How to choose the perfect nursery dresser: Color, size, style, cost
What is the best design/style for a nursery dresser?
Short on time? We get it. We aren’t a food recipe blog, so here’s our top nursery dresser recommendations summarized.
While design can be a matter of taste and room compatibility, we have found there are some features that make life a little easier. At Doves & Tails, we love rounded edge dressers in natural woods and splashes of color, but there are many suitable designs to choose from. We cover a few things to avoid and take a long term approach to make sure whatever you spend your hard earned money on won’t be thrown in the landfill in a few short years. We focus on longevity, design, color, size, and cost; making sure your investment seamlessly transitions into every stage of your child’s life.
What size dresser should I buy for my nursery?
A dresser should be as large as you can fit in the space, go big! It’s important that you buy something that your child can grow into. Clothes get bigger as your child does, so plan accordingly to make sure whatever you choose will have adequate storage for a teenager in conjunction with a closet. The dresser is a permanent feature; cribs, changing tables, and bassinets are temporary.
Best depth for a nursery dresser
I find that a good rule of thumb is you need 3X your dresser depth in free space where you place your dresser. So an 18” dresser would require 54” and a 22"” dresser would be comfortable at 66” of space. If you plan to use your dresser as a changing table, we recommend a depth of 20” or more.
Best width or length for a nursery dresser
The best width or length for a nursery dresser is entirely room and space dependent. If you plan to use your nursery dresser as a changing table, we recommend a minimum length of 30” and a maximum length of 72". The longer the dresser, the more storage and useful working surface, so go as big as you can comfortably fit. This is also an advantage to getting a custom dresser from us, because we know that sometimes 68” doesn’t fit, but 66” will.
Best height for a nursery dresser
Dressers have a wide range of heights. Typical dresser heights range from 26”-36”, while high boys or tall dressers can range from 48”- 84” tall! For a nursery or kids dresser, we recommend avoiding tall dressers, at least in their early years. As children get toward the end of their toddler years, it is nice for them to be able to reach a few drawers and choose their own clothes. We love the use of a Montessori style wardrobe to compliment a dresser. If you plan to use the dresser as a changing table our family finds a 32-34” high dresser to be ideal to avoid back strain and work easily on diaper changes. A 34” height suits my wife (5’8”) and myself (6’1'“) quite well. If your household is significantly taller, a height of 36” may be suitable. If your household is on the shorter side, a height of 30”-32” may be more comfortable.
What style nursery dresser should I choose?
Since we are fans of heirloom furniture, we recommend picking a style that will last the test of time. Try to avoid short term design fads and colors. For most American homes, we find both modern and contemporary styles suitable and ever-green. Here we explain the difference between modern and contemporary. We recommend going with natural woods. We recommend avoiding overly specific shelving and cubbies for babies. While they can be convenient for a few years to store extra diapers and accessories, we ultimately find that the use specific storage designs limits how the dresser can be used going forward. Instead, we recommend a rolling metal or wood cart, such as this affordable metal cart. This allowed us to take the diapers and other baby kit into other rooms and can be repurposed as your kids get older into art, toy, or supply storage. The diaper phase only lasts a couple of years, so don’t buy large items based on short phases.
Rounded or softened edges on a nursery dresser
Comfort and Safety
We like dressers with softened or rounded edges. A dresser is a piece of furniture that gets used daily. We lean against it, set lamps, books, and keys on it. We bump into it and maybe hit our shins on it. Rounded edges are more comfortable to lean against and bump into. Rounded edges and corners are also much safer for toddlers and children helping to mitigate serious injuries from the inevitable falls and bumps. A bedroom is a place for softness and comfort and rounded edges just fit that aesthetic better.
Durability
Rounded edges and corners help considerably with durability. As we lean against, rub against, and knock into our dressers we put pressure on the wood fibers and finish. Sharp edges wear out faster A sharper edge or corner on a dresser focuses our wear and tear on a smaller section, meaning the finish will wear out faster in that area. Edges and corners are also the easiest to dent, ding, and chip.
Design
We like the look of rounded edges. They don’t have to be fully rounded, but they should feel comfortable to the touch. Half of the enjoyment of quality furniture is feeling the smooth wood grain and finely hand tuned edges. Rounded edges have an ever-green style that will fit into any modern or contemporary room. A bedroom is a place for softness and comfort and rounded edges just fit that aesthetic better
Should I choose a natural wood or painted nursery dresser?
We recommend natural wood for nursery dressers. We are biased, but we feel that natural wood dressers are timeless, more durable, and have heirloom potential. We covered the topic if you need help choosing between a maple, walnut, or oak dresser. We love the idea of a dresser being able to age with your child and wood never goes out of style. Many nursery and children’s dressers are painted or feature colors, such as our leather faces options; so lets dive in.
Painted nursery dressers
Painted and stained nursery dressers are a commonly available option. Painted and stained dressers are often more affordable but do come with some drawbacks. The paint on dressers often comes off in high wear areas such as edges, corners, and drawer faces. They don’t age as well as a wood dresser but offer a nice color accent in the room. Most dressers can be repainted a different color when the paint begins to wear, but make sure you find a suitable primer and the surface may have to be cleaned and possibly sanded for good paint adhesion.
