How many clothing items do we need at first?

jayellekay · December 2010

Sorry, clueless first-time mom here. We just found out last week that we're having a baby girl, so I can finally buy some gender-specific clothing!

Anyway, this is what I have so far:

3 - 0-3 month gowns
1 - NB onesie type outfit for coming home
6 - 0-3 month footed sleepers
3 - 0-3 month actual "outfits" (shirt & pants)
2 - 0-3 month short-sleeve onesies
4 pairs of white socks; 2 pairs of pink ones

What else do I need? Anything? I was hesitant to buy any newborn-sized clothing for fear of her outgrowing them too fast or not being able to wear them at all. I'm afraid I don't have enough comfy sleepers, especially if she spits up or has blow outs a lot...lol...but I hate to buy so many in one size in case she's a big girl. Thoughts? Help! Thanks!!

CinemaGoddess · December 2010

You'll need more onesies. I'd suggest at least 5-10 to start. If your girl is anything like mine, she'll spit up at least twice a day all over her onesies. It'll also be easier on you to not have to do laundry all the time at the beginning.

I'd also pass on the socks. Little ones don't take kindly to socks. At least mine didn't. They kick them off about .005 seconds after we put them on.

If you don't have a lot of people buying clothes for LO, I'd also suggest scouring the clearance racks, consignment shops and craigslist for clothes. It's much cheaper at the beginning to buy clothes at a discount because they go through them so quickly. Both of our girls were out of NB sizes by 4 weeks.

tkvoisin · December 2010

I would recommend getting the little hand mitten covering things. They sell some really cute ones at target. I know you are hesitant to buy NB things bc I was too but my LO is 7 weeks old and is just now outgrowing her NB sleepers. Her other NB clothes still fit just fine. I would have at least some NB sleepers on hand.

harleyjo · December 2010

I would probably get at least a few more NB sized onesies. My LO is 6 weeks and just now fitting into some 0-3 sized stuff, although they are mostly still a little too big. He's probably around 11 pounds now. He lived in NB onesies, and we went through a couple a day.

lauranrudy · December 2010

Ditto on more onesies in the 0-3m size. They are great for going under the "real" outfits. Actually, I like the onesie with pants and socks- it works for us and then we use a little sweatshirt or other top if we are going out or if she is cold. Long sleeved onesies are also good.

We didn't have much newborn stuff and I was glad we didn't. We pretty much just jumped straight into 0-3 month and she is now wearing some 3-6 month stuff and weighs 12 lbs.

Also, sizing really depends on the brand. Gerber stuff tends to run small. DD was in 3-6 month gerber footed sleepers at about 1 week, but still wears Carters 0-3 month footed sleepers. Old Navy also seems to run a little small for us, but they have the best socks!!

My DD almost never spits up and blow-outs are rare, so we only use one outfit a day and one sleeper at night. I ended up with friends and family buying quite a bit and also getting a lot of hand-me-downs so she is well stocked without me ever really buying much!

FancyFeet10 · December 2010

I would definitely get some more NB sized clothing. Just leave the tags on and keep the receipts in case she ends up being too big for them. DD is almost 3 months and there are still some 0-3 month clothing that is way too big on her (she's a bit of peanut though...she's still under 12lbs). There's no way she could have worn most of the 0-3 month clothing sizes the first few weeks. Even the newborn sizes were big!

Don't get too hung up on what they estimate your LO's weight to be. DD was more than a 1lb less than what they thought she would be!

ea82 · December 2010

Ditto more onesies in 0-3 month size. And I had wished I had more NB sleepers - they were nice cause the sleeves have those things you can fold over the hands and then LO can't scratch herself. My girl wore the couple she did have for the first 6 weeks. Ditto idea of keeping tags and receipts in case though. I wouldn't really buy anymore sleepers or outfits in the 0-3 month size because people love to buy clothes for girls - and in my experience they keep doing so after she is born too.

kspies · December 2010

I'd have at least 2-3 newborn-sized sleepers. Carters are my favorite--nothing goes over the head, just lay her in it and snap. Yes, LO will be out of them in a month, but she'll be out of her 0-3 in no time, then her 3-6...babies just don't wear any size for long. DD is 2 mo and already in 6 mo clothing, but the newborn stuff was the only thing close to the right size for awhile.

