January 2020 Moms
Options

Product Spotlight 8/6: Baby Apparel (seasonal essentials)

This week we are discussing baby apparel. 

Please feel free to use the prompts below to try to share as much relevant info as you can in a format that is easy for those reading to absorb/respond to. If you'd like to recommend/ask questions about more than one product, please copy/paste the prompts as needed.  

For S+TMs:
  • Favorite apparel and seasonal essentials:
  • Link/picture:
  • Cost (either actual dollar amount, or just $, $$, $$$, etc.):
  • What you like about it:
  • Additional thoughts:

For FTMs:
  • Apparel and seasonal essentials you're interested in:
  • Link/picture:
  • Cost (either actual dollar amount, or just $, $$, $$$, etc.):
  • Any questions about it/them for S+TMs?

Re: Product Spotlight 8/6: Baby Apparel (seasonal essentials)

  • Options
    Just a quick question....what are...SEASONS??? 
  • Options
    @FyreFlyeRush outside of Texas it does get cooler. Some people even deal with snow, which are ice crystals that fall from the sky. It’s ok, take deep breaths. I know it’s slightly shocking to hear. 
  • Loading the player...
  • Options
    IDK even know where to start. So I'll be stalking this thread STM+!!!!
    PG #1: 36w5d 12/25/19
    PG #2: EDD 8/15/23 Miscarried 9w1d 1/11/23
    PG #3: EDD 12/15/23
  • Options
    DD was an august baby so this time around is going to be a little different. 

    We did have a car seat cover which I really liked. It goes over the seat and nothing is inside so it doesn't effect the function of the car seat if in a crash. When you close the cover, there is also room in front of their face. 
    https://www.amazon.com/JJ-Cole-Weather-Resistant-Protect/dp/B00P1BDGEU/ref=asc_df_B077C2GL53/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312196223408&hvpos=1o4&hvnetw=g&hvrand=15546387930563282949&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9007386&hvtargid=pla-582637183110&th=1
  • Options
    Not really seasonal (because I usually only have to buy winter clothing to fit for about 3 months), but in regard to the newborn wardrobe, you really only need sleepers, onesies, and pants. Maybe one or two dressy outfits for each size, because you will realize how impractical a tulle dress or a full tuxedo is. Socks are good too, but definitely not shoes until they start to walk. Really, just go overboard on the sleepers. Babies can sleep all night in one, and live all day in another. My personal favorite are these from Target. The zip from the bottom, making it easy to change diapers without having to complete undress the baby.
  • Options
    FyreFlyeRushFyreFlyeRush member
    edited September 2019
    @kbrown2385, what???? Just kidding. I lived in The Netherlands the first 4 years of my life, and I lived in Dallas and Tulsa for years. Plus, sometimes... Strange things happen in SA. 


  • Options
    This is new territory for me! It’ll be my first baby dealing with actual seasons!

    Not totally apparel, but apparently Graco and Chicco both make infant seats with a sleeping bag thing over it. Are they worth it or is a blanket over the seat just as good?

    I’m excited to get this baby a cute bunting like this https://www.carters.com/carters-baby-girl-jackets-and-outerwear/V_18508910.html
  • Options
    MrsJessS said:
    This is new territory for me! It’ll be my first baby dealing with actual seasons!

    Not totally apparel, but apparently Graco and Chicco both make infant seats with a sleeping bag thing over it. Are they worth it or is a blanket over the seat just as good?

    I’m excited to get this baby a cute bunting like this https://www.carters.com/carters-baby-girl-jackets-and-outerwear/V_18508910.html
    I've never had one of these, but a blanket tucked into the car seat worked just fine for DS and DD.  Seems like a blanket would be multipurpose, cheaper, and easier to wash as well.
  • Options
    Not really seasonal (because I usually only have to buy winter clothing to fit for about 3 months), but in regard to the newborn wardrobe, you really only need sleepers, onesies, and pants. Maybe one or two dressy outfits for each size, because you will realize how impractical a tulle dress or a full tuxedo is. Socks are good too, but definitely not shoes until they start to walk. Really, just go overboard on the sleepers. Babies can sleep all night in one, and live all day in another. My personal favorite are these from Target. The zip from the bottom, making it easy to change diapers without having to complete undress the baby.
    Yes to all this from a TTM!  The cute outfits are totally impractical for newborns, but onesies, pants, and sleepers are great!  I also loved the Swaddlers from Summer Infant, but swaddling is kind of another topic.

    Since its winter, I'm stocking up on long sleeve onesies.  If you're worried about baby scratching their face, you might look for the ones that fold over their hands (the mittens look cute, but both my kids pulled them off in an instant).  Scratching really isn't that big a deal, though.  They won't actually hurt themselves and eventually learn not to do it!
  • Options
    @marebear15 I'll second all of that too. Zippered sleepers were basically what DD lived in until crawling started. Then we used onesie and added pants. DD was born in August and we quickly discovered that not all babies need layers. I'd always heard to dress them in a layer more than you had on. The opposite was true. She'd get hot so fast! Ended up dressing her in a layer less than we had. 

