by Joyce Slaton posted in Products

Cribs are getting cooler all the time, with features formerly reserved for luxury brands now available at easy, sometimes even shockingly reasonable prices: brilliant colors, clear acrylic sides, innovative wood treatments, new shapes like ovals. If your taste runs towards the stylish, but your wallet isn't necessarily groaning with cash, you may want to consider one of the following lovely options.

1. Ubabub Nifty Clear 3-in-1 Crib: With clear acrylic sides, this design-marvel of a crib will give your nursery a midcentury-modern spin. It coverts to a daybed, and then a toddler bed when your child's outgrown the crib (the conversion crib is sold separately), and though, granted, it's on the pricey side, but has the good looks of cribs that run into the $2000 range and above. Note that the toddler guard rail that turns the Nifty into a toddler bed isn't clear -- but it does come in walnut and white. (Amazon, $900; Ubabub Toddler Bed Conversion Kit for Nifty, Amazon, $100) 2. Dream On Me Folding Full Size Convenience Crib: It's on wheels so you can move it anywhere in the house, and its mattress adjusts to two positions, so it can be used for a baby or a toddler. But the best feature of this crib is that it easily collapses to a flat package that's a cinch to store, making this aptly named convenience crib very easy to keep in a closet at Grandma's house, or in the basement for when young family members visit. (Amazon, $195-$330)
3. Baby...