Painting the Nursery: Is It Safe?
October 29, 2009 at 12:00 PM by Cafe MicheleZ - Comments (3)
Photo from Mythic Paint
My husband and I decided to leave the walls in the nursery white, but we bought an unfinished bookshelf and want to stain it blue.
Well, he's going to stain it. I will stay away.
We live in an apartment in Brooklyn, NY, so there's no yard or basement for him to stain it in, but he wants me to avoid the fumes, so he's doing it when I'm not around and directing a fan out the window so the smell doesn't linger.
If we painted it with a non-toxic paint, it probably would be a lot easier.
beth1281 wondered about painting the nursery during pregnancy.
meganhead said to look for paints for no VOCs (volatile organic compounds) and Babasfarmlife suggested Mythic Paint.
honeyb3 said that Lowe's has a brand called Olympic that is safe.
There aren't actual studies done on pregnancy and painting, but we all know that anything with chemicals and fumes isn't good for mom-to-be. If you must paint, keep these key points in mind:
- Avoid oil based paints, old paint with lead and mercury, and ethylene glycol ethers and biocides commonly found in some latex paints.
- Never sand or scrape off old paint. The particles can be harmful.
- Wear a face mask and protect your skin with long pants, shirt, and wear gloves.
- Keep the are very well ventilated.
Have you painted the nursery? Do you know of any other tips or safe paint brands to share?
Related posts:
7 Tips for an Eco-Friendly Room Makeover
Is It Safe? Painting Your Nails
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yep use low VOC paints... we use them as a rule anyways.. because VOCs are released long after the paint has dried.
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We will be painting our nursery... and out boys room (as soon as we can find a sitter). We actually planned to paint our boys room before we found out I was pregnant... went and bought all the paint and suplies, but then that first trimester kicked my butt! So now we will have 2 rooms to paint..... and baby's room definitely needs to be painted as we have one unfinished wall in there.
LelandsMommy Oct. 29, 2009 at 2:02 PM