Great 'pregnancy MoneySaving' Hunt

Peanut2013

Maternity Clothes - I bought 2 pairs of jeans and 2 pairs of work trousers and lived in these from about 15 weeks onwards! I managed in my own tshirts / tops until about 25 weeks and then was lucky enough to be given a huge bag of maternity clothes from a friend which I'm still wearing now, lol.

Cot - Luckily for us OH used to be a carpenter so he's made it, only cost about £50 in wood

Mattress - We didn't cut on this and spent £100 on a cotbed one, but we were advised it will last us 4 - 5 years Luckily my work gave us a large giftcard for mothercare which covered most of this.

Pram - Gift from parents, thank god. Lol

Moses Basket - £5 off ebay, would have been £80 new!

Nursery decoration and bedding - £30 off ebay, over £150 worth new.

All other toys / clothes - All gifts, hand me downs from friends or gumtree / ebay.

Second Hand is the way forward!

Angel_Rachie

Instead of buying maternity nickers, buy granny pants (the belly warmer types) a couple of sizes too big and if you wear them back to front the bottom side will cover your bump

Angel_Rachie

I also saw this post on Facebook on how to make cheap baby wipes.

Homemade Nappy Wipes!

Supplies:- Tall, round 3 Quart container with a lid
- Better quality toilet roll (the cheap toilet rolls don't work well on a dirty bottom)
- Knife to cut the paper towel roll in two
- Baby shampoo
- Baby oil

Directions:
1. Cut a toilet roll in half so you have two short rolls.

2. Set one roll inside the canister. Set the other half aside for next time.

3. Combine and stir together:
1 1/2 cup hot tap water
2 Tablespoon baby shampoo
2 Tablespoon baby oil

4. Pour the liquid mixture over the top of the toilet roll. As the liquid soaks through, the moisture will loosen the cardboard center making it easy to pull out. If you get lucky, it will bring with it the end of the paper towel roll. If not, carefully pull on the wipes in the center to get the sequence going.

5. Pull out the amount of toilet roll (from the center) that are needed. Reseal after each use.

6. If the wipes are not wet enough or the lid doesn't get put back on, just add more water. If the wipes are too moist, leave the lid off for a little while.

**If you are out of the nappy stage, these work great for cleaning up messy hands and faces when you are on the go. You can also use this mixture to re-wet purchased baby wipes!

lengloi

If there are working mothers who wear suits for work, then the ones with skirts are really good for the first 5 months. You can adjust the button on the skirt as the bump grows but cover the waist band with the jacket of the suit if the zip doesn't do up all the way.

After that, I brought two maternity dresses from Next which lasted me right through till I went on maternity leave.

I also brought a few pairs of leggings from Primark etc but brought the next size up. I used loose t-shirts and tunics that I already have in my wardrobe so hardly have to buy anything.

My friend gave me to maternity t-shirts (slightly more larger round the waist). They were a god send.

In terms of buying equipment for the baby, if you do decide to buy new then don't rush into buying stuff as soon as you find out you are pregnant. There is still months and months to go. Keep a eye out on all the websites (mothercare, kiddicare and don't forget Tesco Argos and John Lewis). Everything I wanted was reduced/price matched at one point or another.

You will also be offered a lot of nearly new clothes and toys and equipment.


I for one, will be trying to keep everything as clean/new as possible and will be giving my stuff away or selling them on Ebay etc when I have finished with it. Babies are expensive so we need to keep the cost down as much as possible.

Good luck to all the yummy mummies and dotting daddies out there.

dippydooda

While I've been pregnant i started buying bits and bobs quite early on-well have my 20wk scan. Have taken good advantage of the Baby Events at the supermarkets- during the first Asda one I stocked on on Huggies newborn packs, so have lots of nappies and wipes, at the Morrisons one I got a baby change mat, bottles and sterliser and like a Bumbo style chair all at reduced prices and just now at the latest Asda one I have bought 2 baby gates cheaper than anywhere else.
I also joined the baby clubs-Boots-gave me a voucher for money off car seats, so I purchased mine online through them and with the discount and extra points was defo the cheapest around.
I started this thread on Grabitnow board might be worth a look
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4380567

dippydooda

Oh also Amazon Family is worth signing up to for free triall to get their discounts. Got my monitor through them with discount code and £10 off.

natlie

Hi
I used real nappies - I recommend getting one size - both Fuzzibunz and Charlie Banana nappies are excellent. I used Cheeky Wipes wetwipes - they often do flash sales have a look on facebook.

