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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

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Original poster

Recommendations for Breast feeding cover ups

17 replies

Romilly70 · 16/10/2010 18:31

Hello,
my baby is due next week and I am planning to breastfeed. Loads of people are planning to come and visit, so would like to be able to chat but not feel embarrassed to get my babs out with people at home or as and when we go out.

I have found the following cover-ups / ponchos and wondered what was best, bearing in mind I have quite large boobs (currently e-cup and am presuming they will go up a couple of sizes when milk comes in.)

These are the ones I have found:

Baby BuBu supposed to be fairly discreet and a good large coverup

Bébé au lait I quite like the patterns but apparently they draw more attention to the breast feeding

Baby BuBu NursingPoncho will this give me enough coverage?

L'oved baby nursing shawl reviews would indicate this rides up too much and displays too much if you have big boobs.

Also, I have got a breastfeeding pillow (my brest friend) and a sling for out and about. (Can you tell I'm a first time mum? )

I just want to get something practical which i can use with my other breastfeeding accoutrements!

Any advice would be gratefull received. (I have read the other threads about wearing 2 tops and using a muslim or a pashmina, but as I am new to all this, I would really like to buy something which makes me feel confident about not flashing so that I can concentrate on feeding the baby!!

thanks!

OP posts:

EauRouge · 16/10/2010 18:43

I've never tried any of those cover up thingies but if you are nervous about feeding in public then you could try joining a local BF group (like LLL or NCT) and buddy up with someone the first few times you go out.

I went up to a GG when I was expecting and I never had any flashing problems (did the vest top under a normal top thing and tried a pashmina but DD hated being covered up). I think it's just practice and confidence that comes with a bit of time.

There's a woman at the surestart centre I go to that has a similar BF cover to the Bebe au lait one and it covers everything.

What sort of sling have you got? It might be possible to feed your DS in the sling, that should cover up everything as well.

EauRouge · 16/10/2010 18:44

Forgot to say good luck!

Meglet · 16/10/2010 18:51

In my own slightly grumpy way I would like to say that you might want to reconsider having lots of visitors when you are trying to establish bf. IME it really doesn't help as it can be a bit fiddly while you get used to it, lots of milk leaking out and wriggly babies do not make for a easy first few days (although some people get in the swing of it quicker than others). I refused to have visitors with my DC2 as too many people got in the way with DC1.

But, back to the subject, the breastfeeding / nursing vests are great. They keep your tummy warm too. IIRC they have them in H&M, mothercare and the Jojo catalogue.

And good luck for next week!

UnseenAcademicalMum · 16/10/2010 18:57

I had one like the third link (Baby Bubu) which I used when going to places where I didn't feel confident about breastfeeding. It was OK because it doesn't scream "look at me I am breastfeeding", unlike the patterned apron types and looks more like just a normal light-weight poncho.

It covered everything, so was fine in that respect (and I was an F-cup whilst feeding).

Actually though on the whole just make sure you don't wear tops which are tight-fitting and don't wear anything which would involve you having to flop your boob over the top (rather than lifting the top and going underneath) and it's not too difficult to feed without showing much flesh. I know some people just use muslin cloths to help cover up a bit, but tbh I just found this awkward.

rubyslippers · 16/10/2010 19:07

I never covered at home ...

When I had a posh wedding to go to when DD was 4 weeks old I got a hooter hider specifically for that as I wanted DD with me

Similar to your first link

Was brilliant IMO

MoonUnitAlpha · 16/10/2010 19:42

I don't have a comment on the cover-ups as haven't used them, but I did find in the first few weeks I really needed to be able to see what I was doing! Getting ds positioned and latched required both hands and some concentration, so lots of visitors and something over him in the first few weeks wouldn't have worked for me.

porcamiseria · 16/10/2010 19:56

i have a black bebe au lait, and given that most of my clothes are black it allows me to cover up discreetly. i am large boobed too. i recommend

porcamiseria · 16/10/2010 19:58

good luck ! x

Original poster

Romilly70 · 17/10/2010 06:43

Thanks for all your tips!

