Inspired Ideas for your Baby’s Ocean Themed Nursery

The mere mention of the ocean conjures up a sense of wonderment and tranquility when we hear it. The warm, sandy beaches, the cool, sapphire-blue waters, the sounds of the waves crashing against the shore.

This peacefulness is the number one reason ocean themes are so popular in nurseries. It’s an excellent choice and one both you and the baby will enjoy.

Before you go diving into the wonderful depths of decorating the new baby’s nursery, take a look at these ocean themed nursery ideas that can act as inspiration - or be purchased! 

Why an Ocean Themed Nursery?

Oceans are alien worlds within easy reach. Exploding with rich colors and textures, an ocean themed nursery will spark your child’s creativity while promoting a sense of relaxation.   

Colors

There are hundreds of published studies on how color affects our mood and mental processes. This goes double for the ever-expanding minds of infants, who are seeing these colors for the first time. 

What colors you decide to put into your nursery will have a major impact on their mood. Think about what sort of mood you want to encourage in different parts of the nursery. 

Here are a few important tips on color:

For the crib and/or calm-down areas, use soft, cool colors, like soft ocean blues, neutral grays and pastel blue-greens. Cool colors promote relaxation, but very dark or very bold colors can be disturbing or even frightening. 

Soft blues reign supreme in the nursery, and oceans are naturally filled with this calming color. Especially suited for the crib area and other places where you want your baby to learn to relax and calm down. 

Just be cautious of blues that are too bold or too dark. Super dark blues convey depth and can be terrifying or depressing to a tiny mind. 

Greens are perfect for relaxed focus and are great for the play and learning areas of the baby’s room. 

Softer yellows are also good for play areas, as it is a warm, stimulating color. Be careful, though! Too much yellow is known to make little ones cry more often. 

Oranges help babies wake up and it increases appetite. This is a good color to consider for tableware, especially if you have a picky or light eater.

Pink is generally soothing, but it can be oppressive if overused. For ocean themed nurseries, it’s better as an accent (think furniture, bedding, and toys).

Browns and grays are good natural, neutral tones that can create a sense of hominess or provide a good transition from one area of the room to the next. Too much of either can feel depressing. 

Purple is… complicated. Another color best used as an accent, softer purples pair nicely with soft blues for a lovely contrast without overwhelming the senses. 

Red is a high-energy color, and very disturbing. It’s great for sensory toys (because it is the first color infants learn to see), but a room themed on just red is … well, terrifying! Just avoid it.

As a general rule of thumb, warm colors (red, yellow, orange) excite the nerves while cool colors (blue, green) are relaxing and soothing.

Sensory

Babies will touch EVERYTHING in their quest to explore their world, so providing a variety of textures is crucial in any nursery. Babies thrive best on textures that are soft, smooth and complex. 

Try to avoid too many vinyl and plastics in the nursery. While they might be safe, plastics are boring and offer little in the way of stimulation. 

Some items you can include in your ocean-themed nursery might be wicker chairs (for both you and baby!), natural rope, thick plush rugs, textured wall art, fluffy pillows, stuffed toys and fuzzy blankets.   

Providing sensory stimulation is so much more than color and texture. Consider soft ambient lighting or playing soothing ocean themed soundtracks in your baby’s nursery to give them the full experience.

Fun

If your child’s nursery is fun, they’ll associate it that way! Provide hours of entertainment and exploring fun by including different materials in the room. 

Soft, knotted rope, woven baskets, wooden toys or furniture are all fun items to include in your baby’s ocean-themed nursery. Change it up once in a while to make it feel new again!

Making the nursery look and feel fun will encourage both you and baby to interact together in this room. The more you spend time with your baby, the closer you will become and the happier and healthier your baby will be!

Ocean Themed Toys for the Nursery

Before you go diving into the depths of ocean-themed toys for the nursery, you really have to check out the Dingle Dangle.

When I first discovered it, I wasn’t entirely sure if it was a toy for babies or for the parents!

