Baby blankets are more than bedding to a baby, they are a soft home where a newborn human begins life outside of the warmth of a womb. In the first few hours, days and weeks, the blankets baby needs most are the ones that will sooth and calm, keep warm and swaddle for a feeling of protection.

Later personalized baby blankets with designs and names and cartoon characters and fun colors with alphabets and numbers may become something they themselves select to snuggle or play with, but in the beginning blankets for babies are a cocoon of softness and comfort, and that is what we should never forget when selecting a layette set, which is a small selection of clothes, baby bedding and products for a teeny newborn.

Cotton Baby Blankets

Baby doesn’t need half as many things as advertisers wish to make us believe. Just a few undershirts or nighties with drawstrings for easy access, a couple sleepers, a pair or two of teeny little socks, some cloth or disposable diapers, and a few receiving blankets. Knitted baby blankets are nice to have for throwing over a carriage to take a stroll or to drape over mom’s shoulders while nursing, but medium sized baby receiving blankets will be just fine as well. Cotton baby blankets (in fact all things cotton) are best for baby’s delicate skin because it breathes and still keeps them snug and warm. If at all possible I would recommend organic baby blankets that are free of chemicals and dyes even if baby doesn’t appear to be allergic. Organic is a good way to start life.

Baby Bassinette and Baby Bedding

During the first months, personal baby bedding isn’t a huge priority unless baby will be in a crib in their very own baby nursery right from day one, but otherwise it’s enough to snuggle her/him in some blankets, pad a small baby bassinet with two or three medium sized baby fleece blankets (folded to fit the bassinette shape) and on top of that just spread a cotton baby receiving blanket to act as a sheet that can be changed frequently, and that’s it.

After about 3 months or so, when baby has a crib and may sleep on her/his own during the night then you can slowly select a fancier baby crib set from the zillions of baby bedding sets on the market, but there is no rush to do so before baby arrives or immediately after.

Baby Products – Less is Enough

Don’t stress out about not having something, especially if it’s your first baby – babies primarily sleep, sleep and sleep, and every few hours wake up and look for a breast or a bottle and fall back to sleep. In between all this they soil their diapers and need changing – so lots of diapers, lots of wet wipes and a little powder is good to have nearby.

Once a day, usually in the morning, baby can have a bath, so a little tub is nice (but not essential), a soft washcloth, a little mild, preferably organic, baby shampoo or gel and a large very soft towel with a teeny hood. If your house is cold it may be a nice touch to have a portable heater to set in the kitchen or bathroom while bathing baby. But honestly, all the things you think you need, you really don’t.

Fancy dressers and changing tables, cribs and night lights and stuffed animals and padded crib sets and cartoon characters and monogrammed baby blankets and dozens of bath products and bells and whistles really are designed for parents not newborn babies. Teeny babies that arrive after 9 months in a watery womb are happiest when snuggled close to mother’s breast, allowed to sleep, kept clean, and fed when needed.

A Blink of an Eye

That simplicity of needing almost nothing will change, and after a few months you will want more things to make your job easier, like baby slings, carriages, strollers, high chairs and fancy baby accessories for the crib and maybe even personalized baby clothes, but don’t panic too soon.

Enjoy baby without a lot of baby stuff…revel in their tiny fingers and toes and little gurgling sounds and the way they smell and how they sleep in simple cotton baby blankets….don’t waist your time worrying and shopping because they will be newborn for only a blink of an eye…

The perfect blanket for your baby is out there, probably somewhere in one of those elusive or exclusive online companies offering to deliver African cotton, Asian bamboo, or even organic baby blankets from Madagascar, right to your door. Yes. There are blankets for babies that are luxurious and plush, fancy with lace or simply knitted or embroidered by hand. It’s all about WHERE to find them.

At Your Baby Blankets You will find articles about different baby blankets and find useful suggestions to choose something for yourself and your baby or to give as a gift. But the most important service this site provides is that it sorts through hundreds of other sites and narrows down your baby blanket choices to a select few high quality items that won’t disappoint. These suggestions may lead you to your ideal personalized baby blanket without the headache of hours of searching or shopping.

What you want is to put a smile on baby’s face and lighten mom’s load, because a baby must snuggle and smile and giggle and a mother has enough to care for without wondering if her baby blankets are hypoallergenic, organic, synthetic, or knitted with the right kind of lambs wool.

Here you will also find articles about the baby security blanket, which is a type people often forget about since its purpose is less obvious. However, a security blanket could be one of the best gifts your baby will receive, or perhaps it will be you who gives this thoughtful gift to a newborn friend.

Please take a moment to browse through the posts. I’m sure you’ll discover a few fun things about baby blankets you didn’t know. This site will also answer the following questions:

• Why choose natural or organic baby blankets?
• Why wrap a baby in swaddling blankets?
• What fabrics breathe and why does it matter?

