Hand-Picked Gift Ideas for New Moms

Bronzing a baby shoe is so 20th century. These bootie pendants are intricately crafted, sporting shiny rhodium plating. An enamel fill provides deep, textured coloring without the brush strokes or poor edging that cheap, painted trinkets often possess. Better still, you can have Personalization Mall engrave the new child's name into the bottom of their shoe. Up to eight individual booties can be added to your initial order for a discounted price. These pendants are suspended on a shimmering snake chain that eschews hair snags, and are separated by sterling silver beads.

A new mom is always awash in a deluge of well-wishes and back-patting. Make your sentiments stand out through the power of presentation. Kind Notes will assemble a vessel that bespeaks class from the inside out. These shapely jars enclose a collection of linen cardstock designer envelopes, each containing a unique, inspirational and encouraging message. You can select from expertly-worded expressions or you can come up with your own 31 different ways of saying, “You go, girl!” This gift is festooned with decorative filler, a silk ribbon and pewter charm, and will be delivered to the recipient pre-assembled inside a gift box.

Everyone knows new moms want to preserve the perfection of their new arrival forever. Help combat her urge to enamel the baby. Sate her with the Deluxe Baby Keepsake Kit. A handsome diorama box - offered in espresso, mahogany, white or natural wood grain - encloses a 4” x 6” photograph flanked by the handprint and footprint of her little one. The non-toxic impression medium is easy to use, requiring no glazing, baking or pottery wheels. Each kit includes acid-free matting, as well as two reversible background boards that offer taupe, sage, pink or blue settings. For a small fee, you can include a personalized nickel plaque on the frame.

Childbirth is a beautiful, natural process. Commemorate it with a keepsake made from the two most natural tools at hand - wood and fire. The good folks at Fire-Wood Creations will take any photograph that you provide through their online portal and burn it into a hardwood plaque. This image is then ensconced in a matte carved from the stained, tortuous grain of far-eastern trees. An optional custom message can be emblazoned in one of four elegant fonts. The finished product comes in a black, solid-wood frame ready to hang.

If you can't decide between a gift that involves photos and a gift that involves baby shoes, then put your mind at ease by ordering the Baby Shoes Personalized Baby Photo Album. The album is bound in your choice of pink or green silk. Beneath the ribboned baby shoes that adorably adorn the front of the 10.5” x 10.5” album, a custom message can be embroidered in any one of a wide selection of ornate script. The interior holds 25 ring-bound pages of 4” x 6” prints that most new mothers will fill in about three days.

Try as they might, no baby can recall the wacky adventures of the first year of life. With Baby's First Book you can chronicle the events that led up to and followed the 12 months after birth. This baby-ography collects such vital data as how the parents met, a detailed family tree and a list of rejected, embarrassing baby names. Send all of this information to Rag and Bone Bindery and they will collect, organize and print a delicate little volume.

Someday the little one will leave home to make his or her way in the world. That doesn't mean that the hugs have to stop, however. The Picture Your Baby Pillow provides a squishy stand-in for nostalgic squeezes. Select any clear photograph and Uncommon Goods will print it on a custom-stuffed pillow in the shape of the subject's outline. (No longer are picture pillows restricted to square babies!) The cotton-sateen fabric is as soft to the hands as a baby's skin and the long-lasting print medium will survive many nights of cuddling.

Add a touch of organization, as well as panache, to the classic keepsake idea with the Personalized Baby Birth Memory Box. This gift includes the features you've come to expect in newborn memorabilia, such as a photo slot and handprint frame. What sets this item apart is that these are set in the face of a 12” x 9” x 8” box designed to hold the paraphernalia that doesn't fit in the usual gamut of maternal gifts, such as birth records, rattles and size 27 baby shoes. This solid, wooden box comes in a smart, white finish and can include an engraving of the child's name, as well as up to four lines of text.

After the weeks of craziness that culminate in the creation of a brand new future taxpayer, few moms would turn down a chance to unwind. Cloud 9 partners with boutiques and providers across the country to offer packages that are redeemable in a variety of climes. Minnesotans can embrace the warmth of a hot stone massage, while Floridians are soothed with cooling face masks. Contact Cloud 9 for a list of locations and available services designed to give the new mother a break before the real work begins.

