Best Baby Blankets?

Since opening our store, many of our friends and family are often asking us, “what are the best baby blankets on your site”?  Well, it really depends on what you are looking for.  From the very beginning of this site’s existence, we have striven to be your one destination on the internet for all of your baby blanket needs.  We’ve had our work cut out for us!  There are many different categories of baby blankets, and so the best baby blanket needs to begin with the question, “what are you using it for?”

Do you need a swaddling blanket?  Do you need a security blanket?  Do you need a receiving blanket?  Do you need a stroller blanket?  Some blankets will cross over into multiple categories, but others are designed specifically for one reason.  For example, the Snug and Tug on our site is strictly a swaddler.  However, our aden and anais blankets can serve as swaddling, stroller blankets, play blankets or many other uses.  Our Swaddle Designs lovies are definitely meant to be a security blanket as well as a fashion statement.  Many celebrity moms love these blankets.

So, what is the best baby blanket?  It’s really up to you!  Determine what the purpose is, then shop our store by category.  OR, shop our store by color.  OR, shop our store by price.  OR, shop our store by brand.  Ok, ok, I’ll stop.  But, you get the idea.  Some blankets may be better quality than others.  We love the aden and anais muslin wraps, but it’s hard to say which are the best.

We Have A Winner!

Thank you to everyone who participated in our first ever giveaway.  Overall, we had 50+ entries into our contest.  Thank you to everyone who commented, tweeted, became a fan of our Facebook page and blogged about the giveaway.  It was much appreciated.  We hope you had a chance to look at our great selection of baby blankets and that you remember us for any future gifts that you need.

Using random.org, Cindy U. from Utah was the winner of the adorable Luvable Friends receiving blankets.  We sure hope she enjoys them.  Thank you again to everyone who was a part of the contest!

Be on the lookout for more giveaways, and if you know of ways for us to promote them, please let us know!  We are want to get the word out to all of the moms out there who could use some free gifts.  Blanket My Baby is for moms!  So, if we can help out in any way, it gives us great joy.

Luvable Friends 6-Pack Flannel Receiving Blanket Set $15 Giveway

Blanket My Baby is excited to host our first giveaway of what hopefully will be many to come!  For our first giveaway, we are offering a free Luvable Friends 6 Pack of Receiving Blankets, a $15 value.

From our premium Luvable Friends layette collection of unique baby clothing and baby care products, our flannel receiving blankets are made of only the softest cotton flannel for the softest touch on your baby’s gentle skin. Each set comes with 6 unique blankets (5 printed and 1 with detailed emboidery). The sets are available in two themes: puppy for boys and cupcake for girls. They are 100% Cotton Flannel and machine washable.  Measuring approximately 30 x 30 inches, each blanket will keep a baby warm and cozy!

We recently brought them in as a gift to our new niece and the nurses in the maternity ward fell in love with them!  They couldn’t stop talking about the cute designs.

When it comes to newborns, it always helps to have an extra clean blanket around.  It’s nice to have the more luxurious fabrics like muslin cotton or organic materials, but those blankets can add up.  These blankets are soft to the touch and are perfect for keeping your baby warm.  However, when the spit ups or diaper leaks occur, it’s nice to have a few more blankets on hand, which makes these perfect to have!

Blanket My Baby offers Luvable Friends blankets at our store along with our huge selection of receiving blankets, swaddling blankets and security blankets.  We offer other categories such as personalized blankets, animal blankets, hand made blankets and sleep sacks.  Our site is easy to navigate with filters so that you can shop by brand, material, color and price.  Be sure to check out the store when you get a chance.  We offer some of the top brands on the market and pride ourselves at offering unique baby blanket designs as well.  We have the full line of SwaddleDesigns as well as aden + anais 4 packs on sale.

Now For the Giveaway Rules:

This giveaway is open until January 19, 2010 at 11:59 pm EST to US only.  I’ll announce (and contact by email) the winner and the winner will have 2 days to get back to me for delivery details.

Entry Opportunities:

1. Visit Blanket My Baby website and leave a comment telling us which blanket(s) you like best!
For extra entries (Be sure to leave a separate comment for each):

2.  Grab our button from our right sidebar and add it to your blog. Leave your blog URL to the page our button is displayed.

