Thursday, September 3, 2009

Expecting A Baby? Top Trends In Nursery Decor For 2007

By Pammy Brown

The thought of bringing home a newborn baby for the very first time, is
a thrilling an exciting experience for the whole family. Decorating the
newborn's nursery is a task that parents often look forward to with
much excitement. Parents with an already existing family will find this
task a little baby furniture cribs than that of the first time parent. This is because
they may already have existing baby furniture and nursery decor in
storage, making it easy for them to put the nursery together.
First time parents on the other hand, will be starting from scratch as
to the layout of their new baby's nursery.

Parents should begin evaluating their baby's nursery space before the
baby ever arrives. This allows for ample time should changes or
alternate selections need to be made. Before shopping for any nursery room
furniture, evaluate baby furniture cribs chosen nursery space. Is it a separate room or is
it a section of the parents bedroom? If you will be setting up in a
selected area of your master bedroom, you will want to give careful
attention to the location. Is it drafty? What is the noise level? How close
to a southern facing window will the crib be?. These things should be
considered carefully because your baby's comfort and safety are directly
affected the choices you make. If the crib is placed too close to a
window area, your baby may have difficulty staying warm due to the cold
being reflected by the baby furniture cribs glass. In the summertime, if the crib is
too close to a southern facing wall or window, he could receive too much
afternoon sun. You will want to observe your selected nursery site
several times throughout the day to determine the most appropriate place to
set up the crib and baby furniture.

Once you have positioned all the items, you are ready to begin shopping
for nursery decor. Many parents find it helpful to choose a theme
before purchasing their nursery decor. Remember, that your baby's shower is
a great place to begin your selections. If you will have a pre-planned
baby shower, signing up at a baby registry is a great way to let
friends and family help you purchase the items of your choice. As your shower
approaches, pre-select items in your planned theme that you would like
to have. After your shower, any items on your registry that you did not
receive can be purchased yourself. This will ensure that you receive no
duplicate items and you will have been able to spread the cost around
to willing friends and family just a bit.

Selecting proper furnishings for your baby's nursery is an essential
task. You will want to give careful attention to the needs of both the
baby and the primary caregiver. You will need a crib or cradle, a diaper
changing station, and a baby furniture cribs or place to store your baby's clothing
of course. When choosing a crib or cradle, keep your baby's long term
needs in mind. Select one that is sturdy and well built. Make sure that
it has no loose parts or decoration that could fall into the crib at
any time. By purchasing a crib you are guaranteed to own an invaluable
piece of furniture that can be reused with your expanding family needs.
Selecting a rocking chair will make midnight feeding time a little more
comfortable for mother and child. It will enable you to rock your baby
back to sleep in his own bedroom environment. A diaper changing
station is also an essential piece of nursery decor. Choose a station that
offers additional under storage for extra diapers and linens. This may
eliminate the need to purchase additional furniture to store such items.
Finally, a dresser or clothing dresser will be needed. Select one that
has a variety of drawer sizes and styles. As your baby grows, so will
his clothing style. A dresser with differing sizes of drawers may well
be used throughout his entire childhood.

Now that the nursery has been furnished, all that is left to do is to
decorate it. This is where parents have the most fun. Choose nursery
decor that is fun and visually stimulating to your baby. Make sure to
steer clear however, of irritating colors such as bright reds or oranges.
These colors may over stimulate your baby and make him feel irritable
and cranky. A palate of soothing pastel colors is usually recommended due
to their soft and subtle stimulatory qualities. You may choose to paint
pictures or scenes on the walls of your baby's nursery. Many
manufactures of nursery decor, offer peel and stick scenery that can be easily
removed and replaced as your baby turns into a young child. They come in
a wide variety of storybook and cartoon characters to choose from. Add
soft pillows and crib bedding for a comfortable and cozy nursery
environment. Hang a mobile safely above the crib for visual stimulation as
well.

