Best Christmas gifts for babies and new mums

You really do use muslins every day, so it’s nice to have smart ones that are pleasing on the eye for both mum and baby.

There is so much choice now – just think, muslins used to be boring old plain white.

Babies love playing with these as soon as they can hold things – as early as a couple months old. They love to watch you stack and knock them down, even before they can do it themselves and the cups are light so even a baby of a couple of months old can enjoy holding them and hearing them bang together. And such satisfying colours for parents!

Handmade, subtle colours, sweet natural design. Very cute gift.

H&M is brilliant for baby clothes – and the designs are special enough to give as a gift.

Soft and warm but also a very fine knit, so it’s not too chunky to wrap around baby in the sling or to fold down small and put in your nappy bag.

The queen of baby carriers, it’s very comfortable for both mum and baby and looks so much more stylish than almost any other carrier on the market – so many of which feel like they suck all the style out of your look.

Has a supportive waist strap to protect your back and cross-over straps that don’t fall off your shoulders. Matches the Ergo for comfort. A generous, but we promise incredibly welcome, gift.

How sweet are these Liewood animal nightlights? I had the dino for my son years ago and he still has it on his shelf. Batteries last for eons too, which makes things easier.

This soft, organic cotton, padded mat is designed specifically to support babies’ visual and cognitive development throughout their first year.

Use the dalmatian side when they are 0-4 months and see in black and white white then leopard print for 5+ months when their colour vision starts to develop.

These cute silicone bibs are the cutest we’ve seen and make a lovely gift.

By Danish brand Liewood, they come in a 2-pack and are super practical, BPA free, easy to clean and dishwasher safe.

Styled in beautifully muted colours with poppers at the neck to adjust the size.

More on the endless baby bunny theme! H&M really get it so right with baby and children’s clothes and decor. This bunny rug is a pretty design with cute, muted colours that will fit nicely into most nursery colour schemes.

Owning a Ewan is like joining a club for new mums – ‘Have you got a Ewan? You need one!’ etc etc. He glows red and emits either a sssshhhing sound or whooshing noise to mimic the environment in the womb. Anecdotally, magically calms newborns to sleep.

This pillow will make it so much more comfortable to sleep during pregnancy, particularly in the case of hip or pelvis pain, or just to support boobs or belly – and will be invaluable for nursing.

It can also be shaped to support baby during tummy time or to sit up and looks much prettier than any other pregnancy pillow on the market.

Our pregnant friends say they would gladly chuck their husbands out of bed to replace them with their pillow, that’s how good they are. And Bellamoon pillows steal first place over most other when it comes to pretty design.

The reason this is the best gift for new mums is because it gives the gift of sleep, and what new mother would turn that down?

The snug, egg-shaped nest offers a cosy and safe environment for babies. Anecdotally and from personal experience, babies love this and may well immediately sleep for longer once settled in.

The snug bed imitates the feeling of being warmly held, giving the baby a feeling of protection and warmth and, hopefully, a sense of calm.

The gift of sleep mark II: NapNap is a smart mattress that helps baby to sleep quicker and stay asleep longer by gently vibrating and emitting white noise, recreating the safety of the womb. Recommended by paediatricians and used in neo-natal departments, it has 6 modes of vibration to ease troubled sleep routines and fits into cots, bassinets and prams. Also helps with colic and tummy time. One two-hour charge lasts up to 15 days. Mums can also use it to gentle vibrate away tired legs, bonus.

A cellular blanket is on every baby kit list. This one is soft cotton with a cellular weave that allows air to circulate, plus it looks good too (also comes in sweet pale shades of blue, green and pink). A company set up by a mum after she made her own blankets for her baby who was suffering with eczema, Blanket & Co specialise in gentle handmade organic blankets and swaddles for babies and small children, use only 100% organic cotton and bamboo and give £5 from every blanket sold to Evelina Children’s Hospital in London.

These make a great gift; I have personally gifted these to lots of pals. Most kids love to build and knock down towers and these blocks are just perfect for that. A lightweight, conveniently stored set of blocks with lovely bright pictures and numbers, they nest inside each other for simple storage. Especially good present if you have to pack for Christmas.

As IF there are booties shaped like avocados… These just scream baby gift. Who wouldn’t want them?

We love the Stokke Tripp Trapp highchair as you can pull baby right up to the dining table so that they eat with the family at the table, rather than on their own tray set further back. The Scandinavian design is a classic too, with pretty colours and a choice of accessories. The chair is adjustable for all ages with newborn set (£79) that brings tiny babies right into the action, making a change from having them sitting on the floor.

Scandiborn is an absolute feast of baby gifts for new mums. So much choice – not just mobiles, but toys, interiors and clothes. The selection is so well done – you can’t fail to find something for your new mum pal here.

Anything Jellycat goes down a storm with babies – and this avo activity toy will be no exception. It fixes on to buggy or highchair and baby can play with the ribbons, and jangly plastic rings, squeak his tummy or just dribble over him.

Super sweet, very cosy. We love pretty much everything Liewood makes and this is no exception.

