How To Create a Modern, Eco-Friendly Nursery For Baby

Finding cute, eco-friendly baby items is getting easier and easier. If you want to go green with your decor, you no longer have to choose from the standard muted tones that sustainable design is known for. Now there are plenty of environmentally friendly nursery items that incorporate cheerful color into your baby’s room, so it’s possible to move beyond the beige!

Bonus! Eco-friendly items have less of an impact on the environment. Things made with sustainable and organic materials, and non-toxic chemicals are healthier for your family and planet earth.

Here, we've compiled a selection of nursery furniture, must-haves, cute toys, and decorating tips to help you get started. When creating your registry for your nursery or making inspiration boards, remember babies’ brains are like sponges soaking up the environment around them. Consider how stimulating, comforting, and imaginative you want the design to be. Mix these fun items with your functional must-haves to create a nurturing, eco-friendly space:

1. This handmade felt garland in bright, vivid colors makes a great gift for a baby shower.
2. Fly high with this nostalgic wooden airplane. Handmade from cherry, red oak, granadillo, and hardwood, plus non-toxic finish, this heirloom-quality toy will be a keepsake for many years.
3. A sweet and creative design, this sleepy lion pillow cover is made from natural linen. It's machine washable (on gentle cycle)—great for busy moms!
4. Add some color and imagination to nursery walls with these non-toxic hot air balloon wall stickers. 
5. Get your little one appreciating nature from an early age. This watercolor fox print measures 8x10 inches and is printed on 100% cotton paper.
6. This hand painted light switch cover can be customized with your baby's name. Made of ceramic and kiln-fired, the light switch is 100% lead-free.
7. Made from premium organic cotton, this flag banner features seven flags in soft blues, gray, orange, and white.
8. This rustic bookcase is a great piece for fashionably storing baby's books, toys, and other items. Made from recycled cedar, you can choose the color and cut-outs of this bookcase. 
9. Soft and safe, this organic frog rattle is handcrafted from a seller on Etsy.

1. This “a day in the park” eco-friendly, non-toxic wallpaper from Etsy comes in a variety of designs but we love this nature-inspired print.
2. New parents will appreciate this cute and practical sheep wall clock. Made from 3-ply bamboo (a sustainable material), this clock has more than 2,000 positive reviews on Etsy.
3. This organic made-to-order pillow cover has an envelope closure that makes washing a breeze. 
4. Here's a clever and affordable idea from The Honest Life. Simply up-cycle old scraps of fabric in pretty frames, or paint existing frames with no-VOC paint.
5. This modern playhouse is sure to stoke curiosity as your little one grows. And the bold color and modern design adds some interest to a nursery room.
6. Store baby's first books in this woodland creatures bookshelf is made from wood and non-toxic paint.
7. Repurposed from the Tale of Peter Rabbit, this banner comes with 12 flags and can be hung around windows, a crib, or hang on nursery walls. 
8. How cute and girly is this handmade rag doll? “Flora” is made from all organic materials and would make the perfect decor item for a bookshelf or dresser. Once your baby girl is old enough to play with her, Flora’s braided hair can be undone and played with. She also comes with two scraps of organic cotton/soy/spandex jersey to use as hair ties, belts, or a head wrap.
9. Eco-friendly and organic, these two stuffed mom-and-baby penguins would be great for decor and as toys.
10. Your baby will love the color, texture, and sounds of this 5-inch organic crochet ball rattle. Twelve African flower motifs are sewn together to make this mauve, purple, powder pink, light green, and turquoise rattle.

1. Our new crib is Honestly amazing—functional, stylish, and of course, completely safe for your baby. The 4-in-1 design lets you transform it from a baby's crib to a daybed to a toddler bed to a full size bed for big kids.
2. You'll want to get a non-toxic, organic crib mattress since baby will spend so much time in his crib and his little body is extra sensitive to chemicals that might be in typical mattresses. This one from Naturepedic is also waterproof.
3. It's a good idea to have a few washable changing pad covers handy. This changing pad cover is available on Etsy and made from organic flannel. It can be customized to fit the size of your changing pad.
4. Our swaddle blankets come in packs of 3 and are made in collaboration with aden + anais. Lightweight, generously sized blankets are made from 100% GOTS certified organic cotton muslin.
5. A colorful rug will brighten-up a room, keep your feet warm if you have hardwood floors, and provide a soft surface for baby to play. This hand-braided rug is made from new USA organic cotton and some recycled T-shirts, and is machine washable.
6. The Nuna LEAF organic baby rocker takes inspiration from the movement of a leaf in the breeze. The rocker is noise-free and motor-free, and will gently move for 2 minutes. Made from aluminum alloy, steel, and organic cotton.
7. Paint is the easiest and cheapest way to liven-up a room. Mythic Paint creates non-toxic paints free of VOCs (volatile organic compounds).
8. Somewhere to sit while nursing is essential in any nursery. This rocker and ottoman are made from mostly recycled materials.
9. Ensure the air baby breathes is pure and clean with this BioGS air purifier from Rabbit Air.
10. You'll need somewhere to store all of baby's toys. We love this safari-themed toy box because it's made from solid eco-friendly rubberwood, crafted with formaldehyde-free glue, and painted with non-toxic paint.

Decorating Tips

• Decorating doesn’t have to be expensive. In The Honest Life, Jessica recommends shopping yard sales and Craigslist for used wooden items. You can refinish and re-paint these finds with no-VOC paint. This way, you get new furniture that’s eco-friendly, non-toxic, affordable, and original. In a nursery the wooden items you’ll need are a dresser (with room for a changing table on top), a side table, a crib, and a rocking chair with an ottoman.
• On a similar thread, if you buy basic nursery furniture you can personalize it by adding non-toxic wallpaper or fabric to the front side of the drawers, or change the knobs out with fun, colorful ones.
• Paint is one of the easiest (and most affordable!) ways to add color and personality to a room. Be sure it doesn't contain any VOCs, which have some pretty nasty possible long-term effects.
• We love Etsy for its variety of organic and non-toxic baby items. You can get one-of-a-kind and customizable nursery decor that’s often a fair price for the amazing handcrafted quality.
• Here is an affordable and beautiful DIY for baby’s room, especially in the summer months: a blooming monogram. The blog Urbanic Paper shows us how to make this using basic crafting supplies you can find at your local craft store such as paper mache letters, a glue gun, floral foam and silk flowers.

• Make your own nursery chandelier using a lamp shade and some felt. Follow our amazing (yet simple) DIY instructions here.

• If you’re fairly handy, you can make your own toy box from a wooden crate, plywood, casters and a few other supplies. Just follow this DIY from the blog ThisLittleStreet.com. You can also purchase some adorable eco-friendly toy boxes online (like the one above!).

Tell us about the eco-friendly nursery items you like!