Decorating your baby's nursery is a fun process the whole family will
enjoy. By considering your baby's various needs and incorporating your
own creative style, your baby will be sure to have the safest and most
comforting environment to grow up in.

Nursery Furniture: Designing On A Dime

By Ammy Johnson

Nursery furniture is something that every expectant family is looking forward to, until you walk into the store and notice the price tags that go along with most of the sets available. This type of furniture is ideal for those that do have a new baby on the way for several reasons. First, it provides for the protection a child needs when sleeping. In addition to that, it helps to provide the storage, function and play areas for a baby furniture cribs as well. But, it doesn’t have to cost you more than having the baby itself will. You can actually design your own nursery furniture and save quite a bit.

What is it that you are looking for? For one thing, the crib should be considered. When selecting a crib, look at quality. It should be strong and able to hold a child at least up to 40 pounds, when you can move them to a larger bed. You should also want to find a crib that has rails that are spaced closely together so that they baby furniture cribs not squeeze their heads through the slots. The rails should not slide down easily but should be easy enough for you to slide back up or down with a child in your hand. Look for safety seals on these products as a must for quality. For a crib, if possible, purchase new and keep safety as your first and main goal. The rest of the pieces are more flexible, though.

In addition to the crib, there are other elements that you’ll want in baby’s room and this is where you’ll find many ways to design your own baby furniture. For starters, you need space to store all of baby’s things. Once you start to buy all of the baby furniture cribs, diapers, blankets and burping cloths that you need, you’ll quickly see the amount of storage you need. But, don’t worry about purchasing a specific baby dresser. Instead, look for a good quality large size dresser that will grow with your baby’s needs. You can then stencil into it a design that you enjoy, paint it, or even use removable wallpaper stickers on it to make it into baby’s own.

What about the changing table? You don’t have to have a changing table but it can be a helpful tool. Instead of purchasing one, find a dresser that is stable and sturdy and attach a top railing to it carefully paying attention to the details. You’ll want to baby furniture cribs over the edges. For the changing pad, simply purchase a form piece that’s large enough; cover it in plastic and seal. Finally, fit a pillow case or sew your own piece of cloth to cover it.

Rocking chairs are a wonderful choice for nursery furniture. Find one that’s at a discount sale or even look for hand me downs. Dress it up just as you would the other furniture. Not only are you creating nursery furniture that will dress up what your baby’s room looks like, but you get function without going broke in the process.

Baby Bedding: Crib Safety

By Steve Gee

Make sure that the baby bedding and crib for your new baby are safe

There will be plenty of people queuing up to give you their old nursery baby furniture cribs and crib bedding when you are pregnant. I know that we belong to a throwaway society these days but there is something about our baby things that makes us want to hold on to them. Be grateful for these offerings because babies are an expensive business but make sure it's all safe before you use it.

Is it a cot, cradle or crib?

There is a special something about your baby’s first bed, whether it's a Moses basket or a crib (cot or cradle in the US) or a cot (US – crib). You can spend many hours lovingly re-lining and making drapes for a cradle that you've been given and you can check whether it's safe for baby at the same time.

Checking baby bedding and baby furniture cribs for safety

If your cradle was made of wicker make sure that there are no broken or loose bits of wood and that all the joints are tight. You will probably need to replace the mattress because that's the one thing that may not have survived very well. When fitting the drapes make sure that there are no loose threads or pieces of material that the baby might grab a hold of and shove into their mouth.

Buy new bedding for crib if you can

Most organisations that are concerned with the safety of baby furniture, such as the Juvenile Products Manufacturer’s Association in the USA and British Standards in the UK say that you should buy new baby furniture cribs and bedding if it's possible. The products displaying either the JPMA seal of approval or the BS ‘Kite’ mark, have been tested that they meet all the appropriate safety requirements.

Personally I see nothing wrong with hand-me-downs as long as you check them properly for safety. After all it isn't very ecologically friendly to discard perfectly good furniture and baby crib bedding. There are some checks you can do on cribs, to ensure that your baby is safe and happy. Hopefully the baby will spend a lot of time on it's own in the crib so it's worth spending some time looking it over.

