Probably, every newly made mother worries that her beloved child will be safe every second and stay in the most comfortable conditions. But, alas, women do not always have the opportunity to be with the child constantly. They, like other people, need to have personal space and time for a snack, shower or going to the toilet (yes, until the baby is about a year and a half old, even such an elementary everyday action turns into a trip).
If the mother does not have at hand a man who will replace her day and night at the “post”, in any case, she will have to leave the child alone with herself. To protect him, and to give himself the opportunity to do the necessary things, one can and should use the inventions of our time, which greatly facilitate parenthood. Among them, cocoons for newborns are especially distinguished. What is it, and also where to get such a thing - this will be discussed in our article.
What are you talking about?
To begin with, we should clarify the topic under discussion. In the huge list of accessories that facilitate the care of children in their first year of life, there are several similar in purpose, but differing in appearance and way of using the products:
- A diaper-cocoon for newborns is a textile product with fasteners tailored to a special pattern. With its help, the baby can be wrapped, limiting its movement, which is especially good for a baby's quiet sleep.
- An envelope is a warm blanket equipped with clamps that do not allow the envelope floors to open and "move out" of their proper place.
- Carrying bag - this is a fabric cradle with handles with a hard bottom in which the newborn can be transported over short distances.
- A cocoon-nest for newborns is a mattress with soft sides on a hook, which has many options for use, and we will talk about it further.
Nest is the know-how of manufacturers of goods for children from abroad, which have been adopted by mothers around the world. Successfully use it and domestic women, moreover, many of them have learned to make such products with their own hands. Cocoon for newborns is very easy to manufacture, in addition, it is a very useful thing. Even a novice seamstress will cope with such work, and therefore it is worth trying to sew a nest on her own to please both herself and her baby with a very successful acquisition.
Use cases
The main goal with which cocoons are used for newborns is to ensure a comfortable sleep for the child. At first, this accessory will be able to replace a traditional cradle or crib. Moreover, it will be convenient for those parents who sleep with the child in the same bed, but worry that they will harm the baby by negligence. A child who is in a cocoon is reliably protected by high sides, because he will feel comfortable on a large parental bed, and mom and dad will be able to relax without worrying that they accidentally crush him in a dream.
But cocoons for newborns are loved by children not only during sleep. Kids are not averse to lying in their nest during the day, looking at the world around them. And when a child grows up, he will be able to develop his physical skills, being in a cocoon, for example, roll over on his tummy and rise on his arms, leaning on soft sides.
Sizes of Cocoons
Manufacturers offer finished products in three versions that are suitable for children of different ages:
- from birth to six months;
- from 6 months to a year and a half;
- from a year to three years.
They all have the same design, but they differ only in size. To make the child feel comfortable, cocoons for newborns are made small. So they flow around the baby's body, providing him with warmth and a sense of hug. Therefore, if a child gets used to sleeping in a nest from birth, it will have to be changed to a larger one over time, and this is another argument in favor of the fact that mom needs to know how to sew a cocoon for newborns with her own hands.
Materials for sewing
A nest is a relatively inexpensive craft, to create which you need to prepare a piece of fabric for the base cover, filler, cord, retainer, braid or oblique trim for drawstring.
The pattern of the cocoon for the newborn is presented a little lower. It can be printed out or drawn independently according to the sample we have proposed. Fabrics for this product do not need much. It is enough to prepare a piece one meter long with a width of 1.5 meters. Usually a cocoon is made from calico or satin - these are natural cotton materials that are safe for baby’s delicate skin and quite durable. The product will turn out to be more beautiful if you use fabric with different colors for the top and bottom of the nest.
It is best to fill the cocoon with a synthetic winterizer or siliconized fiber. You can use both, and the other - to make the bottom of a sheet synthetic winterizer, and fill the sides with bulk silicone or holofiber.
Cocoon patterns
The scheme by which the product will be sewn is of two types. This is either a pattern of half the nest, which is laid out on a double folded fabric, or a solid pattern. The first option is shown in the upper image in this section. To transfer the pattern, it is placed on the fabric, it must be borne in mind that the left edge of the pattern is the line of the middle of the cocoon, and it must be combined with the fold of the material.
The second picture shows a full-sized cocoon pattern for a newborn. With your own hands, you can draw it very quickly. Scheme A is directly a cocoon, and in Figure B there is a pattern of a liner. A more detailed diagram is further.
When the pattern of the product on paper is ready, it should be pinned to the fabric and outlined by adding allowances for the seams. Then, on the front side of the product, it is necessary to mark with a chalk or pen for textiles a line for stitching the bottom of the cocoon.
Cut
The bottom and top of the nest are cut out separately. To ensure that the details of the rounded sections are not stitched together, notches are made at the points of maximum bending. The cuts should not go to the product itself, but pass only through the allowances.
