Making a bassinet mattress?

[alison_in_oh]

I received a hand-me-down wooden oval bassinet from an acquaintance. It was a family heirloom, handmade in Germany several generations ago, and it's great. I may only use it for occasional naps but I'd like to spruce it up a bit.

The mattress that came with it is basically a piece of foam covered by plastic. It's hard and kinda icky. It doesn't even really fit securely so it's a bit of a safety hazard. I'd really like to replace it but I can't find one online except for expensive custom-made ones.

Can I just find a piece of upholstery foam and cover it with a waterproof cover and call it good? Do I need to worry about the SIDS risk of mattress gases? Any other suggestions for padding this bassinet? (I could always just make a nice topper for the existing mattress, I guess.)

Thanks!

[Kari_mom]

If you do a search, someone here posted lovely directions for a wool mattress about two years ago. And if you would like to try it, I can look up a source I have for wool batting that is very reasonably priced.

[E.V. Lowi]

A natural sheepskin cut to fit the bassinet would be wonderful for baby.

[xenabyte]

I have a 'moses' basket that needs a pad. What I did was cut some organic hemp/cotton jersey in the shape of the bottom and sandwich some 100% cotton batting between the layers and made a 'semi soft' padding for baby to lie on. That way it's washable and no worries about plastic or off gassing.

If you wanted something water proof, you could always make a sheet with some PUL lining.

I like the wool idea and sheepskin idea. I have a sherpa blanket that I use for it now, that is soft and cuddly. But I've heard before that all natural sheepskin is nice! MMmmm, I have an old coat with a 'silky soft' sheepskin 'vest' part. I think I could probably cut that up and make a new lining for it

Good luck with your bassinet project!

[Kari_mom]

Ok, this is strictly my opinion, but I would not use a sheepskin. Sheepskins were used extensively in New Zealand prior to the SIDs campaigns that advocate putting infants on their backs to sleep AND not using sheepskins. The rate of SIDs has dropped dramatically in NZ. And apparently the use of sheepskins is out of vogue, according to my friend and her NZ ex-sheep farmer husband.

The advantages of a thin mattress made with wool batting is that it is naturally fire-proof and can be made comfortably firm and smooth. It will also retain the baby's body heat better and, if a little pee gets in it, no smells to worry about with wool's antibacterial properties. Maybe a bit more intimidating to construct than cutting a piece of foam though.

[E.V. Lowi]

Well, Kari mom and I have a difference of opinion on sheepskins for babies. I do believe that the skin should be cut to fit, without excess folds of material and the baby should be laid on it's back when in the bassinet. There is still some question as to the cause of SIDS, and I have never heard of a case linked to the use of sheepskin as a mattress.
Sheepskin has all the fine qualities of wool as well, being self extinguishing when removed from the source of flame. It has a superior insulating quality as it's cool in summer and warm in winter. Sheepskin is also antibacterial and mite resistant. Sheepskins are washable; the wool batting would get lumpy if laundered.

[alison_in_oh]

Originally Posted by Kari_mom

If you do a search, someone here posted lovely directions for a wool mattress about two years ago. And if you would like to try it, I can look up a source I have for wool batting that is very reasonably priced.

Thanks for all the suggestions and I'll look up those instructions.

[rebeccalizzie]

If you do a google search (I did, that's where I'm getting this), you can see that all the UK and NZ recommendations for bedding for infants say not to put the child on a pillow, comforter, waterbed, or sheepskin. Just the general "avoid super soft bedding" thing. I'm assuming that's not usually included in the recommendations here because using sheepskins isn't a very common practice in the US.

I think there are a couple of different possible causes for SIDS, but I won't be putting my infant to sleep on anything soft and fluffy, since the current research points to that cause.

[E.V. Lowi]

Originally Posted by rebeccalizzie

I think there are a couple of different possible causes for SIDS, but I won't be putting my infant to sleep on anything soft and fluffy, since the current research points to that cause.

Then you probaby wouldn't want to use a homemade wool batting matress, either. But wool batting and sheepskins have been in use for lots longer than polyurathane foam and poly vinyl cloride.

[E.V. Lowi]

There is a new study out in New Zealand that links SIDS to offgassing in manufactured mattresses. The study recommends 'wrapping' the mattress with polyethelene covers to eliminate the exposure to the gas and provides a 70% improvement as opposed to a 30% improvement in the case of back sleeping.