Baby bedding crib safety checklist

Here are a few points to remember when checking your baby equipment for safety:

  • Make sure there is no chipped, loose or toxic lead paint.
  • To stop baby's head from getting between the bars of the crib make sure that the bars are closer than 2 and 3/8 inches apart.
  • The header and footer boards of the crib should be solid with no holes for baby to get into trouble with. Make sure that there are no posts to catch baby's clothes on.
  • Tight joints and fixings will prevent the crib from wobbling.
  • Make sure that the side rail raising and lowering mechanism of the crib can be managed with one hand and is fully secure when raised.
  • Ensure that the top of the side rail is at least 22 inches above the crib mattress.
  • The mattress should be firm and clean. I think that I would always buy a new mattress for a new baby. Make sure that it fits snugly in the crib.
  • All bedding must conform to the fire safety regulations.
  • Make sure that bumper strings are hidden and secure.
  • Bedding for cribs: Never use duvets, quilts, sheepskin or pillows for babies under 12 months old as they can overheat. Use a combination of sheets and blankets and baby furniture cribs a thermometer in the room.
  • Never put the crib next to cords, lamps, window blinds/curtains, or furniture that the baby could climb. You will be surprised at how well they can climb.

Baby Nursery Bedding and Furniture

By Adriana Copaceanu

Your family is expanding, and you need to start planning the nursery for the little one. The choices may seem daunting at first, but if you take it a step a time, it’s not that hard. If this is your first, a lot of things will be taken care of by family and friends at a baby shower, but they will probably want your input.

Furniture

The variety of baby furniture is as large as adult baby furniture cribs. You have your choice of many styles, wood stain color or painted, and new or used. While buying used furniture is frugal, be sure that the furniture still meets safety standards and check for any old recalls that may have been missed by the previous owner. Most used furniture is in very good shape, and is well worth the savings.

There are three basic types of beds for newborns, cradles, cribs and co-sleepers:

  • Cradles are usually recommended for newborns, as it’s easier to keep near the parents’ bed, if there is room. It’s also more comforting for the newborn. However, the newborn outgrows the cradle fairly quickly.
  • Cribs are an investment, but by shopping wisely, that investment will pay off in the long run. Many of the baby furniture cribs today are convertible, so they can be reconfigured into a day bed, toddler bed, and eventually a twin bed, by simply adding supports and the larger mattress.
  • Co-sleepers are becoming more popular as many families enjoy the closeness of a “family bed”, but don’t actually want the child in their bed full-time. They are an attachable mini-bed on the side of the parents’ bed. They allow the baby to be within arms reach for nighttime nursing, but still have separate sleeping areas. Many people prefer this to actually having the infant in bed with them, for safety reasons as well as a less traumatic transition later, when they feel it’s time for the “big kid” bed.

Dressers

Dressers are another important feature in a nursery. Most cribs have matching dresser sets, but it’s not necessary to have all of it match, as long as it coordinates nicely. Many dressers come with a changing table that can be placed on top, so the baby can still use the dresser as they grow.

Be sure that the dresser is a solid construction, and that it won’t tip over after the little one begins the climbing stage. Check that the knobs can not come off easily, as they can pose a choking hazard.

Bedding

The bedding is one of the most fun parts of any nursery (not counting the baby). There are endless choices for the bedding (which usually consists of sheets, bumper, sheets, and comforters). There are many varieties of the traditional pinks and blues patterns, as well as gender-neutral designs for the parents-to-be who wish to be surprised. One of the recent trends in baby furniture cribs is using bright primary colors, especially combinations of red, black and white. Studies have shown that these colors help the newborn’s eyesight focus quicker.

There are hundreds of licensed character bedding sets, with matching accessories to decorate the nursery baby furniture cribs and easily. Many of these are designs that most children will continue to love as they grow older, making it easy to save money in decorating in the future.

