Planning Your Essential Organic Bedding for Baby for Family and our environment - Ways to Save and Where to Spend

We present a detailed budget of essential organic bedding item by item, specifically for a crib - what the essential organic components are for a healthy sleeping environment. All bedding is listed in order of organic and/or practical importance to help you make the right choices and faster. For ease of presentation and reading, follow the dialogue between our two sisters, Sarah, a recent mother, and her younger sister, Susan, who was soon to have a child. After much researching their findings are presented clearly here with concise summary right below:

Sarah knew that her younger sister, Susan, probably didn't have the budget to go fully organic. It would be a big decision for Susan to get an organic mattress for her crib; but there are many other possibilities that would really help her feel responsible in her decision-making for her child, her family and the environment. It was Sarah that had done a great deal more research, and she quickly pieced together a plan for Susan to work with. She explained:

"What is going to be most helpful is to list the organic bedding products from the most essential down to what could be purchased at a later stage."

Bedding in Direct Contact with Baby's Skin

So top of the list has to be organic sheets, pillow cases - and an organic comforter cover, as Sarah knew that Susan had a comforter in mind - since your baby's face and skin will be almost always touching those articles of bedding. She went straight to her favorite organic bedding site as she had already talked with the owner Dalain and was happy that it was a genuine site selling environmentally and baby-safe products: free from formaldehyde, pesticide residues and toxic flame retardants to mention but a few. Their products, mostly coming from small village cooperatives in India, are SKAL certified which is governed by an international organic trading organization. She started pasting directly into a document making notes of the important facets of the product and just rounding the price off:

Stage 1: Most Essential Organic Bedding Products

$27 Fitted Sheet - Super Soft Organic Sateen Crib Size (one of best selling products) reasonably high thread count so softer for baby's skin; fitted sheets saves time and keeps the bed sheets smooth or less ruffled and creased.
$12 Pillowcase - Super Soft Organic Sateen Child Size - is an organic essential since it is closest to baby's face and the air breathed in. Same high thread count as the baby sheets.
$38 Comforter Cover - Organic Sateen Duvet - same high thread count as bedding above - soft colour with attractive "royal" finishing.
Total $77 (from organic bedding site).

Susan knew she would need two pieces each and so Sarah doubled the total to $154, adding, "Since it's over $150, you're immediately entitled to free shipping."

Sarah explained that that is really a basic essential you need to start with. The next item to consider is, if you're having crib bumpers, then you should also get crib bumper covers in an organic fabric as baby will soon be crawling on that. You can of course leave that for a month or so - it's just under $40 for one. Of course Susan was getting excited with this plan and said to press on since she could always slot that in when they've got a full picture.

Stage 2: Next Most Essential Organic Bedding Purchases.

Mattress protection Moisture Pad (sometimes referred to as a puddle pad)

"Another really essential item you're going to need is the puddle pad, or what is alsocalled the mattress protection moisture pad," Sarah was saying. "It's not comfortable for baby to be wearing diapers all the time and anyway accidents can happen just as you're changing it. So the puddle pad protects the mattress below as well as absorbing the fluid away from baby." Having found the page, she pasted the relevant information for Susan, which explained the moisture pad was made of 100% certified organic wool, and although only 1/8 of an inch thick it worked very efficiently as well as being resistant to bacteria, mildew and even dust mites. It protects the mattress from all sorts of spills from baby bottles and sweat, as well as the baby's pee. It is easy to wash by hand and dries within hours - you can even use the washing machine on the delicates cycle.

Organic Cotton Products Promotes Humaneness and Environment
It can be a real learning curve browsing organic products. Just by reading how all this organic cotton bedding is "cruelty free" makes you realise how much harm and pain we are virtually sponsoring by simply buying many of what we consider are standard household goods. Manufacturers never declare the damage or hardships they are causing unless they are legally obliged to, like tobacco corporations.... Then Sarah pasted:

Mattress Protection Moisture Pad
$70 Moisture Pad - Certified Merino O-Wool - Crib (one of best selling products). She then also added the mattress pad at the same time as the next to include but with a query:

$60 Mattress Pad? - Machine Washable 28" x 52" (one of best selling products)
Sarah started explaining, "The thing about the mattress pad is that it adds further protection against damaging the actual mattress. Now that is important when buying an organic mattress which is certainly an expensive item you will have to consider, and so it's worth protecting." She started typing points:
- If decided on organic mattress - definitely get mattress pad.
- If got budget for mattress pad - just get it.
- If uncertain - wait.

Organic Pillow or Organic Cotton Barrier Cover for Pillow
$49 Organic pillow or
$25 Organic Cotton Barrier Cover for Pillow
Sarah launched out immediately, "To me, this is a 'no-brainer'; I don't like using that word but it's true. The idea of the cotton barrier cover for a standard pillow is that it reduces or blocks the way out for all the potentially harmful chemicals that are just there and always coming steadily out of commercially produced pillows no matter how much they've been washed or aired. But since your baby's head is right on the pillow and continuously breathing the air right beside the pillow, and since the additional cost for an organic pillow is really very little - less than $25, you'd have to be on a very tight budget to even consider using a standard pillow and then getting an organic cotton barrier cover for it.
It's a completely false economy as well, if you think you are saving money; - because you never know if it's actually working as well as a pure organic pillow or actually slowly weakening baby's immune system. You then may end up spending a fortune on vitamin pills or medicine later. Of course some people will find it useful but I don't think you will Susan. What is more I'll buy one for you!"

