I still remember my very first foray into the world of baby clothes. Browsing the Zara app after my 12 week scan, not having dared to look at anything before that. But then feeling ok to buy just a couple of little bits, it feeling so special to start thinking about a real baby, our baby!, wearing them in the future. We then waited until our twenty week scan to look at much more, we didn't know what we were having and although I very much love neutrals for newborns, just felt like waiting a bit longer. 

Aside from a couple of sale buys in California when we were out there in January, we waited until after the scan, and then in fact after we'd opened the envelope telling us if we were having a boy or a girl! From then on, things rapidly sped up. Both in the way that time was flying all of a sudden, and of my new shopping addiction... This whole new world of baby clothes was a super cute one, especially after we'd found out that we were having a girl {there's just SO much choice and SO many adorable things out there for girls}. But weirdly, I also found this new habit really tough to figure out. How much would we need? What size should I buy that in? How hot will it be when she's born? How big will she be? I really love that, but what would be the best season or age for her to wear it in? That's cute, but will it be practical with an inevitable nappy explosion or when she's crawling or being picked up? I didn't want to spend a lot of money on something she'll quickly grow out of {I quickly realised just how crazily priced some baby brands are!} and would we have another girl in the future or would it be a one time only kind of thing? -  which felt incredibly wasteful. But equally she'd only be tiny once, and so I couldn't resist some cute clothes. 

All those ramblings aside, it seems like lots of you from Instagram feel the same, and so this blog post has been hotly requested! I'm of course no expert, and there's no right or wrong at this anyway, but I thought I'd share what we've bought so far, some favourite brands I've discovered, and at the very least some pretty cute photos of some of my favourite pieces... 

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I should note that my husband plays NO part in getting excited over any baby clothes, if it was up to him then she'd just wear plain white sleepsuits/vests all day everyday. Which is great, he's always grounding me. But luckily I have my Mum, and most women, on my side, to marvel at the cuteness of allll the little outfits with me. So, sorry not sorry Ben!

First up, the essentials. Because at the end of the day, most of the time she will be spending days and nights in plain bodysuits/vests and babygrows so I've stocked up on these in different sizes, all in 100% cotton. I guess some days she'll need changing multiple times so it's good to have enough to be able to have some in the wash etc. I've bought a mix of short sleeve bodysuits and long sleeve bodysuits - mostly in plain white, in varying sizes. I've gone for some in newborn - mainly from M&S and Primark, some in up to 1 month {it tends to be M&S and H&M who do these sizings} and then beyond. 

Everybody told me different things about sizings, some said that they had a big baby and they were still in newborn for a few weeks as they're all scrunched up when they're born and others swamped them, but others said that the newborn barely lasted them. So we've got a mix and we'll see what fits when she's here! I've probably got too many, but they all came in multi packs and if they're white, can be used for future babes we hope. 

My Mum and I spent an afternoon organising them into sizings so it would be easy to see in the drawer, and we folded them Mari Kondo style to be able to see what we've got along with fitting more in. I hope to keep it up but sure I'll end up shoving them in once I'm doing laundry all the time and feeling exhausted, haha, but for now I love how they're so satisfyingly organised! 

Then in the up to 3 month section, there's a mix of brands. I absolutely adore these wrapover bodysuits, in varying cute patterns - these with the hearts are my absolute favourites though, which make dressing really easy. 

And this brand is 100% the softest ever, not the cheapest, we had some gifted to us and then bought a couple of pieces, but you can definitely feel the difference. Some of these in the drawer we've been given as hand me downs from friends which we were really grateful for {big thank you to Sue & Nellie!}. 

As a general guide for how much she should be wearing, there's a rough rule that it should be one more layer than you'd put on, so most of the time that will be a vest underneath an outfit or babygrow of some kind. And I also found this guide  and this incredibly useful for nighttime temperatures and the amount of layers with grobags etc. 

For nights, and I guess some days when you don't really want to get dressed, we've got lots of up to 3 months sleepsuits. These are full long sleeve little babygrows with feet in too. And again, there's a mix of M&S, Next {from friends} and the ones we love most are Bonds wondersuits. It's an Australian brand that a few people had recommended, and I can totally see why, they have zips for easy dressing/undressing, are really great quality and last for ages as they have feet you can unroll when their legs get a big longer. We did an order when my parents were in Australia earlier this year to bring back for us, but you can order them in the UK here - although annoyingly they seem to only stock the lairy colours!

