# Help me design a science-themed nursery! **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 23, 2012, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440 "2012-01-23T22:31:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![iftheresaway](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ecae2f/32.png) [@iftheresaway](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iftheresaway)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2012, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/1 "2012-01-23T22:31:54Z")
My husband and I have started thinking about nursery designs, and we would love to have something science-inspired. Botany, zoology, astronomy - there should be lots of cute stuff that we can pull from to decorate the room. We’ve only just started thinking about this, so the room is pretty much a blank slate. Anyone have fun ideas for decorations? ---
**Author:** ![shantih](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f6c823/32.png) [@shantih](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shantih)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2012, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/2 "2012-01-23T23:50:11Z")
Timely! I just read this: [EPBOT: The Force is Strong With This Nursery](http://www.epbot.com/2012/01/force-is-strong-with-this-nursery.html) Okay, it’s a Star Wars-themed nursery rather than science, but what is Star Wars if not science fiction? ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2012, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/3 "2012-01-24T00:02:29Z")
My first thought was a nice colorful [Period Table](http://www.amazon.com/Quality-Chart-Periodic-Element-Enterprises/dp/B004Y7VTEG/ref=sr_1_16?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1327363045&sr=1-16). You can also get [Periodic Table building blocks](http://www.amazon.com/Uncle-Goose-Periodic-Building-Blocks/dp/B005JAE052/ref=sr_1_6?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1327363045&sr=1-6). I also think that the [Moon in My Room](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000EUHKUE?ie=UTF8&redirect=true&tag=oldbie-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000EUHKUE) is a must. ---
**Author:** ![ratatoskK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ratatoskk/32/2987_2.png) [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2012, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/4 "2012-01-24T00:05:35Z")
Outer space wallpaper is the best!! ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2012, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/5 "2012-01-24T00:32:32Z")
There are amazing fabrics on Spoonflower, a site where you can design your own fabric or order other people’s designs. Use for curtains, chair cushions, etc. [Time is a manmade concept](http://www.spoonflower.com/fabric/410699) [Charles Darwin](http://www.spoonflower.com/fabric/147898) [Topsy turvy periodic](http://www.spoonflower.com/fabric/531346) [C is for Chemistry](http://www.spoonflower.com/fabric/502025) [Paramecia](http://www.spoonflower.com/fabric/175891) There are hundreds of designs with the tag “science” ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2012, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/6 "2012-01-24T01:08:25Z")
pea plants green, yellow. ---
**Author:** ![Sue\_Duhnym](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/91b2a8/32.png) [@Sue\_Duhnym](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sue_Duhnym)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2012, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/7 "2012-01-24T01:52:35Z")
I recommend [Blik.](http://www.whatisblik.com/) Stickable, removable, high-quality decals. They definitely don’t ruin paint. I have [this](http://www.whatisblik.com/shop/explore/alphabet-zoo-re-stik) around the tops of the walls of my son’s room. It took 90 minutes to put up and half of that was spacing issues. My daughter chose [this](http://www.whatisblik.com/shop/explore/wee-undersea) for her bedroom after we had a flood and her previous (admittedly weird, kind of Lord of the Flies-ish) one had to be removed. Here’s a periodic table of the [monsters.](http://www.whatisblik.com/shop/explore/monstrous-chemistry) You should definitely look around though, they’re doing stuff with muppets now, it’s pretty cool and inexpensive/easy enough to redo frequently. One thing: The decals that are in pieces, are pieces. You can put them anywhere you want them and aren’e limited to the design shown. Also relevant, the decals that are multicolored may also be in pieces. As an example, [this](http://www.whatisblik.com/shop/explore/do-re-mi-quack) one had over-lapping decals. Bird bodies first, beaks and pupils next, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2012, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/8 "2012-01-24T01:58:24Z")
> [@SpoilerVirgin](#): > > My first thought was a nice colorful [Period Table](http://www.amazon.com/Quality-Chart-Periodic-Element-Enterprises/dp/B004Y7VTEG/ref=sr_1_16?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1327363045&sr=1-16). You can also get [Periodic Table building blocks](http://www.amazon.com/Uncle-Goose-Periodic-Building-Blocks/dp/B005JAE052/ref=sr_1_6?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1327363045&sr=1-6). Wow! Think of how easy your kid will have it when he/she gets to high school chemistry! ---
**Author:** ![Eliot\_Ness](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Eliot\_Ness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eliot_Ness)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2012, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/9 "2012-01-25T22:12:59Z")
For my kids I had all sorts of wild animals. The sheets in the crib were jungle scenes with lions and giraffes. I made stuffed toys in the form of snake and squirrel and whale. As toddlers, the kids were nuts for dinosaurs and spaceships. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2012, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/10 "2012-01-25T22:39:32Z")
The place where the antfarm I asked about in another thread, [Fascinations](http://www.fascinations.com) has much cool stuff. You could use [the city lights globe](http://www.fascinations.com/unique-toys-gifts/city-light) as a night light. ---
**Author:** ![pbbth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f9ae1b/32.png) [@pbbth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pbbth)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2012, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/11 "2012-01-25T22:49:42Z")
Don’t forget to check out the museum gift shops! [This](http://www.amnhshop.com/) would be where I would start looking for science-y things for a child’s room. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2012, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/12 "2012-01-25T23:01:22Z")
