Eteannette Seymour: “There is So Much Magic in Writing Down Your Dreams.”

Creating a heavenly enclave for new babies is second nature to Eteannette Seymour, or Ettie (pronounced ET-TEA), as she is lovingly called. Her design company, ettie & co., brightens the lives of new parents in unique, creative, innovative ways. She also brings her dazzling imagination to other spaces. Her website includes design plans to purchase for do-it-yourself, custom design options and plenty of tips and advice to help her clients create the space that fits their lifestyle and personality.

As a mommy herself, she understands the nuances of what you need as you are nursing or feeding your baby. She has experienced the peaceful feeling created by her ideas. Making her niche in nursery design allows her to offer mommies an alternative way to create their nursery. “I’m a mama, wife, entrepreneur, designer, educator, friend and cookie enthusiast. About five years ago, I decided to write down a ‘dream list’ on my phone, a place to have far-reaching ideas of what I would like to accomplish, places I would like to travel, relationships I would like to cultivate, etc.,” she explained. “For some reason, I quickly put down, ‘become a successful interior designer.’ It was a very random and unexpected action because I had never really entertained the idea before. At that time, I was teaching special education in Denver, Colorado. It seemed like something nearly impossible and crazy. I have always loved interiors, got plenty of compliments on what I did with spaces but never considered my life could take a different path.” 

Focusing on Interiors
Life continued to happen, as it does for all of us, and fate brought Ettie and her husband, Justin, back to the northeast to be closer to family and friends. They were expecting their first child, Clementine, who is turning three soon. Designing her nursery was the first time she gave herself the time, space and money to fully implement a full-room design. It gave her so much joy, excitement and creativity; she fell in love with the process and realized there was a skill there that could help others too. As the couple worked to make their newly purchased 1811 farmhouse a home, she repeated the design process.

It was after having her daughter and coming out of the fog of pregnancy and life with a newborn that she started pursuing this passion professionally. “In summer 2018, I filed for my business account and began helping family and friends with their spaces. I decided to commit to Instagram as a daily form of marketing to expand my reach. Since then, magic has truly happened,” she continued. “Despite having no formal degree in interior design, I have been able to hone my craft through research, podcasts and mentoring to create a design that really resonates with others.”

Through this method she has had the chance to work with women all over the country looking to redesign their spaces. Eight months ago, she began thinking that if she narrowed her niche to a certain design focus, she would be able to help her clients so much more. “I’ve always felt most lit up working with other moms and loved the excitement and outcome of newly designed nurseries. I decided to re-brand and market myself exclusively for nurseries since the beginning of 2020,” she related. “As we expect our baby number two, a little boy, this month, I relate completely with all the new moms out there!”

The Beginning
Ettie is originally from a small town, way upstate, Lisbon, which she recalls as an incredible place to grow up. It is a beautiful rural farm town along the St. Lawrence River with the most amazing people. After graduating from high school, she attended St. John Fisher College in Rochester, New York, where she met her husband. He was attending Rochester Institute of Technology College of Engineering Technology and she was invited to one of their parties. That’s when she fell in love with Justin’s smile! After college, they decided to take on a new adventure and moved to Denver for seven years, where they continued to fall in love, travel all over the world and marry in 2013.

Her biggest design inspiration usually comes from being outdoors. She feels there is something magical about being completely present in nature. It has everything you want in a beautifully designed space: color, freshness, texture, shades and a sense of feeling home. “On a more tactical level, being a mom is also a huge inspiration for me. I understand my clients’ needs very deeply as I am at the same life phase as them, expecting baby number two. I understand the stress over finding that perfect glider or trying to figure out which furniture pieces to splurge on versus save,” she confirmed. “I know how exciting nursery design can be along with the remorse that can be felt when lots of loved items are pulled together but aren’t cohesive. I love helping moms make this process seamless, so they don’t have to experience the second guessing and endless Pinterest scrolls.” 

Clementine was born in March 2017, and Ettie admits, as so many moms do, that she had no idea how much her world would radically change. When Clementine was placed on her chest, she didn’t realize that her heart would be given another dimension. “I was seeing in color for the first time. Before motherhood, I anticipated all the things I would lose, such as time, money, my body, my freedom, etc. It has blown me away that motherhood has given way more than taken, increasing my confidence, bravery, presence, purpose and joy. Being her mother is the best thing that has ever happened to me. She is the heart and soul behind ettie & co., my crazy aspiration and all that is right in my world.”

