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Paint color may be the biggest design decision parents-to-be face when decorating a nursery. For decades, the debate has been pretty narrow: Do you opt for blue, pink, or yellow? According to Babysense’s 2022 nursery trends, however, the top color for the room this year isn’t any of the previously mentioned. Instead nurseries are getting in on the green trend. The color saw a 17 percent increase in searches on Pinterest over the past 12 months. Knocking 2021’s popular white and black off their top spots, the nature-inspired hue is still bright yet soothing, while also not playing into traditional gender stereotypes—a priority for 2022’s new parents.
However, you don’t just have to just cover the walls with a solid swath of paint. Here, we highlight three of our favorite unconventional ways to use the shade in kids’ spaces.
Not-So-White Stripes
Alternating wide mint green and pale blue stripes make up a whimsical (and low-lift) backdrop in Kitty Patterson’s nursery for her son. “It’s easier to paint stripes than hang wallpaper, and obviously it’s much less of a commitment,” she explains. Paired with solid green trim and doors, the color is bold and enchanting—Patterson’s precise goal.
Looks Good on Paper
A vine-print wallpaper covers the walls of the animal-dotted room Amber Sokolowski designed for her son, Liev. On a white background, the leafy motif offers a subtler approach to the shade, while still tying all the themed details together.
Just a Trim
In the nursery fashion designer Brandon Maxwell designed for his sister, emerald plays a supporting role. By using sticky-backed velvet (stuck to wood beams), Maxwell created British racing stripes to cover the nails of his “puffy” wall installation.