Ideas to make a baby cot

[mudal]

Hi All,

Thank you all for taking time to read my post.

I wanted to attempt a project that is completely new to me. I have good background in electrical work but never wood working but wanted to make something that will last for generations and have character.

I saw a baby cot (Like a moses basket) but this is different. Now I have a few ideas of how to pull this off but not sure about the rounded cylinder style frame. Does anybody have any idea whats the best way to do this?

As i am not a wood worker I have no tools for this but am of course willing to invest but do not want to spend ludicrous amounts as in the UK we have no space and I do not have deep pockets either.

Would be grateful for any hints or tips?

Thanks in advance guys!

[Job and Knock]

I suppose the first thing would be to select a timber which dosen't contain any "nasties" - by that I mean toxins or irritants that a baby might come into contact with or even ingest. That pretty much rules out any tropical or sub-tropical (i.e. "coloured") hardwood as well as a number of native species such as oak and walnut (both of which contain tannin). Hardwoods will obviously be more durable than softwoods, but will be much more expensive and more difficult to obtain.

The curved end shape almost certainly will require a jigsaw or a bandsaw to cut, but TBH the curved handle/rib shape is best handled using either steam bending or lamination techniques, which will be best achieved with a suitable hardwood such as beech - either way difficult techniques for a complete novice to start with. Trying to just cut-out such pieces from a single piece of timber results in short grain areas which are notoriously weak.

[aeromech3]

Be sure you know what you are doing, ref the recent manslaughter charge over the death of baby Oscar Abbey!

[London mike 61]

With limited tools and experience, I would opt for a hand made Moses basket out of willow. You may be able to source a kit version or find plans on the web but either way it will be a great thing to make.
Have a look a this blog
https://outtolearnwillow.wordpress.com/ ... s-baskets/

Mike

[Grendel]

I've seen cots and cradles made of oak without any problem and know the kids who have slept in them too so perhaps the worry about tannins is a bit over dramatic. I've made cradles for re-enactors at least one in oak and I have one in the garage ready to convert to something else. I also made one in piranha pine although that timber was chosen more because it was readily available in wide boards and was cheaper than oak.
One piece of advice I would give though is to look at the sizes of mattresses available and build the cot around that. Special sizes are available but cost an awful lot more. I made a slight mistake in not doing that when I made the pine one just making what I thought looked right. More by luck I'd got the width right but was a little oversized on the length and ended up with a "sausage" made of tea towels filling in the gap.

[dewaltdisney]

I have to say that the short period that a baby is in this sort of cot should be taken into account, especially as you are not best tool equipped and the potential costs in making it. Another problem is the weight. The object is to be able to easily move the baby around room to room with you, to keep an eye, whilst they are sleeping during the day. We bought a nice Moses basket and stand for my granddaughter which was only in use for about six weeks.

You will find that a baby bouncer chair gets most use and these and provide a safe day sleeping and rocking, plus they are easily moved with the baby in it.

Far better to get a nice cot sorted that lasts for about two or so years until they are dry at night and can move on to a bed. You can never make a cot as cheaply to save on buying a shop bought.

It might not seem it but the passage from birth to toddler and on to school is frighteningly short.

DWD

[Grendel]

DWD makes a very good point about the time a baby is in a cradle . When I made mine my daughter wasn't even thought about , it was use something to do really. I think she slept in it three or four times which when one consders te ammount of work that went into it ( carved and moulded panels and legs) maes for some expensive naps. It's based on a medieval design that has gone on re-enactments just like the others I have made . They too didn't get used a huge aamount of times . The one that is sat in my garage has sat in someone else's garage for several years , the girl that slept in it is seven years old now which is why I'm going to turn it into a table.