IncogNeato · December 2010

Definitely a couple packs of onesies in 0-3 and newborn size (just keep them in the packs and keep the receipt) and maybe 6 of each size of sleepers (with the little feet.) Also just keep the receipt and don't wash them yet and that way you can exchange the newborn size if your baby doesn't need them. My baby was small and even newborn size was almost too big. 0-3 wouldn't even be safe for her as there would be too much loose fabric.For the sleepers I got a couple of fleece ones for nighttime, and then I really like the terrycloth ones for the daytime. I got all mine half price at BrUs.

My other advice- long sleeved onesies are a pain to squeeze under the sleepers, so go with short sleeves. Also, IMO, I think "outfits" are overrated for a newborn, personally. We haven't left the house much yet and LO sleeps all the time, so she wears short sleeved onesies and sleepers 99% of the time.She has worn an actual outfit maybe twice. It's annoying to take off multiple articles of clothing- so much easier to unsnap her sleeper and onesie, change her, and snap her back up.

And ditto the pp on socks- they come off SO EASILY. Another reason I love the sleepers.

We kept almost everything with the tags on and then as soon as we got home from the hospital we threw everything in the wash.

bmqcmg · December 2010

My LO was in newborn size until she was 4 or 5 weeks old.... the 0-3 were way to big on her. I would get some mittens for your LO to wear as well. My LO would always try to scratch her face when she was first born. I like having a ton of socks for my LO as well. I don't put shoes on her so she always has socks on, but she loves to take them off and sometimes we can't find them after she takes them off. I buy clothes on sale all the time and I did before my LO was born, that way if she doesn't wear them often or at all I don't feel so bad because I didn't spend a ton of money on the outfit. But, my LO has pretty much worn every piece of clothing that she has so far, even the newborn clothing.

egad76 · December 2010

tkvoisin:
I would recommend getting the little hand mitten covering things. They sell some really cute ones at target. I know you are hesitant to buy NB things bc I was too but my LO is 7 weeks old and is just now outgrowing her NB sleepers. Her other NB clothes still fit just fine. I would have at least some NB sleepers on hand.

I would recommend these too. Much easier than trying to keep them from scratching their little faces.

Chrelaine · December 2010

My DD was 9 lbs 5 oz ay birth and still wore newborn clothes for a week or two. I would recommend some sleepers in NB sizes. Also, for what it's worth, zippers on the sleepers are much easier than snaps. When you're halp asleep at night, snaps are a pain!

JenM9 · December 2010

I'd definitely get some more NB stuff. We were expecting a massive baby, but DS came out right above 6lbs. Of course, we had no NB clothes and had to immediately go out and buy some (and honestly, they were a little big on him). We've never used the mittens, instead I file his little nails so he can't scratch his face up.

msimecek · December 2010

I agree with all of the PPs, you're going to need some more newborn stuff. My doc told me M was going to be over 9 pounds, so we had three newborn onesies and literally nothing else in newborn size. She was born at 8 pounds, 5 ounces, so I had to go out when she was four days old and buy a little wardrobe! She just got into the 0-3 stuff this week!

As for the socks, the only ones that stay on M are the ones we "liberated" from the hospital, then I found the exact same ones at JCP in the Okie Dokie brand.

Also, take note of the actual size of the stuff, not the label on the tag. M has three onesies from Baby Gap that are all 0-3, and they are all different sizes.

Want a personalized experience?

How many clothing items do we need at first?

Re: How many clothing items do we need at first?

Choose Another Board

Search Boards