Breastfeeding can be a challenging experience if you don’t know how to go about it. One of the things that mothers find most challenging is getting the right position for the baby to latch properly on the breast.
Because newborns can be rather small, your arms can get quite strained holding the baby in the right position.
Sometimes, you can opt to use a pillow to help you prop the baby up so that you reduce the strain on your arms. Thank heavens for the thoughtful invention of a Boppy pillow!
What is a Boppy pillow used for?
A Boppy pillow, which is also called a nursing pillow, is a C-shaped type of pillow that is primarily used to hold the baby in position while breastfeeding. It is specially made for supporting your baby while breastfeeding.
The Boppy pillow’s C-shaped design is such that it fits around the mother’s torso while breastfeeding. It is used to help the mother find the right position for the baby while breastfeeding. Therefore, we can call it a positioner.
The Boppy pillow helps to lift your baby higher and closer to your breast. This reduces the strain on your back, neck, and shoulders which can be caused when you slouch while breastfeeding.
It also offers relief because of the postpartum pains that most mothers experience after birth. It comes in handy especially when you are tired thus making breastfeeding a relaxing and comfortable affair. It can also be used when bottle feeding your baby.
All you need to do is prop up the baby so that they can be able to take the bottle without much strain on your body. Apart from making breastfeeding a comfortable affair, the Boppy pillow is also used for other purposes.
Some of the other ways it is used are for tummy time and propping the baby on a seat when they are learning to sit. As with other pillows, your baby must be supervised when they are on the Boppy pillow.
This is because it can cause suffocation if the baby falls over when sitting on it unsupervised. This also means that the Boppy pillow cannot be used in the playpen and the crib to avoid suffocation accidents.
How to make a homemade Boppy pillow
As part of your preparations as you wait for your baby, you make lists of items that you need to get ready to welcome your baby. One of the items you can have on your list may be a Boppy pillow. The beauty is that you can make it for yourself as you prepare for the arrival of your baby. For this project, you need about:-
- 2 yards of pillow fabric
- 2 kilograms of pillow stuffing
- 2 yards of the fabric to use for the outer cover
- A zipper of at least 20 inches.
You can either use a sewing machine or sew by hand as per your preference.
Boppy pillow cover pattern
To avoid making mistakes when cutting out the pattern on the fabric, you can first draw the pattern of the Boppy pillow on a piece of paper before tracing it on the pillow fabric. You can make the pattern to be like half the pillow and then fold the fabric when tracing so that you have a C-shaped fabric once you have cut.
The dimensions of the pillows differ depending on how big you want your pillow to be. Remember to make the pillow dimensions a little fatter since it tends to shrink when you put in the stuffing.
Once you have traced it, you can sew on the sides while leaving one side open so that you can use it to insert the stuffing. While stuffing it, keep putting in the stuffing until you get a firm pillow.
Remember to turn it before stuffing then close the open end. The Boppy pillow pattern is the same as the pillow pattern. You can use the same pattern that you used on the pillow fabric and the same process to cut out the Boppy pillow cover.
The main difference is that you need to give a larger allowance around it. An allowance of about one inch around the pillow cover so that it can fit on the pillow.
How to make a Boppy Cover
You can choose a nice stretchy fabric like Lycra to make the Boppy pillow cover. Your Boppy pillow cover is ready once you trace the pattern on the fabric while remembering to add the one inch all around.
The one inch will help you in fitting in the zipper when making the cover. It will also help in holding the pillow into the pillow cover. The difference when making the Boppy pillow cover is in the stitching part.
When stitching it, you will not stitch all around like the pillow cover. You will stitch it, but it is best to start by fitting in the zipper first on the outer side of the C.
This will make it easier to finish it because you will not have to fidget trying to fit in the zipper to a completed Boppy pillow cover. Once the zipper is fitted in, you can stitch all around it then turn it to its right side.
You can make a number of these Boppy pillow covers in different colors and prints to give your pillow some variety. A pillow cover generally works to protect the pillow from elements.
The essence when choosing your pillow cover is that it needs to be washable and durable so that you can be able to maintain the hygiene for your pillow. When using a Boppy pillow, it is exposed to many fluids like milk and spit which can make it dirty.
Therefore, you need a pillow cover that can be occasionally removed and cleaned often. When choosing a Boppy pillow cover pattern, you can go all out on the print since it also gives the Boppy pillow some character.
What you need to remember is that the pillow cover needs to be made of a fabric that is cozy and soft on your baby’s skin so that it is comfortable for your baby to lie on.
