The Natural Nursery is run by me, Arabella, Devon born on-off resident of Exeter for many years.
I am mum to 2 cloth nappy’ed, babyworn girls aged nearly 10 and 2 years.
In a past life I was a solicitor but have been running my business, The Natural Nursery, for 8 years.
I just love cloth nappies and baby slings and have been happily spreading the fluffy love via demos in baby and toddler groups, sling meets, ante natal classes, breastfeeding support groups, shops, libraries, other people’s homes, my home and our shops since 2005.
Over the past 7 years, I have helped hundreds of parents find the right baby sling or cloth nappy for their family and many customers have turned into friends too.
If you want any help finding the right baby carrier or washable nappy, just get in touch.
It makes me so happy to see pictures of little Lactivists wearing their t-shirts and hats. I’ve been collecting customers pictures for a long time now, though I lost hundreds of them when my last computer died a tragic death.
Can you see your little Lactivist in the gallery? I’ll add more as I can and if you want to send in any others please just email them to me at moomum@lactivist.co.uk, or post them on the Lactivist Facebook Page – I always check for permission to use images on the Lactivist websites but if you have changed your mind that is no problem, just let me know and I’ll remove any you want me to.
(For those who don’t “know” us, we are a family living in Devon with one nearly 10 year old, one 16 month old and assorted chickens, cats and dogs.)
The toddler is teething badly again which means she is feeling very sad for herself. I am never sure how families that don’t babywear cope with illness/teething/under the weather babies; I find slings let us have all the snuggles that the poorly one needs but I can actually move around the house a bit.
The teething is making her very restless overnight and wanting to feed like a newborn, so after lots and lots of snuggled up together in bed breastfeeds, we are all rather tired in the morning.
Normally the toddler runs around like a manic thing during breakfast time but today she really didn’t know what she wanted. One minute she wanted a cuddle, the next to be down playing with the dog or feeding the cats, then back up for a breastfeed, then demanding fruit juice, then at the table for some breakfast, then back up for another cuddle.
It is pretty full on in our house before school – there are 13 of us that need to be fed, watered, walked, nappy changed, dressed, school bags packed, lost PE kit found, etc so I really need to be able to crack on and get things done.
To enable me to move about the house, I popped her in a ring sling, so we could have quick up and downs and she could nurse if she wanted. Once she realised she could have all the cuddles she wanted, she did cheer up until it was dog walking time.
DH normally takes L out with him in the Ergo when he walks the dog in the morning but today we decided that it was too cold and she was too poorly for this. Cue one heartbroken toddler who actually brought me a Didy wrap to put her in – from as soon as she could crawl, she has always fetched slings (or rucksacks or cardigans) when she is upset and wants help to calm down.
After the DH and nearly 10 year old left for school and the house calmed down, I kept the toddler in the Didy (in a front carry for snuggles) while I tidied up the kitchen, put a load of washing on, chased a cat round the house to stop it sneaking into one of the bedrooms and generally fluffed the house.
Then it was time for another feed which made the poorly one sleepy. I put her in the Ergo on my back so I could get on with some work – having her on my back means I can just about sit on a chair at the desk to type (she is currently asleep on my back as I write this) and also pack parcels, deal with deliveries etc.
Within 10 minutes or so, she fell asleep and I was able to do a solid 90 minutes of work before she woke up.
After nappy change and a play, it was time to prepare lunch but grumbly toddler didn’t want to be on the floor and started scrabbling at my clothes as I was cooking. I REALLY can’t bear to have my clothes pulled (as she knows), so it was back into the ring sling which just about gives me the ability to cook something simple. If it is a full on meal, I tend to put her on my back as she has a habit of grabbing for knives, pans etc.
After lots more playtime, it was off for the school run. I don’t drive, so we walk which takes about 55 minutes each way, going along the Quay and through the park.
Although L is big for her age at weighs in at around 2 stone, I tend to keep her on my front still for long trips like this – I like to be able to talk to her, show her things and gauge her reaction plus there is little chance of her going that long without a feed.
So back into the Ergo – the pocket on the front has just enough space for a washable nappy, wipes and my purse so I don’t need to take a bag, and we set off.
It is raining by the time we get to school, so we bus back – the sling means we don’t fall foul of the 1 (or 2 if you have a nice driver) prams on a bus rule and we sail past the 2 prams that aren’t allowed on the bus as the buggy space is already full.
