This is a great crib. It’s sturdy real wood that’s stained, so no chipping laminate, and you can re-stain if it gets damaged. It was pretty easy to put together, if you follow the instructions. In particular, pay attention to the pins. They’re small in the pictures and easy to miss, but they make life so much easier, by holding the rails in place while you align them and screw them in place! I didn’t really notice a smell coming from the crib, just the smell of plastic and packaging, which went away after I threw out the packaging and opened a window for a bit. I love all the curves on this crib, and the smooth finish. It’s beautiful! I also love the 4-in-1 setup, which will hopefully last crib to college! The espresso cherry finish is elegant enough to fit an adolescent just as well as a baby, unlike the white, which looks more like nursery furniture and may be outgrown at some point.The mattress support has 3 positions, which is useful for the different ages. Now that cribs don’t have drop sides anymore, even the highest position of the mattress (which is still pretty low) is a bit hard to reach if you’re pregnant with an Irish twin and trying to bend over the rail to pick up the first baby (and you don’t have long arms). Especially because the top edge of the front side curves out a little and adds extra distance. But that’s just how it is with these cribs.The sides of the crib curve up a little, which looks nice, but this way the width of that top horizontal bar is different along the length of it, and some mobiles will not fit along the wider parts. I didn’t think to ask for the width of it beforehand and check with the mobile I was getting, so now it only fits towards the front, not really in the middle… but whatever, it’s not too bad. Something to keep in mind though.People have mentioned that the screws have no covers. That is true, probably for safety reasons, but they are set so deep that it’s really not noticeable. The screws themselves and the inside of the holes match the color of the crib, so they don’t stand out. I really don’t mind it at all.The only thing I didn’t like is how the crib was packaged. There was no padding along the large sides of the box, and it seems that something sharp and heavy fell on it during transport, and tore a big hole in it. The wood in that spot was crushed. Lucky it was on the back side facing the wall, so you can’t see. After having read about how difficult it is to return this (no spare parts, you have to return the whole thing), I’m glad the crushed part isn’t visible, otherwise it would’ve been a major pain to re-pack and return such a large item, and wait for a replacement. If your box looks crushed, open it carefully so it would be easier to re-package and return if you have to.UPDATE: My daughter is 3.5 years old now and she still sleeps in this crib. I don’t trust her loose at night, so I haven’t removed the rails, and she plays along and doesn’t try to climb out (after doing it and falling once, she decided it’s not worth the risk, ha!) The crib still fits her with lots of room to grow! She loves her bed. I’m so glad I don’t have to go through the drama of moving her to a toddler bed. She can stay in this crib until she starts grade school!When her brother was born, I got a second crib just like hers, so now they have matching cribs. He’s 20 months old now and both cribs are holding up great. No problems whatsoever. Highly recommend!P.S. I see some people are having issues finding a mattress for this crib. I got the “Safety 1st Heavenly Dreams White Crib Mattress” for both of our cribs, and it fits perfectly! No gap whatsoever – it’s really snug, you have to push it down in place, that’s how tightly it fits. Perfect fit. The first mattress is 3.5 years old now and holding up great.
