Newborn/0-3m clothes - what do I need?

[Madratlady]

Is it necessary to have both newborn and 0-3 month clothes or can babies go straight into 0-3?

If I do need newborn then how many of everything would I realistically need?

What about 0-3? Do I need loads of clothes? I will do washes every few days.

I need to get off eBay before I start buying cute but unnecessary stuff!

I have quite a lot of 0-3 month stuff, because I assume baby will be in those for at least the first couple months.

I've only got a few newborn bits because I have no idea how big or little this baby is going to be, from what I've heard alot of babies can go straight into 0-3!

So I have got a few newborn/1 month bits, and if I need more i can get more, if I don't need what I've got or don't need it for very long than I haven't wasted lots of money!

You need newborn unless the baby is massive. DD was 9lb15 but still in newborn for a few weeks.

A bit big is fine of course but You don't want the baby drowning in massive clothes as long sleeves can annoy them and not be so cosy.

I would recommend getting:

12 vests
12 sleepsuits

as a basic wardrobe. DD needed changing 1-3 times a day with leaky nappies, milky, sicky etc.

Also 1 or 2 snowsuits for going out in the cold weather. They could be in 0-3 but again DD was too teeny for hers for 2 months, and she was a big baby!

I would just stick with 0-3 mth sizes. Arms can be folded up a bit if too long. All babies tend to look a bit drowned in their first clothes anyway! The wee buggers grow so quickly that newborn stuff lasts a nanosecond before they've grown out of them.

If your baby ends up being particularly wee, you could always get a few newborn bits then (loads in supermarkets these days) rather than buying in advance.

Congratulations and all the bet for the new baby!!

My baby was 8lb 2 at birth and at 5 weeks is still in newborn/1 month clothes. I have a drawer full of 0-3 month clothes waiting! The labels of most of the 0-3 month clothes say 'up to 14llb', which is still a way off!

Xmasbaby- do you always put vests under the sleep suits then?

Yep, i'd say 10+ vests and sleepsuits in newborn size. You'll need a few in your hospital bag don't forget.

With a winter baby i'd always put a vest on unless it was really mild.

My dcs were both under 8lbs, so not massive, but not in newborn clothes for very long. Up to 1 month clothes are good - there's a bit of room for them to last more than a couple of weeks but not as massive as a lot of 0-3 months are. M and S and Tesco do this size. I'd say have just a couple of newborn outfits, a little more up to one month and some 0-3s. You can always buy more newborn clothes if you need that size for longer.

Yes to vests (I know I wasn't asked!) and I found Matalan were the best. The sleeveless ones. The envelope neck/ tshirt style ones always go a bit baggy and gapey around the neck. But the sleeveless ones are neater and cosier, and these ones kept their shape beautifully!

well, ds was 10lbs and very long

none of the newborn stuff fitted

He wore 0-3 months for about 5 minutes

But if you have a tiny baby, they may not wear 0-3 until they are 6 month sold

I would buy minimum amount of each, and only take one set out of the packet so you can return it if it isn't needed

Don't forget you will be given loads of stuff.
And don't forget that you need different clothes in different seasons

RDS was 10lb 6oz and I bought a lot of newborn sizes, 4 weeks later and he is still wearing them

*DS

Whereas DD was 8lb 2 and at 4 weeks no longer fits in her newborn stuff. I put her in a Sainsburys baby gro last night and she couldn't move her legs!

DD was 7 lb 6 at birth and in newborn size newbie until close to 3 months old.

DS was 6 lb 9 and totally swamped by newborn size, so we ended up getting a few tiny baby bits, although he did grow out of those very quickly.

I would recommend getting a few newborn and few 0 to 3 vests and babygrows to start with. It's not difficult to get more once baby gas arrived and you know what you need!

In the first size you don't need anything but vests and babygros, plus maybe the odd cardigan, hat, snowsuit etc depending on season.

Please don't bother buying "outfits" or clothes that are like grownup clothes (t-shirts, trousers, dresses, etc). They are a PITA to change, they are not comfortable for baby particularly before umbilical stump falls off ... and that's what other childless people buy you. You will have more than enough for the occasions you don't want them to look like they're ready for bed

I agree with not buying any outfits. They will wear them once if you're lucky. If you do like something cute, buy it in a 6 month size instead.

Just stick with 10 vests, 10 sleepsuits, a couple of cardigan, a couple of hats, some tiny socks for them to wear under their sleepsuits when outside, and maybe a snowsuit if you're expecting a winter baby.

it really depends on how big your baby is. Mine didn't fit in newborn and grew out of 0-3 before he got to wear most of what I had bought.

I agree about the outfits, have been given tons, but why would I want to put my baby in horribly stiff jeans, or t-shirts that always climb up the back and leave him half-naked? He's way more comfortable in vests and babygrows.

If you buy a few packs of newborn vests and sleep suits from tesco (or similar) and don't open them they can be swapped for 0-3.

My dd was 7lbs and in newborn size for ages. Even newborn was pretty big to start with so no way could I have got away with rolling up 0-3.

My dd1 was 5lbs 15oz and didn't wear 0-3 until at least 3 months old!

My ds was average sized, 8 pounds and fairly average length. Newborn fitted fine for a good three weeks. You get different sizes of newborn. Avoid buying the 7 pound size of clorhing unless your baby is a six pounder. Buy the up to one month size, or newborn that is labelled up to 9 or 10 pounds (primark and mother care both sell this size). As others have said, all you need for the first month is vests, sleepsuits, a couple of csrdigans and something appropriate for going outside (pramsuit). You can buy the pramsuit in 0-3 so you get more use out of it.

Wow. Had no idea about the vests- thanks! ( makes me wonder what else we're oblivious to!)

I just got 14 0-3 month vests on eBay for £ 4.50 including postage so that's them sorted! I'll have a mixture of sleep suits and outfits so he has 12 or so in total. And I'll pick up another load of vests and sleep suits in newborn size.

Ok, when I said outfits I meant as in vest/sleep suit/cardi, not full on grown up style jeans and jacket. Although I do personally prefer soft trousers/leggings in the day as I hate faffing with the poppers.

Can I ask a daft question? Everyone saying 'don't open packs' etc - a) how are you supposed to wash clothes ready, if you don't open packs, and b) how will you try them on to see which sizes do fit? Presume you can't try on one vest/sleepsuit out of a pack of 3/5/7 and return the remainder if they don't fit?

Tescos are in packs of 3/5 so buy several newborn packs but only open and wash one or two packs. Then you can return the others. Pop the others in the wash when baby arrives and you know what size they are. You always have back ups (the 0-3 stuff) whilst the other newborn stuff is washing. I know it's nice to be prepared but they'll be plenty of time to wash baby clothes in the first few days.