One of my favorite things about working with furniture is to be able to take a piece that no longer serves a purpose for the family and reinvent it into something sentimental, beautiful, and useful.
My client held on to the crib she used for her children (it does not get more sentimental than that!!) but it obviously isn’t something you would set up in your living room to enjoy. By transforming it into something useful, she will be able to hold onto the sentiment while making it fit her lifestyle.
A storage bench was just the solution.
For this project, I left one end of the crib (with those gorgeous arches–SWOON) as is, and cut the other one in half to create the sides.
I built the storage box with a hinged lid for the seat. Since the new “arms” of the crib were wider than where they attached to the back, I built out some trim pieces to help the two pieces blend and give additional support.
Once all the pieces were assembled (and looking a bit like Frankenstein) it was time to make it all look cohesive. I filled in all the seams and holes and painted the entire piece charcoal gray. Dry-brushing with shades of plum, mineral, and chocolate added depth to the finish and gave it an aged, weathered look.
After some adjustments and fine-tuning, the storage bench came together. This crib can now be kept in the family and passed down with all of the sentimental value that it holds.
