Breastfeeding is a natural part of motherhood, where you and your baby will create a bonding journey together. It can both be stressful and exciting, especially for first-time moms. You may be confused about where to start and the possible problems you might encounter. At the same time, you are looking forward to that bonding experience you may have with your baby. You are not alone because almost all mothers go through these conflicting feelings.

Every breastfeeding experience is unique, but an efficient way to handle your worries is to be prepared. We compiled some of the best breastfeeding hacks to help you get through your breastfeeding experience.

1. Choose a breast pump based on your needs.

Choose a breast pump that best fits your needs and lifestyle. Read on customer reviews, brand reputation, and warranty. You can also check if parts and accessories are BPA-free. Toxic chemicals, such as BPA are associated with possible health effects. BPA has been linked to reproductive, neurological, and immunity problems, especially in infants and children.

Consider if the pump is easy to use, portable and adjustable. You can look into brands like Ameda Mya, Medela, and more.

You may also want to consider the Haakaa manual breast pump that uses natural suction to catch your milk. It doesn’t need batteries, and you don’t need to plug it in. Simply attach it to your breast, and it catches the milk into its container. It’s perfect for when you’re nursing your baby on one breast, and you’re leaking on the other.

2. Prepare a breastfeeding area or a breastfeeding kit.

Instead of running around looking for things while your baby is hungry or crying, it’s best to have a space where you already have all your breastfeeding essentials. You can also choose to have a box or a basket with all your essentials ready to go. Here are a few things you can prepare in your breastfeeding station or kit:

• Washable cloth baby wipes
• Reusable nursing pads
• Burp cloth
• Water bottles
• Snacks
• Ice pack
• Nipple cream
• Nipple shields
• Breast pump
• Breastfeeding pillow

3. Get an ethically-made organic nursing bra.

You don’t just want to look at style and comfort in choosing a nursing bra. You also have to consider the material used to help determine its sustainability and durability. As you consider your options, look for non-toxic fabrics made under sustainable and ethical conditions. An ethically made, organic cotton bra is a good example.

4. Keep hydrated and well-nourished.

As you give your baby nourishment, you need to be healthy too. What you eat and drink will affect your breastmilk supply, your energy, and your baby’s health. It is recommended you drink 16 cups of water per day. Load up on superfoods perfect for lactating moms, such as organic brown rice, spinach, salmon, sardines, legumes, beans, oats, and more.

5. Ask for support or take a breastfeeding course.

Sometimes a part of motherhood is the feeling of being supported and encouraged. Reaching out for help is okay and even necessary at times. Instead of trying to learn everything on your own, ask for guidance or look into a breastfeeding course. It can help you address your situation better. Reaching out to a lactation consultant may also be a good idea, especially on health-related concerns such as mastitis and thrush.

As you go through your breastfeeding journey, keep in mind that it’s a learning process. It may take a lot of trial and error until you figure out what works for you and your baby.

Free stuff is good. Ethically produced, eco-fashionable free stuff is even better! FaeriesDance.com is offering another sustainable fashion giveaway. This time one lucky winner will receive The Mood PJ Set in their choice of size Small (Misses 4-6), Medium (Misses 8-10) or Large (Misses 12-14).

But The Mood isn’t just to sleep in. This beautiful, aubergine colored set is also the perfect loungewear, make-a-coffee-run wear, or pick-up-some-groceries wear. Silky soft bamboo viscose is paired with just a touch of spandex for a luxurious drape and all-day comfort. The set is OEKO-TEX® 100 certified, so you can be confident that it’s safe and non-toxic.

This Mood is designed by San Francisco-Paris collaboration brand, Les Lunes. With shapes and style designed to flatter, Les Lunes mindfully curates a collection of everyday basics to live in, and ethically produces each piece at their own facility in Shanghai.

Let’s start at the top. The Mood has a wide, boxy top and has a very relaxed fit through the torso. It’s a crewneck pullover with thumb holes to keep your sleeves in place on wild nights. The top is slightly cropped falling just to the top of the hip, and can easily be worn out and about with your favorite jeans when you just want some comfort with your style.

The Mood lounge pants are ready for sleeping, have you covered on the couch, and are perfectly appropriate when a late night dash to the corner store is required. The pants have a covered elastic waistband, and are extra long so that you can trim them to the perfect length for your height. Soft and fluid with a beautiful drape, no one will blame you for wanting to wear them all weekend long.

