On My Mind: Baby-Prepping an Entire Apartment

Our ABC Carpet & Home sofa — inherited from a friend’s dad — was the first thing we decided to replace. It’s too short and too deep, and the straw-colored velvet never got along with our warm hardwood floors and cabinets. We settled on the Sixpenny Amelia because it manages to pack a 78-inch-long seat cushion into an 84-inch-wide frame. (That’s 5.5 inches more seating space than the 90-inch-wide version of ourcurrent pickforbest overall sofa.) It’s enough for four adults to sit comfortably and long enough for my six-foot-two frame to sleep on should the rest of my family need more room in the bed. So far, our cats seem uninterested in scratching the densely woven cotton-linen slipcover, and the deeply saturated Garden Berry blue hue should help hide stains. The white-glove delivery was painless, but shipping to New York from the warehouse in Los Angeles still takes about a month, even for in-stock configurations such as ours.

We had to get rid of my wife’s desk to make room for aglider, which wasn’t a big deal since she couldn’t use it comfortably during the third trimester anyway. We’ve yet to figure out the long-term plan, but for now, we brought this side table back from Vermont so she can work more easily from the sofa.

We’d originally wanted a sectional but couldn’t find the space. Instead, we got this Nugget play ottoman to fill our present leg-support needs and our kid’s future play-structure wants. At 14.25 inches tall, it perfectly complements the Sixpenny’s 17-inch seat height once the lofty cushion has been compressed under sitting. Even though it’s meant for kids, I’ve also been enjoying sitting cross-legged on the nesting floor cushions when we have guests over.

Since we’re about to spend a lot more time sitting on the floor, we wanted something softer than the austere silk rug my parents foisted on me when I first moved to New York. We were originally going to get theNordic Knotsthat Strategist senior writer Lauren Ro recommends in herarea-rug guide, but Grand Moss looked a bit too brown, while Milano Green was slightly too yellow. We ended up selecting the slightly more affordable Henry from CB2, which looks similar but comes in a more saturated forest green. The subtle fringe running along the shorter edges gives it a cozier feeling.

I didn’t set out to find a brown rectangular Componibili two-piece storage set — I didn’t even realize such a thing existed — but I happened across one at an estate sale for $15 and couldn’t pass it up. I flipped them so the top and bottom face in opposite directions. The bottom opening faces the wall to hide all our charging cables, while the front-facing top stores our current periodicals.

I bought these shades on a recommendation from editor and consultant Christine Muhlke’sinterior designer, and they were both cheaper and nicer feeling than the Home Depot cellular shades I’ve installed in the past. If you live in an apartment you plan on staying in for a long time, do not wait nine years to make this upgrade. All you really need is a drill, pencil, and screwdriver. After we installed them, the whole apartment instantly felt so much cooler in the direct afternoon sun. We also gotblackout roller shadesfor both bedrooms that work much better than the curtains they replaced.

Adding this fan to the empty, painted-over junction box in the middle of the living-room ceiling has dramatically improved our climate control. The brushless motor is wobble free and virtually silent, and I like that the remote can change the color temperature and brightness of the light in addition to the fan speed. The hardest part of the install process was finding a ladder to borrow and determining whether the junction box could support it. Otherwise, it comes with clear instructions and all the parts.

In the kitchen/dining area, we swapped out the36-inch square expandable teak table— purchased 12 years ago in Portland, Oregon, for my first apartment — for a 40-inch round Artek Aalto birch table from Facebook Marketplace. We figured the circular shape would let us place the baby’s high chair closer within reach when the time comes, and there are no sharp corners for a toddler to bonk their head against.

We also found a quartet ofRisom side chairson Facebook Marketplace to replace our long-busted Cescas. The combination of black frames and taupe webbing wouldn’t have been my first choice, but $500 for the set was too good to pass up.

This apartment doesn’t have space for a dishwasher, so we figured we should give this all-in-one bottle washer and sanitizer a shot. It’s rather large, but the fact that it uses a water reservoir instead of a hose means I can put it wherever it fits.

After talking to more experienced parents about what worked for them and reading some books on the topic, we decided to start with co-sleeping and purchased a Newton Bedside Sleeper to help. It feels sturdy and is easy to adjust. If co-sleeping doesn’t work out, the side zips up to convert it to a stand-alone bassinet.

We also replaced our vintage mid-century-modern dressers with Thuma’s modular Nest dressers to allow us some flexibility if we ever need to adjust the room layout to better accommodate the bassinet or any other unforeseen equipment.

Since we’re going to be spending a lot more time sitting in bed, we added a cushion to the Thuma Classic headboard we already had. Installation was as simple as sliding it into a groove and tightening a couple of knobs. And the Italian-wool upholstery feels like a high-end sofa from a corner office.

For the nursery, we got a package deal on a Dadada Soho 3-in-1 crib and a Lala dresser, which we also intend to use as a changing table. I was very impressed by the fit and finish of the solid-beechwood crib, which feels much nicer than the Newton Bassinet’s veneered-plywood supports. It doesn’t come with a mattress, but our friends and colleagues recommended thewaterproof Newton.

The dresser is mostly made from some type of melamine-covered medium-density fiberboard that’s independently certified to be nontoxic. It feels pretty solid once assembled but not nearly as impressive as the crib. I think it would survive a couple of moves but not more than that.

We went with a William Morris–printed reversible play mat instead of a rug, and it’s unbelievably comfortable to stand and sit on. I’m already considering another for the kitchen. I was concerned that the printed pastiche pattern would look chintzy based on the product shots, but it looks much more subtle in person. There was also zero off-gassing when we unwrapped it, which makes it easier to trust the nontoxic certifications.

There are many decent electrified bidet options for elongated toilets but far fewer round ones. The jet of the Tushy doesn’t feel as nice as the one on the Toto we have in Vermont, but I prefer it to the Brondell it replaced.

June was nearly over by the time we realized we had yet to order aglider rocker for nursing. Our apartment doesn’t have the space to accommodate some electronically assisted, massaging Lay-Z-Boy–type recliner, so Ro recommended we look into Nestig’s new line of compact gliders. We were originally taken with therosehip-pink Nestig x Zoë Feldman Dawnswivel glider with red piping, but the longer estimated delivery time pushed us to get the Dusk with blue stripes instead. We’re hoping this more neutral hue won’t clash with the brighter blue of our new sofa, but waiting on swatches would’ve only further delayed its arrival.

I’ve also ordered this Todd Snyder–designed valet chair, which will be perfect for storing the clothes that have yet to be tested by my bedroom dresser.

One thing we’ve yet to figure out is book storage. We’re still searching for a smaller case that sits on the floor within reach of a toddler. I came across this Shelfology nightstand that might fit the bill. The bottom shelf should be tall enough to accommodate children’s hardcovers, and I think the mustard yellow would provide a nice contrast to the blue sofa.

I was reminded on arecent reporting trip to Singaporethat String shelves exist and aren’t very expensive. We’re looking at hanging the 30-inch tall version above the Nestig glider for our books. The closed sides ought to keep our cats from jumping onto them and knocking off all the books.

We may have missed out on the rosehip glider, but the living room’s color palette still needs it so I’ve been looking at cushions in similar hues. After sorting through a ton of “rose” and “blush” options, I remembered I could get some customized to my exact specifications from Colours of Arley for about the same price. I’ve settled on velvet bolsters to provide some textural contrast against the canvas weave of the sofa but am waffling between a striped and a solid configuration.