Waste Free Parenting Magazine

waste free

WASTE

FREE

PARENTING advice from Kate Meads

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Contents

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Meet Kate Meads ..............................6 Nappy facts .......................................... 9 Sponsors................................................. 10 Going green.......................................... 12 Not what you would expect........... 14 Recycling................................................ 16 Gardening.............................................. 20 Food waste............................................ 24 Composting......................................... 28 Re usable mummy............................. 30 Re usable baby.................................... 34 Costings................................................. 40

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Fabrics.....................................................42 Nappy basics........................................44 Nappy rash............................................46 Covers.....................................................48 Birth to potty nappies.......................50 Nappy accessories.............................52 Prefolds...................................................54 Fitteds..................................................... 56 All in twos.............................................. 58 Pockets................................................... 60 All in ones............................................. 62 Washing instructions........................ 64

Kate Meads P: (07) 213 0767 M: (027) 22 11 242 E: thenappylady@me.com W: www.wastefreeparenting.co.nz

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LET’S CONNECT

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Kate Meads The Nappy Lady

Meet Kate Meads I used to be the ultimate consumer and master waste producer. Since having my son Daniel in 2005 I have since become a waste free parenting warrior...promoting waste free alternatives for lots of different products including nappies.

Years ago I was given the title of ‘The Nappy Lady’ during a TV interview. Since then, The Nappy Lady has taken me places I never expected.

I don’t sell anything...I work as an advocate for the earth, a consultant to councils, an educator for parents and expecting parents and work on continuing to provide a website that provides non-biased advice and information through the generous sponsorship I get from different companies who believe in my cause.

I run these “Waste Free Parenting workshops” for 35 different councils around NZ. When I first started out I just talked about nappies but it has since evolved and now covers far more topics.

When you are pregnant for the first time it is so confusing and there is so much conflicting information out there that it is hard to make decisions. I have designed my workshop to be very common sense based and I hope by the end of it you will feel more comfortable about some of the decisions you are tying to make.

These days the workshops are focused on ways in which you can reduce waste with a new baby. It includes information based on my own experience about what you do and don’t need when having a baby, dealing with household food scraps and baby food waste, purchasing less so you have less wastage, re-usable alternatives like breast pads, wipes, food containers, packaging, re-usable products for mum, making up-cycled nappies from old

sheets and towels and lots more.

There is some basic information on cloth nappies, accessories, how to wash them efficiently and how to choose which nappies will suit your baby best. But if you visit my Youtube Channel you will find lots more videos on the different types of nappies and how to choose them etc. There is also lots of information on my website that will help you make a decision too.

Choosing cloth nappies can be very confusing and quite a time consuming decision because there are so many options available, which is why I have built some good online resources and put them on my website to help you to be able to make an informed decision.

As you will find out during the workshop, the best place to start is to get a couple of trial packs of different styles from a couple of different brands. You will most likely have a trial pack from your local council as part of attending todays workshop. Now you just need to add to it.

In the following pages you will find: • Lots of information about reducing waste at home with a new baby • Cloth Nappies – Information about the styles • A Cost comparison of nappies • Accessories and Advice I hope you enjoy the workshop and if you have any further questions, please feel free to contact me. There is lots more information on my website and if you are a Facebook, join my page where I have lots of giveaways and general information and chat about cloth nappies and lots more.

Thanks for coming along!

Kate

wastefreeparenting.co.nz 7 www.thenappylady.co.nz 7

Nappy Facts for you Did you know?

• A baby is changed up to 5500 times in 2.5 years • There are around 145,000 babies in NZ in nappies under 2.5 years • The average used disposable weighs in at 150g • Some council figures indicate disposables & sanitary make up 8% - 19% of the domestic waste stream • Cloth Nappies do not require, folding, soaking or pins • Cloth nappies are 40% better for the environment than disposables • Cloth nappies provide a zero waste alternative to disposables • Disposable nappies should have any solids removed before disposing in the general waste • A family can save up to $4000 per child by using cloth nappies • Parents have control of the environmental impact of cloth nappies • If every baby had just one cloth nappy change per day, this would prevent 1 Million disposables from going to land fill every week in New Zealand.

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Thanks to my sponsors

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www.ohbaby.co.nz

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Going Green or back to normal?

Many of us would become green if we had time but most people view sustainable living as an alternative way of life so it could be quite time consuming to live like that…. Whatever!!!!

I find it fascinating how in one generation what has been done for centuries is now an alternative way of living. Looking back at my parents and grandparents lifestyles, everything that we classify today as being a sustainable, alternative way of living, our parents and grandparents did as part of their normal day to day activities.

• Everyone had a compost heap in the back yard.

• Everyone grew their own Vegetables and fruit • All of the packaging was paper or reusable bags • They didn’t waste anything because no one could afford to • They did not over buy food, only getting just what they needed • Everything was packed in glass or paper • We all had reusable milk bottles • Clothing was high quality so it lasted a long time • Furniture was made from renewable sources • Everyone used cloth nappies Today, if you do any of the above you are seen to be going green and living alternatively.

I think that we are just being lazy! We have taken what were always alternatives (expensive convenience items) to our parents and turned them into being normal and labeled everything that was normal alternative.

Some parents claim they don’t like the thought of using cloth nappies because they assume that their baby will be more comfortable in disposables. I always ask them this question, “Given the choice what would you prefer to wear? Lovely soft breathable bamboo undies or a pair of scratchy bleached paper disposable undies? It always surprises me how many parents will ensure their new baby only eats organic food and wears organic cotton clothing but then they wrap their newborn baby’s brand new skin, up in a disposable nappy.