Aden and Anais Video Review

We wanted to pass on this great video review done by our friends at EmbellishedMom.com.  We’ve tried to tell you the amazing benefits of aden + anais blankets, but if you don’t believe us, here’s someone else’s word for it.

The video goes to show just how big these blankets are.  You don’t really appreciate the full 47″ x 47″ untilit’s compared to another blanket.  Because of it’s great size, these blankets are great for swaddling.

As of now, our stock of aden & anais has been running out because everyone is buying them up!  Our $38.94 sale price is one of the best on the internet, since they normally retail for $44 a 4 pack.  Combine that with our $5 flat rate shipping, and you have a fantastic deal!  While our stock is diminishing, we plan on adding to it soon with many new patterns as well.  Be sure to come back and check them out!

Ajax in his Ultimate Receiving Blanket

Here is our new favorite buddy, Henry Ajax Knoechel.  He is the first baby of our best friends Josh and Stacy, and what do you know?  He’s all swaddled up in his Brown Mod Circles on White Ultimate Receiving Blanket, which came from Blanket My Baby.

Swaddled Baby

I was visiting Ajax for a bit today, and noticed he was resting well in this blanket.  One of the greatest things about these blankets are the size.  At 42″ x 42″, they are large enough to make a secure swaddle around the baby.  Ajax seems to like it, and he’s drifting away to sleep land.  If you don’t know why he’s named Ajax, no, it’s not for the cleaning product.  He was named after the amazing Greek hero.  You can see him here.

Ajax in Ultimate Receiving Blanket

New Functionality

We are ever working to improve the functionality of our website so that you our welcomed guest will have the best shopping experience possible.  Today, if you went to our site, you will notice that we added several new categories in which to shop for blankets, all sorted by color.  So, if you are particular about finding a color, it will be much easier for you to navigate our site.  In addition to blue, pink and green baby blankets, you can now shop by yellow, orange, purple, red and brown blankets!  There are many choices to choose from.

Happy Camper

Soon, this navigation will look even better.  We’ll be separating your shopping experience on the home page by category, color, material, and price.  This is a functionality rarely seen on other baby websites, and we hope it sets us apart in the industry.  On top of this, it’ll be easier for you to check out our blog as we will have the latest blog post on the home page.

Also, we are still on an aggressive hunt for adding more of the best baby blankets available.  We have top brands already including Swaddle Designs, AllyZabba, Sleep Pea Pod and more.  We are currently out of stock on our aden + anais blankets, but hope to have those replenished soon.  We are also looking to add some great value in receiving blankets from Luvable Friends.  We hope to provide 4, 5 and 6 packs of receiving blankets for a VERY low price.  Be on the lookout for those products soon.  As always, if you have a favorite brand of blankets that aren’t on the site, let us know about it, and we’ll do our best to add them.

Personalized Baby Blankets Are Here!

If you’ve been holding your breath for BlanketMyBaby to offer personalized baby blankets, then you are in luck!  First of all, exhale.  Then, check out the many new products we are offering on our site.

Ok, while I admit that I was hesitant to add these products (more below), we realize that personalized blankets are an important part of any baby blanket store.  If you are looking to buy a gift for a friend or family member, there is hardly a better way out there to show your caring thoughtfulness than with an embroidered blanket.  It shows that you go the extra distance to put a touch of kindness in your gift.  Plus, it’s something the child can treasure as their own!

Look closely on our product page.  Notice anything different?  Ok, you may have caught us.  This category page is a bit different than the rest.  If you’ve noticed, there are no helpful filters or pop images to help you get a closer look.  I’ve added these products as affiliate only for now.  Yeah, yeah, not my favorite, but we’re more concerned about you having a fuller selection than the checkout being on BMB.  So go ahead, knock yourself out and discover some of the great personalized blankets we have to choose from!

Personalized Bear Blankets

Unique Muslin Swaddle Blankets for Baby: Practical and Posh

If you’ve read any of the blanketmybaby.com blog series, “An Everyday Parent’s Advice for Buying the Perfect Baby Blanket” you may have noticed a trend.  Many moms and dads recommend swaddling blankets for new babies, but complain that typical receiving blankets are not big enough to swaddle with.  Several of these parents also mentioned that the fabric of swaddle blankets is key.  You want a blanket that will keep the baby warm.  However, the fabric should still be breathable so that the baby does not sweat and become uncomfortable.