What is the best color for a nursery dresser?
So you decided to paint or choose accent colors; what colors should you pick and what colors should you avoid? We recommend avoiding black, any brown close to black, and greys as they can absorb light and just aren’t very inviting. Large fields of bright red and neon colors colors can be fun for older children (the 90’s were fun) but they can be overstimulating for young children possibly making sleep difficult and even adding anxiety. Most of the other colors are just fine and depend on your overall room design. Painted dressers can chip over time, so before picking a painted dresser consider durablity and longevity. Do you plan to use it into their preteen and teenage years? Choose something more suited towards a piece adults would be happy with.
The perfect nursery dresser drawers
A dressers main purpose is storage, mostly clothing, so let’s talk about drawers. We want the drawers to be large enough to store all your clothes without jamming when we inevitably stuff too much in. We recommend drawers 15” - 18” deep and at least 4” in usable interior height. We have been much more mindful of the finishes and chemicals that touch our children’s clothes, so we build our drawers out of solid maple and leave them unfinished but sanded very smooth. While many finishes are technically safe, we have found that even after long periods of time there can be a lingering odor that we would rather avoid. There are some drawbacks to unfinished drawers, such as potential staining from dirty hands, pens, crayons, etc. We find both finished and unfinished drawers adequate options.
Drawer construction + dividers
Drawers are some of the first parts of a dresser to wear out. The repeated opening and closing can be hard on wood parts. Cheap dressers may see their drawers wear out in a few years with daily use but, higher end drawers should last decades. Dovetailed drawers are the gold standard for dresser drawers since they provide a mechanical lock in addition to any glue used. At Doves & Tails, we choose to dovetail all of our drawers since we are producing heirloom quality, but they certainly aren’t necessary on every dresser, especially if you don’t plan to use the dresser for a decade or more. INSERT DIVIDER PHOTO and Dove tail photo
We love dividers in our dresser drawers, specifically for the top drawers. We find this is a luxury for nursery and children’s dressers where their small socks and pants can easily get lost among the mix, only to be found when they no longer fit. Our dressers come with solid maple dividers in our top drawers but there are many commercial aftermarket options for purchase to help organize socks, diapers, clothes, snot suckers, and balms. I don’t know about you, but I’m sick of plastic, so maybe opt for cotton fabric dividers, wood, or bamboo.
How much does a nursery dresser cost?
Another almost rhetorical question, but a nursery dresser costs whatever you are willing to spend. You can find free nursery dressers on a local marketplace or you could spend $10,000 or more for ultra luxury designs.
Dressers from $200-$300 will get you an entry level dresser, mass manufactured overseas from any of the typical large retailers. For this price you will get a veneered dresser made out of mdf or plywood. Dressers in the range are perfectly adequate to hold clothes, but their longevity is limited, probably in the 3-5 year range, but quality will be noticeably lacking, design will be generic, and you may have to assemble it yourself.
Dressers from $600- 1400. Many of these dressers will still be a combination of plywood, mdf, and veneer. There may be a few real wood elements on them such as the drawer faces. You may begin to find dressers in this range out of solid woods such a as pine and other soft woods. The dressers will have a better construction quality than the cheap dressers, so they shouldn’t get as wobbly with use. Though their longevity is limited due to damage and inability to repair, the designs are likely to be more unique. Factory finishes and veneers make these dressers very difficult or impossible to repair.
Dressers above $1400. Here you should be getting into dressers that are 50% or more solid wood. They should have very well functioning drawers. These dressers will last considerably longer; a minimum of 10 years up to generations. The should be a unique style and may even be handcrafted.
Summary
Dresser Tips Summary
Nursery Dresser Cost Summary
Free to $600: Basic, mass-manufactured, likely made from MDF or plywood, limited lifespan, and generic design. Thrifting and online marketplaces are an option.
$600 to $1,400: Improved quality, may include some solid wood, better durability but still mixed materials.
Above $1,400: High-quality, predominantly solid wood, long-lasting, potentially heirloom quality. You will be able to find a solid wood dresser at this price.
Best dresser size summary
Length - Go big! More available space will be used as your children grow
Depth - 18-22” Depth, minimum 20” if using as a changing table
Allow 2.5-3 times the dresser's depth in space for comfortable use.
Height - 30-34” is a good for use as a changing table - Kitchen counters are typically 36”
Avoid very tall dressers so your child can use the dresser independently as they age
Best Nursery Dresser Styles and Designs
Avoid getting a dresser with cubbies or infant specific features - Kids grow quick, you will want the storage space in a few years
Avoid neons, bright red, black, very dark browns, dark greys
Pick natural woods and neutral colors
Go with rounded edges or softened edges for safety and better wear
Painted is okay, but it will wear out
Buy classic styles for the long term - avoid fad designs and color (Grey everything anyone?)
When choosing a nursery dresser, consider not only the immediate cost but also the long-term value and durability. Investing in a higher-quality dresser may save money and hassle in the long run.
