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on June 28, 2011 by the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) have left many people wondering what to do with outdated cribs that can no longer be legally sold or even given away to be used as a baby bed.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
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Crib mudroom bench photo courtesy of Rose at Confessions of a Curbshopaholic
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 Crib bench photo courtesy of Margo at
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 Crib bench photo courtesy of Jen at
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 Crib Bench photo courtesy of Courtney at
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 Crib bench photo courtesy of Cassandra at Cassandra Design |
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 Crib chair photo courtesy of Ron at
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 Crib chair photo courtesy of Ron at Junkblossoms
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 Crib reading bench photo courtesy of Cara at
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 Crib chair photo courtesy of Noreen at Refunction Junktion
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Repurposed Crib Desks and Tables:
Crib desk courtesy of Caz at
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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
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Bed spring bulletin board photo courtesy of Donna at Funky Junk Interiors
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 Crib chalkboard photo courtesy of Ellen at
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Crib message board photo courtesy of Melanie at The Frosted Gardener
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Crib spring memo board photo courtesy of Ashley at The Handmade Home
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Repurposed Crib Clothing Drying Racks:
Crib clothing drying rack photo courtesy of TT at Earth Connection
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Crib clothing drying rack photo courtesy of Gail at My Repurposed Life
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Repurposed Crib Wall Art and Decorative Pieces:
 Crib springs woven wall art photo courtesy of Candy at Junk Sophisticate
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 Portable crib art display photo courtesy of Candy at Junk Sophisticate
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Crib holiday card hanger photo courtesy of Cassandra at Cassandra Design
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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
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 Crib magazine rack photo courtesy of Becca at
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 Crib quilt display photo courtesy of Amber at One Shabby Chick
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Crib kitchen organizer photo courtesy of Joan at Express Your Creativity
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 Small crib kitchen organizer photo courtesy of Joan at Express Your Creativity
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Crib plate rack photo courtesy of Gail at
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Crib bathroom organizer photo courtesy of Joan at Express Your Creativity
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 Crib rail children’s book wall rack courtesy of Danielle at On The Upcycle
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Repurposed Crib Projects for the Yard and Garden:
Crib garden fence photo courtesy of Rose at Confessions of a Curbshopaholic
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Crib spring horizontal garden trellis photo courtesy of Rose at Confessions of a Curbshopaholic
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Crib spring vertical garden trellis photo courtesy of Rose at Confessions of a Curbshopaholic
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 Crib garden trellis photo by Erica Browne Grivas, courtesy of My Green Lake
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 Crib hardware hanging plant hook photo courtesy of Rose at Confessions of a Curbshopaholic
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 Crib garden border fence courtesy of gravelgardener on Flickr
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 Crib wagon photo courtesy of Cami at Tidbits
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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.
What a great article! Thanks for including my re-purposed crib. Love all the ideas!
What clever ideas!
I LOVE ALL THIS INSPIRATION…..I HAVE NEW EYES…..
Amazing ideas, thank-you for sharing and compiling!
Thank you for your creative and beautiful repurposing.
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.
I should look for a “flower bed” picture to add to our article. If you end up repurposing your metal crib, we’d love to add it to our collection above (pics can be sent to info@encorebabyregistry.com)!
Took the crib down to the basement, under the staircase. Its new purpose is to hold ‘club sized’ packages of paper products.
Great idea! No tools, paint or duct tape required! Feel free to send us a pic at info@encorebabyregistry.com and we’ll add it to the collection.
Regarding Whimsey Smittens bench, how can it be reinforced so an adult can sit on it?
That’s a great question! Unfortunately, I don’t have an answer, but you could try posting your question on Whimsy Smitten’s blog post (http://www.whimsysmitten.com/2010/06/crib-turned-reading-bench-makeover.html). She posted it a couple years ago. I wonder if she’s upgraded it to an adult bench since then. You could also look at some of the other bench projects to see if they shed any light on the question. Sorry I don’t have a better answer for you.
Love it! I was wondering what to do with that thing!
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!!
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!
My sister uses the crib in her garage. It is filled with balls, pool toys, surf boards etc.
Using a crib for storage in the garage is a great idea! Thanks for sharing.