How to make a baby cot for a newborn: sizes. Inexpensive baby cots for newborns: all existing options Do-it-yourself rocking bed for newborns

The birth of a child is a significant and joyful event in almost every family. However, at the same time, there are various troubles associated with preparing the necessary space for a newborn baby. This primarily concerns the sleeping place. Few can afford to buy a newborn bed given today's prices.

It must be remembered that the crib must be stable and safe for the baby.

But there is an alternative option that will allow you to save money - this is a do-it-yourself bed for a newborn. And if you approach this business very responsibly and with knowledge of the process itself, then you get a bed no worse than the one purchased in the store.

How to start the creation process

Everyone knows that children never sit still. Therefore, the children's room should be the safest place in the house. Those. it is necessary to exclude objects that can injure the baby (for example, a nail that is not completely hammered or an ordinary screw).

Must be stable and safe for your child.

Crib size chart for a newborn.

In addition, it is advisable to equip it with a removable sidewall (the so-called decorative side). This will help the child himself, without the help of adults, to crawl into his bed.

What will be required during the construction process? It:

• electric drill and drills;
• milling cutter (manual can be used);
• plane;
• rasp;
• roulette;
• square;
• hacksaw;
• pencil or marker;
• hammer;
• level;
• vayma (glue the blanks);
• brush;
• screwdriver.

From building materials:

• nails and screws;
• epoxy adhesive;
• plugs for furniture;
• plywood sheets;
• corners for connecting parts of the crib;
• children's mattress;
• stain, varnish;
• edged board (4 cm) and bars (3x5 cm).

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Construction process for the construction of a crib for a newborn

Drawing of a crib for a newborn.

Before proceeding with the installation, you need to purchase a children's mattress. After all, it will depend on him what size the bed itself will have.

• for a good rest of the child, it is advisable to build in dimensions 120 × 60 cm (and not cramped, and very convenient). As for the height of the sides from the floor itself, it is 8-10 cm, the height of the back of the crib is 110 cm The lower position of the bed of the crib from the base of the floor is determined taking into account the safe height. Since the bed, originally intended for newborns, will be used in the future (until about 4 years of age), the height should be about 30-35 cm;
• the distance between the rods of the crib for a newborn should be 10-12 cm. This is necessary to prevent the child from sticking his head between them (which may happen later, no need to explain to anyone).

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Manufacturing of parts

The harness for the backrests and lateral sides is made of coniferous planks.
The material itself must be processed with a plane or using a woodworking machine. In this case, the thickness will be 3.5 cm, and the width will be 7 cm.

To make the frame, you need to take bars (section 3x5 cm) in the amount of 6 transverse and 2 longitudinal.

Using a tape measure, points are marked with equal intervals between them on long bars.

Then this frame is drawn up, a drill is taken and through holes are made at the joints, into which it is necessary to insert spikes (you can use ordinary wooden wedges). In this case, for a more reliable fastener, you can use glue that is applied to the joints. Do not forget to check the structure with a square.

Frames of the backrests of a baby bed for a newborn.

Here you need to take 4 long bars and 4 short ones. Moreover, each of them must be the same size (110 cm and 60 cm, respectively).

• 2 pairs of constructions are made. Those. 2 long pieces by 2 short pieces (in the form of "P"). In this case, all the bases of the bars must be in the same plane. The height to the bottom crossbar is 30-35 cm. Fastening is done with nails or thorns;
• then 10 bars are taken (the length from the bottom to the top crossbar). These elements will serve as a "lattice". Marking is made along the upper and lower crossbar, 5 points for each. Bars are inserted at these points (5 for each back).

With the help of a drill, through holes are made into which the spikes are driven. The backs are ready.

Making rods

For these purposes, slats with a cross section of 2 × 2 cm (oak or beech) are used. The number of products is 22 pieces (11 for each side).

• with the same drill, holes are made at each of the ends of all the rails. Using a tape measure, equal lengths are measured on the prepared frame and also drilled;
• then 2 more beams are taken (along the length of the crib for the newborn) and holes identical to the previous ones are made in them in the same way. Notches for studs are also required from the ends.