Safety First When Buying Baby Cribs

By Roy Thomsitt

Probably the most important item of baby furniture in the nursery is the baby's crib. All the decor and baby furniture cribs plays its part, of course, but much of that is for the convenience and visual pleasure of the parents, plus an element of teaching baby. While the crib can fulfill both those roles, it is also a place where your baby will be spending a great deal of time, and do much of her early growing up.

It is quite easy to make a baby comfortable lying down when first born, but as she grows you need to think beyond that. As she becomes mobile, safety becomes a major issue. She will also be tempted to chew the baby furniture cribs when she starts teething. For those reasons, you want to choose a design that prevents her getting out of the crib too easily, and also one that uses a non toxic paint.

It is difficult to imagine, when you first bring a newborn baby home, that before long they will be mobile, and if you have not had a baby before, then you may be taken by surprise. Even if she is not your first baby, a surprise or two may be in store.

When our baby daughter was born, I had to share her room during the day, as it was the only place I could have my computer for working. I was very lucky, as I saw an awful lot of her growing up, as she would spend much time in the crib, and when a bit older, would chat to me after each time she woke.

I will never forget one day when she was standing up in the crib, chatting to me in the usual way. I was expecting someone from the telephone company to come because of internet problems. A knock at the door sent me scurrying downstairs; our baby had never shown any inclination to climb out of the crib. As I reached the front door, I did hear a small thud upstairs, and assumed it was a toy thrust from the crib by Saffron. I led the two technicians back to the baby's room, but when I went in the room I was totally dumbfounded. Standing in front of me, on the floor, was a bemused baby, as still as a statue, staring up at me, with a very strange "what's happened to me Dad?" smile on her face.

It took a moment for the whole scene to actually register, but I picked her up, and put her back in the baby furniture cribs. She remained remarkably quiet for a long, long time, and she never did that again, so obviously did not find the "thud" part of the experience one she wanted to repeat. Incidentally, that was a well designed crib, but with an adventurous baby who is a born climber, there is not so much you can do to stop them once they reach a certain age. She was unharmed, but could so easily have hurt herself. Another thing to bear in mind as baby grows, is that toys left in the crib can become a hazard, as the baby will soon figure out that larger toys can be used as a step to make it easier to escape from the baby furniture cribs.

In choosing a crib, also be sure to buy one with easy access for you as parents. A drop side is very helpful, to make it easy to put the baby in, and get her out again. Some cribs can be very deep, so reaching down too far may not be appreciated in the middle of the night, when you just want to get baby fed and back to sleep; it is far easier to drop the side of the crib, and pick her out comfortably. With some cribs, you can also save money long term by choosing one that converts to a bed, so that is worth bearing in mind when working out your baby furniture budget.

A History and Overview of Pali Furniture

By Enrique Sprout

Pali baby furniture cribs are some of the most sought-after baby furniture on the market today. Much of what is known about the company and the quality of its products comes from word-of-mouth. This article explains some of the history behind Pali cribs and cots and also Pali baby furniture cribs.

The history of Pali furniture is like that of many family businesses. Pali got its start in 1919 when Ermenegildo Pali began manufacturing chairs in his kitchen. He would work all day to produce only a few chairs, allowing his hand-made furniture to remain at the highest quality possible. Soon his operation grew larger than a family kitchen could hold and into the shed of the Pali family home.

Business grew steadily and soon Ermenegildo became successful enough to require a building dedicated solely to the family's workmanship. Once that building became too crowded, additional areas of land were developed. Finally, in 1962 the company made the decision to shift completely towards a focus on the production of cribs and other baby furniture.

There are a number of reasons Pali baby cribs are considered to be one of the top choices among all baby furniture cribs options. First, all of Pali's cribs are made of Italian Beech wood. Beech is a genus of ten different species of deciduous trees which originate from Asia, North America and Europe. Pali furniture uses only Italian Beech wood, which is considered a commodity in the open market of fine furniture materials. Other typical applications of Beech wood are furniture, veneer plywood, flooring and even railroad ties.

