A baby sleep pillow is not only essential to your child’s comfort, it is also a prominent part of the decoration of your child’s bed. If you want your child’s bed to be a comfortable and soothing place to sleep, your child needs the right pillow. There are hundreds of baby sleep pillows on the market, including some really cute designs. What does your child love most? Fire trucks? Cats? A favorite cartoon character? You can find a pillow decorated to suit him or her.
You can also create your own customized baby pillow by buying a blank baby sized pillowcase and embroidering, appliqueing, or adding decals. It’s best to decorate only one side of the pillowcase. Most decorations are a little rough, and can be uncomfortable for your child to sleep on.
If you’re willing to do a little basic sewing, you can also make your child a pillowcase for their baby sleep pillow. Take the pillow’s measurements along its outermost seams. Each side of the pillowcase will be those dimensions, plus a half inch on all sides for the seams and two to four inches along the longest side to create a finished edge for the open end of the pillowcase. For example, if your child’s pillow is 10″ by 10″, each piece of cloth should be about 11″ by 13″. Wash the fabric before you cut it to wash out the sizing (a kind of starch) and to preshrink the fabric. Line up the pieces with their “good” sides facing inward, and, leaving a half inch seam, sew three of the four edges together. To finish the open end of the pillowcase, roll up the edge as though you were double rolling the cuff of a sleeve, then sew around the innermost seam so that the raw edge is folded under and hidden. once you turn the pillowcase right ride out, you are finished! You can let the fabric’s pattern be the only decoration, or you can add more decorations. It’s best to pick cotton, jersey knits, or flannel, but if you plan only to decorate with the pillow, you can make it out of a delicate fabric like silk, plush, or velvet.
Remember, give pillows only to children aged two and up. Doctors advise that infants should not sleep with pillows because they can suffocate. Toddlers may also not need pillows, since their proportions are so different from adults’. When in doubt, let your child try sleeping with a pillow, and if they do not like it, take it away and save it for later.
Making or finding the perfect baby sleep pillow for your child should be quick and easy with this advice. Ask your child to pick out a pillow or help you create one, or surprise them. Happy sleeping!
July 26th, 2009 at 11:53 am
Hogwash! I would say. My personal experience in using baby pillows for my daughter from the age of one and half is a good example that it is not such a devilish product as it is made out to be. Indeed, some common sense precautions are a must. Do not buy cheap merchandise, the so called ‘best bargains’, they are likely to be of poor quality and hence unsafe. I scoured WalMart, Woolworth and specialized baby product stores before deciding on which type of baby pillow to buy.
August 16th, 2009 at 12:07 pm
Hogwash! I would say. My personal experience in using baby pillows for my daughter from the age of one and half is a good example that it is not such a devilish product as it is made out to be. Yes there are some precautions which you have to take. Do not buy cheap merchandise, the so called ‘best bargains’, they are likely to be of poor quality and hence unsafe. I scoured WalMart, Woolworth and specialized baby product stores before deciding on which type of baby pillow to buy.
September 17th, 2009 at 2:37 pm
How do you know when you have chosen the right pillow for your baby?
First, is your child old enough to use a baby pillow? Children under two years old should never have pillows in the crib with them. A baby’s neck muscles are weak, and cannot always prevent the baby from suffocating if she rolls over onto her stomach. Even when a baby has an ear infection or a congested nose and sleeps better with a pillow under his or her head, giving the child a pillow is risky. If your child is under two but needs her head elevated, consider putting a pillow under the mattress instead, so that the mattress itself is elevated. The mattress is firmer than a pillow, which reduces the chance of suffocation and is safer for small babies.
October 4th, 2009 at 8:46 pm
Another guideline is that the pillow should be free of decoration such as fringe or beads. This is to ensure that the child does not swallow and suffocate on anything on the pillow by mistake. When going for a baby pillow, choose baby friendly fabrics lie silk or light cotton. Feather pillows are known to cause an allergic reaction among some babies and it is best to avoid them. The best possible options are those baby pillows that have a removable cover, or are machine washable as a whole as this will help keep the pillows clean.
November 7th, 2009 at 3:13 am
Your blog is really helpful. great info.
November 19th, 2009 at 3:17 am
Test the firmness before buying a baby pillow so that the baby will not be smothered by sinking his or her little nose into it. It is safe to teach a baby to sleep on a baby pillow after it becomes two years old. There is a high chance of suffocation in earlier stages. It may be dangerous to use a baby pillow before the age of two because the baby may be suffocated by the pillow. When the baby starts using a pillow the baby pillow should be small and non allergic body pillow.
December 5th, 2009 at 3:23 am
How do you know when you have chosen the right pillow for your baby?
First, is your child old enough to use a baby pillow? Children under two years old should never have pillows in the crib with them. Because infants’ neck muscles are weak, they run the risk of suffocating on the pillow if they roll onto their belly. Some parents find that elevating their baby’s head when their baby has a stuffed nose or an ear infection helps the baby to sleep, but this is dangerous. If your child is under two but needs her head elevated, consider putting a pillow under the mattress instead, so that the mattress itself is elevated. The mattress is firmer than a pillow, which reduces the chance of suffocation and is safer for small babies.
December 17th, 2009 at 3:26 am
Medically speaking it is when the baby breathes carbon dioxide or bad air, as what it is more commonly known. Rebreathing happens when the baby, instead of breathing oxygen, inhales the carbon dioxide he has exhaled. When you leave the baby in his crib, the loose sheets or beddings may get over his head, causing rebreathing. What many do not know is that baby pillows may also cause rebreathing. This can happen if the baby inhales his exhaled carbon dioxide because the pillow is too close to his face.
January 4th, 2010 at 4:36 am
If you use these nursing pillows for the neck of your child AND yourself, you can both be considerably more comfortable. Often it has been found that a baby pillow around the neck of the child has helped him or her fall asleep while nursing.
If you are interested in having a baby pillow in the crib of your child as well as around his or her neck while nursing, keep reading. There are a few important guidelines to go by in selecting the correct pillow for your child. A baby pillow that is small in size is the first guideline.
January 12th, 2010 at 5:08 am
The pillows are widely used in bassinets of newly born infant. The foam underneath the pillow will mold itself according to the shape of baby’s head which helps the baby relax. Another type of pillow allows the Mom to support her and their babies during nursing. There are also baby pillows that can be fitted in a child car seat.
Visco elastic material is a top quality fabric that is recommended while looking for baby pillows.
January 21st, 2010 at 5:39 am
I keep coming back to this blog.
January 29th, 2010 at 6:12 am
Great blog. Your posts are great.
February 2nd, 2010 at 6:24 am
Helpful info.