How to Design an Ocean or Under the Sea Bedroom: Use Fish Nursery Decor to Decorate an Undersea Theme Bedroom

Last Updated on February 19, 2024 by Kimberly Crawford

From mural tips to fish nursery decor to finishing accents, here’s everything decorators need to design the perfect ocean theme bedroom or nursery.

Colorful fish nursery decor makes an ocean, or undersea theme bedroom a popular choice for any age. Bright fish and colorful sea creatures can stimulate a new baby’s curiosity.

Little girls love mermaid, whale, or dolphin themes, and boys often go for the ocean diver, buried treasure, or shark themes. However parents accent the undersea bedroom or nursery, they can rest assured with a few creative tips, the ocean theme won’t sink their budget.

Wall Decor for the Ocean Theme Bedroom or Nursery

The simplest option for covering the walls of an ocean theme bedroom or nursery is a solid coat of blue paint with a bright undersea theme wallpaper border. The plain blue walls can be livened up with ocean theme wall decals or posters.

If parents want to give the nursery or bedroom a truly undersea look, they have two options. There are several wallpaper choices that submerge the room in vivid oceanscapes. And, for the do-it-yourself decorator, undersea murals can be painted with the faux finishing technique of color blending.

To create the backdrop for an undersea mural…

Choose three shades of blue from the same paint card (the glossier the paint, the easier it is to blend on top of the base coat)
Paint a base coat of the lightest shade and allow it to dry.
In a spare paint bucket, mix equal parts dark blue, medium blue, and wall paper paste.
In a second bucket, mix equal parts medium blue, light blue, and wall paper paste.
Open the three cans of blue paint, plus the two mixed buckets.
Since blending can only be done while paint is wet, work in small areas.
Paint with the darkest blue from the floor up to one third of the wall (only a distance of a few feet at a time to prevent drying).
Leaving an unpainted strip in-between, use another brush to paint the second third of the wall with the medium shade of blue.
In the unpainted strip, use a third brush to apply the blended mix of dark and medium paints. Blend into the darker shade below and the medium shade above.
To ensure an overall smooth look, don’t use corners as stopping points.
Quickly add a swath of light blue paint above the medium blue. It will be painted over the light blue base coat.
Paint the medium and light blue mixture in between these shades, blending along the way.
At this point, a strip of wall approximately three-feet wide reaching from floor to ceiling is finished. Work in this manner around the room.
To finish the room, choose a shade even one or two steps lighter from the same paint card and paint the ceiling.

Parents can complete the backdrop by using craft paint to add colorful sea creatures and tropical fish. To add some whimsical touches to the wall, they can throw in some glitter paint to liven up a mermaid’s hair, or fish’s scales.

Fun 3-D touches can be glued onto the mural such as half marbles for bubbles, pearls in an oyster’s shell, or jewels in a treasure chest.

Bed Sets Crib Sets, Window Treatments, and Area Rugs, for the Undersea Nursery or Bedroom

Parents can either choose a generic undersea theme bed set, or go with a character such as Little Mermaid, Sponge Bob, Rainbow Fish, or the clownfish from Finding Nemo. Simply ocean themed spreads and sheets will be much more affordable, but aren’t always easy to locate.

Another option is a coordinating set of solid blue spread and sheets. Parents who opt for this can jazz it up with fun fish throw pillows and bright stuffed animals with an undersea theme.

Coordinating curtains often accompany bed sets or crib sets, but parents can also opt for a complementary shade of blue, a sandy yellow, or a bright color that brings out accents from the painted fish on the walls.

Since bathrooms are often decorated in undersea themes, parents can check out shower curtains as another affordable option for window treatments.

The most affordable choice for an area rug is carpet the color of sand. Of course, pricier rugs carrying on the bedroom’s ocean theme are also an option.

Fish Nursery Decor for an Ocean Theme Bedroom

A popular idea for décor is a corner net to display bright stuffed animals from the sea. Smaller nets generally used for storing baby bath toys, can be hooked to the window by their suction cups and filled with rubber fish, squeaky fish bath toys, or seashells.

To give the room some added depth, parents can use fishing line and sticky hooks to suspend fish pillows or stuffed animals from the ceiling.

Shelves are a great place to decorate with stuffed animals, model boats, and storybooks. Parents can choose books whose covers depict any sort of marine life or ocean scene and set them covers facing outward. Decorating with books is an inexpensive way they can instill a love of reading early.

Parents can personalize the room by building model boats with their child or framing pictures from a family trip to the beach. Kids enjoy collecting seashells, starfish, and sand dollars on vacation and displaying the treasures in clear jars or bowls. Creative touches like these make the room feel special and fill it with happy memories.

Decorators are sure to have fun exploring the depths of their creativity when it comes to designing an ocean theme bedroom. And for other tips and ideas, they can check out articles on princess, garden, airplane, and jungle themes.