Baby Bedding - Buy or Borrow?

When it comes time to obtain baby bedding for the new arrival in
your family, you may have well meaning family or friends
encourage you to borrow the things that you need. There is no
doubt that hand-me-downs are less expensive than purchasing new
items for a new baby, but there are some other factors that you
should be aware of before letting the lower price tag affect
your decision to borrow the baby bedding you need for your baby.
Even if you choose to borrow rather than buy, take the necessary
steps to ensure the safety and health of your baby.

Safety

The safety of your baby is the primary concern for any product
that you use, but especially for baby bedding since a newborn
spends up to 70% of his or her time in contact with the bedding.
when you use baby bedding that is borrowed, it may be older
products that have had safety defects associated with them. It
may use chemicals for fire retardants or chemical dyes that are
less than desirable to be in contact with your baby. The donor
of the products may not even be aware of safety issues
associated with a specific item.

Quality

The quality of borrowed baby bedding may be top notch, but it
may also have defects that render it less than ideal. For
example, a cheap mattress that is used extensively may have
deterioration so that the firmness is compromised. These
mattresses can create poor spinal alignment in infants. Less
than adequate quality can cause breathing problems if the baby
bedding contains dust, spores or other irritants that upset your
baby's skin and breathing passages. Even good quality bedding
can be subject to stains and contaminants that you can scarcely
see. Are you willing to take the chance with the health of your
baby?

Designs

When you borrow baby bedding, some of the designs that may be
used in the products are out dated enough to be the subject of
recalls. An example might be a crib bumper that has tie cords
to hold it in place. Decorative baby pillows is another baby
bedding design feature that has changed over the years to become
less likely to have features that can come loose or cause
suffocation of the baby. Decals on cribs, mattresses or bumpers
tend to deteriorate. Of less importance is the fact that
certain designs look dated, so if appearance of the items is
important to you. you might be better to purchase the bedding
rather than borrow it.

Durability

No matter how good the quality is on a borrowed or hand me down
item, it has been used to some extent in most instances. Each
time the baby bedding is used, it is inevitable that there is
some wear and tear on the item. In the case of baby bedding
this may not make any difference, but it may also make a great
deal of difference. Fabric tears happen more easily in products
that have been weakened by wear or washing.

About The Author: Molly Ridenhour is a proud co-owner of Pure
and Honest Kids, a children's and baby e-boutique. Visit us
today on the web for a large selection of Crib Bedding and
Serena and Lily at http://www.pureandhonestkids.com.