The cocoon for newborns should be pulled together with a cord; for this, you need to make a drawstring along the perimeter of the side, into which the cord is inserted. There are two ways to do this:
- Cut a tape 5-6 cm wide, equal in length to the circumference of the cocoon rim, plus 2-3 cm for processing slices.
- Stitch on a nest directly above the seam of the lower and upper parts a braid or oblique trim so that the first line passes over the edge and the other at the bottom.
If the first option is selected, then the cord will be hidden inside the nest. A piece of fabric for the drawstring is folded in half and tied, then a lace is inserted into it. For the convenience of subsequent use of the product, the rope must be immediately passed inside the formed drawstring and leveled so that its center is located in the middle of the tape. Then it is fixed with a sewing machine, this will help prevent slipping in the future.
You can also immediately cut a synthetic winterizer for a mattress. The number of cuts will depend on the thickness of the material. If this is a thick sintepon, two pieces may be needed, about three will go thin. The approximate size of the cuts is 30x62 cm. The corners of the filler in the upper part must be rounded so that they do not puff inside the product.
Product assembly
Thus, the cocoon-nest for newborns with their own hands is cut. It remains only to stitch all the elements together.
- Fold the top and bottom parts face to face. If the drawstring is inside, lay the tape with the cord around the circumference and sweep it with contrasting threads or pin it with pins. Then the two parts and the tape with the tightener are sewn together so that small holes on the sides and the bottom of the bottom are unstitched. In the case when the cord will be inserted on top, a braid is sewn along the front side, as described in the previous section.
- Further, the bottom of the cocoon is cut off from the face along the lines marked during cutting. Now our product has almost acquired its finished look. It remains only to fill it.
- First you need to put the synthetic winterizer into the bottom and quilted it with stripes or rhombs so that the filler does not move out. Then comes the turn of the sides. They need to be gradually filled with silicone, evenly distributing it through the pipe.
- When this stage is completed, the non-sewn edges are healed, and their sections are decorated with a border. If the cord goes on top, you can insert the cord into the drawstring by attaching it to a safety pin. The ends of the rope are threaded into the latch and pulled together. So that their edges do not fray, they can be slightly melted over the fire and decorated with tips.
Advice! The bottom does not have to be filled with a padding polyester, it is also sometimes filled with siliconized fiber. So that in the future it is possible to add silicone to the cocoon, the lower section of the bottom is not completely sewn up, but a hidden zipper is inserted into it.
How to fill a cocoon for a newborn?
In general, we already answered this question in the course of the article. Most often used such materials:
- holofiber;
- synthetic winterizer;
- ball silicone.
These are safe hypoallergenic materials that are not afraid of frequent washes and dry quickly. In these fillers parasitizing microorganisms and bacteria do not start, which is their indisputable advantage. However, they have a minus - fragility, but in the case of a cocoon for newborns, this is not important. The synthetic winterizer and silicone do not go astray during two or three years of constant operation, which will be enough for the time of using the accessory.
Tightening and fixing
There are models of cocoons that cannot be pulled together with a lace or ribbon. The bead closes together with the snap-on trident on the latches (fastex). Usually they are put on industrial products, but such a latch can be made independently.
For him, it is necessary to purchase about one meter of belt braid to match the fabric from which the cocoon will be sewn, as well as fastex itself. Details of the fastener are opened, then each of them must be fixed on the tape using a sewing machine. Attaching it is best done in a zigzag fashion. Next, the straps from the webbing are sewn to the sides of the cocoon. So that they do not hang out in the open position, approximately in the middle of their length, loops are made on the cocoon through which the details of the strip are passed.
Mattress
Often, ready-made sockets are equipped with a variety of accessories. Usually this is a liner and a cushion. It is these elements that most often complement the cocoon for the newborn. How to stitch these items, and are they needed at all? As for the pillow among pediatricians and children's orthopedists, there is no consensus. Most doctors argue that babies under three years of age are strictly forbidden to put anything under their heads during sleep. But the spare mattress in the cocoon will not be superfluous. Sewing it is even easier than the nest for the newborn, you can use the same pattern, but the details of the mattress should be cut without boards.
Special devices
In addition to an improved fastener and a removable mattress, the cocoon can be “thought out” with the help of handles that facilitate the carrying of the baby. They, like the retainer, are sometimes tuned over the fabric, cut out from the belt braid. It is also possible to make pens from the same fabric of which the cocoon itself is made. Then they need to be sewn back at the assembly stage of the product, putting their tips into the seam of the bottom and top of the nest.
To avoid frequent washing of the cocoon, it can be worn in a large pillowcase. It is best to sew it yourself, choosing the optimal size of the “clothes”, as well as a fabric that is pleasant to the touch.
We hope that our tips will help mothers and their babies relax more often and comfortably. Happy craftsmanship success in creativity!