Many disposable companies use hydrogen peroxide to bleach the nappy fibers and the nappy itself is made from trees or tree scraps and may also contain paper pulp, plastics, absorbent gel granules and chemical additives in the plastics and perfumes. All these chemicals and materials impact on the environment and the end product is far from natural and is certainly not what I would call a comfortable item of clothing.

When will we once again become responsible for our increasingly waste filled lifestyles and actually go back to the centuries old normal way of living by being responsible for our own crap?

What can you do?

Reduce, Reuse and Recycle……Choose to reduce and reuse!

Modern Cloth Nappies….

Not what you expect!

Today they fit just like a disposable but they are washable.

Forget the old pink striped nappies, pins, soaking, hot washing and time consuming folding. Today cloth nappies look exactly like a disposable but the only difference is that you throw them in the washing machine instead of the rubbish bin.

There is no preparation, no folding and no soaking. The nappy is often one piece and you just pop it on the baby. Our modern washing machines and washing products do all of the work for us so they don’t need soaking or bleaching. Fabric technology has come a long way too so the nappies can perform as well, if not better than a disposable nappy.

In fact you may be very surprised to see that a modern nappies looks like this: • Nowadays you can get a one-piece design for a quick easy cloth nappy change.

• The modern cloth nappies have an integrated waterproof outer that is soft and supple.

• They use either a Velcro fastener (shown on this nappy) or domes. Some of the nappies will fit right from birth to toilet training so parents don’t need to but additional sizes.

• They are easy to use and not bulky or uncomfortable.

• On the inside of the nappy are lovely soft absorbent fabrics.

• Some nappies even come with a special liner that keeps the baby’s skin dry.

• The inside of the nappy often pulls out to make drying time minimal.

• And as you can see the nappy is ready to put on with no pins or folding required.

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Recycling bins are not salvation army bins.

Recently I was offered a tour through a Recycling Centre in Palmerston North by my friend Pip – The Master of Recycling. Because I wanted to further educate myself about the best ways to do things and to check if I was doing things right, I thought why not.

So off I went to the centre where a couple of other mums joined us. Well in just over an hour I realized that as a human race we are either exceptionally blind or very lazy.

Pip began the presentation about what could and could not be recycled. There was a board with all of the different plastic on it. One side had what you could recycle and the other was what was not recyclable. Instantly I realized that I was recycling things that were not recyclable.

We also learnt what happens to all of the plastic and why preventing contamination (i.e making sure you are washing out your bottles) was so important.

I was blown away at the pure lack of knowledge I had of what the whole recycling process was all about.

From the education room we followed Pip through the offices and all put on hard hats and high visibility vests. I had no idea what to expect in the recycling building as I had always assumed that it was an automatic process.

We went through the doors and followed the path to where the recycling is dropped off by

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the recycling trucks. Wow what an eye opener.

Not only was there what seemed to be an endless pile of plastic containers, there was so much contamination it was embarrassing.

Pip picked through the pile of recycling and showed us pairs of shoes, old kids swings, small bits of furniture and clothing. It seemed that the were a number of people treating the recycling bin as a Salvation Army Bin, by putting anything they didn’t want in there.

From there we journeyed inside to where all of the sorting happens. This is where I became aware that the recycling was all being hand sorted by people with the assistance of machinery.

We went up the stairs to the first place where all of the recycling comes into the building from a conveyer belt outside. There were two people standing at the first sorting point.

Pip showed me how the magnet section worked pulling out all of the metal cans etc.

The paper tumbler where everything that was heavy fell through and the paper carried on up the other side. The people who hand sort the plastic containers that can be recycled, the people who hand sort all of the paper and the piles of contaminated rubbish that has been collected and cannot be recycled.

As we stood at one of the sorting points we started inspecting things that were coming in. It seemed that every couple of seconds,

some form of contamination went past. I was astounded. We stood there for about 5 minutes and saw a huge number of yucky things…

For example: • The end of a broccoli – the top part was eaten and they had recycled the rest • Half a dozen green potatos – obviously not edible so they got recycled • An egg carton full of eggs • Half full hummus containers – festering in the summer heat • Broken children’s toys • A rotten silverbeet still in the plastic bag it came in • A bag with a few nuts left in it • Milk bottles and lots of other bottles that had not been rinsed • And 9 full used disposable nappies

“There are an enormous

number of people, myself included that do not know how to recycle correctly.

“

I literally did not feel like having lunch after seeing and smelling the rotten things that people recycle.

To me it highlighted the fact that there are an enormous number of people, myself included that do not know how to recycle correctly.

So I thought I should put together a few easy pointers and rules to help people recycle properly.

1. The Recycling bin is not a recycled clothing bin or Op Shop Collection bin. wastefreeparenting.co.nz

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You cannot put old clothing, footwear or fabrics, babies toys or unwanted household items into the recycling bin. The right place to take these is your local op shop.

2. You can only recycle the numbers that your council has specified.

Almost every piece of plastic carries a plastic identification number on it. Just because it has a number on it does not mean it can be recycled. Check on your local councils website to check what numbers are accepted. When buying products, think about buying things in less packaging or packaging that can be recycled.

3. You must clean the packaging before recycling If you do not clean the packaging before you recycle it, it will end up going to landfill because it is contaminated. Milk bottles, tins, jars, and plastic containers all need to be cleaned before you put them in your recycling bin.

4. You cannot recycle green waste or food waste in the recycling bin.

It is not a green waste collection bin. If you have vegetable scraps or any household food waste there are correct ways to deal with this that does not include the recycling bin.

Composting, worm farming or perhaps your council may have a green waste collection.

5. Be aware that many recycling depots hand sort your waste Do not put any paperwork in the recycling bin that you are not happy for someone to read.

Anyone could pick up your personal papers and read them. You may be better to shred them and use them in your worm farm or compost heap like I do.

