putting together budget for baby bits - how much have others spent?

[TiredButTryin5x]

morning all x

been trying to work out a budget for baby stuff n i’m getting a bit stressed tbh. haven’t really got anything saved n feel like every list i look at says i need about a million things 😩

i’ve got 4 kids already but gave away most stuff after ds4 cos i thought i was done (lol). so now starting again and trying to keep it simple but also don’t wanna forget something important. trying to plan ahead a bit cos i know money’s gonna be tighter once baby comes.

has anyone done this on a really small budget before?? like what did you spend overall?? i’ve been looking at:

• crib or moses basket
• clothes (maybe second hand?)
• nappies/wipes
• changing bag
• car seat (this bit worries me most)
• bits for me too like pads and breast pads n stuff

i’ll be on mat allowance eventually but not yet, n already stressing about school uniforms too 🙃

any advice welcome – especially on what’s really needed vs what can wait. x

Don't forget a pram! Or sling, or both ideally!

I can't help with the budget - we bought most things new except for car seat from friends.

Changing bags are a bit of a farce, just use whatever rucksack you have.

This is my second and I refuse to go silly and buy stuff we just don't need this time round!

Im doing mostly second hand like moses basket (new mattress) ds cot out the loft ect pram is no more than 200. Learnt my lesson with that one hardly gets used if you drive. 100% prep machine and still crnt decide on bottles haha.

Won't be going mad on cloths either found you end up with stuff off other people anyway and newborns mostly live in babygrows (mine will be anyway) nothing wrong with second hand stuff if its in great nick so take advantage of that.

Im going to start throwing mutli boxes of wipes, nappies and wash stuff in the weekly shop and just stock up on them.

As for me ill just pick bits up on sale if I spot it like nipple pads ect.

Dont stress over money you don't need to spend fortunes on things that don't last long anyway these babies just like to grow and thrive so so quickly xxx

We spent £100 on a secondhand pram - they don’t have good resale value. We then bought a new car seat snd base and a pram bassinet mattress - so £300 in all

we got a Moses second hand with a stand and bought a new mattress £35

we got a second hand Ikea high chair (still think these are the best) for £5

a baby carrier for £20 and a back pack carrier for £25

we spent £35 on a new bouncy chair and a cot and mattress for £140 - we could have got these second hand to be honest

we have treated ourselves with some gift money to a travel cot and towards a decent folding buggy as the latter will be used for 3 years and the ones reselling retain value but look completely battered!

What size were your last babies? For car seats, if not too small, the maxi cosi cabriofix is super cheap (less than £85 if you shop around) and is a good, budget seat but doesnt last as long as some others. If you can stretch a bit more, then Avianaut Cosmo is £125 and much longer laster than the cabriofix and some of the independent car seat retailers offer pay in 3, so might make it easier.

Don't worry about a changing bag - just use any existing rucksack and buy a cheap folding change mat off amazon for inside.

Nappies / wipes - lidl / aldi totally fine. We use the extra sensitive 99% water wipe style ones on both DC.

Have you got any boots points? I've used those for maternity pads and breast pads. Or else Tesco own brand were fine for me too.

Clothing - ive been selling DDs things on vinted as bundles for 25p-50p an item. There are loads of great quality baby bundles on vinted so definitely check it out.

Moses basket / crib - if you want to buy second hand, make sure you invest in a new mattress. But Clair de Lune have a brand new one moses basket and mattress for under £30, boots have a cheap one as well.

How long have you got to go? Could you sell some off the older DCs things on vinted to raise some money to buy the baby bits you need?

yeah pram!! i knew i was forgetting something 😅 i don’t drive so defo need one but probs second hand if i can find a good one. i’m a bit scared of slings but maybe that’s just cos i’ve never used one before.

love the idea of slowly chucking nappies n wipes into the food shop – that actually feels doable. and yeah same here, mine live in babygrows too lol. i’m not fussed on fancy outfits, just want them comfy n clean.

will defo check FB marketplace for bits but thinking i’ll get new mattress n new car seat for safety like you said. n i’ve heard mixed things on prep machines but might look into it – i didn’t use one before but my sister swore by hers.

this has made me feel better already xx

Get as much as you can second hand, honestly second hand baby stuff and clothes is a god send. We got given so much and the condition is perfect as it gets so lightly used. Just buy new cot/crib mattresses, car seats and bottles, pump parts if BF.
I was given a moses basket and honestly it was barely used, maybe a handful of times. I am glad I never forked out for one and it was in the attic by the time she was 6 weeks. We had it in the living room with the intention of using it for daytime naps but babies don't like to be put down. Instead our next to me crib beside our bed and now her cot bed is all we need/needed really with regards to sleeping. You will find that for the first couple months (for me anyway) she lived in sleepsuits. She rarely wore outfits until she got to about 12 weeks. Alot of her tiny outfits were used once or not at all before being bagged and put in the attic when she outgrew them so don't spend a fortune on clothes.

