It's not all about bags!

I figured if I'm writing about the things I sew I should add something about the things I sew the most of.......Buttons.....Gastronomy pads......Tubies.........what ever you want to call them!

 

I make hundreds of these little treasures, and ship them all across the world............so what are they?

 

Lets start with what they are used for, that's the easiest way to go. A lot of children and adults are unable to take in food orally, so are fitted with a feeding tube that goes directly into the digestive system, I'm not a nurse or a doctor so I can't give you specifics about how this is done, you just need to trust me, it  happens and it works. People have liquid feeds that meet all their nutritional needs pumped into the tube throughout the day and night. Sometimes its just to add to their oral calorie intake, sometimes its all the calories they get. There is no specific one issue that will cause someone to not be able to eat, often its the result of another medical condition, sometimes there is no explanation. Some people are able to graduate to eating normally and have the tube removed, some never do.....every person is different.

 

 

Once the procedure is done this is what they end up with, or something very similar. Many people with these tubes don't use any dressings, they just leave the button under their clothing and attach feeds when they need them. Many use gauze and tape dressings to help keep the site clean and dry. This is where the Tubies come into play. We all know what its like to rip a plaster off, not something  any of us enjoy, can you imagine doing that daily? to a plaster that's in the same place? The skin gets sore and especially with children the area becomes red and inflamed. Tubies negate the need for that tape. They look fab, feel comfortable against the skin and are totally washable. Kids with tubes sometimes struggle to get used to them but having funky Tubies makes them a lot more fun.

When I started making them I didn't have an embroidery machine so they where sewn on my sewing machine, they worked but because they where hand made there wasn't total consistency with the shape and sizing. Now I make them on my embroidery machine I can say that each and every one is exactly the same shape and size

 

 

You can see the difference between the hand sewn and the embroidered buttons.......much neater and tidier.

The tubies have a cotton front, a antipill fleece rear and a layer of bamboo cotton between the two. I'm not sure how the bamboo works but its very absorbent and also has an antibacterial property to it so helps to reduce infection. Almost without exception those who use them say that they have less infection and less granulation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Granulation_tissue a common problem with tube feeders.

If you would like to know more or to order some of these please pop over to my page at www.facebook.com/christined265 where I will be delighted to help you.