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6. A lot of people don’t like having to pay to recycle.

We went from having a free recycling bin to having to pay for it. Originally I was miffed at this because it meant we had to pay more but funnily enough if you sit down and work it out, it is actually much cheaper to recycle than it is to fill up your landfill bin. We pay $71.80 per year for a big recycling bin that we use for my business as well and worked out that if we were just lazy and didn’t bother recycling anything it would cost us an additional $292.00 per year to throw it into the landfill aside from the fact that we would be throwing perfectly good recyclable material into the landfill too.

7. Disposable nappies are not recyclable Do not put used disposable nappies in the recycling bin as they are hazardous waste with human excrement inside them. They have been identified by some recycling center’s as baby bombs…they just may explode if you touch them.

All in all the tour was an eye opening experience and one I will never forget. If you have the opportunity to go for a tour through your local recycling center and you are keen to learn about how you can recycle better, it is well worth it. Don’t have lunch before you go though.

For me what I took from it most is that I need to be responsible for how I recycle and I am also now more aware of what can and can’t be recycled so I am checking the packaging before I buy.

What can you do…..check with your council what can and cannot be recycled. Try to minimize packaging and get packaging that can be recycled where possible.

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Gardening GROW YOUR OWN MAKE YOUR SPACE AN EDIBLE PLACE

As a child I always remember going to my grandparents and picking fruit off the fruit trees and veges out of the garden. Nowadays hardly any properties have their own gardens or fruit trees.

My husband and I got married and brought our first home in 1996. The first thing we did was pull out all of the gardens because we didn’t want the extra work. We put it all into grass and liked the fact that we just had to mow the lawn and the place looked lovely and tidy. We were in the habit of buying all of our fruit and veges from the supermarket. In 2005 Daniel was born. We had a lovely house and nice big back lawn.

One day I went into the supermarket to buy our fruit and vegetables for the week. I went to get some tomatoes and I think they were the most expensive I had ever seen them. They were $12.99 a kilo. All of a sudden I realized that we had become totally dependent on other places to supply us our food and we were paying a high price for that convenience.

I went home and Vaughn and I started talking about the cost of living and how it was getting really expensive for things that we saw as the basics. We had become totally unaware of seasonal fruits and vegetables because the supermarket has most fruits and vegetables all year round.

We were sitting in our lounge looking out at our lovely mown lawn and all of a sudden we

thought how crazy it was that here we had our own little corner of the world and sure it looked lovely and tidy but we were missing a great opportunity to become more self sufficient and less reliant on others to supply us fresh fruit and vegetables.

It was all good timing and everything seemed to fall in to place, you see, recently my father had put in some raised bed gardens at his place and it was close to my birthday so I asked my Dad if I brought the wood, could he make me a garden for my birthday.

He agreed and before you knew it, we had a lovely raised garden in our back yard. We brought a yates book and got planting. Over the next year we learnt a lot about what vegetables to grow when and how to plant and rotate crops and lots of general gardening tips. We had the expert advice from Vaughn’s 93-year-old nana ‘Dot’ who would tell us how to get the most out of everything.

The following year we asked Dad to build me another garden for that birthday. Now it was getting serious. We had thoroughly enjoyed eating our home grown vegetables so we wanted to be able to grow more than we could eat in the summer so we could pre plan and freeze our own vege’s for the winter as well.

In our backyard we also had a lovely old grafted apple tree. Every year we enjoyed the apples and when Daniel was 2 years old he would go out and pick his own apple and bring it back for

us to cut up. We got to thinking that wouldn’t it be cool if we always had some seasonal fruit available on our property for anyone from the family to eat.

This started our next project, a home orchard.

We decided that we wanted to make sure we could access seasonal fruits at anytime. It is interesting when you research seasonal fruits and what vitamins they have in them. For example, we found out that most of the winter fruits are naturally high in Vitamin C, like Kiwifruit, Fejoas and Oranges – just when you need a vitamin C boost; the fruits that will give it to you are available.

So what we have done over the past 9 years is plant fruit trees so that we have fruit nearly all year round that we can pick from our own property. Some years we have abundance so we swap it with other friends who have other fruits they grow.

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Everything we do in our own corner of the world complements each other. Our worm farms and compost bin feed the soil for the garden, the scraps from the garden and our food scraps get composted and go back into the soil to grow more food.

We are so proud of what we have achieved and it has all come together so well. Sure it has taken time but because it has been a long-term project we have incorporated the whole system in to our way of life. Looking at the big picture, growing your own food is such an easy thing to do when you know what you are doing.

So what if you are renting?

A challenge that many will face is when you are renting a property and you cant do any permanent planting or change anything.

However, there are lots of ways you can still have a garden, without an in the ground garden.

Firstly there is the option of growing in planter boxes that if you have to move you can take with you. These are great for growing lettuces, Broccoli, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Spinach, Kale, Silverbeet, Tomato’s, dwarf beans, herbs and more. Depending on the depth you may be able to grow root crops such as Carrots in there as well. I would tend to grow the more dwarf ones in a planter box.

Or secondly, I have seen people grow them directly in pots or by cutting holes in a pre packaged bag of soil mix. Especially things like lettuces.

With fruit trees it is a bit trickier but you could potentially look at swapping something you have an abundance of with some one else.

There are ways around everything, even if it means you just do a little bit here and there when it suits. But I can speak from experience

“I realized that we had become totally dependent on other places to supply us our food and we were paying a high price for that convenience.

“

when I say that it always tastes better if you picked it out of your own garden.

Funnily enough, recently Daniel and I were sitting watching Charlie and the chocolate factory and I made comment that wouldn’t it be cool if you had a garden like that so that everything in your garden was edible.

