WHY DID WE START MAKING WEIGHTED BLANKETS ?
Our Son, Cody, What A Cute Kid!! And Smiling Because Now He Can Sleep!!
The Inspiration That Started It All
Our son Cody, pictured above, with his second weighted blanket which was designed to provide better sleep, using 101 Dalmations on a plaid flannel background. It weighed 12 LBS and was used for approx. 3 years before he needed a heavier blanket. The blanket was machine washed and dried every other week for three years without problems and was donated to our blanket exchange program and is now being used by another young man. The blanket on the right is his next blanket, it is a full size weighing 24LBS in a fireworks patterned cotton on one side and puppies in cotton on the other. He would normally take a 16LB blanket based on his weight and using the standard starting weight formula that most professionals use of 10% body weight plus 1 pound. Because of his need for very deep pressure the 24LB blanket has been a perfect choice for him.
Time for our son to get a new blanket in 2010, not because he needs it heavier but because we are seeing his toes peeking out through the bottom. At 16, he is almost 6 foot tall, but pretty lean. You can see in the picture above he is quite a bit taller than me. He hasn't decided on what fabric but I know he will come up with something very unique. He will need an extra long full and probably a 28 or 30 pound.
We will post his picture when he receives it.
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A Bit Of Personal History
DreamCatcher TM Weighted Blankets was founded by Eileen and JC Jackson, the parents of a son, with "classic" autism. He was non verbal until age 6 and after a very unproductive try with public school we decided it was in his best interest to homeschool. He does not take any medications.
All his life , he was not able to sleep without waking every few hours. "He hadn't slept by himself or all night by himself until he was 9 years old and tried his first weighted blanket. My husband and I tried all types of "sleep therapies" prior to that time to help him sleep, short of using medication. His Occupational Therapist recommended we try a weighted blanket. Since he started using a weighted blanket for sleep, his night time sleep goes most nights without waking during the night. It was not only his therapy, but was also ours. "
Our search for that first weighted blanket was very difficult. The weighted blankets we found in the special needs catalogs were very small in size, extremely expensive, impractical ,made with either unsafe weighting material and/ or using uncomfortable fabrics. They were all very clinical looking and not at all user friendly to keep clean. Other blankets we found on the internet, purchased and tried were either filled with unsafe or unsanitary weighting materials, were impractical because of the construction and again much too expensive for the small size and quality of the product being offered. In addition, and most importantly, we found that blanket sizes, weights and fabrics offered were very limited and did not fit our son's personal needs.
Because of the lack of a quality product, we set out to make a weighted blanket for our son, he was our inspiration ( as he always is). Our first blanket was born from two old flannel sheets, and a large bag of rice. I made it with my mother's borrowed "very old" Singer sitting on the side of our bed using a card table. I have no idea how heavy it was, maybe about 10LBS. Several needles were broken in the process.
The blanket worked well, great actually, to help our son sleep, that very first night. He slept all night by himself without waking the every two hours we had been accustomed to for 9 years. We, of course, kept waking to check on him. The blanket was AMAZING ....but using rice..... was a DISASTER! Do you know what happens when you put a blanket filled with rice in a washing machine? Fortunately, I realized what would happen before the water went on ,but it took only about 10 days for the rice blanket to take on its own fragrant personality. :)
We sewed several types of blankets over several months, using a variety of weighting materials, fabrics and constructed several different designs. We did an enormous amount of research , talked with many OT's and medical professionals. We learned many first , second and third hard lessons of what NOT to do in making a weighted blanket. Our design evolved with the help of our son, acting as the "comfort cop", into what is now our unique DreamCatcher TM Weighted Blanket, exclusive patent pending and copyrighted design.
After that we received requests from a few Occupational Therapists to make weighted blankets for their patients. Word of mouth had us make a few more blankets and it continued to grow (almost explode). It became so busy we took the plunge and decided to pursue making custom blankets on a full time basis. The need to add employees, sewing space and equipment happened within 3 months.
In August 2007, we relocated into a larger sewing facility added more machines and sewers.
In August 2008, we again relocated into another new facility, outgrowing from our move in 2007. The potential for future expansion at the new facility should accommodate DreamCatcher's needs for a very long time.
Additions to our product line in late 2009 were weighted shawls and ponchos. Both will be added to our on-line product line soon. In late 2009, we also added a new design to our heavier weighted products with a sewing technique that adds a second strengthening double lock stitch (DLS) applied throughout the blanket.
Another new product is in development that may make an appearance in 2010.
Moving into 2010, DreamCatcher tm Weighted Blankets have proven to be a quality, sought after product worldwide that is effective, practical, comfortable, affordable and most importantly SAFE. We are very appreciative and know how lucky we are to have a business that not only provides an affordable much needed product that helps others, and at the same time allows us to keep close to our own special needs child.
"It is our hope by offering you a custom or pre-made DreamCatcher TM Weighted Blanket or product, that you or someone you love and care for will also benefit from their calming and soothing effects, the way our son has. The best part of the job is hearing from our customers what an enormous difference one of our blankets has made in the life of their families." Eileen & JC
DISCLAIMER
In the past few years, there have been a few new weighted blanket makers that are "using" DreamCatcher Weighted Blankets research and formulas in their written material and web sites in an effort to sell their products.
The information on our web site is freely given for all to benefit from. It is however , information that is copyrighted and has been researched and sought after personally by DreamCatcher staff. Other weighted blanket manufacturers that copy directly or have re-written DreamCatcher Weighted Blanket information in their written material have not asked for permission to use either our research, weight formulas or information, against copyright laws.
While we are flattered to be used as a model for their companies, please keep in mind DreamCatcher Weighted Blankets is not affiliated with, nor can we control or recommend products offered by weighted blanket companies that have simply used our research and information to easily promote their products.