Less stuff. Better choices.
Kit that earns its keep.
There’s a lot of baby gear out there. Find the useful bits, read the community’s experience and share your own.
Infant car seat and ISOFIX base
The one thing on this list where cheap is genuinely the wrong call. Buy new, get the fitting checked in person, and never buy used unless you know its full history.
Pram that fits your actual hallway
Measure your hallway, your boot and your front door before you fall in love with anything. Then push it round the shop and fold it one-handed. That is the test, not the fabric.
Soft structured carrier or sling
The most underrated item in the entire category. Hands free, they sleep, you can walk. Try before buying, they suit different bodies very differently.
Blackout blinds
Cheap, unglamorous, and the highest return on investment in the whole of babyhood. British summer evenings are the enemy of a 7pm bedtime.
Head torch
Sounds ridiculous. Transforms night changes. Red light mode means you can see what you are doing without waking anybody, including yourself, properly up.
Two bottles, not a set of eight
Buy two and wait. Babies are startlingly opinionated about teats and you may need to switch brands entirely. A set of eight is a set of six you cannot return.
Electric steriliser
Worth it if there are bottles in your life. Not worth it if you are exclusively breastfeeding, in which case skip the entire category.
Cot with a drop side
A firm flat mattress and nothing else in it. That is the whole specification. Borrowed frames are fine, but buy the mattress new.
Video monitor
Buys you the ability to leave the room. Whether it reduces anxiety or feeds it depends entirely on the man holding it.
A changing bag you would actually carry
Any rucksack works. The point is that it is one you do not resent carrying, because you will carry it every day for two years.
Compact folding stroller
One-hand fold, narrow enough for a London hallway. The one to buy if space is tight.
Electric bottle steriliser
Counter-top unit. Cycles in six minutes. Keeps contents sterile for 24 hours if unopened.
Infant car seat (carrier type)
Rear-facing carrier with separate base. Leave the base in the car, click the seat in and out.
Bedside bassinet
Bassinet that sits beside the bed with a drop side. Reach the baby without getting up. Mostly.
Anti-colic bottle set
Five bottles, slow-flow teats, venting system. Cheap, replaceable, and you will lose the lids.
Before you buy another thing...
A practical starting point for working out what you need.