Deciding how to dress a baby for bed can be stressful with most nightwear and bedding! You don’t want to overheat your baby as this can be a SUDI risk, but equally, you don’t want them waking up cold in the early hours of the morning!

However you can relax when you choose woolbabe, as our 100% natural fibre and unique composition makes decision about layers easy.  The fabrics are very forgiving, as the cotton/merino blend is 100% natural, breathable and moisture wicking. These characteristics are essential for keeping your baby comfortable even with temperature fluctations through the night, and ensure your baby won’t become clammy if the bag gets wet from sweat or a nappy leak. This also makes the bags ideal even during for autumn and spring when temperatures can fluctuate a lot.

All our sleeping bags and sleeping suits come with an easy to follow clothing guide and room thermometer.  However these guides are just here to help parents use their own judgement, read their baby and have confidence in their parenting. No high tech or apps or strict rules are needed with the wonders of natural cotton and merino.

Here’s our guide to layering for overnight sleeps:

Step One:

Check the temperature of your baby’s room. Every Woolbabe sleeping bag and suit comes with a room thermometer, so you’ll know how warm the room is. Place it near the bed or cot, but away from heaters or direct sunlight to get the most accurate temperature. We recommend a room temperature between 16 and 20 degrees celsius for childrens’ bedrooms with 18 degrees being the optimum temperature.

Step Two:

Choose the sleeping bag weight you’re using. The temperature of the room and whether you’re using a Summer, 3 Seasons or Duvet Weight sleeping bag (or suit) will determine how many layers of sleepwear your baby needs.

Step Three:

Check our clothing and layering guide on the back of the Woolbabe thermometer and match your bag type with the room temperature. Dress baby in the corresponding layers recommended. Please remember, this information is a guide only. You know your baby best and it’s important not to overheat a baby by using too many layers.

Step Four:

All babies are different, so don’t forget to check your baby to ensure they’re not too hot or too cold. You can check your baby by placing your hand on their tummy or back. If your baby is red and sweaty, take off a layer. If your baby feels cool, add a layer. Don’t worry too much about cold hands as this is normal.

General Layering Guide

Base Layer

Start with a merino singlet or singlet suit as the base layer and then build up from here. We recommend singlet suits, so they don’t ride up and leave bubs with a cold tummy, but you could also choose to use a standard singlet.

Middle Layer

Add a long sleeved bodysuit. Again, we recommend a merino bodysuit because of its temperature regulating, moisture wicking properties. You could skip this layer if you’re using a sleeved bag.

Final Layer

It’s PJ time! Add a long sleeve, long legged onesie, zip suit or pyjama’s as the final cosy layer before placing bubs in their sleeping bag. We love the zip suits for younger babes as these don’t ride up causing a cool tummy or back, but either work well.

The Outer Layer

Place bubs in their bag, on their back in their bassinet or cot and you can rest assured knowing they’ll be cosy and warm all night.

Please remember this is a guide only. All babies are different and it’s important you check your baby to ensure they don’t overheat.