Bunk beds are a terrific way to add space to your home.  What kid doesn’t spend countless nights dreaming of a set of bunk beds?  It is an age old novelty, one that has never gotten old.  Kids generations ago adored bunk beds, and they are still a huge hit today.  If you want to get a set of bunk beds for your kids, consider building your own from bunk bed plans.  This is a great way to save a lot of money if you are even a little bit handy.  You can put together a great piece of furniture and make the dreams of your children come true, all at the same time.

Many bunk bed sets have ladders that lead to the top bunk.  Some experts suggest that this type of construction can lead to more injuries.  Instead of building a set of bunk beds with a ladder, consider searching for stairway bunk bed plans so that you can build a safer set for your kids.  Plus, the stairway bunk bed plans have instructions for how to build an integrated set of drawers for increased storage space.  In a child’s bedroom, any storage space is at a premium—every nook and cranny counts!

Bunk bed plans can be the answer to your space issues in your home.  By bunking your kids, you can literally double the space in their bedroom, allowing for extra play space or room for dressers or desks.  Keeping everything organized and neat makes everyone’s life easier!  Plus, remember, every kid is dreaming of having a bunk bed, so what’s stopping you?

If you should choose to build your own bunk beds, rather than purchase a pre-fabricated set, then you will be able to save space, save money and gain plenty of pride.  Often the quality of workmanship is much higher for those people who build their own things, rather than buy something quickly thrown together in a factory.  There can be quite a bit of work involved in the construction, but if you are fairly handy with a saw, drill, screwdriver and tape measure, then you can handle this type of project yourself.

The first thing you need to do is purchase a set of bunk bed plans.  Familiarize yourself completely with the entire process before you begin.  From there, you will be able to build your own bunk beds with the step by step instructions provided.  Purchasing a set that comes complete with pictures will make it far easier to accomplish this task.  Take your time, measure carefully, and you will be able to look at that piece of furniture with pride for years to come, knowing that you were able to do it yourself!

There are many different designs of bunk beds that are available, and if you want to build your own bunk beds then you will have nearly as many options as your imagination can come up with.  Choose from ladder styles, staircase versions, forts, lofts and more.  The possibilities are nearly endless, and you can custom fit them to the space that you have and the specific needs of your family.

Did you know the way to distinguish the "Musts" from the "Shoulds" for
your baby safety equipment?

Maybe you have made your list? Here are the baby-proofing items that need
to be at the must-have tippy top.

I understand that we don't all have hundreds of dollars to throw down the
all-essential childproofing budget gap. To help the security of the
serious yet financially fainthearted, I've labeled them into the "musts",
which means that you should not care where you get them, but good
parenting requires them.

For those who have more than 1 kid (or are easily distracted), consider
the more distractions you have in your home, the more dis-tractable you
are, the more important your baby-proofing is.

Right here (in order of importance) 9 baby proofing stuff you "must" have
to keep the baby safe:

1. A Good Gate: Even if you reside in a ranch-style home or an apartment
with no stairway, there will be rooms or areas you won't want your baby
wandering into, so an excellent gate is completely a must-have
babyproofing purchase.

2.  A Blind Winder: The number of babies strangled every year due to
dangling blind as well as shade cords is actually devastating. In fact,
the Consumer Product Safety Commission lists cords among the "hidden
dangers" parent's don't think of. There are numerous inexpensive blind
winders out there, but if you have to manually re-wind the cord
immediately after every use, then you won't use it.

3. Anti-Tip Anchors: If you have a climber (or potential climber) on your
hands, furniture straps are a must. Whether it's a dresser or a shelf,
attach these weighty pieces of furniture on the wall with anti-tip straps
to stop the furniture from tipping over.

4.  Fireplace Safety: The hard stone around the fire hearth can be very
harmful with little ones close to. Its sharp edges and rough stone corners
can cut, and also seriously hurt a tripping child. You need to choose one
of the numerous good hearth bumper pads available on the market.

5.  Corner Edge Bumpers: You can protect the corners of your end-tables and
coffee tables with corner and side guards. One-dimension-fits all because
you cut the foam to fit your particular table precisely.

6.  Outlet Covers: For used outlets with cords, you can buy a cover that
will prevent your child from unplugging the cord and messing with the
electric outlet. They are best for higher-traffic areas where you will be
plugging and un-plugging items usually.

7.  Childproof Latches for Cabinets and Drawers: Drawer latches are also a must-have for childproofing your home. They will prevent your growing
infant from reaching intact drawers with sharp or tiny items stored
inside. Ideal for the kitchen, bathroom, or home office. Choose childproof
latches that won't let your little one to have even a hand inside.

8.  Railing Net: Stair as well as railing nets may also be a must if your
railing spindles are further than 2.5 to 3 inches apart.

9.  Bath tub Safety Items: Bath-time is always fascinating for a growing
baby. Keep it safe by using some of these little accessories.

a. A bathtub thermometer to gauge water temperature.

b. A bathtub safety rail to help your little one get in and out from the
tub safely.

c. A faucet cover that will protect her little head from nasty bumps.

