Babies & Books : Imagination Inspiration

"One of the greatest gifts adults can give—to their offspring and to their society—is to read to children." —Carl Sagan

A Hemmed In 3-In-1 Canopy used as a playmat at the local library!

Babies are drawn to books instinctively: the colorful images and the captivating sounds when adults read them aloud. Sure, it's fun to rip out the pages and bite the bindings too, but that's a small price to pay in raising a child to have a love of books.

We all know the benefits of reading to children from infancy on; every parenting book on the planet will actually agree on that particular baby-raising tip: read to your child from the very beginning! The benefits are endless: Reading promotes healthy attachment and bonding as the child hears your voice and feels your closeness, it's linked to increased brain function and a larger vocabulary, and on and on and on the list goes....

​So, hopefully your little one is well equipped with books of all sorts to read for years to come. But I think it's (almost!) as important to have a special little place just for them to experience the captivating experience of reading. A Book Nook is like a little getaway within your home that helps transport them to far away places because of it's inspiring nature. You can do it as simply or extravagantly as you like: we've got plenty of examples to get your wheels spinning on our Pinterest Board. For me, simplicity is the name of the game (duh!). So for our book nook, we took what we already had (=an unused, finished closet under the stairs) and created a little space just for Little Lady and her books, where her imagination can run wild...

To be fair, this was all Little Lady's idea. During the first walkthrough of the house, she saw this closet in the basement and claimed it for her own use; requesting a book nook immediately. Before moving day was over, the door was already taken off, and the bookshelf inside. Within a few more days, we unboxed the netting canopy and my old body pillow from pregnancy days. She added her IKEA leaf, a canvas she painted, her preschool diorama and a few little butterflies that used to adorn her bedroom. We used a wall lamp for lighting, tucked into the corner with a switch she can reach to turn off and on. The space was dreamed up and decorated by her, and used by her almost daily!

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For your own space, here's the necessities and a few suggestions
to get you going:

----BOOKS!-----

Check out BabyLit for all things 'childhood literacy'; and  Follow them @Babylit on Instagram: You'll look no further for a curated collection of children's classics.
[BabyLit]

Plus: Phyllis Harris is a phenomenal children's illustrator who captures the essence of childhood in a whimsical, beautiful way. She's got artwork (see below) and a few books to her credit.
[Phyllis Harris Designs]

-----SHELVING-----

For the Do-It-Yourself'er: Gutters-Turned-Shelves
[DIY Blog]

Or the Order-and-Assemble'er: (It's even got a little built-in seat!)
[Wayfair]

-----CUSHIONS-----

These will take any area from ho-hum to  impeccably styled. All handmade by a Mama just like you!
[Fly Tots]

-----DECOR-----

Spark their imagination with children's illustrator Phyllis Harris' captivating wall art.
[Phyllis Harris Designs]

For the cutest little book bags that little readers can carry all by themselves--check out Swankaroo's Packs! Adorable and perfect for little hands (you can see ours hanging on the antique desk next to our book nook)
[Swankaroo]

Take a T'Pee anywhere for an instant getaway! Just add books & cushions and that's one easy Book Nook. Done.
[Tnees Tpees]

Here's to reading to babies--in beautiful spaces!