How to Make Your Nursery Dark

Darkness is one of the key factors for melatonin production…but how? Darkness stimulates the pineal gland to naturally produce melatonin, but exposure to light during the evening hours can inhibit that production process. This is why it’s ideal to eliminate any sort of screen time at least 1 hour before bedtime so that your body has time for that natural melatonin process to kickstart.

We want your child’s nursery to be dark enough that when your eyes adjust in their room, you wouldn’t be able to read the words of a book.

On a scale of 1-10 (10 being the darkest), I would recommend that your child’s room is about an 8/10 at minimum. This darkness scale is helpful to evaluate the room ensuring that the sun isn’t waking your child up early in the morning, and to ensure that they’re taking great daytime naps.

I’ve boughten the “blackout” blinds and the “blackout curtains” that just don’t block everything out. It’s frustrating and feels like a waste of money. However - I have tried and TRUE solutions for blocking out light in just about every type of window now - so buckle up.

• Cardboard Boxes & Black Garbage Bags.
  The benefit of cardboard boxes is that you can cut them to the perfect window size and tape them together if needed. The black garbage bags can provide an extra barrier between the cracks of light the creep through the sides of the cardboard around the window. This is a very cost-effective option.

• Traditional Blackout Curtains & Velcro Patches.
  If ‘fancy’ blackout curtains are just simply not in the budget, don’t worry. Walmart has blackout curtains that work just fine. However, I would recommend picking up a package of peel and stick velcro patches so attach onto the sides of your curtains and the window sill. This will make sure that no light in creeping in from the sides or the tops of your window. Surprisingly, just those small cracks of light can really have a negative effect on sleep - so the velcro patches help a ton.

• Sleepout Curtains
  Sleepout Curtains are new to hit the market - just launching this past year. A few benefits of the sleepout curtains are the they are portable, easy-to-install, and they provide total darkness. They work by attaching suction cups to the window and then sticking the curtain to the top portion of the suction cup where there is a velcro strip. I use these while traveling and staying in a hotel room and they work awesome. I also use these for blacking out our bedroom while my husband sleeps for night shift. They are a bit more pricey, but still reasonable for a quality blackout curtain. Discount code: midnightmama saves you 10% on your order.

• BlackoutEZ Blinds
  These blinds are interesting because depending on your window size, you can either custom order a size, or order a ‘one-size-fits-all’ covering. These window coverings are a sheet of blackout material that attaches to your window with complete velcro stripping. You will need to install the velcro to your window frame and to your blackout blind to ensure a nice, snug fit. We have these blinds in both of our kids’ rooms and they are 100% dark. One downside is that because they’re an all-american brand, shipping to Canada can be quite costly. Here is a link to check them out and purchase.

• SlumberPod and HomeBase
  Maybe my favourite blackout solution of them all…mostly because I LOVE SlumberPod, but also because I love having the windows open allowing for natural light to come in during the day. The SlumberPod paired with the HomeBase ensures that the crib is blacked out 100%, while the room is brightly lit. No light is creeping in from anywhere with this power couple. The most expensive blackout solution, but definitely one that won’t go to waste as you can detach your SlumberPod from the HomeBase easily to bring on a trip or even just a sleepover at grandma’s house. Use discount code: midnightmama$20 to save $20 on your order from SlumberPod’s website.

What this all really boils down to is - DARKEN YOUR BABY’S ROOM! No matter which blackout solution you choose, make sure that it works for your budget and your family.

If you have questions about blacking-out your child’s nursery, post them below!