L falls asleep while we are on the way back, a bonus as I can help the 10 year old with homework when we get home.
The rest of the afternoon/evening is pretty much a repeat of the morning – up and down toddler in a ring sling and on my back for cooking then oodles of daddy cuddles once DH gets home.
All in all, L spent about 6 hours being carried today, in 3 different slings. If we didn’t use baby carriers, I would have still had to carry her in my arms for all that time as she was in too much pain/too miserable to be on the floor. With the slings, she gets the comfort and reassurance she needs to help her through this time, my back is protected and I can actually get things done.
This wonderful design is by the very talented Kate Evans who wrote The Food of Love
Professionally screen printed in pink and black ink on 100% unbleached cotton long sleeved fairly traded t-shirts with envelope shoulders.
Allowing for slight variations they are like this:
The size 3-6mth long sleeved lap t-shirt measures:
50cm (20 inches) around the chest
24cm (9 inches) from back of neck to hem
68cm (27inches) from cuff to cuff
The size 6-12mth long sleeved lap t-shirt measures:
54cm (21.5 inches) around the chest
28cm (10.5 inches) from back of neck to hem
73cm (29 inches) from cuff to cuff
The size 12-18mth long sleeved lap t-shirt measures:
64cm (25 inches) around the chest
29cm (12 inches) from back of neck to hem
83cm (33 inches) from cuff to cuff
These T-shirts should be washed at 40 degrees and tumble dried on a low heat setting. Since the t-shirts are not coated in anti-shrink chemicals, sizes are large to accomodate possible shrinkage of 5%.
Why buy organic? Apart from the benefits to the environment with no chemicals being used in production, organic cotton feels great. It is incredibly soft as the fibres are plumper than normal cotton, It’s difficult to describe in words the ‘wow’ feeling you get when you see these t-shirts in the flesh and can feel how soft and gentle on the skin they are. Try one, in the unlikely event that you will not like it I offer a non quibble money back guarantee.
If you live outside Europe but still want a bit of Lactivist yummyness in your home, that is no problem because of the wonderful Etsy. There is a Lactivist Etsy shop with a growing list of the best sellers on but if you see something you want on the European shop – www.lactivist.co.uk just let me know and I’ll list it.
It consists of brightly coloured beads of many different colours, sizes and textures including animal and bells! (Your necklace may vary from the photograph shown due to the availability of beads.)
This necklace would make a fantastic gift for an expectant mum, a baby shower or for your own baby
Babybeads necklaces are specifically made with safety in mind from fun colourful and attractive non-toxic acrylic beads.
The necklaces are strung on ultra strong waterproof cord (not fishing line like some other necklaces on the market) tested to 100lbs (approximately 45kg) breaking strain and are knotted to minimise loss of beads in the unlikely event of a breakage. The necklace is secured very strongly using a unique knotting method.
I thought that some of you might like to see behind the scenes at www.lactivist.co.uk - well, this is it. It is one side of my bedroom and a whole lot of Ikea shelves and boxes. The organic t-shirts and hats themselves are made to fair trade standards in Africa, then sent over to me to be hand screenprinted by a family firm in Devon, the boss of which I have known since I was 7. You can see the rows of mugs in their packaging – the blanks are made in Eastern Europe and printed about half a mile away from me – the man who prints them drops them off as he plays badminton at my local sports center.
So when you place your order, I take my laptop up to the bedroom, plug it into the printer (oh how I wish I had a wireless printer!) and pack your order. It gets taken to the local post office just around the corner as soon as it possible can.
The first picture is taken by me standing on my bed, so it is pretty much what I see when I wake up every morning. The second picture is taken as I walk into the bedroom. Luckily my bedroom is the biggest room in my 2 bed Victorian Terrace
Lactivist mugs are nicely sized and dishwasher proof – they are made in Eastern Europe and printed in Bristol.
The images are heat pressed so the artwork is embedded into the ceramic mug. They won’t fade and they are dishwasher safe. They have been tested for months in a dishwasher with no deterioration in quality.
There are very small quantities of the Kate Evans special mugs in stock too which along with her book ‘The Food of Love‘ would make the most wonderful present for any breastfeeding mum.
Mugs are £9.50 including postage and the come packaged in sturdy post proof boxes.
