This post was written for inclusion in the Freedom of Cloth Carnival hosted at Natural Parents Network by Melissa of The New Mommy Files and Shannon of The Artful Mama. This year’s carnival will run from Sunday, July 3rd through Saturday, July 9th. Participants are sharing everything they know and love about cloth diapering, including how cloth has inspired them.
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| All I need for using cloth wipes on the go a wet bag, my spray solution, and some wipes. |
First, you need some wipes. My favorite "baby wipes" are actually inexpensive baby washcloths that came in a package of two dozen for around five dollars. I don't see a need for anything fancy, just something that will be gentle against my baby's skin. If you sew, you can easily cut squares out of extra fabric you have lying around to make your own. Diaper Jungle has simple instructions for making single or double layer baby wipes. If you really want to go all out, there are plenty of work at home mamas who make and sell adorable cloth diapers. As an example, I found these super cute elephant wipes on etsy.
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| My wipe solution ingredients |
A quick search will you give you more recipes than you could ever hope for, but you don't really need those either. My personal method is simply to mix together a squirt of our mild baby soap, a splash of a moisturizing oil, and a drop or two of essential oil for fragrance. Then I add water to fill whatever container I'm using, and shake it up.
Then, all you need is a method and you're done! Some people prefer to pre-moisten their wipes so they can pull them out and use them just as they would a disposable. To do this, you can simply dip a number of wipes in your chosen solution, squeeze them out, and put them in the waterproof container of your choice. When on the go, you can use the same type of wipes case that you would for 'sposies depending on the thickness of your cloth wipes - you'll just have to refill it more often. You can also toss a few in a zippered wet bag, or use a plastic food storage container. Anything waterproof that can open and close will do! The same is true at home, really. Some families even store their cloth wipes in a wipe warmer.
Because I'm a no-nonsense, make it as easy as possible kind of mama, I prefer the dry method to pre-moistening my wipes. This way I never have to worry about having moist wipes on hand, and I can carry mine without the need for a special container. My method? Toss some dry wipes in my diaper bag or purse, and keep a mini spray bottle with my wipe solution on hand. When it's time for a change, I spray a bit of solution on a wipe or right on my daughter's bottom, and clean her up - simple as that. I end up using less wipe solution this way, too. I usually keep the wipes in the dry pocket of my wet/dry bag, and I picked up a mini spray bottle in the travel toiletries section of the store for my solution.
All it takes is a small amount of planning to set up your own cloth wipe system, for at home or on the go. It's far simpler than you would think, gentler for your baby's skin, and saves you money, too!
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Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants on the following themes. Articles will go live on the scheduled theme day:
- Sunday, July 3rd, 2011: Cloth Related Recipes — Writers share their best cloth-related recipes and tutorials.
- Monday, July 4th, 2011: Choosing Your Cloth Style — Today’s posts discuss parents' individual journeys to finding the cloth diapering "style" that best suits their families.
- Tuesday, July 5th, 2011: Cloth Diapering Must Haves — Parents talk about the most important items in their diapering “stash” and why they love them.
- Wednesday, July 6th, 2011: Wordless Wednesday, Inspired by Cloth — We asked parents to share their favorite cloth-related photo with us and turned them into a fluffy Wordless Wednesday photo montage on Natural Parents Network. Link up your own Wordless Wednesday post there!
- Thursday, July 7th, 2011: Cloth Through the Stages: From Infancy to Potty Independence — Today’s participants explain how cloth diapering has served their families throughout one or more stages of their children’s lives.
- Friday, July 8th, 2011: Cloth Troubleshooting and Laundry Day — Seasoned cloth diapering parents share their best tips and tricks for handling common cloth problems and tackling the diaper laundry.
- Saturday, July 9th, 2011: Inspired by Cloth — For today’s theme, we’ve asked writers to explore the ways cloth diapering has inspired them to become "greener" overall.
I love this Melissa. I forget too how easy it really is. I have wipe concentrate but I like your idea of putting it in a spray bottle. I was using the wipe warmer and pre-moistened wipes but I never remember how many I have in there and then forget to refill. Then I am stuck with an open diaper mess and no wet wipes. I am definitely trying this for my next refill.