One of the admirable aspects of Pali baby furniture cribs is the attention to baby safety. Pali cribs and cots use the industry standard distance of two and three-eighths inches between slats. Baby crib slats are the wooden bars that reach up the sides of a crib and prevent the child from falling out. Another helpful aspect of the construction of any Pali baby bed is the use of rounding on all edges of each Pali crib. Pali cribs are built to handle the bouncing and movement of an active baby as it develops.

Another area of Pali's expertise is the design and manufacture of baby mattresses. Using the utmost design care, Pali produces mattresses that not only offer a comfortable place to rest, but is engineered to meet the stringent quality standards in the baby furniture industry. Pali baby cots offer three levels of height for the mattress support, which makes the use of the baby cot easier on parents. As the child grows and is able to achieve a sitting position, the mattress can be lowered to ensure the safety of the child.

Pali's history of growing from a small kitchen workshop to one of the greatest producers of baby furniture world wide has been a gradual yet successful process. Its products have helped generations of parents and their baby's thrive during the first eighteen months of life and are likely to continue to do so for a long time.

The 3 Advantages of an Organic Baby Crib

By Erik Schimek

Nothing concerns parents more than their children's welfare and safety, especially when they are young and vulnerable. When their children are just babies, they want their little bundle of joy to be always safe. In effect, parents want to be in control of the things that their baby is exposed to. They do everything there is in their power to control the things that come near their baby. They choose everything from the clothing to baby furniture cribs in the nursery in a very nitpicky manner. Everything has to go through their meticulous choosing process. While it can be daunting for most parents to do this, everything is worth it given that their children's safety is at stake.

The thing with babies is that since they are only in their early stages of life, they are most vulnerable to the things in their environment. They have a relatively weaker and less resilient immune system and so they can catch any disease quite easily. What's more is that what seems harmless to us adults will be enough to cause some abnormality and sickness to infants. Babies are "humans in construction" because they are still developmentally incomplete. Therefore, parents must do everything in their power to make sure that their baby's development is unhampered and unaffected by harmful external stimuli and factors. But it is a very well known fact that parents cannot protect their babies from everything, especially from those things that cannot be seen, like chemicals and fumes.

Two of the most important things that parents get for their babies are their cribs and beddings. Sleep is most essential to a baby's health and so providing the baby with comfortable baby furniture cribs and accessories to ensure a night of uninterrupted slumber is important. But then again, the constraints of budget come around when the choosing time arrives. Many parents want the "best"cribs but unfortunately, most of them are very unreasonably expensive. No parent wants to spend so much more on the crib than their child's milk! The dilemma tugs on until many succumb to getting a cheap wooden baby furniture cribs that seems safe.

Little do parents know that furniture like a wooden crib and beddings contain many harmful chemicals that may bring harm to your baby and affect his development. A cheap wooden crib and beddings may contain hidden dangers that you may not notice and thus bring harm to your baby stealthily. These dangers can be abated by being properly informed about them and getting furniture that are guaranteed safe for your baby.

An organic baby furniture cribs is a crib that at first glance looks like an ordinary wooden crib, but the difference lies in the things not seen by the naked human eye. Organic baby furniture like an organic baby crib is made from 100% organically grown materials and is processed and manufactured in such a way that its organic nature is not altered. This just means that the wooden crib is made without adding any chemical preservatives or contaminants that may seep into the materials and stay there. An organic baby crib is made of hard wood which makes them very strong and long-lasting. Therefore, organic baby furniture needs no chemicals to preserve them. This is where all the benefits of organic furniture come from. Now, parents can actually control even the things that they cannot see that can potentially harm their baby.

This article will enumerate some of the benefits of getting organic furniture for their child.