For infants, one of the most important needs is sleep, and the child will spend the first year of life in the crib: sleep, watch others, play with rattles and pendants. Parents-to-be can significantly reduce the cost of arranging a nursery by making a crib for a baby with their own hands. Its construction is quite simple, and production will take only a couple of days.

What materials can you use?

First you need to decide on the material of the product: in no case should you use toxic particleboard and fiberboard, which can cause real harm to the child. The safest will be natural wood (birch, pine, beech, oak), processed with a grinder or sandpaper. It is very important that all parts are carefully sanded, otherwise the child can easily get a splinter.

Round wooden rods can be bought in the garden and vegetable departments, and finding rectangular slats is not difficult. In addition to timber, slats and boards, you may need plywood, a jigsaw, an electric drill, a file, a rasp, nails and a hammer, furniture corners, anchor bolts, self-tapping screws, a tape measure, a level, and drawing paper.

Sizes of a crib for a newborn

The standard dimensions for a cot bed are 120x60 cm, but other sizes can be selected. For small apartments, very small cradles (80x43 cm) are intended. In them, the child feels great, but only up to a certain age, about 6-8 months. Then you have to look for a bigger bed.

How to make a crib for a newborn with your own hands

The base of the sleeping bed and the walls are assembled from bars of 5x3, 5x5 or 7x3.5 cm, while the legs will be the continuation of the walls. Legs can also be taken from old furniture, such as a bedside table or closet.

First you need to make frames for the lattice sides and backs. It is best to secure the bars with through thorns, but glue or screws can be used. It is necessary to assemble the sides from the bars and rods, for this, holes are drilled along the perimeter at the same distance from each other (4-5 cm), then rods or slats are inserted. One or two walls can, if desired, be made solid using a sheet of plywood. Self-tapping screws should be used to secure the side and backs of the crib.

The bottom of the bed can be different: from thin wide slats, wooden rods or solid plywood. In the latter case, it is recommended to make holes for ventilation. The rungs can be additionally greased with wood glue or PVA before being inserted into the grooves.

It is necessary to take a responsible approach to the choice of a mattress for newborns. It should be hypoallergenic, breathable, rigid enough, and also 2 cm less than the perimeter of the bottom of the crib. It is best to buy a mattress in advance and only then proceed to create a drawing. It will not be intricate if there is no desire to make an unusual bed. Otherwise, it is best to consult specialized magazines and articles on the Internet. It should be noted that the optimal height of the sides from the floor is 90 cm, the backs should be higher, and the bed should be at a distance of 30-35 cm from the floor level.

The structure should be strengthened with corners, and all fasteners must be driven deeper into the tree and closed with plastic plugs. The assembled cradle is covered with a safe varnish (water-based) or acrylic paint in 2 layers and dried thoroughly in the open air. You can avoid using varnish by rubbing the crib with wood oil or wax. The bed can be supplemented with furniture wheels, thanks to which it will become more convenient to lull the child, but retainers should be provided.

There are other options for baby beds: rocking chairs, transformers, cradles, playpens, etc. The presented option is easy to manufacture even for novice craftsmen and is quite economical. In addition, it allows for some deviations in dimensions or various additions. Varieties of classic cribs for newborns are shown in the photo. The plus is that you can make such a cradle even with a minimal set of tools.

DIY newborn crib: interesting ideas

For some families, hand-held cribs are a great solution. It can be easily restored: remove the old varnish, prime and recoat to your liking.

After the bed is completely ready, you can move on to decorating. Too bright colors should be avoided, which will prevent the child from falling asleep. The hand-painted cradle will look original.

An interesting and functional decoration will be the fabric bumpers for the crib, which not only protect the baby from bruises and drafts, but also serve for his development. You can make such a panel yourself or purchase it in a store. The main thing is that all the details and strings are well fixed and do not interfere with the child.

Another addition to the crib is a hanging toy module, which will allow you to leave your baby alone in the room for a while. You can also do it yourself.

Related videos

A do-it-yourself baby bed is a great solution if you know how to craft and handle wood at least a little. This crib will meet all your requirements and ideas about the ideal sleeping place for your baby.

You can make a crib for a newborn with your own hands from wood and plywood.

How to make a crib for a newborn with your own hands

To make a bed for a newborn, you will need boards of various thicknesses and lengths, plywood, slats, wood glue, putty, self-tapping screws, steel corners, protective impregnation for wood, varnish or paint, jigsaw, sander, milling cutter, file, drill, measuring tools ...

