Archive for the ‘sleeping’ Category

How Merino Wool Helps Your Family Sleep Well

Posted Monday, February 10th, 2014 by Rachel King in dressing your baby, sleeping

Most comfy baby pyjamas in organic Merino wool and silk blend

My two young children sleep in merino wool pyjamas, and I love sleeping in my Merino wool vest - I think it's the most comfortable night wear there is.  Merino wool's comfort is quite literally a gift from nature, so  I thought I'd tell you a bit more about the properties of this amazing sheep's wool.

Merino wool is 20,000 times bendier than cotton

Merino wool is so soft and stretchy that it hugs you in a really gentle way - and this is because merino wool fibres can bend up to 20,000 times more and can be extended 5 times further than cotton!  This makes it way more comfy to sleep in than cotton as it moves with your body and is still soft on your skin – cotton bedclothes tend to get scrunched up around you. It's fibres bend so easily they don’t scratch, preventing the itchiness traditionally associated with wool. (more…)

Merino wool – studies show it’s great for sleeping

Posted Wednesday, May 1st, 2013 by Rachel King in our fabrics, sleeping

sleep well in merino wool

Even I was surprised by the University of Sydney study that wool bed clothes help you get a brilliant night's sleep - even in hot summer temperatures.

Merino wool - a very fine kind of wool from the Merino sheep - has fibres so fine that they bend easily and so don't scratch, preventing the itchiness traditionally associated with wool. This makes it way more comfy to sleep in than cotton as it moves with your body and is still soft on your skin.  But that's  not all.

(more…)


Safe Swaddling

Posted Thursday, April 4th, 2013 by Rachel King in dressing your baby, sleeping

Swaddling can work wonders to calm babies and prevent them waking and scaring themselves when they fling their arms around. It  worked miracles with my little girl when she was tiny. Merino swaddling blankets are gorgeously soft. They also have the added advantage, that merino helps babies regulate their body temperature and wicks away moisture.

On a  recent programme on Radio 4 Paediatric orthopaedic surgeon Professor Nicholas Clarke highlighted how important it is to swaddle babies correctly, with their hips and legs free to move. Research shows that swaddling babies legs tightly to alter their natural hips open position can increase the risk of hip dysplasia and dislocation.

The Cocooi Swaddling Blanket in Merino Wool is specially designed with a pouch for the legs to allow them to move freely and for you to do a quick nappy change if necessary.

There is even a video to show you how to swaddle correctly. The key thing is to allow room for the hips to move.

Cocooi Swaddling Blanket in Merino Wool


My son slept through… for the first time

Posted Friday, November 30th, 2012 by Rachel King in sleeping
My little boy is 19 months old. He doesn't do sleeping through. Which means its a very long time since any of us had an undisturbed night of sleep. Many people, including me have said its a good job he's cute.

Luckily for me my husband is a saint and since I stopped feeding him in the night he's done the brunt of the night missions. But I still wonder if I had undisturbed sleep whether many of the daily mishaps could be avoided. Every night two or three times a night we hear plaintive cries of Mama, Dadda, and most of the time he is sitting or standing in the cot. If you don't go to him immediately (no chance to get warmly dressed) he gets worked up into a frenzy. Sometimes patting works, sometimes you've got to make the chilly trek to the fridge to get some milk and then you're really awake. What worked getting my daughter to sleep through hasn't worked for my son. We've tried most things, but at the end of the day he just loves cuddles. My neighbour wisely said you just need to work out why he's waking up in the first place. However, there seems to be no pattern. We've tried all combination of bed clothes. Cotton pyjamas, Baby grows, fleecy baby grows but still no luck.  Having heard all the claims of children sleeping through with Merino wool sleeping bags  I was going to buy him one. But he's not used to sleeping bags and cried "stuck, stuck" when I tried one.  Helen suggested Merino wool all-in-one-Pyjamas.

They are brilliant. A beautiful ruby red colour with a little  embroidered sheep. On the first night I dressed him in a merino wool/silk vest underneath and then the pyjamas on top. He then poured goats milk all over himself....  argh!!...  but it just brushed off without soaking in.  And so I learnt first-hand about wool's water-resistant qualities.  Another amazing thing about Merino is that although it has liquid repellent qualities, it can also absorb up to 35% of its own weight in liquid without feeling wet. Making it perfect for dribbly teething children! Anyway the best bit is that he slept all the way through - the first time ever!  What luxury for me to get rest until 6am... and my husband... and my little boy too. Whether it was the comfort, warmth or breathability of Merino I'm not sure but I cannot recommend Merino wool Pyjamas highly enough - so lovely, such relief for us all.