The swaddle. God’s gift to most new parents everywhere.
Burley and I are by no means swaddle experts yet, but we sure know a lot more than when we started a month ago.

At first, we were convinced that Benjamin didn’t like to be swaddled. He somehow always found a way to weasel his cute little arms out of our homemade cocoons, and get really frustrated if he couldn’t successfully escape fully (i.e. only elbows made it out, or only 1 arm… All really cute problems to watch your child take on). But then, we realized that we just had a lot to learn about the ancient art of swaddling.

My neighbors who are not only expert parents (I can hear them laughing now), but also expert swaddlers… So they got us started on the right foot.
Also, I sometimes meander over to their living room under the guise of wanting to say hello, knowing full well that Adam will take my baby and magically swaddle him to perfection, during a crying fit. Just kidding guys. Or am I…
As promised last week, today I am sharing how to make your own perfect swaddle (like my neighbor who made this one for me!) and the best swaddling technique that we have found to date.

Making your own swaddle blanket at home is super easy and a great idea to give as gifts to any new parent.
That is how I happened upon this super cute turquoise and navy blanket from my dear friend, Becca.

The two main things that you need to remember when making a swaddle are the fabric, and the size.

DIY Swaddle

For fabric, you are going to want to find a pretty pattern in flannel. There are many gorgeous brand swaddles you can buy out there that are made of muslins, but these tend to not work as well for me because they don’t have the slight give that flannel does… so they tend to come unwrapped a bit easier. If you are a master swaddler, you may not have this problem… But for beginning parents… Flannel is going to be your BFF.

So first, you are going to cut a square out of your flannel fabric. About 3ft x 3ft (maybe add a few extra inches for good luck).

Next, you are going to sew a 1in hem around the perimeter of the fabric. You can use a zig zag stitch to make sure you get a good seal with only one pass of the sewing machine.

Finally, you will simply want to wash the fabric in baby friendly detergent (dreft is my personal favorite… Simply because it smells like angel kisses) and voila! You have a brand new baby AND new parent friendly swaddle blanket to be super proud of.

Like I said before… This is in no way the be all and the end all of swaddling… But it is definitely what Burley and I have found works best for us and our little crying machine. Let me know if you have any more tips on ready-made swaddles or swaddling techniques that have worked for you!