With my first pregnancy, we were living at my in-laws house and dealing with building delays (we didn’t move out until our new house until my daughter, Camille was eight months old!). I was completely last minute about the whole thing (which is pretty true to my personality) and the only thing I had researched and organised early on was the pram which I bought early in a Vogue Online Shopping Night. I didn't have a registry, but I wrote a list ahead of my baby shower which my sister shared with anyone who enquired. Some good friends bought me a bassinet and a few other things on the list, but a lot of others who had children just bought stuff they knew I’d need, that I hadn't thought of, things like bath towels, cot sheets, teethers, feeding bowls, cutlery and baby skin care products.
Living at my in-laws, I was pretty careful not to buy too much stuff because I didn’t have a permanent nursery and we had limited storage. It wasn’t ideal, but it did teach me that you don’t quite need as much baby stuff as you think. So many things aren’t used for very long, and I was pretty open to borrowing stuff and letting friends give me their hand-me-downs — I borrowed everything from a cot to a car capsule. Even newborn onesies were passed down from my sister, who told me not to bother buying them because they’re only in them for 1-2 months, which was correct. Camille put on weight so quickly she was out of her newborn onesies after a month.
With my second pregnancy, we're in our own house, so I’m enjoying the chance to decorate and organise a nursery properly, but I'm still buying minimal clothes and plan to shop as the baby needs. And certainly not stressing about “having everything” — you can easily buy things as you go.