Let's walk through the process step by step.

• Measure the mattress and from thick wooden beams, assemble a frame for it.
• Make the supports for the mattress with wooden slats approximately 20x20 cm thick.
• Assemble the headboard frame from the beams.
• Make the backrest filling from a sheet of plywood. It is best to take plywood with a thickness of about 5 mm.
• Make sides from thinner strips.
• Sand all parts thoroughly.
• Gather all the elements together using metal corners. For your convenience, it is better to make the middle board hinged.
• Remove wood imperfections with a putty. When it dries, sand down the treated areas.
• Treat the wood with a protective impregnation.
• When the impregnation is completely dry, paint the crib or open it with varnish.

The decoration is up to you. Here you can use all your imagination. But do not forget about safety: do not use non-environmentally friendly materials to decorate the crib. Do not decorate it with small objects that the baby, after growing up, can tear off and inadvertently swallow.

Additional elements for the crib

The crib must be equipped with two additional elements - bumpers and a canopy. Bumpers will protect the child from injury, and they will also keep warm.

The canopy and bumpers can be bought at the store, or you can sew it yourself

The crib should be ready to accept new additions to the family while mom prepares for discharge, but not just out of courtesy and joy. Man is a social being, and a stable society is impossible without hierarchy. Having received his territory and things from birth, even if he still does not understand their meaning at all, a small person will gain self-confidence, with time he will correctly determine his place in society and achieve success. This, of course, is not an absolute law, but the statistics show unequivocally: babies who, by the will (or lack of will) of their parents who roamed anywhere at an irresponsible age, are much more likely to grow up carelessly useless. There is even a historical and sociological theory: they say, people began to come out of savagery and create civilization, when the cradle was invented and mothers stopped carrying babies all the time.

All this may be interesting, but in a developed civilization, dad, in happy anticipation rushing to shops and websites, discovers that the prices of cribs for babies are disproportionately high compared to the complexity and material consumption of products. And you will not dig into, under each hidden cheat there is a solid medical-ecological-production-legislative basis. But what about in a consumer society, and let the parents spare nothing for their child.

Let's say the head of a family is a craftsman. Then he has an idea to make the bed himself: its design has developed over millennia, there is nothing complicated in it, and nothing is required of material. It is possible to make a crib for a baby with your own hands, using an ordinary household tool and plus a jigsaw, manual or, better, electric. There is one more reason: the mother after childbirth, especially if this is the first-born, will be "on edge." After making sure that the faithful in her absence did not wander and did not drag, but worked diligently in his field for the sake of the family good, she will calm down much faster and generally return to normal. And there will be more milk, which again benefits the child.

What are we going to do?

Classic bed for a newborn, pos. 1 in the figure, the design is straightforward. Basic requirements for it:

• Ecological cleanliness and complete health safety.
• Lack of sharp protrusions and edges.
• There should be no holes / openings and crevices in which anything from a finger to a head can get stuck in the little one.
• The presence of sides is required; it is known how dangerous it is for babies to fall even from a low height. The front side (wall) is desirable partially hinged or lowered, so that it is more convenient for the mother to take care of the child.
• Ventilated, i.e. lattice or perforated bottom. No matter how the means of children's hygiene are improved, the baby will someday work on the bed.
• If a newborn is the firstborn and it is supposed to someday add siblings to him, then sufficient strength and durability in combination with a collapsible design.

Often, a crib is placed on wheels for ease of movement around the house, pos. 2. In small apartments, you can sometimes find samples with boxes for linen in the bedside space, as in adults, pos. 3. However, for the reasons stated above, the boxes under the infant bed must be fitted with moisture-proof lids. Finally, a rather complicated and expensive product, but convenient for the mother and saving living space, is a crib for newborns combined with a changing chest of drawers, pos. 4.

Many babies have to be rocked to sleep. The main types of rocking beds hammock, pos. 5, cradle (with top suspension of the bed), pos. 6, and a cradle (with a bed on the lower curved rocking supports), pos. 7. The hammock is suitable only as a temporary rookery, say, at the dacha on weekends. The bones of the baby are still soft, and constant reclining on something malleable deforms his skeleton. Cots for newborns - hammocks are often made foldable and transported.

