An Improvised Bed for Baby

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Tacoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Oct 13, 1910

An Improvised Bed for Baby

WHILE a guest in a large sanitarium, the writer was much interested in the construction of a little bed for a wee stranger who arrived when there was no crib at hand for his reception.

Since then I have more than once found it convenient to provide such a bed, and have been glad that I took the time to look into the wherewith and the manner of making.

The wherewith is always at hand,—two chairs with seats of equal height, (dining-room chairs do nicely), a full-sized sheet, and some safety-pins.

Place the chairs together facing each other. Tying the front legs together in pairs will prevent the chairs separating, and make the bed easy to move. Next take the unfolded sheet, and wrap it around the outside of the chairs, having one edge escape the floor evenly all around. Pin the overlapping edges snugly, using about four safety-pins from bottom of lapping to the height of chair backs.

Now let the top of the sheet drop down inside the chair backs; arrange the inside smoothly, and pin the edges together securely where they rest on the chair seats. Failure to do this in the construction of the first-named bed resulted in the little man who occupied it rolling out on the hardwood floor when he was but four days old, much to the humiliation of the nurse. Fortunately no harm came of it to either child or mother; but—well—pin the sheet!

Now place one large pillow lengthwise, or, better, two pillows crosswise; cover with an oilcloth or rubber protector, a mattress pad, and a little sheet, and you have a safe, snug, and wholesome little bed, constructed in ten minutes, or less, from materials at hand in any home.—American Motherhood.