Buying a baby shower or new baby gift you might think is straightforward. If you want to really make an impact with your gift though, think more about what the gift is, not how much it cost and where you bought it from.

When you become a parent it is quite overwhelming the number of gifts you receive. As lovely as this is, and as generous as people are, many parents end up with lots of the same or similar things.

Lots of people seem to buy clothing as gifts and you can easily end up with way more newborn clothes than you need and things often not being worn before the child grows out of them, which always seems like such a shame.

Buying something for when the child is older is one idea but remember to work out what season it will be, otherwise again, it might not get any wear.

Over the years across the four children we’ve had some lovely gift’s but hands the down one of the best was after my first child was born. It was given to me by a friend who had herself become a mum a year before I had.

She basically used all the knowledge she had gained in that 12 months as a mother and filled a baby box with all the useful things she thought I would need. She’d gone through the realisation that there is lots of ‘stuff’ you think you need that you don’t and also come across those things you really need that no one ever tells you. Equally, she had put in lots of things that were the bits and bobs she used to run out of all the time and some gorgeous bubble bath for me.

Ten years on and I still use that baby box everyday for keeping essential things for the children that I use all the time!

If you are looking for a baby shower or new baby gift, why not think about putting one together yourself?

Choose a nice tub or basket, or indeed a useful baby box and fill it with useful bits and bobs, like dummy clips, nappies, barrier cream etc and a few treats, because new mummies deserve a treat and sometimes they get forgotten.

So what could you include?

These days I don’t get through a day without using the amazing Childs Farm products. We have the hand wash in all the toilets and by the kitchen sink, their swim wash in both the bag for swimming lessons and my daughter’s wet bag for swimming training and we use the products at bath and shower time. I’ve even used them on myself as they smell so good. They now have a range specifically for newborns, and they do gift packs, so the perfect addition to your present. If you use code CFAMB50 at the checkout you will get 30% off your purchase too!

If you think you want to go more traditional you could include Johnson’s Baby products, or even a mixture of the two. You might want to include their shampoo, with it’s distinctive smell, their nappy cream or even the baby oil, which of course the new mum can use too on that dry postpartum skin. Sometimes people prefer the golden oldies and going back to basics.

A cute addition to new baby bathtime is the Cuddleduck, and at £7.99 this is an affordable addition to your gift. The Cuddleduck is made with natural rubber, child safe paints, is pthalate free and contains natural antibacterial properties. It doubles up as a teether and is designed to be easy for babies to hold.

On the subject of teething, what about including something from Nibbling, the new concept in high quality baby-safe jewellery? It is made with 100% food grade silicone (similar to dummies  & bottle nipples) which is safe and soft enough for babies to chew.

Nibbling jewellery is not just fashionable for mums to wear but can also be used to focus the attention of nursing babies and provide chewing relief to teething babies as it’s soft on babies’ gums and emerging teeth.

Their newest collection features bracelets, necklaces, teethers and dummy clips in a vast range of designs, shapes and colours from strings of pearls to clusters of stars. They have also introduced new teether styles including a pink elephant and silicone teething rattle rings. Nibbling also offer a ‘mini’ collection of necklaces for little girls aged 3 and up, perfect for a new big sister gift perhaps?

Nibbling silicone is free from BPA Phthalates and heavy metals and all the necklaces have a breakaway clasp for added safety. All their products are easily cleaned with dish soap and water and can even be popped in the dishwasher.

What about a nice gift for the new mum? She might appreciate chocolates of course, but if you want to really treat her, what about some nice bubble bath or other beauty products? One of the things I noticed when I became a mum was how dry my hands got from washing them so much more often and of course generally suffering from dry skin. A good hand cream would make a lovely gift.

Yardley products make a gorgeous gift, and their contemporary classics range is just lovely, with everything from hand creams, to Eau de Toilette, to fragrance mists, to body creams and washes. They even do a men’s range if you fancy adding something for the new dad into the mix too!

I often add useful things like Calpol and every new mummy essential…dry shampoo, where would we be without the stuff?

What was the best gift you have given to a new mum or received from someone else?