FEATURED MOMPRENEUR: IT'S NUDDLE TIME!

- Jenn Feldman, Momprenuer

We love to feature great Mompreneurs whenever we get the chance because we know how much hard work goes into being one; it truly takes talent to juggle motherhood and a successful business while keeping your sanity in-tact.  This month, we are featuring Jen Feldman, creator of the Nuddle blanket, an amazingly comfortable robe-like blanket that no mother should be without.  Are you a Mompreneur? We'd love to hear your success story and feature you on Tastybaby.com.  Email us your story!

Who has time to relax anymore? It seems like there’s never any time and if we do find some, it’s never enough. So, I decided to make relaxing and getting cozy the best it can possibly be, whether you have five minutes or five hours.  And who says it couldn’t be done with style?

For me, it all started when my husband and I were about to get married, and I got, well ... cold feet. No, no, not those kind of "cold feet," but literally cold feet to the point that my husband promised me in his vows he'd be sure to always keep my feet warm and covered. I had just moved to Los Angeles after 10 years of being a New York City girl, to start a life with my fiancée. Our first home together! New furniture! New plans – a wedding! And, air conditioning? Not what I had bargained for. In my Manhattan studio (Sex and the City replicated, of course) I controlled, well, everything. Yes, I actually controlled absolutely everything, including my apartment thermostat. And living with Todd meant compromise, joint living, joint decisions – and the air conditioning was always on. And I was always freezing! Night after night I would lay on the couch reading my wedding magazines in a shiver ... the further I pulled the blanket up to cover my neck and shoulders, the more my feet would continue to pop out from the bottom of the blanket.

"We should make you a blanket with a pocket to keep your feet warm, and slats so your hands can come out and hold your magazine," Todd said to me one night. This was the answer to my prayers!  He’s a genius. (You didn’t think I’d marry anything less, did you?)  So began our quest to create that perfect blanket.  We started asking friends for advice: manufacturing, websites, branding.  And little-by-little, step-by-step we figured out how to make this concept
come to life.

And so was born the nuddle blanket (nap + cuddle = nuddle). It’s the most comfortable andfunctional blanket you’ll ever own. We wanted to make it long enough to cover your body from your neck to your feet and create two open “slats” for your arms to come in and out, allowing your hands to be accessible so you can read, write, knit, nap, eat or…whatever. We also
added an outer pocket to keep your hands warm (or to store the remote, pair of glasses or a snack) and an enclosed foot pouch to keep your feet tucked in and cozy all year-round.

And don’t some of the best things happen by chance? On our first official nuddle photo shoot, our graphic designer and friend Laura asked if we had ever turned it around, and worn it like a robe? Who knew! I now find myself washing the dishes, sitting on the computer (like now!) and feeding my son with the nuddle in reverse – my queen’s robe! It’s perfect! We’ve actually been asked a few times if we would consider making a belt so that people could tie it and keep it on that way – I guess anything is possible, right??

Two years of marriage and one baby later, we feel we’ve really created that perfect blanket. The nuddle is something we both now use to nap or cuddle on the couch together, and I still have the freedom to do what I love to do most - watch Oprah and read a magazine at the same time, still keeping myself “under wraps,” warm and cozy!

Here’s to you nuddling this Mother’s Day – and going out there to make your next big idea come true!

www.nuddleblanket.com