These are the most important baby safety equipment items out there.
Consider them as an important investment you will make in the years of
growth and exploration still ahead of you.

About the Author: Bonnie Ryan is writing for the designer baby bags for mums
blog, her personal hobby blog focused on rules to help mothers and fathers
to get data to become much more eco-conscious and make their particular
eco-friendly baby diaper bags.

As soon as you’re putting together the nursery, it’s time to begin baby proofing it so it is safe for baby to live in.  This is often done before the baby is born.  Remember that the baby will be spending a great deal of time in the nursery so you need to make it the safest room in the house.  When you are decorating the nursery, think always of safety and you will do well in keeping it safe.  Everything from anchors for furniture and outlet protectors needs to be thought of in order to keep the home as safe as possible.

You Baby Will Develop Very Quickly

Don’t forget that your baby will develop very quickly and if you wait until he or she is crawling, an accident could happen before you know it.  Babies are intensely curious and can get into just about anything.  They put all things they can in their mouths so small objects must be out of the way.  If it fits through a toilet paper roll, for example, it is too small of an item to be in baby’s hands.  Babies use their mouths to explore things so you can expect everything to go in their mouth.  Choking hazards are important things to pay attention to.  The baby should not be able to climb up on anything to get to a small object so keep them out of the baby’s sight.

General Safety Tips Around the Nursery

Anchor bookshelves, drawers and other tall items to the walls so that they don’t get tipped over by baby’s arms. When babyproofing use safety outlet covers to protect any unused outlets as wet fingers in the outlet can result in an electrocution injury.  Babies also put metallic items inside outlets, which is equally dangerous.  Tape down all loose electrical cords so that baby cannot chew on them.  Longer cords are especially dangerous because baby can become tangled or strangled by the cord.  Try to keep as many cords or electrical outlets behind furniture so you won’t have a problem with baby getting a hold of them.

Electrical Appliances Safety

Burn hazards, such as heaters, lamps, fireplaces, stoves and light bulbs should be kept away from baby.  Make sure these items can’t be pulled off of a cupboard or countertop.  Don’t forget to baby proof Your heating vents as in winter they can become extremely hot so you should use plastic vents instead of the traditional metal vents.  Use furniture to keep baby away from such vents.  If there is a portable heater, keep it away from baby so he doesn’t get burned on it.

A big baby safety hazard can be blankets, clothing and stuffed animals pulled out of drawers in the nursery.  Keep latches on the drawers to keep baby out of the drawers.  Make sure baby cannot throw a flammable item onto a heat source, including light bulbs.  These can start fires very easily.  Try to use fluorescent light bulbs, which are much cooler than incandescent bulbs for the nursery.  Keep stuffed toys and blankets out of baby’s hands unless you are constantly watching them.  Keep the crib as spare as possible so that baby cannot suffocate in the crib unattended.

Over the past few years, I’ve been asked many times about stairway bunk beds, or bunk beds that have stairs instead of a ladder to get to the top bunk. Having stairs instead of a ladder has one major advantage, safety. If you are worried about your kids actually climbing a ladder and whether or not they can handle it, especially when you can’t be with them every second, and believe me it only takes one second of not paying attention for a child to get hurt, then stairs is probably for you.

Having stairs lead to the top of the bunk is not only a crucial safety feature, but it can make going to bed on the top bunk fun, as if it weren’t fun enough, I guess what I meant was more fun. Remember how much fun it was for you as a kid when you got to sleep on the top bunk? It was almost a feeling of independence as a kid, freedom from the floor and the rest of the world.

Another great feature that stairs provide is the ability to have storage underneath these stairs. I’ve seen a few sets where drawers have been built to utilize this space nicely. In fact, it’s like having a dresser on the end of the bunk beds that will store all your clothes. Think of it, two beds and a dresser all built into one unit, now that’s extreme practicality.

Now that we’ve defined the benefits of having stairs lead to the top bed on your bunk beds, let’s discuss the downside. Can you think of any? Well, there is really only one drawback and if you can work around it, you will have no problems. Since the stairs are typically built on the end of the bunk beds, you will need more room to accommodate the bunk bed set, more room lengthwise that is, and this is where most bedroom floor plans fall short. You might be able to get the bed in against the longest wall and have it fit rather nicely, but then you find the drawer option that is going to house all your kids clothes doesn’t work. That is, there isn’t enough room to even open the drawers.

So as a good rule of thumb, make sure you know where you would like your new bed to fit in the room, take some measurements, find out the entire length of the bunk bed including the stairs, and then add twenty four inches on top of that if you expect to have drawers at the end. Remember, not only does the drawer have to open all the way up, but you have to be able to get in there at the same time.

One other thing to keep in mind when planning out space in the room for your bunk bed, remember that the stairs, and therefore, the drawers, will only be able to fit on one end. That is you won’t be able to reverse the stairs and put them at the other end of the bed.

Hopefully this article has given you a few tips about buying stairway bunk beds and some decisions that need to be made. Having a set of stairs instead of a ladder will give you much needed peace of mind, especially when it comes to kids.

To view more info on a great set of stairway bunk beds click on the following;

Stairway Twin Over Twin Bunk Beds