Daniel’s response was classic, ‘But we do mum, we can eat everything in our garden, the only thing we need to do now is find out how we can grow chocolate!’

FOOD HATE WASTE

Our food is wasted!

Roughly one third of the food produced in the world for human consumption every year – Approximately 1.3 billion tonnes – gets lost or wasted*.

The vast amount of food that goes to landfill every day makes a significant contribution to the ongoing issue of global warming.

A lot of this problem is because we over buy and then don’t eat what we have purchased and end up throwing it out. I know that I have been very guilty of this in the past. We never had a compost bin and used to throw all of our excess food waste into the rubbish bin. The outer lettuce leaves, the end of a broccoli, and food that looked ever so slightly off.

Firstly to make changes we had to stop buying so much food. We started growing our own vegetables so that we were only picking produce as we needed it and we started buying less at the supermarket so we would eat what we had instead of wasting what we did not get around to eating.

Secondly, we purchased a compost bin, and a couple of worm farms so that we could make our own compost for our gardens from any garden waste and food scraps that we had to throw away.

We noticed that as soon as we took the food waste out of our general waste bin, it stopped smelling because there was nothing putrefying in it. Now all of our food waste is dealt with on our own property except for bones.

Packaging We go into the supermarket and buy trolley loads of food that is packed in enormous amounts of packaging and then we go home and throw it all away. What is the point of the packaging? To me it is a sales mechanism. It is there to persuade us to want to buy it because of the sales information they have on the packet.

The packaging generally does not improve the nutritional value of the food inside it. In fact most products have two pieces of packaging for one food product. For example, muesli that comes inside a plastic bag, inside a heavily printed cardboard box.

Most recently I went into my local supermarket and wanted to purchase some courgettes for a stir-fry. The only courgettes I could buy were packed on a polystyrene tray and wrapped with a plastic wrap over the top. I chose not to purchase them because I didn’t want to buy packaging with my courgettes.

We also did a bit of research about the cereals with the most minimalistic packaging. This came about after we purchased a pack of cereal for our son. We opened the box and found a small bag inside it and the bag was only half filled with cereal yet the box was huge. So we looked into what represented the best packaging with cereal. We found that there were two that stood out. Firstly Harraways rolled oats that were packed in a bag that was bursting full of oats. Secondly was Weetbix. The Weetbix box is stuffed so full from top to bottom that you can’t get them out. wastefreeparenting.co.nz

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Expiry Dates – what are they for?

In the past I remember looking at the best before dates and thinking that the food was off even it was just a day over the date on the packet. Therefore I would just throw it in the bin without a thought. Some of you may think I was quite naive, I was.

Then one day I found out that there are a number of different date labels that are used on food and they were confusing me. I found out that there was a big difference between a ‘use by date’ and a ‘best before date’.

With a ‘Use-by date’ food can be eaten up to the end of the ‘use-by’ date, but not after even if it looks and smells fine. This is very much referring to the safety of the food.

Where as the ‘Best Before’ date refers to the quality of the food as opposed to the food safety. With the best-before date, after the date, the food won’t be unsafe but it may begin to lose it’s flavor or texture. One exception is eggs – you should never eat eggs that have passed their best before date.

So we started being more aware of what we were buying and making sure that we purchased fresh food that we were going to eat straight away if it had a date on it instead of buying it and finding it at the back of the fridge a month later and then throwing it out, or we would buy it and freeze it straight away and use it when we were ready to eat it.

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So how do we reduce food waste and packaging?

With all of the above, my husband, Vaughn and I decided that we needed to start strategising our supermarket shopping.

Sure you can deal with the waste by recycling and having worm farms, compost bins and Bokashi but this does not solve the problem that we are over purchasing produce in the first place. Because we over buy we have to deal with more waste so therefore if we were more thoughtful about what we purchased and made sure that we used it all we wouldn’t waste any food.

So we have started looking at how we could shop smarter. It doesn’t work 100% of the time but we do our best.

References: * Global Food Losses and Food Waste - FAO, 2011 * The environmental crisis: The environment’s role in averting future food crisis – UNEP, 2009

Our Strategies for wasting less • Firstly we go shopping on a full stomach – if we go shopping on an empty stomach, we tend to over buy.

• We always have a list and try to stick to it as much as possible.

• I haven’t got around to planning menus as yet but this is something we are working on.

• We only buy food that will go off (that we can’t freeze) if we are going to eat it straight away • We buy non-perishables in bulk because it reduces packaging – although you need to check pricing, as it is sometimes more expensive which is really frustrating.

• We try to buy all of our meat from the butcher because he uses less packaging and has free-range meats available.

• We head to the local farmers market to buy ‘in season’ food that have been grown locally and have no packaging.

• We avoid multi buys as often we don’t need the extra items.

• We look for minimalistic packaging or packaging free options • Check out www.facebook.com/lovefoodhatewastenz wastefreeparenting.co.nz

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Composting and Worm Farming This is something that is much easier than you would expect. In years gone by, every household had a compost heap. It was nothing like what we can get now, it was most likely just a few bits of 4x2 in the corner of your back yard where grass clipping and food scraps used to get thrown together.

I know when we first thought about getting a compost bin we thought it was going to take more time to manage. But we decided to purchased one and see how we got on with it.

We spent about $35 and put it out by the shed and started putting our food scraps in it. Originally I thought we were going to fill it up in no time as we were putting a bit of grass clippings in, the food waste and shredded paper from my office. However we were surprised at how quickly everything started breaking down and since we started using it about 8 years ago we have only emptied it maybe three times.

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We also noticed that as soon as we took the food waste out of our general waste bin, it stopped smelling because there was nothing putrefying in it.

