Nursery chic is turning into whimsical way to decorate in any room of the house

KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
If you can't seem to find your inner child, go furniture shopping. In the kids' department.
And when you fall for a clever chair or wonderful table, don't haul it off to your daughter's room; keep it in the living room.
Lots of people are doing it, says the Wall Street Journal. Designers are turning out more innovative modern pieces that may be small in scale but big on whimsy and utility.
More people are buying them to enliven the decor in other rooms of the home.
A modern lacquered wood dresser is only 3 feet tall, but in a sleek bedroom, it will hold grownups' socks and underwear.
A toy chest can be a storage cabinet. A chalk board table with steel storage center for art supplies becomes a coffee table with wine cooling in the middle, the Journal says.
One reason this is happening is that children's furniture is becoming available in modern styling.
Another is that it's a way to be playful with decorating.
A popular item at www.retromodern.com is a $750 chair made from foam balls on a steel chain. That look will set a mood in your living room.
And while much of the furniture is not cheap, it tends to be lower in price than its full-scale counterparts, the Journal adds.