How to Design a Small Nursery

When it comes to designing interiors, our instinct tells us to flock to Pinterest in search of magazine-worthy inspiration. There’s no denying it’s one of the best places to find ideas for the nursery but all too often the nurseries we see are big enough to house a small army and unfortunately our modern homes and apartments just don’t allow for that! Decorating a small nursery isn’t too tricky but choosing furniture to fit your space can seem like an impossible task. We’ve shared a few of our top tips to ensure you have everything you need without feeling like you’re in a life-sized game of Tetris.

Functional Furniture to Suit Your Space

Most cots measure roughly 80cm wide and 140cm long depending on the design. This standard size will fit most rooms but if you have a smaller space to work with, you may want to consider a smaller cot to maximise your valuable floor space. A smaller cot certainly doesn’t always mean you’ll have to compromise on quality or style, our collection of cots are the perfect example. Although slightly smaller than Boori cot beds they still feature our signature quality; they’re crafted from sustainable solid wood and are finished in our Eco-Blend Bio-Paint which is made from natural sources to help keep your home free from nasty chemicals.

3 Boori cots

Create a Dual-Purpose Room

If your home is a little on the snug side you may even want to consider doubling up the use of your interior spaces. There’s no reason why your nursery can’t also be a work space or guest room with a sofa bed. Just be mindful of this as you’re decorating and keep things versatile - a Disney-inspired mural may not be the best design choice for older guests!

Mobile furniture pieces are ideal for creating dual-purpose rooms as they can be moved between rooms to suit your needs. Cots with wheels offer the perfect solution, especially if they’re small enough to fit through a standard door frame.


Maximise Your Storage Solutions

It won’t be long before you come to realise babies require a considerable amount of supplies! Changing equipment, toiletries, toys, clothes and bedding will soon pile up, so storage should be one of the first things you consider with your nursery design. Although it may seem logical to opt for a small infant wardrobe, they often take up just as much floor space as an adult-sized wardrobe but lack height and internal space. Our full-sized wardrobes are designed to create as much useful storage space as possible with a hanging rail, storage shelf and fully-extendable drawers.

If you have enough space for a dresser, why not consider one of our Bookcase Hutches? They can easily be secured to the top of your dresser which not only creates a beautiful focal point for your nursery, but gives you extra space to store storybooks and little keepsakes.

Boori bookshelves

Don’t forget the space under your cot bed! There are plenty of boxes and baskets available which are designed specifically to fit under beds, these are perfect for anything that can be folded flat such as bedding or clothing. We created our Tidy Drawer to utilise this space even further, offering an additional drawer that fits under a range of Boori cot beds to keep clutter to a minimum.

Tidy Drawer

Choose Furniture that has Multiple Uses

Choosing multi-purpose furniture is a great way to optimise floor space in the nursery. A standalone changing table offers a practical area for both nappy-changing and storing all baby’s essentials. However, if you’re also looking at a set of drawers such as a chest or dresser then you may want to consider merging these together to save room. Some change pads are designed to be secured directly to a set of drawers or you could opt for a changing station which can be placed on top of a dresser for additional security.

Furniture should have the ability to adapt to suit your family’s changing needs as this not only reduces waste, but extends the value of your purchase. With a few simple adjustments our Tidy Bassinet can become a change table, toy storage or even bathroom storage when it’s no longer required in the nursery.

Tidy Bassinet different modes

A cot that has the ability to transform into an adult-sized bed means you won’t be frantically searching for extra space to store it when it’s no longer needed. Our Expandable Cot Beds feature innovative technology which allows them to become a full adult-sized single bed and the conversion kit they come with can be stored under the cot bed until required.

Eton Expandable Cot Bed as a cot and as a single bed

We hope these tips have you well on your way to creating your dream nursery. If you’re looking for small nursery ideas from Boori parents, we feature plenty of real nursery designs over on our Instagram.

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