Baby Clothing Sizing - Does One Size Really Fit All?

My first experience buying Wholesale Baby Clothing online was pretty confusing, especially when buying clothing from other countries and trying to understand their sizing. When I stumbled upon this sizing issue I thought it was pretty important to share as it can be confusing if you're buying for your first child or giving baby clothing as a gift.

Fact Number 1... One size doesn't fit all. Ok, this is pretty obvious, but what you may not be aware of is there are different sizing methods dependant on what part of the world you live in, or in my case, what part of the world you're buying Baby Clothing from.

Children's sizing is separated by region/ country and is the standard measurement for that region. This is similar to shoe sizing, women's clothing or different methods of sign language dependant on what part of the world you live in (yes there are different types of sign languages around the world and yes, this is your useless fact for the day).

Baby Clothing Sizes never used to be an issue

This was rarely an issue prior to the Internet as most people were none the wiser and simply purchased based on their countries own standard, but with this transition comes a whole new level of depth to the existing confusion of buying baby clothing for your little loved one.

One of the easiest ways to overcome the confusion is through the use of a Baby and Toddler Sizing Charts that clearly layout the important information based on:

- Age

- Height

- Weight

- Country

- Sizing Method

I remember when my beautiful baby girl came in on the scene were given a number of different outfits including a range of one and 2 piece outfits that had all these different numbers on them.

At that stage we had no idea what the measuring system was and we had to take each one and place them against her to understand what would fit. This actually went on for a while and we had tears from me and my bub, till I stumbled upon a baby sizing chart.

Many tears and a little knowledge later

After the tears I came to understand using a sizing chart in advance is a great tip when considering buying wholesale baby clothing for your own darling daughter or to give as gifts.

So, how do the different sizing standards stack-up?

Here's my take on the different measurements based on country -

Euro Sizing - In my opinion Europe uses one of the best standards, with their standard measuring close to the actual length of your baby (from the top of the head to the heal). Presuming you know the actual height of your child this can be fairly easy to use as a guide, although challenging if your buying clothes as a gift.

Australian Sizing - This would be my second pick of the bunch and would have been my favorite if it wasn't for the sizing prior to 12 months (with sizing 0000, 000, 00 and 0 can be a bit confusing). From 12 months onwards the sizing of your child matches the age (if your daughter were 2, you would buy size 2 clothing and so on). This of course doesn't always match, but as a general guide is a lot easier if you're looking at buying clothing as a gift.

UK and USA sizing - These are fairly similar till your child reaches 24 months at which time they change over to a strange measurement slightly out of alignment with your child's age and with the introduction of additional letters. If you don't have kids and you're buying as a gift or this is your first time you may find your self a little confused.

When looking at any sizing charts always use a combination or height, weight and age to determine the best size and if in doubt buy the next size up, especially when your darling daughter is fairly young. If you buy a little larger they'll grow into their little outfit. In the first 6 months there's nothing worse than getting a gift only to discover it's too small or will only get one wearing, especially if they are going through a growth spurt.

The Wholesale Baby Clothing blog is an excellent resource where you can discover how to overcome common issues with buying baby clothing online.  Within this resource is an excellent, up to date Baby Sizing Chart that shares the different sizing measurements from around the world.

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My Baby Nursery - What Do I Really Need to Buy?

You can go to town fitting out your baby nursery. It can be a lovely thing to do whilst you are pregnant. Choosing wallpaper, colour schemes, a cot, you name it... or you can beg and borrow from friends and family and search online or in 2nd hand stores. Whatever you choose, it can be a minefield for 1st time parents. Just what do you need? I bought lots of things thinking I MUST have them, only to never use them at all. Clever marketing made me think I needed them.

Every family and every baby is different, but this is what we put into our baby nursery

First things first - your baby will need somewhere to sleep.

But where to start - Cots, cribs, cot-beds, Moses baskets

We chose a crib for our room for the baby's first 6 months. We really didn't want to get up go to his room for night feeds. Also advice says that the safest place for your baby is in your room by your bed, in a crib or cot. (For the first 6 months anyway.)

We put off buying a cot until he was going to use it. Newborns are expensive enough!!

Mobile

We bought a mobile for above his cot. He loved the music and movement of the animals as it turned around. Newborns are supposed to see black and white shapes the best.

Changing table

The last thing you want to do is bend down on the floor to change your baby - especially if you have just given birth. A good safe changing table with a comfy changing mat proved essential time and time again.

We had a changing table upstairs and down - to make life easier for us!

Drawers for clothes, towels, bedding

It's amazing how much room his clothes took up. We only had a few vests and baby-grows before he was born. Friends and family all bought him gifts and the chest of drawers in his room soon filled up.

That's really all we had in his baby nursery. As he has got older, teddies and soft toys have taken over his cot. His drawers of clothes are overflowing - despite numerous trips to the charity shop. The mobile had to go - once he could reach it - it was too much of a temptation for him! Sad for us to remove it though - his baby days were going so fast!

Jane Rainford. When I was pregnant, I looked to the internet for information, but what I got was information overload. Never having been pregnant before it was all so overwhelming, I had so many questions, the internet seemed a good place to start. Once my baby was born I didn't have the time to be searching for answers, though I still had so many questions. As he is growing, I really want to pass on all I've learned to other parents who have questions, want answers, just want a laugh or to know there are other mums out there tearing their hair out too.

I'm no expert, I'm a mum - hang on maybe that does make me an expert! And boy do you learn a lot after baby is born! I run http://www.onlinemum.com From bump to toddler.

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Baby Sleep - How Much Sleep Does my Baby Really Need?

Some babies are fantastic sleepers, going through the night from 6 weeks old and taking three perfect naps a day. But most babies ­ probably yours included - are not fantastic sleepers. There is no reason why they should be, of course. Many of the sleep "problems" with young babies are to do with parental expectations rather than with the baby behaving abnormally. But while you shouldn't have high hopes of your baby's sleep fitting in with yours in the early days, it is important to plan ahead. The habits that your baby is getting into by around the 6-month mark will condition her sleep habits for the months to come.

How much sleep does my baby really need?

Some experts will tell you that young babies need as many as 18 hours of sleep in every 24 hours. Others say that they can make do with as little as 12 hours a day. But how much your own baby needs is very individual and is determined by a whole range of factors including your expectations, her size and genes, what kind of person she is, and what's going on around her.

Monitoring her sleep

Some parents feel that they are being kept on the go all day by the demands of their baby. Apart from feeling worn out themselves, they feel that their baby can't possibly be getting enough sleep and rest either.

Your baby's little naps and snoozes during the day all add up to a substantial time spent asleep.

So if sleep is something that you're concerned about, for whatever reason, try keeping a sleep diary for a couple of days.

Note exactly when your baby sleeps and when she wakes. You'll almost certainly find that she sleeps for longer than you thought, especially if you're the kind of person who tends to use the hours when your child is asleep to do other tasks. Perhaps before she was born, you imagined that you'd be able to use your baby's sleep time to organize the house, but now that she's here it's a shock to find that you only just have time to pile washing into the machine and to wash the breakfast dishes while she's napping. No wonder it feels like she hardly sleeps at all!

Read more on Baby care tips. Check out more tips on home remedies and baby care.

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