Today was a busy, busy day. I took the day off of work so I could get some projects done.  Here is one of them. 

I remember playing with this crib as a child.  Originally it was pink and somewhere along in time, it was painted baby blue.  My Grandma Josephine (the one who taught me to sew) made it for my Mom when she was a little girl.  My sister and I inherited it, and it resides in my memories.

My grandmother kept it, along with many other objects of affection, and finally dumped them all at my house last winter.  Unfortunately, many dolls were thrown as they were very “well-loved”.  As in: plastic hair + many, many touchings + 20 years in storage in an unwashed state = a bit of grodiness.  What did stand the test of time, were a few doll outfits and some wood items.  This crib was a survivor.

It did not come out of my sister and I’s childhood unscathed.  Some of the long slats were broken, or nearly so.  The shorter slats were barely present, and were affixed with a few wayward jagging nails that would definitely instigate a toy recall. 

Here she is with a fresh hosing and scrubbing:

Original look

Here she is with a few hours of Stacy time:

Finished 1

Finished 2 

 Finished 3 

  •  
    • Replaced the shorter slats with a sturdy piece to hold up to many more years of child play.
    • Replaced and removed nails that were ineffectual, and certainly, waiting to gouge an inattentive child.
    • Painted:  Bottom coat in a “wheat” color, top coat in a discontinued Ralph Lauren Opalescence paint in “oyster”, and stenciled in a metallic gold paint.  The kids “helped” with the stenciling until I could stand it no longer.  Not perfect, but created with love.
    • Procured a piece of foam from local fabric mill warehouse store.  They cut big pieces to size.
    • Made a fitted sheet, little pillow, pillowcase, and quilt. 
    • Only thing I had to buy was the foam for the mattress.  I used remnants from the fabric I used to decorate the nursery, and the paint was just leftovers from the many, many rooms I have painted.  The stencil I already had from painting our bedroom.

Remember when looking at things that are well-loved, that you can always give it another chance.