    For the infant carrier, we used a light blanket or my nursing cover was multi-purpose, but we only used a cover with snow or rain. Unless it was negative degrees, she would sweat with a cover in the car.
  • Options
    How many outfits does a baby need? I just dropped $300 on baby clothes and I'm not sure if it's enough but holy crap that was expensive! All things practical: onesies, sleepers, pants and socks. 1/3 NB size and the rest 3M and a couple 6M summer things because they were on clearance since summer's over but next summer my baby "should" be in the 6M size. I think I ended up with about 20 of each item. In the back of my mind I'm like "you have no idea what size your baby will be or how fast he'll grow" so I tried not to go overboard but everything was so stinking cute and next thing I know, my excited to be a new mom clicked "place order" 😬
  • Options
    OMG $300???? @peppyj9 that's a lot of money for baby clothes. For DD, we had to leave 3 outfits for daycare in case of accidents and I didn't want to do laundry every single day. So we had 10-15 outfits per size. But we only bought a few of the items ourselves, because I got a lot of outfits at my shower and the grandma's always bought clothes. She's 2 and we still don't buy much.
  • Options
    @persnickity it seemed like a lot to spend, but I got everything half off or more on Carter's website so it felt like I was getting a good deal. 🤷‍♀️ I don't know if Carter's is expensive for baby clothes? But I don't think I'll be getting many hand me downs, if any. My SIL said she had some clothes to send us (her son is now 5) but I don't know how much or what. I guess I could've waited to see, but I wanted to put things in the dresser that's been sitting empty for 3 weeks lol. Also, I'm not having a shower. Most of my friends and all of my family live out of state so my friend here is throwing me a little brunch for like, the 5 friends that I have here, but that's it. As much as I love gifts, I won't be getting any. My mom is helping with the car seat/ stroller, but that's it, so, we're kind of on our own here in terms of providing for our baby. I also don't want to do laundry every day so I wanted to make sure I have enough. It seems like I will! Besides, it's my first baby, it's normal to go a little crazy, right? Lol
  • Options
    @peppyj9 absolutely normal to go crazy, when I was pregnant with dd I kept picking up things here & there before she was born & a few weeks before she was born took it all out to wash it & was shocked at how much I had bought! Below is a pic of her wardrobe when she was only 7 weeks. We got a lot of gifts, most people here buy clothes as a gift for a new baby. But I still spend a lot on dd, last winter we even had matching sophia webster boots (hers were half price in the sale).

    Luckily dd was a jan baby too so we should get use out of all her clothes again but I have no boy clothes yet.



  • Options
    @peppyj9 I think buying lots of clothes for a baby is just something that happens. Don’t feel bad. I know I have enough clothes for baby boy but I can’t help buying a few things, they are just too cute! I do recommend checking out thrift stores and consignment sales. You can save a lot of money there and the majority of things are barely worn. We have a store in our area that might be in yours, it’s called Once Upon A Chold. Might be worth checking out! 
  • Options
    @leprechaunlady your DD's wardrobe is the envy of girls for miles! 😍😍😅 It does make me feel better about how much I'm buying for baby before he's even here, and knowing full well he'll probably only get a few uses out of each outfit. But he's worth it 💁‍♀️ 

    @kbrown2385 thanks! For a moment I started to 2nd guess myself. I got about 70 pieces in a few different sizes, so although the total was high, cost breakdown by piece seemed reasonable to me. 🤷‍♀️ I'll have to look to see what thrift stores or consignment stores are near me. So far, I only know of the goodwill in my area and from what I saw the one time I went to browse, I would spend about the same at Carter's brand new (about $4 a piece) I was only briefly browsing though, so maybe I didn't look well enough. We unfortunately don't have "Once Upon A Child" or an "Other Mothers" in my area, which I heard were good, but both are hours away from me. 😕  at this point, baby's set for the first few months so I have some time to shop around more. 
  • Options
    Another good one to look into is Just Between Friends if there is one in your area. It’s a giant consignment sale and I’ve gotten some great deals at them. 

