apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

anyone had experience painting a crib? particularly an ikea one?

is there a safe paint for it? if so what would be the best way to go about it? i know you could put the teether strip thingy on the bar just in case you have a biter- but i would still be a little leary...

I need to find a pattern for a changing pad cover, so I can make a cute one like that!! Any suggestions??

Ditto on the painting a crib question.

I just spray painted a restaurant-style highchair that turned out so fabulously (This type of chair is so low-slung in the way a kid sits in it that they can't really mouth the chair, so I didn't have concerns about my daughter "eating" the paint).

I'm hesitant, however, to take on bigger projects, especially ones that may not be real wood (e.g. IKEA Gulliver or Expedit), especially ones that I actually have to invest money in (the high chair was $5 find at a yard sale).

P.S. If you can't afford a price-y modern high chair but want a similar look I'd totally advocate painting a restaurant-style one. I love my "new" apple green high chair even more than the Stokke or any other chair and all it cost me was $5 for the chair, about $7 for the two cans of spray paint, and less than an hour of my time.

veganmomma- where'd you get your high chair? I'd love one like that!

Love the room, and especially love the crib!!

(from a woman with a bright turquoise crib :-))

Great room.

A few years ago AT featured a painted IKEA Guilliver crib. We tried to do the same. It was a TERRIBLE experience, and this from someone with a lot of stripping/painting experience.

My husband worked for WEEKS on it and we ended up having to throw it away and buy another Guilliver, which aside from the painting issue, we like alot. He was never able to get it sanded enough for paint to stick well. The paint would just drip off. I do not recommend it to anyone.

We'll buy another one for our second child due soon but we won't be painting it.

Mabvt--I got my highchair at a yard sale, but they are widely available. Had I not lucked into mine I would have bought one the next week from Target (online). I've seen them for $35-$60.PS I didn't strip or anything, just cleaned really well.

I'm currently in the process of painting a used crib...so we'll see how it turns out. I've sanded it as best as I could (what a nightmare...I don't recommend it) and I'm using American Pride 0 VOC paint to paint it...its been primed now...and this weekend I'll be doing two coats of paint--my kid's a big time biter...so I'll probably see paint chips in his teeth every time he wakes up...oh well, I chose a cheap used crib, so that I could have the $155 mattress that I wanted--we'll see how things all work out in the end.....

on the topic of restaurant-style highchairs (LOVE the idea of painting them a bright color! adorable!) - do you need some sort of harness for infants? if so, do you know where to find one? my little one is nearly 6 mo, and i'm not sure she's ready to be in a chair like that with out some kind of support...

I love the use of colors. I love the map on the wall. I love the arrangment on the shelf. I mostly love that it's a real room and not a cookie cutter design from a magazine.

kristertrixter--whether you need some sort of extra support depends upon how well your kiddo is sitting up. my daughter's been sitting in her chair unassisted since about six and half months with the standard little buckle that threads through a loop between the legs that these high chairs come with (they screw on beneath the seat; i unscrewed them for painting and washed them in the washing machine while they were loose).

i've been in restaurants where some folks have just placed their infant car seats (the kind that fasten into a base) inside the high chair (with the chair upside down maybe?), so this may be an option for using a restaurant-style chair with a baby that doesn't sit well yet, but i've never tried it and don't how sturdy it is or whether some high chairs are specifically designed with this option in mind.

p.s. you might tried the cushion insert for the keekaroo high chair which was one that i looked at before lucking into my $5 find. it comes in cute colors.

http://www.keekaroo.com/infantinsert.html

kristertrixter--you might try the infant insert for the keekaroo. i looked into this chair before i lucked into my $5 find. the insert (kinda like a bumbo that fits in a high chair) comes in cute colors.

http://www.keekaroo.com/infantinsert.html

also, i've seen folks in restaurants use an infant carseat inside the high chair...may be an option for babies that do not yet sit well unassisted, but i've never tried it and don't know how stable it would be or if some chairs are designed specifically with this option in mind.

p.s. if you are in the new orleans area, someone in mandeville just posted 3 restaurant style high chairs on craigslist for $25.