New Working Mom's Guide to Baby Clothes

Many factors come into play when deciding on baby apparel, aside from what makes your baby look good and unique. Parents will want a little bit of everything, from practical to lavish. On some levels, a baby wardrobe can be similar in range to your own, just at a smaller scale. New parents also need to think about further down the road. Are you going to have more babies? “Hand me down” clothing is a wonderful thing. You might as well get some good, well-made clothes for your first baby that will last through a progression of infants.

The most frustrating part about picking baby apparel is that the transition from infant to toddler happens so fast, it’s as if it occurs overnight. You need to think about the coming months and prepare that closet for the first year. Most infant clothes are sized by months. In their first year of life, babies will go through everything in three sizes: 0 to 3 months, 3 to 6 months, and 6 to 12 months.

The three “S” factors to consider when choosing baby clothes are Sensible, Sleepwear, and Showing off.

You will want your baby to have some sensible clothes in his wardrobe, things that you will be able to tolerate getting a few mashed carrots on. Some simple onesies and a few funny baby T-shirts fit this category. Black onesies are a good choice for their uniqueness, gender neutrality, and stain stealthiness. Black rock-and-roll onesies fit nicely into the showing off category as well. (If you want your baby to be a rock star, that is.)

Sleepwear is important because infants spend a lot of time sleeping (if you’re lucky). Putting her in some comfortable baby pajamas could be the key to success when dealing with a fussy baby who won’t sleep. Also consider diaper changes; it’s a lot easier to just unsnap a onesie or pajama bottom to get at that stinky diaper than it is to fully disrobe the baby.

Showing off your beautiful baby is one of the best aspects of being a new parent. When you go out into the world, you’ll definitely want some unique clothes for baby. Your baby has his own personality, and it’s your job as a parent to let that personality shine! If you have some of those unique baby gifts from the baby shower, this is the time to use them. Dressing your infant to the nines can be the most difficult facet of baby fashion, simply because the baby will always soon need a fresh diaper, whether you’re at the mall or a cocktail party, the child will poop at the least convenient time and place. Choose apparel that makes a diaper change easy.