The Scope of it all, and cloth nappies!

Mushy Peas is going to be in The Scope! I had a call from the lovely Sydney Blackmore, who had seen some of the items at Gingersnap, and decided to write about them. The piece is coming out in The Scope's "Best Of" issue this Thursday. Yippee!

I gave Sydney a few pictures, but forgot to e-mail her any of the cloth diapers, so here they are. I make two kinds...

These are the ones we use the most: all-in-ones (AIO), which are just as convenient as disposables. They're waterproof and have velcro, so you use them just like a disposable diaper, only you throw them in your diaper pail/"wet bag" to be washed instead of in the garbage. They're lined with flannel on the inside (these pictures are of one of Baby M.'s diapers- you can have almost any colour/pattern on the inside that you want... I'm making some for Ally's daughter at the moment that are pink with jungle animals)and are filled with microfibre for super absorbancy. The outside of the diaper is white. We've never had a leak with these yet (fingers crossed)! These are also Ian's favourite diaper to use- he likes them even better than disposables.

I haven't found any microfleece locally that doesn't get all pilly after a while, so I don't line the diapers with it (when I find it, I will). Instead, I make fleece liners that I place in the diaper, and when they get pilly, I throw them away or use them as little dusting rags and make more. These aren't necessary, but fleece wicks the wetness away from baby's bum- even if the diaper is soaked, you'll find the liner is almost completely dry.




The other type of cloth diaper that I make are flannelette fitteds. These are not waterproof, so you need to put a cover over them. I don't make the covers (yet- try me in the new year), but we use Bummis Super Brite covers, which you can get locally from Sarah at Sweetheart Diapers, and we love them (and they're 15% off right now, I just noticed!). Like the AIOs, these have velcro, are filled with microfibre, and are easy to use.



All diapers come in sizes small (7-13 lbs, approx), medium (14-19 lbs, approx), large (20-25 lbs approx) and extra-large, with instructions on how to wash and care for them. It's easy-peasy.

If you need extra absorbancy for nighttime (or if your baby is a little super-soaker!), I make microfibre/flannel booster pads, which you can put inside the diaper.

We also use reusable wipes with Baby M. They're the size of a baby washcloth, and are made of flannel and micro-terrycloth. They just go washed with the diapers and liners. You can use plain water with them, or Sweetheart Diapers sells aloe vera/tea tree/lavender/glycerin wipe solution cubes that you dilute in water, which are *fantastic* (shortly after Baby M. was born, he got a bad diaper rash so we switched to these cubes and are still using them). I know moms who make their own wipe solution using water, baby wash, olive oil and tea tree oil. We just put the wipe solution in a spray bottle and carry it in the diaper bag. Order a dozen diapers, and I'll throw in some wipes for free. :)

I make "wet bags" for cloth nappies, too. These are waterproof, smell-proof bags to hold the diapers and wipes in until washing, and then you dump them in the washer, too. There are two sizes: one holds up to 30 diapers; the other about 6 (perfect for the diaper bag).

You can order diapers now through me, and in the new year through Gingersnap. They'll be available only by order at the store (not in stock).