Girl baby bedding: princesses and fairies. Baby bedding for boys: baseball or football. But wait! Baby bedding is cute, but there is much more to consider than just appearances.

You can’t be sure if your new baby is going to be allergic to anything or not. The fabric of your baby’s bedding is very important, and should be considered before looks. Quality nursery bedding will have a list of fill materials and fill power – higher fill means fluffier and longer-lasting. It will also tell you the thread cound and the cover fabric. The most important things to keep in mind are that the bedding should be lightweight, it should be warm, and it should be breathable. Doing research online is easy, so if you’re interested in a bedding set, make sure you find out what material it’s made of first.

No one wants their baby to suffer from allergies, so choose fabrics that reduce the risk, like cotton or wool (that also includes alpaca or llama wool). Although some synthetic fabrics are breathable, most are not. Of equal concern is the emission of fumes that can occur as the fabrics age. If you have decided on a bedding set such as  the Max 4pc baby bedding set, that is primarily cotton but doesn have some polyester, then you will have to decide if the small risk is worth it to get the bedding you really want.

I love wool blankets – I think they are the softest, most comfortable blankets, especially for babies. When choosing a wool blanket, look for an organic or unbleached cotton flannel. Choose your blanket size based on usage – small blankets for swaddling and big blankets for car trips or daycare.

Down is a great choice for a filler material – it is both lightweight and breathable. Down comforters that are dry clean only are not practical, so look for the ones that are machine washable (that’s actually most of them). Cleanliness is vital in a down comforter – this is what determines how hypoallergenic it will be. There are two tests to determine the cleanliness of down – the oxygen test and the turbidity test. The oxygen test has a government standard of 10 but a lower number is better. The turbidity test has an upper limit of about 550, with lower numbers meaning less cleanliness.