I made my own baby soap use 2 standard size bars of soap - sensitive of hypoallergenic grate using a grater of chop in a food processor, add to 4 litres of water and melt over a moderate heat on stove, add 2 tablespoons (30mls) of glycerine - available on the cooking shelf at most supermarkets or at boots. it will go from being clear thin liquid to thick white hand soap as it cools add to reusable hand soap bottles, old shampoo bottles or shower gel bottles etc. This makes 4 litres
you can add essential oils if its not smelly. I used Tesco mandarin and lime soap 4 litres cost £1.36!

Nat

mttylad

babyshoes wrote: »

I would second freecycle / freegle. There are often baby / maternity clothes etc as well as equipment, toys etc on ours. Start looking as early as you can and build up a stash of free / cheap things so that when baby arrives you only need to buy the bits you need as you need them.

And when baby has outgrown them you can put them back on Freegle so that someone else can benefit from them.

gayleygoo

Breastfeed - formula milk is expensive and you could go through two tins of it a week, and feels wasteful when your baby doesn't drink it (leading some mums to save small amounts of it for the next feed, very dangerous). For breastfeeding you will only need one or two bottles if you want to express, and breast pumps are cheap second hand - you might not even use it that much. You won't need to boil water 15 times a day to make up feeds. I saved at least £1000 per child by breastfeeding them.

Reusable nappies can save a fortune, and will last for several babies. That is, is you don't get sucked into buying all the custom-made expensive nappies! They're also very cheap second hand, and you can sell them on when you're finished with them. I hardly found it any trouble to wash them, a proper lidded bucket elimintaes smell, and they look very cute. (That's aside from eliminating the chemicals in disposable nappies and the environmental damage from them hanging around in landfill for hundreds of years).

Some reusable wipes at least will save you money - cut up old blankets, sheets, towels etc to use, just run them under the warm tap before use or keep in a plastic tub. Some disposable wipes just feel very slimy and soapy - and ladies, if you use them on your own private areas, you will find that they often sting :eek:

Clothes - a huge expense, if bought new. You will probably get a lot in gifts in friends, and in any case tiny babies just look much more comfy in babygrows rather than "outfits". Your mummy-friends will probably be glad to [STRIKE]get rid of[/STRIKE] pass on their baby's old clothes, which will be in fab condition as they're hardly worn. My son is three and almost everything he's ever wore has been second, third, fourth or even fifth hand!

Pram - Second-hand lightly used prams can be good, but if yours will get a lot of use and perhaps even be used for a second child, consider a new one, however, wait for the sales, the "old season" prams often go half-price or less. A friend got her £500+ pram when she was 5 months pg, only to find it down to £180 by the time she had her baby!

Having your baby in a sling (a proper one, not those crotch-dangler kinds you get in Mothercare as they're not suitable for full-time use) will entertain them all day while making them feel loved and cared for. A bouncy-chair is useful occasionally, but I've seen many mums use them just to plonk their baby in front of the TV while they get on with something else.

Ikea highchairs are brilliant -cheap and practical, they're not much to look at, but the more expensive, padded, design-covered highchairs are a nightmare to keep clean!

Cot/basket sheets and bedding - I've always found this too expensive to buy. Cut up some of your own sheets if you have somew to spare (or even a new double sheet, they're cheaper than cot-sheets!) and hem if necessary. If you have any crafty friends, maybe they will gift you with handmade quilts and knitted blankets! In fact, don't buy blankets if you have friends, almost everyone buys you one!

A bar of organic/natural baby soap will last ages for bathing, you don't need shampoo.

There are so many things that you just don't need. Remember there is a huge market for baby things as some parents will feel that they "have to have" the latest of everything, and to be honest we bought very little of it. The job of the PR people at the baby stuff companies are trying to convince you that you do need them, that your baby will be worse off for not having whatever it is, nonsense of course. Toys have to be the worst - your baby doesn't need proper toys at all, their development will probably be better off for not having to stare at flashing noisy plastic light thingys. A couple of board books, a rattle and a simple mobile will suffice (and people will probably buy you lots of toys)

Many toys and baby items are designed to "help" parents by keeping a baby quiet, but there is nothing better for your baby than your attention and care.

brunettegirl

I am currently 24 weeks pregnant and have got quite a few items from freecycle and other facebook free local pages. Carboots are great for clothes, play mats, bedding and baskets,slings, baby carriers.
I have enough baby grows from birth to 12 months, 2 x playmats, 2 x baby carriers, I baby bouncer chair, 1 pram with all accessories, snowsuits, hooded towles, bedding, bottles and nappies. so far I have spent less than £100 (I am that sad I have a spreadsheet!) you can do it as cheaply or as expensively as you like depending on your circumstances.
Remember to get your freebie packs too