Start-up costs for new baby

esio_trot

mizzbiz wrote: »

Can anyone tell me why reusable nappies are so expensive? I was thinking of using them but when you factor in that "£185 is on the cheaper side", the manual labour and electricity costs in washing and drying, I'm not sure I'm going to after all. Seems a lot of effort for little or no saving.

Also I was in reusable nappies when I was a little 'un. (I don't think many used disposables then - I'm 30). I seriously doubt my parents would have spent so much on nappies back then considering they had no money. I'm sure they were just terry towelling but in a nappy shape (and held together with safety pins lol).

I'm a fairly recent convert to washables and I honestly can't believe I didn't do it sooner!

The terries our parents used would just be squares - they would have folded them into a nappy shape, not bought them that way. It is possible to do reusables for about £100 from birth to potty if you want to go down the terry squares route (and buy cheapies) but there are other options out there now which can make life a bit easier with reusables. Shaped nappies do cost more but they're far easier to manage, doing up with poppers or velcro a lot of the time (or with a nappi nippa which is a replacement of the safety pin - though I've still managed to stab my fingers with one!). Then there's even more convenient still, pocket nappies or all in ones which tend to come in nice patterns, and function pretty much as a disposable.

As for the little or no saving - it's more substantial than you'd think. You really will save money so long as you don't become a nappy addict (part of my reason for switching). Even if you spend £250 to £300 on a set, you're still saving £700 upwards from birth to potty training. Use reusable wipes and you'll save about £300 over the course of three years - hey presto - cost of nappies completely covered

It is more effort (minimal really - fling the nappies in the nappy bin instead of the waste bin and put that in the machine every day or two) and yes you do need to factor in laundry costs. I think the laundering costs are estimated by my local Real Nappy Project as £133 over 3 years - still barely making a dent in those savings. They also calculated that on using 100ml of detergent every wash - I use way closer to 40ml.

lovemystudentloan

Congratulations, and I second everything itry says, join every club (at least once - your partner can join some like the Boots one as well)

Only stuff I'd add to other posts is - scratch mitts were useless, baby pulls them off. You can get good sleepsuits from Boots and Mothercare that have integrated scratch mitts, these are just cloth at the end of the sleeve that folds over

Tesco do really good vests that popper down the left hand side so you don't have to pull them over the baby's head, we use the sleeveless ones under the sleepsuits. All other Tesco stuff has proved rubbish though, looks really awful really quick, faded and bobbled after 1 or 2 washes and their baby clothes always need ironing. Pick up tops and trousers in the sales at Mothercare/M&S/Sainsbury. Skirts and dresses aren't very practical, they don't keep girls warm or the sun off them and dungarees never fitted round the bum of our big bubba

Best things we got were an immaculate moses basket with a rocking base at a car boot sale for £8 and a Mothercare travel system from a different seller at same boot fair for £70 which included the Isofix base. It may be cheaper to get a really good pram from ebay/car boot/gumtree and buy the car seat new. Also got a free cot, again spotless, from freecycle and just had to buy the mattress, which I got free from Boots (I exchanged a gifted bumbo cos we already had one)

We found re-usable nappies worse than useless, expensive, take up lots of room and time, the bamboo ones take ages to dry and are hard as a brick unless you have a tumble drier which we don't, and the all in ones leak and sweat her bottom. Also they are massive and most clothes won't fit over them. Again tesco do giant packs of Huggies quite cheap, 200 for £19 etc.

Make sure you can get your chosen pram in the car/bus/over rocky ground if you're planning walks. Most are very heavy and some need the seat removed before you can collapse the base to put it in the car which, although sounds like a nuisance, is actually a plus because once you take the car seat off the base you only have the base to put in the boot. Also those with narrow front wheels are much easier to get round shops and cafes

Oops, sorry to rattle on. Good luck :j

lovemystudentloan

Oh, and PS - make your own wipes for at home. This is the easiest and best thing we've done so far. You will need

Tupperware box 7 1/2 inches/ 19cm square
Old cotton duvet covers/sheets/t-shirts
Scissors (obviously:o)
Plastic bottle
25 litre plastic bin
Laundry bag

