And even after they graduate into using their baby chairs and special toys, they will need their cribs for many more days. Because of that, furniture makers continuously vie with each other to design cribs that are beautiful, handy, and innovative. The simplest form of crib that forms a part of all baby furniture is the rectangular crib with bars on all the four sides. Instead of bars on the sides, some cribs will have lattice work, and some will even have elaborate arabesque designs inlaid with enamel or metal. Wood is the material used most commonly in the making of baby cribs, though metal cribs are also available in plenty of sizes and patterns. A crib may be a rocking crib or a stationary crib.
When you buy any form of nursery furniture, you obviously have to take into consideration the space available for placing it. A rocking crib will need more space than a stationary one in order to be used properly. So it is advisable not to go in for a rocking one if the nursery is too small. But there are cribs with wheels that can be rolled into other rooms or to the outside, and you can purchase them if there is sufficient space in the rest of the house for the crib to be rocked.
There are also rocking cribs that can be hung from the ceiling. Such a crib will make an ideal piece of baby furniture if you have space constraint in the nursery, because they do not have to be placed on the floor. But these will need heavy duty ceiling hooks to be suspended from the ceiling, and provision for it may be unavailable in a rented apartment. But if the house is your own, you can get it done. You can also plan the ceiling hook in such a way that it can be used to hang a lantern or chandelier, once it is not required for a crib.
A convertible crib is a strongly recommended piece of nursery furniture because it will be a lifetime investment. When the child grows, a convertible crib can be converted into a toddler bed, and later into a bed for an adult as well. Conversion kits necessary for changing a convertible crib into a larger bed will be available along with the crib, or can be purchased later as and when required.