Some Practical Questions for Architectural Digest

A few thoughts on Alison Roman's breathtaking nursery tour.

Jan 29, 2025

Yesterday, I spent my lunch break slurping soup and staring at Alison Roman’s stunningly perfect nursery in Architectural Digest. The boucle swivel chair. The understated baseball theme. The natural light. It took my breath away. I loved it so much that I started to hate it—which is what happens when something is too beautiful.

So, with love and deep admiration for Alison and the editor of this piece, here are my questions for a follow-up article to be written in six months to a year from now:

Has your child gotten their fingers stuck in the fireplace grate yet? My kids love putting their fingers in holes, and those seem ideal for poking.
Can you show me what the room looks like now with all the necessary devices plugged in—i.e., the humidifier, night light, sound machine, and monitor? I want to see the room with the cords. (My guess is that it would look like the image below.)
Are the shelves above the nursery chair still organized?
Have you found a way to hold the baby, a bottle, and grab a book from those kinds of shelves? I had to put everything in floor buckets because I would always knock things over. These are the buckets I like—they are very ugly, but they keep the children out.
That wooden dresser is a piece of art, but those are some sharp edges. Have you ever stubbed your toe on one of the corners in the dark of night?
Do you like to collapse from exhaustion on this rug? Is it soft?
How is your back after bending down to grab the diapers? Mine hurts looking at that.
Do you have a neutral diaper pail? If so, can you share the link? Mine is stark white, and I loathe it. If you hand painted your diaper pail can you share what type of paint you used? That would be appreciated, I want something like this.