The Sewing Place

The Emporia => House Beautiful => Topic started by: sewingj on November 06, 2018, 10:01:18 AM

Title: Could I make a breast-feeding pillow?!
Post by: sewingj on November 06, 2018, 10:01:18 AM
Daughter is expecting her first baby at Christmas and has asked if I could make one of these

https://www.mothercare.com/feeding-pillows/dreamgenii-feeding-pillow---grey-star-colour-exclusive-to-mothercare/411801.html?cgid=feeding_breastfeeding_pillows#start=1

She tried one at her NCT class but she is very much a plus-sized lady and would like one that is bigger.She thinks it was filled with microfibre type stuff (presumably you can buy that?).  I have a sheet which I could use for the cover but I think this one has a removable cover and I don`t know if I would be up to that.  I`m not sure how we`d get the right shape either - I don`t have a Mothercare nearby so can`t easily get hold of one to copy
Help!
Title: Re: Could I make a breast-feeding pillow?!
Post by: BrendaP on November 06, 2018, 10:20:59 AM
John Lewis sell them (https://www.johnlewis.com/widgey-feeding-nursing-pregnancy-pillow-cover-silver-star/p231812580?sku=231812580&s_kwcid=2dx92700037657063853&tmad=c&tmcampid=2&gclid=Cj0KCQiAlIXfBRCpARIsAKvManylS819ulzKIIFrAVezGo_PAjqNuyXGvZhaiS1ikNJgoG_3u1hSe5kaAg3dEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds)
also Matalan (https://www.matalan.co.uk/product/detail/s2700092_c000/nursing-pillow-one-size-white?gclid=Cj0KCQiAlIXfBRCpARIsAKvManw9abx1BouU32bCVgJno9ONhAModol9eHRLSQ-z13YAFFU2aIxxDsAaAt7BEALw_wcB)
and probably lots of other places.

Looks as though it's just a horseshoe shape filled with soft stuffing.  Maybe a bit of trial and error to get the exact size/shape she wants, but it's only a soft support to prop the baby against so doesn't need to be fit precisely.

Buy a cheap polyfil regular pillow and use that for the stuffing.
Title: Re: Could I make a breast-feeding pillow?!
Post by: sewingj on November 06, 2018, 10:28:07 AM
@BrendaP   (and others)  I`m wondering if I would get a better shape by using polystyrene beans - any thoughts?
Title: Re: Could I make a breast-feeding pillow?!
Post by: Samantha on November 06, 2018, 13:44:43 PM
I think you'd need some sort of removable cover as there's a good chance that it will get milky baby sick on it  :x
Title: Re: Could I make a breast-feeding pillow?!
Post by: sewingj on November 06, 2018, 14:31:23 PM
I`ve found a good tutorial with a free pattern and a link to another pattern for a removable cover

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjKW5X0xpXs

I`ve just got to work out how to adapt it to daughter`s measurements!
Title: Re: Could I make a breast-feeding pillow?!
Post by: fajita on November 06, 2018, 15:14:16 PM
Poly beads can be ingested by a child if the pillow seams break, and they don't show up on X-rays.
Title: Re: Could I make a breast-feeding pillow?!
Post by: sewingj on November 06, 2018, 16:17:31 PM
Poly beads can be ingested by a child if the pillow seams break, and they don't show up on X-rays.

Message received and taken note of - will avoid them
Title: Re: Could I make a breast-feeding pillow?!
Post by: HenriettaMaria on November 06, 2018, 19:44:50 PM
I don't get that - the woman in the photo has the baby far too high to feed it - BF is a low-slung enterprise!
Title: Re: Could I make a breast-feeding pillow?!
Post by: Bogwoppit on November 10, 2018, 08:24:53 AM
I had a friend who was given one of those. She was larger than me and neither of us found it comfortable. We both used standard V shaped pillows or whatever cushions were available. Best to have two, one to support your back.

I fully recommend going along to a breastfeeding group while still pregnant.

Woman in picture is only advertising product, she might not even be the child's mum.
Title: Re: Could I make a breast-feeding pillow?!
Post by: Hummingbird on November 13, 2018, 09:15:28 AM
And the baby in the photo is quite old (big) - when I was feeding my sons years ago I found it was when they were first born that I needed a cushion (just an ordinary pillow did the trick to start with....)
Title: Re: Could I make a breast-feeding pillow?!
Post by: sewingj on November 13, 2018, 10:18:50 AM
I think I am going to hold off until the baby is actually here.  It is looking quite likely that it will be a caesarian birth and I should think an ordinary pillow would be more comfortable than something that wraps around your waist
Title: Re: Could I make a breast-feeding pillow?!
Post by: Bogwoppit on November 15, 2018, 14:34:39 PM
I'd suggest a cover for a V pillow to go in her lounge then, I breastfed my second after a c section, used lots of cushions to prop me up to a comfortable position as any movement that put strain on my middle was agony for the first couple of weeks.