We’ve had baby sleepsuits, 12-18 months and now here are the babygrows. (If you haven’t the foggiest what I’m on about then read my post about the Baby Clothing Size Directory!) Excuse the fact that my halloween inclusions are now slightly out of date; I meant to get these clothing posts out weeks ago but life took over. I want to do a Christmas Jumper and Baby Clothing post, but the fear is that I wouldn’t manage to get it done until next summer, so I’m currently procrastinating…

Anyway, here are some popular baby clothing brands and their babygrows/vests with arms/bodysuits/whatever you prefer to call them. The length measurements vary quite a lot (the point of these sizing posts is to provide a little reference if you’re looking at baby basics online) and, actually, so do the widths across the chest. Please do add your own comments below if I’ve missed out a brand you use – add measurements if you like!

1. Sainsbury’s Halloween Bodysuit, £7 – out of stock now, obviously, but Christmas one HERE

Sainsbury’s bodysuit came up the most generous out of all of the babygrows I tried – a whopping 49cm from nape to bottom of the poppers at the crotch. (Same measurement for all suits on this page.) The width was 26cm from underarm to underarm, not as roomy as the length but this suited my long-lean baby perfectly! The quality of the main body was beautiful – I’d be interested to know how this one compares to the cotton basics which are a fraction of the price at £6 for 5. (HERE)

2. Striped Bodysuit, £6.99 for two at H&M HERE

It was H&M’s massively long clothing lengths that first sparked the idea of doing a clothing size directory in the first place – the legs on some of their leggings and trousers are almost adult-sized! (Exaggeration, but still.) The bodysuits have a length of 48cm and width of 26, so long and lean again. (Though, as I said, I’m not sure that Halloween bodysuit from Sainsbury’s is a true reflection of their cotton basics sizings!) Lovely soft cotton, these don’t seem to shrink too much with repeated washing, though if you have a different experience then please do let me know in the comments. The cotton basics at H&M always seem to have gorgeous muted designs and colours – lots of grey and white, which I love…

3. Owl Long Sleeved Bodysuit, £16.99 for three at GAP HERE

Ahh, cute, and also WAH! Short! This GAP bodysuit comes up at 43cm in length and 25cm width, which is quite a massive difference if you compare to the H&M bodysuit for exactly the same age. It’s weeny! Or the H&M is massive. Who knows? I’m something of a GAP Baby fan, despite the little sizes – I tend to order in the size up as well and then just send back anything that looks as though it won’t last the month… They do need to do something about the sizing guides on the website, though – I’ve just had to order some furry boots in three different sizes because I can’t work out what an earth constitutes a “small” or “medium”!

4. Peter Pan Bodysuit, £12 from Jojo Maman Bebe HERE

It comes as no surprise to me that this cute-as-a-button Peter Pan bodysuit is on the petite size and not the large – I’m well used to JJMMBB and their dinky cuts by now! Length is 45cm, so not the tiniest, but almost, and width is a distinctly average 26cm. JJMMBB basics are a real treat – always with the nicest prints and patterns, sometimes embroidered, and everything washes up well. I’ve never had a problem with excess shrinkage.

5. Floral Ribbed Bodysuit, £5 for 2 at Tesco HERE

Oh isn’t this just gorgeous? The soft ribbed cotton with the floral design is like something from a Victorian Lady’s trousseau! I think that the ribbed fabric makes these wash very nicely – it’s almost as though the more you wash them the more lovely and vintaged they look. Length is about average – 46cm – and width is more roomy at 27cm. I must give a little shout-out to the Halloween sleepsuit that Angelica wore over the weekend – £1.50!

I put her in it with some navy star leggings and she looked incredibly scary and all that..

6. Pure Cotton Bodysuit, £14 for a pack of 5 at M&S HERE

Beautiful quality from Marks – what else would you expect? Interestingly (to me, but only because I’ve been taking these bloody babygrow measurements for what seems like ten years) the length is an average sort of Joe at 46cm, but the width is a weeny little 24cm. Good for my beanpole baby, not too saggy at the sides, but worth bearing in mind.

7. Lace Trim Bodysuit, £12 for 2 at Next HERE

Well these are sweet for a bit of girly lace – I often just pop a cardigan on over a bodysuit and leggings, so it’s nice to have a bit of a pretty detail. Nice quality, no complaints here, (though I’m still so blown away by the ribbed cotton vest from Tesco, it’s almost disappointing when I feel plain cotton!) and the length is an average 46cm with a generous 28cm width.

Good God, I can’t actually believe how long it has taken me to do these clothing sizes posts! To think that I was going to try and do every single baby brand and every single size. Let’s see how I get on with the posts when New Baby arrives – I’ll be there with my measuring tape, getting breast milk everywhere and probably crying. Ha!