Breastvest
Breastvest was invented by mother-of-one Sam Telfer during her maternity leave in 2007. After giving birth to Fred and deciding to breastfeed, she was conscious that she had two choices: either limit her wardrobe options to a woeful selection of hole and flap-filled breastfeeding tops, or show the world the burst balloon which had apparently crept in and replaced her stomach.
She explains: "I found breastfeeding clothing pretty shapeless and often felt ridiculous trying to negotiate the variety of holes, poppers and flaps while trying to give Fred his next feed – especially when we were in the middle of a busy cafe or restaurant.
"Also, although I wanted to feed Fred for at least six months, the thought of not being able to wear any of my favourite pre-pregnancy tops, just because I was breastfeeding was frustrating.
"So, I started wearing non-breastfeeding tops, and went on to ruin each and every neckline in quick succession from pulling them down to feed."
Once she talked to few fellow breastfeeding mums about her problem, it quickly became clear she wasn't the only one who wanted some sort of simple but effective coverage for their postnatal tummy when breastfeeding.
And she certainly wasn't the only frustrated mum who wanted to open the doors to her pre-pregnancy wardrobe without having to think about the practicalities of breastfeeding.
Following a fruitless search for what she was looking for, she opted for a homemade solution... involving an old maternity vest and a pair of scissors.
Sam says: "What I was looking for was a vest, without the breast-bit. The straps held it in place, and the vest – which needed to be a long one - covered my postnatal tummy. It meant I could wear normal tops, and just pull them up when I wanted to feed... and it didn't interfere with my nursing bra."
And so, the first breastvest prototype was born.
Confident that she had hit on something which breastfeeding mums would find invaluable, she set about getting a shipment of sample breastvests made for product testing.
Almost 50 breastfeeding mums took part in the product testing programme. They each used a breastvest for two weeks and then filled in a detailed feedback questionnaire. The feedback was very positive, and their comments went into perfecting the breastvest available today.
