What's your favorite swaddling blanket?

[P.J.]

At first we were using a square piece of pretty flannel fabric my mom gave us, but it soon got too hot for that. So I ordered an Aden & Anais muslin cloth. They are HUGE ~ 47x47 inches, or 120 cm. I find the size and the looseness of the weave make it real hard to get and especially to keep a tight swaddle. DS wiggles his way out of it at least half the time! But it's really cool and worked even during the heatwaves we've had.

We then got a Swaddle Me bamboo viscose swaddling blanket thingy, and it was also very cool for summer....but just didn't fit right. It was too short, yet too wide on top. I wish the piece of fabric that the velcro grabs were bigger...or better yet that you could just fasten it anywhere on the fabric. That was too bad because I loved it otherwise. I sometimes have a hard time getting a good swaddle (you'd think with all the practice I get I'd finally get it right, but I don't every time ) so the pre-made swaddle blankets are appealing to me.

So, which ones have you tried, or what kind and size of cloth do you use? Which swaddling method do you use, and was it as hard for you to learn as it is for me? Any tricks or tips are appreciated. I can really get frustrated when DS wiggles out within minutes and I have to start over, meanwhile trying to help him fall asleep.

[Knitting Mama]

I have the non-stretchy flannel SwaddleMe blankets. I love them because when I get Cecilia tightly swaddled and the velcro attached, there's no wiggle room. She did really poorly in the stretchy ones because she could always get her hands up to the neck and then she'd get totally frustrated that she couldn't get them out completely! Now that it's summer I generally swaddle her in just her diaper, unless I have the air conditioning turned way down. They're quite thin, so I don't worry about her getting overheated. When she comes out of them after her nap her skin is the perfect temperature, not too warm or too cold. Definitely check BRU to see if you can find the flannel non-stretchy ones.

[KTProvi]

We LOVE the Miracle Blanket (miracleblanket.com). Easy to use, stays swaddled all night long, works every time!

[ErinYay]

There was a very short window of time in which the hook-and-loop swaddle blankets worked for us. My husband came up with the Daddy Roll, which of course made me very nervous at first- he'd fold a baby blanket in half the short way (so it was still long, if that makes sense), put V on in so there was just enough on one side to tuck around one arm, then roll her up in it. Yup, just rolled her over and over. The standard newborn-sized blankets would end up with the loose end right under her, so it wouldn't unroll. She LOVED it, and stayed nice and tight. The blankie (in winter we used nice fleecey blankets) would run from juuuuust over her shoulders and end around her toes.

I could never get the hang of it, and did a traditional swaddle, but his were always way more tight than mine. Nervous momma, of course!

[Knitting Mama]

Originally Posted by KTProvi

We LOVE the Miracle Blanket (miracleblanket.com). Easy to use, stays swaddled all night long, works every time!

The Miracle Blanket looks great, but isn't it really warm? My Cecilia's still really small (just under 12 lbs at almost 4 months) so I can imagine it would be like the baby in the demo video on the site where the blanket has to be wrapped around a bunch of times!

[cristeen]

The A&A is my favorite. Its the only one that i could get a nice tight swaddle with- those ones with velcro he could always break out of.

I still use the A&A and hes 10 mos. And I give one to every expectant mom I know.

[flavorfull1]

Originally Posted by cristeen

The A&A is my favorite. Its the only one that i could get a nice tight swaddle with- those ones with velcro he could always break out of.

I still use the A&A and hes 10 mos. And I give one to every expectant mom I know.

Yep, It is the only one that works for us, we just have to pull tightly for a good swaddle.

[Krystal1220]

A&A didn't work for us, either. I had a winter baby, so I'm afraid I can't recommend any lightweight swaddle blankets, but I loved the flannel blankets from SwaddleDesigns. I bought mine at Nordstrom. I just Googled them and noticed that they have some lightweight blankets as well.

[mrs.t]

I sometimes like the swaddle me...I have regular cotton ones that give a nice tight swaddle, but then I have the stretchy bamboo fiber ones that suck. I'm finding them to be too short, and the larger size is still too big, so I'm also at a loss, and I'm worried about DS overheating as well.

I loved the halo sleep sack swaddle, but it's just been too darn hot for those, and again, they are too short for DS. I was thinking of trying the miracle blanket.

[hakeber]

old twin flat sheet cut in half works great for us.

[emilyash]

My mom made us a few knock-offs of the Miracle Blanket. We used old t-shirt material bed sheets, so they're lightweight. We also added some velcro. If you know anyone with sewing skills this could work for you, too.

[confustication]

I bought some muslin and some binding and some dye... about an hour was spent on the dye bath, then I simply sewed it all together- about 15 minutes if that.

The whole thing is about 4' by 4' and it is absolutely perfect- I also use it a lot as a playmat and it is so light that he likes to play with it as he would a playscarf. Total cost was well under $10 for two.

[MeredithK]

Have you seen The Woombie? They have a summer weight one, too.

[jdg]

I love the single-layer cotton flannel ones from Ahmelie on Etsy. They're about the same size as the A&A ones, which works perfectly for me - anything smaller and I wouldn't be able to get that last end all the way around to be tucked in and hold the whole thing together. I strip Francesca down to her diaper and then swaddle her up.

[ciga]

We use and love the Swaddle Designs flannel ones for cooler days and the A&A ones for hot days.
We had some velcro ones and a miracle blanket but somehow I find then big square ones easier

[bdoody11]

Originally Posted by Cecilia's Mama

The Miracle Blanket looks great, but isn't it really warm? My Cecilia's still really small (just under 12 lbs at almost 4 months) so I can imagine it would be like the baby in the demo video on the site where the blanket has to be wrapped around a bunch of times!

We love our miracle blanket! We are in the height of summer and it doesn't seem to make her hot. We just swaddle her naked save a diaper.

[Pookietooth]

I used the A+A ones and still do, but only as a light wrap now.

[ann_of_loxley]

I get pissed off with swaddling blankets. I just stick with a normal blanket and do it myself! lol

[P.J.]

Originally Posted by MeredithK

Have you seen The Woombie? They have a summer weight one, too.

The one with legs looks good, we may have to try that when the weather cools down. But I've heard that for very small babies (I don't know until what age) it's important that they be able to sleep in the frogged position, or at least be able to bend their knees. Something to do with the development of the hip socket. So I don't swaddle DS's lower body but just leave it loose (much easier w/ the A&A cloths). I wouldn't want to wrap his legs so tightly, but otherwise that looks like a good one! Has anyone tried it?

[MeredithK]

Originally Posted by P.J.

The one with legs looks good, we may have to try that when the weather cools down. But I've heard that for very small babies (I don't know until what age) it's important that they be able to sleep in the frogged position, or at least be able to bend their knees. Something to do with the development of the hip socket. So I don't swaddle DS's lower body but just leave it loose (much easier w/ the A&A cloths). I wouldn't want to wrap his legs so tightly, but otherwise that looks like a good one! Has anyone tried it?

Sorry, I was NAK when I wrote that. We did use the woombie. I wish we had it from the beginning, but we didn't get it until DS was 6 months. It's awesome. They can be in any position they want to in that. DS could even roll in it if he wanted to. The material is pretty stretchy, so they can move around in it, but it keeps them from getting startled. . DS slept really well in it and it's super easy. The leg one just came out, so we never tried that, but I think that they are great.