    DS had a ton of clothes in every size but 99% were gifted. Baby Girl already has a ridiculous amount of clothes as well and I’ve only bought a pack of leggings 😂

    Not crazy to get the itch to shop though! I buy ahead when things go on clearance (so this fall I’ll buy things for next summer etc)

    If you are having a baby shower I would wait until after that to take tags off the things you bought just in case you end up with 50 0-3 month sleepers or something. I also buy very few things in newborn size and mostly in 0-3 month because DS was large and I am expecting this baby to be big too. So the newborn stuff fit for maybe a week and 0-3 month had a much longer life 
  • Options
    @MrsJessS I just looked up "Just Between Friends" and they're having an event in my area next month! I've never heard of it, but apparently next week I can buy a ticket to a presale for "expecting moms" happening in October. Looks pretty cool. I'm excited! Thanks for the suggestion 😊
  • Options
    @peppyj9 yay!! I’ve loved them and I’m super bummed I’m moving before the fall one here...and there isn’t one near my moms house 😭
  • Options
    @peppyj9 I didn't mean to make you feel bad! I'm sorry if I did. It can be really hard to resist buying them a bunch of cute clothes. 😊 As for Carter's vs other brands, I found for us, that Carter's fit much better, because DD is skinny and they seem to run narrow. Other brands fit more wide in the torso. I also started from scratch without any hand me downs. We tend to live a pretty minimalist lifestyle with respect to clothes.

    @leprechaunlady that would be equivalent to the entire first year, if not year and a half of clothes for us. Haha

    The biggest challenge at first was just how quickly she grew out of sizes!
  • Options
    FyreFlyeRushFyreFlyeRush member
    edited September 2019
    @peppyj9, this is your first, right? We all go overboard the first time. In the end, they don't end up wearing half of it before they outgrow it.  With next babies, it's just a couple of cute outfits, and onesies, sleepers, and receiving blankets, lol. 

    With DS1, tho, I went gaga over all the Carters boy stuff. I absolutely loved the designs on their butts! Pumpkins, turkeys, a Teddy bear, I even had one with a crab that said Mr. Crabby Pants! 

    Edit: Sigh. I just went and looked at the sale. I have a feeling I'm going to blow my monthly misc budget on Carters. A dinosaur butt? Monster butt? HALLOWEEN BUTT????? 
  • Options
    kbrown2385kbrown2385 member
    edited September 2019
    @FyreFlyeRush the designs on their butts are my favorite! I have monster pj’s from ds that has monster feet and a design on the butt and they are the cutest! 

    Right now I’m going crazy over receiving blankets with coordinating hats for the hospital. I want to buy them all, they are so cute. 

    Edit wasnt finished
  • Options
    peppyj9peppyj9 member
    edited September 2019
    @persnickity it's ok. You seemed shocked and I just thought briefly, "oh, maybe I did buy too much or spend too much" but it's mostly because it's all new to me so I 2nd guess myself on if I'm doing things "right" though in the grand scheme of things, there really isn't a "right" way to do things anyway!

    @FyreFlyeRush yes, the butt designs!! 😍 I got teddy bear butt, dinosaur butt, koala butt and monster butt. I'm dying over thought of crab butt that says Mr. Crabby Pants! 😂

    @kbrown2385 ya know, I haven't gotten any receiving blankets. I got a few blankets that match his nursery set. Is a receiving blanket different? You mentioned a hat, so is the receiving blanket like a swaddle?

    Edit: typo
  • Options
    @peppyj9, they're just square light weight flannel blankets that can really be used for anything: swaddling, burp cloth, nursing cover, sun cover, wiping spit up, etc. You can never have too many. Usually they come in packs of 4 or so, and you cand find them anywhere that sells baby stuff.


  • Options
    @peppyj9 you can use receiving blankets for anything and everything. I wanted to get a nice set for each of them to be swaddled at the hospital. I personally love and used a ton of the Aden and Anais muslin blankets with ds. They are a good size and I used them for swaddles, burp cloths, something to lay them on on the floor, cover the car seat while we are out and about, a thin blanket for them to snuggle as the get older. Literally everything. They wash well and are nice and soft too. 
  • Options
    @FyreFlyeRush @kbrown2385 well clearly I need some then! Thanks 😊 it's so nice to have STMs to ask questions about the little things like that!
  • Options
    @peppyj9 I'm not buying much for baby boy at all. He's my first as well, but I'm still not sure what exactly I'll need, and I'm trying to save money (confession: I'm always trying to save money for him because I want to be prepared for everything from daycare costs to college expenses, lol. That's just how my brain works). Plus I honestly never liked shopping for myself, and so far I don't love shopping for baby stuff either (even though it's so darn cute!). From my limited baby shower experiences, clothes will be a top gift that's given. Also my MIL is a bit of a shopaholic, so I'm already fearful of drowning in stuff from her. We'll have to see how it all comes together. I am envious of how prepared you are already! Girl, you are all over this! From nursery to wardrobe, your son will have everything in place the moment he arrives ❤
  • Options
    Loving H&M neutrals along with hand me downs from our other kids (I’m pretty minimalistic - I only save things that are in pristine condition so we were only starting with a handful of used onesies/sleepers). Carter’s had their 5 pack onesies on sale for $12 so I grabbed NB & 3M long sleeve white onesies. I don’t like cardigan or T-shirt sets for young babies - they just slide up/around. Also “big people clothing” (poofy dresses, collared shirts, actual pants) look so weird on tiny babies..I’m not a fan at all. 
  • Options
    FyreFlyeRushFyreFlyeRush member
    edited September 2019
    @peppyj9 another tip... I'd hold off on buying saddles until you know whether or not your baby likes them. My son DETESTED them. He wiggled so much, he could Houdini out of a hospital swaddle, irritating the nurses. He hated being confined and not able to move. Once we got home, we'd wrap him in a Summer Sleep Sack Swaddle. Big. Freaking. Mistake. He screamed and screamed until you let him out.


