As a parent, you will quickly discover that meal times are messy. You might be surprised at how little of each meal your baby actually swallows. When it comes to keeping food off your little one’s clothes (and everywhere else) during mealtime, baby bibs are an excellent option. Baby bibs come in all manner of different sizes, shapes, and materials. How do you determine which bib is right for your baby? There is a very detailed guide we have created on baby bibs that will assist you in finding the perfect one for your baby. With this guide, you will become an expert on baby bibs.
Why your baby needs a bib
If there is one thing babies love to do at meal time, it’s make a mess. Even though that baby food tastes good, it is much more fun to smear it all over the high chair, clothes, and floor. There is a chance that your washing cycle has become much more frequent now that you have a baby at home. Bibs won’t prevent mess, but they do provide a layer of protection between your baby’s meal and their clothing. You could instead clean the bib instead of constantly washing baby food-covered clothes.
The different types of baby bibs
In recent years, there has been a significant rise in the types of baby bibs to meet market demand. Since each type has its own benefits, it can sometimes be confusing for you to choose the perfect one for your little one. To help you out, below are a few of the most popular types of baby bibs available in the market today:
Feeding Bibs
For the feeding process, any bib can be used, and the style should be chosen based on the baby’s age. A cloth bib can be used for babies. As kids get older and want to feed themselves, a large, easy-to-clean surface would be perfect. The most common design is a rubber one with a catchment trough at the bottom. It’s simple to clean and ideal for capturing food during feeding.
Baby Dribble Bibs
Dribble bibs, sometimes known as ‘drool bibs,’ are very absorbent and comfy enough for your baby to wear all day. These come in a variety of bright colors and interesting patterns and will assist catch dribble before it soaks into the baby’s clothes.
Feeding bibs are substantially larger than drool bibs. The smaller size helps your infant to move around without getting tangled up in a larger feeding bib. Drool bibs are meant to keep dribble from dripping down your baby’s front and soaking into his clothes.
Bandana Bibs
Baby bandana bibs differ from the standard bib design because of their unique shape. These are usually made from soft fabric and are the ideal bib for everyday use for newborns all the way up to toddlers.
Long-Sleeved Bib (Smock Bibs)
A long-sleeved bib is another alternative during feeding time. A long-sleeved bib not only hangs from your baby’s neck, but also covers the arms and a large portion of the body, making it very difficult for your baby to get coated in food.
This is something that should be in every home. The smock is machine washable, has long sleeves, and is fashioned with a thin plastic bib for feeding. It can be used for a variety of things, such as feeding, painting, arts and crafts, and even digging in the dirt.
Long-sleeved ones can be used as smocks during art and craft sessions in addition to being a baby bib. The difference between a smock and a long-sleeved baby bib is an open back, allowing you to easily remove a messy bib from your baby without spilling it everywhere.
Vintage Bibs
These have recently become fashionable and are generally only used on special occasions. They are a standard-style bib complete with baubles and lacing. Making it appear to be of vintage appearance.
What to look for when comparing baby bibs?
Now that you have understood the importance of using baby bibs, let’s take a look at some practical things that you must keep in mind while buying baby bibs for your little one:
The ability to fold up
Believe it or not, Bibs are the second most used baby item after Diapers. Whether you’re at home or out of the town, they prove quite useful for keeping your little one clean. Needless to say, they are one of the diaper bag must-haves. So you should always buy bibs with on the go convenience in mind. In other words, pick the one that can neatly fold up.
Soft and Absorbent Material
Bibs come in a variety of materials, from cotton to rubber and plastic. Make sure the bib you’re buying is absorbent enough to catch all the spills and dribbles. While bibs made of rubber and plastic can be easily wiped clean with a rag, they also make it easy for messy stuff to slide down onto the clothing. For this reason, we recommend you buy bibs made of a soft and absorbent material like cotton, which doesn’t allow the mess to even touch your baby’s clothes. However, you cannot wipe clean a cotton bib with a rag.
Ease of cleaning
It should come as no surprise that your baby’s bib is going to get messy and require lots of cleaning. Therefore, we would recommend purchasing an easy-to-clean bib that does not come with any special cleaning instructions.
A commonly overlooked feature when buying baby bibs is the ease of which it can be cleaned. Baby bibs are designed to be coated in whatever your baby can throw at it, there is no ifs or buts about it, your baby’s bib will get messy and require cleaning. The most common methods of cleaning a baby bib include:
- Wipe down
- Washing machine
- Dishwasher
Different brands of baby bibs will come with different cleaning instructions. When washing the bib, it is always best to follow the instructions found on the packaging.
The Fit and Size
The next important thing to consider is the size of the bib. Always buy a bib that is neither too large nor too small for your little one to wear. While the bib should be large enough to cover at least one-half of the length of your baby’s upper wear, it also needs to be small enough to form a nice snug fit. In case you don’t have an idea of how tall your child is, choose a bib according to his age.
A perfectly fitted bib will form a nice snug fit around your child’s neck and it will be tricky for your baby to wriggle out of. There are two benefits to a tight-fitting baby bib.
- Difficult to remove – A tight-fitting baby bib is much harder for your baby to wiggle and squirm out of.
- Makes less mess – Feeding time is already messy, loose-fitting bibs can actually be dragged through your baby’s food; making a bigger mess than if your little one went bibless.
Comfort
We have bad news for you if your baby is uncomfortable. Feed time is going to be more of a drama than usual. Your baby will be so focused on trying to remove the bib that food will be a second thought. There are three main reasons why your baby feels uncomfortable when wearing a bib.
- Too tight: Ensure that the bib sits snug but so tight that your baby cannot move. If the bib is too small for your baby, you may have to buy the next size up.
- Irritating neckline: Coarse ties or Velcro that hold the bib in place can irritate the neckline. My preference is for soft ties over Velcro, which can easily scratch at your infants neck.
- Brushes against the skin: If your baby’s bib is a little coarse and brushes against exposed skin then your baby may fidget with discomfort. Choose a soft bib material where possible.
Color
Colors play a vital role in hiding many types of stains. A light color, like white, is not able to hide its history of caught spills and therefore needs to be washed as soon as possible. Contrariwise, a bib with dark color can be used for a longer period of time because it reveals no stains. So it’s better to go with a dark-colored bib, like black or blue.
Style
At the end of the day, your baby is only little one. Have fun. Bibs with his favorite superhero on them and spoons or bowls that match his bib are good options. You can even buy plain bibs and decorate them yourself with fabric markers or embroidery. Just because a bib is functional doesn’t mean it has to be ugly.