Also we were given a secondhand icandy travel system (bought new car seat) and honestly I hated it. It was so heavy, bulky and huge. I hated leaving the house, so my DP bought me a £100 push chair that also lies flat and I love it, it's small, light weight and easy to manoeuvre and is easily our best purchase. I am glad we never forked out for an expensive travel system now. You probably know all these things already as you have DC already but I was a FTM so everything was a learning curve for me.
You will find that there are people with older kids who are finished having babies that are desperate for the attic space and will just give you things so they can be free of them. Or people will sell them cheap for the same reasons.

I found i could get LOADS of stuff on amazon at a fraction of the price in stores!

I got a 3 piece bedroom set (cot, changing table drawers and wardrobe) it come to around 500 on amazon, its tutti bambini too and it looks beautiful.

I got a hyge box of wipes on amazon which i compared it to morrisons and i could get them for £24.99 its 15 packets of wipes, think it totals at 1800 wipes (if i recall! I threw the box away🤣)

Clothes i bought loads on shein, gave them a wash and theyre in the wardrobe.
Or even use Vinted, theyre all second hand and some come with tags on!
Charity shops if need be, doesnt mean you cant wash them!

Ive not spent much on clothes as theyre already so cheap and other people keep buying them for me😬

Because its my first idk what to expect with prams and travel sets.

We found a shop called affirdable baby in rotherham (if your close)
Our full travel set with whatever car seat we wanted and iso fix system was around 1700 we havent got that yet though!

Momma stuff honestly look on amazon at some of their deals they have.
I found some tommee tippee stuff (admittedly for baby like formula tubs the little ones for putting in your bag) £5!
Breast pads £8 and theyre lil-lets!

Shop around at different places, find the deals!

If you have a computer/laptop, download a browser add on called honey.
That will shop around for you and show you the best deals that places have.

You dont have to do everything expensive!

I feel like we've fallen very lucky because we started saving when we found out and im 23 weeks, between me and my DP saving some cash each week/month we now have £4k to use if and when needed so that money will be spare incase anything was needed last minute like yourself with school uniform!

Im sure a changing bag can wait, if you have a siblings old bag you can use for nappies and stuff while your out and about. It wont do any harm until you know you can afford one!
If your in the house. Just get a little basket (can pick them up for less than £3 in home bargains and just put stuff in that you know you'll need for the day maybe down the side of your sofa or something.

And old blanket will do for a changing blanket if you dont have a changing mat!

Aldi do nappies which im sure are cheaper than a regular supermarket egm asda, morrisons, sainsburys, tesco.

Theres so many ways you can make it easy and cheap for yourself and you dont have to splash out on the little things then you can just get the bigger things that will cost more.

If you have friends and family that want to buy you little bits put a small list together of what you think you'll be missing out on, which is great because you can save on the small and put towards the big!

Good luck x

It can be as cheap or as expensive as you want it to be, you can get lots of things second hand places like FB marketplace but for safety I’d always buy car seat new, and new mattresses for any cribs/moses baskets etc.

Do you have any Barnardos baby and children shops nearby? Fantastic for good priced equipment.

Have you solved any of the problems from your other threads yet? Where is the baby going to sleep if you're on the sofa yourself.

How much is the father contributing?

thank you so much everyone 💛 i’ve got a lot to think about but this is all really helping.

yeah i’m defo gonna be going second hand for as much as possible. just gonna buy new mattress/car seat/bottles like you all said. gonna check vinted and fb marketplace this week when i’ve got a quiet hour. i hadn’t thought about boots points either – i’ve got some saved so will defo use them on pads and little bits.

my youngest was 7lb so pretty average, think the cabriofix might do us if i spot a deal. good shout on paying in 3 too – that might be the only way i can stretch to some bits tbh.

also totally agree on the moses basket thing – mine never liked being put down either 😂 might just skip it and use the cot from day one this time.

feel a bit less panicked now tbh. just need to make a list and take it slow. thanks again xx

My daughter bought so much on FB Marketplace that I struggled to buy anything as a gift! Everything I thought of, like pushchair, cot, baby chair, floor mat, carrycot etc, she had already got second hand! In the end I “ forced” her to give me a few suggestions that I and my family could buy as birth presents! This pattern has continued, she recently got a lovely Tripp Trapp high chair with the baby unit for £40!

