Winter clothes for newborn - pramsuits etc

[Wintermum01]

FTM here with baby due mid Jan. Apologies if this is a stupid question but I’m still a bit unsure on what to put on him outside.

We have a sling so I was thinking just vest, babygrow, cardy, socks and hat with that (and my/OH’s coat wrapped round him). But I’m a bit unsure about the pram. Is it OK to just put him in the same stuff but with blankets on top? Pramsuits look like a faff to get on/off if we go into a warm shop or cafe. Is a coat necessary? Slight rant - why do newborn coats always have hoods?! Surely just uncomfy to lie on all the time. But anyway.

We live in Lancashire so it gets nippy but we’re not in the Arctic tundra or anything…

Any advice much appreciated 😊

Regarding hoods i put their head in the hood so when they lie down their heads in the hood if you know what i mean?
otherwise would be a bump which isn't good.

cardy/coat and a blanket is fine.

we used pram suits and just pulled the zip down if in a warm shop/cafe etc.

My son was born in January and someone bought us one of these star blanket wraps which was great. Much easier to get on and off than a pram suit but just as warm. https://www.tuppenceandcrumble.com/star_baby_wraps

Put baby's head in the hood. Blankets good but if it's that cold make sure you have a footmuff/cosytoes on the pram. Keeps warmth in and you can unzip in a cafe etc

I had the be of these https://www.googleadservices.com/pagead/aclk?sa=L&ai=DChcSEwj4ltiI3eGCAxXElFAGHXV8BwAYABAJGgJkZw&ae=2&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI-JbYiN3hggMVxJRQBh11fAcAEAQYCCABEgLe7_D_BwE&sph=&ohost=www.google.com&cid=CAASJeRopv7C_YT9LfVyaUIM6i4BdSUwpjwycRKsM6vUTMKzFw-jCVw&sig=AOD64_1rq3-fevtZyeZnIM30poGHc_FAHg&ctype=5&q=&ved=2ahUKEwjFuNKI3eGCAxWcXEEAHSL_Cq8Qwg8oAHoECAUQSw&nis=8&dct=1&adurl= 100% recommend. It’s nice and loose but you can also put them in the car seat in it. You can also buy car seat blankets but I tended to just put a blanket over the top.

I had a december born. I bought the thin fleece zip up sleepsuits to go over bodysuits/sleepsuits. Warm enough for in and out of shops with an added hat and blanket to whip off when we go indoors.

You need a few good hats in various sizes (newborn heads grow fast) and the same thing for socks/booties especially for in the sling.

Another vote for the star wrap by Tuppence and crumble - we got ours on vinted. When she was really small though we used the pram suits then unzipped when inside somewhere. It was freezing at some points and wanted her to be nice and warm.

Thanks everyone, this is all so useful. Those star blankets are just absolutely adorable! 😍

I think I just assumed that hoods would be too hot in a pram carrycot to be honest, but I guess it depends on the weather. And I thought footmuffs were just for when the baby is sitting up, i.e. a bit older?

The first footmuff I had was one specifically for carry carseat.

We got a pramsuit for our jan 22 baby and barely used it. Blankets and those fluffy zip up hoodie type things (see link) over sleep suits and long sleeved bodysuits were loads easier. It meant we could whip the hoodie off for the car too so he didn’t get too warm.

https://babymori.com/products/teddy-bear-hooded-jacket?variant=40277138374742&utm_campaign=UK_-Performance_Max-All_Products-_NCA&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiA9ourBhAVEiwA3L5RFt6dm1fea0sTf7VLmITqAY9ozmadbvrdEmzSFWHNxxkpThfD8VYFUxoC2McQAvD_BwE

star snugs are the best! so very useful. also had a cosy club fleece suit which was also good. didnt like pram suits/snow suits as they were so hard to get on.

These suits are great but definitely not suitable for using in the car seat, even if they are advertised as such - babies can so easily overheat so a cellular blanket in the car is much safer.
Pramsuits are perfect when baby is in the carrycot and if it’s particularly cold you can put a cellular blanket over the top. We never found it too much of a faff getting dc in and out of the pramsuit if we were inside somewhere for a reasonable period of time - just lie it flat in the carrycot, baby on top then arms and legs in and zip up! Then once they’re in a pushchair, a regular coat with footmuff as pps have suggested.
One other thing to mention is if you’re putting baby in a sleep suit in the sling, it’s best to size up (and add socks underneath if it’s cold) as it can cause the leg sections to go tight and pull on their feet otherwise.

I wouldn't bother buying a pramsuit until you know how much your baby is amenable to changing.

Getting a newborn out of the house can be a fine-tuned process of hitting the right amount of sleepiness. Stopping to add a big flumpy piece of clothing is not optimal.

Also, they come in WILDLY different sizes - I've stacked up the ones we've received for our boy and there's an 8" difference between the smallest and largest of the same alleged age range.

We just have two layers on him, swaddled in a blanket and a foot muff. He comes out toasty whatever the weather.

Pramsuits will come into their own when the baby is older, by which time it will be next winter.

Agree with PP about hats - size is key. Newborn size grown out of immediately, 0-3 too big for now.

Two January babies here. For the car seat they just need normal indoor clothes plus a blanket tucked over them if it's really cold until car warms up. No pramsuits/star wraps/hats/coats in the car for safety reasons. In the sling again indoor clothes plus fleecy booties, hat and I had a great baby wearing coat insert, which zipped into any coat, definitely worth it if you'll be using a sling lots. In the pram we used a star wrap, hat, and blankets depending on how cold it was. Pramsuits are a pain as baby will fall asleep then you'll stop at shops/cafe/pub and have to wake them to take the thing off. Blankets can be removed without waking them! Once they're in a pushchair then get a footmuff.