Trying my hand at belly casts…

I also am able to paint your blank belly cast to something meaningful to you!  I have a BFA in illustration and use it to work with you and your vision for the cast.

Cost:

1.  All over color (you can add more decorations yourself if you’d like): $50

2.  All over color plus a simple design on the belly:  $100-175

3.  All over color plus a mural of your choice:  $175 and up

For #2 and #3 the fee is $40 an hour plus materials.

To give you an idea of how long things cost, the below “Tree of Life” mural took 26.5 hours to complete plus $30 in materials.  This is a very elaborate piece, the most elaborate I’ve ever done, and is on the more expensive end of the spectrum.  The second cast (blue with the vines) took me about 10 hours plus $30 of materials.  These represent the middle and high-end of the range.   Contact me and I can definitely create something within your budget!

The first cast is Brandy’s cast.  She wanted to incorporate a tree of life, sparrows, a “mother” symbol, her son’s zodiac symbol (Cancer), a labyrinth (which turned into a beautiful placenta), and a mandala.

View my process!  Click here to see a slide show of the cast going from blank to decorated.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

img_03871img_0386img_03881

The birds are the Jamaican doctor birds, a hummingbird with a really long tail.  This baby is half-Jamaican and mama wanted to add something from that country (also the Rasta colors and blue like the Carribbean)

Jamie with her henna belly

Jamie with her henna belly

VIDEO – Umbilical Vein Injection for Retained Placenta (WHO)

Here is a very cool video on the usage of an umbilical vein injection when the placenta is retained.  Basically they inject oxytocin or misoprostyl into the umbilical vein to deliver uterotonics right to the placenta and uterus to expel the placenta so mom won’t have to go under anesthesia to manually remove the placenta.  Enjoy!

who-uvi(Windows Media Player required)

Fabulous Sibling Prep Book!

I just got the best sibling prep book for any sibling and/or parent who is interested in attending a birth.  My Brother Jimi Jazz follows the story of Trinity as she prepares for the birth of her new baby brother.   It’s frank and honest, but still very beautiful.  It has the laboring mom in all these great, active positions like hands and knees and squatting.  It talks about making birth noises, the crowning, umbilical cord, how the placenta looks like a tree, everything!  The book has great illustrations that are both realistic and beautiful.  I think this book is essential to anyone planing to have a child attend a birth!  Of course, it is a part of my lending library.  You can view the author/illustrator/mama/doula’s website here.  You can purchase it from Attachments Catalog and it’s a little cheaper.  She also has a new book on breastfeeding that I’m interested in buying.