After a while we had put in a couple of gardens and we decided to try our hands at worm farming. My husband Vaughn went on a course for a couple of hours and learnt all about it. He came home from the course with a worm farm and we got started.

The funny thing was that we have found that it doesn’t actually take much time at all to use either of the options. The only thing we changed was that instead of putting all of the food waste in the rubbish bin, we have a bucket for food waste that we put in the compost bin and one for the worm farm. It is really easy. We use the worm tea from the worm farm to put around our fruit trees and on the garden, the compost goes into the raised bed gardens that we have

and so does the vermicast that comes out of the worm farm.

There are a number of ways you can recycle your household food waste - In Compost bins, using the Bokashi method or worm farming.

Compost Bins You can get a basic enclosed plastic compost bin from your local hardware store for $35 - $50 or you could get some un treated wood and make one up yourself.

By using an enclosed bin this will trap the heat in and keep the bacteria working more efficiently. An enclosed bin will produce compost faster than an open compost heap.

You need to make sure you put it in a place that is well drained and you need to keep the compost covered to keep the rain off. The compost needs to be moist but not drenched.

There is only a small amount of management required to ensure you have the best composting environment. You can do this by adding alternate layers of materials. 70% of the material should be made up of material rich in carbon such as branches, untreated sawdust, or I use shredded paper. The other 30% should be rich in nitrogen like grass clipping or vegetable waste. You can also add a sprinkle of lime from time to time to raise the PH and help with the breakdown.

For more information head to: http://www.createyourowneden.org.nz/composting_guide.pdf Worm Farming To start with a worm farm, you will need • A container or a pre-made worm farm • Bedding – such as shredded paper or compost • Worms – tiger worms who like food scraps

•

Food – you can feed them most human foods but they don’t like onions, garlic, spicy foods or citrus.

Once your farm is set up, you add the food scraps in thin layers at regular intervals and the worms will turn it into compost.

The worms like to be kept moist by covering them with cardboard, newspaper or carpet.

With the pre made worm farms you can collect the liquid from the bottom of the container (worm tea) and mix it with water to use as a fertilizer to put on your plants.

Every few months you can empty the compost (vermicast) from the base of the farm by putting it into your garden or soil.

For more information head to: http://www.wormsrus.co.nz/composting.html http://www.hungrybin.co.nz/instructions/getting-started/ Bokashi Method Bokashi is a great alternative if you are limited for space.

The bokashi ferments the food scraps. It actually prevents it from rotting so it doesn’t attract flies and because it is sealed, you wont get any unwanted four legged visitors.

It is an airtight system where you put your food waste and some Bokashi mix into an airtight bucket and leave it for 7-10 days and that’s it you have a bucket of valuable fertiliser ready to bury in your garden. Once buried, the food waste will turn into rich, black organic compost in about 4 weeks.

You can place Bokashi mix in an existing compost heap as well. This will also accelerate your conventional composting For more information head to: www.bokashiboost.co.nz/howtocompost.aspx wastefreeparenting.co.nz

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Reusable Mummy There are lots of products out there that have reusable and disposable products available. So in this section I am going to give you some alternative to disposable products for women that some of you may not even realize exist.

The obvious difference between the reusable and disposable is that one will be reused a number of times and the other wont.

Hence a reusable product will also create less waste.

There are a few topics I want to cover here. Breast products, Menstural products, Reusable Breast Pads I started out with disposable breast pads but found after a couple of weeks of use they were really irritating my skin. So I started looking for reusable alternatives. Unfortunately there were not as many options back then as there are now but one place I found an abundance of information was Breastmates an online breast feeding shop. They had lots of different re-usable breast pad options and I found some nice soft ones that had a waterproof backing on them that were comfortable and worked really well. Today there are lots of different options when it comes to reusable breast pads.

You can get: • Bamboo • Wool • Cotton • Hemp • Or fabric blends wastefreeparenting.co.nz

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Reusable Cloth Menstrual Pads, Mama pads or Mama Cloth.

The modern version of a reusable pad is quite different to what you would expect. They generally have a waterproof layer that sits against your underwear, with a clip that secures it around your underwear.

I found once I switched to reusable breast pads we saved a significant amount of money too.

It was costing me around $20 per week for disposable breast pads where as I spent $30 with Breastmates and had three sets of reusable ones that lasted as long as I was breastfeeding.

So we worked out that we saved around $390 from when I started using reusable pads. Also because I was reusing the pads it meant that I hadn’t thrown away 1222 breast pads either which is a significant amount of waste.

Re-usable Menstrual Products Now this is an interesting topic. Most people I start this conversation with are initially grossed out by the word’s reusable and menstrual being used in the same sentence.

The funny thing is that it has only been since the late 1800’s that a disposable version of a menstrual pad has been available. But before then women had to deal with is in many different ways, which I am not going to get into to much detail.

Today we have two reusable options available to us: Re-usable menstrual pads and menstrual cups.

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It then has layers of absorbent fabric on the top. Modern fabrics like bamboo and hemp are really trim so they are thin yet super absorbent. They are really comfortable and because of the waterproofing they give you the same security that you would expect from a disposable one.

Cloth Pads are much softer on the skin, and because they are made from fabric instead of plastics they also allow airflow, which can help prevent thrush and rashes. They don’t tend to smell like the disposable pads do either. Of course, being reusable they are also much better for the environment than disposables.

Reusable pads can also be used as panty liners for incontinence or to keep your underwear clean and dry between periods, during pregnancy, or even after having your baby.

Cloth Pads come in loads of different shapes, sizes, absorbencies and fabrics. There is a pad to suit everyone.