ReplyDeleteI used water and mulins until they were out of nappies. I have to warn you that it does get a bit harder when they are older and doing more "adult" poo. I had not heard of ECing so all of my three potty trained at the age of 2, by which time, it gets harder to clean a dirty bottom with cloths mostly because os the wiggle factor!
ReplyDeleteWe haven't tried cloth wipes on the go yet, so I really appreciate this info and inspiration!
ReplyDeleteThank you for the inspiration. I have noticed the same thing about a reticence to use cloth wipes, even for those who cloth diaper and e.c.. It really is so simple. My husband is pretty much not on board with using cloth wipes while out unless he runs out of prepackaged wipes. But, I find them so much easier while out. Plus, not having them premoistened means you can use them for all sorts of things (much like prefolds, cloth wipes have tons of different uses)
ReplyDeleteI love cloth. We started cloth nappies when Lime was 5 1/2 months old and then just a little later added the wipes. I bought them: bamboo, terry/cotton, minkee/cotton. We brew up a camomille tea (or green) and just pour it over the wipes in a Tupperware-style box that clicks shut. Easy Peasy.
ReplyDeleteFor outdoors I poured the tea into a spray bottle that I picked up cheap from the 'for flights' section in the chemist. But if I'm near a sink I just use water.
Nev
Spiffy. (I'm a water only kind of person, but I dig your ingredients :) Especially since I use that same brand of coconut oil! )
ReplyDeleteWater only makes sense, too. Definitely fuss free! We *love* our coconut oil!
ReplyDeleteYour systems sounds great, Nev. I noticed when I was looking at different brands of wipe solution while researching for this post that some use chamomile. I imagine that must be very soothing!
ReplyDeleteSee, I find them easier while out, too! If I have to clean a bottom, I find it's easiest to fold the soiled wipes up in the diaper, but if you have a cloth diaper and disposable wipes they belong in the two different places. So complicated! ;) I love that everything goes in together.
ReplyDeleteI would love to hear how things work out if you decide to give them a try!
ReplyDeleteYour system sounds great, too, Anna. I can definitely imagine that the cleanup gets harder! We had a bit of a wiping standoff this morning, in fact. Fortunately, with EC I haven't had a poopy diaper to fuss with in weeks, so it's never too bad. I'm thankful for that!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Shannon! I love the idea of pre-moistened wipes in a warmer, but I would absolutely forget to refill the silly thing all the time if I had one. The spray bottle is the only way I can ensure I'll have what I need on hand!
ReplyDeleteYes, yes, cloth wipes are the best!
ReplyDeleteactually find disposable wipes very frustrating because it seems like you need a hundred of them to clean up a dirty bottom.... when one or two cloth wipes would do the job. Just that little bit of friction seems to help!I started out making my own solution but gave up and have just used water since Fin was a few weeks old. He has hardly ever had a nappy rash so I figure water is good enough. I pre-moisten the wipes and keep them folded in a little basket at our change area. On outings I just throw a few of them in a zip-lock bag. I re-use those bags a few times, then throw them in the (cold) wash and repeat until they fall apart... of course making a wet-bag would have been much more environmentally friendly! One more thing on the to-do list...
I've done both. I used to prefer your method, but lately with Kieran I've started putting a wet cloth in a bag for summer sweaty stickiness, and it is so, so handy! I'm going to try the pre-moistened wipes with #2, just to see if they're also better for me :)
ReplyDeleteOh, those to-do lists can go on for miles, can't they!? Reusing a ziplock certainly sounds like a workable solution for now. I love hearing about the systems that work for others, so thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI'm guilty of using disposable wipes, too. My husband says he won't use cloth, but he's in for a surprise when this last package of disposable wipes are gone!! I've been MUCH better at using cloth. For at home, I do pre-moisten cloth wipes. But, like you, on the go, that's just too much :) I like the spray bottle, too! Great post, glad I stumbled upon your blog!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Sarah. I hope the transition isn't too unsettling for your husband. I'm really glad you stopped by - it's always nice to hear fresh voices around here!
ReplyDelete