How to Enter

Now that you know how crave-worthy The Mood PJ Set is, how do you get yours? Well it’s easy, peasy, just like lounging around in these pajamas on Sunday morning.

First, leave a comment on this post telling us what stands out about this set to you. Then fill out the form below.  You can get extra entries by visiting our social media pages and sharing this contest.

New to Faerie’s Dance?

Since 2005 Faerie’s Dance has been a force for good in the fashion world.  We support small, sustainable businesses, many of them are women-owned or family-owned.  All of our products are ethically produced, providing living wages to the workers that make them both here in the USA and abroad. No sweatshops or child labor are ever involved in the making of our goods.   We currently offer more than 1200 sustainable items in our store including organic, natural fiber and recycled clothing, accessories and jewelry.  Find out more about our philosophy and our funny name as well as our generous charity policy.

Want to know more about organic cotton and natural fiber bras and which styles might work best for you? Join us for our 10-week long organic bra video series.

This week we’re covering Triangle Bras. Triangle Bras are very lightweight, minimal coverage bras without a lot of support. They are generally sized as S, M, L instead of 34B, 36B and are best fit for cup sizes AA – C. Triangles are definitely not for everyone. These bras work well for women who prefer not to wear a bra, but may require one for modesty. They are so lightweight and comfortable, you may forget you’re wearing a triangle bra at all. But don’t expect a lot of shaping or push up. These cute little “slip of a bra” triangle styles are just for covering your natural shape, not changing or enhancing it any way.

When choosing a triangle bra, find one that looks pretty to you. A touch of lace or detail that speaks to you will enhance your enjoyment of this simple style.

Bras highlighted in this video:
• Avignon Triangle Bra (XS – L) Kayla is wearing a M
• Triangle Bra with Lace (M – L) Kayla is wearing a M
• Brigitte Triangle Bra (S-L) Kayla is wearing a M
• Amour Triangle Bra (only S left) shown on hangar

We discussed bamboo fabric a little.  Several years back we wrote a piece on Tencel, Rayon and Bamboo that you might find interesting.  For more eco-fabric information, checkout our Most Eco-Friendly Fabric roundup.

You can also get whole life wellness information from community nonprofit Moon Cycle Medicine, Inc.

Want to know more about organic cotton and natural fiber bras and which styles might work best for you?  Join us for our 10-week long organic bra video series.

Today’s episode focuses on Cami Bras.  Cami Bras are a subset of the “Bralette” family. They are always sized as S, M, L instead of 34B, 36B, etc. and they pull-on over the head as opposed to having back closures. It’s a very simple style that tends to be flattering for A-D cups.  Because they are easy to make, a lot of clothing companies that don’t specialize in bras make them.  So you need to watch out for sizing!  Cami Bra Tops, also sometimes referred to as Yoga Bras, tend to come in a wide variety of colors and prints, which definitely adds to the fun of this particular style.

Bras highlighted in this video:
• Soy Lace Cami Bra (XS – 2XL) This one runs small, Kayla is wearing an L.
• Grace Bra Top (S – L) This one runs large, Kayla is wearing a S.
• Cami Bra Top (S-L) This one runs true-to-size, Kayla is wearing a M.
• Eve Panty – the panties that match the Grace Bra Top.
• Sri Yantra Yoga Bra (only L left), orange bra shown on hanger.

You can also get whole life wellness information from community nonprofit Moon Cycle Medicine, Inc.

After 8 years of university, Kayla finally completed her M.D. in family medicine and started working at a major hospital in 2012.  She was excited to meet and help patients.  Unfortunately, the US health-care system is focused more on profit than on care, and within a few years, Kayla was burnt out and discouraged.  Often with just 15 minutes scheduled per patient, she was not making the deep connections and serving the community in the way she had hoped to.  She finally realized that to provide the type of care she wanted to give, she would need to start her own non-profit clinic.  She spent another 2 years getting formally trained in Ayurvedic medicine.  Armed with both science-based and holistic health training, she manifested Moon Cycle Medicine, Inc. from a dream into reality in 2017.