I am actually having the baby in France, so there are not a huge number of mum's groups, in the area where we live. There is, however, one specifically for breastfeeding which meets once a month and they are actually very relaxed about getting their boobs out, which is nice.

I have ordered a stretchy jersey sling www.jeportemonbebe.com/ so that I can keep it on even when I am not carrying the baby and just pop him in when he needs me.

According to the website you can tie the sling in such a way that you can breastfeed, but you are still rather exposed.

Also, I have to have a planned c-section, so I am not sure how easy it will be to get upstairs everytime someone pops round, if I am already in the middle of bfing.

And my parents are coming to stay and help for a few days after I get home from hospital so I am not sure how comfortable I am going to feel getting my boobs out in front of my Dad!!

OP posts:

StarExpat · 17/10/2010 06:51

Bebe au lait is fab as you can clearly see everything going on with your breast and your baby but no one else can. Mine probably drew more attention to me, being patterned but I didn't care that people knew I was bf. I hoped they did, I was proud of it :) I just wanted to keep my breasts to my own and baby's view. Bebe au lait is a thin material so can be used in all weather and keeps baby (and you!) snuggly warm while bf :) best wishes with your new baby!

MrsC2010 · 17/10/2010 20:52

I use an artfully draped muslin (did the trick in a busy restaurant with 8 family members today, one didn't even realise I'd fed her!) or a pashmina.

StarExpat · 17/10/2010 20:57

The benefit of bebe au lait is the wire around your neck at the top. You just put it on and don't have to adjust it or anything and if trying to latch on a newborn, it's great to have the cover that just stays there and you can see down to your baby the whole time without adjusting anything. It's lovely :)

FakePlasticTrees · 17/10/2010 21:03

I went with nice pashminas - at least you can wear them for years. And if it's cold, you can wrap them round your neck when out as a scarf and reduce the number of things you have to carry....

mollycuddles · 18/10/2010 04:15

Good luck and congrats. I think you may just need to forget about covering up at home at the start as you do need to see what you and baby are doing and getting a good non nipple damaging latch is more important than anything. If your dad is uncomfortable then he should leave the room at latching, not you especially as you will be having a section. Once you have a good latch then covering up so he can come back in will work. My dad was v embarassed at the start but he just looks elsewhere now and we got efficient at latching quite quickly.

StarExpat · 18/10/2010 07:28

I used my cover to wrap up the baby and it's so thin and folds so tiny, I just popped it in the sling either around baby or at the side or in my handbag.
When at home just ask for a bit of privacy when baby latches. I did this- not so much for wanting to cover but I needed to concentrate and it was very hard for me. So if I was alone or just a bfc and myself, I could get him on much more calmly. Having an audience stressed me out. Even though I knew they didn't know how to do it either, I just felt pressure to get it right quickly or else I'd be seen as a bad mother (I know this wouldn't happen but my hormones were everywhere!) in reality they aren't watchig at all!

People were very willing to give me privacy. Only times I covered at home were when I wanted to keep us warm.

AliCat07 · 24/10/2010 17:48

I hope it all goes well on the breastfeeding front. I had troubles to begin with and it's worth getting a breast pump too - just in case you need to give your nipples a rest or your breasts become engorged.
I used a breastfeeding cover from BabyBud which is very similar to the bebe au lait cover but much cheaper. I thought it was great.
Good luck and remember it's not always easy to breastfeed especially after a c section - as I found out- but persevere as it's lovely when it goes right!

chipmonkey · 24/10/2010 18:19

I had the L'oved baby one but never actually used for feeding, only for if I needed to express in the car. I am not shy about feeding in public, just shy about people seeing an elongated nipple through a plastic tube

I can't see how it would ride up? but as I didn't use it for feeding, maybe I am missing something.

It folded down to almost nothing and fit neatly into the cooler bag for my pump which was actually quite small.

Would also suggest keeping visitors to a minimum and bear in mind, you will also be having major surgery and moving around might not be the easiest for a week or so.

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