As an older Mum, my daughter was also gifted bin bags of clothes from friends which she sorted through and now has a selection of lovely things stored to cover the next five years! I do still buy a few items of clothing now she is in nursery and grubbing around so needs lots of spares, I like the buy two get one free offers at M&S which are very good value.

My daughter is not short on money, both her and her partner have very well paid jobs but she likes a canny bargain! I know she bought the car seat new and was not restricted by the price when doing her research.

As she is an older mum and is not planning another child, she is already selling out grown items on FB and Vinted.

Please have a look on Marketplace, Vinted or other sites. Babies don’t wear out clothes, look well in advance, chose carefully and pay low prices.

thanks so much again everyone 💛 honestly you’ve all been so kind and full of proper good advice.

i don’t mind second hand at all, long as it’s clean and safe. will defo get a new mattress and car seat, not risking them second hand. but for things like clothes, a crib, bouncer, blankets, even a sling – i’ll be hunting fb marketplace, vinted and charity shops for sure. hadn’t heard of barnardos baby shops so gonna look into that too.

i didn’t know amazon could be that cheap! will defo look for wipes and bits there. someone else told me about honey so i’ll get that set up. i do most things on my phone but i can borrow a laptop.

baby will be in with me for a bit and i’ve already had someone offer me a next2me crib if i can just collect it, so that’s a big help. changing mat and bag i’ll just make do for now, can use an old rucksack and towel like you said. i’m just glad to have a bit of a plan now.

DP isn’t putting much in atm but i’ll manage what i can, might get a baby wishlist going in case anyone asks. thank you all again x

I think, buy a good make at a very low second price on Vinted etc.

Depending on where you are OP we got great deals on new car seats and furniture from a place called Jolly Tots in Birmingham. They do alot of reduced baby essentials. All new but old stock so it's sold cheaper. I think they have a website, but I am sure there would something similar near you if you arent near Birmingham x

I’m due dc3 in a few weeks and think I’m finally done with buying most of the important things. I chucked everything away/donated it after dc2 because we thought we were done.
i know most of my list isn’t that helpful as we got a lot second hand but hopefully it might help?

clothes- mainly just focused on sleepsuits and vests in different sizes, some hats, 2 cardigans.
2 pramsuits in different sizes. All Mostly from baby sales, carboot sales or new from Primark/asda

cot- went for gracco next to me cot from Amazon (ended up saving 15% because I used Amazon baby wish list feature) so it was about £55 (also got a pack of sheets to fit for £7 on Amazon)

pram- hauk 3 in one travel system (included newborn car seat, carry cot and also pushchair for when older) was about £180 from Amazon, don’t think I used the discount either so would be even cheaper. Also I did look for second hand but the price wasnt that much cheaper, especially when I had to factor in buying a new mattress for carry cot and a new newborn car seat (for safety reasons)

baby sling/carrier- ergobaby comfort I got second hand at a carboot sale.

baby swing chair- £10 from charity shop

couple of cellular blankets/muslin cloths - new from Primark/asda and one nice one from a charity shop.

changing mat - £3 of temu/shein

nappy caddy - £4 temu/shein

changing bag- backpack I already have.

think that’s the main big bits I can think of,

We spent around £1000 for everything during the first year in 2020 including baby classes

Pram second hand £100
Car seat - birth to 4y £200
Cloth nappies and wipes £200-300 can't remember exactly
Crib was mine and my parents bought me a new mattress
Cot bed second hand £50, new mattress £100
Travel cot £7
Clothes were supermarket or brands like frugi seconds hand
Fabric ring sling second hand £5
Structured sling - new but damaged box £18

Do you need a new car seat? If you don’t drive and are on a budget I’m assuming it’s just to get little one home from hospital in which case you might be able to ask to borrow one. Try Facebook groups etc.

You can also get great deals on travel systems on Facebook. Especially if you don’t mind a little bit of cleaning up. Good luck.