Change-Diapers.com is on YouTube

Aug 13,2011 / By Maria / 6 Comments

Did you know there is a Change-Diapers.com YouTube channel?

I don’t have a whole lot there yet, but I’d like to add more. Here are some highlights, I hope you will check them out and/or share them. I try to keep my videos brief and to the point as much as possible, to make them easy to watch. If you have ideas for other videos you’d like to see, let me know!

Demo of the Itti Bitti Tutto:

Dunk & swish a diaper without getting your hands dirty:

Comparison of the Babykicks Bumboo to 3G Pocket Diaper:

How to use the Babykicks 3G’s newborn snaps:

How to fold cloth wipes to pop up:

Putting on the Boba Carrier:

How to tie a Sleepy Wrap (not that great since I was wearing a black shirt with a black wrap!):

I know my videos aren’t very good, my lighting is bad, and the videos were shot with my point & shoot camera! Even so, I’d love to know what else you’d like to see me do!

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Mailbox Mondays 8/8/11 – Storing Cloth Diapers

Aug 8,2011 / By Maria / 1 Comment

Well, we almost didn’t have a Mailbox Mondays this week! Here I am, just dying to answer your questions, and I didn’t get a single submission. For shame! 😉

Questions don’t have to be cloth diaper related, just email maria at change-diapers.com with “Mailbox Mondays” in the subject, or fill out my contact form for readers, which you will always be able to find on my Contact Page.

Catherine came to the rescue and asked:

I was wondering- after my babe outgrows her dipes, is there something I should do before I store them so they don’t get stinky?

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Cloth Diaper Advice – Mailbox Mondays 7/11/11 – Black Spots on Diapers & Cover for Fitteds

Jul 11,2011 / By Maria / 8 Comments

Do you have cloth diaper issues? On Mondays, I answer reader submitted questions, and ask my readers to weigh in as well.

Questions don’t have to be cloth diaper related, just email maria at change-diapers.com with “Mailbox Mondays” in the subject, or fill out my contact form for readers, which you will always be able to find on my Contact Page.

Sarah says:

I am puzzled at what this is and why I started getting them. Little black dots in some of the diapers. Not like a stain, but just little black dots. What is this and how can I get rid of it?! It just started in the past month or so. My diapers are in such good condition besides this. I would send a picture but I am not sure how using this form. Thanks!

Sarah

Hi Sarah. It’s hard to say without seeing them, but the first thing that comes to mind is mildew.

Is it all of your diapers or just some? Is it on the inserts and diapers, or just the inserts? How often are you washing? What is your wash routine? How are you drying the diapers?

I’d suggest washing no more than every 2-3 days, consider keeping your pail or wet bag open, use hot water to wash (I’m sure you already do!) and make sure the diapers get dry fairly quickly. Hang (or lay) them in the sun if you can. If you have a bathroom that won’t get steamy while you’re drying the diapers, consider hanging them in there so you can turn the exhaust fan on to remove humidity from the air.

Has anyone else experienced back dots on their diapers? What was it? How did you get rid of it?

Laurie says:

Maria,

I have recently started using fitteds with covers as the overnight diapering solution for my one year old daughter. I bought two Mother-Ease one size fitteds with an air-flow cover and they work great. I also bought a Kissaluvs size 2 fitted which I love. However, I didn’t buy a Marvels diaper cover–I assumed the Mother-Ease cover would work over the Kissaluv fitted. It really doesn’t. Neither does an unstuffed Bum Genius or Econobum cover. The Kissaluv fitted is awesome for absorbancy and softness, so I don’t want to give up on it. Any thoughts on what cover (or unstuffed pocket) has the widest dimensions to cover any potential fitteds I might use?

It seems like the trend in cloth diaper covers is to make them trim, for use as an all-in-two system with inserts or trifolded prefolds (like the Econobum.) However, this means they don’t really work well over fluffier fitted diapers.

The most generously sized PUL cover I’ve used is definitely the Smartipants Smart-Fit Cover. I was able to fit it over my fluffiest fitted diaper with ease (see the last three pictures in that review!) The Thirsties Duo Wraps and Thirsties Covers as well as the Bummis Super Whisper Wrap seem to have a more generous cut to fit over fitted diapers.

For night time, I highly recommend a wool cover. They are breathable, have some stretch and give to them, and fit very well over fitted diapers!

I know there are fitted mamas out there, what is your favorite cover to use over a fitted diaper?

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Cloth Diaper Advice – Mailbox Mondays 6/13/11 – Night Time Diapers for a Super Soaker

Jun 13,2011 / By Maria / 3 Comments

Have a cloth diaper problem? On Mondays, I answer reader questions, and ask my other readers to give their advice too.

Questions don’t have to be cloth diaper related, just email maria at change-diapers.com with “Mailbox Mondays” in the subject, or fill out my contact form for readers, which you will always be able to find on my Contact Page.

