Personalized Wall Art

Every print in the shop that carries a name ends up here, and it covers more than the nursery. Most are baby and children's pieces: wildflower meadows in pink, blue, red and purple with an initial set among the stems; vintage lace doily frames in pink, blue, sage and cream; rabbit-and-goose, rocking horse and teddy bear sets with a grandmillennial feel; and ocean, safari, woodland, dinosaur, dragon and construction-vehicle name prints for boys' rooms. There are soccer, football and baseball prints that take a name and a shirt number. Past the nursery, there are floral monograms made for a dorm room, a birth stats print that records the details of the day, and a caduceus print that carries a doctor's name.

The name is added to the artwork before it goes to print, so every piece is made to order. Printed copies are on heavy matte paper, shipped unframed, in seven sizes from 5x7 inches (13 x 18 cm) to 16x20 inches (41 x 51 cm). Many of the Fern & Nest nursery designs can also be bought as a digital download that you print yourself.

Should I choose a full name, an initial or a monogram?

A full name says whose room it is, so it suits a door, a cot wall or a gift where the name is the whole point. An initial is quieter and lasts longer: it still looks right when the child is ten and would rather not have their name spelled out above the bed. A monogram sits between the two and reads more like a pattern than a label, which is why the dorm and grandmillennial pieces lean on it. For a long name on a small print I would choose the initial, because a nine-letter name has to be lettered very small to fit across a 5x7.

Should I buy a printed copy or a digital download?

Printed, if you want it to arrive on proper paper and ready to frame. Digital, where it is offered, if you need it quickly, want the same design printed more than once (one for the nursery and one for the grandparents), or live somewhere the post is slow. A home printer on plain paper will not look like the matte print, so if you go digital, a local print shop is worth the small cost.

What should I check before ordering a personalised print?

The spelling, exactly as you want it lettered: capitals, hyphens and accents included. It is the one part of the print that cannot be corrected once it has been printed. Decide whether you want the first name alone or first and middle, since that changes how large the lettering can be. And if it is a gift for a baby who has not arrived yet, check the name has actually been announced. An initial, or a birth stats print ordered after the birth, is the safer choice.

For nursery themes and how high to hang things above a cot, see nursery and kids' room art. Name prints chosen as presents are gathered in personalised baby gifts, and the monogram pieces for older children and students sit in dorm room wall art.