Washing Cloth Pads can be as easy as tossing them in the washing machine. You change them as often as you would a disposable, so in that respect it is no different to using disposable pads. The main difference is that after you finish with a cloth pad, you toss it in the wash and re use it and a disposable one you toss it in the rubbish.

The other obvious benefit is that over time you will save a significant amount of money too.

Menstrual Cups Now this is something that I have used for the past 8 years and I absolutely swear by them. Basically, the modern menstrual cup is a reusable alternative to tampons.

I believe it is one of the most convenient, economical, and environmentally friendly forms of period protection. Menstrual cups collect your flow rather than absorbing it, so you can use your cup for up to 12 hours without irritation or dryness.

They hold around 15-30ml (Depending on the size and brand), which is for most women will cope with a full day without emptying. I personally found that I needed to empty it in the morning when I got up and in the evening before I went off to bed.

While you have it in you can swim, run, bike, or whatever and get on with your normal day.

Because it is all internal, there is no smell and you feel very clean, in fact there are no boxes hanging around so no-one even knows you have got your period.

You might think these are a modern invention... not so. They have been around for about 80 years we have just never heard of them. Â There have been several new brands of menstrual cups that have been brought out in the last few years. While there are loads of different brands available, the menstrual cups are essentially all very similar and offer only minor differences from one brand to another.

Most of the cups come in 2 sizes.

The first size is designed for younger women who have not had a baby. The second size is designed for older women or women who have had a baby. All of the cups have slightly different size recommendations, so it is best to check before you invest in a size. And it pays to note that the size for after you have had your baby is only slightly larger than the one for before you have the baby. Â In my experience a menstrual cup will last (with proper care) for a number of years, Personally I was a bit daunted by the upfront outlay because the initial outlay is high, but I figured out that I have saved well over $1000 since I started using it 8 years ago. wastefreeparenting.co.nz

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Reusable Baby

There are lots of products that you buy when you have a baby you don’t need. We were a classic example of those first time parents who rely on companies to tell us what we need for a new baby. We got the Layette List and purchased everything on it, spending a fortune in doing so.

It wasn’t until after we had our son Daniel that we realized that we didn’t need most of what we had purchased, and that we had been sucked into the be over prepared mindset because this is the first time you have done this and you trust everyone to help you in your preparation. What we had not taken into account was that their sales and marketing was directed at silly old us.

What was really interesting was the number of things that you had to re-purchase again and again because they were all one-use items and they were all targeted at saving me time, but

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they cost me a lot of money, essentially tuning me into disposable mum.

There were disposable change mats, disposable bibs, disposable breast pads, disposable nappy wrappers, disposable wipes, disposable nappies and it doesn’t stop there.

That is all stuff just for the early days. Believe it or not, it gets worse.

It wasn’t till Daniel was about three months old that we started noticing how much stuff we were throwing away. We had gone from being two adults with a small bag of rubbish every week to a one-child family and a giant wheelie bin of rubbish every week.

This made us wonder what it was that was making all of the extra rubbish. Once we were aware of it, we started noticing what we were putting in the bin and it was mind blowing how much stuff we were using just once and then throwing it away.

Disposable nappies & wipes When Daniel was first born, he was getting changed around 8 – 10 times per day. Over a week that is 80 nappies…wow, before you know it you have a whole rubbish bin of poop filled nappies every week.

We tried the old flat nappies when we first got home from hospital and after a bit of awkward origami, we both gave up.

It wasn’t until my friend Paula, who was originally from Australia showed me some very cute, easy to use cloth nappies that had Velcro, no pins and you didn’t need to soak them, that I decided to have a go with modern cloth nappies.

We brought 5 different nappies and gave it a go. It was amazing! We had always found that because Daniel has little chicken legs (he still does even now at 9 years old) that the disposables leaked all of the time. As soon as we changed to the “New’ Cloth nappies, we had less leakage.

This meant that we were actually doing less washing because we were just washing a nappy not a full set of clothes and bedding, which was often the case when he had what we called one of his poonami’s.

So the cloth nappies not only contained ‘everything’ better, they were much easier to use than what we expected. We also loved that you could get all sorts of colours and patterns.

For most of the time Daniel was in nappies, I used cloth nappies about 80% of the time and disposables 20% of the time like when we were out and about or on holiday.

Re-usable wipes Reusable cloth wipes are a great alternative to buying disposable wipes! Washable wipes are all I ever used. I purchased 24 terry wipes when my son was born and only ever used them with

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water, saving myself hundreds of dollars. Water works wonders on bottoms! I never used a solution with them and generally used 1-2 wipes per change. When I have had to use disposable wipes while out, I found I was using at least 10 to 20 wipes per change because they are so small and flimsy.

Washable wipes can also be made by cutting up a towel or buying some fabric to make your own. Mine are around the same size as a face cloth.

Swimming Nappies When Daniel was 4 months old, we started taking him to swimming lessons. This meant we were using 1 swim nappy per week. Sure that doesn’t sound like much but when you consider they only wear it for around 25 minutes it is.

And we thought that if there were 10 babies in the same lesson as Dan for 25 minutes, once a week for say 40 weeks of the year then our little swimming group would throw away 400 disposable swim nappies that had all only had a life of 25 minutes or so.

So we were interested to find out if there were any re-usable swim nappies for babies. So we started looking into it and we found that there was an amazing selection of different shapes, sizes and styles of swim nappies on the market.

The proper swim nappies are made from a swimsuit fabric that allows water to flow through the fabric. The nappy is simply there to catch any solids that could potentially emerge. If any solids escape, they call it a ‘CODE BROWN’ and they have to clean and treat the pool, which is why the pools require you to have a swim nappy on children under 2 years old.

