Mother of Invention

JOLIET — They say necessity is the mother of invention. And that’s certainly true for local mom Lauren McFarland.

After struggling with comfortably carrying her young daughter’s car seat, she decided that there had to be an easier way, so she designed, created and launched Carrier Cushions.

Carrier Cushions are cushioned muffs that Velcro on and around the handle of an infant car seat.

“The cushions are made to span the entire curve of the handle and stay in place so there’s no need to move or adjust the cushion each time the baby is picked up,” McFarland said.

The cushions also easily Velcroed off and are machine washable. The main cushion portion is solid in color and is trimmed by a patterned ribbon.

“I’ve made the cushions in a variety of colors and combinations,” McFarland said.  “I’ve found some people who  like to match their cushion to their car seat, while others like their cushion to obviously state whether the baby is a boy or a girl.”

McFarland sells her cushions on her Web site, www.carriercushions.com, and also at Apple Butter & Shugies in downtown Morris.

All of her cushions are named after relatives and friends, and she is constantly developing more.

“I started by making just a simple cushion and the idea has really evolved,” McFarland said.

“I launched the product at local craft shows, and I am always amazed at the different uses people say the cushions would be good for.”

Among those is everything from covering shopping cart handles and cushioning seat belt straps to covering the straps of a Pilates machine.

McFarland’s goal is to bring awareness of her product to all the people she sees carrying infant carriers into doctor’s appointments, through parking lots or even across the back of church.

“I’ve found a few similar products by searching online, but none has enough padding, or they are only the width of your forearm, or just really expensive,” she said.

McFarland sells all of her cushions for $20 each.

“I think $20 is an absolute steal when you consider you’ll use the cushion at least once a day and it’s bringing comfort,” McFarland said.