PHOTOS and memory boxes are a perfect way to preserve treasured times with your baby.

But for Michelle Boyd, her memories are in the form of something a little different.

The 31-year-old, of Barrack Street, Colchester, had her breast milk made into jewellery to mark those closest moments with son, Odin, 14 months.

Michelle, a recruitment consultant, has a resin heart with baby footprints made from milk and Odin's name down the side. She also has a breast milk necklace and ring.

She originally struggled with breastfeeding and wanted a keepsake tomark how far she had come.

She said: “I heard about it on a breastfeeding support group on Facebook. I had had a few problems breastfeeding as Odin was tongue-tied and so I wanted to get something to commemorate the success.”

Selling such jewellery has been banned from online stores such as Etsy, as they say the milk classes as “human remains” and the practice has attracted some national criticism from the squeamish.

However, Michelle treasures her jewellery and said it was a quick and easy process. She was asked to send 30 millilitres of milk in a storage bag to an online store, Mom’s Own Milk. The end result was something she will keep as a favourite memory.

She said: “Breastfeeding is really working for us now and the bond you get is amazing.

“Many people have been positive but some have said it is disgusting. It’s not for everyone, but my family thinks it is amazing. It’s something that gets people talking and I amall for normalising it. It is a big step in that direction.”

Vickie Krevatin, who owns the online store where Michelle purchased the jewellery, feels the mother’s time of calmness, struggle and achievement needs to be remembered.

She said: “When you have a good experience, youwant to recapture it, so what I’m trying to do is make that feeling into something tangible. I want to immortalise that bond.

“I would say 50 per cent of people think it’s disgusting, but they have their own views. It’s good for people to debate things like this.”