Eco-Friendly Baby Gifts for New Babies & Parents | UK

Looking for eco-friendly and sustainable baby gifts for newborn babies or their parents? Here are our top environmentally-conscious baby gift suggestions for all budgets.

Quite regularly an SOS email will land in my inbox from Moral Fibres readers needing help. Lately, quite a few seem to be on a particular theme – readers looking for suggestions for eco-friendly new baby gifts.

I love shopping for new baby gifts. I’d say it’s my favourite thing to shop for. I’m definitely the type of person who oohs and aahs at tiny baby grows and sleepsuits, and even tinier gloves and hats.

What can I say, my two kids are growing fast. My oldest is 12 this year, and my youngest is nearly 8. I do sometimes get nostalgic for the days when they were tiny newborn babies. Of course, each age brings its own joy, but I can’t help but get misty-eyed at cute little outfits.

Cuteness factor aside, buying gifts for new babies can be tricky. Having had kids myself, I know what baby things are useful, and which aren’t particularly practical, so I’m happy to pass on my parental knowledge. As such, my guide is packed full of genuinely useful eco-friendly baby gifts.

I’ve also got ideas for gifts for new parents, as well as some no-spend gift ideas, to make this guide work for every single budget.

Ideas for Eco-Friendly Baby Gifts

If you want to say welcome to the world, little one, then here are my Moral Fibres top picks for eco-friendly new baby gifts that parents will actually use and appreciate.

Sustainable Baby Clothes

Clothes are always a great gift idea. However, there are a few pointers you might want to take heed of. Unless the baby is premature, I’d avoid gifting clothes in newborn sizes, as these are grown out so quickly. Both my babies were big and didn’t fit in newborn sizes for any more than a week or two at most.

Another size to perhaps avoid is the 0-3 month sizes. We were kindly given a lot of clothes in this size, but less so in 3-6 or 6-9 month sizes. My advice – go for a bigger size than the newborn sizes. Do think about seasonality though – that pair of baby shorts may look incredibly cute now, but in 6 months is it going to be too cold for shorts? Something to think about!

For eco-friendly baby gifts, I’m a big fan of Boody Baby. Every item in its Eco Baby collection is made from organic bamboo, spun into supersoft fibres. From sleeveless bodysuits to baby vests, bibs, and t-shirts you’ll find a host of eco-friendly clothing in white, pink, or blue.

All of Boody’s items are produced adhering to the highest standards for both the planet and its workers. For peace of mind, Boody Baby carries Oeko-Tex’s “Confidence in Textiles” label. This is an independent certification that shows that all of Boody’s sustainable baby clothes are free from both pesticides and harmful chemicals. 

Boody Baby is priced from £5 upwards. Sign up for the Boody mailing list, and get 15% off your first order.

Do also check out my guide to sustainable baby clothes for more eco-friendly baby gift ideas.

Eco-Friendly New Baby Gift Sets

If you want to gift a new baby gift set, then this new baby eco-friendly gift set from Aphrodite & Ares contains beautiful organic and vegan newborn baby essentials.

Inside the cardboard box you’ll find:

• An extra-soft organic cotton muslin cloth – these are so handy at feeding times for catching spit-up.
• An organic cotton baby hat and mittens – you can choose between plain or striped versions. Mittens help stop babies from scratching their faces, so are super useful to have.
• A vegan soap bar enriched with certified organic shea butter, suitable for sensitive skin – perfect for baby bath time.
• And a sweet card to record the baby’s first details

Buy from Aphrodite & Ares via Not On The High Street for £26.90.

Books & Toys

I really loved it when people bought us books for our babies – specifically board books. It’s lovely to have a little collection of books to enjoy as the baby gets older. Books can be picked up cheaply secondhand or new, and don’t take up much space.

Generally, I don’t recommend buying toys for new babies, as toys don’t get played with for a good few months. If you did want to buy a toy, I’d say go for a wooden one. I’ve got a whole guide on how to buy sustainable wooden toys if you want to buy a toy as an eco-friendly baby gift.

Bibs & Baby Towels

Something that I found that was incredibly useful to receive as new baby gifts were bibs and towels. You might think of bibs just for feeding time in older babies, but even newborn babies need bibs for catching spit-up and drool. They really help cut down on clothes washing.

These organic cotton bibs from Little You Store are a great choice for an eco-friendly baby gift. Available in a range of colours, as well as being made from organic cotton, the bibs are also certified as REACH compliant. This means that no harmful chemicals are added at any stage of production.

Buy from Little You Store, via Etsy, from £5.

Towels are also incredibly useful, particularly hooded towels, which helps keep baby warm after their bath. This soft and snuggly fun hooded towel is made from organic cotton and is sure to be a bathtime staple for years to come. My kids still use their hooded towels from their baby years now!