It is easy to swing the cradle, but it is more difficult to make it. some kind of mechanism is required. In addition, the risk for a baby to fall out of the cradle, hanging over the side, is much greater than from a hammock or cradle. The latter, in addition, is easier to make, and small bumpers on the rocking chairs make it completely safe, which is why the cradle is the most common. In the cradle, however, there must be a bed retainer, and it is highly desirable spring-loaded with self-resetting, which must be diverted for motion sickness, otherwise the bustling mother may forget to insert it, moving away from the crib. "Self-resetting" means that the mechanism itself will put the bed horizontally and drop the pin into the socket if the cradle tilt angle exceeds a certain permissible value.

Note: in cribs for babies there may be completely different bumpers, which see at the end.

Swinging in the transverse direction is not optimal for a person, this is how our vestibular apparatus is arranged. Anyone who has gone to sea in a boat or sailing yacht knows that pitching is much easier onboard. Babies who are constantly rocked from side to side may even develop an addiction to motion sickness, which is why the obnoxious screamer, having grown up, runs the risk of turning into a hyperactive dumbass or "no" autistic. The likelihood of injuring the baby's psyche by excessive motion sickness is reduced to almost zero if the cradle (pos. 8) or cradle (pos. 9) are adapted to longitudinal motion sickness.

Recently, pendulum beds have become widespread, pos. 10, free from the disadvantages of bassinets and cradles. First, lateral swinging in a pendulum crib is harmless, because the child's body does not tilt with him and his vestibular apparatus experiences an absolutely insignificant load in one plane. Secondly, it is almost impossible for a child to fall out of it, because the bed itself is not tiltable. Thirdly, the bedside box can be arranged more simply - access to it is provided automatically. The pendulum mechanism itself is fundamentally uncomplicated, pos. 11, you will only have to occasionally adjust the spring tension as the child grows.

How not to do it!

In no case do you need to make a crib for a newborn that can swing in 2 planes, pos. 1 and 2 in Fig. Perhaps your offspring, having matured, will set out to become a pilot or parachutist and from the first call will withstand with a joyful grin, without turning a little green, training on the loping. But in infancy, a humpty-dumpty to and fro would not have benefited Valery Chkalov either.

Further, it is undesirable to make the bottom of the crib with too sparse crate, pos. 3. When the baby learns to get up, his legs will crawl into the cracks along with the mattress. A thick pad (see below) solves the problem, but this is extra work, material and costs, and unnecessary drying replacements. The best base for a newborn's crib is made of fiberboard, approx. 10 mm with holes 20-30 mm in diameter, drilled along the mesh with a pitch of 70-90 mm. Suddenly it will completely become unusable, it is easier and cheaper to replace it than a mattress topper, and it takes up less spare space. And don't worry, fiberboard is an environmentally friendly material, even cleaner than the original wood. In its manufacture, synthetic binders are not used, and in the process of processing all volatile substances are "exhaled" from the wood.

Note: it is also undesirable to make a bottom adjustable in height in the baby's crib. The nests under its holders are tempting from the point of view of knowing the world, and the little finger will crawl into them. If without nests, then a rather complex and expensive mechanism is required. And the folding side is enough for mom.

A bad solution is also a crib, pos. 4. In all creatures, whose life is divided into an active phase and sleep, instinct during the latter requires complete safety. Combining the sleeping area with the play area does not give it. Which adult can have a good night's sleep at work? And what about small children who are defenseless and are not yet able to be aware of their surroundings?

About the canopy

A canopy over the crib of a newborn is not a luxury. And not so much a remedy for dust, which should not be in a nursery and in a well-kept apartment in general. But remember, which adult was not brought to white heat by an autumn fly or an itchy and itchy mosquito in the dark? What is it like for a kid who does not yet own little hands? And it is very, very unnecessary to turn on a fumigator or spray a repellent in the nursery.

The canopy over the baby's bed is made of natural fabrics that freely pass through the air: chiffon, veils (silk or cotton), organza (only silk), muslin. The optimal design is a tent, on the left in the figure, or a tent, in the center, allowing, if necessary, to open / move the canopy completely. But remember: in the process of learning about the environment, the child will pull and pull the canopy.

