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Brush in Hand
A New Dad's Painting and Decorating Primer By I.J. Schecter
While your paint job might be impressively smooth, your baby might have greater appreciation for walls that are just plain fun. One way you can achieve this is by using a large sponge to make patterns on the wall as you paint. You can even use your hands. The bottom line is not to restrict yourself to standard wallpaper featuring clowns, dolls, cars or animals. Stick leaves on the walls if you want; hang colored Styrofoam balls; draw figures with washable crayons. Don't let manufacturers and marketers dictate what your child might find interesting.
Familiar faces. Babies love faces. They also love to demonstrate that they recognize things. Why not cater to both instincts by placing some photos of family members around the crib, on the changing table or elsewhere in the nursery? You can play a nightly game of "Who's that?" with your baby that provides enjoyment for you both and also becomes more sophisticated with time.
Actually a primer to be applied before adding wallpaper or your real coat of paint, magnetic paint allows you to add and remove objects without needing hooks, pins, tacks or nails, making the nursery wall a constantly changing source of entertainment and stimulation. Naturally, you'll have to decide whether to use magnetic paint before starting the project.
On the other side of the coin is chalkboard paint, a type of paint or spray that works immediately as a chalk surface. If you don't want to use chalkboard paint from floor to ceiling, you might devote just one part of your child's nursery wall to messages from Mommy and Daddy until he's ready to use it himself. Then have him practice shapes and lines and, eventually, his own name. If you're lucky, you might even come upon a secret "I love you" message when you take that last peek before bed.
Now go create that special one-of-a-kind nursery for your new family member!
