{"id":1290,"date":"2013-07-31T05:55:32","date_gmt":"2013-07-31T12:55:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.enannysource.com\/blog\/?p=1290"},"modified":"2013-07-31T05:55:32","modified_gmt":"2013-07-31T12:55:32","slug":"expert-insights-choosing-nursery-decor-and-art-with-sara-ardeleano-of-sea-urchin-studio","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.enannysource.com\/blog\/index.php\/2013\/07\/31\/expert-insights-choosing-nursery-decor-and-art-with-sara-ardeleano-of-sea-urchin-studio\/","title":{"rendered":"Expert Insights: Choosing Nursery D\u00e9cor and Art with Sara Ardeleano of Sea Urchin Studio"},"content":{"rendered":"

by\u00a0Michelle LaRowe
\n<\/a><\/strong>Editor in Chief<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>For many parents, decorating their baby\u2019s nursery is a labor of love. Finding the right blend of elegance, sophistication and cuteness can be a real challenge \u2013 unless you have a background in design, of course. Recently I had a chance to catch up with Sara Ardeleano, designer and owner of the <\/em>Sea Urchin Studio<\/em><\/a>, and talk about things to consider when choosing nursery d\u00e9cor and art. Here is a little of what she had to say.<\/em><\/p>\n

eNannySource:\u00a0 What’s important when choosing designs for a nursery?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sara: <\/strong>For me, the most important consideration is to choose artwork that a child will understand and appreciate. Color plays a big role as well. \u00a0I tend to work with colors that are calming and would be considered “gender neutral”, so that they will easily work in rooms that are specifically boy or girl, and often for both genders. \u00a0For example, our “Ocean Friends” print set looks great in a shared bathroom. \u00a0Lastly, while it may be tempting to buy artwork that suits a baby’s nursery, that stage goes by so fast. \u00a0 Like clothing, investing in designs with “room to grow” means they will be appreciated longer.<\/p>\n

eNannySource: How do you balance being stimulating with not being overly stimulating?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sara:<\/strong> I strive to create a balance in my artwork through color choices, simple themes and engaging ideas. \u00a0While many of my pieces have a conversational quality to them \u2013 small details that tell stories\u00a0or create a path for learning \u2013 the art can also be simply art until the child is ready to discover more. \u00a0 Our alphabet prints are fun just to look at, for example, but over time children will naturally begin associating a letter with the name of an animal.<\/p>\n

eNannySource: What type of art inspires children?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sara:<\/strong> Children relate to and are inspired by ideas they can make a real-world reference to. Nature can be very inspiring, and children have a natural curiosity about animals in particular. I tend to illustrate animals with anthropomorphic qualities; they have emotions that you wouldn’t find in nature, but this is something that a child picks up on quickly. \u00a0If an animal looks happy, children accept it with enthusiasm and want to learn more about it.<\/p>\n

eNannySource: <\/strong>\u00a0Why are eco-friendly products important when considering children’s spaces?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sara: <\/strong>Eco-friendly products help to make homes safer, as well as have less negative impact on our earth. \u00a0It’s also a great way to start children thinking about sustainability, repurposing and recycling. Sea Urchin Studio uses recycled materials whenever possible, and chooses local, US-based vendors so that we can maintain better control over our products and the manufacturing process.<\/p>\n

eNannySource: <\/strong>\u00a0What are your best tips for choosing a nursery theme?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sara: <\/strong>Choosing a theme can be a great starting point for decorating a room. \u00a0Choose one that you have a connection to, and that will be familiar and comforting to your child. \u00a0If you live near the ocean, incorporating sea life into the room is a great way to expose your child to a very unique world he is living within. \u00a0If you are surrounded by woods, a child might be very happy to be with the animals she sees in her backyard. \u00a0If you travel, a special place or mode of transportation could be fun. While staying consistent in a theme is important; having a few non-conforming pieces is equally important. \u00a0The theme creates the foundation, the added details give the room character.<\/p>\n

eNannySource: <\/strong>\u00a0What’s your favorite unisex room theme?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sara: <\/strong>It’s probably obvious that I love anything related to nature. If I can bring the outdoors in \u2013 minus the mosquitos \u2013 I will!<\/p>\n

Sea Urchin Studio<\/em><\/a> is a boutique design company specializing in products that create captivating environments to inspire children. Focused on delighting young minds through creative expression, Sea Urchin\u2019s uniquely themed art and design, applied to high quality prints, posters, growth charts and card sets, can be used in a myriad of ways to brighten and beautify interior spaces. Launched in 2010 by husband-wife team Dan and\u00a0Sara Ardeleano, the Sea Urchin product line is already widely recognized for its playful, imaginative style and irresistible charm. Learn more about the Sea Urchin Studio at <\/em>www.seaurchinstudio.com<\/em><\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Michelle\u2019s Review<\/strong><\/p>\n

Recently I had the opportunity to get up close and personal with some of the designs and artwork that Sea Urchin Studio puts out. I received a complimentary Sea and Shore Alphabet Print<\/a> and Just Numbers Print<\/a> to review directly from the studio. The package arrived in beautiful boutique wrapping and the textured, high quality paper looked and felt really luxurious. The prints were colorful and engaging. My children were in love with both prints, especially the Sea and Shore print since we live by the ocean. The faces on the animals really caught their attention.\u00a0 The Sea Urchin designs are perfect for a playroom, nursery, child\u2019s bedroom or bathroom. We\u2019re currently working on writing numbers, so the Just Numbers print, featuring large font numerals, was also a hit \u2013 both for the kids and the grownups. With the perfect frame, the kids can have a reference for writing numbers hanging on the wall and the adults can have a have a classy piece of art to admire \u2013 which is way more pleasing to look at than an old school laminated poster of numbers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by\u00a0Michelle LaRowe Editor in Chief For many parents, decorating their baby\u2019s nursery is a labor of love. Finding the right blend of elegance, sophistication and cuteness can be a real challenge \u2013 unless you have a background in design, of … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1290","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enannysource.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1290","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enannysource.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enannysource.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enannysource.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enannysource.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1290"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.enannysource.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1290\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1292,"href":"http:\/\/www.enannysource.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1290\/revisions\/1292"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enannysource.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1290"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enannysource.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1290"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enannysource.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1290"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}