Sensible Tips To Stock Your Baby's Wardrobe

When you’re pregnant with your first child, nothing is more exciting than stocking up on adorable baby clothes and folding them ready for your new arrival. Sure, you have plenty of other things to do, but the baby proofing and hospital bag can wait – this is the part of new motherhood that you’ve most been looking forward to! A baby’s wardrobe is enough to get any new mom excited!

Unfortunately, as every mom soon comes to know, all of that time and money on the baby wardrobe of your dreams will soon go to waste because guess what? Babies grow fast! Your mom friends weren’t kidding when they said that they had to buy new clothes every three months for at least the first year, while newborn clothes don’t tend to last much more than a month. This realisation is guaranteed to come crashing down if you’ve spent a small fortune on those short-lived, likely stained clothes. And, the only way to overcome that blow is to find a compromise on how you put your little one’s wardrobe together during those early stages.

Luckily, changing your approach to how you stock baby clothes by no means suggests that you need to compromise on cuteness levels. In fact, there are some far more sensible, cost-efficient ways to get your baby’s wardrobe just right, and we’re going to consider them here.

# 1 – Understand what you need (and what you don’t)

Misunderstanding what babies need or what they will realistically use is one of the worst, and most expensive, mistakes that many new moms make. Unfortunately, it’s one that countless brands take advantage of by manufacturing unrealistic, unnecessary newborn additions. As such, it’s down to us to understand exactly what we need for our babies, and equally what we don’t.

Most importantly, it’s worth noting that despite all of the available little outfits complete with pleats, bows, and teeny tiny trousers, most newborns only need vests and sleepers. These are comfortable, practical, and more importantly, affordable. By comparison, countless parents find that their babies just don’t love the frills and lace outfits that they buy for at least their first three months.

Further to this, and on a more serious note, stocking up on shoes, slippers, little booties, etc. is not only unnecessary but also potentially damaging. After all, before they’re walking, professionals recommend leaving children barefoot as much as possible to help with foot development and balance. So, leave all of that stuff in the store, and make sure that you’re only buying stuff you know you’ll use!

# 2 – Don’t be afraid to ask around

We live in an age where more and more moms are encouraged to ask for help but, despite all of these positive changes, many of us are still hesitant to ask our loved ones or support networks about things like secondhand baby clothes. In reality, though, this is the single most efficient way to save yourself money and, once you broach the subject, you’ll probably find that most of your mom friends have a bag or two of clothes set aside that they’re just dying to get rid of. Whether you give them a small amount of cash or accept those clothes for free, you can guarantee that you won’t feel half as bad a few months down the line when you, too, have to pass those clothes along. And, in the meantime, you might just end up with some pretty adorable (and potentially even expensive) pieces to enjoy!

Whether you have a lot of mom friends already or intend to create a pre-baby motherhood support network using the techniques listed on www.kinbox.com, the sooner you reach out like this, the easier it’ll be to piece together an extensive wardrobe that, once you’ve rummaged through those spare bags, you might even find will last you through the vast majority of your child’s first year. Even if you have to supplement with a few essentials (not many parents keep hold of vests or socks, for example), this is guaranteed to make your life, and your bank balance, far easier to manage.

# 3 – Find deals where you can

Whether you intend to go down the secondhand route or not, the chances are that you’re also going to want to stock up on at least a few new additions, be they purely practical pieces like vests, bibs, etc., or just a few cute pieces to get your maternal juices flowing. Luckily, even these newer acquisitions needn’t cost you a fortune if you know where to find the deals that countless companies offer to new moms.

Perhaps the easiest way to ensure a bargain here is to simply seek coupons and discounts on sites like netvouchercodes.co.uk, where big-name baby fashion brands like Pat Pat and even Boden offer some amazing discount opportunities. Equally, companies like Walmart and Target tend to host annual ‘baby events’ that could see you securing some amazing deals. And, of course, just like adult fashion, baby clothes are typically reduced during season changes, making this the perfect time to stock up without feeling the sting of doing so when your baby grows out of those clothes a month after birth!

# 4 – Keep the season in mind

It may seem simple to say that you should always buy with your baby’s birth season (and subsequent seasonal ages) in mind, but it’s amazing how many of us forget this crucial factor when we’re excited by the outfits currently on sale. The trouble is that your winter baby is never going to wear that adorable newborn dress, while your summer baby isn’t going to want that wonderful woollen hat that you couldn’t resist (except for just after birth, but is that really worth the expense?) These complications become even more prevalent when we’re shopping in advance, with many moms making the mistake of buying based on current seasons as much as six months ahead and regretting the money they spent down the line.

To avoid this, it’s essential to always shop with seasons in mind. Sit down before you’ve even started buying clothes and work out what age your baby will be during any season in the coming year. Then, take this list with you wherever you go, and make sure that you refer back to it before making a purchase!

# 5 – Think about longevity when it comes to your baby’s wardrobe

For all this talk of saving where you can, the absolute best way to ensure that even those short-lived baby clothes are worth your while is to guarantee their longevity, either for friends’ babies or for your own future family. Achieve this goal by remembering that, if you go heavy on the pink or blue, you may struggle to find a new home for those not entirely cheap stores of clothing. To avoid this, it’s always worth buying gender-neutral where you can, and thus ensuring that there will always be another baby (boy or girl) ready and waiting to inherit those gorgeous pieces. Obviously, this isn’t to say that you need to stick strictly to yellows, greens, and reds in every single outfit you acquire. But, it is worth sticking to more neutral, or even earthy, tones for the essentials, (vests, sleepsuits, etc.) that make up the vast majority of your baby buys to begin with.

Now that you know a few sensible ways to stock your newborn’s wardrobe, you’re in the best possible position to enjoy this perk of new motherhood without once worrying when you have to chuck yet another mucky vest in the bin!