I am often asked if you can use a normal swim nappy for swimming lessons. The simple

answer is no. You can’t use a normal nappy as a swim nappy as they have a waterproof outer on them and so they catch the water inside. For example, if we put on a raincoat and went for a swim we would have a heavy weight and quite a bit of drag, which is why a normal nappy is not suitable.

If you buy one for your first child, just make sure you get one that is unisex and you will be able to use it on subsequent children too.

Baby Food Packaging and Waste This was something we became aware of when we started Daniel on Solids. Nine years ago baby food came in Cans or Jars. They were both recyclable. Nowadays parents face a lot more waste with the new baby food pouches.

They are a one-use item that is not recyclable, even though they have a plastic identification number on them.

This is actually a very new waste stream that councils have to deal with. When you think about it, if you were feeding your baby full time with food pouches, you may go through 3 pouches per day. That is 1095 pouches per year for one baby.

Where as if you brought your food in bulk or even better, made it yourself and stored it in reusable containers in the freezer, you would save a huge amount of money and reduce a massive amount of un-necessary packaging waste from ending up in a landfill.

There are lots of reusable baby food packaging options. Plastic containers like Sistema or Tupperware will be used hundreds of times. Or you may be interested in some of the newer options like reusable food pouches that can be used 40 – 50 times instead of only once.

If you have never done it before, making baby food is actually really easy. When they are little obviously it is very runny food like a boiled up

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pumpkin or apple which are both super easy to make.

When they are older you can literally make your own meal, like spaghetti bolognaise and pop a portion of it in the food processor and wiz it up and you have a home made baby meal. There are loads of really great recipes online.

Disposable vs Reusable I could go on and on about all of the potential ways you can reduce waste with a baby in the house. It takes time. It has taken me 9 years to get to where I am now and we have done one thing at a time. We started with nappies and went from there. Over time we added in one little step at a time and have become a sustainable household. We are not perfect, we are just doing our best.

Some days it feels like using disposable things are easier than using reusable things. I believe that it is our mindset that needs to change.

From my personal experience, I believe that we were convinced by very astute marketing that we would have more time available in our lives if we used disposable products because you could just throw it away when you are done with it instead of taking the time to wash it.

Over time in our home we have found that most reusable things will work just as well if not better than their disposable counterparts, it is just that fact that you can dispose of it instead of cleaning something that makes it seem easier at the time.

But when you look at how much more it costs to buy the disposable options, I believe we ended up working for longer to be able to afford the disposable life style. At the end of the day we realized that we were actually just throwing our money into the landfill.

Now we are more aware of what we buy, what we throw away and our overall waste situation.

If I can do it, anyone can do it! •

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Nappy Cost Comparisons - per child Nappy Cost Comparisons - per child.

This costing below is based on a child in nappies from birth to 2.5 years.

Cloth Nappies Cloth Nappies – Cost per baby 20 Cloth Nappies @ One Size @ $30each

= $ 600.00

40 Cloth Wipes @ $1.00 each

= $ 40.00

912 washes on cold @ $0.05c per load (1 load per day)

= $ 45.60

912 washes Earthwise liquid @ $0.27c per wash (full load)

= $ 246.24

912 Washes - Wear & Tear on Washing Machine @ $0.39c per load

= $ 355.68

912 Washes - Water cost and waste water disposal @ $0.18c per load

= $ 165.25

Basic Cost of using Cloth Nappies

= $ 1452.77

Optional Extras: 912 washes on Hot @ $0.47c per load - the cost of cold washes above

= $ 383.04

1400 Flushable Liners @ $0.9c per liner (in 25% of changes)

= $ 126.00

Drier once a week @ $0.63c per load

= $ 81.90

Cost of using Cloth with extras:

= $ 2043.71

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Disposable Nappies Disposable Nappies – Cost per baby 5475 Disposable Nappies @ $0.70c each - going by Zero Wastes nappy changes of 6 per day

= $ 3832.5

3 wipes per change @ $.04c each

= $ 720.00

130 rubbish bags @ $2.25 each (1 per week)

= $ 292.50

Basic Cost of Using Disposables:

= $ 4845.00

Optional Extras: Nappy Wrapper

= $ 59.00

To wrap up every nappy @ $0.9c each

= $ 492.75

Disposable Composting @ 1 bag per week @ $6.91ea

= $ 899.00

Cost of using Disposables with extras:

= $ 6295.75

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Absorbent Fabric Options Today we are lucky to have a huge selection of fabrics available to us for nappies. Each fabric has its own features and benefits. I am of the belief that fabric is one of the most important aspects of your chosen nappy system. For example, if a client was living in Southland in New Zealand where drying times in the winter are very slow, I would suggest they start their search with synthetic or fast drying natural fabrics. If living in Northland, where drying time is faster, they could choose from any fabric.

capacities around. Due to the unique way in which it is constructed, micro fibre dries incredibly quickly. It also stays completely soft even after washing in hard water. It pays to use a natural fabric with microfiber when possible

There are new fabrics being produced all of the time as technology gets better and better.

Below I have outlined the four most common nappy fabrics. And what their main features are.

Cotton - The all round performer As a naturally occurring cellulose cotton has been used for centuries. It makes excellent nappies due to its absorbent nature. Cotton is one of the most durable fabrics and dries in a reasonable time. Cotton nappies can come in many different fabric variations like towelling, twill, cotton velour just to name a few.

Bamboo - Slim fit, Anti-Bacterial and silky soft One of a new breed of man made cellulose fibres. It is an incredibly soft fabric with a feeling akin to cashmere/silk and has natural antibacterial properties. Bamboo is a highly sustainable resource, which grows without the need for agrochemicals and has a very short growth cycle. Because of the way the bamboo absorbs into the fibres, it takes a longer time to dry than cotton but bamboo fabric makes very trim nappies and absorbs liquid very quickly.

