Awaiting the arrival of a new baby is an exciting and happy time and choosing the proper bedding for your precious bundle of joy doesn’t have to be a difficult, confusing, or time-consuming task. By taking advantage of internet retailers, as well as local shops, outfitting your baby bedding crib sets can be an enjoyable and fun experience. A newborn isn’t going to care what cartoon or nursery rhyme character is on her bedding but for the parents, preparing the nursery can help the months of pregnancy pass quickly and enjoyably.
The biggest nursery expense, and probably the one item with the most safety concerns, is the baby’s crib. It is no longer safe to accept Aunt Lulu’s enthusiastic and generous donation of that crib that’s been in her attic for the last fifty years, no matter how tempting it may be. There has been too many documented cases of infants in old cribs getting their heads stuck between slats that are too far apart, as well as other safety issues associated with older cribs. There is nothing wrong with accepting as a gift, or purchasing, a used crib but it is important that it not be one manufactured prior to 1989, which is the year crib safety standards were implemented. It is also important to know if a post-1989 crib has ever been part of a recall and, if so, that all repairs and/or part replacement requirements were met. If a parent is considering using a pre-owned crib, it is vital they do their homework about that particular crib. Doing an internet search on ‘crib safety’ will provide the most recent and relevant safety information.
There are also specific safety concerns when choosing a crib mattress, such as ensuring it is the right size and fits correctly inside the crib. A gap wider than a two finger width between the mattress and the crib is a potential smothering hazard. A firm mattress is preferable to a soft one because of the possible risk of a baby suffocating on a mattress which is too soft. What is inside the mattress is important, too, and some parents might consider an “organic” mattress to avoid the chemicals that can be found inside other mattresses.
Choosing the actual bedding (sheets, blankets, comforters) goes beyond just selecting colors and patterns. A parent will want to pay attention to what the bedding is made of. Cotton? Organically grown cotton? Or the more economically priced cotton/polyester blend? It is important to remember that it will be necessary to change the crib’s bedding frequently.
Solid colors (or plain white), polka dots, stripes, plaids. The choices in colors and patterns are endless and are up to whatever appeals to the parents (or gift giver). If the parents wish to have the baby’s nursery follow a specific color scheme, there are still many color and pattern variations that can provide an appealing diversity to the theme of the room.
A word of caution should be noted about the use of baby crib bedding sets and that is the question of whether or not anything beyond a sheet is even necessary. There are some concerns that too much bedding (blankets and comforters) create a suffocation risk to the infant. Hopefully, parents will do their research and make an informed decision about the use of these items in their baby’s crib.
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