• What can you do to help baby have fewer rashes and skin problems?

• What do skin problems have to do with baby blankets?
• What should I avoid when monogramming personalized baby blankets?

• Are traditional handmade and embroidered baby blankets always a safe gift?

• Must a new mother have blankets only in teeny baby size?
• What’s the big deal about baby security blankets?
• Where can I buy a baby blanket that’s a bit wild to suit mom as much as baby?

And she was right. When her daughter was born she was the happiest little baby ever. She had the softest white cotton diapers made from natural cotton gauze and she slept next her mother’s breasts in a little gauze snuggly. At night she was wrapped in organic baby blankets her mother had made from cotton gauze as well, and during the day she wore natural white cotton dresses.

My friend’s clothes line had nothing but white cotton hanging in the African sun and her daughter always looked so fresh and clean. Perhaps it was the natural white that surrounded her, but that little baby’s skin glowed. I don’t recall ever seen her little bottom bothered by diaper rash and I changed her often enough to know. I can’t attribute her cheerful nature and good health entirely to her organic cotton attire, but it was certainly part of what made her one of the most beautiful babies I would ever see.

It may seem as if organic diapers, cotton baby blankets and gauze clothing is the ideal choice for children in the tropics or those who live under the heat of the African sun, but in fact going natural and using organic baby products can be a lifestyle choice no matter where you live, even in Alaska or a Fjord in Norway.

Here are some organic baby blanket suggestions in all natural cotton, fleece, wool and silk:

I was recently impressed to discover Ali Hewson and Bono – founders of a company called EDUN, specializing in organic clothing and other natural products, and whose mission it is to aid developing economies with sustainable employment through fair trade practices.

Their line of organic EDUN products is produced in Peru, Tunisia, Kenya, India, Mauritius and Madagascar. They don’t have many baby products, but they have ONE that is quite impressive: an organic baby blanket, 100% Organic Cotton which Features an African poem called Splendid City, softly printed on the blanket. It’s made in Kenya at Wildlife Works.

Another company is Robbie Adrian, in California, who manufacturer organic baby blankets in very tasteful designs. They have a line of what they call luxury organic baby blankets and they aren’t stretching the truth. Their products are truly luxurious – a long way from merely natural fibers, gauze and wispy cotton baby blankets. All their plush baby blankets are 100% certified organic cotton velour or 100% certified organic cotton fleece, and the trims are all 100% natural silk.

They have exquisite soft baby blankets, cotton baby blankets and organic baby blankets in natural, raspberry, chocolate, eucalyptus, taupe dot, ocean blue and raspberry dot starting at $26 and going up to about $68 for the larger baby blankets.

Kushtush Organics is another place to find organic baby blankets. They have an unusual baby blanket from Organic Caboose, which is an Eco Fleece baby blanket produced by Malden Mills using Polartec Ecospun fleece made from recycled soda pop bottles. The Eco Fleece organic baby blanket is machine washable and dryer friendly. For only $14 it is an Eco bargain.

They also have organic baby blankets made of merino wool – suitable for baby’s delicate skin, yet warm enough for the coldest nights. – $97.50 Kushtush Organics also has knitted baby blankets in organic cotton jersey. Receiving blankets are all organic and come in 7 eco-friendly pastels: lavender, pink, blue, buttercup yellow, sage, natural and mint. – $15.95 to $17.95

ECOCHOICES is another company to keep in mind for all organic baby products including embroidered baby blankets. They have a good selection of natural baby bedding and other supplies. Here are some of their most popular products:

• Organic Cotton Changing Pad–organic cotton Sherpa fleece changing pad – $39.95
• Organic Cotton Chenille Changing Blanket – $29.95
• Travel Organic Cotton Changing Pad – $19.95
• Natural Organic Wool Crib Baby Blankets – Natural/baby Blue/Baby Pink but contain no dies – $89.95
• Natural Chemical Free Wool Blankets -$39
• Organic Cotton Weaved Crib Blankets – 35.95

• Super Soft Organic Brushed Cotton Crib Baby Blankets -$42.95

• Organic Baby Blanket – Poetry Blanket: with inspirational quotes by Kate Douglas Wiggin, William Blake, or J.M. Barrie -$35.95
• Embroidered Alpha Baby Blanket and Pillow Case Set – Alpha Blanket- $60/Alpha Pillow Case – $28/Alpha Blanket /Pillow Case – $86
• Organic Cotton Receiving Baby Blankets – natural or low impact dyes of blue and green – $64 each
• Embroidered Baby Blankets – Hand Embroidered Organic Cotton Forest Crib Blanket – $96
• Embroidered Baby Blankets-hand embroidered organic cotton receiving blanket -$49.95