These babygros are a brilliant investment and a unique gift. They are made of very soft, cosy cotton – but that’s not the best thing about them. The best bit is the magnetic fastening – NO POPPERS – that means anyone (even five-thumbed dads or night-time nappy changers) can do them up with ease – you literally just slip the babygro on and the magnets instantly close all the way up themselves. No more popping and unpopping confusing buttons and still ending up with a gap in the leg. Baby is wrapped up in seconds.

The babygros also come in sweet styles, classic colours – and some have little Liberty print floral pockets and matching collars. Beyond cute.

This cute-looking toy has a teether and rings for baby to play with, a mirror, crinkly bits, tags and a jiggling tummy. Plenty to do and it looks sweet too.

It may sound silly, but having a few stylish muslins makes you feel more like yourself, especially as you’ll likely constantly have one in your pocket/bag/over your shoulder for the next few years. These sunny ones are very pretty.

Even if your friend doesn’t want plastic in the house, they will warm to this. Babies love bubbles, and these machines bust out billions of bubbles at once, rather than a little stream once per breath. They use them in our baby sensory classes and the babies are transfixed. Can be used in the garden or for a fun-filled bathtime.

Baby is never too young for Stella. We were given the sweetest little Stella McCartney swimsuit for our baby, which she grew out of in 5 seconds but gave us a lot of joy before she did.

Beloved by teething babies everywhere, Sophie’s soft, natural rubber design is easy for tiny hands to grab and explore and enjoyable for drooly mouths to chew.

This changing bag does not compromise on style at all. Designed in collaboration with Selfridges, it has a lovely rucksack shape, chunky gold hardware and a removable clutch/cross body bag that you can use as a nappy pod if you only need a couple of bits. Attaches easily to buggy clips with D-rings. Also has padded changing mat, padded shoulder straps and big, useful pockets. In faux leather, it’s wipe clean, water resistant and durable, has metal feet to stand it up – and it can be used as a laptop bag too.

What’s the point of having children if you can’t embarrass them with family photos of you all dressed the same? Polarn O.Pyret’s trademark stripes and soft, good quality cotton come in sets of PJs for little and large. They are so sweet – and worth it for the Christmas Day photos alone. Available in grey, navy and red stripe.

A collector’s item for so many new parents. This special teddy, made of soft mohair, marks baby’s Christmas with 2020 on the teddy’s foot. There is also a Christmas Musical Bear option that plays O Tannenbaum to send baby to sleep (£225). Lovely for traditionalists.

These make darling gifts for new parents to dress baby in for newborn photos, a la Anne Geddes. Made of the softest bamboo cotton and stretchy to allow babies free movement.

How generous are you feeling? This supreme space-print canvas baby changing bag is the nuts. But it comes at a cost…! Also comes with Gucci-branded changing mat. Love.

A unique and thoughtful gift, one of a number of personalised illustrations created by a husband and wife couple.

Babies love the graphic animal prints on these cool muslins – not just for wiping up baby dribble, you can hang them around play areas to exercise baby’s eyes or dance them around to music – baby will be transfixed. Tonnes more lovely ones to choose from at Etta Loves.

These are so handy. Both the Tiba + Marl and the Storksak come with unanimously good reviews. Unisex, functional, this has lots of pockets for phone, coffee cup and keys on the outside, then inside plenty of room for nappies, wipes and a change of clothes. Means you don’t have to take the entire nappy bag out for every journey.

Another organiser we love – this looks very smart on the buggy and carries a few nappies, outfit change, muslin plus cup/bottle, phone and keys on the 4 outer pockets. So practical but also feels luxe.

There’s a real dearth of stylish breastfeeding clothing available. Latched is a brand that offers clothing you’d actually wear day-to-day, breastfeeding or not. We love this two-tone sweatshirt with clever zip opening – no messing with awkward buttons, no lifting up your top to reveal your tummy to the world. The same brand also has a nice loose hoodie for lounging – and their sports bras (£35) are brilliant too.

The Bravado ballet bra is THE most comfortable nursing bra on the market – but it also works during pregnancy, so buy it early and your mum friend will thank you. It’s more attractive than so many nursing bras and so soft – it was the only bra I could get anywhere near my boobs when they were ultra painful in the first few weeks after birth.

Sports bras that fit before pregnancy are likely too tight post-birth – not only have boobs usually grown a few sizes and can be quite tender, but the ribcage expands too, and takes a while to go back to normal.

Latched’s nursing sports bras are refreshingly stylish and allow you get back to some form of exercise without your bazookas bouncing all over and feed easily before and after (or during!). And actually, exercise or not, I found the added support of a sports bra to be useful on walks, too.

Flowers make a lovely gift – but you now what makes a better one? Flowers + food. Easy food for your new mum friend to graze on when she’s only got one hand to work with.

One for sugar- and caffeine-hooked mums (that will be all of us, then). Brazilian coffee beans covered in dark chocolate are a sweet gift that will tick two boxes: The need for chocolate and the need for coffee. Not only do they taste and look good, they are a bargain at £10, too. The same brand makes choc brazils, almonds and more and has some pretty packaging options.

Tiny hands will grab at anything when they’re feeding – hair, delicate necklaces, glasses – this cleverly designed necklace gives them something safe to play with and as a bonus, helps prevent them getting distracted elsewhere while feeding.