Luckily, Martha Stewart came up with a fantastic idea to solve my laundry situation: The Ever-Open Laundry Bag.

My daughter’s hamper doesn’t match anything in her room but it was the closest thing I could find. Now that she’s a toddler, stuffed animals and mommy’s cellphone have been keeping the dirty socks company. So I’m taking Martha’s advice and replacing my hamper with an ever-open laundry bag.

I’m also placing a second ever-open laundry bag on the inside of the closet door for all of the items that she grows out of. Once that bag is full, I’ll sort it and decide what to keep and what to donate.

But beautiful laundry bags are a MUST if you’re going to display them! Check these out at Pottery Barn Teens or these chic laundry bags from Lapin Vilardi.

Paisley Pop Laundry Bag from Pottery Barn Teens

* This idea is part of Martha Stewart’s 25 Bedroom Organizers.

Child’s Name: Sofia Evoli de Souza

Child’s Age: Almost 2 months old

Location: Pompano Beach, Florida

What was your inspiration for the room?

I wanted to create a space for Sofia that was going to be serene and calming but beautiful at the same time. Something not too girly that could grow with her easily. I am very drawn to natural elements and Asian pieces that have some kind of meaning. It all began with a small little blue elephant and the subtle nature/animal theme evolved from there.

Describe your decorating style.

My style is very eclectic and varies with the situations, spaces & people. I love minimal design and contemporary design, but can also fall in love with a style like beachy, cottage chic.  I believe any room can look expensive & sophisticated without the expensive and sophisticated budget!

Give us all the details about your room! Don’t forget to share with us any money saving tips you might have learned along the way.

Custom Bedding: From Etsy store BabyDarling ($196). The first thing I purchased was the crib bedding. Since I couldn’t find anything I liked at local stores, I had it custom made (prices vary from store to store on ETSY).

Paint: The FreshAire Choice – nontoxic paint in Organic Garden. ($37)

Dresser, Crib and Storage: I knew I wanted all the large pieces of furniture to be white, simple and clean-lined. All from IKEA! Expedit Storage shelf: ($159); Hemnes 8 Drawer Dresser ($278) Replaced original pulls with some clear pulls from Wal-Mart. Looks 20 times better!; Gulliver Crib ($99) – This is the best deal ever!

Chair: Poang Chair ($149 chair, $70 footstool) Fabric – Tuna light blue-grey. I don’t love the look of the traditional poofy (& extremely expensive!) gliders and rocking chairs so I purchased a great chair from IKEA.

Rug: Hampen Rug from IKEA in white ($50)

Mirror: From Bombay Company. Original price was $350 but I bought it for $50 from a retail store that was going out of business.

Storage bins: By RiverRidge available at Target {$9.99 for a 2-pack}.

Chandelier: Capiz Chandelier from World Market (on sale $55)

Lamps: Re-used from our master bedroom, originally from JcPenney’s.

Name display: A small DIY project. Essentially, it’s white wooden letters, foam butterflies and laser cut paper backing.

Favorite Items.
My favorite item in the room is the mobile above the crib. I, unsuccessfully, searched and searched for a mobile until I finally gave up and made one myself! I spent about $25 on it. The butterflies were bought from a little boutique in St. Augustine, Forida while we were on a babymoon for $19. The white branches were from a centerpiece in our wedding reception.

Advice.

- Take your time. Start early. I gave myself about 3-4 months.

- Search for good deals.

- Use it as quality time with your partner/spouse (mine was a dream, he put together all the furniture and we made ALL decisions together!)

- If you can’t find something you like, don’t settle. MAKE IT YOURSELF! Be creative.

To learn more about Francisca de Souza, you can visit her website or her blog.

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Child’s Name: Wynn

Child’s Age: 4 weeks

Location: Westminster, MD

Describe your decorating style.

Traditional

Give us all the details about your room! Don’t forget to share with us any money saving tips you might have learned along the way.

