7 Items You Might NOT Need for Your Newborn Baby

7 Items You Might NOT Need for Your Newborn Baby

When you’re expecting a baby, it’s fun to go shopping for all the bits you need for your new arrival and there are quite a lot of things that you need. There are also many things that you don’t need and some items that you think you need but that you end up buying too many of or not using at all. Here are some items that you might NOT need for your newborn baby that I recommend not buying many of:

1. Soothers — Some babies don’t like them so don’t by loads until you know if your baby does. Also, it can take some trial and error finding a type that your baby likes so by a few different brands (or buy one brand at a time) and see which one works before buying a full set of soothers. My daughter liked the Philips Avent soothers.
2. Muslins Cloths — I know many mums say that these are a must-have item but if you don’t have a sicky baby, then you don’t really need them. Sure, you can use the large ones for swaddling or to cover the pram if your baby is napping but then you only need one or two. My daughter was only sick a couple of times and if there was any milk spit-up, we cleaned it up with reusable bamboo wipes that are much smaller and take up much less space in the washing machine and dry really quickly too. Wait to see if your baby is prone to being sick before buying loads of muslin cloths.
3. Nappy Rash Cream — Like the items above, just wait and see if your baby is prone to rashes or not. I still have a tube of Metanium Nappy Rash Ointment that I bought when I was pregnant with my first baby over two years ago. My daughter so rarely has nappy rash so I don’t need to use it very often. Plus you always get lots of samples in the baby boxes/bags from shops and Emma’s Diary etc. They last ages! One sample tube is enough to start with.
   
4. Baby Bath Products — There are lots of lovely baby bath products out there but a newborn doesn’t need them and they’re actually not good for your newborn’s very sensitive skin. It’s better to clean them with just water in the first few months and to moisturise with natural oils like almond oil or olive oil. My daughter hated bathing when she was little (she loves it now!) and many parents stick to top and tailing their babies when they’re newborns.
5. Scratch Mittens — These were on nearly everybody’s newborn must-have lists when I was pregnant for the first time. My mother-in-law bought us a bunch of scratch mittens from Primark and even as a brand new baby, my daughter just shook them off. They were completely pointless for us. The sleepsuits with built-in scratch mittens are a much better choice. They’re not going anywhere! For my second baby, I have bought a few sleepsuits like this and will not even try loose scratch mittens. I gave our old unused ones to the charity shop ages ago.
6. Tiny Baby / Newborn Sized Clothes — Many babies are born too big for newborn sized clothes so you often don’t need many (or sometimes any) clothes in the super tiny sizes (though they do look very cute!). The 0-3 months size is safer to stock up on and you’ll get much more wear out of this size. It’s better to have clothes that are a bit too big than a bit too small. Of course it can be good to have a couple of things in the newborn size just in case your baby is very small but I wouldn’t buy loads.
7. Too Many Tiny Nappies — This is the same as the clothing point. You don’t know how big your baby will be so you might not need loads of packets of newborn size 1 nappies. You also don’t know which brand will be the best for your baby until you try them. Sometimes babies get nappy rash or leaks with certain brands and not with others and until you’ve tried you don’t know. You don’t want to have bought lots of packets of nappies that you can’t use because they’re too small, always leak or make your baby’s bottom sore. It’s tempting to stock up when they’re on offer in baby events but I wouldn’t buy too many.