The Best Baby Shower Gift Ideas (Guide) – 2020 Edition
When one of your loved ones is having a baby, you want to give them the best baby shower gifts that you can find. It isn’t enough to get a pricey gift, however. You want to get things that the young mother and her newborn will use. You want to anticipate their needs.
So, in this article we’ll round up a handful of the best baby shower gifts on the market so that you’ll know which presents your loved one will use for their new child. By the time we’re done, you’ll know what to look for, which presents are winners, and which are sure to make the new little one smile.
Contents
- Baby Shower Gift Reviews
- #1 Choice – Summer Infant Complete Nursery Care Kit
- #2 Choice – Baby Bandana Drool Bibs by Dodo Babies + 2 Pacifier Clips + Pacifier Case in a Gift Bag
- #3 Choice – Bubzi Co White Noise Sound Machine & Sleep Aid Night Light
- #4 Choice – Crystal Baby Smile Portable Changing Pad
- #5 Choice – Aveeno Baby Daily Bathtime Solutions Gift Set to Nourish Skin for Baby and Mom
- #6 Choice – Lily Miles Baby Diaper Caddy
- #7 Choice – Baby Socks Gift Set
- What should I look for in a baby shower gift?
- What shower gifts should I avoid?
- How do I avoid giving a duplicate gift?
Baby Shower Gift Reviews
#1 Choice – Summer Infant Complete Nursery Care Kit
With this nursery care kit, your loved one and their little one will have a great set of equipment that will help them be prepared for a wide variety of potential issues.
Pros
- Includes a comprehensive set of baby essentials
- Convenient diaper bag-style carrying case
- Cute teal aesthetic
Cons
- Individual items in the kit may not be high quality
New moms need to have all the tools they need to take care of their child. Most new moms like to keep all these tools in a convenient place so that they can take them along wherever they go.
With this infant care kit, your new mom will get a syringe, ear cleaner bulb, comb, brush, tweezers, thermometer, nose cleaner, pacifier, and carrying case. The only thing that isn’t included in the kit are things like baby wipes, which your new mom will go through at a high rate.
The best thing about this kit is that it’s acceptable for your new mom to get more than one kit which contains similar things. One kit might go in the car, and another might go in the bedroom or bathroom. You don’t need to worry about getting a duplicate gift which they can’t use.
#2 Choice – Baby Bandana Drool Bibs by Dodo Babies + 2 Pacifier Clips + Pacifier Case in a Gift Bag
Babies always look cute, but with this set of bandana bibs and pacifier clips, your friend or relative’s little one will look stylish even when they’re making a mess of their dinner.
Pros
- Four separate bandanas
- Trendy color scheme
- Highly absorbent bib material
Cons
- Easy to rip the bib during cleaning
- White colors will need to be washed frequently
This set includes four bandana bibs in pleasantly trendy colors. Two of the bibs are white, one is navy blue, and the last is black.
All four of the bibs look great, but the white bibs are sure to attract a lot of baby slobber or spit up, so you should know that you’re buying something that the recipient will need to spend some time cleaning.
Otherwise, these bibs are great for babies because of how soft the material is. There’s no chance that the bibs will irritate babies with extra sensitive skin. The only issue is that the buttons on the back of the bib can break or get warped when you’re washing them.
#3 Choice – Bubzi Co White Noise Sound Machine & Sleep Aid Night Light
Giving your relative or friend the gift of a night’s sleep without the baby interrupting is something that’s within the realm of the possible with this Bubzi white noise and night light.
Pros
- Helps lull babies to sleep
- Great for noise-sensitive babies
- Cheerful exterior
Cons
- Requires batteries
- Will not be the only thing needed to lull the baby to sleep
This Bubzi white noise machine is in the shape of a cute owl with a set of sparkling lights on its chest. At night, you can activate the machine to provide soothing white noise support. After 30 minutes, the owl automatically goes to sleep itself.
This feature means that you don’t need to worry about keeping your baby up or wasting energy as a result of the gentle orange lights on the machine. Babies will be insulated from other sounds in the environment when the machine is turned on, and they’ll fall asleep faster.
The new mom will need to keep this owl supplied with batteries if they plan on using it to help their baby get to sleep every night, however. The lullabies sung by the owl are excellent, but after a week of nightly use you’ll need to find replacement batteries.
#4 Choice – Crystal Baby Smile Portable Changing Pad
Portable changing kits are critical tools that parents will use to keep their baby clean and healthy while on the go.
Pros
- Includes convenient diaper bag for storage
- Soft padding without being too bulky
- Compact size but perfect for a baby
Cons
- Grey color doesn’t look good
No matter where the new parents are, they’ll need to change their new baby on a regular basis. Every family has their own system but keeping all of the pieces together in one spot is a massive boon to a smooth baby changing operation.
In this kit, parents will get a changing pad, several detachable inner pockets, waterproof sleeves, and a purse-like carrying case which looks great on the outside.
Unfortunately, the pad itself doesn’t look very good, but since the new mom will be looking at the baby rather than the pad itself, you don’t need to worry much about its aesthetics. Thankfully, the pad is easy to clean, and the entire kit is very durable.
