For new parents, but also for those expecting a second baby the question may arise as to what to give our unborn or recently born baby as a gift? To be honest, when my little son and little daughter arrived, it caused a headache as to what to surprise them with, but in the end I think a nice solution was found in both cases. In the first half of the article, I share my personal experience, then I want to help you with more tips for those who are expecting a baby in their family, or have recently expanded. Naturally the tips can be used not only by parents, but also by grandparents, friends or close acquaintances/relatives. The ideas are all crochet related, however, those who cannot crochet or do not have time to make their own toy, the tips can also help you to buy already finished pieces. You can also use the tips for your 1st birthday, so it's worth saving a few tips for next year as well 😉
So, what should be the baby's first Christmas present?
Photo: Own (Rebeka Novák-Szabó ev)
My own story
First, I would like to share my own story about how we surprised our children on their first Christmas. My little boy He was born at the end of September, so we were able to enjoy the magic of the holidays together for his first Christmas. I was really looking forward to the fact that the three of us are celebrating my favorite holiday even though we are still in our small panel apartment. I prepared a lot, baked four kinds of cookies and put together a complete Christmas dinner for Christmas Eve. We spent a lot of time thinking about what to put under the tree for him, and finally we decided on an adhesive wall sticker, which we could use to transform his room into a boyish one. As he grew up, he became more and more interested, and the stickers were a great help during diaper changes, which I could use to distract him if he was fussing a lot.
My little girlI was signed up for the beginning of January, so our Christmas last year was a little unusual because of this. I was getting ready for the delivery room every day, I just kept insisting that the big day wouldn't be at Christmas. In the end, the young lady decided to give birth on the penultimate day of the year, so she spent the first Christmas in the womb. I found a beautiful winter-themed 1,500 piece puzzle for him in the Pagony bookstore, which I immediately fell in love with! I liked it so much that I cried because I knew that this was the real gift I wanted to give Him! My husband and I like to relax together, so our plan would have been to put it out by Christmas and frame it so it could be put on the wall. However, the puzzle turned out to be a bit more of a challenge than I thought, it is still being put together, but when it is ready it will be put on the wall and later we will be able to tell our daughter that this was her first Christmas present.
Crochet gift ideas for babies
Even at this age, gift giving can be quite versatile. I tried in this article to cover all types of gifts and collect them by category, what can be made or given as a gift to a baby. I have collected the samples of a couple of crocheted gifts that I love and like on a pinterest board, and in each section you can find crochet patterns related to the given chapter or pictures of finished toys! If you feel like it, look around the board to see if the crochet pattern for the gift you're looking for is hidden among the pictures!
Games
The first idea of everyone who crochets is that the best Christmas gift for a new or already born baby is a crocheted toy. In terms of making games, the Internet offers many possibilities for what to crochet, many times you can even buy it in the large selection, what would be the winning idea in the end. I believe that if we were not parents - that is, grandmothers, aunts, friends - we would make something for a baby we definitely ask for parents' opinions, because toys are very personal gifts at this age. As a mother of small children, I dare say that it is important to parents - especially for moms - what toys are in the hands of the baby. In any case, please note that toys should be made in a baby-friendly way, my article was written about it, which I link to at the bottom of the page, for those who haven't read it yet and would be interested.
For the little ones or those who are still on the way we can crochet a snooze cloth, which can be made of fluffy chenille yarn or cotton yarn (or any yarn with certification that can also be used for babies). We can make it for around one year old crocheted baby, whether it is a girl or a boy, there are many options to choose from in both cases. Or we can make it in addition to this stuffed animal, in such cases, it is advisable to make the animal that the parents like during the selection process, as this is how the gift becomes personal.
If we look beyond simple games, additional possibilities open up before us. These games made for developmental purposes they are less personal in my opinion, so a maker you can choose more boldly to your liking. You can crochet very good developmental toys, for example montessori tower or toys, shape-inserting cube, or various rattles and chews. We can also make it above the bed, unique small figures for the spinner, obsession musical, wind-up toys. It is not a problem if the baby is not necessarily able to actively use it at the moment of the gift, or if it only takes advantage of it later, since a few months pass so quickly, so he can explore the gifts received for a whole year. THE it is worth making contrasting toys for the youngest ones, mostly black and white, and we can also add the color red, because it is During the first months, babies do not see colors, only strong contrast, so these games attract their attention. The first color they see is red, so you can smuggle this color into the game.
