I love The Sims 4 but one thing I don’t love about The Sims 4 is the lack of gameplay for babies. I hate those unrealistic bassinets. I hate that we can’t take our babies anywhere. I hate that all interactions with our Sim babies are tied to that bassinet. When babies can’t interact with anything, what are you supposed to put in their nursery?
A true newborn nursery would have things like changing tables, baby baths, play mats or play pens for tummy time, and a real crib. I don’t know any baby that stays in an old-fashioned bassinet 24/7 in real life, do you?
Since I like to keep all my builds that I share in the Gallery CC-free, I don’t really have the option of using modded objects. Not to mention console players don’t have that option, either. Still, I want to upload baby nurseries that feel like real nurseries, so I set out to start making some non-functional, decorative baby nursery items to help make my newborn Sims’ space feel more like a real newborn nursery. While I desperately wish I did not need to build decorative versions of these things, I did have a lot of fun putting them together and I wanted to share how I made them with you so you can have these things in your nurseries, too.
I’m going to walk you through how to build and customize your own decorative baby changing table with just base game objects and some build cheats. Then I’ll show you some other things I’ve built for my nurseries using similar techniques! You don’t need any CC or mods to make these. Everyone can make custom nursery stuff no matter what platform they play on or how many packs they own.
How to Make a Base Game Decorative Changing Table
To start with, grab some counters out of Build/Buy. You can use either island counters or regular counters. I picked out some island counters here. Whichever counters you pick, place two side by side like you normally would if you were making a kitchen.
Next, grab a base game ottoman. You can find ottomans in the Misc. section of the Comfort category. I picked the Intimate Ottoman because I liked the pattern and style of the cushions the most, which is the part we need.
At this point, we’re going to need to use building cheats. If you’re on console and worried about your trophies; don’t worry! This cheat will not disable trophies or achievements on console! You can use it as much as you like.
On PC, hit CTRL+SHIFT+C to bring up the cheat bar. On console, hit all 4 back triggers at the same time. Then type bb.moveobjects on into the cheat bar and enter it. You should see a small message underneath telling you that build cheats are now enabled.
Now that build cheats are enabled, we have a lot more freedom to get creative. Size down the ottoman twice so that it will fit nicely into the counter and be a little more “baby-sized.” To do this on PC, press the [ key twice. To do this on console, press press both triggers + left (XBox) or L2 and R2 + left (PlayStation).
Now we need to move the ottoman inside the counter and raise it up so that just the cushions are showing through the top of the counter. This will create our changing mat for the changing table. To do this, we’ll need to freely move the object outside the limitations of the grid and elevate it.
To freely move objects outside the grid, hold the Alt key while moving a selected object on PC. On console, press LT (XBox) or L2 (PlayStation) twice to toggle between grid, half-grid, and free placement. When you can drag the object around smoothly without it snapping to the grid lines, you are now in free placement mode.
To elevate objects, press the 9 key until you are happy with the height on PC. On console, press both triggers + up/down on the directional pad (XBox) or L2 and R2 + up/down on the directional pad (PlayStation).
Use these two build tools together to place the ottoman inside the counter with just the cushions showing through the countertop, like in the picture above.
Now you have the basic structure of your changing table finished! With the hard part out of the way, you can now move on to decorating your changing table. I like to put some shelving above it with a mix of decor and things that a parent might actually need at a changing table, like tissues/wipes, lotions, and towels. You can also make it look a little more built-in by putting cabinets and other things next to it. At this point, just be creative and build onto the base structure any way you like!
Don’t be afraid to keep using the size cheat, free placement and elevation to get the look you want. I often use them to place large clutter objects on shelves that they won’t snap to otherwise. If you have clutter pieces that are snapping to a counter or table in a placement you don’t like, there’s an easy fix for that, too. Move the surface out of the way and place the clutter first, then slide the surface back underneath it when you’re done.
Other Nursery Ideas
I showed you how to make a decorative baby changing table with just the base game but if you own a variety of add-on packs, you’ll have even more freedom and creativity at your fingertips. Here, I’ve created another decorative changing table with mostly pack content. I used the cube chair from Spa Day as my mat and the modular shelving from Dream Home Decorator really make this setup look unique and practical.
Or how about a baby bath/changing table combo? This corner setup features a sized down bathtub raised up onto the counter, with an adjacent baby mat on the other side, made with the Spa Day cube chairs. The shelving and Laundry Day additions, plus the Discover University divider give the whole thing a nice built-in look.
You don’t have to stop at changing tables, though. With enough creativity and time, you can build almost any custom piece you want to decorate your baby nurseries. Here, I’ve built a baby crib out of the base game and Perfect Patio ottomans, Snowy Escape wall decor, and a mix of Base Game and Toddler Stuff decorative touches.
Playmats and playpens can also be created as well. While this particular baby playmat is not functional, it’s very easy to create 100% functional playpens for toddlers with just some carpeting, fencing, and their favourite toys inside. The one I’ve shown here was made with a pet bed from My First Pet Stuff and a debug StrangerVille fence piece that I’ve sized down. The sized down rainbow is from Get Famous, the pillows are from Toddler Stuff, and the teddy bear doctor playset is from Parenthood.
I hope I’ve given you a few ideas for your baby nurseries and if you really love the specific pieces shown in this article, you can download them from the Gallery! They are all 100% CC-free and my ID is SnarkyWitch. Make sure you have bb.moveobjects on enabled before placing these down!
