GUIDE
My baby has already outgrown his newborn outfits. I can't give them away, but I don't want them stuck in a box nobody opens. What can I do with them?
By the seenow! teamLast updated:
Keep only a handful of outfits that carry a story, like the coming-home outfit, and turn them into something you see: a framed piece, a pillow or, later, a quilt. Store the rest the way the National Archives recommends for textiles, clean, dark, cool and dry, and pass the others on.
WHY
Why this happens
Newborn sizes are outgrown quickly, and the outfits often come with stories: the one from the hospital, the one Grandma knit, the onesie from the baby shower. Giving them away can feel like giving away that first month. Keeping everything is no better, because a box in the closet is something nobody opens until the next move.
Most baby clothes do end up leaving the house one way or another. EPA estimates that 17 million tons of textiles became part of U.S. municipal solid waste in 2018, and landfills received 11.3 million tons of them. For clothing and footwear, EPA puts the recycling rate at 13%. Choosing a few pieces to keep on purpose, and finding a next home for the rest, is the alternative to both the box and the trash bag.
The outfits you keep also need a little care. Cotton baby clothes look sturdy, but a 2016 National Archives article on preserving textiles points out that light fades colors and weakens fibers, and that hot attics and damp basements invite mold and insects. A keepsake that hangs in a sunny nursery for years will look different from one kept in a drawer.
HOW TO
What you can do starting today
Pick the outfits with a storyNo app needed
Lay out everything he has outgrown and pull the pieces you can tell a story about: the coming-home outfit, a gift from a grandparent, the first-holiday pajamas. Everything else is a candidate to pass on. A small, chosen set is easier to display and easier for your child to care about later.
Turn one or two into something you seeNo app needed
Families often frame a tiny outfit in a shadow box with the hospital bracelet, sew a few onesies into a pillow cover, or save the fabric until there is enough for a quilt in a few years. Choose one idea for now. If a framed piece will hang on a wall, put it out of direct sun.
Store the rest clean, dark and dryNo app needed
Wash the outfits you are keeping, if the care label allows it, and let them dry completely. Fold them with acid-free tissue tucked into the folds, as the National Archives article suggests, and keep them in a closet or under a bed in the main part of the house, not in the attic, garage or basement. Label the box with what is inside and why you kept it.
Source: National Archives, Prologue magazine: Preserving Textiles (Summer 2016)
Give the others a next homeNo app needed
Offer the outfits to a friend or relative who is expecting, a local family shelter or a donation drop-off. Worn-out pieces can go to textile recycling where your city or county offers it. Knowing the clothes are being used again makes the decision easier.
Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Textiles, Material-Specific Data
WITH SEENOW!
Doing it with seenow!
seenow! is a family app where everyone in a private group takes a short clip or photo each day. The best keepsake of an outfit may be the baby wearing it.
- Take a photo or a 2-second clip with the seenow! camera the next time he wears a favorite outfit, ideally with a family member holding him. You can capture your face and his at the same time with the front and back cameras.
- Each week the app makes a recap video from the family's clips automatically, so those outfits show up again without you organizing anything.
What seenow! can’t do
- Photos already in your phone's camera roll, such as hospital pictures of the coming-home outfit, cannot be posted to seenow!. Only photos and clips taken with the seenow! camera can be shared.
- It does not store or catalog the clothes themselves.
Core features are free.
POINT
Things to watch for in this situation
Ask before cutting a gifted piece
If Grandma knit the sweater or a relative passed down a christening gown, ask before turning it into a pillow or a quilt square. Some family pieces are meant to be worn again by the next baby.
Take a photo of the tag
Before framing or sewing, take a picture of the label and size. Years from now, your child may be curious how small "newborn" really was.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
How many baby clothes should I keep?
There is no set number. Keep the pieces you can tell a story about, and pass on the rest. A few chosen outfits are easier to display and to store well.
How do I store baby clothes so they don't turn yellow?
Wash and dry them fully, fold them with acid-free tissue, and keep them somewhere dark, cool and dry, not in the attic, garage or basement, as the National Archives advises for textiles.