Nursery decoration

Christmas and Nursery Decoration

Christmas is a very special time and its great to make your home look Christmassy; but how do you do it safely? If you have pre-school kids you will understand how even the simplest of things can be very dangerous to a baby or toddler.

I love preparing the house for Christmas, but I will never forget the first Christmas with a child – I looked at everything I possessed by way of Christmas decorations and they were all lethal to my baby. I now have a very different attitude to Christmas and my home looks better than ever.

The first thing I did was to remove all the baubles off the Christmas tree. There are three basic problems with these. Firstly, the small ones are a choking hazard. Secondly, if they break thay are really sharp. And finally, the loop is usually held in place with a metal collar – these are quite easy to pull off to reveal the sharp ends of the loop, the sharp edge of the bauble and the sharp edge of the collar! Basically, Christmas baubles and babies don’t mix well.

I guess you are probably wondering how on earth I actually decorated a Christmas tree? Simple, and really good fun at the same time.

Paper Stars
I invested in these really cool Froebel stars. They are three dimensional stars and you can buy them online. The great thing is that they are paper – and totally harmless; even if they are chewed.  This is the link to where I get these from.  I used to just email her – but she has just set up an online shop – she still says just to message her with the number and size of what you think you may want and she will give you a quote – works out cheaper than buying what is in her store!!! (I’m giving away all my secrets …..)

Paper Snowflakes
I loved making snowflakes as a child, and I rediscovered this when I had a my first child. They can be absolutely amazing, they can be as complex or as simple as you like, so use your imagination and you are bound to end up with something rather special.

Oranges
I made two decorations from oranges. Initially I sliced some up and put them in a low oven to dry them out and then I made a small hole with a knife and threaded pretty ribbons through them, made a bow and a loop and hung them on the Christmas tree. The second decoration I made was to take whole oranges, and tie ribbon around them. I used whole cloves to hold the ribbon in place and simply hung them on the tree (make sure that you get small oranges or they get rather heavy).

So that’s your Christmas tree decorations, but how do you make the nursery look special? Answer: use all the same things.

First, I get lots of Froebel stars and with a piece of sewing cotton I string them together. Underneath each star you will need to make a little knot to stop the stars from all slipping to the end of the cotton. Then I stick them (with scotch tape) to the walls and I also hang a couple of the light shade in the nursery.

Secondly, I make lots of snowflakes, and I string these together and hang them infront of the window. It makes wonderful patterns on the other walls when the sun comes through, and helps make the room look really special.

So all in you can have an amazingly Christmassy home with great nursery decorations which are also safe for your family.