By Tira, founder of Nursery Design Studio · 450+ nurseries designed since 2017 · Updated October 2026
A whimsical nursery should feel like the first page of a favourite picture book: soft, a little magical, and calm enough to fall asleep in. Whimsical Storybook is one of my eleven nursery styles, and it always starts on the walls, with a painterly paper of clouds, wildflowers, a gentle woodland or a few friendly animals. This guide is how I design it, from the wallpaper to the layers to the mistakes that tip a storybook room into a theme, with 25 whimsical nurseries from our studio.
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It's not about decorating every inch. It's about leaving space for wonder.
The colours, in words. Nest matches them to real paints, with codes, for your walls.
The same style, three directions. The quiz finds yours from the rooms you tap.
playful, earthy, enchanted
This direction feels grounded, magical, and gently adventurous. Perfect if you want a nursery inspired by forest tones and natural charm.airy, dreamy, gentle
This direction feels light, tender, and quietly whimsical. Perfect if you want something imaginative but soft and delicate.nostalgic, layered, timeless
This direction feels collected, story-rich, and refined. Perfect if you want a nursery that feels like it belongs in a beloved old book.The order I design in, from the walls in. Nest fills in the exact paints and pieces for your room.
Whimsy starts here, so I always use a paper or a mural. Look for a hand-drawn or watercolour feel: drifting clouds, scattered wildflowers, a soft woodland, a toile with little scenes. Keep it to two or three quiet colours so the story stays a whisper. One papered room, or one papered wall behind the crib, is enough.
Let the rug be the calm page under the story. A soft wool or flatweave in cream, oat or a pale colour from the paper, sized so the front feet of the crib, dresser and glider sit on it. A gentle scallop or a faded vintage pattern works; a second busy motif does not.
Soft cotton or linen in a colour pulled from the wallpaper, or a small check or gingham if the paper is quiet. Hang the rod high and wide so the panels just kiss the floor, and line them for naps.
Keep the big pieces simple so the walls can do the talking. A crib with a little charm in its shape, a rounded spindle, a gentle arch or a soft colour, beside a dresser in light wood or a soft painted finish. One piece with a playful detail, such as a wavy edge or a scalloped foot, is plenty.
This is where the magic gets cosy: a bouclé or sheepskin-soft glider, a knitted throw, a crib sheet in a tiny print, a pillow in the softest colour from the paper. Mix one small pattern with plenty of plain, nubby texture.
Warm, low and a little enchanting. A paper, fabric or woven shade over the glider, a soft lamp for night feeds, and warm bulbs only. A star or cloud night light is lovely as long as it stays small and dim.
On a papered wall, less is more: a mobile, a single framed illustration or a soft shelf of favourite books. On a painted wall, a gentle mural, a cluster of watercolour butterflies or a few oversized daisies can carry the whole story on their own.
A storybook nursery takes its magic from the drawing, not from a character. I start with a paper that looks as if it was lifted from an old picture book: a linen toile with little scenes, a parade of friendly geese, or the softest pastel bunnies in a classic, hand-drawn style. Then I keep the rest of the room quiet so the walls can tell the story. A weathered oak or warm wood dresser, a crib with rounded posts in a soft colour or a deep forest green, a cream glider, a woven light and a plain or gently faded rug. A shelf of favourite books and one sweet plush finish it. Done this way, a storybook nursery feels nostalgic and calm, and it grows with your child for years.
A magical nursery should feel like a little wonder, not a party. The magic usually lives on one wall: a watercolour rainbow mural in pastel colours, butterflies fluttering across soft blush walls, or a woodland scene of tiny mushrooms and snails. I keep everything else light and airy so that one moment can sparkle. A white or clear crib almost disappears, a pale wood or white dresser stays simple, and warm brass or soft gold adds a gentle glow. Curtains in a small check or a soft plain linen, a cosy glider and a dim, warm night light do the rest. It's the kind of room that makes children smile at bedtime, and it still feels restful when the lights go down.
A whimsical boy nursery is where I have the most fun, because the playful part can be bold as long as the palette stays calm. I lean on a wallpaper with a wink: friendly sloths in black and white, a gentle dinosaur on a neutral ground, or an ocean blue paper full of little sea creatures. Then I ground it with real wood and a crib with some character: a dusty blue with round spindles, a black metal crib with simple curves, or a warm wood with beaded detail. Olive, latte, oak and walnut keep it warm, and a woven light and a cosy, textured glider soften it. The result is charming rather than cute, and the story on the walls carries him happily into his toddler years.
A fairytale nursery is the softest, most romantic side of whimsy, and the secret is to keep it gentle rather than pink from floor to ceiling. I begin with the faintest blush on the walls, or a blush floral paper, then bring in pieces that feel as if they came from a classic tale: a crib with scalloped or crown molding, an antiqued white dresser, a curvy mirror and a touch of champagne gold. Soft grey and ivory keep the pink grown-up. The magic sits in small details, a bunny print over the crib, a pretty bookcase for her stories, a little tree-stump side table, rather than in a castle or a canopy of tulle. It feels dreamy for a baby girl and still charming at six.
Wildflowers, a wild garden floral or delicate sprigs in cream, blush and sage, with a touch of sunny yellow or peach. A soft painted crib or classic curves keep it sweet but never sugary.
White walls and black accents, with the playfulness in one place: a soft abstract paper, a few vintage-style airplane or car prints, a walnut crib with rounded spindles. A favourite of mine for boys.
Clouds in ivory, mist and soft sky, with oak, caramel and cream. The magic comes from the drawing on the paper rather than the colour, so it suits any baby and grows easily into a big-kid room.
What Tira reaches for in a Whimsical Storybook room, and why. Nest picks the exact pieces for your room and your budget.
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Start my nursery plan →A soft, imaginative focal point, usually a wallpaper or mural with clouds, wildflowers, a gentle woodland or friendly animals, in picture-book colours. The rest of the room stays calm and simple so the story feels magical rather than busy.
Choose one storytelling element, normally the wallpaper, and let everything else support it quietly. Keep the furniture simple, the rug plain or softly patterned, and avoid matching every accessory to a single character.
Yes. For a boy I lean on forest green, dusty blue, oak and walnut, with the whimsy in the paper: a storybook toile, a friendly animal or a soft dinosaur. A gender-neutral whimsical room keeps to clouds, bunnies and woodland scenes in cream, mist and sage.
Anything with a hand-drawn or watercolour feel and a limited palette: drifting clouds, scattered wildflowers, a soft woodland, a toile with little scenes or a gentle animal print. Two or three colours keeps it soothing.
It can, if the magic sits in the paper and the textiles rather than the furniture. Simple cribs and dressers in wood or soft finishes carry on into a toddler room, and a cloud or woodland paper suits a big-kid room for years.
Yes. Nest, our nursery planner, designs your nursery in your style, then fits it to your exact room, colours and budget: three boards, your floor plan, every wall, the exact paint colours with codes and the wallpaper, and a shopping list.
