If your home's what an estate agent might generously describe as 'compact and bijou', fitting all that new baby stuff into it can be quite a headache.
Space-saving baby gear
BabiesRus Cot Top Changer, £24.99, www.toysrus.co.uk
Add this to the top of your baby's cot and voila – a changing surface at a comfortable height which takes up far less space and costs considerably less than a proper baby changing unit.
It's sturdy, easy to clean, and although you'll need somewhere to keep nappies and wipes close to hand, this can be solved by putting up a shelf or something like Ikea's Kusiner Wall Pockets on an adjacent wall.
Alternatively: Unless you've got a bad back or have had a C-section so will struggle to bend over, there's nothing wrong with changing nappies on a mat on the floor or bed. Not only does this save space and money, it's also easier with older, more mobile babies who might fall off a raised changing surface.
Chicco 360 Table Seat, £59.99, www.chicco.co.uk
If it's going to be too much of a squeeze to fit a proper highchair in your kitchen, this little 'table seat' makes a practical alternative. It clamps onto a kitchen/ dining table, taking up no floor space at all. Putting your baby in it for the first time can feel like something of a leap of faith but when we tested it, it felt both sturdy and safe – although we wouldn't recommend using it on a very lightweight table such as a plastic garden one.
A welcome feature is the way the seat can be rotated, including to the side – fab if you're sat beside your baby, spoon feeding them or they want to turn to watch you preparing their dinner. It can be folded up for storage and, as a bonus, doubles as a travel highchair thanks to the carry bag included in the price.
Mothercare Spring Bouncing Cradle, £12.99, www.mothercare.com
It might not be the most sophisticated baby chair on the market (others are more adjustable, play music, have 'toy bars' to entertain your baby and/ or look smarter) but this bouncer is cheap as chips, does the job just fine and, crucially, can be folded flat for storage. The fabric seat can be wiped clean and it's very light and easy to move between rooms. Be warned though – it's a bit of a struggle to assemble.
Shanticot bunk cot beds, £549 plus £15 delivery, www.shanticot.co.uk
A clever concept for families with two babies or young children sharing a small bedroom. Perhaps best described as 'bunk cot-beds', these can be used in different ways depending on the age of your children (both levels as cots, top or bottom as a junior bed and the other as a cot, or both as junior beds).
When in cot mode, the upper level has a high side for safety but this can be lowered for ease of access to your baby. Once one or both children are ready for a bed, you simply replace the cot bars with the solid white sides, adding a bunk bed type ladder for the top level.
They're not cheap but we think they'll hold their value well so you could sell them on once outgrown (at around age six) to recoup some of the cost. Mattresses, the ladder and two sets of side rails and bed sides are included.
Bloom Alma crib/ cot, £300, www.bloombaby.co.uk
This stylish folding cot is another smart solution for small bedrooms provided it's only space that's tight not money – it's no bargain. We love its bright colours and contemporary design but it's the way that it can be folded up (and very easily at that) that sets it apart – a handy feature whether it's going to be in your room, a cramped nursery or for storing it 'between babies'.
Buyers need to bear in mind that it's sized in between a crib and cot (dimensions), making it suitable until your baby is around 12 months. This means you'll still need to cough up for a cot bed to tide them over until they're ready for a proper single. For this reason it's best viewed as a larger than normal crib rather than a replacement for a cot – expensive but for stylish types with small bedrooms it might just be worthwhile.