Left online here, right online here.

For some reason I can't find photos of the drawer below which has some little leggings/baby trousers in. But I've got a couple of pairs of these leggings with feet, I feel like all these bodysuits are cute but won't their legs get cold if that's all they're wearing? Plus they're comfy for layering. 

Then there are the cuteee bloomers. 

I still need to buy some more baby socks, although hear that they often pull them off! But I just don't want her feet to get cold. I need to find some cute knitted booties too. And obviously not a necessity but I can't resist a few headbands/turbans for baby girls! And do babies need shoes?! I guess not until they're walking, so again not a necessity but they do look cute with some outfits. I love Wolfie & Willow.

We haven't bought much beyond 0-3 months yet in terms of bodysuits/babygrows as we figured we'll see what we end up liking the most and how big she is, and when it's needed/for what season etc. 

In terms of more special clothes, some brands that I adore;

Small brands

Bob & Blossom {for the Bonjour babygrow above}, Organic Zoo for the milk slogan babygrows and the hello and bunny outfits plus so many gorgeous outfits for babies and toddlers {we were kindly gifted some pieces}, Rose & Guy, Moonies boutique, Little Dottie Designs, Wolfie & Willow, Teeny Turbans

High street

H&M {especially with 10-15% off days} and Baby Zara for really gorgeous pieces at great prices, M&S and Next, Gap {I wait for a 30 or 40% off code} and even Matalan. 

I've mainly bought 0-3 months so far, but couldn't resist buying a few pieces for 3-6 or 6-9 or beyond if I've seen them and fallen in love, or if they've been in the sale - making sure they're season appropriate for how old she'll be at the different times of year. This lemon romper is online here and it will be gorgeous for next summer {which is kind of crazy to think about an almost one year old when she's not even here yet!}. Am tempted to buy this in the pineapple print too!

In fact, it's fair to say that I'm really obsessed with rompers in general. My Mum bought us this yellow floral one with the crossover back, online here which I ADORE. And this blue stripe was a bargain online here.

We've booked a trip away where it will be warm in January, but cold in England, so I'll need to think about getting a few bits for that trip {it's funny as with our adult clothing, you can just keep stuff like that in your wardrobe for the summer and know you'll wear it again and again, but with the baby, she'll probably have outgrown it, or won't wear it back in England if it's cold unless we layered it up, by summer! Something to think about if you're booking a holiday to warmer climes}. 

I'm not a huge fan of really girly pinks for a baby. I've got some pink, but more of a dusky kind of pink. Along with SO much mustard. I kind of need to see what colours suit her though once she's here.

Romper online here. Green cross-over back online here.

I'm a big lover of knitwear for babies. We'll have a summer baby and I'm guessing it will be warm, but will still need some knitwear for layering, and especially going into autumn/winter. 

Grey cardigan online here. Cream cardigan online here.

Plus this favourite with the little ears. And this full knitted suit {which is really great value}. 

Also a big fan of this.

I recently discovered a brand called Lindex and ordered this cute bee babygrow, for our baby bee, but as they're Scandinavian, the sizings aren't like we're used to so this is HUGE! Oh well, something to grow into at least! 

That little coral monstera print outfit, my Mum bought, and it's online here, perfect for hot days.

I'll have to think about autumn/winter clothes as it approaches, and we see what suits her best. 

Octopus online here

Adore this for a first outfit. - this was part of a previous paid collaboration.

Yellow check romper online here. Lemon outfit, gifted, online here.

Milk bodysuit, gift, online here.

I've stopped buying much recently, partly as I still can't decide what sizes to buy in things I like, and partly because I'm sure we'll be inundated with outfits from friends and family when she arrives {or so I hear from everyone who has children already!}. 

But also since buying all of this stuff, I've really realised just how fast she will grow, and so want to try and buy second hand as much as I can, bar the odd nice little treat where needed, so have been looking into pre-loved sites. It's also much better for the environment to not have to produce tonnes of new clothes, so I'd recommend looking into;

Little Raine Preloved Drops and Bundlee who rent out baby clothes,

along with searching for local facebook selling groups, NCT nearly new sales and eBay. 

Would love to hear your favourite baby brands and your thoughts on buying for children. And I hope my ramblings have helped some of you!

R <3 xx