Kent Reporter, August 17-September 6, 2005

Company's new shawl bringing smiles to the faces of mothers By Kris Hill

Just as the food arrives for your first meal out of the house in ages, your 6-month-old baby cries. Routine is good and the baby is hungry, but so are you. Thus a dilemma is created. Do you nurse at the table so everyone can eat? Run out to the car and nurse as quickly as possible? Or grab a roll to nibble on while feeding the infant in the bathroom?

About a year ago, Marie Wakefield realized this was no way to live. Out of that was born the NursEase shawl, a garment that provides a way to comfortably and fashionably nurse while in public. “I’d had Jordan (her 1-year old son) and was running into the same difficulties other mothers had,” said Wakefield, of Auburn. “I even went through a period where my son wanted to be nursed while I was walking around.”

She discussed the situation with her sister-in-law, Joanne Gonzales, who had gone through similar problems a few years earlier when her son, Anthony, now 4, was nursing. Gonzales is a 1991 graduate of Kentwood High School. For seven years, she taught fifth grade in the Kent School District. After she had Anthony, Gonzales switched to substitute teaching in Kent.

Even with two jobs – full-time mom and teaching – Gonzales knew it was worth her time to help her sister-in-law. The pair brainstormed until they came up with an idea that would allow moms to nurse comfortably without having to drop what they were doing, or worse, abandon their social lives entirely. “We did a lot of research online and found nothing worked,” Gonzales said. “What was out there wasn’t functional or fashionable.”

Wakefield knew she wanted to create something that worked better than tossing a blanket over Jordan and her shoulder. She and Gonzales determined it had to be something that fit over the head and shoulder. Eventually, through much trial and error, they developed a working design.

“A lot of women think they have to get a whole wardrobe of nursing tops,” Wakefield said.

With the design finalized, they formed a company, Bellies and Beyond, got a business license and got to work.The NursEase shawl slips over a mother’s head. She then slips her free arm through another hole while the majority of the fabric drapes softly over the arm that cradles her infant while she nurses. There are slits below the free arm so the baby’s legs can be free. It is long enough that even if mom’s shirt is pulled up very far, she is still completely covered.

In order to make the shawls initially, the pair pooled their funds and bought a sewing machine. Today the shawls are produced by a Seattle-based company.

The product currently is available on the company’s Web site, www.bellies-beyond.com, for $24.99 plus shipping. Wakefield lives across the street from Gonzales. During nap time and in the evenings, they process and ship orders. During the months of June and July, they sold between 150 and 200 shawls.

The NursEase shawl is also available at Oh Baby and Lady Bugs and Baby Bugs in Enumclaw, as well as Birth and Beyond in Seattle and Issaquah. Starting this month, it will also be available in Lynnwood in the newly opened Birth and Baby.

“We did our homework,” Gonzales said. “We went into the shops. We made sure they didn’t carry anything like it. When we show owners the shawl, it sells itself.” Plans to make the product more widely available are always in the works.

“We’re shooting for the starts,” Gonzales said. “We’ve sent a proposal to QVC. That would be a great way to get our product out there. There’s also a local vendor program that Wal-Mart offers. We’re definitely going to pursue that.”

In the meantime, the pair are still moms and out in the work force. Wakefield is a naturopathic doctor who wants to start her own clinic. Gonzales has been a teacher for more than a decade in the Kent School District.

“It could be a full-time job,” Gonzales said about Bellies and Beyond. “Our main job right now is raising children, but it’s definitely fun. It’s been fun to see how far it’s gone.”

Wakefield added, “We’ll take this as far as it goes.”