I’m sure at some point I must have questions what a muslin cloth was for. I’m pretty sure I must have used one when I was younger and got to feed my cousin. However, I think when I was writing the list of things to purchase for Jaxon’s arrival I was never 100% why I would need muslin cloths (and how many I would need!).
A bunch of bloggers and myself were challenged by Babymoov to find 10 uses for their muslin squares. Their lovely muslin cloths come in a wide range of designs but I chose the DandyChic patterns as they were fun and seemed quite masculine. I did like the rock design too. I did find alot of the other designs were kind of girlie. The set of 3 is £19.99, for that price you get 3 muslins. Within that three, there is one larger one which is 80cm x 80cm and two smaller ones which are 60cm x 60cm. It’s more than I would pay for just buying a pack of muslins but the set would definitely make a lovely present for a Mummy to Be. 1 and 2. Muslin Superheroes!
This is a silly one to start with. With some thinking, we came up with this idea. Because of how wide the muslin cloth is, it works perfectly for a superhero cape. In our house, my nickname is SuperHan, so a cape was perfect! Well, I had to join in the fun too then…
3. Swaddle with a Muslin
With Jaxon being a summer baby and arriving in the middle of a heatwave last year we would regularly swaddle him in a lightweight blanket or swaddle in a muslin. For the best part of July when we were at home he was living in a nappy and no clothes, he’d have a muslin wrapped around him to keep him “warm” (that sounds sort of strange in the middle of a heatwave!) He wouldn’t lay still for me to swaddle him so teddy had to assist. I couldn’t find my baby doll she must have grown legs and ran away in a Toy Story kind of way.
4. Sunshade (in the car)
We have the adjustable window shades so normally don’t need the muslin too but sometimes on long journeys you find that the sun comes in around the shade and you need the extra cover to block out the sunshine. We also found this worked really well on a long road trip. I would sit in the back with Jaxon, then lean over his car seat and give him a quick top up. It would only be for a couple of minutes but it meant that Jaxon got a feed and Chris wouldn’t be distracted by a crying baby. 
5. Sunshade (on the buggy)
Back to July last year, as I had ended up having surgery, I wasn’t allowed to drive for six weeks. This meant that I had to rely on Chris and My Mum to play taxi to me, which drove me nuts! I’m so used to being able to drive myself that it was really hard. I did however get out and walk heaps – this probably assisted with losing the baby weight which is good. As part of that I started carrying a handful of washing pegs around with me to peg the muslin onto the buggy because the sun kept going into Jaxon’s face but if I put up both the hoods on the buggy then he’d cook because of the sun shining on it. The muslin meant that a breeze could get in and uncook the baby (but it did need to be pegged on securely – I guess safety pibs might have also worked well). If you do this – make sure that you check the temperature inside the buggy – if it’s too hot, baby can get overheated.
6. Nap Time For Toys
Well if it can work for baby why not for the baby’s toys? (Yeah I know sort of scraping the barrel here!). Funny that I picked two musical toys that would probably keep you awake rather than help you sleep.
7. Spaghetti Dinner!
When I was younger, my dad use to joke that Mum had done spaghetti or tagliatelle for dinner because he was wearing a white t-shirt. So that was my inspiration for this one. It works as a bib for babies – it also doubles up as a bib for Mummy (or Daddy) on spaghetti night. I also found it works well while eating heaps of pineapple to try and encourage a baby to appear (however be prepared, the enzyme in the pineapple does interesting things to your lips!)
8. Breastfeeding Cover and Burp Cloth
Those of you who know me know that Jaxon hates being covered so now I just get on with feeding him rather than fighting and most of the time when I was using a cover it was an actual cover made for the job (I had two but my favourite was the cover by Faye and Lou).
However, I have a mental to do list as long as my arm so sometimes I would take the muslin and use that. I’d sling it over my shoulder like in my rubbish awkward picture below and hold Jaxon and feed him. It would also then be in the right position to move him round and use it as a burp cloth.
9. Changing Mat
Here is teddy being a cloth bum, I decided for the sake of Jaxon’s sanity when he’s older, I wouldn’t take a picture of him in the near nuddy and share it with the internet. He can do that by accident in the future or something anyway, teddy is being very good and remaining still while I snapped this one (he’s sporting a Charlie Banana in case anyone wondered hehe). Boys (and I’m guessing girls too) have this way of holding in their pee until you take off their nappy and then they go for a wee then and there. Boys also have this way of making it go everywhere!
Muslin or a terry towelling square work really well, you lay it down before baby and then if baby decides to pee, you scoop up the muslin/towel and chunk it in the wash. it also means that baby doesn’t get a cold behind on the changing mat. When you’re out and about it’s handy too because although a lot of changing mats have those pockets for the disposable sheets they are often empty.
10. Fashion Statement
Now I don’t have an image for this final one, but lend me your imagination just for a second. When we were on holiday and Jaxon was about twelve weeks old and still 100% breastfed. So his nappies were often very runny. On this particular occasion, Jaxon had broke wind, followed by the tell-tale smell that he needed to be changed. Somewhere between our table and the baby changing room, the nappy had leaked. And it had leaked down the front of my t-shirt. I had at least one change of clothes for him. But all my clean clothes were back at the hotel over 2 miles away!
In the end I came up with an idea. I grabbed the muslin and tied it around my ribs (just under my chest). I then turned it round so that it sort of looked like a really random apron. It did look a bit silly and it definitely clashed with my t-shirt. However, it worked until we could get an alternative. We ended up at a well known high street store to purchase a cheap t-shirt. Followed by a supermarket with a customer toilet so I could change.
Note to self: if Jaxon has a younger sibling, always pack a clean shirt/vest top in the changing bag
This is a sponsored post. I was supplied with a pack of 3 muslins in exchange for the post and my challenge ideas.
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