Kayla and I met through a women’s networking group, Women Entrepreneurs of Portland (WE PDX) that I cofounded with a realtor friend. She was so excited to find a reliable source for organic cotton intimates!  She and her mom have become regular customers, and I have joined the board of her non-profit.  Unlike Ann from our last customer spotlight story, Kayla has no known allergies or skin rashes.  This led me to ask her at a meeting recently why she wore organic cotton intimates.  She responded, “Wearing organic cotton bras and panties is part of my self-care.  I get peace of mind knowing there are no chemicals on my intimate areas.”

She also told me she occasionally prescribes organic intimates to her patients. “I had a patient who had a severe rash in her private area.  I prescribed her organic cotton underwear along with more conventional creams and antibiotics.  When she came back for her follow-up, she had gotten all the conventional items, but still hadn’t purchased the underwear.  I had to explain, that the organic underwear was the most important prescription I’d given her and sent her off to go find some.”

Kayla appreciates that FaeriesDance.com gives her a specific place to recommend patients to.  “It’s easier for my patients to follow my guidance if I know where to refer them.”

With so much synergy between our respective businesses, Kayla and I will be working on a few joint projects over the spring and summer.  She’s going to be offering a free workshop on breast cancer awareness at our warehouse and we’re also collaborating on a series of bra videos that have been on my to do list for several years.

As I mentioned in my last customer spotlight, my personal motivation for starting Faerie’s Dance was wholly environmental.  Twelve years into the business, I have to agree with Kayla that wearing organic clothing, and intimates in particular, is part of my self-care.  I just hadn’t thought of it in those terms.  Wearing lacy soy panties, or a sensuous pine-tree bra feels luxurious to me.  It’s become part of my everyday armor.

Organic Cotton bras are the most popular selling item on FaeriesDance.com, and for good reason.  We carry the largest selection of organic cotton, natural fiber and eco-friendly bras in the USA!  We do it by sourcing most of our bras from Europe.  Amazing companies like Swegmark of Sweden, Peau-Ethique and Do You Green from France and our newest addition Comazo|Earth (maker of the Yvonne Bra shown left) in Germany are making natural, organic, fair trade bras far superior to anything we can get in the USA.  And even our best-selling USA-made brand, Blue Canoe, gets their GOTS-certified organic cotton fabric from overseas.  Like our in-house brand, Green Tree Organic, Blue Canoe designs, patterns, cuts and sews in the USA from imported fabric.

What that means, is that your modest organic cotton bra price is affected by global economics.  Unfortunately, while the stock market may be skyrocketing, the dollar is not.  The dollar just reached a 3-year low against the Euro.

As a rule, we try to price European goods at a 2-year running average so the price of the bras don’t change for our customers every single time we restock.  But the cost has just kept going up and up.  Since customs fees are paid on the converted price of goods, higher Euro prices also mean higher customs fees.

The bottom line is that many of our bra prices will be going up soon.  As a courtesy, we’re going to keep prices steady until Valentine’s Day since most styles and sizes will be restocked before then.  That means right now, you can get Blue Canoe bras at 15-20% off their website prices!  For example, the Blue Canoe Cami Bra (shown right) currently retails for $47.  It will be available for the bargain price of just $40 on FaeriesDance.com until February 14, 2018.  Come February 15th, the Cami Bra will be $42 and most other bras will be going up $1-4 per bra.  So definitely stock up now if you can.

Thank you for your continued support.  Wishing you a Safe, Health and very Happy New Year!

It’s true!  Win your favorite Fair Trade, Organic Cotton Bra from Swegmark of Sweden. Since we brought this collection in last year, these bras have become our customers favorites.  There are now 10 styles to choose from including 8 of Swegmark’s signature full-coverage, wire free, organic bras plus an organic cotton sports bra and now a lightly padded, underwire bra.

All of these organic bras have wide, adjustable comfort straps and 3-position hook-and-eye back closures for the perfect fit.  They are well-constructed with wide underbust bands for great support and coverage.  Sizes range from 34B – 46DDD.  Not all bras come in all sizes, but the winner will have the option of choosing any of our in-stock options.  We have Swegmark bras in white, nude, pink, blue, grey and black.

If you don’t get your perfect size on the first go, you can even send it back and we’ll do an exchange for you.  Once you’ve tried this brand of comfort, stylish, sustainable bras, we don’t think you’ll ever choose anything else.   So go ahead and enter below. The winner will be announced Monday, November 27.