Purchased children's canopies are equipped with a sturdy bracket with a holding paw made of lightweight durable elastic plastic, on the right in Fig. In case of self-production, the best option is a canopy-tent, suspended by a cord from the ceiling. An M6 screw hook screwed into a steel threaded collet, and a strong adult will not pull out of the ceiling, and if you unscrew it, the hole is almost imperceptible on the ceiling with a height of only 2.5 m. except for the lightest fabric and thin lace will not fall off.

Note: the best protection for the crib from annoying insects and dust, under which the asthmatic is not out of breath is a mosquito net. But not a fiberglass window, but a special tropical one. Its meshes are wider than that of dress-drapery airy fabrics and it itself is stronger. We have this rare product, but still take an interest. Ruched bows don't look bad for her either.

What bumpers to make?

Sellers offer a wide variety of protective fences for baby cots: folding, lowering, swing, sliding, with doors and hatches. But upon closer examination, it turns out that there is something everywhere in which a finger or a whole pen can be pinched. And the recesses under the overhead details carefully store the dust and, as it were, invite the settlers themselves. Only undesirable and not a human kind, but an arthropod.

The simplest and safest sides for a newborn's crib are folding ones with elastic bands, see fig. The height of the folding part of 150-180 mm is enough for the mother to be comfortable looking after the baby. There are no complaints about such boards, but it is reliably known that at least one new person in this world with a character to the envy of m-mes Sobtchak & Timoshenko has never been injured in her and has not broken anything in her for 3.5 years; the elastic bands were changed 2 times during this time.

Note: 2 ways of laying this type of flap will be discussed below.

Let's get down to business

Now it's time to make the crib. Making it and decorating it is another article (with one small exception, see below); first you need to make a solid and reliable base for them. And even before that, decide on the material; first of all, for its safety for the baby, then for the price and manufacturability at home.

What to make of?

Even the safest plastics disappear: a little older, the child begins to touch everything. The tactile sensations from plastic go against its fundamental instincts, which can cause irritability and damage the developing moral and volitional qualities. For the same reason, we discard the metal, which will also harm more when the baby's teeth begin to cut. Then the disadvantages of textile and other semi-soft type of beds will also fully affect.

As for laminated chipboard, the emission class of phenol-containing compounds E0 (zero, premium or extra grade) seems to be applicable for children's furniture. But conscientious manufacturers in the specifications honestly point out: "For children from 6 months", therefore, not newborns. In addition, high-quality laminated chipboard is expensive, a bed made of it will cost more than a ready-made purchased one with a canopy. That is, a newborn's bed must be made of wood.

We choose wood for a crib taking into account that its impregnation with any biocides is unacceptable. Therefore, any commercial timber of foreign origin is eliminated: its raw material on the market will simply not be admitted to the market by consumer supervision. From domestic hardwoods, birch and beech are suitable for a bed for several generations; for single use - cheap aspen or linden, but expensive. All others contain tannins, salicylates and other substances that are harmless for adults, but can cause allergies in a baby.

Of conifers, pine is quite reliable, but not all. Pine wood is marketed in the form of expensive tar, cut down during sap flow, and cheaper dry chips, harvested in winter. The tar is good for outdoor buildings, because it does not lend itself well to rot and pests, but it is absolutely unsuitable for a crib. In other conifers, the change in resin content from sap flow to sleep is not so pronounced, so it is better not to risk it.

In order not to miscalculate with pine, it is better to make a crib out of it with plywood. The cheapest construction and packaging plywood is made just from dried pine, glued together with harmless and safe casein glue. It makes no sense to "cheat" manufacturers, since everything else is more expensive. A plywood bed will serve with proper home preparation of the material, see below, 2-3 times for 4-5 years, which is quite enough for a family.

About finishing

Over time, the baby will feel that something is climbing in his mouth with which to bite. And then he will begin to gnaw everything. This is a natural and necessary process, but once it created serious problems for children's furniture makers: leaving the tree bare - the fibers will be swallowed, or even choked with a chip. Nitrolac is not harmless, and its sharp scales cut lips, gums, tongue.

Now there is no such problem: water-based acrylic varnish, firstly, is completely safe; secondly, it is very durable. Compounds of a similar composition restore the enamel of the bathtubs, against which a hardened wolf will break its fangs.

