What baby clothes do you actually NEED?

Posted By Sarah Green on January 2022

Before you have a baby there's a lot of conflicting advice about what clothes you need, and you want to be prepared, right? So best to get it all? Also baby clothes are so cute, it's easy to get carried away. But a few months in you might be surprised by all the stuff you never actually got round to using.

To give you an idea of what clothes you actually need, here's a run down of what a capsule wardrobe looks like for each stage of that first year.

Clothes you need for 0-3 months

Before you have a baby it’s easy to get sucked in with teeny tiny booties and super cute outfits, but you may find that those booties get kicked straight off. Until you’ve figured a few things out, we’d recommend sticking to sleepsuits - the classic and timeless baby outfit! Most sleepsuits (or baby grows) also have integrated scratch mitts at this age so you don’t need to worry about your baby scratching themselves with those sharp fingernails.

3-5 short sleeve bodysuits
3-5 sleepsuits
1 cardigan
1 hat
1 snowsuit/pramsuit (unless it's summer)
2 sleeping bags

Create your own 0-3 month capsule wardrobe OR Rent a 0-3 month bundle

This may seem like a ridiculously small wardrobe, but unless you have a lot of poo explosions or a baby who brings up a lot of milk, these clothes are unlikely to get very dirty. Start off with the minimum and you can always buy/rent more if you feel you need to.

Clothes you need for 3-6 months

At this age your baby might be rolling, sitting, and will be starting to experiment with food. This could mean a lot more outfit changes! And you might be bored of just dressing them in sleepsuits.

2 long sleeve bodysuits

2 trousers

2 jumpers/cardigans

1 dress/dungarees

3-5 short sleeve vests

3-5 sleepsuits

1 hat

1 snowsuit/pramsuit

2 sleeping bags

Create your own 3-6 month capsule wardrobe OR Rent a 3-6 month bundle

Top tips for 3-6 month clothes:

Stick with bodysuits rather than t-shirts or tops which can ride up and expose that little tummy to the cold.
Many babies don’t love things going over their heads, so you might find cardigans easier than jumpers, although there are all those buttons…!
Some dresses can ride up on babies this age when they’re just sat down or rolling around, so try soft stretchy ones rather than anything too tight or with straps.

Clothes you need for 6-9 months

It’s weaning time! This means a) a lot more outfit changes, and/or b) you need to invest in a good bib - we’d recommend something with long sleeves that can go in the washing machine!

3 short/long sleeve bodysuits
3 trousers
3 jumpers/cardigans
1 dress/dungarees
3 sleepsuits
1 hat
1 snowsuit/pramsuit
2 sleeping bags

Create your own 6-9 month capsule wardrobe OR Rent a 6-9 month bundle

Top tips for 6-9 month clothes:

If your baby is crawling a lot, beware of dresses which can get caught round their knees and make it tricky for them to move.
To prevent staining, just wipe any spills asap with a damp cloth. This is much quicker and easier than taking all their clothes off and rinsing them or washing them straight away, and almost as effective!

Clothes you need for 9-12 months

Your baby is probably crawling and maybe even trying to walk now. You might find that integrated feet in sleepsuits just trip them up, so check whether sleepsuits at this age have them if your baby likes to walk around. Or just try PJs instead if you feel ready to say goodbye to the babygrows!