Suki says:

Hi Maria, I had left a comment on your wall about my daughter potentially having diabetes. Well, it turned out that she doesn’t. She just hit that toddler stage where she pees a ton more. What I’ve done to keep up is to double stuff everything. That works during the day and diaper changes are about every two hours.

What I’m having trouble with is nighttime diapering. She is almost 18 months and drinks 16 – 32 ounce of milk each night and so I have to change her diaper once or twice at night or I get leaks. She’s a super duper heavy wetter at night.

I’ve tried a Super Do with a Loopy Do and that lasts maybe half the night. I’ve tried a combination of hemp and microfiber inserts (as many as I can without the leg opening gaping!). I don’t want them to be too bulky so I thought maybe some hemp flats?

I’m willing to spend some money but I want to increase my chances of something that would work.

Thanks!

I’m so glad to hear she doesn’t have diabetes! That much fluid intake will definitely soak a night time diaper! Since the Superdo (and a Loopydo, wow!) didn’t cut it, my next suggestion would be fitteds with wool. Fitteds are great because the whole diaper is absorbent.

When I was searching for really absorbent fitteds, I found the Guerilla Fluff Utilitarian. I had mine made with all the extras, like added Zorb in the soakers, and a wool precision doubler (I don’t believe she uses wool anymore though.) If you can do it without a leg gap, try adding a natural fiber (like a hemp blend) insert, doubler or prefold inside as well. Top it with an extra-thick, well lanolized wool cover. In the winter, I also used fleece PJ pants for an additional barrier!

If that doesn’t do it, you may need to continue to change her at night, until she is old enough to limit her fluids a bit before bed!

So how about the rest of you? Have you dealt with an epic super-soaker? What worked for you at night?

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Cloth Diaper Advice – Mailbox Mondays 6/6/11 – Cloth Wipes

Jun 6,2011 / By Maria / 11 Comments

Have a cloth diaper question? On Mondays, I answer reader submitted questions, and ask my other readers’ advice too.

Questions don’t have to be cloth diaper related, just email maria at change-diapers.com with “Mailbox Mondays” in the subject, or Fill out my contact form for readers, which you will always be able to find on my Contact Page.

Sabrina says:

I am expecting my first child at the beginning of July, and am so excited to cloth diaper! I would also like to use cloth wipes, but I am overwhelmed with the options. Should I just buy washcloths from Wal-mart, buy actual cloth wipes from a cloth diaper store, or what? And should I pre-moisten them or use a spray bottle? How long can you keep them pre-moistened? How many will I need?? Sooo many questions! I hope you or your readers can help!

Hi Sabrina, congratulations on the baby (and deciding to cloth diaper!) Cloth wipes are the logical choice when you are cloth diapering of course. Plenty of people use baby washcloths as cloth wipes with no trouble. I didn’t care for how small/thin they were, and they tend to roll up on me.

I’ve used a few brands of cloth wipes, but when I started I just used some gerber burp cloths that I found too thin to use as burp cloths. I cut them, doubled them over, and zig-zagged the edges.

I knew that cloth wipes would “pay for themselves” eventually, but they just seemed to expensive to me! After trying a few things, my favorite wipes have ended up being the GroVia wipes. A dozen wipes is under $11, and while they’re not super fancy (just plan white) they are really soft and have held up really well to repeated washings. They’re also 2 layers thick and are my preferred size, 8″ x 8″. This is also the perfect size to fold cloth wipes to pop up in a wipes case!

I use wipes solution in a spray bottle. A little goes a long way and it seems to last forever! I make my solution with bottled distilled water instead of tap water; it seems to keep it fresher longer.

If you are pre-moistening the wipes, I would probably not pre-moisten more than a day or two’s worth of wipes at a time. Most wipes solutions (purchased or homemade) usually have something like tea tree oil in it to help keep your wipes from getting musty though. You can also keep solution (or just water) in a peri bottle or even warm it and keep it in a thermos.

I would recommend at least 1.5 wipes for each diaper in your rotation. So if you’re planning to have 24 diapers in your stash, I’d get at least 3 dozen wipes. If you’re using smaller/thinner wipes, you may need a few more.

So, how about everyone else? What is your wipe of choice? How do you moisten them? If you pre-moisten, how long do they stay fresh? How many wipes did you find you needed?

FTC compliance: The GroVia wipes mentioned were purchased by me at normal retail prices. I was not compensated for this post, and all opinions are my own.

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Category : Cloth Diapering

Change-Diapers.com is on YouTube

Mailbox Mondays 8/8/11 – Storing Cloth Diapers

Cloth Diaper Advice – Mailbox Mondays 7/11/11 – Black Spots on Diapers & Cover for Fitteds

Cloth Diaper Advice – Mailbox Mondays 6/13/11 – Night Time Diapers for a Super Soaker

Cloth Diaper Advice – Mailbox Mondays 6/6/11 – Cloth Wipes

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