    I also didn't buy any NB clothes. I figured if he was tiny, I could buy them. Otherwise, he'd grow into 0-3m pretty fast. Learned that the hard way with DD who was much smaller than DS1
  • Options
    @noranorabobora thanks! It's partly because, like your MIL, I too am a shopaholic 😂 I tried that Marie Kondo thing, but I am just not a minimalist, though I try to be as much as I can. 😬 I haven't really shopped at all since finding out I'm pregnant (which is kind of a big deal for me) and instead saved all my shopping budget for baby and now that I'm officially 20wks I'm feeling more comfortable loading up on baby stuff that I've been saving for. I started with the dresser because it was on sale and then picked out the nursery set and just went clothes crazy, also all on sale. I've already got the crib picked out but am waiting for a coupon or sale. I love to shop but I RARELY buy anything at full retail. There is almost always a sale or coupon to be used. I understand about saving though and preparing for the future. MH is big on that, probably because his dad is a banker. He helps keep me in check sometimes lol. I'm grateful that I don't have to worry about daycare costs as MH and I decided before we started TTC that I would be a SAHM. It just makes sense for us. And daycare is outrageously expensive, kind of makes me want to open my own daycare lol. We've been easing into the transition by doing everything within MH's income, which leaves my current income free to get everything ready and stash some away before I quit working. Of course, that also means a lot less shopping for me once I'm no longer working but I figure I'll be so caught up with baby I won't even care. For now, I'm loving shopping for baby! 🥰 
  • Options
    @FyreFlyeRush I could never figure out how to swaddle correctly, so we bought the Velcro swaddler ones. DD never wanted her arms swaddled, but was happy to have the rest of her swaddled. She'd break out of the blankets.

    I actually didn't find the receiving blankets that helpful. I felt like they were too small. I preferred some larger muslin blankets for those things and these really thick burp clothes for spit up. They were so amazingly absorbent.
  • Options
    I don't remember really buying more than an outfit or two for DD until she was about a year old. We got gifted so many clothes from friends and family, that we were swimming in clothes. Now I normally drop about $50 for one size at Once Upon a Child and we are good for that season/size. I've learned to buy shoes new though. Once those kids start walking, the shoes get so much use, I usually throw it out by the time she's ready for the next size. 

    I got a ton of receiving blankets from my shower (like 20) and I was so confused as to what I was supposed to use them for. They weren't big enough to swaddle DD in, and I had muslin swaddles for that purpose. But once I started cleaning up spit up, I found that the receiving blankets were so much better than my burp cloths. I had one in my purse, one on the couch, one in each car, one in the diaper bag. They were just so handy!
  • Options
    i didnt swaddle dd but used muslin cloths for just about everything else. i found the more expensive ones didnt wash as well or stay as soft as the really cheap ones from Primark (which is a super cheap shop from here) & i'll definitely be stocking up from there this time.
    For sleeping we used a sleep sack rather than swaddling & found that the ones from the gro company washed best and stayed newer for longer.
  • Options
    We got A TON of clothes for DD as gifts. She probably only wore some outfits once and some not at all. I mostly  had her in onesies/pants or sleepers. I also thought that she would grow out of newborn size fast, but she wore it for the first month. 

    This time I already bought two zip up sleepers (so much easier than snaps) and two long sleeve onesies and a pair of pants. I need to get some more but will wait until we see if we get anything from family. I will probably splurge on a lou lou and co gown and maybe a copper pearl swaddle/hat.   DH is upset that we wont be able to reusue most of DDs clothes since we are having a boy this time, but I will probably reuse all her muslin blankets and swaddles. 
    The "real" clothes are so cute but pretty impractical for little babies. 
  • Options
    @marebear15 my mom gave me all the receiving blankets from when I was a baby and I don’t think I used a single one for DS...we just stuck with the Muslim swaddles as well. This baby might get more use since it’ll be a little colder and I can use them when we go out I guess. Never thought to use them for spit up though!
Sign In or Register to comment.
Choose Another Board
Search Boards
"
"