1. Safety and health is ensured.

Non-organic furniture are manufactured with chemicals that ensure that they would be able to last longer in the warehouse or in the stores. This means that preservative chemicals like formaldehyde and several pesticides and fungicides that protect against insect and fungal damages are absorbed by the wood. Making your baby sleep on one of these inorganically manufactured cribs is like making him swim in a sea of harmful chemicals. Because an organic baby crib is made without any chemicals, you are assured that no chemical will touch your child's delicate body. These chemicals are proved to be able to seep through the skin and into the blood stream. They are also able to create fumes that can be introduced through your child's lungs. These chemicals even when stealthily introduced at low levels can and will harm your child's development. Many of these chemicals are mutagens, substances that induce genetic and somatic damages to your child that can be irreversible. Since you are always around your baby, this also puts you in potential harm as well. Purchasing organic baby furniture and beddings will ensure that this does not happen. There are no traces of chemicals that can harm you and your baby and so you can have the peace of mind that nothing can harm your baby as quietly as these chemicals can.

2. Getting organic furniture is economical!

Organic baby furniture and beddings are very much stronger as compared to ordinary wooden fixtures. Most wooden furniture are composite and synthetic and needs chemicals to hold them together. The longevity of the furniture is highly dependent on the chemicals added to them. Various preservatives and cidal chemicals assure the fact that they would last longer, from manufacturing, storage and sales. Eventually, these chemicals evaporate into the air and the wood loses its strengthening material. And so you are left to suffer the loss. Organic furniture and beddings, on the other hand, are strengthened naturally by nature without the interference of chemicals. This assures you that you organic baby crib will provide service for a longer period. You won't need to buy new cribs every time! These furniture will last a lifetime, and this translates to more savings for you and your family.

3. Organic furniture have design value.

You might be thinking that since organic furniture has health benefits, then there must be a downside to it. It is a common notion that anything with health benefits sacrifice style and aesthetics. But organic furniture challenges this notion. The organically grown wood naturally has aesthetic value shaped and designed by nature itself. Organic wood has very beautiful color and shading, and this can complement any design, genre and theme you have for your baby's nursery. It is never too difficult to pair your organic furniture with anything in the room because they are timeless. With skilful craftsmen taking care of the designs for you, the natural beauty of the wood is actually enhanced and brought out by their creativity. Intricate designs can be easily done on organic wood because they do not crumble easily under the pressures of the carver's materials, making each crib an artistic expression of skill. There are many designs to choose from, and you are sure to find the one that will suit you and your baby best.

The question now becomes where will you buy these pieces of furniture? There are many specialty shops out there that sell organic furniture. It is good to research the shops that sell organic furniture in your locality via directories, magazines and the Internet. Many of these shops would have a page in the Internet and thus it would be easier for you to inquire and contact them regarding their products.

It is also another thing to know whether or not the furniture you are sold is really organic. It is also in this department does research become very essential in your quest for authentic organic furniture. There are many websites that are dedicated to give you information regarding organic furniture. They post content, from articles, journals and fact sheets that give you information that you need regarding organic furniture. They post things ranging from general information to the most in-depth details about organic furniture. They can also feature care tips for your organic furniture. Most of these websites are updated frequently so you are assured of updated content. It is also helpful to look for information in user-updated and circulated sites like forums and discussion boards. There are dedicated forums, while some have threads talking about organic baby furniture. Most of the time, fellow Internet users post feedback, testimonials and advice regarding organic furniture. They may post shop addresses and other information on what to do and what to avoid. You can get essential information regarding organic furniture and in this way, and somehow you are put at ease in the fact that there are people like you who are looking for or are using organic furniture. Reading user-generated content provides you with some degree of protection from scams and false advertising.

As a parent, it is your responsibility to care for your little bundle of joy. Parents need to be attentive to detail, and so getting organic wooden cribs and beddings for your child is a good place to start. As little as cribs may be, they can highly affect your child's development. It is unwise to risk your child's safety because you overlooked the fact that there are hidden agents that can harm your child in the products that you make him use. Getting organic furniture for your child can help you protect and care for your child in one of the subtlest ways possible.