11 Newborn Items We Didn't Use or Need (While Living in Paris)

There are many many baby items out in the world, and the truth is, you might not (most likely don’t) need them all. What you need to raise your baby completely depends on your living situation, your financial status, your preferences and ultimately your baby.

During pregnancy, it can feel incredibly overwhelming to figure out what products your baby “actually” needs, and can make you feel like you’ll never be enough prepared for your baby.

The reality is, your little newborn simply needs a way to eat, a safe place to have a diaper change, a few warms clothes and a safe place to sleep. There are of course, a few essential items that help make the newborn phase easier, but there are also plenty of baby items that you don’t really need.

I will disclose that during my pregnancy and our baby’s newborn stage, we were living in Paris in a small apartment. We did not have a traditional nursery for our baby (there was an extra bedroom where her changing table was, but we often had it in the living room) and many of the items Americans deem necessary we were not targeted with in France (i.e. the Owlet).

Below is a list of baby items we either bought and ended up not using, or didn’t buy at all and ultimately didn’t need in the long run. Other moms might have a different experience with these products, but based on our living situation and baby, we didn’t need the baby items listed below.

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1) baby lounger

We purchased a baby lounger during pregnancy and although we used it some, we didn’t use it enough for it to seem “essential” to me. We really only used it a handful of times on a couch or bed, and then used it after a bath because we had our bathtub near the kitchen sink and would put her towel on her on the table.

Our baby truthfully didn’t enjoy laying in it, and again, I just don’t feel we used it enough for it to be an essential newborn item.

2) sound machine

This might be shocking news, but you don’t necessarily need to get a sound machine for your newborn. My husband was adamantely against having a sound machine for our baby. Ironically, someone gifted us the Hatch sound machine during the pregnancy, but my husband and I were both torn about needing one/using one.

I kept the sound machine throughout the end of my pregnancy and into the early newborn stage “just in case,” but we never ended up using it. However, I will disclose that our baby is an abnormally amazing sleeper and wasn’t sensitive to noise in our home. We also always turned our tower fan on during her naps and at night and that worked well enough for her.

3) Baby playmat / baby gym

During the newborn stage, we were gifted an activity jungle in the mail that had a fluffy pillow-like base and a crisscross arch with hanging soft toys. I’m not sure if our baby just didn’t enjoy the soft toys or didn’t care overall, but she rarely used the activity jungle and actually got upset when we placed her on it.

The arches of the one we received detached from the based, so we’re keeping the pillow for her future room, but I’d recommend getting a wooden baby gym like this instead, or just buying a Piklar triangle in advance (for when your baby is pulling up) which you can place the baby under and hang little items from while she’s a newborn - more bang for your buck.

4) black out curtains

Another newborn item you might be considering for your baby’s nursery are black out curtains. My husband and I debated back and forth on whether or not to get them for our baby, and we ultimately decided to wait and see what kind of sleeper she was.

In our bedroom, we had thick white Ikea curtains that blocked a decent amount of light, but didn’t black out the room during the day. We didn’t really want her to get used to sleeping only with black out curtains, as we wouldn’t always have them available.

Again, we have the gold-medalist sleeper over here, and she sleeps great without the black out curtains. If you’re second guessing whether or not you need them for your baby, maybe wait to purchase some until after the baby is born, or have some on hand “just in case” you think it will help with his or her sleep.

5) Baby Monitor

During the newborn stage, you definitely do not “need” a baby monitor. Our Parisian apartment was small, and when baby was napping or sleeping, I would pop into the room she was in and check on her frequently. I could also hear her from any place in the apartment and didn’t have any worries about her well being.

That being said, as we are about to move baby into her own room and into a larger home, we will likely get a monitor to be able to have a closer eye on her now that she’s older. But you can absolutely wait to purchase a baby monitor until after the newborn stage if you feel comfortable doing so.

6) Baby bottle warmer

In France, we were lucky enough to have access to an amazing Sage-Femme (mid-wife) who taught us all the ins and outs of French ways to care for our baby. One of her recommends was to not get a bottle warmer and to give our baby room temperature water in her bottles. The logic is that she won’t get used to a warm bottle only and will take the bottle whether it’s the perfect temperature or not.

This has worked out incredibly well for us as we had to formula feed our baby and were often traveling or had her out with us (where we couldn’t always have access to warm water). I did get commentary from a Dutch woman once who said, “poor baby,” when she asked to get her warm water for her milk and I said she was fine. C’est la vie.

7) wipe warmer

Similar logic to the bottle warmer, our sage-femme recommended skipping the baby wipe warmer (and while we’re at it, you don’t need one of those wipe holders either).

In France, a lotion called liniment with a cotton pad is used to wipe babies vs. wet wipes, so a wipe warmer wouldn’t be needed. If you think that sounds crazy, our baby has never had diaper rash. Try the liniment.

8) Diaper pail / diaper genie

Another newborn item you don’t actually need is a diaper pail or diaper genie. I was incredibly close to purchasing one, even had it on my registry, until my mother-in-law said how much she hated them. I’m not sure why, but this convinced me not to get one and in its place we purchased a small garbage can with a lid. It was small enough that the diapers never smelled (the newborn ones really don’t smell so bad anyways), and we never had to worry about ordering the right trash bags, etc.

9) swaddles

When I was pregnant, I remember stressing about having “enough of everything.” Do I have enough baby bath towels? Do I have enough newborn onesies? Do I have enough bottles? One of the things I was worried about was having enough of was swaddles. I registered for one, and only received one. However, the French do not swaddle their babies, and instead use sleep sacks from birth, meaning I never needed a single swaddle.

I know that swaddles can be helpful covers for breastfeeding, but as I didn’t breastfeed, I didn’t need one. My one swaddle wasn’t really even used, except for as a fitted sheet in my baby’s bassinet stroller. I do think in the US swaddling babies is more common, however, speaking from experience, I did not need a swaddle.

10) a nursery

Ok this isn’t an item, but an entire room. If you’re currently stressing about making the perfect nursery for your baby, take some deep breaths. You do not need a nursery for your baby. If you want a nursery, great. But you don’t need an entire room just for your newborn. Your baby will sleep in your room and won’t even understand her own room for the newborn stage.

And you don’t need a perfect dresser to put all of the little clothes in. I stressed SO much about finding a chest of drawers for our baby’s clothes when I was pregnant. I ended up using a diaper caddy like this one and put her onesies in one little compartment and her sleepers in another. It was sufficient enough.

11) a rocking chair

Speaking of furniture, you don’t actually need a rocking chair for your newborn baby. I think it’s a nice to have, and honestly probably more for you momma than for baby, but we didn’t have one and our baby sleeps great and is perfectly healthy and thriving without even having been rocked in a rocking chair.