How to create a Bohemian-inspired Baby Nursery

Trends for people searching for Boho Baby Nursery ideas peaked in 2004 and continued to remain popular through 2008, and then declined. In the past year however there has been a noticeable increase in interest for Modern Boho and Bohemian-inspired baby room furniture, décor, and styling ideas.

What is a Boho-inspired style?

The use of the word ‘Bohemian’ (or Boho for short) dates to the mid-19th century, when it was adopted from the French word Bohemian and used to describe those who adopted unconventional, nonconformist lifestyles and traditions. Later, the word took on an additional meaning, referring to those who lived a minimalistic, artistic lifestyle.

A Boho-inspired style is an eccentric, hippie-like aesthetic that mixes different cultures and artistic expressions into an eclectic but minimalistic style, with an emphasis on organic elements and nature. A Bohemian design is all about free-spirited styling that breaks interior design rules. It infuses a mixture of different textiles, prints, and rich, vibrant colours. Boho décor also often includes vintage items and elements from different cultures.

What is a Modern Boho style?

Modern Boho (also referred to as Urban Boho) is a variation of the Bohemian style, which adopts the most prominent trends from the hippie eras to aesthetically represent an expression of the individuality in design. It incorporates an eclectic mixture of both modern and Bohemian elements to achieve a unique balance between Boho and modern.

What is a Boho-chic style?

Chic is a French word that means elegant and distinguished, whereas Boho is more associated with an impoverished person, or a person who lives a simple lifestyle. Boho-chic draws on various Bohemian and hippie influences, however the pieces appear intentionally coordinated, leaning more towards neutral colors and natural elements than the sometimes seemingly eclectic hippie-like look.

Where the carefree Bohemian styles appear to lack structure, mixes patterns and textures, and incorporates mismatched colours; Boho-chic décor adopts these unusual and bold elements and blends them with clean, elegant highlights and earthy tones.

Choosing Boho Nursery Furniture and Décor

If you are a free-spirit who loves natural fabrics and colour, then Bohemian-inspired décor and furniture could be the perfect style for your baby’s room. It’s important to remember that while a Boho theme offers a blank canvas for self-expression, it should also be functional and create a comfortable and relaxing environment for both you and baby.

How do I start a Boho Nursery?

While there are no rules when it comes to Boho style décor, there are many ways to bring a Boho-inspired style into your baby’s nursery by blending a few essential elements together. From warm wooden furniture to earthy tones and cosy textures, these Boho Nursery ideas will bring the perfect whimsical Boho vibe to your baby’s room, without it costing the earth.

The Ultimate Guide to Creating a Boho Baby Nursery

Boho Furniture for Baby Nurseries

It should be no surprise that hand-crafted wooden furniture is the preferred material for Bohemian nurseries; with Rattan, Cane, and Wicker pieces being the most popular choice of Bohemian style furniture, since the Bohemians are all about natural, economical, and sustainable materials. Here are some Rattan Nursery Furniture ideas that would be the perfect addition to any Boho-inspired nursery:

Boho Bassinet – A crib is arguably the most important furniture piece in your baby’s nursery, and a Rattan Bassinet is a beautiful essential for any Newborn. With its whimsical appearance and compact size, a Rattan Bassinet is lightweight enough to elevate the style of a baby’s nursery, or to blend seamlessly into the parent’s room to be closer to mom’s bedside for easier nursing.

Boho Kiddies Chair – The Wicker peacock chair is an iconic statement-making addition to any Bohemian room. A kiddies Wicker chair will create the ultimate Bohemian-style reading corner, but will blend just as well into a spare room, living area or patio. A Wicker rocking chair is also a beautiful, yet functional piece of Bohemian furniture to add to the baby’s room and is perfect for rocking baby to sleep.

Boho Inspired Toddlers Bed –  As baby starts to get a little older, you’ll need to move your little one from the cot to a toddler bed. After having put so much effort into creating the perfect Boho-inspired theme, it would be a pity to have to redesign the room to accommodate a more contemporary kids bed. While the Bohemian style is forgiving enough to welcome this modern addition with ease, you might want to consider switching the Rattan crib out for a beautiful Wicker-like kiddies’ bed to stay committed to the more environmentally-friendly sustainable furniture choice.

