Tips for Washing Your Babies’ Onesies

Quick Links:

• Tips For Picking a Detergent 
• Tips For Getting Tough Stains Out
• Steps for Washing Baby Onesies
• How to Dry Baby Onesies
• Tips for Folding and Storing Baby Onesies

Babies enter the world vulnerable, with exceptionally delicate skin. As we swaddle them in clothing and blankets, their sensitive skin becomes exposed to all new substances like detergents, dyes and fragrances that can cause irritations. To protect our babies’ skin and prevent rashes, we need to take special steps to clean their onesies and other clothing.

Wash all of your babies’ clothing should be washed before they wear it, whether it is brand new or hand-me-downs from a sibling or relative. Here are some of our favorite tips for washing baby onesies to keep your baby clean and safe.

Tips for Picking Which Detergent to Use on Your Babies’ Onesies

Typical adult laundry detergent is created with chemicals, dyes and fragrances to keep your clothes looking and smelling great. While these additives are beneficial for some adult clothing, they’re not the best for washing babies’ onesies. These detergents can leave a residue on the fibers that irritate the baby’s skin.

Instead, you will want to opt for a detergent that is gentle and free from harsh chemicals. The best detergent for baby skin should be:

• Fragrance-free
• Dye-free
• Dermatologist recommended
• Hypoallergenic

While many companies make specific baby detergents, a general detergent that meets all of the above criteria is just as effective and often more affordable. If you want even more control over the ingredients in your detergent, consider finding a DIY detergent recipe online to create your own soap with natural ingredients.

Getting Tough Stains Out of Baby Onesies

As cute as babies are, they do know how to make a mess. New parents will spend a significant amount of time doing loads of baby laundry, and they will encounter some tough-to-remove stains that need more than just a trip through the machine.

Get a head start on stains by removing any soiled onesies right away and rinsing them with cold water. This can help prevent some staining, making it easier to remove whatever remains. Natural stain-fighting ingredients like lemon juice and baking powder can treat most stains. Treat the stains, then allow the onesies to soak in the mixture for 10-15 minutes.

If the stain requires a little more, try an enzymatic stain fighter or standard spot treatment products. Run the onesie through the wash and see if the stain is gone. Be sure to keep the onesie wet while treating the stain because once the stain goes through the dryer it can become even more challenging to remove.

Steps for Washing Baby Onesies

Washing baby clothing like onesies is a lot like washing adult clothing, but with a few special considerations. The primary concern when washing onesies is to ensure you use a gentle, fragrance-free detergent that will not irritate the baby’s skin.

Before you wash anything, check the garment for care instructions. Just like adult clothing, your babies’ onesies will likely provide guidance for how to wash and dry them. Wash onesies and other baby clothing with like colors to prevent colors from bleeding.

The basic steps for washing onesies are as follows:

1. Pre-treat or pre-soak stains with your preferred stain remover.
2. Button, zip and fasten all velcro to avoid snags.
3. Wash on a gentle setting with cold water and baby detergent.

For most onesies, a cold water wash cycle effectively removes dirt and germs without exposing the garments to unnecessary heat that could damage the fibers over time. If your baby seems to have extra sensitive skin, running a second rinse cycle will remove any residual detergent that may be lingering in the fibers.

Turn custom or screen-printed onesies inside out in the wash to protect your designs from fading and abrasions from other onesies in the load. This will help to keep your design looking like new.

How to Dry Baby Onesies

Once your onesies are clean and rinsed of any residual detergent, they are ready to dry. Continue to follow any care instructions listed on the inside of each garment for guidance on whether the onesie should be placed in the dryer or allowed to air dry.

As a general rule, avoiding excess heat is the key to keeping your baby’s clothing in the best condition possible. Run onesies through the dryer at a gentle tumble with low heat, lay them flat to dry or hang them in the shade outdoors on a clothesline.

For onesies with custom-printed designs, avoiding heat is even more important. These garments should always be allowed to air dry to preserve your custom design.

To keep your onesies safe for your baby’s sensitive skin, avoid using fabric softeners or dryer sheets that may have irritating fragrances and leave residue on the onesies. Instead, toss a clean, dry towel in with the onesies or opt for natural wool dryer balls to help combat static without any added chemicals.

Tips for Folding and Storing Baby Onesies

Baby onesies are small, so they require unique methods for folding and storing to stay organized. If you fold and stack onesies like your usual clothing, the piles may get messy and topple over as you search for the garment you need. Instead, try one of these alternative options for storing clean baby onesies:

• The file fold: Inspired by Marie Kondo’s clothing folding techniques, the file fold allows you to view all of your baby’s onesies at once. Each onesie is folded flat and stored in a dresser drawer vertically as though it were a filing cabinet.
• Hanging: If you have closet space instead of dressers, you can hang onesies by flipping them upside-down and fastening them to the hangers using the button flaps. This keeps the onesies secure and lets you store them in the closet without purchasing tiny baby hangers.
• No-fold storage bins: Skip folding entirely by using labeled storage bins and shelves. Designate a bin for each type of clothing — onesies, long-sleeved onesies, pants — and place the clothing into the bins without folding for easy storage.

Because baby clothes have an overall smaller surface area, they are resistant to wrinkles. However you choose to store them, your onesies should remain fresh and wrinkle-free.

Create Custom Cotton Onesies for Your Baby’s Sensitive Skin

At Cotton Creations, we carry a wide range of 100% organic cotton onesies that you can customize for your baby, including long-sleeved options and cotton layettes. Our onesies are gentle on your baby’s sensitive skin, and easy to customize using our online design tool.

You can get started creating custom onesies for your baby by working on your design or get in touch with our team to learn more about our baby onesie products and design process. Ask about our wholesale pricing plans to save even more on your custom products.

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