Musings on Mothering is a colour paperback full of art, poetry, and prose on the theme of mothering: pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding – and beyond.
Contributors include well-loved writers such as Naomi Stadlen and Sheila Kitzinger, along with acclaimed poets Cathy Bryant and Angela Topping. The anthology also contains art from the talents of Alex Florschutz, Judith Kuegler and Kathy Grossman.
The idea behind the anthology was to harness the creativity of mothers, fathers, children – anyone – who had been inspired by the mother-child bond, and to also raise some funds for La Leche League Great Britain (LLLGB), a charity which supports pregnant and breastfeeding mums.
All royalties from the sale of the book are being donated to LLLGB.
The publisher, Mother’s Milk Books, have produced a YouTube video which features poetry and art from the book:
Musings on Mothering has received some heartwarming reviews. Here are some of the things readers have said:
“This is an issue close to my heart. Breastfeeding is free and great for both mum and baby. I fed both my daughters despite sometimes unhelpful advice and misapprehensions about length and frequency of feeding which were constantly pushed in my face from people who should have known better. This book is not just for women, but for anyone who was ever born. Do consider buying someone you love a copy.” Angela Topping, poet and educator.
“Possibly the most beautiful anthology ever lovingly created, ‘Musings on Mothering’ (proceeds to the La Leche League) contains poems, stories, memoirs, artwork and photographs, and would be worth the price for its representations from any one of those categories alone. I’m honoured to be in it, and also to be published alongside Angela Topping, one of the finest contemporary British poets. A moving, loving read, and would make a fine Christmas present for any mother or mother-to-be.” Cathy Bryant, award-winning poet.
Usually priced at £17 including UK postage we have a special offer at Lactivist until the 30th November 2012. This beautiful book is on special offer just for us at £15 including UK postage. Please visit www.lactivist.co.uk to order.
This is Penny wearing her Born at Home Organic Baby Knot Hat from www.lactivist.co.uk – thank you to mum Jojo for giving us permission to use the beautiful picture!
The Natural Nursery is returning to the High Street, Exeter McCoy Arcade to be exact and it is taking Lactivist goodies with it!
Lactivist sells a range of fairly traded organic baby t-shirts, bags and hats with slogans that promote breastfeeding, co-sleeping, cloth nappies and home births.
Exeter families will be able to see and handle a range of baby carriers and real nappies before ordering exactly what they want, knowing it is the perfect product for them. They will also be able to see and feel the beautiful soft organic cotton that makes Lactivist products so very special.
Lisa from Lactivist will be there as much as possible so if you already own any Lactivist goodies please come and say hi!
The shop will be open from 10am-4pm on:
Wednesday 19th and Thursday 20th September
Thursday 25th to Saturday 27th October
Thursday 22nd to Saturday 24th November
It will be located in the McCoy Arcade, on Fore Street, Exeter.
If you are looking for the perfect present for a new baby these wonderful soft, organic, fairly traded baby knot hats are ideal.
The slogan “Born at Home” features a house with a heart in the middle and a heart as smoke coming out of the chimney. If you are quick there are some matching baby bodysuits with the same design but I only had 5 printed as a trial run.
Keep Calm and Carry on Breastfeeding is printed in red ink with a Lactivist take on the retro World War two slogan and at the top of the slogan are two red International Breastfeeding Symbols.
Mummy Milk Rocks has red blending into purple, perfect for girls or boys.
These hats measure 38cm around the bottom hem unstretched – stretched they measure 46cm. The height of the hats vary, please let me know if you would prefer smaller or larger.
There is a new range of nursing necklaces now in stock at www.lactivistbling.co.uk – they are made by work at home mum Rachel Davidson who began making these necklaces when her daughter was almost 2, as a way to breastfeed in peace without little hands in her face!
Rachel uses non-toxic hardwoods, glass beads and cotton cord to make necklaces that are both beautiful to wear and keep little ones busy while nursing. Her Little Woodlanders necklaces feature natural maple and walnut and gorgeous glass beads.
Good news! I’ve upped my insurance so that I can sell lovely Lactivist t0 shirts, bags and hats to the rest of the world not just to the UK and Europe. So if you are in America, Canada or Australia and you have been coveting one of the beautiful soft organic, fairly traded pro breastfeeding products we have all been enjoying over here, now you can!
Just in time for the good weather – there are new stocks of the wonderfully soft organic t-shirts in store at www.lactivist.co.uk.