Parents, you know how squirmy babies get when it comes to changing nappies. I’m pretty sure if my son had the choice, he would try to change his nappy himself!

The Dingle Dangle is an ingenious 3-in-1 distraction toy invented by two adoring but frustrated dads to help them quickly deal with the unsavory task of nappy changing. Not only does it turn parents into human mobiles, but it also becomes a rattle or a portable mobile that attaches to a crib or stroller.

It’s fun, it’s silly, and it’s a parenting life-saver!It’s the perfect addition for your ocean-themed nursery!

Ocean Themed Rugs for Nursery

The easiest things for babies to reach are going to be on the floor. You want things that are going to not only interest their sense of touch and exploration, but are easy to clean, and I have a few fantastic suggestions you might find perfect for your underwater nursery.

Sailor's Knotted Sisal Hemp Rope Mat

When considering nautical themes, boats come to mind, and with boats come ropes! This simple, adorable sisal hemp knotted rope mat is exactly the type of rich, safe texture your baby craves. 

This mat was created by the Knottingshop, based out of Istanbul, Turkey. It’s created with a single piece of 12mm sisal hemp rope that is a full 32 meters long. 

They finish their products by splicing the two ends and weaving them together, creating a perfectly seamless rope. This makes it both extra durable and eliminates fraying and splitting. 

These mats come in an average size of 85cm x 45cm - just the right size for your little one to fit on! The sisal fibers are easy to clean, perfect for a long day of play. 

Sea Life Tassle Rug

Almost every child has an animal-loving phase. What better way to introduce them to ocean life than to feature it on a rug! 

This beautiful rug features six different sea animals in their home environments on nine different panels. Three of the animals are featured twice - perfect to play the matching game with your baby!

This very washable rug is textured with tantalizing grooves and edged in soft tassels. The colors are bold and vibrant, sure to match almost any color scheme. 

It is available in three sizes to fit any space in your little explorer’s nursery. 

Sea Turtle Rug

Of course no ocean theme is complete without sea turtles! This hand-sewn sea turtle rug by ClaraLoo is a wonderful, handmade work of art. 

Each piece is lovingly crafted by the owner of ClaraLoo with faux fur and flannel fabric, and completed with crocheted accents. Three very different and pleasing textures that both babies and adults will find delightful. 

At 58” x 55”, it is generously sized and large enough for your child to easily enjoy for at least a decade if not more. I saw this and immediately wanted one to snuggle up in myself!

The shell comes in two colors - brown or gray - and you can choose to have it made with or without eyes. The creator makes them to order, so don’t be put off if you see “only 1 left in stock!” on the listing. 

Ocean Themed Nursery Art

Encourage your little one to look up and adjust to seeing distances with attractive and intriguing wall art. Here are some suggestions that I would personally also enjoy if I were hanging out with my baby in his nursery.

Dingle Dangle Nursery Art

Don't know where to start for nursery art? 

Dingle Dangle has got you covered. 

These Ocean Themed Nursery Prints by Dingle Dangle are both a fun and fashionable addition to your underwater themed nursery. 

Etsy Nursery Wall Art

Fitting right in with any of the above mentioned rugs is this set of eight colorful nursery art prints. These prints are perfect to help your baby learn to recognize the most popular denizens of the briny deep. 

Two of the prints feature the alphabet and the numbers 1-10, helping ingrain these important shapes into their minds as early as possible.

Use these fun prints to interact with your baby, pointing to each picture and saying the name of the animal as you go!

These prints are available as high-resolution digital files, making them extremely affordable. They are best printed off using a heavy weight satin or matt paper. 

If you don’t have a high quality photo printer at home, the seller recommends printing them at your local copy shop. 

Twsoul Under The Sea Glow-In-The-Dark Wall Decor

Is your baby scared of the dark? These adorable glow-in-the-dark wall stickers are glow-in-the-dark, making them both a fun decoration and a night light all in one!

These friendly, super-cute decals are usually available in two colors - the standard green and a gentle, comforting blue. You get two full sheets of foliage and creatures, including mermaids and bubbles. 

