Feng shui has a lot of principles and many people consult experts to get professional advice.  But if you want to add some zen to your nursery decor and incorporate feng shui principles on your own, here are seven basic guidelines.

1. Consider the location of the nursery in the house

Many people don’t have many options when it comes to which room in their home to make the nursery.  But if you can choose a location, it might as well be ideal.  According to many feng shui experts, a nursery shouldn’t be placed over empty space such as a garage or a storage area  Also try to avoid choosing a room with a wall that is shared with a bathroom or storage closet.  The nursery should ideally be in a part of the house that is relatively quiet, so that the baby won’t be disturbed from excess noise such as the neighbors talking, the television in the family room and the like.  You should also consider choosing a room with a window so that the nursery gets plenty of light and fresh air from outside.

When decorating your nursery according to the principles of feng shui, furniture placement and arrangement must also be considered.  The crib should be placed so that the baby can see when a person walks into the room.   The head of the crib should be against a wall and the baby’s feet should not be pointing straight out the doorway.  In general, furniture for the nursery should be light in both weight and color.  Sharp objects should be moved away from the crib and a comfortable chair should be placed in the corner of the room.  All of these room decorating ideas are meant to provide a feeling of comfort, safety and relaxation and create a peaceful energy in the nursery.

White, pale or pastel colors, as opposed to primary colors, are the best choice for feng shui nursery decorating.  The ceiling should be kept white regardless of what colors the walls are, to allow energy to flow properly.  There is an idea in feng shui decor that energy gets “stuck” when the walls and ceilings are painted the same color.  Pale pastels are considered to be “yin” colors and promote serenity and restfulness.  In general, white is a great color because it is associated with creativity.  Many people decorate a nursery with bright colors, but feng shui principles consider these colors too stimulating for a small baby.  For a baby, the whole world is new and it is important that they do not get overstimulated so that they can rest properly.

It is important to have movement in a feng shui nursery.  Air circulation is directly related to a positive, relaxing vibe.  Fans can be used to move air around a room and create dynamic energy.  Other ways of creating movement are putting a mobile hung near an open window.  In addition, there is “negative movement” which can be caused by electrical energy in a room.  Electrical energy has its own movement that can be sensed in a room.  It is therefore best not to have any electric items that can “hum” and disturb the peaceful, zen energy of your baby’s nursery.

5. Lighting

Lighting in feng shui nursery decor should be balanced.  It should not be too dark or too light in the room, as both states can affect a baby’s sleep.  Blinds are a good choice for nurseries as they allow you to adjust the amount of natural light that is let in at any time.  Soft light is important for gently stimulating your baby.  ENTER AD- the light featured here gives a soft, warm glow that is perfect for feng shui nursery decorating.

Feng shui decorating is sensitive to anything too harsh or stimulating that can interfere with your baby’s rest.  It is therefore important not to hang up pictures or wall hanging with pictures of wild animals, which can be intimidating.  Other images to avoid are pictures of water, which may cause respitory or nasal issues.  Better room decorating ideas for the walls are family pictures or images from nature.

Plants make wonderful room decorating acessories.  In general, other decorating elements such as bedding, linens and other products should be made from organic, breathable materials.  Subtle patterns are more pleasant for babies that harsh graphics.

One final principle to mention here is keeping the nursery free of clutter.  Clutter can quickly reduce energy flow and cause unrest.  It is easy for things to pile up in your baby’s room;

presents, diapers and toys can easily cause clutter and mess.  Make sure to have lots of organizing solutions so that you can keep the nursery clutter free without feeling like you are tidying up all the time.

Painting is one of the most inexpensive ways to decorate the nursery walls.  Turquoise is a wonderful color for nursery wall decor and was chosen as Pantone’s color of the year for 2010.  Mix it with chocolate brown or baby pink!  Other fun paint colors are yellow which goes great with blues and greens to create a fun bright look.  You can also pair it with cream or brown to soften it up.  If you want to go with traditional blue for a boy or pink for a girl, try new exciting shades of blue or lilac.

Wallpaper comes in all sorts of cute themes, patterns and colors.  Since wallpaper can be expensive, you should consider how long it will last.  Cowboy or princess wallpaper is cute but you may grow tired of looking at it for years on end.  You may want to consider wallpapering in simpler patterns and neutral colors to allow for future redecorating without redoing the wallpaper.  Otherwise, simply wallpaper only one wall and paint the rest, thereby leaving your options open.

Wall stickers are a great room decorating idea for nurseries.  They are removable so you can change them as your baby grows.  They come in all sorts of design and sizes, and you can even find ones that will cover an entire wall.  Wall stickers come with all sorts of baby themes, such as animals, trees, the alphabet and more!

Decorating with stencils is a wonderful room decorating idea.  Stencils have hollow spaces that you can fill with color to easily paint designs on your nursery walls! The options are endless: there are stencils to create flowers, numbers, rainbows, animals and more.

An easy budget-friendly nursery wall decor idea is to tear out and frame pictures from old children’s books.  These large and colorful pictures can look great on any nursery wall and are free! Match the picture and the frame to the colors you’ve chosen to decorate your nursery for a stylish and coordinated look.