‘I love mummy milk’ and ‘Care Instructions are now in sizes 3-6months, 6-12 months and 12-18 months.
Organic 100% cotton Short Sleeved T-shirts with Shoulder Poppers
The size 3-6 month organic sleeved popper shoulder t-shirt measures:
50cm (20 inches) around the chest
24cm (9 inches) from back of neck to hem
Size 6-12 month organic short sleeved popper shoulder t-shirt measures:
55cm (21.5 inches) across the chest
31cm (12 inches) from back of neck to hem
Size 12-18 month organic short sleeved popper shoulder t-shirt measures:
64cm (25 inches) around the chest
29cm (12 inches) from back of neck to hem
These T-shirts should be washed at 40 degrees and tumble dried on a low heat setting. Since the t-shirts are not coated in anti-shrink chemicals, sizes are large to accomodate possible shrinkage of 5%.
Why buy organic? Apart from the benefits to the environment with no chemicals being used in production, organic cotton feels great. It is incredibly soft as the fibres are plumper than normal cotton, It’s difficult to describe in words the ‘wow’ feeling you get when you see these t-shirts in the flesh and can feel how soft and gentle on the skin they are. Try one, in the unlikely event that you will not like it I offer a non quibble money back guarantee.
If you are outside Europe you can still buy these designs at Zazzle and Cafe Press.
You can pre-order these 2 designs now and they will be sent out mid July 2012. As always there are limited stocks. The designs wrap around the mugs, I’ll have 3d pictures soon. Just click on the images to go to the www.lactivist.co.uk shop, mugs are £7 each with £3 postage no matter how big your order so throw a few Lactivist t-shirts in too
Or you can purchase on lactivist.net
babywearing, bedsharing, breastfeeding mug £7
Keep calm, carry your baby mug £7
Sharing a bed with your baby is a personal choice and if you are concerned about the safety of co-sleeping please check out these links:
After a lot of thinking and consulting with the other volunteer admins who run the Lactivist Facebook page we have put it back online.
I’m going to take a step back from it because I need some time to recover from the criticism that I am just in it for the money. I’ve spent years on a very low income because I have thrown my time and energy at the supportive side of Lactivist rather than the money making side. I’ve decided that in order to keep Lactivist running I have to start running it as a business. I cannot continue to live on £400 or so a year profit.
Profits from www.lactivist.co.uk and www.lactivistbling.co.uk (which sells nursing necklaces and breastfeeding reminder bracelets) help keep the support site www.lactivist.net running and pay for the production of free leaflets with breastfeeding advice.
The Lactivist facebook page was originally set up to promote Lactivist products but became an invaluable support network for mums who felt criticised elsewhere.
The Lactivist facebook page now has a team of volunteer admins who help keep this place safe, in order to do this we have to impose a few rules:
Keep it friendly, please respect that breastfeeding is an emotive issue, you may not agree with someone but please do not criticise them personally.
Admins will delete posts that are aggressive or directed personally.
No breastfeeding pictures, we do support the on going fight against Facebook and their backwards stance on nursing photo’s.
However this page provides vital support and advice for nursing mothers and we will not risk the page being deleted over breastfeeding photo’s being posted on it.
We cannot fight all battles. We have a list of groups that are fighting facebook at the bottom of this document.
Please feel free to post details of breastfeeding events and groups on the page
Please feel free to post links to groups that you think Lactivist fans might be interested in.
Please feel free to post pictures of Lactivist products on the page, it makes Lisa very happy indeed to see babies in her t-shirts.
If you leave a comment on a post it may be used anonymously on www.lactivist.net – this is because Lactivist.net is searchable by google and if you have some helpful advice it may be included in an article so it can help many others.
Enormous thank you to Laura for sending in these gorgeous photos of her two sons wearing t-shirts from www.lactivist.co.uk, the smallest at 17 days and the older at 21 months. The one of her eldest son was taken before the littlest one was born!
The Natural Nursery is run by me, Arabella, Devon born on-off resident of Exeter for many years.
Any Old Cow – Shopping Bag 
Care Instructions – Shopping Bag 
“Any old Cow” Short Sleeved T 3-6 months 
Mummy Milk Rocks – Shopping Bag 
“Any old Cow” Short Sleeved T 6-12 months 
Recent Comments