Earthy, mid-century, eclectic.

My husband and I are always at our happiest when life revolves around water—surfing, swimming, sailing. We met while living in Hawaii, so bringing the water and that magic into our baby’s space was paramount to us. We waited to find out if we were having a boy or girl until he was born so in planning the nursery, I was trying to keep things neutral and really warm. Something about combining earth tones like clay green, burnt orange, and yellow ocre felt like a really cozy sunset while setting an ocean/water focused theme. I definitely wanted the water to be more of a feeling in there than a heavy handed motif. Leaving things neutral also allowed for me to accessorize with more feminine or masculine details after he arrived.

The whole room is speckled with little details that are meaningful to me—a Hawaiian warrior bust that my husband gave me, purple coral that my mom brought back from sailing in the Bahamas, and books that were read thousands of times by my brother and I growing up. I also decorated with local artists in mind. The surfboard on the wall by Moonlight Bay (@moonlightbayco_), the mural was painted by my dear friend and artist Katherine Mingus (@katmingus), the wavy surfer art is by Carleigh Sion (@carleighflower), and I designed the Freedom & Surfing poster myself. Being a part of the local artist scene through my photography and woodworking is a big part of what makes me happy about where I live. So investing my money into that community to decorate my home was a core value for me.

How long it takes to get out of the house and go anywhere! For all my efforts, it cannot be rushed. Being late is a huge pet peeve of mine so I’ve had to just throw my hands up and say, we get there when we get there.

We actually had to build the nursery where there wasn’t a room before. As a result, there was a lot of construction that still had to happen when I was 7, 8, 9 months pregnant, even the first week after he was born. So I never really got to nest. It’s actually been really wonderful getting to finish the space now that our son is here and we live in it as we go. So there are many moments of magic like my husband putting up a ceiling fan while Bodhi and I read in the corner, assembling our crib while wearing him in a sling, and watching him play on the floor with his grandmother. It’s all been a special kind of magic that I think have brought us together in a really lovely way.