As she expects her new son, she feels anticipation and worry, asking herself, Will I be able to balance it all? How can I give this sweet angel as much as I did with Clementine? Will my nipples survive another round of breastfeeding? Can my business sustain, or even excel, as I navigate this next chapter? 

“I am filled with all of these questions, but I know the magnitude of the gift I have been given. I get another angel to call my own. I am grateful for this baby and the family Justin and I are creating,” she mused.

Developing a Package
She follows a specific business model as a designer, helping new moms in one of two ways. Initially, she provides nursery design packages that can be downloaded directly from her website. These are seamless and allow for a blissful design experience. Each one has a certain design style; one example is Feminine & Floral, with three distinct design boards that convey the same style. These design boards contain a mix of high, medium and low price ranges, with direct links for each item. It allows the expectant mom to choose what to splurge or save on while keeping the same look.   

Each item has either been tested personally by Ettie or researched to make sure it has been loved by a lot of mamas. The best part? All of the items are to scale with each other, so clients can mix and match and not be stuck with a side table that is too low for a glider. Scale is very important for a well-designed space. “As a bonus to my customers, I’ve also included a nursery must-have page, listing everything from a great humidifier to which baby clothes to purchase, a curtain guide how-to and accessory page,” she remarked. “If a mama is looking for more support or a more custom look, I also offer direct services with me for a custom nursery design package. This allows me to directly connect with the client, narrow in on what look they want, create a custom design plan for their unique needs, provide renderings and walk them through the process of ordering and implementation. This is a joy because I love directly connecting and supporting new mamas during this exciting time.”

Ettie truly strives to connect with mothers and figure out how to best serve the modern mama, the mother who is trying to excel in her career, be the best mama she can be and also find herself along the way. She wants ettie & co. to grow exponentially so she can continue to support organizations such as Carry the Future, an amazing organization that provides critical items such as diapers, baby carriers and baby beds to the children of refugee families. Currently 3 percent of all net profits are donated to their efforts. The idea is mamas helping mamas.

She enjoys the peacefulness that surrounds the Capital Region. There is so much natural beauty everywhere and she loves the tight-knit communities and the women in business she has been connected with. And fall. “Oh, my goodness. Autumn here is absolutely magical. The magnificent colors, crisp air and transition to a new season are all so special to me,” she affirmed.

A Peaceful Space
Current nursery design trends she sees include three main themes: wallpaper, neutral tones and quirky animals. She believes wallpaper is making a big comeback, especially as an accent wall. Companies she uses that offer nice options are Project Nursery and Rocky Mountain Wall. Decals offer great removable options that can easily be switched out once baby grows up. “Neutral tones are another big one. This focus on color palette, opposed to a ‘theme,’ really allows for a breathable and light space. A lot of on-trend nurseries are spaces that really say ‘sanctuary’ instead of ‘child space.’ Lastly, quirky animals are huge right now. Think llamas and sloths! These fun animals work great as subtle accent pieces as do stuffed animals, embroidered blankets and other personalized pieces. It’s always great to keep your nursery current, but the most important thing you can do is make your nursery feel like you.”

As a result of her own path to success, Ettie offered this advice. “Write it down. If you have a dream, or a crazy idea, write it down. There is so much magic in writing down your dreams. Even if you think it’s too scary or too silly or ‘never gonna happen,’ do it anyway. I’m a big dreamer! I wrote ‘be on the cover of HERLIFE’ over two years ago. I can’t believe this dream is coming true. Maybe your dream is to start selling your homemade soaps, or maybe it’s to double your income or maybe it’s to be a stay-at-home mom; write it down. And then? Start to believe it’s possible. And, along the way, savor every second with your beautiful babies. We can reach any goal, but the one thing we’ll never get back is time.” ■

To find more design ideas and to download Ettie’s free “How to Design a Nursery” guide, visit ettieandco.com. Find them on Twitter and Instagram @ettieandco. Reach her at ettie@ettieandco.com.