Baby Blankets 

The Universal Gift

When we think about baby gifts, most often we think about baby blankets. The fact of the matter is that it is important for a mom to have lots of baby blankets for her little one. It seems they're always needed - whether it's to wrap the babe when bringing him or her home from the hospital, or something cozy to swaddle the baby in while nursing. Blankets are what we wrap baby in when Dad comes home and wants to hold the baby, but he's wearing dirty work clothes. Some moms keep a warm blanket in the car, along with other items that can be kept in a zipped bag so they have a blanket to ensure baby is warm when traveling.

Most of the precious baby blankets are the ones that were made especially for your baby. Whether it was your mother, grandmother, or an older aunt, the knitted baby blanket given as a gift for baby at birth will remain a special part of that child's memory collection (and yours, too). Crochet baby blankets, usually very fine and delicate, are the ideal wrapping for special occasions, like baby namings, christenings, or circumcision ceremonies. Again, these special, hand made baby blankets become heirlooms, kept to be passed on to the child when he or she has a child.

The Blankie

Often, baby will find a blanket that is "the blankie". Almost every child has one. There's just something extra special about one certain blanket that makes it baby's security blanket. Some baby accessory companies have created "baby security blankets", but the fact of the matter is that baby will choose the blanket - nobody else can do the job. Usually, that blanket is a permanent attachment for the child until they reach about four or five years old, sometimes older. By then it is often reduced to a square that is not even close to the original color. Edges and ends have been cut off, it's been washed a million times, but it is still "blankie" and it is still the property of the child it was originally chosen by.

Warm, Fleece Baby Blankets

Handmade baby blankets, usually of fleece, are the current rage and they're easy enough to make. There are kits available at baby stores and craft centers (although you may not even need a kit) that provide a lovely piece of fleece, edging in satin, and thread to match. Instructions are included with the kits, but even if you're not a seamstress, sewing a fleece baby blanket is not difficult. There are sites online and books available in fabric stores that give you all the information you may need in order to produce a fleece baby blanket.

Precious Gifts

Personalized baby blankets are a perfect gift. You can choose a blanket of high quality and then pick a design to have embroidered on it. The baby's name and birth date are also embroidered on the blanket, and in some cases people have also included the birth weight. Whatever the decision turns out to be, personalized baby blankets are another item that follows baby through life. What a great keepsake and a lovely way to commemorate the birth of someone special.

There are many big-box stores where people shop for all sorts of items. It's like a huge warehouse of supplies of all kinds. You can often find great deals in these places, including everything for baby. It is possible to purchase baby blankets at wholesale prices in packages of six or eight. Receiving blankets are often sold this way, but it is also possible to bulk-purchase other kinds of baby blankets as well.

Whether the baby blanket is knitted, crocheted, handmade or purchased, the chances are it will not only serve a wonderful purpose, but it will go on to serve yet another child at some point.