Baby bedding for girls: princesses and fairies. Baby bedding for boys: blue with puppy dogs. Wait - aren’t you forgetting something? You need to choose your baby bedding carefully, because it’s more than just a decoration.

You are aware of your own allergies and avoid any irritants - but what about your new baby? Everyone wants a cute nursery, but it’s important to pick the right bedding material first. Any decent crib bedding will tell you the thread count, cover material, fill material, and fill power (more fill=higher quality). The ensure the comfort of your baby, choose bedding that is breathable and lightweight, but also warm. Research on the Internet is easy, so take advantage of the resource to investigate potential bedding choices.

Organic fabrics are probably better than non-organic, but the most important thing is to avoid synthetics if you want to reduce the risk of allergies. Off-gassing is a concern with sythetic fabrics (this refers to the release of toxic gases that may happen), as well as breathability - most synthetic fabrics will not breathe. If you want to purchase a crib set like the Max crib bedding, which has mostly cotton but some synthetics, then you will need to decide how comfortable you are with synthetic fabrics.

Opinions differ, but many people argue that wool blankets are the softest and most comfortable for a young baby. Wool blankets are fabulous with a cotton flannel backing. Smaller blankets are perfect for swaddling; larger ones are just right for car trips and naptime.

When choosing your baby’s comforter, consider down as a filler. It’s light, warm, and breathable. Down comforters that are dry clean only are not practical, so look for the ones that are machine washable (that’s actually most of them). To ensure that your comforter is hypoallergenic, make sure it has a high cleanliness rating. Filler material is checked for cleanliness using two tests: oxygen and turbidity. Ten is the government standard for the oxygen test, but the numbers can (and should) be lower for quality comforters. 550 is approximately the top of the turbidity scale. Lower numbers mean more organic material and dirt has been left in the down.

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