#5 Choice – Aveeno Baby Daily Bathtime Solutions Gift Set to Nourish Skin for Baby and Mom
You may hesitate to get a consumable item for a baby shower, but believe it or not new parents will spend a lot of time and money trying to refresh their supplies of basic items for the bath.
Pros
- Contains shampoo, bath oil, moisturizer, and body wash
- Baby and mom friendly
- Includes caddy
Cons
- Babies probably won’t appreciate the bath oil
Aveeno is a great brand, and this collection of Aveeno baby-friendly bath products is no exception. Parents will love the fact that one kit enables them to wash and moisturize their child’s hair and skin.
The scents in the kit are mild and baby-friendly. Moms will also enjoy the scents and the feel of the products. But, the bath oil may not be the most essential component of the kit.
Babies probably won’t care very much about having a bath which smells nice when the soap and shampoo will overpower the bath’s smells. So, you might consider the bath oil to be a gift for the baby’s mother more than for the baby itself.
#6 Choice – Lily Miles Baby Diaper Caddy
A diaper caddy is the perfect gift for a baby shower because it anticipates the needs of the new parents and their child.
Pros
- Helps organize baby changing essentials
- Great for home or car
- Pleasant aesthetic
Cons
- Difficult to clean the caddy itself
- Doesn’t include any consumables
The Lily Miles Baby Diaper Caddy is the one-stop location for the parents to store their baby changing accessories or bath accessories. There’s a spot in the caddy for everything, so the parents can use their preferred organization scheme.
The caddy itself looks good, and it’s hardy enough to sit in the back of the car without worrying about it getting damaged. While the kit is a bit bulky, it isn’t intended to be fully portable, but it’s light enough to move around the home without any trouble.
Cleaning the caddy itself can be a bit of a hassle if it gets dirty with spit up or grime, however. Getting the caddy wet won’t cause any problems, thankfully.
#7 Choice – Baby Socks Gift Set
Babies go through socks rapidly because of how quickly they grow — and that’s what makes this baby socks set a winner for a baby shower gift.
Pros
- Four separate sock pairs
- Socks have cute phrases on the soles
- Soft material and cute look
Cons
- Won’t hold up to too many wash cycles
These four pairs of baby socks are emblazoned with cute phrases and graphics on the soles so that when the baby is chilling out everyone nearby can have a laugh. The material in the socks is soft, safe, and washer-friendly — at least for the first few washes.
The downside of these socks is that they tend to fall apart after a bunch of wash cycles. On the bright side, babies grow so quickly that they may become too big for the socks before the socks themselves start to tear.
What should I look for in a baby shower gift?
When you’re looking for a baby shower gift, you need to care about five things:
- Safety
- Utility
- Comfort
- Aesthetics
- Ease of cleaning
Baby products need to be baby-safe. You’d think that all the products made for babies are genuinely safe, but unfortunately you can’t be too careful. You should check for any recalls of baby products and look to see whether there are any consumer warnings before purchasing.
Likewise, you need to make sure that the baby shower gift serves a need that the parents or the baby will have. Remember, decoration is something that is necessary, but too much decoration and too little utility will leave the new parents wanting for more.
Comfort is also a big concern. Shower presents that are worn by the baby need to be comfortable. Parents should also be comfortable while using the gift, at least to the extent that is possible.
Because of how frequently the parents will be using the shower presents, you should also ensure that your gift looks good. Aesthetics are important because they help keep the parents’ spirits high even when they’re up at 2 AM to comfort the baby.
Ease of cleaning is also a critical factor when you’re looking for a shower gift. Babies are dirty, and new parents will be spending a lot of time cleaning up the messes that the baby has made. This means that it’s important for everything to be easy to clean.
What shower gifts should I avoid?
As odd as it may sound, you should probably avoid baby shower gifts that might feel as though they were too expensive to use. Parents appreciate the presents you give them, and they want to get as much mileage out of your gift as possible.
So, they might hesitate to use your gift if it appears to be too valuable. Of course, this means that they won’t get any value from your gift whatsoever. You should strike a balance between things that they need and what they’ll use.
Otherwise, you may want to avoid shower gifts which make the lives of the parents more difficult. Purchasing presents that require attendance or effort may make the parents feel like they are obligated to invest effort when they are already running on empty.
How do I avoid giving a duplicate gift?
The short answer is that you can’t avoid giving a duplicate gift except by looking at the baby shower registry. The long answer is that you can avoid this issue altogether if you purchase shower gifts which the recipients can use even if they have more than one copy. In other words, purchasing consumables like soaps or baby wipes may seem to be a bit cheap.
Giving them the gift of something that they will use to keep their child healthy and happy will not be diminished by anyone else giving them the same gift. Your gift might have to wait for the duplicate presents to be used first—but it will still be used, nonetheless.
Don’t sweat shower presents too much. Babies are a cause for happiness, and the baby shower is merely the first step in the journey of the new parents. Your contributions will be valued whether you pick the perfect gift or not.