Very suspicious parents can also put special silicone pads on the sides of the crib. But you will have to buy them and adjust the design to the chosen sample: construction and aquarium silicone is not suitable for homemade products, you need a special one, from which teething toys are made. It is not on sale in its raw form, only in finished products.

Cradle and classic

How the classic wooden cradle for newborns works is shown in fig. on right. Pay attention, firstly, to the packing of the sides in the pockets and the prefabricated structure of the rockers. We'll deal with the first one, and we'll use the second later. Its recommended dimensions and specification of details in a modern design, without labor-consuming artistic details, are shown in Fig. below.

Cradle

Who knows, perhaps the pediatrician, after examining your restless baby, will recommend rocking him in the cradle. A child is a child, and there is no person who would fit into the general rules in everything. For such a case, Fig. drawings of a newborn's crib - a cradle made of boards. However, the grown child cannot be kept in the cradle in any way, so the length of this crib should not be increased. Secondly, the retainer (stopper) of the bed is still needed, since the baby is restless. In this design, it is manual, so remember to stick in when leaving and control each other.

Plywood classic

Here in fig. - detailing of a classic-type plywood crib for a newborn with an elastic band. It was made at home; a manual jigsaw (there were no electric ones on wide sale at that time). The wayward person mentioned above grew up in her. Material - 2 sheets (quite a lot left) of birch plywood 6 mm thick; construction pine will also go.

First of all, the plaza was prepared (several pieces of packaging cardboard put together), the contours of the parts were sketched on it, and everything was covered with a solid plastic wrap. Then a sheet of plywood on the plaza was impregnated with a water-polymer emulsion, first on one side, and after it had completely dried on the other, and cut into blanks with a hacksaw for metal. A jigsaw cut out grooves for the crate in the middle plates of the packages and openings in the backs.

Parts from plates on PVA for wood were glued (sold and sold in construction and hardware stores). The glue was applied with a brush in a thin layer on all glued surfaces of the plates of the package and kept until soft tack (the glue film turns slightly yellow and becomes translucent in places).

There was no loan for rallying the packages, there was no time to do it. Therefore, small packages were simply wrapped in polyethylene and tightly pulled together with a flat elastic band for panties; it left a whole skein, approx. 10 m. It was necessary to tighten the packages with an elastic band by winding and pulling the turns very evenly so that the plates would not crawl over the glue. The upper and lower strips of the walls (pos. 1 and 3) nevertheless crawled, therefore, having applied and withstood the glue, they had to be knocked down with small nails. The nails were then pulled out, and the holes were covered with homemade sawdust putty on the same PVA.

It was more difficult with the backs, you can't pull them off with rubber bands. Therefore, holes were drilled for assembly guides, which were used for furniture dowels 18 mm long. The gluing of the backs was carried out on the plaza under oppression, which consisted of pancakes from dumbbells and stacks of books. According to the calculation, for 2 layers of PVA of such an area, a bend of 25-35 kg is needed, evenly distributed over the surface of the package.

Also, parts of the support belt were glued from 3 strips of plywood, but it was assembled already in the crib in place. In all details, the protruding streaks of glue after drying for 3-4 days were cut off with a safety razor blade (there were no cutting knives then either) and the edges were sanded.

While the glued packages were drying, the frame of the bed was assembled from boards cut in half a tree, glued without aging and reinforced with nails. The rectangularity of the frame on the not yet frozen glue was carefully checked by measuring the sides and diagonals, because it then served as an assembly template, and only then the nails were driven in. The flooring of the bed is perforated fiberboard, see above. It was laid on glue and nails on the side with which the legs of the crossbars were, so that they lay on the longitudinal beams, and not hang on nails and glue.

Note: the racks of the backrests were made similar to those of the walls, but shorter. Stacked in place before overlaying the top plate.

The crib was going to be on the screws (now, of course, confirmations will be better). The loads on the joints of the baby's crib are small, fastening with threaded hardware along the layer in this case is quite reliable and at the same time allows up to 4-5 disassemblies / assemblies if the plywood is impregnated with a water-polymer emulsion. The rectangularity of the box was verified by the stock, and its horizontalness by the level. Then marks were made along its bottom and the beams of the support belt were placed along them on glue and nails; the transverse ones should be spaced between the longitudinal ones, so the crib will be stronger.

