Baby and beyond: sharing the love

We met Victoria Dickinson in our spring issue, when she modelled maternity fashion with her eldest son Arthur. Now she opens the door of baby Woodrow’s room and lets us take a peek.

Where did you start in the decorating process?
I started by replacing the carpet, painting the walls white and removing the old curtains – basically creating a blank canvas. We then had the changing station built before adding the cot, armchair and drawers, and then finally the little finishing touches.

Did you want the boys' rooms to complement each other?
Big brother Arthur has a large bedroom that he can't wait to share with Woodrow, so I considered how items would later fit in that room (for example, keeping within a similar colour palette), or how they could be used in other areas of the house.

What is your favourite feature of the room?
Definitely the changing station. My husband came up with the idea to create a built-in desk and shelf in the recessed area of the room, which we could use as a changing station for the nursery and then easily convert into our office nook when Woodrow moves out of the room. We could then do away with the need for a change table, meaning less clutter in the room.

Being the second child, Woodrow’s nursery was put on the back burner as life's busyness got in the way. Mum Victoria had discovered a common equation: working + having a toddler = less time to spend on nursery decor. Here she shares her design strategies and shortcuts.

Where did your inspiration for the room come from?
Victoria: The idea was actually to create a space that could later be transformed into a play room/home office. I wanted it to be functional and fresh with temporary decor elements. As I already had an eclectic collection of furniture in the room, I wanted the colour scheme to be as neutral as possible. I took colour inspiration from the pillow on the armchair, which I found at Citta.

What were the tricky bits?
A challenge was to create a space that was temporary, but didn't feel that way. I wanted it to feel like Woodrow’s space, but didn't want to add things that couldn't be repurposed. We didn't want to spend a lot of money so I decorated with items we already had. It was tricky as I still wanted the room to feel calm and cohesive, not a random collection of things from around the house!

How will you update the room as Woodrow gets older?
We’ll add a sofa bed, television and toy storage when this room is no longer a nursery, creating a multi-purpose guest and play room. The wardrobe will become a toy cupboard and Lego storage (oh, so much Lego). We’ll swap the nappy accessories for the computer, transforming the change station into an office nook.

Any special family heirloom-type items in the room?
The cot was built by Arthur and Woodrow's great pa Tom, originally for their uncle Teva, and we hope to pass it on to my husband's siblings when they have children. He also built the rocking horse for Arthur, now passed on to his new little brother. There is a beautiful knitted shawl my nana made for Arthur (on the armchair) which I have wrapped both newborn babies in, and lots of beautiful knitted toys and clothing my nana and mum made – originally for Arthur, but always intended to pass on to other babies. We also have a beautiful crocheted blanket that my husband's nana made for Woodrow, with each crocheted square getting the nod of approval from the boys’ poppa Mark who has since passed away. This is very special to us, especially as it is one item that is not a hand-me-down!

PHOTOGRAPHY & STYLING : VICTORIA DICKINSON

Light Box, $22 from Kmart 

Jute lion, $11.99, and zebra, $12.99, tradeaid.co.nz

'Brothers make the best friends' print, from AU$15, toucanonline.com

O.B Design hand-crocheted ripple blanket, $104.90, www.littleandloved.co.nz 

Mushroom nightlight, $154.95, naturebaby.co.nz

Wooden bead garland in moody blues, $65, burrowandbe.co.nz

Margarete Ostheimer wooden toys, from $19.95, naturebaby.co.nz

PT Home coat rack, $35, alliuminteriors.co.nz

Plastic weave square newspaper basket, $59.90, cittadesign.com

Jellycat bashful fox, $45, alliuminteriors.co.nz

Moses basket and mattress, $179.95, naturebaby.co.nz

Giraffe Armchair in Vivo Licorice, $999, freedomfurniture.co.nz