A baby's first Christmas is a special occasion – for parents, grandparents and the whole family. Choosing a gift for a baby isn't easy, though: a baby can't write a letter to Santa, and shop shelves are full of toys for older children. Here is our advice on choosing a Christmas gift for a baby depending on their age, and what to look out for so that the present is safe and genuinely useful.
If you would like to give your little one a present on 6 December too, read our guide St Nicholas Day gift for a baby.
What to know before you buy a gift for a baby
- Age matters. A toy for a newborn and a toy for a 10-month-old are two different things. Check how many months old the baby will be at Christmas.
- Safety first. Choose toys labelled as suitable from birth (0+) or for the given age, with no small parts and with securely sewn pieces.
- Less is more. A baby doesn't need lots of toys at once. One well-chosen sensory toy will please the parents more than several random ones.
- Ask the parents. If you can, find out what the baby already has – you'll avoid giving a third identical rattle.
Christmas gift for a baby aged 0–3 months
A newborn or a baby of a few weeks still sees blurrily and responds best to strong contrasts. That's why black and white toys are perfect for a baby's first Christmas: a high-contrast hanging toy for the pram or cot, a mobile above the changing table or a soft high-contrast book. You can read more about why contrasts matter so much in our guide High-Contrast Toys for Newborns.
Another good idea is the Black&White set – 4 high-contrast toys, which gives your little one several different kinds of stimulation at once.
Gift for a baby aged 3–6 months
At this age, babies discover their own hands and start to grasp. The best gifts are toys that are light and easy to hold:
- rattles and teethers – for shaking, chewing and massaging gums as teething approaches,
- a pram arch or a sensory activity spiral for the pram – with several toys and a mirror,
- a soft cuddly toy with tags and crinkly parts.
If you need more tips, have a look at our guide Which Toys for a 3-Month-Old Baby?
Gift for a baby aged 6–12 months
A six-month-old can sit up, pass objects from hand to hand and loves to explore. This is a good time for toys with lots of activities:
- sensory books with crinkly pages, a mirror and a teether,
- a soft sensory cube with a zip and different textures,
- a pull-string music box – for winding down in the evening before sleep.
Christmas gift for a one-year-old
If the little one has already turned one, you can choose their first wooden toys: a shape sorter, a puzzle with large pegs or an educational cube with a xylophone. Toys like these develop hand–eye coordination and logical thinking, and your child will keep playing with them for months to come. You'll find ideas in our wooden toys and wooden puzzles collections.
If the first birthday falls around Christmas, also see our guide First birthday gift ideas.
A gift set – when you don't know what to choose
If you don't know the child's needs well, the safest choice is a baby gift set. One box contains several matching toys – for looking, grasping and chewing – that will come in handy at different stages of the first year. A set looks impressive under the tree and saves you putting a gift together from separate toys.
What to avoid when choosing a gift for a baby
- toys with small parts, magnets and batteries that a child can reach,
- toys intended for children aged 3+, even if they seem like something to “grow into”,
- loud toys that play non-stop – they tire out both the baby and the parents,
- large soft toys for the cot – a baby should sleep without toys around them.
Order your gift in time
In December couriers handle more parcels, so it is worth ordering your gift in advance. Orders placed in the Plushyk shop by 1 pm are dispatched the same working day from our warehouse in Poland, and parcels usually arrive within 1–2 working days. Buy 3 toys and get 10% off; delivery within Poland is free on orders over 80 PLN. We have gathered all our Christmas ideas in the Christmas toys collection.
