How to Make a Neutral Boy's Nursery Theme

Make a list of theme ideas. Discard anything that seems too girly or too masculine such as flowers, ballerinas, pirates or fire trucks. Gender-neutral themes include teddy bears, bunnies, weather -- sun, clouds, rainbow -- the alphabet, underwater, zoo animals, jungle animals, ladybugs, butterflies, characters -- Winnie the Pooh, Peter Rabbit -- the beach or a favorite city such as Paris, Rome, London or New York.

Paint the walls in a suitable color for the background of your theme. With a theme such as underwater, you will of course use blues as your background color. For a beach theme, use sandy yellows on the lower half of the walls and blue on the top half. For themes such as ladybugs or jungle animals, paint a green background. For themes featuring characters, individual animals and cities, use a warm, neutral color.

Add a large mural to one wall; covering all four walls would create an over-the-top look. Using just one, however, sets the scene and allows you to continue the theme on the other walls with small murals, stenciling and artwork. For example, place a large jungle scene mural on one wall. On the next wall, add a small mural featuring a monkey swinging on a vine. On the third wall, stencil jungle leaves. On the wall by the cot, add a mural of a parrot and hang a picture of a tiger.

Use bedding that complements the theme. For a busy theme such as underwater scenes or the beach, choose simple bedding in soft blues, greens or yellows. For a more simple theme such as bunnies, choose colorful bedding that features a fun bunny print.

Hang a plain blackout blind at the window for daytime naps. Soften the look with curtains, and apply the same principles as you did with the bedding, choosing plain fabrics for a busy theme and patterned fabrics for a simple theme.

Add accessories to match the theme. Stuffed toys, beach balls, buckets and spades, scuba gear, books and pictures featuring the appropriate character or city and even a small aquarium are just a few suggestions.