The oval support boss of the side flap is less traumatic and easier to make than a pocket. Some of the scraps with a thickness of 18 mm went to the bosses, they were put on glue and nails. At the ends of the strip, U-shaped holes were chosen for them, with a drill and a chisel - there were no household cutters for wood at that time either.

Time still endured, and the bed was covered with oil varnish, not as harmful as nitro. Immediately, the elastic bands were fixed in the blind holes with also furniture dowels. Then another final drying, and the bed is ready.

Transformer

There are also many convertible cribs for newborns on sale, but at least one variety is not just a fashion statement. We are talking about a crib for growth, but this is not limited to a sliding bottom. A sufficiently formed personality may be indignant: "I will not sleep like a small person!" Therefore, a transformer crib "from scratch" should be structurally and externally similar to an adult. In this case, the fence is made removable from the cord; of course, this is only an option for reasonably calm babies. And the transformation comes down to the fact that one back is removed and the bed is increased in length with it. Drawings of a homemade "growing" bed for newborns are shown in Fig.

Drawings of a crib "from zero to growth"

And if you are very restless?

It also happens that the doctor throws up his hands: nothing can be done, you need to sleep with you, then he will outgrow it. Or, on the contrary, even if the mother is the most wonderful in the world, she is weak and constantly gets up at night to feed her. Then you will need a bed attached to the parent's bed without a front wall. The crib for restless newborns necessarily includes a bumper - a soft hygroscopic pillow along the contour with ties, see fig. on right. And from what and how to sew a crib bumper with your own hands, see the video below:

Video: how to sew a bumper (bumpers) in a child's bed

Arrangement

In no case should you protect the mattress of a crib from getting wet with oilcloth, this will lead to abrasions and diaper rash in the baby. First, you need 2 mattresses, with a margin for drying. Secondly, they must be non-rotting and dry quickly enough. Therefore, it is preferable to sew them from linen and wrap them in coarse calico, flannel or a bike. Best horsehair padding; its almost complete replacement is coconut fiber or sisal.

Now remember that the bones of a newborn are soft. Therefore, the thickness of the mattress needs to be small, up to 6-7 cm. But then sleeping, feeling a hard bed as a body, will not be so comfortable. A mattress topper 10-15 cm thick will help out from the most dense, 45-50 room, furniture foam rubber, it is wrapped in the same fabric as the mattress. The mattress topper, in addition, will absorb some of the moisture, which will speed up the drying of the mattress, but then they are also needed 2.

A newborn does not need a pillow to prevent torticollis from developing. However, sometimes, on the recommendation of a doctor, for very nimble ones you have to buy a butterfly pillow: its middle is almost flat, and the wings are voluminous. But you do not need to experiment with such pillows yourself - suitable materials are not sold separately and the manufacturing technology is not subject to "domestication".

Decorations

When considering the design of a baby's crib, you need to remember that his vision, both in acuity and color perception, is formed gradually. Therefore, the contours of the decor elements need smooth, and the colors are dim and unsaturated, preferably close to the middle of the spectrum: pale yellow, light beige, light green, pale blue. Whitewashed reds and oranges are okay, but poisonous greens, deep blues and purples don't, like anything shiny.

A very simple and useful way for a child to decorate his crib is to hang a mobile carousel over it, see fig., With soft toys. Their smooth movement will not only calm the baby, but also contribute to the development of his visual motor skills. Since the introduction of mobiles for babies, the number of children with congenital visual impairments has declined markedly.

Finally

Presumably, now it has become clear to you that an unpretentious bed for a newborn is inherently not so simple, because there is a whole world of a new person in it. Therefore, let me wish you success not only in your skill, but also in the study of the basics of child psychology. They have it from the very beginning, even if they themselves do not yet understand it.

All photos from the article

Natural wood baby cots for newborns can be found in any furniture store today. However, very often parents prefer to make this piece of furniture on their own: in this way, the costs can be reduced by almost an order of magnitude, and the design can be chosen exactly the one that will fully meet our needs. And just to create something for your child yourself is very pleasant.

