furniture planning: what pieces?

[Anonymous]

What pieces did you buy for your baby's nursery before /at his birth?

We found a deal for a good quality crib, dresser (also used as changing table) and chest of drawers, but the discount only applies to all three pieces.
Trying to decide it it's worth spending the extra money now... or just getting the basic dresser & crib and adding to the collection later on, as needed, with the potential that future pieces may not match exactly.

On a related note, what pieces beyond changing table & crib did folks feel were necessary? (Chest of drawers, desk, hutch, etc.)

Thanks in advance.

[Anonymous]

Your baby won't use a desk for awhile, so I think you're safe on that one. (And a hutch? Really? Nah.)

All you really need is a crib, a changing table/dresser, and probably a glider/rocking chair/someplace comfy to nurse. That's it. Maybe you want an additional bassinet so baby can sleep in your room for the first few months.

[Anonymous]

In retrospect, I realize that we really only needed a crib. We could have reused a dresser from one of our other rooms. I would definitely vote for getting some kind of chest that you can put a changing pad on top of and not going for a changing table-only piece of furniture. The chest can be used longer.

I wish I had not wasted my money on a glider. I didn't find that I used it that much. Preferred sitting in a comfy chair in our living room.

[Anonymous]

We had a super-small room, and I'm very minimalist anyway. I got a crib that converts to a toddler bed, and a three drawer chest that has the changing table on top. I put diapers, wipes, first aid stuff, diaper cream, etc., in the top drawer in short baskets I purchased, and used the two bottom drawers for clothes and blankets. Worked out fabulously.

A lot of people don't need/like/use changing tables, but I seriously depended on mine.

I didn't get a rocker because I didn't have room. Now that we've moved (still a small room), I have a big cushy chair where DS and I read each night before bed, where I comfort him when he's sick in the middle of the night, and where his stuffies sleep.

[Anonymous]

Here's the other view - we bought a crib to match a small dresser that we already have. We converted the top into a changing table. All is great, except that it's not near enough drawer space. We ended up buying a separate tower shelf for diapers, diaper cream, burp clothes, etc., PLUS we bought a big stand of plastic drawers for the closet for extra clothes, blankets, etc.

If I were doing it again, I would not try to recycle the dresser for the baby, and instead would have bought a 3-piece thing like you are talking about. That would have held everything. But I hate clutter and care about the furniture matching, so that is my perspective.

Also, as a PP said, we did get a small glider-type chair.

[Anonymous]

First, I do have a large room probably 10 x 10 at least.

I bought a convertible crib that converts from crib to toddler bed to full bed as well as 6 drawer dresser which we put a changing pad on top and a nightstand. I like the idea that this is an investment that will grow with my baby and that the furniture matches.

Since I like rocking chairs, I have found used gliders on craigslist which I then recovered and I have one in the baby's room and my room. I figure when it comes time for her to have a desk we will be able to find a similar shade of wood though it wont be a perfect match.

[Anonymous]

We did buy a crib and glider. The dresser was recycled from another room and my FIL sent us a changing table. I have never used the changing table. In retrospect it was a huge waste of money. I use the glider every day and find it a huge comfort in the middle of the night when baby is up and fussy. It actually relaxes me.

This time around we have the crib, twin bed, three drawer dresser and glider in the baby's room. If I had room I'd stick a desk in too that matched. I did need to add wall shelves for diapers and blankets.