Choosing Colors For Crib Bedding

One of the exciting parts of having a new baby is decorating the nursery. However, that can also pose a difficult challenge for parents who need to make important choices about color. Some parents may prefer to stick to traditional color palettes, such as pink for girls or blue for boys. Other parents want to choose fun themes, such as race cars or safaris, for their nurseries. Designs and blends of more gender-neutral colors are also becoming increasingly popular. One way to help you choose the correct colors for your crib bedding is to explore the world of color psychology.

Color and Mood

Cultures all around the world have realized there is a connection between color and human attributes. For example, early Native Americans believed that using certain colored lights could cause healing in the human body. While no one has conclusively proved this, there has been extensive research done to demonstrate that our moods can be affected by the colors in our environment. In fact, this part of color psychology result has been utilized in education, in web design, and in almost every facet of consumer products.

As a parent, this research is important to you as you choose the colors for your crib bedding because you want to create the most soothing and relaxed sleeping environment for your newborn.

The Benefits of Using Blue or Green

Two of the best colors for your crib bedding are going to be shades of blue and green. One of the most commonly used colors in surgery rooms is green because it is believed to be calming and to have great powers for healing. Different shades of the color are said to have a calming effect. One of the reasons may be that green reminds us of being in nature in a relaxed and stress-free state.

Blue is also a good choice for crib bedding, regardless of the baby’s gender. Color research has shown that exposure to this color can actually slow the rate of your pulse and reduce your body’s temperature which are both going to help you enter a relaxed and optimal sleep state. The color is almost universally considered a positive color. In the West, the color is associated with feelings such as tranquility and harmony which also creates a positive environment for newborns.

Colors to Avoid

Orange and red are probably not going to be good choices for your crib bedding. Orange is considered a color that grabs your attention which puts you in an alert state – not ideal for relaxation and rest.

Red is also considered the most energetic color in the entire spectrum. That means red crib bedding may have an undesirable effect on your child. Red is also associated with violence, danger, and anger.

Other Tips

With crib bedding, you want to pick the best and most relaxing colors possible for your baby, even if that means violating some of those traditional and stereotypical color trends.

Choosing Crib Bedding as a Baby Shower Gift

You’ve received the invitation and have already decided to attend the baby shower of a friend or family member. Now you must make the difficult decision of choosing a gift for the event. Shopping for baby gifts can be a lot of fun but if you want to truly get the new parents and their bundle of joy a practical present crib bedding can be an excellent choice. However before you start picking out a print here are some tips you should remember when buying crib bedding as a gift.

Your Budget

If you haven’t bought crib bedding before, you may not realize that it can be quite costly, especially if you are going for the best quality possible. Most parents don’t want to skimp on anything that is going to be coming in contact with their child so if you’re buying a crib bedding gift you need to be prepared to spend a bit more money.

Before you make this decision, determine how much you can afford to spend. If a crib bedding set falls a little over your budget, you still have options. For one, you could find another guest and go in together on the price. Another idea is to buy a piece of crib bedding, such as the diaper table changing pad, instead of an entire set.

Parents’ Needs

Another huge challenge for most guests is not duplicating the same gift. This can be a challenge with crib bedding because you may not know what the parents have already purchased themselves or what other guests have bought. The best idea is to stick with the parents’ registry or online gift list. You can usually find out the registration information by asking one of the hosts of the baby shower or a close relative of the expecting parents.

With crib bedding, you might also choose to play it safe and buy something the parents will probably need more than one set of anyway, such as crib sheets.

The Style of the Nursery

Before you buy crib bedding, make sure you have some idea of what the parents want their nursery to look like. If they are going for a ballerina look, you won’t want to bring in crib bedding for a safari or a surfer. You may want to drop by for a visit and check on the progress of the nursery yourself before making the decision.

If not, ask someone who knows the parents and their nursery plans well for advice on which crib bedding to buy. Of course, you can also find out from using the couple’s gift list if they have wisely created one.

Gender

No matter who is buying the crib bedding the baby’s gender is likely to be an issue. Even though parents don’t want to adhere to gender stereotypes, most people expecting a little girl aren’t going to choose the Doodlefish Vintage Racer crib set for her room.

Choosing Crib Bedding For Your Baby?

If you’re expecting a new arrival in your family, you already know there’s plenty to do in preparation. One of the most important is getting the nursery ready so your newborn will have a cozy, safe, and pleasant place to sleep once he or she returns from the hospital. That means you’ll need to go shopping for crib bedding. Below are some tips that can help you choose the right crib bedding for you new bundle of you.

Setting a Budget

As you may have already experienced, getting ready for that baby isn’t going to be cheap. That’s one of the reasons baby showers were invented. That means you need to decide in advance how much you can afford to spend and stick to that budget. Otherwise you may end up deep in debt or without all of the necessities your little one is going to need.

Crib bedding will be one of the bigger costs on your budget but it can also be one of the more flexible ones. Generally, a quality crib bedding set could cost from around $400 up to more than $800. However, if you don’t want to purchase an entire set at once because of budget limitations you could choose to buy the pieces one at a time or to leave out some of the less important crib bedding accessories.

