Did you miss World Breastfeeding Week? So did I...and I'm always looking for an excuse to celebrate something with a little cake. It's just a small week in August to remind us what a big difference breastfeeding can make.
What better way to celebrate World Breastfeeding Week, than to find ways to make breastfeeding just a little easier. And a nursing cover is exactly that thing. The founders of Bebe au Lait are the genious' behind the nursing cover. Never heard of them? That's because they're the Hooter Hider in disguise.
Same great nursing cover product, different tag for the mom who's buying the product to cover up, not make a sign that advertises what's going on under there. Fear not, you can still buy an official "Hooter Hider" tagged nursing cover, if it fancies you.
Bebe au Lait runs about $35, which is around the same price of the competitors. However, they also have an organic line, which is a bit more at $50. I have the organic Bebe au Lait, and for some reason I expected it to be itchy. Not so. It's super soft and I like how the material lays where you put it (especially because placement is so key).
Do you want to make your own nursing cover? Check out the August edition of Utah Baby Guide, a free magazine which is available online in PDF form. They have a step by step tutorial, complete with pictures of every step, so it's great for a beginning project. I made my own so I could compare home-made to the Bebe au Lait. The results?
My comparison:
- When making my own, I was limited to the material available at the fabric store. I bought the only one I really liked, but it wasn't as nice of quality. You could order a fabric you really like, but then it ends up getting to be about the same price as just buying one. Fabric choice is key. Buy the wrong style and children everywhere will be asking their mothers why "that lady is wearing an apron in the park"? You are bound to love one of the fabric selections of the Bebe au Lait.
The boning in the home-made one keeps protruding ragged pieces of plastic through the material. I'll cut it off, then a couple of weeks later I'll find another little piece poking out. It's like it's growing... I bet you could melt the end of the boning before you sew it in to your home-made version and that would take care of the problem. But now I have made 2 nursing covers for the price of buying 1 that would be right in the first place.
- I like the larger strap on the Bebe Au Lait. It's more comfortable, and the D-rings hold the strap in place much better.
- BUT, I do like the option of making the nursing cover wider for more coverage, which I highly recommend if you plan to make it.
They both have their good points, it's up to you to take the plunge...whether it's into your dusty sewing machine, or a plunge into your pocketbook. Either way, the nursing cover is a fantastic necessity for breastfeeding on the go.
9 comments:
I have bought this product and love that there is something stylish and chic for nursing. I have made my own and actually like mine better than my "Hooter Hider". I made mine for only $10. I made three using different materials and gave one to each of my sister-in-laws and we compared to see which ones held up the best. I made mine out of fabric that I found in the "house upholstery" section of the fabric store and brought them home and compared it to the material of my "Hooter Hider" (the one I bought from the company) and they are the exact same material and one was the exact pattern of the "Hooter Hider". When I bought the boning for the covers I paid extra for the expensive more durable brand. Anyways, I washed all 4 of the covers together (the three I made and my name brand one) to make things more equal, and in the end mine held up better, only because mine didn't fade in the wash and didn't wrinkle after the dry cycle.(I live in NY and you can't air dry clothes very well because of the humidity.)
Thanks for your comment! It's good to see how things compare in different parts of the country. I wish my fabric store had more selection. I bought the only boning they had available. You'll have to tell me if the more durable boning is flexible enough to allow your home-made "Hooter Hider" to fold up nice and small in your diaper bag.
If I had a sewing machine at the time I would have made my own too. But I bought the Hooter Hider and I LOVE it! I have the cream eyelet so its not too "Hey! Look over here I am nursing!" (If I wanted that effect I would just go hider-less). And it matches just about everything I wear- I am so vain, I know...
I have one of these and I love it! I found mine new off of Craigslist for $15!
Where are the instructions located in the magazine? I'd love to make one myself.
To find the directions for making your own "Hooter Hider," click on the "magazine cover" for the August 2008 issue of Utah Baby Guide. It must be downloaded to be read. Here is the link again: http://www.utahbabyguide.com/
The instructions for the nursing cover are not there. In the contents it' says they are on page 21, but there is no page 21. It skips from page 19 to page 25. Could someone email me the instructions? Thanks! bettylou1926@aol.com
"hooter hider!"
Interesting article, added his blog to Favorites
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