Clothes and blankets
Also with regard to crocheted clothes we should be proactive. If you don't want to dress your baby in a winter hoodie in the summer, be sure to think about when the specific size you are crocheting will be good for your baby. Here, too, there is a very large selection of what we can crochet. THE during the winter season, we can make it around Christmas hat, scarf, stockings, socks, small shoes, small hoodie or sleeping bag can also be made from a yarn that is easy to wash, dries quickly and can be kept clean. The hat-scarf line has a lot of cute options, you can make beautiful pieces based on animal figures or simpler patterns.
One of the popular baby shower gifts, whether for mom or grandma, is a baby blanket. A lot on YouTube and DIY sites many free samples is available, we can even find free samples for all yarn types and sizes, which we can make for the little newcomer for the first Christmas. Here you could add a little personal story and I would give you an idea about the blanket. I made it from a cotton-wool blend during my pregnancy with my little girl made scarf, which in a transitional period as a baby blanket I could also use it. Since it was made while she was expecting a baby, I would like to give the scarf to her when she is older, so it's a real treat a personal surprise will be for him. In this regard, several ideas came to mind. As a parent we can make a scarf that grows every year, to which we crochet every year, as our child grows, so that he can wear it. Another personal, but nice gift that can be made by anyone is Temperature Blanket, i.e. the temperature blanket. This is a blanket that is crocheted according to the average daily temperature of the selected period. We start making the blanket by determining what color we order for the temperature ranges that rise by 5 degrees Celsius. When making the blanket, we crochet a row with a color corresponding to the average temperature of each day, so our blanket (or scarf) can expand and change color from day to day. Blankets with beautiful patterns are made in this way, creating an eternal memory of that year or period. This we can make it for the year the baby was born, or we can make it only for the period when the baby was in the womb. This is also more of a gift idea that our child will appreciate later, but then he will see it as a truly personal gift.
Baby room accessories
If in baby room decoration we are thinking about making gifts, by all means we ask the opinion of the parents. When it comes to decorating the baby's or newborn's room, as with almost all crocheting for babies/children, we have a lot of options and can create a lot of beautiful things. We can make it more beautiful than beautiful carpets made of cord yarn or T-shirt yarn. It can be a simple colored carpet, or it can also be one with an animal head figure. We can make more toy storage baskets, this can also be a circle-based basket or a square basket, it can be single-colored, multi-colored, animal-shaped, or vehicle-shaped. I also like these gifts because can be used sustainably for a long time by the recipient, in the case of a high-quality raw material, the created item can accompany the newcomer even into adulthood.
To decorate the room, I think a accessories made with tapestry technique they can be very beautiful, so we can make one that matches the style of the room wall decoration or tapestry pillow. In the case of the latter, due to the textures, I would suggest - but of course it is up to the maker's imagination what he chooses - that if we make a traditional pillow (so not a cylinder, sphere, star, etc.) then the front and back should be made of yarn with a different texture, so that the baby even at a younger age you can enjoy playing or playing with it. If you choose a soft yarn on one side (e.g. chenille or hairy yarn) and a smooth cotton yarn on the other side, your little one can experience the difference in the perception of surfaces, thus developing his sense of touch.
Summary
As you can see, so many options unfolds before us if we want to crochet something as a gift for a baby. Whether it is a personal gift or a more general surprise, toy, piece of clothing, baby blanket, room decoration, accessory, it is certain that any of these options we make for a baby will be a gift from the heart, like all handmade gifts. If you run out of time and can't make it anymore, don't be sad, because many of the listed ideas can be bought ready-made, and these ideas can be set aside for other significant events such as birthdays, name days, Easter or other holidays that the family celebrates. I hope you found my article useful.
Related articles:
What should you pay attention to when crocheting a toy for a baby? - Part 1
What should you pay attention to when crocheting toys for babies? – Part 2
10+2 Christmas crochet pattern from Hungarian Amigurumi Designer
Advent Crochet 2023. - Advent preparation, not only for crocheters
