Mama Makes

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Mama Makes are specially designed art workshops for mums and babies hosted by Cafe Stork. The group is made from a combination of pregnant and postnatal mums who meet every Monday afternoon for lunch, informal activities and support. It is a great initiative run by the local NHS team with the hope that mums can begin to build their ‘mum support network’ before their babies are born. We know that making fresh connections and friendships can feel nerve-wracking at the best of times (let alone in those blurry, self conscious days after birth!) so Cafe Stork aims to make it less intimidating by doing the hard bit before newborns arrives.

As the group is made of bumps as well as babies I was careful to think of activities that all the mums could participate in- baby footprints etc- although very cute- need a baby! So I decided to plan a 3 week course of crafts for the ‘nursery’. Starting with book themed bunting, personalised decoupaged letters and ‘Bump/Baby’s First Christmas’ baubles. I also hoped to provide mums on a small budget with some really special things to decorate their home for the new baby. It was so lovely to hear the mums-to-be comment on how nice it was to have some ‘me time’ where they could focus and plan for their new baby (many of them busy working and looking after older siblings). It was also fascinating to watch the amazing multitasking capabilities of mums! Balancing babies on knees, shaking rattles, all the while producing some really lovely crafts that no doubt will be proudly displayed in their homes!