The nursery series / 20
Cloud nursery wallpaper: soft skies in gray or beige
For a cloud nursery, start with Clouds (rounded white clouds on soft gray) for a cool room or Neutral Nursery Cloud (watercolor clouds in warm beige and olive) for a warm one. Moon and bunny nursery, Stars and Neutral rainbow add bedtime or a little more to look at. An 8-foot-wide accent wall on an 8-foot ceiling takes four 108-inch panels, $480 for our kids' designs. Order a $15 sample of each finalist first.
1. Why clouds work in a kids’ room.
Clouds are one of the few nursery themes that does not shout. The shapes are soft and round, there is no character to outgrow, and a cloud wall looks like sky rather than a baby pattern. That makes it an easy choice for a crib wall and an easy one to keep as your child grows.
- Paper one wall. Usually the crib wall, the one you see from the doorway. The other walls stay plain.
- Match the undertone. Gray clouds sit with white and cool wood. Beige and olive clouds sit with cream, rattan and warm wood.
- Keep the rest simple. A cloud wall is already a pattern, so plain bedding and a single colorful toy shelf are enough.
Every design here works for any baby. All of them come from our kids’ collections.
2. Two cloud designs, two palettes.
We carry two cloud repeats, and the difference is the color of the room around them:
- Clouds: rounded white clouds drifting across a soft gray ground. A cool, light pick that reads almost as a texture from across the room.
- Neutral Nursery Cloud: watercolor clouds in warm beige and olive tones. Looser and warmer, and a natural partner for wood furniture and linen.
Not sure of your palette? Our gender-neutral nursery guide compares warm and cool designs side by side, and the small nursery guide covers why a light repeat helps a tight room.
3. Moons, stars and a rainbow.
If you want the sky to say a little more, these pair with a cloud wall or stand in for it on a second wall. More night-sky designs sit on our star and moon nursery wallpaper page, and the stars and moon nursery guide goes deeper.
- Moon and bunny nursery: rabbits resting on crescent moons with stars, in soft gray and white. It shares a palette with Clouds.
- Stars: small gray stars scattered evenly across white, for a bedtime corner.
- Neutral rainbow: quiet beige rainbows with small hearts and clouds, the cloud idea with a little more shape. See the rainbow nursery guide.
- Vintage Air Balloons: watercolor hot air balloons drifting among clouds in soft pink and beige, for a cloud wall with a little warmth.
4. Plan the wall and the panels.
Every kids’ design comes in 30-inch-wide panels in nine heights, priced $90 to $180 per panel. Divide the wall width by 30 and round up for the panel count. Add 4 inches to the wall height for trim and alignment, then choose the shortest panel height that covers it.
| Wall | Panels across | Panel height | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 ft wide, 8 ft high (96 × 96 in) | 96 ÷ 30 = 3.2, so 4 | 108 in | 4 × $120 = $480 |
| 13 ft wide, 9 ft high (156 × 108 in) | 156 ÷ 30 = 5.2, so 6 | 120 in | 6 × $125 = $750 |
Prices are before tax, with free US shipping. The nursery wallpaper calculator does the same math for your own wall. If you rent or may redo the room later, read the removal guide: we have not published our own removal tests, so test a sample on your paint.
5. Start with a $15 sample.
Gray and beige both shift between daylight and a lamp, and the size of a cloud is hard to judge on a screen. Order a sample of each finalist from our samples page, or straight from a design: Clouds sample, Neutral Nursery Cloud sample, Moon and bunny nursery sample or Stars sample. Each is $15 with free US shipping.
To compare several at once, the Calm nursery pack adds three soft repeats:
Calm nursery
Three soft, sleepy repeats to compare side by side in the nursery's own light.
- Bunny nursery
- Stars
- Moon and bunny nursery
3 × $15 = $45 · free US shipping
More designs are on our kids’ page.
- Tape the samples on the crib wall, where the panels will go.
- Hold them next to the bedding, the rug and the crib finish.
- Check them in the evening under the lamp you will use for night feeds.
Ordering your wall after the sample? Use code SAMPLE15 for $15 off orders of $300 or more (one use per customer).
Questions
What is the best cloud wallpaper for a nursery?
It depends on the room's palette. Clouds is rounded white clouds on a soft gray ground, for a cool room. Neutral Nursery Cloud is watercolor clouds in warm beige and olive tones, for a room with wood furniture. Both are quiet enough for a crib wall.
Can cloud wallpaper work in an older child's room?
Yes. Clouds read as a soft pattern rather than a baby theme, so a cloud wall can stay when the bedding changes. Stars and Watercolor solar system are easy next steps if your child outgrows the nursery look.
How many panels does a cloud accent wall take?
Divide the wall width in inches by 30 and round up. An 8-foot-wide wall on an 8-foot ceiling takes four 108-inch panels at $120 each, $480 for our kids' designs. A 13-foot wall on a 9-foot ceiling takes six 120-inch panels, $750.