Sue quickly took this on board and replied that she had already decided to buy one anyway when they were considering the pillow cases, - so thanked her for her sweet offer but no thank you, she could manage! Of course she wanted the pillow and could afford it herself. Sarah pasted more information on the pillow to bring home a point:
hypoallergenic, antibacterial, dust mite free, machine wash and dry, natural rubber from southeast Asia, made in USA, three-year warranty.

The Organic Crib Comforter/Quilt and The Crib Bumper
$130 Crib Comforter - Organic Cotton Comforter/Quilt (one of best selling products) - she pasted, and also:
$99 Organic Crib Bumper and tagged on organic covers for the bumper, they'd talked about earlier
$40 Bumper Cover - organic cotton.
All made from 100% SKAL certified cotton (all from organic bedding site) - not wool, free from formaldehyde, pesticides, flame retardants, etc.
NB - Comforter can be used with or without comforter cover.

Accepting Family's Offers of Support

Sarah knew well how sibling rivalry occasionally caused minor irritations, but ploughed on:
" I'm going to tell mom and dad to get you these. I know they've been wanting to get you something and this is exactly what they would really like - something that you will be really happy with, and helps your child - their grandchild!"
"Don't you dare!" replied Susan, " you know they can't afford it, and I'll be able to get it in time."
"But Suzi, this is a family occasion, now let the family help each other. You know they want to help and you know you should let them. Parents always see their children as their biggest joy, and making children happy makes parents happy - let them do it - they want to get you something you want anyway!"
"I'm not a child anymore!" But the wind was falling out of Susan's sails, so she silently let it slip.

Organic Baby Cribs, Mattresses or Barrier Covers?

Although the organic mattress was the next automatic product to consider, Sarah decided to follow her tack about organic cribs being a real luxury and headed for the lee shore and calmer waters of their previous discussions on non-organic cribs, which often include mattresses, depending on your choice.
"Did you decide on your baby crib, yet?", she asked.
"Yes, I really like that natural wood one we looked at, the Sandra Natural Crib made by Storkcraft at babycribsplus.com, I'm going for that - it's only $130. Also I thought about the organic mattress and think I'll stick to the organic barrier cover for the mattress for now. So I'll also get the mattress there - it has that hyper allergic cover as well."
"Hypoallergenic 100% vinyl cover, you mean" interjected a smiling Sarah. "Yeah, that's the one." Susan replied as Sarah added that to the list, now just about completed:
$135.00 Barrier Cover for Crib Mattress - Organic Cotton

Secret Baby Shower Party - An Organic Family Surprise

But there was a deeper smile inside Sarah, as she was planning a surprise baby shower party for her little sister, and the organic crib mattress was her little secret offering to the new nephew or niece she was soon to have.
$295 Organic Crib Mattress Pure Rest Elliptical Innerspring (one of best selling mattress products from organic bedding site) - She added that to the list, just because!

The Satisfaction of Decisions Well Considered

So all was decided and how relieved they both felt knowing they were really "Going organic" in the best possible way that they could. Sarah had already got an organic crib, - as a family they had the income as well as that wish to support the environment at every turn. She was so pleased for Susan as well, and would soon be chatting to mom and dad about you know what, but that could wait till tomorrow.

Now Sarah abbreviated and summarise everything at the bottom:

From TotallyOrganic.us (organic bedding site):
Stage/Month 1: Most Essential Organic Bedding Products
$27 1 Fitted Sheet: Super Soft Organic Sateen Crib Size
$12 1 Pillowcase: essential closest to baby's face
$38 1 Organic Cotton Crib Comforter Cover - Sateen Duvet.
$77 2 pieces each so:
Total $154, (NB free shipping over $150)

Stage/Month 2: Next Most Essential Organic Bedding Products
$70 Mattress protection Moisture Pad
$60 Machine Washable Crib Mattress Pad 28" x 52"
$49 Organic pillow (not $25 Organic Cotton Barrier Pillow Cover)
Total $179, (NB free shipping over $150. )

Stage/Month 3: Remaining Essential Organic Bedding Products
$130 Organic Cotton Crib Comforter/Quilt - Crib
$99 Organic Crib Bumper
$40 Bumper Cover - organic cotton.
$135 Organic Cotton Barrier Cover for Crib Mattress

Sarah's Surprise:
$295 Pure Rest Elliptical Innerspring Organic Crib Mattress (one of best selling mattress products)

From Babycribsplus.com (the Baby Crib site):
$130 Sandra Natural Crib made by Storkcraft