Boho Baby Changing Station – A well-designed changing station is an important part of the nursery. It should have everything that you’ll need for changing baby in one place. Add an organic, or Boho coloured changing mat cover for a touch of style. A neutral toned nappy caddy is a wonderful organiser for changing time; or consider adding texture to the room with a few small Wicker baskets to store baby essentials in.

Boho Nursery Wall Art

From rainbows to rivers, oceans to jungles, and animals to flowers; all will pull off the Boho look with ease. You can achieve the ultimate Bohemian vibe by creatively introducing a beautiful jungle wall mural, or floral wallpaper. Textured wall décor such as Wicker animal wall hangings, woven rainbows and dreamcatchers, Macramé knotted textiles, tufted tapestries and Wicker or seagrass baskets are all popular decorative items to add warmth and texture in Boho themed nurseries.

Another cute idea is to hang beautiful natural wood timber milestone cards to capture memories of your child and mark the important moments in your child’s first year.

Bold coloured painted feature walls are also commonly used to bring colour to the more neutral, natural colour schemes. Rattan mirrors also add a beautiful and natural touch to elevate the style of a Boho-inspired baby nursery.

Boho-chic Textiles, Blankets, and Pillows

Organic Baby Blankets – Organic, bamboo baby swaddles or hand-knitted baby blankets are wonderful elements to bring into the baby’s room to create a warm, cosy feeling; and is an easy way to change up your Boho nursery style. Choose neutral linen sheets to balance out detailed patterns of pillows and comforters.

Floor cushions and throw pillows – One of the most quintessential elements of any Bohemian styled room is to have large brightly coloured or woven floor pillows or scatter cushion. Bohemian throw pillows are often embroidered with bright colours and form intricate patterns. A stack of large, brightly coloured comfy cushions will make for a cosy reading or play corner.

Tummy Time Mat – Another way to introduce a fun, functional element into the Boho nursery is through a nature-inspired tummy time mat. Placed close to the cushion corner, it will make for a beautiful zen-like space in the baby room.

Boho Nursery Shelving and Storage

A baby’s room isn’t complete without a few cuddly toys, ornaments, or books; and you’ll want to be sure to add some practical shelves to store a few knick-knacks on. Place your items so that they look varied and interesting, you don’t want this look to be too organised or neat. A ladder shelf, or modular shelving are great choices for the Boho vibe.

Organic Baby Toys and Trinkets

Wooden toys not only have many benefits, but they are also eco-friendly and durable. Choose toys that are both organic, as well as functional and good for sensory development. We’ve rounded up a few practical, eco-friendly toys that will blend in perfectly with your Bohemian baby nursery.

Bohemian Baby Mobile – A handmade wooden Bohemian cot mobile, with beads and woven ornaments, is a beautiful addition to your baby’s wooden cot to create a cosy atmosphere while entertaining your baby.

Organic Baby Teething Ring – Your baby will drool all over these teething rings. They come in unique, soft colours and are a natural way to sooth teething. Muncher Teething rattles is a great choice as it is made from organic untreated wood, and 100% food-grade silicone, free from dyes, making it a natural choice for your teething baby.

Personalised Sensory Toys  – A 3-in-1 personalised dummy clip, teether and toy is a beautiful multifunctional sensory development toy that you can attach to a pacifier, sippy cup, or blanket to help soothe baby. Made from 100% medical-food grade silicone, and raw, untreated beech wood, it is the perfect addition to your minimalistic room.

All-natural Wooden Baby Brush – Add a super soft all-natural beach wood brush for your baby’s delicate hair to your display. An organic, hypoallergenic and 100% biodegradable beech wood brush with soft goat hair bristle is not only decorative, but also good for blood circulation and distribution of natural oils throughout your baby’s scalp.

Bohemian Rugs

One of the easiest ways to create a Bohemian vibe in a room is with a simple textured or braided rug or playmat. A simple natural fibre carpet or Wicker rug will blend well with whatever baby furniture or décor you may choose. Or, if you’re feeling a bit more audacious, you may want to go for a bold rug as your centrepiece.

