What to Wear for Your In-Home Newborn Photos | New Jersey Newborn Photographer
So you are in love, but also tired….over the moon with joy, but also completely overwhelmed. You booked your in-home newborn photos months ago before this tiny, precious being made his or her way into your home. You had all of these thoughts of what you would wear in these photos…but then baby came and life got real crazy, real fast and plans of that beautifully curated wardrobe went out the door. You are in a panic! You think “What will I put this tiny, fragile little being in??”…let alone even think of yourself!
“Help! What Do I Wear??”.
All of this is completely normal and I am here to help put some of those feelings of overwhelm at ease. Follow along below for my top 5 tips as well as a few bonus tips to help your newborn session be enjoyable for you and your family.
Do you have a special quilt that was handed down or hand made for baby? Let’s use it!
TIP #1 - No Stress
Try not to stress about the clothes. I know that is easier said than done. Especially this early on when emotions (and hormones) are all over the place. But really it’s true. My focus for newborn photos is always on the connection and love that you share as a family and not on the clothing you have on. Years from now when you are looking back at these images, I hope what you see is the joy that you felt for your new baby, not the fact that you had on a purple dress but you were originally trying to find a teal dress.
TIP #2 - Comfort
Yes, tip #1 is important but you still want to feel your best. Comfort is key when it comes to in home sessions. You just birthed a human. Will you feel your absolute best…let’s be real…most likely not. So wearing something restrictive for these pictures will bring on unnecessary anxiety and feelings of awkwardness. Whether shopping online, in your favorite store or in your closet, pull items that make you feel comfortable as well as bring you joy (anyone hearing the voice of Marie Kondo? lol). Soft sweaters with leggings or jeans, long flowy dresses (my fave), even pretty loungewear will give you that feeling of comfort and still look beautiful in the photos. Just make sure that you keep this true to yourself. If you absolutely HATE sweaters but choose to wear one for your session, you will be uncomfortable the whole time. Maybe you think sweaters are too itchy, but you saw a session online and loved how their images looked so you decided to get the same sweater….don’t do it…..STAY TRUE TO YOU :) Which brings me to tip #3
Check out dad’s fun socks for a touch of whimsy :)
TIP #3 Stay True to You
Definitely stay true to your own personal style (to an extent). If your husband loves vintage tees or fun socks (check out dad’s feet above)….have him wear it. If you are all about boho…wear it. Classic, modern, artsy??…wear it. “But why would I wear something that I wear all the time?”. Well when that baby is 18 years old and you are sitting around the dining room table remembering back, looking at these images together, those memories will rush back and you will have all of those nostalgic feelings of that time in your life when you and your husband were way cool…..not that you aren’t anymore ;) Wear what you love as long as you don’t go over the top. You want to keep the focus on your family connection. So tip #4…..
Beautiful, classic, neutral palette.
TIP #4 Neutrals
Ok so I am going to take what I said above and negate it and you will think I have no idea what I am saying but bear with me. Try and stick with MOSTLY neutrals….and please don’t wear NEON! Yes, 100% stay true to your personal style but don’t go completely overboard and neons will just leave really bad color casts all over your faces, as will a lot of reds and oranges.. Neutrals ALWAYS photograph best and keep the focus on that amazing connection that you and your family share. So try to keep your color palette neutral as best you can. But you can definitely add a pop of color or pattern here and there if you love color. I love color (have you seen all the rainbows around my IG feed? lol) so I love when a pop of color is subtly added into newborn photos, but again you don’t want to take away from that sweet little baby face. So let’s say you love Boho go ahead and put baby girl in a simple boho printed knotted gown, but keep yourself and your hubby with more neutral color tones. If there is a sibling, add a small color pop in their hair bow, socks, tee etc…. As a whole you want to all compliment each other, NOT match each other.
The perfect example of styles that compliment without matching. Big sis’ dress compliments the green in baby girl’s adorable floral romper and mom and dad’s neutral palette doesn’t overpower their outfits.
TIP #5 Baby
Dress baby for comfort. Yes those newborn plaid shirt and jean sets that come with socks and shoes are cute and all, but they definitely DON‘T work for these sessions. They never fit correctly and they overtake the baby. The collar ends up covering their face and the jeans are usually swimming on them. The focus should 100% be on the baby and not their outfit. The best things to put them in are either a simple cotton knotted gown (like the image below), a simple but cute onesie (great time for a floral) or a sweet comfortable swaddle blanket.
Keeping baby’s wardrobe simple will keep the focus on them and all their adorable squishiness! As far as bows on a newborn. Keep them simple and small like this one. Anything bigger will overwhelm their face.
BONUS TIPS
-Textures will add interest to your photos. For example a sweater dress on big sister or mom or a vintage crochet blanket to lay baby on…don’t worry I have a couple of blankets if you need!
-Siblings are a lot of fun to dress for these sessions. Like I said above, this is a good opportunity for texture or pattern. I love a ruffled dress for big sister or a cute patterned bow tie for big brother. A cute pair of jeans with a girly top or a cute button front shirt for a boy with a small pattern paired with cute khakis.
-Yep I LOVE patterns, especially florals. I always think it is fun to add some pattern into a session…whether it be florals, plaids, small stars, checks etc…. But keep it simple and use it as an accent. If mom is wearing a floral dress, keep everyone else more neutral. The floral accent on baby girl’s blanket below is the perfect pop amongst her simple white wrap.
-Keep it simple and timeless. Again this will help keep the focus on you and your families love and connection. Below are a couple of examples of a simple yet beautiful timeless style.
-My last tip that has nothing to do with what to wear is, keep your home warm! Newborns need that warmth to keep themselves calm and feel like they are still cozy inside the womb. If it is a little cool in the house they will be very uncomfortable and will likely end up crying the whole time. Yes it will be hard in the summer to keep your air conditioner off but I promise you will be thankful you did :)
I hope these tips help put some of your fears aside as you get ready for your newborn session. I want you to feel comfortable that day, enjoying that precious baby alongside your family. Please reach out to me with any questions at all! I am always happy to help even if you need me to send some ideas over. I also use a style service and people are loving the ease of it. You can click over to this link to get more info on that service. It’s a lot of fun!
Also check out a few links below to some fave wardrobe sites :)
Links to Newborn through Toddler Clothing Websites:
LOU LOU AND COMPANY (FAVE)
SUSUKOSHI (BEAUTIFUL GOWNS, TEXTURED BLANKETS, PJ’S AND MORE)
COLORED ORGANICS (ADORABLE KNOTTED GOWNS)
MILKBARN (FUN AND UNIQUE SWADDLES)
MAMA KNITS (BEAUTIFUL HAND KNIT ACCESSORIES)
Links to Some Personal Fave Clothing Sites for Mama:
GAP (FOR MORE LOUNGY LOOKS)
I am also always happy to put together a style board for you! Just ask :)