Confused about what toiletries I need

[Charlie:-)]

Im trying to buy things in advance each week when I go to the supermarket so it wont cost me the earth when baby arrives. I have moved on from buying nappies and wipes etc but Im confused about what toiletries the baby will need.

I know you shouldn't use anything on baby when newborn as their skin is so sensitive, so I plan on bathing in just water at first.

But what about other stuff like talc, shampoo, baby lotion and everything else you can buy.

What would you recommend are essentials and how old must baby be before I can use them?

 

[lisa282]

I've personally never used talc on my son so think it would be a waste - as you say their skin is so delicate and sometimes dry for the first few weeks that anything to dry it out more is surely not good? Just my opinion..as for shampoo, you won't need that until your baby has a head of hair, I just washed my son's head with water or baby wash for the first few weeks, it's not like his hair would get dirty. Baby lotion is very much a personal choice, whether you wish to moisturise your baby or not but it's certainly not a necessity. As essentials I would stick to water and cotton wool for cleaning, maybe some sort of baby bath after a few weeks and either a vaseline or sudocrem for any sore or itchy bits that might develop. You really won't need much at all so don't waste your money. The one thing I did find useful actually was baby oil, it's great at clearing up cradle up where the medicated shampoos are useless!! But that's just my opinion - I'm sure I'll still buy far too much stuff this time like I did last time, and never use it - we just can't help ourselves can we, when it looks so pretty on the shelves in Boots!! hehe x

 

[Charlie:-)]

Thanks Lisa282,

My gut feeling was that most stuff was not necessary but thought I would double check "just in case".

Im half expecting my baby to have a full head of hair (I notice you posted on my other thread about heartburn, so hopefully you will know what I mean!!) so I might invest in some shampoo.

Have got loads of cotton wool and a bath and some sudocream so I reckon shampoo and possibly baby lotion will do me in the toiletries department.

Still need to buy a sponge of some sort and towels though.

 

[paradysso]

i have just brought pure shea butter from akamuti. makes their skin sooo soft, i dont like using all the toiletries on babies

 

[newmum]

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[BeckyJ]

i went to sainsburys when the baby stuff was on offer, i bought sudocrem, talc, baby lotion, baby bath, wipes, baby oil, vaseline, the lot i figured it would get used eventually so wouldnt be a waste and a lot of the johnsons stuff i like to use anyway so if baby didnt need it mummy could use it

 

[valentine]

Hi there,

Like paradysso, I don't really like using toiletries on babies.

I used water and cotton wool for first couple of months with a soft baby sponge and now bath her with a little bit of Little Me baby organics bath oil or bath soak which is quite pure (and smells lush!).

She doesn't have any hair really so we've only washed it about twice!

We do baby massage every night and use grapeseed oil for this (next to olive oils etc in the supermarket) and just use olive oil on her cradle cap. I don't use nappy creams etc - have probably used Sudocrem about twice for a small nappy rash - we use reusables though so I'm not sure if that helps with not getting nappy rash really.

I wouldn't go overboard, I bought loads of Johnsons stuff and ended up giving it away unused.

Valentine Xxx

 

[kalia]

I've been stocking up on things too because I love getting baby stuff

Not quite baby toiletries, but you'll want to stock up on maternity pads and breast pads. I think your breasts leak to begin with regardless of whether you breast or bottle feed but if you are going to bottle feed check with someone who knows what they are talking about rather than trusting me! That said, my breasts have been leaking at night for months now so you might want to have some in any case. In my, admitedly limited, experience, the reusable avent ones really show through clothes! The Johnson disposables are really comfy and far more discreet. Lilypadz seem fantastic but I don't know how well they cope with milk.

 

[Sherlock]

I prefer the plain and simple approach, especially when baby is small. Don't see the need for smellies or other such things too early. Some parents have bought *everything* you can imagine for a new baby and 6 months later the only things touched are cotton wool, sponge, sudocream and a bit of lotion/oil. Bottles of goodness knows what remain unopened.

I never use talc on LO's. Not much of a fan of creams and lotions either tbh. But if baby has dry skin a drop of something won't go amiss though.

First few weeks I tend to use cotton wool and water to wash baby when changing a nappy. After that quite often parents would go over to wipes, but some stuck with cotton wool and water for much longer. I never found cotton wool to be messy or not do a good job of cleaning a babys bottom. I guess its your tolerance level in dealing with such things. Toxic poo is toxic no matter what you use

A small pot of Sudocrem would be handy. Baby shampoo, but I tended to never used this in the early weeks, mostly as there was very little hair on most babies I cared for. And once using it, used it very sparingly.

For my own LO I plan on one of those tummy tubs, not a baby bath. Lots of people recommended them and also they have had good reviews overall. I'll be interested to see if they do seem to help ease colic in a baby. I like the idea of baby being able to be in a more natural womb position over being sprawled out in a bath. Supporting a babys head won't be a problem and I'm looking forward to using it