5 Nursery Design Tricks to Help Your Baby Sleep Better

Whether you’re preparing for the arrival of a baby, or you’ve just had a new addition to your family, fixing up your baby’s nursery will be one of your top priorities. But whilst everyone would love to have an Instagram-worthy baby nursery, the best environment for a young one to sleep safely and consistently in isn’t necessarily the best for flaunting online. In today’s post, we are going to give you five nursery design tricks to help you create a space that’s conducive to help your baby sleep better.

1. Get the light right

First and foremost, it’s important to get the light in your baby’s nursery right. Whilst natural light affords a number of health benefits for children, remember that babies tend to sleep a lot during the day, so it doesn’t want to be too bright in their nursery.

For nurseries that receive a lot of direct sunlight, consider using blackout blinds or blackout curtains to help limit the amount of light entering the room.

If you’re considering installing a rooflight in your baby’s nursery, our electric blackout blinds are the perfect optional extra to help achieve a partial or total blackout as desired.

At night time, try to limit the amount of blue light (emitted by screens and fluorescent bulbs). That’s because blue light interferes with the release of sleep-inducing melatonin, which is why you probably find it hard to sleep if you’ve spent time on a phone or tablet in the evening.

A soft glow nightlight should be enough to keep your baby comforted and provide you with ample light when you’re trying to navigate their nursery in the early hours.

2. Get the temperature right

Many experts advise that the optimal sleeping temperature for babies and children is 16–20°C. If you don’t have a thermostat in your baby’s nursery, a simple indoor thermometer will do the trick, providing you with an instant and reasonably accurate temperature reading.

If you can’t get hold of a thermometer, a good rule of thumb is to keep your baby’s nursery at a temperature that’s perfectly comfortable for a lightly clothed adult. The bottom line is if you feel cold in your baby’s nursery, chances are they do too. The same goes for if you feel too warm.

A great way to regulate the temperature in your baby’s nursery is by installing an opening rooflight with a climate control and rain sensor. These ingenious solutions not only monitor the indoor temperature and adjust your rooflight accordingly, they also automatically close it if there is signs of rain.

3. Limit background/external noise

Nobody likes sleeping in an overly noisy environment and your baby is no different. That’s why it’s important to reduce as much external noise as possible and introduce calming sounds that are conducive to helping your baby sleep better.

One of the best ways to block out external noise is with triple glazed windows. You’ll be amazed at just how much of a different they make – especially if you live near a busy road or other external noise sources.

If you’re thinking of going down the rooflight route, our proprietary Reflex® glass can be ordered with special noise reducing capabilities. Simply opt for our Acoustic Performance glass when you place your order and external noise won’t be something that keeps your baby awake day or night.

You can also consider investing in a sound machine. These devices help provide a consistent white noise on which your baby can focus and that means they stand a better chance of drifting off to sleep even whilst the rest of your house continues to run as normal i.e. no tiptoeing around is required.

4. Invest in a smart baby monitor

Baby monitors today are vastly superior to their counterparts of yesteryear. Invest in a smart one and you can check on your baby via a high definition, bird’s eye video on your smartphone. It means you don’t have to constantly go into their nursery to check on them and run the risk of waking them up when you stumble over something or close the door just that bit too hard.

Some modern baby monitors can even proactively alert you when your baby needs some attention. They do this by sensing real time sound and motion, allowing them to determine the difference between a little sleep restlessness and your baby being wide awake.

5. Opt for calming colours

Neutral, cool colours can really help your baby sleep. Whilst it may be tempting to decorate their nursery with bright colours and educational wall décor, the result can be too much stimulation for your little one.

Did you know that babies only see in black, white and grey at the start of their lives and only develop colour vision at around the 4-month mark? It’s another reason why elaborate colour schemes are wasted in baby nurseries.

Stick with neutral, soothing colours to begin with. You can always redecorate when your baby’s a bit older after all.

Are you planning on adding rooflights or roof lanterns to your home? If you are, call Roof Maker on 0116 269 6297. Our rooflight experts will help you to choose the right solution for your needs. Alternatively, visit our showroom or get a quote online.