Repurposed Crib Projects: Upcycle Your Old Crib out of the Landfill

Posted on November 21, 2011
The new crib standards put into effect on June 28, 2011 by the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) have left many people wondering what to do with outdated cribs that can no longer be legally sold or even given away to be used as a baby bed.  Luckily, there are plenty of creative and crafty people out there turning old cribs destined for the landfill into new and useful things that no longer pose a safety risk.  Whether you are a seasoned carpenter with a garage full of tools or you’re just looking for a quick project, the repurposed, recycled and upcycled cribs below will provide inspiration to reinvent your old crib.
Click on the picture of a repurposed crib to go to the original website, where many creators have posted project tutorials and pictures of the building process (link will open in a new window).
Thank you to all of the talented bloggers and repurposers who gave us permission to post their pictures below!

Repurposed Crib Benches and Chairs:


Crib bench photo courtesy of Sommer at

Crib mudroom bench photo courtesy of Rose at Confessions of a Curbshopaholic
Crib bench photo courtesy of Margo at
Crib bench photo courtesy of Jen at
Crib Bench photo courtesy of Courtney at
Crib bench photo courtesy of Cassandra at Cassandra Design
Crib chair photo courtesy of Ron at
Crib chair photo courtesy of Ron at Junkblossoms
Crib reading bench photo courtesy of Cara at
Crib chair photo courtesy of Noreen at Refunction Junktion

Repurposed Crib Desks and Tables:

Crib desk courtesy of Caz at

Crib leg table photo courtesy of Gail at
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Repurposed Crib Message Boards, Easels, and Chalkboards:

Crib chalkboard easel photo courtesy of Gail at

Bed spring bulletin board photo courtesy of Donna at Funky Junk Interiors
Crib chalkboard photo courtesy of Ellen at

Crib message board photo courtesy of Melanie at The Frosted Gardener

Crib spring memo board photo courtesy of Ashley at The Handmade Home

Repurposed Crib Clothing Drying Racks:

Crib clothing drying rack photo courtesy of TT at Earth Connection

Crib clothing drying rack photo courtesy of Gail at My Repurposed Life

Repurposed Crib Wall Art and Decorative Pieces:

Crib springs woven wall art photo courtesy of Candy at Junk Sophisticate
Portable crib art display photo courtesy of Candy at Junk Sophisticate

Crib holiday card hanger photo courtesy of Cassandra at Cassandra Design

Repurposed Crib Wall Storage and Organization:

Crib jewelry organizer photo courtesy of Beckie at Infarrantly Creative
Crib springs jewelry organizer photo courtesy of Tricia at Vintage No. 35
Crib magazine rack photo courtesy of Becca at
Crib quilt display photo courtesy of Amber at One Shabby Chick

Crib kitchen organizer photo courtesy of Joan at Express Your Creativity
Small crib kitchen organizer photo courtesy of Joan at Express Your Creativity

Crib plate rack photo courtesy of Gail at

Crib bathroom organizer photo courtesy of Joan at Express Your Creativity
repurposed-crib-into-a-childrens-book-rack
Crib rail children’s book wall rack courtesy of Danielle at On The Upcycle

Repurposed Crib Projects for the Yard and Garden:

Crib garden fence photo courtesy of Rose at Confessions of a Curbshopaholic

Crib spring horizontal garden trellis photo courtesy of Rose at Confessions of a Curbshopaholic

Crib spring vertical garden trellis photo courtesy of Rose at Confessions of a Curbshopaholic
Crib garden trellis photo by Erica Browne Grivas, courtesy of My Green Lake
Crib hardware hanging plant hook photo courtesy of Rose at Confessions of a Curbshopaholic
Crib garden border fence courtesy of gravelgardener on Flickr
Crib wagon photo courtesy of Cami at Tidbits
Do you have a repurposed, recycled or upcycled crib project for us to add to this collection?  Use the contact us form or send us an email at info (at) encorebabyregistry (dot) com.

Comments of“Repurposed Crib Projects: Upcycle Your Old Crib out of the Landfill”

  1. What a great article! Thanks for including my re-purposed crib. Love all the ideas!

  2. Susan Danford says:

    What clever ideas!

  3. Deb says:

    I LOVE ALL THIS INSPIRATION…..I HAVE NEW EYES…..

  4. Tracey says:

    Amazing ideas, thank-you for sharing and compiling!

  5. Ruth says:

    Thank you for your creative and beautiful repurposing.

  6. Carol says:

    Maybe I will not put my metal crib in the recycling. I have also seen GREAT flower “beds” done with cribs in yards. Might use side rails onour elevated garden in back.

  7. Tobi Horwitz says:

    Took the crib down to the basement, under the staircase. Its new purpose is to hold ‘club sized’ packages of paper products.

  8. Stayfunny says:

    Regarding Whimsey Smittens bench, how can it be reinforced so an adult can sit on it?

  9. Rachel T says:

    Love it! I was wondering what to do with that thing!

  10. Dixie B says:

    I have my old metal crib (65+) years old. We live at the beach and I am going to repurpose it with fresh paint, leave one side open and use it in the sunroom to store beach paraphernalia: beach chairs, pull carts, noodles, floats, etc. I plan to put the unused side on top of the springs to act as a separator for the chairs. Wish me luck!!

    • Felicity says:

      Great idea! It seems like a majority of the repurposing projects are with wood cribs. Probably since most cribs now are wood and it’s easier to cut a wood crib for a project than trying to alter a metal one. Let us know how it turns out. We’d love to add a picture of it to our post (felicity@encorebabyregistry.com). Good luck on your repurposing adventure!

  11. Brenda says:

    My sister uses the crib in her garage. It is filled with balls, pool toys, surf boards etc.

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