Match the Décor

If you’ve already started decorating the rest of the nursery, then the crib bedding you choose will need to match what is already there quite nicely. After all, you do want to create a visually appealing space for your baby. Sure, he or she may not appreciate it now but that crib bedding will probably be used at least until your baby turns three. That means he or she will definitely have some time to appreciate all of your hard work.

Another idea is to pick the crib bedding before you do any type of decorations. That way you can match the rest of the décor to the crib bedding instead of vice versa.

Gender Appropriate

While any color crib bedding is appropriate for any gender of baby, most people still adhere to those classic color stereotypes. That means if you are having a little girl you probably won’t be going for blue crib bedding. What do you do if you don’t know or have chosen not to know the gender of your baby before birth?

One answer is to choose so-called gender neutral colors for the crib bedding, such as green or yellow. These are both very tranquil colors to consider and look beautiful in any nursery. Choosing a print or pattern that incorporates multiple colors is also a good idea.

Choosing a Theme

Some parents decide to decorate their nurseries in a theme. For example, you could choose a jungle look and even paint a jungle mural on one of the walls. In that case, you might want crib bedding, such as the Doodlefish Safari set from Pure & Honest Kids, that matches your theme.

What to Consider When Choosing Crib Bedding

When it come to about crib bedding your first thoughts may be about which colors to choose or if you should go with a theme bedding. No matter what you settle on, one thing you should never settle for is quality.

First and foremost, consider safety. Even though most, if not all crib sets comes with additional blankets, comforters, pillows and even baby bumpers, the American Academy of Pediatrics advises “Remove pillows, pillow-like bumper pads, quilts, comforters, sheepskins, stuffed toys, and other soft products from the crib.” Several infant crib deaths have been attributed to these items. With this in mind, instead of spending money on crib bedding sets, it might be better to invest money in quality sheets and other nursery accessories. If you’re set on the beautiful comforters that come with crib bedding sets, you always display it as a wall hanging.

Many parents think that a crib bumper is a must have. Unfortunately several documented infant deaths have been specifically attributed to crib bumpers. However, there are safer options to consider. One option that is becoming increasingly popular is a mesh bumper. Mesh bumpers are made up of breathable material that allows air to circulate to baby while keeping his or her limbs contained within the crib. Listed below are a few more reasons why mesh bumpers are a better option:

• Traditional crib bumpers should be removed from the crib when baby begins to pull up or stand. This extra padding may provide the baby with the extra boost needed to escape from the crib and suffer an injury from a fall.
• The breathable fabric reduces the risk of suffocation, re-breathing, and nasal/oral compression.
• Mesh bumpers secure with velcro rather than dangerous ties. Documented deaths have occurred due to strangulations by bumper ties.
• These products are able to be machine washed and dried.

When choosing crib bedding make sure you are aware of what the fabric is made out of and how it is sew together. Some baby bedding is sewn with nylon thread, which is very poor choice. Nylon thread can melt in the high heat of a dryer. Bedding sewn with cotton or cotton blend threads will be safer and much more durable.
Avoid the type of designs that are known as ‘stamped designs’ as these types of designs are merely patterns that only are on top of the fabric and they will not hold up in the wash. As different pieces of the set are laundered more frequently, some will fade faster, giving a mismatched look to the bedding set. Your best bet is to find crib bedding with patterns on the material that are actually woven into the fabric.

Now that you have knowledge regarding safety and material, let the fun begin choosing the crib bedding best suited for the new arrival!

Crib Bedding is Just One Thing to Consider While Choosing a Sleeping Situation for Baby

The choices for crib bedding are nearly endless. Of course, in order to make use of bedding for a baby’s crib, you’ll need to purchase a crib. The purpose of a crib is to provide a safe and secure sleeping area for babies. The nice thing about most cribs is that they grow with your child. Adjustable side rails and mattress/box spring mats ensure that the height can be adjusted as your baby grows.

For newborns, a crib outfitted with crib bedding can have its mattress raised up high so that the baby is within easy reach of his or her parents. For older babies who are rolling over, sitting up and crawling, the side rails of a crib can be raised, while the mattress can be lowered. Most cribs will safely contain even those older babies and toddlers who are walking and climbing.

Of course, as your baby grows, you’ll need to adjust the crib bedding that is in the crib. Because of the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome — often referred to simply as SIDS — any baby bumpers and headboard covers that may be installed on the crib should be removed once your baby is rolling over. While these accessories for crib bedding are very beautiful and often complete the look of a themed crib, they have the potential to trap poorly oxygenated air between them and your baby’s face. This is where the risk of suffocation or smothering can occur.

So, what types of crib bedding choices are available to you? Many! Most stores and online shops will allow you to shop by budget, gender, even by theme and certain colors, patterns and licensed themes. Most crib bedding sets include the headboard cover, the bumpers, the fitted sheet (often referred to as the crib sheet), and possibly a fancy bed skirt, a quilt, receiving blanket, and even plush toys or a baby mobile. Where should you shop for crib bedding? Well, any store or online company that carries baby items will undoubtedly have some choices of crib bedding and bedding accessories available.

The price ranges certainly vary from store to store, as does the availability of certain colors, styles and themes. Certain brands and themes of baby bedding are more popular than others. I have found that many selections are no longer available in stores, but can be special ordered online, or even found on auction websites like ebay. For those women and men who are crafty enough, designing your own crib bedding from scratch is always a possibility!