Naturally, the manufacture of such a bed is a rather complicated process, which should only be taken after thorough preparation. So if you have not previously encountered furniture work, we recommend that you carefully study the technique described in the article.

Materials and tools

Blanks for main parts

Beds for newborns made of natural wood in furniture stores cost a lot, but the materials for their manufacture can be purchased at a very reasonable price. So it turns out that if we have the knack, we will be able to make premium furniture, spending about the same amount of money as we would need to buy the simplest crib made of MDF or chipboard.

For the manufacture of children's furniture, we will need:

• Softwood edged boards (spruce or pine).
• Bars with a section of 30x50 mm for the manufacture of main frames.
• Slats with a section of 20x20 mm for the manufacture of filling.
• Plywood (optimal thickness is about 5 mm).

Note! For bars and slats, it is best to use the most durable wood, for example, beech or oak.

In addition, work will be impossible without accompanying materials:

• Self-tapping screws (it is best to take phosphated products intended for woodwork).
• Joiner's glue.
• Wood putty.
• Steel corners for joining parts.
• Stain or other compound designed to impregnate wood and protect it from moisture.
• Furniture varnish or paint for interior use.

As for decoration, here you are not limited in your imagination. For this purpose, it is worth using multi-colored ribbons, and textiles (a canopy can be made from it), and complex compositions for artificial aging of wood.

In addition, we need a baby mattress. And here it is better not to save money, but to buy an orthopedic product in a specialized store. Of course, the price of such mattresses is quite high, but they really have a beneficial effect on the developing spine of the baby, therefore we take as high-quality model as the budget allows.

A set of tools for work

Despite the fact that a crib made of wood is not distinguished by the complexity of its design, we still need carpentry tools to make it. Of course, every master has most of them, but if one of the above is missing, then it should either be bought or rented.

So, we will need:

• Jigsaw or reciprocating saw for trimming boards and beams.
• Sander.
• Manual router with a set of attachments.

Note! If possible, it is better to use a stationary router, but there will be little work for it.

• Wood file.
• Drill and screwdriver.
• Measuring instruments (tape measure, level).
• Clamps for gluing blanks.
• Acids and rollers for painting, varnishing or decorating.

Crib construction technique

Making the basic elements

Solid wood cribs for newborns are usually made quite compact. The optimal dimensions of the product will be as follows:

Note! Small deviations from these dimensions are possible, but you should not make a crib that is too large or too small.

We collect the crib

If you performed all the operations described in the previous section yourself, then you will not need instructions for assembling the crib - you will already perfectly understand where each part is installed.

So below we will limit ourselves to only general recommendations:

• First, we install the frame for the mattress on the backs. To do this, we attach metal corners to the frame of the side parts, on which we lay the lower support part on top.

Advice! For more reliable fixation, it is worth additionally securing the frame with through self-tapping screws twisted through the crossbars in the backs.

• Then we install the far side. It can also be fixed with self-tapping screws, but if you want the structure to contain a minimum of slots, then you should first make nests in the backs for spikes on the side crossbars.
• It is best to make the close board hinged. To do this, we install two furniture hinges on the mattress frame, to which we attach the side frame.
• We secure the board in the closed position with two latches, which we fix outside the crib.

Decorating and decorating

When our natural wood crib is ready, it should be decorated.

We carry out the work in the following sequence:

• First, using wood putty, we eliminate all defects and gaps between the parts. We are waiting for the putty mass to dry, after which we carefully grind the leveled areas with an abrasive material with fine grain.
• Then we impregnate all wooden parts with stain or other compound designed to protect the wood from moisture and decay.

Important! Since we make children's furniture, impregnations should be used as natural as possible, not containing aggressive and toxic substances.

• After the impregnation has dried, either open the crib with varnish, or paint it with latex or acrylic paint of the selected shade.
• Also, for decoration, you can use the popular today craquelure technologies (artificial aging of paint), decoupage (gluing images printed on thin paper under a layer of varnish), etc.

So, the crib for the baby is ready, and we just have to put the previously purchased mattress into it.

Conclusion

Making a crib for newborns from solid wood according to the scheme described above will be within the power of even a beginner in carpentry. However, the final result largely depends on your skill and accuracy, so for a more detailed study of the techniques and techniques, we advise you to watch the video in this article.