Whether for yourself or as a gift, choosing the right infant blanket can be an overwhelming task. After all, there are tons of products on the market, spanning all price points and even pushing the limits of the imagination! Luckily, there are really only three factors to consider when making this decision: size, fabric, and the pattern or colors.

Consider the size

You should determine what size blanket you want based on what you will use it for. If it is a receiving blanket or one to be used for swaddling during the baby’s early months, then you will probably want something smaller. However, if you intend for the baby to use it for longer, then larger is better.

Pick a functional fabric

Short and simple, the best fabric for baby blankets is cotton muslin. It is versatile, durable, soft, and you can even buy organic cotton muslin for parents who prefer to keep their baby away from synthetic fibers. Although flannel and wool may make sense as a layering blanket in very cold climates, parents will get the most use out of a cotton muslin blanket because they can use it during every season for almost every purpose.

Have fun with patterns and colors

This choice is up to you! If you know the gender of the infant, it can be fun to get something pink or blue. Some parents prefer to avoid these gendered colors or they are waiting until birth to find out the baby’s gender – in these situations, you can choose from a variety of fun patterns or gender-neutral colors. The options are abundant, and there is no wrong answer!

Sometimes, consumers can get confused when people use multiple terms to describe the same product. Although there are many products that use the word “wrap” in their name, generally speaking, an infant wrap is another way of referring to a swaddling wrap or a swaddling blanket. No matter which way you refer to these products, they are something that every mother wants and will use!

What is an infant wrap anyway?

An infant wrap is a blanket used to wrap, or swaddle, the baby during the first few months and up to a year after he or she is born. The wrapping technique is referred to as swaddling and is thousands of years old. By keeping the baby’s arms and legs pressed gently against his or her own body, swaddling promotes better rest and longer periods of uninterrupted sleep. Additionally, this method of wrapping the infant helps the baby stay warm and comfortable in the crib or bassinet.

In order to facilitate this method of wrapping the baby, infant wraps have the following characteristics:

-          Square or rectangular shape

-          Small enough to wrap the baby without extra cumbersome fabric

-          Lightweight fabric to keep the baby from overheating

-          Stretchy fabric to ventilate the infant and help with swaddling

-          Often made from cotton muslin

Every mother wants an infant wrap. In fact, this is a great gift to give anyone who is pregnant or has recently had a child because most moms can use several infant wraps!

There are many reasons why a mother would want a breastfeeding cover. Moms enjoy the fact that a breastfeeding cover offers some privacy when they are nursing in public or even in their own homes when other people are around. Although they love the opportunity to bond with their child, nursing can be a challenge when the baby is hungry and privacy is unavailable.

Some mothers point to the fact that their other children or their children’s friends are confused when they see the mother nursing, so a breastfeeding cover offers a way to avoid that discussion until a more appropriate time.

A more discreet way of nursing

Although moms have been throwing a blanket over themselves and their infants for years, today’s breastfeeding covers are a step above a baby blanket. Some of the advantages include:

-          Neck straps to keep the blanket in place even if the baby kicks or you shift position

-          Stain resistant fabrics

-          Stiffer top sections to keep the top open, allowing for eye contact between mother and child as well as ventilation

-          Use the cover as a stroller cover or as a diaper changing surface

While the primary reasons many moms point to for purchasing and using these covers is to promote their own privacy, this is certainly not the only use for these versatile blankets. Don’t drive yourself crazy with a baby blanket – get a breastfeeding cover and make this time more enjoyable for yourself and your baby.

The first reasons many women cite for using their nursing cover is that they enjoy the privacy it affords them while nursing in public or while others are around. While breastfeeding is a wonderful way to bond with your infant and offer the child immunities and nutrients that are unavailable in formula, it can also be very inconvenient.

If your baby is hungry in the middle of the playground, you may not be able to retreat to the privacy of you car in order to feed the baby without anyone seeing. This is where a nursing cover comes in particularly handy!

This great item looks much like a baby blanket, only it is stiffer in construction and has a neck strap to keep it on securely. The nursing cover allows you to satisfy your baby’s hunger without sacrificing your own modesty as it keeps you and the baby covered during these special moments.

Other reasons why you may want a nursing cover

Not every woman feels self-conscious about nursing in public. Many see it as a natural part of motherhood. However, even the least self-conscious mom will enjoy a nursing cover because it offers additional benefits besides privacy.

Some of the things that all moms enjoy about a nursing cover include:

• Minimizing distractions from other people or noises so baby feeds more consistently
• Catches spills so that mom’s clothes stay cleaner
• Can be used as a surface for diaper changes
• Folds up to fit in most diaper bags for maximum portability

A new mother’s best friend

Sometimes it seems that there are an infinite number of infant products on the market, especially blankets. With so many different types of blankets, and often with so many names for the same blanket, it is easy to get a little confused and overwhelmed. One type of blanket that is particularly important and useful is the receiving blanket.

These blankets are the ones used to “receive” a newborn infant after he or she is born. As infants have been in the womb for the previous nine months, they can initially have a little trouble regulating their own body temperature after birth.

Purpose of the receiving blanket

A blanket helps keep them warm as they adjust to life outside of their mother’s body. Often, hospitals will offer new mothers their own blankets so that the newborn is wrapped in something sterile and appropriate. However, some hospitals will allow the parents to use their own blanket. In either case, receiving blankets are used throughout the infant’s first months, usually until he or she outgrows them.

Receiving blankets can be differentiated from other blankets by the following characteristics:

• They are soft and lightweight
• They are usually square shaped to make swaddling easier, although some are rectangular instead
• They are smaller than other baby blankets because they are intended to wrap the infant without being overly cumbersome
• They are thin to facilitate layering so that the baby will be comfortable in a range of temperatures.

If you have had the opportunity to look for baby or infant products recently, you were probably shocked by the sheer number of products available. This can make it challenging to by anything for your own baby as well as for anyone you know who might be expecting a child, even something as simple as a baby blanket.

One of the first things to consider when choosing a baby blanket is which fabric the blanket is made from as this is one of the most important characteristics of the blanket. Cotton muslin baby blankets are the best ones available for several reasons including cost, durability, appearance, and quality.

Your choices in fabrics

Here are some of the other popular materials and why they pale in comparison to cotton muslin for baby blankets:

-        Silk. Popular in Asia, this material is impractical as it stains easily and is difficult to clean.

-        Wool. Although there are over 200 types of wool on the market, they are usually too rough for a baby’s skin. Wool blankets can be good as layering blankets for babies who live in extremely cold and harsh environments.

-        Synthetic microfibers. Brightly colored, stain resistant, and cheap, these blankets have their strengths. However, many parents do not want synthetic fibers near their infants, preferring organic fibers such as those in cotton muslin instead.

-        Cashmere. The softest and most sumptuous of blankets, these are prohibitively expensive and difficult to clean, making them a poor choice.

-        Regular cotton.  Standard 100% cotton material is ok, but depending on the blanket it may lack the flexibility and breathability of muslin.