Some women mistakenly see a new birth as the death of style. Prove that notion wrong by giving the Chocolate Ice Classic Diaper Tote Bag. Designer J. P. Lizzy offers fashion that doesn't skimp on function. This accessory is packed with features. Pockets line the inside and outside of the tote, which contains a cosmetic bag, changing pad and wristlet. Metal feet on the bottom and detachable straps on the top ensure that this bag is as comfortable on the ground as it is at your side. Best of all, the entire surface is wrapped in a microfiber that wipes easily when accidents inevitably happen.

Newborns are universally known to be full of love, even before they develop the ability to properly express it. Show new moms that you speak baby, and give them the pendant that accurately translates an infant's coos and giggles. The Love You Mommy Pendant is intricately designed by Michael Anthony and features ornate filigree beneath a message of devotion. Although all that glitters is not gold, this pendant certainly is; 1.2 grams of 14-carat yellow gold are forged into a heart that has the same words inscribed upon it as the child's.

Show her she can still turn a head with the Henry Brown Mackie Diaper Bag. This cavernous tote is 18” wide and 14” high. Not that it doesn't look good; designer stitching adorns a sleek modern bag that is infinitely customizable. The palette starts with either a chocolate brown or a piano black, which can then be accented with a variety of ribbon hues, patterns and monogramming in one of 15 different fonts with one of 25 different colored threads.

Commemorative jewelry is always a strong go-to for post-natal gifting, and you can hardly do better than the Mother and Child Ring. An organic design from Janell Russell depicts a mother and baby reaching out to one another, evoking the native emotions always present in new parents. This abstract expression is crafted from 3.5 grams of 14-carat gold, and is available in either white or yellow gold styles. The ring is shipped in a beautiful gift box.

The bond between a mother and her child is like the luster of diamonds - beautiful and timeless. Take her breath away with a pendant that celebrates the power of new love. A swirling form depicting a mother hefting her baby springs from a base featuring a 0.05-carat, bezel-set diamond. The entire pendant is formed from 10-carat white gold and hangs from a sterling silver rope chain. It takes all of these precious metals to properly represent the most precious thing of all.

Cleverness and appeal don't always go hand in hand, but the Key Calendar Necklace is one standout example of creative cohesion. The bow of the key is in the shape of a calendar page corresponding to that of the child's birth. The day itself is denoted by a genuine Swarovski crystal that is the color of the appropriate birthstone. The entire charm is constructed from pewter, and can be plated with gold, silver, brass or gun metal. A variety of matching chains are available, or you can content yourself with just the key if it is intended for a bracelet.

Bronzed baby footwear and dangly keepsakes are all well and good, but a lot of those items wind up in closets only to be pulled out years later before they can again be enjoyed. A bronze sculpture, however, can find a home on a table or mantle for years to come. This piece, representing a mother, father and their child, features flowing lines and negative space to evoke a sense of intertwining spirits. The sculpture is just over 13” tall, and just over five pounds, so that it commands attention without commanding too much space.

You don't have to choose between rugged and cute when protecting your iPhone 5 or 5s. Personalization Mall offers a durable, scratch-resistant polymer case that gives moms an opportunity to show off their adorable bundle of joy. Customization begins with one of two base colors, black or white, to match your iPhone. Beyond that, the primary chevron design is trimmed in one of three bright accents - pink, lime green or aqua. Up to two photos can then be imprinted on the case, with a dictated message that is either striped across the bottom of the image for a single photo, or nestled between the images if two pictures are submitted.

Babies are notoriously bad flyers, but that doesn't mean you can't give a new mom a little staycation to be enjoyed right in her own bathroom. Relaxation starts with a Pendergrass body net, which generates a rich lather superior to that of a washcloth. A myriad of Natural Honey products provide an aromatic clean, such as hand and body wash, bath milk and a soap bar. Once the cares of the day are scrubbed away, it's time to lean back into the cotton waffle bath pillow and slide on the provided eye mask for a good, long soak. The Hand and Body Lotion, foot brush and pedicure file are waiting if she can ever convince herself to get out of the water.

For now, a baby is the most perfect thing in the world. Commemorate these cherished milestones with a Personalized Set of First Tooth and Curl gift boxes. These silver-plated cylinders are each 1.5” in diameter, and the ideal size to store a prize looted from either the barber or the Tooth Fairy. The interiors are lined with delicate red velveteen. The child's name can be engraved beneath the content descriptions on the lids for quick and florid identification.