Cut your old bedding into squares to fit the tupperware box. This is best done with pinking shears that leave a zig-zaggy edge so you'll have fewer loose threads

When you're ready to use them wash and pop into your tupperware box - no need to dry. You'll go through them so fast they won't have time to go moldy

Moisten with a little water to get them damp - not soaked - like shop bought wipes, hence plastic bottle

Put used ones in laundry bag in swing bin. We made a laundry bag from two pillow cases sewn together and used the cut off seams to thread round the top and tie it up like a drawstring bag - then you just tie it shut and stick the whole lot on a 60 degree wash when they're running low

Wash and pop back in box

We go through 160 (two tubs) of these every couple of days. We get the worst of the mess off with toilet paper first, as you would whichever wipes you were using, and put a few drops tea tree oil in the swing bin. Never had any pongs yet

The first few times you wash them remember to empty the filter as it will fill with loose threads

digitalphase

I am expecting my first and have bought things either brand new or second hand. If buying brand new I have gone for best offers, cashback, to use with vouchers etc to be MSE :money:

Brand new: buggy, car seat and base, cot, changing mat and bouncer (bought with Xmas vouchers), most of the sheets & blankets (some have been gifts and some I got with Tesco Clubcard vouchers), a few clothes (some have been gifts), a GroEgg thermometer (didn't think I could trust a used one), most of the toys and cot mobile (mobile was paid for with Tesco Clubcard vouchers), as well as all bottles and feeding equipment (brand new was better value than used, Asda baby event). Will also buy a brand new cot mattress, but not paying silly money for this.

Second hand: couple of dreampod sleeping bags, most clothes, baby gym, bath. Am considering getting a second hand Moses basket and stand as well. And maybe TENS machine, if not then I will hire. All from eBay with cashback etc.

As you can see I have mainly bought new, but have always compared new prices with used, and a lot of the time there isn't much in it. Things like car seat, cot mattress etc must be new anyway. Also got baby toiletries and nappies - all new.

You also need things for you/your hospital bag like nighties, nipple cream, birthing ball, maternity pads, breast pads etc etc.

A rough figure for how much I have spent would be about £700, and I have nearly got everything we need and mainly bought new. If you were on an even tighter budget, you could get stuff for even less.

Baby events are great, so look out for these. Join all online baby clubs like Aptamil and Asda. Keep an eye on the Grabbit board for good offers. Ask for vouchers for birthdays/Xmas that could be used on baby stuff if you don't want/need anything. I'd go to car boots if I could but not in season now and have SPD anyway, so can't walk far. Find out about local NCT sales, I have one later this month I will go to. I have bought most of the clothes from eBay as they go through them quickly, but couldn't resist a couple of new bits!

youngmummy

tomhann187 wrote: »

Dear all

I've just found out I'm pregnant - very early days yet but I want to get a start on budgeting for everything. I've got a list of things to buy and my guess of how much these will cost. The prices I've used are a mix of cheap-ish new things and good-quality second hand items. If anyone could give their opinions on where money can be saved and if there is anything I'm missing or equally things that I could do without that would be great.

Thanks in advance!

10 vests/body suits 10 depends how often you will be washing clothes but dont buy too many because they grow out of them quickly i had a 7lb 4oz baby and only really used new born for the first 2-3 weeks
10 x baby grows 10 same as above
3 x outfits 10 same as above
Socks, scratch mitts and hats 7
Pram suit 15
Set of re-usable nappies 185
Cotton balls, rash creams 5
Bath support 5 i didnt use one so was a waste of money for us
Bath and room thermometer 5
Nail clippers, other first aid stuff 5
Muslins 10
Breast pump, bottles and steriliser 35
Maternity bras 30
Cot bed with NEW mattress 100
Travel cot with basinet and changer 30
Room clothes storage (chest and wardrobe) 85
4xsheets, 4x blankets, 3x sleeping bags 60
Baby monitor 15
Night light 5
Pushchair with carry cot, car seat and ISOFIX base 600
Sling / carrier 15
Bouncer / swing 20


I know the pushchair is the biggest expense. However, I really think an ISOFIX is important for safety and the cheapest seat and base combination is still about £200. You're not supposed to get these second-hand. I also think the ppushchair needs to be a high quality item as we live in a remote place and it'll be taken over dirt tracks, bridleways, grass, cobbles, country footpaths etc on a daily basis. It needs to be robust and have excellent suspension.

