Why you see so many newborns swaddled in the same blanket

Fashion trends come and go, but one baby blankie has been in style for the past 60 years -- and you're probably familiar with it. In fact, you were probably wrapped in it.

Nearly every newborn born since the 1950s has been swaddled in the same white, blue and pink blanket. Before then, infants received a dull beige cloth made by a company called Medline.

Medline's COO, Jim Abrams, told Quartz, "[The company's founder A.L. Mills] asked the women in the office what they would do differently to spice it up a little bit."

They came up with the classic Kuddle-Up blanket we all know. The company now sells 1.5 million every year.

Quartz's Lisa Selin Davis wrote, "The Kuddle-Up blanket was entwined with the institutionalization of childbirth. [...] Thousands of new parents, and even grandparents, were themselves swaddled in such a blanket when they were born; that same pattern spans generations."

So, why is THIS blanket the one that made its way into hospitals? Quartz explains that timing is the biggest factor. Davis writes: "In 1950, 88% of all births were in hospitals (the figure is now 99%). Just 10 years earlier, only 56% of births took place there."

Basically, the blankie was in the right place at the right time -- and it doesn't hurt that it won't break the bank.The average cost per blanket when purchased in bulk is $2.50.

Despite its cheap price and the mass production, every blanket is unique to the parent who receives it because of its very precious contents.

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