I loudly and proudly love Disney, but I prefer it in a more subtle way in my home decor. As I was moving my son Liam out of the nursery and into his new “Cars” themed room, I was thinking about how I would decorate my, soon-to-arrive, baby daughter’s room. I had found some fabric for Carolina’s baby quilt that I loved, which happened to have birds. I don’t love birds, but figured it would have to be the theme of the room.

But then, we visited Disneyland while I was pregnant last summer, and my husband and I saw this Mary Blair print which is beautiful, and very reminiscent of “it’s a small world” the ride. We absolutely loved it, and talked about how cute it would be in her nursery – but it was quite expensive and so we left empty-handed. Of course I kept thinking about it, and my sister-in-law suggested I get it anyway because it would be something that Carolina could keep forever, since it wasn’t necessarily “baby”. So I called the Disney Parks merchandise number and ordered it – and was happily surprised to find that there was a smaller, less expensive version. Even with shipping, it cost almost half of the original print we saw in the store!

custom print for Carolina

Because it has so many bright colors in it, the print matched perfectly with the fabrics and her room colors. It became the focal point of the wall where her changing table was.

Then my sis-in-law made this cute “Jesus loves the little children of the world” for me (which she now also sells in her etsy store)- and the “small world theme” began. I discovered the “Small World” series of cardboard books for kids, as well as this adorable “It’s a Small World” book with the lyrics of the famous Sherman brother’s song and cute illustrations. The little puzzle was from Anthropologie and looks just like the “small world” kids, holding hands around the world. And the vintage matryoshka dolls that I already owned rounded off the theme on the shelf. (I’m still looking for the perfect globe – she’s got to have a globe!)

“Small World” items on a shelf

Carolina’s nursery, you can see the Joel Dewberry “birds” fabric.

But, my favorite piece of room decor is this little bird from my sister-in-law (yes, she features prominintly in this post because she really has good taste and helped a lot!). She found it at a thrift store, I believe. It’s the exact color of the bird fabric, and guess what it plays when you pull the string?! “It’s a Small World” – this was an unbelievable find! I used to let pull the string and let it play while I changed Carolina’s diaper. We both love it!