I'm just going to say this here and walk away. I don't want to go on about it, but it really bugs me so I need to get it out there to save me ranting at the large number of people I have heard say this recently: YOU CAN'T DO A LITTLE BIT OF BABY LED WEANING. You either do baby led weaning or you don't. The other types of weaning will almost certainly include purees and finger food. Giving your baby finger food is a natural development in weaning however you do it, but if you have also done spoon feeding you are not doing baby led weaning.

I am not going to say any type of weaning is better. I'm not going to debate at what age weaning should start. The information is out there and everyone has an opinion (including other parents, grandparents, friends, medical professionals, your dog). Wean however you like, whenever you like, but please use the correct terminology.

The most important principle in baby led weaning is that the baby controls what goes into their mouth. This inevitably means you start them on finger foods because they are the easiest thing for them to feed themselves, but you could theoretcially start them on purees which they picked up by the handful, they just wouldn't manage to consume very much for a while.

What are you talking about?

Baby led weaning is letting your child choose what and how much they eat right from the beginning of weaning. That means at all meal times. You can't say I let my baby control what they are going to eat, except at breakfast or when I'm in a hurry or when I want less mess, and call that baby led weaning.

While I appreciate that however your baby feeds you can't force them to eat (or drink) there is a big difference between putting a spoon in their mouth and putting the food in front of them to pick up.  So wean how you like, just don't tell me you do baby led weaning if you also spoon feed them.

...Walking away quietly now