DIY: No-Sew Crib Teething Rail Cover

Hey there!

If you're already a mom, there's one thing you know for sure.... babies are EXPENSIVE! I learned that fairly quickly with Easton. There are so many new fancy things that people "claim" you absolutely "need" for your little one. While some things I've found that I did use and some things that were helpful and handy, there was plenty of other things that I would quickly inform a mom not to buy.

I told myself when I was registering with Easton, "why in the world would I ever need a crib rail cover?? Uhmmmm...... NOPE!" Well, little did I know, I was in for a big surprise. It sounds ridiculous or you might say "Oh my baby won't chew on their crib. My baby won't need one of those. I will make sure he/she doesn't chew on this crib." Yeah, right. Me too. Or at least I thought. Until things got a little too quiet and next thing I knew there were tiny little chew marks all over the front rail of Easton's crib. I was so sad about this because 1) I obviously don't want my son chewing on wood that has chemical stain on it and 2) his crib converts to a full size bed so we have every intent for him to use this bed for a very long time and we want it to last. Right when it happened, I was kicking myself for not buying a crib rail cover and I immediately ordered one online. Two days and $60 later, we have covered crib rails and a happy, teething baby. 

This time around, I knew I needed a set of crib rail covers no matter what. I wasn't taking any chances. But I also knew that there was PLENTY of other things I wanted to spend $60 on and it did not include covers. So with lots of Pinterest and Google searching, I got up enough courage to DIY some myself. So off to some stores I went. 

I will say this, I am NOT a sewer. Whenever I need anything sewn, I go right to my Grandma. Which, at the beginning of this project, I had every intention of buying my materials and making my way to her house. Lucky for her and not-so-lucky for me, my Grandma is out of state on a vacation this week. I'm inpatient and thought to myself "I can do this". I decided to take bits and pieces of numerous DIY projects and put them all together to make these awesome covers. Here ya go! 

DIY: No-Sew Crib Teething Rail Cover

What you need:

- Fabric of your choice (I used soft flannel. Make sure that you measure the length of your crib rails and make sure you have enough to wrap around your rails with extra, just in case.)

- Ribbon (I used three spools)

- 3 pool noodles (be sure to get the ones that have holes in the middle)

- Double sided fabric tape

- Hot glue gun with glue sticks

- Scissors

How to do it:

Measure your crib rail (I did the front rail and both sides). Then cut your pool noodle to the same length as your crib rail. I used one pool noodle for each section of rail. Then, cut a line straight down the pool noodle all the way to the middle, like this:

Now you take your fabric and lay it out so that there's enough to "wrap" around your noodle. Then cut strips of the double sided tape and place all throughout the inside of the pool noodle, all on the same side. 

Take off the paper on the double sided tape and place your fabric on it. Continue to do this down the entire inside of the tube, making sure that if you do have printed fabric, that you keep your prints aligned together. 

Next, pull your fabric tight around the noodle and hot glue gun it into the other side of the noodle, on the inside. 

* * * I will say this, I found that it was much easier and quicker to use the hot glue gun, so I ended up using that for the rest of them instead of the double sided tape. * * *

Glue the rest of the fabric all the way down, until the whole noodle is covered. I folded in each end and then glued it down. 

Repeat those steps for the other rails.

Next, measure your ribbon. I used seven strips of ribbon for the front rail and four strips each for both of the side rails.

Place your covers on your crib. This will make the next couple of steps a whole lot easier. 

Take a piece of the double sided tape and place it on the center of the ribbon. 

Now, take off that paper on the double sided tape and place the ribbon, sticky side down, around your noodle. 

Repeat until you have all of your ribbons on there.

Now you can tie your ribbons and BAM you have yourself some covers! What makes it great is that you can use any fabric you want to match your nursery. Your crib rails are protected and baby isn't going to swallow any small pieces of paint or wood that has any chemicals on it. It's a win-win for everyone. Plus, this entire project is super CHEAP to make and budget friendly. Each pool noodle cost $1.80, each spool of ribbon I got on sale for $1 each, my fabric was on sale plus I used a coupon so I got all of it for only $3.98, I bought a new hot glue gun with sticks for $4.75, the roll of double sided fabric tape for $4.98 and I already had the scissors at home. All of that for under $23 and I still have fabric, ribbon, the hot glue gun and glue sticks, and some double sided tape all left over for another project. Such a great deal!!! Let me know if you decide to do this, I want to know how it turns out for you! Enjoy!!

Xoxo,

Christine