Avent BF 'solutions' pack at John Lewis

[RacersTheRedNosedReindeer]

What do you think of this?

A bit over the top to call it a 'solutions' pack (under the 'essentials' section)? I must admit I bought a fair bit of kit as I didn't anticipate bf for much more than 3m if I was lucky and knew that I would want a steriliser for the pump anyway, but all this?!!

well, you don't need the nipple cream, the disposable breast pads (and I hated the Avent washable ones)the bottle warmer, or the dummies, and I got by without a steriliser, too (though i did have an enormous steaming saucepan that I used instead!)

I agree you don't need a steriliser either - convenience did it for me though! Plus I honestly didn't know it would get easier after a while and fully expected to be 100% bottlefeeding by now (6m) so I wanted the bottles too, and we stupidly bought the bottle warmer.

I used everything in that pack aside from the milk containers and the bottle warmer.
If you're going to use it all it's probably reasonably priced... and at least you know you have everything!

But I think you can get stuff cheaper if you buy separately. you don't need an electric steriliser for one... I use a cold water/microwave one

if you were after steriliser and breast pump with couple of bottles etc then toys r us are doing a set for £50. All other stuff in that pack is stuff you have to replace anyway.

I love the fact they say its everything you need and no need to buy anything else. Like 40 breastpads are going to do you the whole time of breastfeeding - I swear I've got through about 400 so far and my DD is now 8 weeks old. The washable ones are rubbish - put them on and soaked right through in about half an hour!

ooh no! i used the washable ones and found them excelletn!
It doesn't say you don't need to buy anything else either!

I can totally see why people would buy it just for the convenience of it all coming at once and not having to shop around

I thought breasts were the only essentials for breast feeding. I'm sure some people might use some or all of it , but plenty will manage without any.

crikey, £130 for stuff you don't need if you're breastfeeding - what kind of "solution" is this?
The only essentials for me personally were nursing bras and breast pads - and I never liked the avent ones. Also needed Lansinoh with one baby. But never missed all the other stuff. What a load of rubbish.

well a lot of people who braestfeed end up either needing to, or wanting to express.
in which case you would want a steriliser and breastpump.

My baby refused to latch on... so I expressed a lot... so no, breasts aren't the only thing you need at all.
I also suffered terribly from thrush and used nipple protectors. The breast shells were fab for when i had hideously cracked nipples that needed plenty of air to heal.. and collected milk too!

I don;t know, there is something about this that I just don't like
I think it is turning something really simpleand straightforward into yet another marketing opportunity
you might need some of this
you might need none of it
I doubt very much that you will need ALL of it
I would just hate the idea that someone would get the impression that you "need" all of this and it makes bf look like an expensive alternative

I would say you should wait and see what you actually need before wasting your money

Harpsi, this is how I feel. I went a bit mad in the sales and bought stuff I haven't used, so I was suckered into buying some things but this being sold as a 'BF solution' just strikes a wrong cord with me somehow.

Did they leave the big comfy chair out of the picture then?

I'm unhappy about the nipple protectors in there, as they're generally not useful, and not a good idea (under some circumstances they can be ok, I guess ... but I think a very small minority of women actually use them). Also, the dummies are not great for bf. The avent milk storage system is weird (what's wrong with bags?).

And the Out and About set name implies people don't breastfeed in public, which is a strange idea.

(I think I owned all these things, more or less, other than the dummies. Used all of them, too, other than the dummies and the breast shells.)

nqc... i thought the opposite about the out and about set!
after all, not many people are going to express whilst out instead are they?

I've expressed when out, but yeah, I see what you mean.

I just assumed the bottles were for when the baby was out and about?

I've heard people (ok, Americans online) say that the "nice" thing for bf mothers to do is to feed the baby expressed milk from a bottle, while out of the house. You know, so strangers are spared the horror of possibly seeing part of a boob.

Not impressed. Feel it's a bit exploitative. Mind you so much of marketing towards PG women is, really.

hmm yeah i see what you mean! never thought of it like that!

tbh though, i was the kind of person who got EVERYTHING beforehand... jsut in case!
As I said further down, i did end up using pretty much everything in that set (although can see that a lot of people wouldn't)
but if you'tre like me and want to be super-organised with the least hassle possible i think it's a good idea!

Can I just add my twopenneth here and say that breast shells are really fab - not for 'protecting your nipples' but for using sterilised to catch drips/gushes from the side you're not feeding from - much better than wasting breast pads. You can collect all the drips and have enough for a spare feed or to freeze. They are not something i suggest you juggle with when out and about though - you will get stared at with them in your bra!

Absolutely agree with all that you've said about it being 'nicer' to express when out - god forbid we should offend someone... I'm offended by NUTS magazine but I don't call the police about it!

Yeah, I know people who've found breast shells very useful. I didn't leak much with DS1, and not at all with DS2 (didn't use pads, even). So the usefullness depends on how much you leak. I gave mine to a friend who leaked more.

Just what i said on an earlier thread about bottles. They market all these things that you "need" and make them rather expensive and play on the fact that we all want the best for our babies. i must have been very naive when i had my ds cos i had nothing apart from breast pads, didnt buy a sterilser or bottles because i just new i would breastfeed not giving a thought that i wouldnt. I did eventually buy them but not until he was 5 months old and that was all i needed really, so to me it doesn't impress.

nipple shields and breast shields different aren;t they? have used neither but i thought nipple shields are corrective things and rarely needed as nqc said. sorry about typing. akward position with dd bfing!

Follow thestarlover - I didn't mean to offend. As I said, some people may use some or all of the kit for a variety of reasons. I'm not saying I never used breast pads, but to imply that this stuff is an essential for bf is unfair, and just not true for many people.

but it IS essential for others!

but I mean look at the people they're marketing at... John Lewis customers (probably got a bit more cash than some), in their getting all their baby stuff... want to get everything under one roof...

even if they don't use it all they know they've got everything they could need.

they also have this in the essentials section..
so lets not get carried away!

in fact... if you click on baby essentials it comes up with EVERYTHING they stock... so I don't think it's that relevant! lol