We at blanketmybaby.com found a product line–Aden and Anais Australian Muslin Baby Wraps–that seem to come in a size and fabric that will quiet both complaints.  The swaddle blankets are 47 inches X 47 inches and are large enough for a comfortable swaddle.

The cotton muslin fabric keeps babies at a comfortable temperature.  According to Aden and Anais, “Muslin is a unique cotton fabric first introduced into England in the late 17th century. Muslin has a light, open weave that allows air to flow seamlessly through the material. The soft natural fibers allow your baby’s body temperature to adjust naturally, eliminating over-heating, but ensuring warmth and comfort.” Swaddle instructions and unique product options can be found on our website.

These products were developed by two moms who moved to the U.S. from Australia.  Shortly after the move, both moms looked for muslin swaddling cloths for their babies (apparently a baby staple in Australia) only to find that muslin swaddling blankets were actually quite uncommon in the U.S.  After many compliments on and requests for their hommemade muslin baby blankets, the two moms created Aden and Anais.

Aden and Anais muslin swaddle blankets come in many patterns and color combinations.  The blankets pictured above are from their mod line.  These are mostly white with small, colorful graphics.  From traditional solid to trendy prints, these blankets are both practical and posh.  They can be purchased in packs of two or four.  The blankets are machine washable and are safe to put in the dryer.  They actually get softer as you wash them!  Aden and Anais also carries muslin wash cloths and hooded towels.

A unique way to gift a homemade receiving blanket at a baby shower

This idea was submitted by:
Heather, 28, Florence, KY
Proud mom of David, Marisa, Joseph and TBD

My mom makes really big receiving blankets for everyone who has a baby, and wraps their gifts in them.  She makes them at least a meter squared.  They stretch width-wise across the crib with room to tuck in a bit, and I use them all the time.  When securely tucked in, they can go directly next to the baby’s face in the crib.

My sister-in-law loves them for nursing because they provide great coverage, but don’t over-heat the baby.  They’re also good for getting a snug, not-going-anywhere swaddle.

So if you want a quick, easy sewing project, buy a yard or so of cute cotton flannel (preferably one with finished edges along two sides) and all you have to do is hem or serge the other two sides.  If you’re making a blanket for your own child, my only advice would be to not over-estimate how much available time you are going to have to make these blankets after your baby arrives.  I’ve got lots of material in the basement for cute blankets that I doubt I’ll ever get around to sewing.  Make them before baby arrives if you can, new moms are busy ladies!

An Everyday Parent’s Advice for Buying the Perfect Baby Blanket – My top three criteria include Fabric, Functionality and Style

Heather, 28, Florence, KY
Proud mom of David, Marisa, Joseph and TBD

The perfect baby blanket depends on the owner.  It has to be perfect for you and your baby.  My top three criteria for finding a baby blanket I love are:
fabric, functionality and style.

Fabric
The feel of the fabric must be comfy for the baby and not irritating to me.  The fabric should be heavy enough to keep my baby warm, but light enough so that the baby does not wake up drenched in sweat.  I avoid heavy fleece, thin cotton that allows my baby to feel a draft and all fabrics that are not breathable.

I despise cheap cotton/flannel receiving blankets.  They end up all skewed and out of square after the first washing. I know there’s no way to check for this before buying them, but my Gerber receiving blankets all did this, along with others from cheap stores. Name brands like Carters make really sturdy, much higher quality receiving blankets and it’s well worth paying a bit extra for blankets that hold up.  I use receiving blankets for EVERYTHING.  I love them.

Functionality
The blanket has to be big enough to swaddle with.  There are few things more annoying than trying to swaddle a baby with a blanket that is just a centimeter too small.

Also, since babies are professionals at getting things dirty, the blanket must be durable and able to withstand many washings.  As stated above, I suggest avoiding cheap, cotton/flannel receiving blankets.

Style
The blanket must be cute and unique.  There is a large selection of baby blankets on the market, so I look for one that meets all of my criteria.  With a little searching, I can always find a baby blanket that has a comfy fabric, functionality and my style.