congratulations
the best advice i can give is accept what people offer you. you may find you spend very little also carbbots and great aswell as charity shops nearly new sales
asda has baby events
ebay is great
when baby is born Child Benifit will cover most if not all of you costs for washing clothes, nappies ect
also what about toys a play mat ect
one thing i did was buy hrough out the pregnancy as it didnt seem such a big expense that way

hope this helps a little and good luck

property.advert

You can never have enough muslin cloths. Seriously, you can get through loads in a morning, you need some for the bag when you go out, more for when you get back, then you have some soaking from overnight, yesterdays are in the wash and you need a fall back position. They are not expensive. I got mine from John Lewis, where I found all baby necessities vastly under the prices I thought they would charge and they were very affordable, on a par with anything else and with great quality.

I used Maxi Cosi from birth but don't get so worked up about it if costs are an issue. Isofix is the way to go for sure but the first one might only be used for 9 months. After this you'll need another solution so the larger apportionment of costs should be directed at this level as this will last or can last until around 3 or 4 years old. The idea of birth to 11 is daft and you simply won't want the thing that long. I would advise getting a spare cover if you can and alternating them. If you go months later to the aftermarket you might find that your model is obsolete.

Second hand car seat ? Perhaps not off Ebay but there is a conspiracy by manufacturers to get everyone to buy a new one. I got a second one from a friend (full travel system actually) and I knew it hadn't been in a smash. Think about it, if you have 1m new babies, that is 1m new car seats but if they can't convince you to buy new, that number will fall significantly. And just how many cars are in serious smashes ? Not that many.

As for clothes, don't buy the smallest size. Our baby was born too big for these so they were a waste of money.

pinkshoes

mizzbiz wrote: »

:rotfl:I'm sure that's a plastering trug!! We have plenty of those available since we're a family of builders lol.

This sort of thing?:



That's what I bath DS in! A mere £1.99 from the local shop - bargain!! (and so much easier than using a baby bath!)

mizzbiz

pinkshoes wrote: »

This sort of thing?:



That's what I bath DS in! A mere £1.99 from the local shop - bargain!! (and so much easier than using a baby bath!)

That's the one. Used for mixing plaster and mortar in our house. WIll def get a new one when baby arrives - that's a stroke of genius. (Although DH will probably insist on cleaning one out lol)

pinkclouds

I typed out a big long post about what to not buy but I deleted it all. No one ever listens to advice the first time around - I know I didn't. Buy whatever you want and enjoy it. There's nothing like the first time, when you plan everything meticulously and delight in each new purchase and picture baby using each item. I regret many, many things I bought but it was a lot of fun at the time!

Still, if there's any chance this will be taken on board, really do try to buy as little as possible. There is nothing that can't be acquired at short notice these days and many things that can be bought at 24/7 supermarkets. And don't get too hung up on clothes (and nappies) - you may end up doing more than one load of laundry a day for the first 2 or 3 months.

OrkneyStar

Some points:
-Can you knit/crochet ? Or get a friend/friends who can ? Lots of grannies/great grannies/aunties etc love to knit hats, cardis, blankets etc, and nowadays there are so many patterns that even if you are not keen on traditional styles there will be something to suit!
-Does the buggy/seat need to cost that much ? Our new one (in 2007) was only about £250 and was a decent make (still going and would use for another child if I was going to have one lol!)
-Real nappies- try ebay/freecycle/borrow to make sure you get on with them. We used ours in summer and winter and found that we needed a few more than you have said, but then it depends on what kind you get as some dry much easier.
-Bottles- I breastfed but DS did get one expressed feed at night (DH liked staying up late and it meant I got to sleep earlier and was ready for early 5.30 feed!), so a couple might be useful. You can use a big tub and milton to sterilise in.
-Clothes- don't buy too many newborn size, ideally start with 0-3 month, they might be a bit big but babies grow fast! Many charity shops have loads of new/nearly new clothes as babies get so much!
-Muslins/Sicky cloths- rip up old sheets/towels if you have any.

All the best.