoire that was in her nursery and was the same light pink, so that needed to be on a different colored wall.

For some reason we never got around to painting the toddler bed, so she has been in the crib still.  Shawn and I got to talking last week and decided to move the double/full bed from the guest room into her room.  Both of our parents live within minutes of us, so there's not really a big need for a guest room at this point in time.  Now we've got a plan, but ran into a fork in the road . . . the bedding!!

This past week I have been looking at every local store and online for new bedding to fit a full bed, but I haven't found what I am looking for.  We've painted the room, so I have to work with those colors, but a lot of bedding for girls have shades of pink in them.  Shawn took back the bedding after work on Thursday, but since it was over the 30 days they gave us in-store credit.  Some might just say get the full size Hayley quilt from Pottery Barn Kids.  Are you ready for this . . . it is $194!!!!  SICK!!  We do have $120 credit, but I'm going to want the quilt and at least 1 sham, probably 2, and maybe a cute stuffed owl.  Geez!!!  I didn't even spend that kind of money on my own bedding.  This is so unlike me to even be considering a $200 quilt.  I mean, it's not even a bed in a bag, I'll have to buy sheets (not from Pottery Barn) and pillow cases still.  I don't know.

The only thing is that if I were to buy new bedding elsewhere, I am going to spend at least $70+ from what I've seen on a bed in a bag set or another quilt.  And then I'm left with this PB Kids credit, and the Hayley quilt and sham purchases were our first ever in the store, so I'm not sure how much more I will be buying from them in the future.  Don't get me wrong, love their stuff, it's just too pricey for us.  I even looked on eBay and it was just as expensive as buying it in the store.

To make things a little more difficult, now I think I like the Brooke bedding (below) from PB Kids a little better than the Hayley.  It is a little more colorful and I think it will flow with the the darker pink better.  Here's the kicker: it's only on-line, so I'll have to pay for shipping.  :/  A friend of mine has the crib bedding and it is really cute, so I've seen it in person and at least feel good about that.  Shawn says just order it and be done with it, but I just hate spending that money.

Brooke from Pottery Barn Kids

I had to share the cute owls too...I'd probably get the small one

Sorry . . . I had to vent about the bedding dilemma.  A couple of nights ago we ended up moving the full bed over, crib and changing table out, and the pink armoire up (thanks to Shawn, Jay and Dave).  Ally has slept in the bed one time and did great, stayed in it all night.  She stayed the night with my mom last night (while we did our Star Wars thang), so this morning was D-day to start and finish hanging things on the wall.  And as far as the bedding goes, right now we just have what was already on it.  It actually matches the room pretty good, it's just not what I want for her room. 

I was so glad that we finished hanging everything up.  All of the little glass/porcelain items (except the Ally Kate plate and the bear) are from my Grandma Leonard and Nana (my mom's and dad's moms).  There is one huge wall, left of the bed, that is blank.  I think we decided to do a picture frame collage on it or something.  We need to get frames and pictures for it.  I looked around her room and there is only picture in there and it is of her hands folded like she was praying when she was just weeks old.  I guess after I solve the bedding dilemma, I'll start on the picture frame collage.

Since Allyson was gone this morning, she hadn't seen her room come together.  Shawn recorded her seeing her room with all the wall decor up for the first time this afternoon.  I think she likes it!  :-)