When I was little, my parents got one of those “paint the night sky on your kid’s ceiling” kits. It came with glow-in-the-dark paint and a big paper pattern. We taped it to the ceiling and painted over the holes, then removed it after they dried. It made real constellations on my ceiling! I highly recommend something like that. It was awesome, smart, and comforting at the same time. After turning out the light, the stars would be around for at least a couple of hours. It gave my brain something to occupy itself while I fell asleep. And I knew several constellations before I even hit grade school, something that may account for my lifelong interest in cosmology (not cosmetology) and astronomy (not astrology). By the way, the stars were not star shapes. They were shaped like the dots and in the patterns we actually see in the sky from America 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Vihaga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Vihaga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vihaga)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2012, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/13 "2012-01-25T23:21:38Z")
Home depot has been selling really cute space-themed ceiling fans lately. We also bought a night light that projects the solar system on the ceiling, but I forget where it came from. A rug or poster with a map of the world would be fun, as would a chart or prints of local plants and wildlife. ---
**Author:** ![iftheresaway](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ecae2f/32.png) [@iftheresaway](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iftheresaway)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2012, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/14 "2012-01-27T07:01:00Z")
You guys are amazing! Lots of cool ideas to get me started. I finally joined Pinterest and have started a collection of nursery ideas. > [@Hello\_Again](#): > > There are amazing fabrics on Spoonflower, a site where you can design your own fabric or order other people’s designs. Use for curtains, chair cushions, etc. > > [Time is a manmade concept](http://www.spoonflower.com/fabric/410699) > [Charles Darwin](http://www.spoonflower.com/fabric/147898) > [Topsy turvy periodic](http://www.spoonflower.com/fabric/531346) > [C is for Chemistry](http://www.spoonflower.com/fabric/502025) > [Paramecia](http://www.spoonflower.com/fabric/175891) > > There are hundreds of designs with the tag “science” That’s such a cool site - science fabric had never even occurred to me. The first link had a “retro space” themed fabric that would make great curtains - my husband loved it. > [@Sue\_Duhnym](#): > > I recommend [Blik.](http://www.whatisblik.com/) Stickable, removable, high-quality decals. They definitely don’t ruin paint. > > [Snip] > > My daughter chose [this](http://www.whatisblik.com/shop/explore/wee-undersea) for her bedroom after we had a flood and her previous (admittedly weird, kind of Lord of the Flies-ish) one had to be removed. This is awesome too. I’ve always loved those wall art decal things, and there are some good nature/ /animal ones on there. > [@rachelellogram](#): > > When I was little, my parents got one of those “paint the night sky on your kid’s ceiling” kits. It came with glow-in-the-dark paint and a big paper pattern. We taped it to the ceiling and painted over the holes, then removed it after they dried. It made real constellations on my ceiling! I highly recommend something like that. It was awesome, smart, and comforting at the same time. I had glow-in-the-dark stars on my bedroom ceiling when I was younger (the plastic stick-on kind, though), and I loved them. Does anyone know if it’s ok for infants to have glow-in-the-dark stuff above them, though? I’m wondering if it might keep them awake or something. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2012, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/15 "2012-01-27T07:13:13Z")
A mobile over the crib that is an atom? ---
**Author:** ![Hedda\_Rosa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hedda_rosa/32/1204_2.png) [@Hedda\_Rosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hedda_Rosa)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2012, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/16 "2012-01-27T07:16:31Z")
How about this [math clock](http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=math+clock&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=17721179614295633918&sa=X&ei=H08iT8qLFe3ZiQKTsaTiBw&ved=0CFoQ8wIwAA)? ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2012, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/17 "2012-01-27T17:23:13Z")
You can’t forget [ThinkGeek](http://www.thinkgeek.com/geek-kids/), especially their [giant plush microbes](http://www.thinkgeek.com/geektoys/plush/6708/)! ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2012, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/18 "2012-01-27T22:21:49Z")
I did the star ceiling thing for my nephew. They moved about a year later. :smack:☹ ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2012, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/19 "2012-01-27T22:52:08Z")
> [@Vihaga](#): > > We also bought a night light that projects the solar system on the ceiling, but I forget where it came from. I’ve seen them at both Lowes and Walmart, and Amazon has them too. The same company, Jasco Projectables, makes one that projects an ocean scene too [among other designs](http://www.jascoproducts.com/products/pc/showsearchresults.asp?resultCnt=15&keyword=Jasco+Projectables+&search.x=29&search.y=11). ---
**Author:** ![Disheavel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@Disheavel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Disheavel)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2012, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440/20 "2012-01-27T23:13:06Z")
We used a couple of [Deyrolle](http://www.deyrolle.fr/magazine/spip.php?rubrique93) purchased posters in our living room, but they would fit your science idea spectacularly. Now we bought them in person in Paris, but they are very helpful and friendly and can help you buy particular posters. Our were hand drawn microbe and seashell pictures like old text book and science classroom pictures. Their website is worse than I remembered! They also have all kinds of mounted insect displays as well as any shell imaginable and all kinds of taxidermied animal too. We spend hours in there every time we go as it is just an amazing place. (Most posters are in French or Latin, btw). [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-design-a-science-themed-nursery/610440.md?page=2)