These decals are a perfect fit for your ocean themed nursery and are sure to engage the imagination of your baby!

Sea Whale Wall Decor

If you’re more into the look and feel of natural materials, these hand-crafted wooden whales are sure to please you and your little one. Unlike a lot of other ocean themed decor, they showcase the more realistic shapes of whales.

You have the option to choose between three species of whale: Humpback, Blue, and Sperm whale. They are all crafted out of high-quality, durable birch plywood and left natural colored or stained dark.

Each piece measures approximately 34 cm x 15.5 cm x 1.2 cm (or 13” x 6” x 0.5”). The accents are painted with non-toxic acrylic paints. 

Cute Ocean Nursery Wallpaper

Have you considered nursery wallpaper instead of paints? If you, you will be delighted with all the options available to you. Here are just a few personal favorites I found. 

Underwater World Wallpaper Mural

If you’re going for the full immersion feeling, then you will love the idea of wall murals. These underwater-themed wall murals come in 35 different designs made to the exact specifications of your room.

These will come to you as a complete, start-to-finish, seamless picture, so its important to send the producer the exact measurements of your walls. There are tons of options on what to have your mural printed on, from silk paper to self-adhesive. 

The designs are friendly and soothing. What I personally liked best about the one featured in the picture was how the artist depicts the shark as realistic, but with a much more kid-friendly face (minus the “cold” look and jagged teeth, which could be scary trying to go to sleep!).   

You’ll get this sent to you fast, too. It ships out within 24 hours after you order!

Cute Sea Animals Wallpaper Mural

Out of all the wallpapers and murals I’ve seen so far, this one is by far my favorite. The whimsical nature of the animals featured, as well as the gentle watercolor style, makes it look like something straight out of a children’s book. 

This sea animals nursery wallpaper comes in three different color styles and four different materials to fit the feel you want. The soft, sweet design makes this mural perfect for both the play and sleeping areas of the nursery.

The best part about ordering this mural is the site provides a tool to help you determine exactly how much wallpaper you need to do your entire nursery. The mural is shipped in separate panels, making this very easy for one person to install.

Conclusion

Choosing an ocean-themed nursery for your little one is the perfect way to build a soothing atmosphere that is comforting, fun and inspiring. Here is a rundown of some basic advice to help you put together the perfect room:

Colors - Colors are scientifically proven to affect mood, concentration, and even appetite. In a nutshell, cool colors are soothing and calming and warm colors are exciting and so should be used in moderation. 

Go with soft, gentle colors closer to the pastel range. Bold, bright colors can be overwhelming and aggravate your little one.

Materials - Include a wide variety of rich textures for your baby to explore. Things like sisal rope, whicker, wood and faux fur are textures your baby will love to explore over and over again. 

Don’t forget to include furniture that’s comfortable for you, too! This will make spending time with your little one in the nursery more appealing for the both of you. 

Sensory - Consider including mood lighting and gentle soundtracks into the nursery that fit the ocean theme. Personally, there’s nothing that will put me to sleep faster than the gentle rhythmic whooshing of ocean waves on a sandy beach.  

Above, I’ve listed some of my favorite products that I’ve found that are perfect for an ocean-themed nursery. 

Want to take a piece of your child’s nursery with them wherever they go? I can’t recommend the Dingle Dangle enough. 

This 3-in-1 toy/mobile/nappy-changing aid is the ultimate must-have parenting tool! Take it everywhere you take your child - just don’t go and forget it on your head! 

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Sources:

The Urban Child Institute - Family & Home

PennState - Infant environments: Let's take a closer look

https://www.happiestbaby.com/blogs/nursery-design/ocean-nursery-ideas 

https://simplicable.com/en/ocean-colors 

https://www.news-medical.net/health/Importance-of-Sensory-Stimulation-for-Babies.aspx 

https://www.natural-swimmer.com/coral-reef-colors.html

https://www.newfolks.com/inspiration/ocean-themed-nursery/

https://projectnursery.com/2010/03/how-color-affects-your-baby/