Buy from Kidly for £26. Get £5 off your first order at Kidly over £50, by using the discount code KIDLYFIRST at the checkout.

Sustainable Gift Ideas For New Parents

If you are looking to give a gift to new parents, then here are my top eco-friendly and ethical suggestions. I’ve also got some no-spend eco-friendly baby gift ideas, so keep reading for those.

Baked Goods

When you’re a sleep-deprived new parent sometimes only a sugar hit can help you get through the day. That’s why baked goods make for such a thoughtful gift idea.

Letterbox New Baby Biscuits

The new baby biscuits from Honeywell Bakes are a thoughtful treat for new parents in need of a sugar rush.

Each box includes 5 hand-iced delicious vanilla biscuits, packed into a sturdy and recyclable gift box. The babygrow biscuit can be personalised with the new baby’s name if you choose. Otherwise, it will read ‘New Kid On The Block’.

Do note that the biscuits are vegetarian-friendly, but not vegan-friendly.

Honeywell Bakes pledges that all its packaging is eco-friendly. Honeywell also says it sources the best ingredients it possibly can and a percentage of every sale is donated to its charity partner, Farm Africa. This charity works with farmers, pastoralists and forest communities in eastern Africa, to help promote sustainable agricultural practices, strengthen markets and protect the environment in rural Africa.

Buy from Honeywell Bakes via Not On The High Street for £29.

Letterbox Vegan Brownies

Vegana Bakes sends delicious fudgy and gooey vegan brownies by post, all made to order. Crucially the boxes fit through most standard-size letterboxes – the postman doesn’t need to ring the doorbell and potentially wake a sleeping baby or parents!

Despite being packaged in a narrow box, the postbox brownies are carefully packaged to make sure they travel safely. They don’t have to be eaten straight away (although no shame if they are!). Instead, they can be stored in the fridge – this makes them extra fudgy – and should be consumed within 10 days of receiving them.

Buy from Vegana Bakes for £18.75, with free UK delivery.

Eco-Friendly Hamper Gifts

A hamper full of delicious treats also makes for a great eco-friendly baby gift for new parents. Some delicious snacks to munch on one-handed for some much-needed energy, or a little drink to wet the new baby’s head never go wrong!

Social Stories Club

Social Stories Club’s range of ethical hampers makes a great choice for new parents.

Each of its sustainable hampers is filled with high-quality products – each with a story of how the specially chosen items are making a positive impact. This could be through supporting reforestation projects, empowering individuals with disabilities, or educating girls in tea-growing regions. In each of its sustainable hampers, a story booklet is included so you can read about the positive social impact created by the products chosen.

Buy hampers direct from Social Stories Club from £44.

Social Supermarket

Social Supermarket, a UK-based social enterprise marketplace, has curated a delicious range of gift hampers packed with socially conscious food and drink treats – catering for both vegans and non-vegans.

These collections of indulgent treats – all from social enterprise brands – ensure that your gift gives back socially and/or environmentally. This makes for a great ethical and eco-friendly baby gift idea.

Buy direct from Social Supermarket with options starting from £15.99.

Food Delivery

Another idea that I love is sending some pre-made nutritious meals to parents, that they just need to reheat. Cooked food that can be heated up in a pinch is any new parent’s dream!

Planty makes 100% plant-based meals, prepared by chefs and then flash-frozen to lock in the nutrients and flavours. Each meal then comes in a 100% recyclable, compostable or reusable container, and is delivered using carbon-neutral delivery.

Meals stay frozen for 24 hours – giving ample time to decant the food into the freezer to be enjoyed when needed.

Planty is working towards B-Corp certification, to help demonstrate its sustainability credentials. Alongside this work, Planty donates any excess food and locally sources ingredients where possible.

Sending a one-off box of six meals costs £45. Use the code GOPLANTS for 20% off your first box.

No-Spend Gift Ideas For Parents With New Babies

Of course, you don’t have to spend money on new baby gifts. Some of the best things that people gave us when we had our children weren’t gifts, but their time. Some of my favourite no-spend ideas include:

• Dropping off a home-cooked meal that can be easily reheated.
• Dropping off homemade baked goods.
• Offering to sit and hold the baby whilst the parent takes a shower, a bath and/or a nap.
• Offering to babysit an older child, if they have one.
• Offering to walk the dog, if they have one.
• Offering to clean their bathroom or kitchen, or to hoover, or do some laundry for them is a dream come true. Especially the laundry. For something so little, new babies sure do go through a lot of clothes.
• Offering a lift to a medical appointment or somewhere they need to be. Always a much-appreciated gesture!

If you have any more eco-friendly baby gift ideas or more no-spend ideas then, as always, do let me know!