A Touch of Vintage

To achieve the eclectic, Modern Boho look, you can combine new and vintage pieces in your baby’s room. Include some mid-century vintage furniture pieces, wall hangings, rugs, or mirrors to create a unique and interesting addition to your Urban Boho décor.

Plants and Botanicals

The Bohemian style is all about nature, plants, and trees. The quickest way to achieve a Bohemian vibe is by adding greenery and botanicals to the baby nursery. You can use faux plants to recreate a sense of nature, and it is safe for the baby’s space.

Lighting and Ambience

The ambience is very important when trying to pull off a Boho baby room. For a light, airy and inviting ambience, bring lots of natural light into the room during the daytime; and drape fairy lights around the nursery (safely away from baby’s reach); or add a Rattan lamp to the nightstand. A rainbow nightlight is also a colourful way to bring light and style to the nursery.

Boho Nursery Décor Colours

Warm Earthy Tones – If you love simple neutral colours, create a cosy feel with warm earthy colours, like creams, browns, and terracotta’s. Rusts, copper, and taupe also bring a quiet sense of calm. Neutral earthy colours work very well with wooden furniture and Rattan accessories.

Soothing Natural Colours – Colours that have associations with nature are perfect for creating a soothing atmosphere in the nursery. Another direction would be to go bolder with a saturated blue or green accent wall, complimented with accents of whites, creams and greys.

Light and Airy Colours – White, cream, and beige are a stunning combination in a Boho themed room, and it lends itself well to layering other colours on top. This natural colour scheme is beautiful when pairing with plants, wooden decorative elements, and baby furniture made from natural materials.

Soft Pastels – Muted pastel colours work beautifully with a Boho-chic nursery style. Dusty pink, sage green, faded yellow and soft blues can also add warm accents to natural and neutral colour schemes, and blend very well with natural textures such as Wicker, brass, knits and weaves.

Celestial Colour Scheme – Traditionally, Bohemian colours are seen as being bright and eclectic. Bright Boho colours can create a unique, fun and celestial appeal, and work well with bold, artistic decorative elements.

Monochrome Palette – Nothing says ‘chic’ like the classic black-and-white colour scheme. This colour scheme has become a very popular choice for the more sophisticated, elegant nursery themes, and is often paired with minimalistic vintage or contemporary furniture pieces. You’ll need to accessorise your monochromatic palette with Boho-inspired baby furniture and decorative items to pull off the Boho-chic look.

Gender Neutral – Whether you’re having a little girl or boy; or if even a pair of boy-girl twins that need to share the nursery, you’ll find that most of the Boho-inspired colour schemes will work equally well regardless of the baby’s gender.

Bohemian Patterns and Prints for Babies

The sky is the limit when it comes to choosing patterns or prints for your Boho-inspired baby room, and in true Bohemian-style, no rules apply. There is often a fusion of patterns with elements of feathers, florals, tribal prints, arrows, and ethnic prints being used to bring about a sense of cultural diversity and non-conformity. Mix and matching prints and patterns is one of the joys of opting for Boho, as anything goes, and everything flows.

Natural Boho-inspired Textures

A Boho nursery isn’t complete without the use of natural, raw, and rustic textures. Texture is the key element for any Bohemian styled room. Raw materials such as Rattan, Cane, Wicker, Raffia, Hessian, and Hemp are perfectly introduced into a Bohemian room. You could also introduce a few softer textures with waffle blankets, knitted throws and rugs for a more subtle, elegant Boho-chic look.

Decorating a Bohemian-inspired baby room is incredibly fun, as it allows you to express yourself in so many wonderful ways, while introducing many different colours and textures to create a vibrant and happy space for your baby. The natural elements are eco-friendly too, which means that you’re doing good by baby and the planet.

The Boho style is forgiving, in that you can mix and match so many different things together, and it all just looks like it belongs. The eclectic Modern Bohemian style is so versatile and can be more affordable than modern or contemporary styles. It exudes joyfulness and creates a blissful space for you and baby to spend time in.

Check out Tobbie & Co’s unique range of Rattan Furniture, wooden toys and décor and organic blankets and swaddles, available in the most beautiful neutral and natural colours