Looking For the Right Fabric for Your Baby Nursery Bedding
Girl crib bedding: princesses and fairies. Boy crib bedding: 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.
It can be difficult to tell if a baby has any allergies or sensitivities, and most nurseries are planned before the baby is even born. The fabric of your baby’s bedding is very important, and should be considered before looks. Any decent infant bedding will tell you the thread count, cover material, fill material, and fill power (more fill=higher quality). The first thing you might consider is the warmth of the bedding, especially if you’re having a winter baby, but it should also be lightweight and breathable. All the information you need should be available online, so take the time to research different baby bedding options.
To reduce the chances of sensitivities, try fabrics like wool, cotton, or down. Avoid synthetic fabrics, as many of them don’t breathe and they may break down as they age, cause the release of toxic gases. If you are leaning toward a crib set such as the Max crib 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.
Some people may disagree with me, but I think wool blankets are softer and more comfortable than any other blanket. The best options for backings are variations of cotton flannel, including organic and unbleached. It’s pretty easy to decide what sized blanket you will need. If you’re swaddling, choose a small one. If you want a daycare blankie or something to keep in the car, then choose a larger size.
When choosing your baby’s comforter, consider down as a filler. It’s light, warm, and breathable. Your little one will probably have a number of “accidents” in the crib - so make sure your down comforter is machine washable (most are). Not all down comforters are equally clean - and a higher cleanliness rating means less chance of allergies. The turbidity and oxygen tests are the ones used to measure cleanliness of filler material. A lower number is preferred for the oxygen test, and it should go no higher than 10 (the government standard). The turbidity test has an upper limit of about 550, with lower numbers meaning less cleanliness.