Baby girl bedding: flowers and butterflies. Baby bedding for boys: space explorers. Hold your horses, there! Choosing baby bedding is about more than just a fashion statement.
You or your family members may have allergies to certain fabrics, so you avoid those, but your new baby doesn't come with a list of its allergies. So choose the bedding material first and then worry about your nursery's theme. If it's good, the nursery bedding should have some information for you: fill power, fill material, cover fabric, and thread count. The bedding needs to be warm, breathable, and lightweight. Research on the Internet is easy, so take advantage of the resource to investigate potential bedding choices.
Crib bedding should be made of the fabrics that are least likely to cause allergies. This includes wool (alpaca, llama, or sheep), organic cotton, non-organic cotton, and down. Synthetic fabrics usually do not breathe and they may break down over time - emitting toxic fumes. This can cause respiratory problems and sleeping difficulties. If you have decided on a bedding set such as the Max baby bedding, that contains some amount of a synthetic fabric (polyester), but mostly cotton - then you need to think about how much you want the bedding vs. how much this small amount of polyester could cause a problem.
I love wool blankets - I think they are the softest, most comfortable blankets, especially for babies. The best options for backings are variations of cotton flannel, including organic and unbleached. Larger blankets are perfect for car trips and bundling up in the winter, which small blankets are just the right size for swaddling.
Down comforters can be a great choice - they have a natural filler that is both lightweight and warm at the same time. 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). In order to be sure that your down comforter has the least chance of causing allergies, you want one that has the highest cleanliness rating. Cleanliness of down can be measured using either the turbidity test or the oxygen test. The government standard for the oxygen test is 10, but high-quality bedding usually has a lower number. Turbidity is measured in the opposite direction - that is, a higher number is better. The top of the turbidity scale is somewhere around 550.
You or your family members may have allergies to certain fabrics, so you avoid those, but your new baby doesn't come with a list of its allergies. So choose the bedding material first and then worry about your nursery's theme. If it's good, the nursery bedding should have some information for you: fill power, fill material, cover fabric, and thread count. The bedding needs to be warm, breathable, and lightweight. Research on the Internet is easy, so take advantage of the resource to investigate potential bedding choices.
Crib bedding should be made of the fabrics that are least likely to cause allergies. This includes wool (alpaca, llama, or sheep), organic cotton, non-organic cotton, and down. Synthetic fabrics usually do not breathe and they may break down over time - emitting toxic fumes. This can cause respiratory problems and sleeping difficulties. If you have decided on a bedding set such as the Max baby bedding, that contains some amount of a synthetic fabric (polyester), but mostly cotton - then you need to think about how much you want the bedding vs. how much this small amount of polyester could cause a problem.
I love wool blankets - I think they are the softest, most comfortable blankets, especially for babies. The best options for backings are variations of cotton flannel, including organic and unbleached. Larger blankets are perfect for car trips and bundling up in the winter, which small blankets are just the right size for swaddling.
Down comforters can be a great choice - they have a natural filler that is both lightweight and warm at the same time. 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). In order to be sure that your down comforter has the least chance of causing allergies, you want one that has the highest cleanliness rating. Cleanliness of down can be measured using either the turbidity test or the oxygen test. The government standard for the oxygen test is 10, but high-quality bedding usually has a lower number. Turbidity is measured in the opposite direction - that is, a higher number is better. The top of the turbidity scale is somewhere around 550.
About the Author:
Dorothea is a writer and researcher on parenting and family issues. She also works part-time as a freelance writer for Your Baby Bedding.
No comments:
Post a Comment