new baby "problem" gift

jackyann

Always good suggestions on here, so advce welcome.
A young relative who I am fairly close to has just had a baby.
Her side of the family are relatively comfortable, fairly arty and would tend to give beautifully crafted type baby gifts (to me & mine)
This young couple are struggling financially, so I'd like to be useful, but....
Money would set an uncomfortable precedent in this family set-up & their relationship with us!
A Boots or supermarket voucher would embarrass them
His side of the family have loads of kids and pass round loads of clothes, equipment & useful stuff, so nothing is strictly "needed"
My budget is about £30-40, but I could stretch to £50 for something special.

Thanks!

hieveryone

When one of our friends had a baby, we got them a photography voucher for a 'newborn' photoshoot.

It was the only gift of this type they received and they absolutely loved it, it went down much better than I thought it would. If I recall it was around £45-£50 and they went to the ladies house to get the photos done.

Meant to add, this included 2 prints of the photos they liked best, so they didn't have to shell out any additional money unless they wanted to buy more.

picklekin

If they are struggling financially then I would say its best to ask them what they NEED, no point having a room full of arty gifts if they don't have any clothes for example! You don't have to say you are doing it for financial reasons, can just say that you don't want to duplicate gifts..

If you don't want to ask them I think clothes are always good, but buy in a variety of sizes so they can have new things to grow into

Gra76

Get clothes. Every single time this is a winner. New babies can never have too many clothes. The baby will grow out of the newborn items fairly quickly so get them some clothes for the 6-12 months period. Having been through 3 newborns we always welcomed clothes and it was what was always asked for as well if anyone asked what we needed.

ska_lover

picklekin wrote: »

If they are struggling financially then I would say its best to ask them what they NEED, no point having a room full of arty gifts if they don't have any clothes for example!:)

I couldn't agree more.

Something practical everytime. Or money in a card towards the babys savings account

hieveryone

Whether or not someone is struggling financially, I always think it is nice to get them something that they wouldn't necessarily spend money on themselves.

Baby clothes can be picked up cheap as anything - they are hardly going to let the baby go without clothing.

A gift of something that can be kept as a memory, a keepsake, and something they wouldn't normally be able to do is much more thoughtful, I feel.

I also got one of my other friends a sterling silver heart bracelet with her babies handprint on it, that also went down well.

PasturesNew

I'd go for an unbreakable heirloom piece. e.g. if it's a girl, then a silver/adjustable, sturdy, bangle, engraved with name/date of birth.

Something to treasure for life that's not going to be a hassle to keep/store/move. e.g. not a plate/cup set.

lilmiss1982

What about this sleeping bag. I'm sure they will find it useful, it comes gift wrapped too and has 50% off. Boden is excellent quality.

http://www.boden.co.uk/en-GB/Baby-0-3yrs-Accessories/78094-MUL/Baby-0-3yrs-Multi-Elephant-Party-Sleep-Bag.html

whitewing

What about a name plaque for the bedroom door?

DD got given a hairbrush and mirror with her name on it - obviously she didn't use it straight away but it is lovely and not something essential that I would have bought.

Book box sets are lovely.

rach_k

Books! A child can never have too many books and if you get in there early while the kid is little you've less chance of buying something they already have

The Biggest Kiss was my favourite books to read the kids as babies, closely followed by Julia Donaldson books.

Alikay

Books? Maybe some children's bestsellers like The Gruffalo, Guess How Much I Love You, Dear Zoo, Very Hungry Caterpillar. Some come in a gift set with a soft toy which is nice for reading to a tiny child (especially The Gruffalo....you can point out his terrible teeth, poisonous wart, purple prickles etc:))