Flooring: We installed Brazillian Koa hardwood flooring ourselves. That saved us well over $1000.00. We rented the nail gun for the installation late Saturday afternoon and we were able to keep it until Monday morning because they were closed on Sunday.

Walls: The paint color is Valspar’s Woodlawn Silver Brook. My husband installed wainscoting on the lower half of the wall. It was inexpensive since he made all the pieces himself. It was a time consuming project, and my husband had no prior experience. But with a router and table saw, it went smoothly.

Crib: Cocoon Nursery Furniture 7000 Series Convertible Crib purchased from www.csnstores.com which offered free shipping, and that was a big discount compared to other stores and websites.

Bookcase: Matching bookcase purchased on sale from Target.

Curtains & Lighting: Faux silk curtains from www.target.com and lighting from www.walmart.com.

Rug: Hand-tufted Zebra Brown Wool Rug from Overstock.com.

Glider: From Babies R Us website. t was less than $400, and it was free shipping and handling. It has great reviews on their site. It’s super soft and comfy. I love it.

Wall Decal and Mobile: The decal was about $25.00 from a seller on Etsy.com. I also purchased the decorative mobile from a seller on Etsy.com.

Wall Decor: DIY project. I bought a pad of coordinating scrapbook paper and some inexpensive frames at Michael’s.  All I did was cut the paper to fit the frame, and we get a lot of compliments on it. It in total cost $50 for five framed pieces of “art”.

Favorite Items.

The decal and mobile from Etsy. I love that site!

Advice.

Check out the internet for DIY instructions before you hire someone to do the work. We had never installed hardwood or done wainscotting and it wasn’t as bad as we thought. We are very proud to have done it ourselves. If you are thinking about purchasing furniture from Target.com, they often offer free shipping and 15% a purchase of $125.00 or more. Be on the look out for sales and coupons.

Thank you Megan, for taking the time to share your room and your budget-friendly tips with us. We hope that Wynn is enjoying her nursery!

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If you choose a traditional style, you will more than likely want a sleigh crib. Sleigh cribs are très chic and their traditional style of elegantly sloped headboards and footboards is what make this crib style a popular choice. Thankfully, there are multiple slope styles and designs for you to choose from, allowing you to incorporate some of your own personal tastes when it comes to making your choice.

Bratt Decor Chelsea Sleigh Crib

This Bratt Decor Chelsea Sleigh Crib is a modern take on the traditional sleigh crib with a fixed gate. It features beautiful relief carvings on the sides (not seen here) and at the foot of the crib. The Chelsea Sleigh Crib is crafted from solid hardwood and hand distressed. But this gorgeous crib can set you back about $1450. Yikes!

Pottery Barn's Larkin Fixed Gate Sleigh Crib

Pottery Barn Kids offers the Larkin Fixed Sleigh Crib. Although this option forgoes the relief carvings on the sides, it is also made from hardwood and features hand carved details (channeled panels). The Larkin Fixed Sleigh Crib is available at Pottery Barn Kids for $1,099. Still pricey but a more affordable choice than the Bratt Decor Chelsea Sleigh Crib.

Young America by Stanley Stationary Sleigh Crib

For a more affordable choice, you might want to consider the Young America Stationary Sleigh Crib – Merlot. This crib does doesn’t have the carving details but it does feature trim on the sides and it’s available in 9 different finishes. Another plus? The side gates pop out and this crib turns into a day bed. I found this crib online for around $779. Almost half the price of the Bratt Decor Chelsea Sleigh Crib!

BSF Baby 4-in-1 Madison Sleigh Crib

This option, by far, is the most affordable. The BSF Baby 4-in-1 Madison Sleigh Crib costs just $239.99! And it is a great option for those of you working with limited space. The headboard and footboard feature elegant slopes and this crib converts into a transitional bed without having to purchase a conversion kit.

So whether your budget is big or small, your little prince or prince will be sleeping like royalty, because a traditional sleigh crib is within your reach.