Micro fibre - Quick dry, stay soft A purely synthetic man made material, micro fibre has one of the highest liquid retention

as microfiber may have a high liquid retention capacity but if you put pressure on the fabric it cant hold liquid in where as a natural fabric can.

Micro fibre is great for hard water areas.

Hemp – Great for sensitive skin Hemp is also used to make cloth nappies.

Hemp is durable and super absorbent.

Hemp also has anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties. Hemp is an environmentally kind choice too – like bamboo the growth of hemp has less impact on our environment. A couple of things to note are that Hemp shrinks a lot on the first wash, you may loose up to 20% and in my experience, it can go slightly stiff over time and will need to be popped through the dryer to soften it up again.

Fabrics – Effect on the Environment Remember that all fabrics have an environmental effect on the environment during their production phase. You can do a lot of research about it but always read both sides of each story to get the best overview.

Nappy Lady Top TIP: Often using a combination of different absorbent fabrics in a cloth gives the best overall performance.

Cloth Nappy Basics The Liner – Convenient Top Layer This is the top layer that will be against the baby’s skin and will provide convenience when cleaning up the nappy and is best used when using barrier creams.

Flushable – Simply flush the liner and any solids down the toilet…How convenient!! But before you do, make sure that they are flushable, biodegradable and septic tank friendly if necessary.

Reusable Liners - (Synthetic) These keep the baby’s skin dryer and will protect your nappy from stains and botty cream build ups The Nappy – Absorbent Middle Layer This makes up the absorbent part of the nappy.

These layers absorb the wee and may be made from a range of absorbent fabrics like: Cotton, Bamboo, Microfiber, Hemp, Minky etc...

It may be a full nappy or it may be a combination of inserts.

Wrap or Cover – Containment outer layer This is the outer part which is the moisture containment layer of the nappy system. This is what does the containing and keeps all of the wetness in but allows skin to breath • With a Pre-fold, Snap In or Fitted nappy system, the cover will be worn over top of the nappy • With a Pocket or All in one system, this is already attached to the nappy The Booster – Add’s Absorbency You use a booster when you want to add absorbency to your nappy because an absorbency booster allows the nappy to hold more liquid.

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Great for heavy wetter’s and night time use They are made from multiple layers of absorbent fabrics.

How many nappies do you need?

Newborns are generally changed 7-10 times per day but as the baby gets older, the changes will become less frequent so you will need less nappies.

The best place to start is getting a few trial packs from different brands. Once you know what you like, you can add to it.

Here are some basic numbers for how many nappies you would need depending on how often you intend to use cloth nappies: Just want to try it: You will need a Trial pack from a couple of different brands Some of the time: You will need around 5 nappy changes Part time on home days: You will need 8 – 10 nappy changes Full Time: You will need 15 – 20 nappies if you wash every day Using Liners: 100 Flushable liners will last a couple of weeks with a newborn Or 20 Reusable lines will be plenty to get you started.

Remember, you can always get more if you need them and if you end up with lots of nappies, they will last longer because they are washed less so you will be able to on sell them second hand.

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Nappy Rash Research done at Bristol University showed that children in cloth nappies were no more likely to have severe nappy rash than children in disposables.

All nappies whether they are cloth or disposable, should be changed with the same regularity, regardless of how much moisture they can absorb. This is to prevent bacterial build up in the nappy, which is the main cause of skin irritation (nappy rash) – it is not the wetness of the nappy that causes this.

If a child has a bad rash on their bottom, it is likely it could be a number of other things that are not nappy rash. If you are concerned, take your baby to the doctor to get it checked out or ask your midwife or Plunket nurse for advice.

Also the term nappy rash is sometimes over used. A baby could be suffering from numerous things including heat rash, sweat rash, teething rash, a sensitivity to detergent or some other infection like thrush.

Nappy rash is caused when urine comes in contact with poo. Urine is sterile when it first comes out and while a child has only wet a nappy, there is no real risk of nappy rash developing.

However, as soon as they poo, it is important to change the nappy immediately regardless of whether they are in cloth or disposables.

Bacteria in the faeces can react with stale urine on the skin and produce ammonia. It is this that irritates the skin and causes nappy rash to develop. If baby develops any redness, it is a

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good idea to change nappies more frequently, at least until the irritation settles down.

I also recommend that parents avoid disposable wipes as they don’t help your baby’s skin. The chemicals can be more irritating than helpful in some cases. Plain old water works wonders with a nice soft cloth. Give baby plenty of “nappy free” time between changes, to give their lovely new skin a chance to breathe.

If repeated rashes are noted and it is thought the nappies are contributing to this, the first thing I would suggest to do is to look at how the nappies are being washed. Also perhaps trying one of the many methods to sterilize the nappies may help. If the household normally uses cold water washes for the nappies, a hot wash and lots of sunlight works a treat.

Alternatively, try incorporating a Canesten rinse into your washing routine or perhaps do a hot soak with your laundry liquid for about an hour or so and then wash on hot.

If the rash looks like a concentrated collection of little red spots, this could be the beginning of a thrush infection. Take baby to the local doctor so he/she can prescribe a treatment.

They may prescribe something like Canesten, but don’t forget you will also have to sterilize the nappies / wash the nappies in Detol Wash additive or Canesten hygiene rinse, to prevent re-infection.

What is a Nappy Cover or Wrap?

This is the outermost layer of a nappy and this is what prevents the moisture in the nappy leaking out onto clothes.

There are two different types of covers. PUL which is a waterproof Cover and Fleece or wool which are water resistant. Below I will explain the difference between them.

PUL covers A PUL cover, in my opinion, is the best all-round cover available. A PUL cover is normally made of polyester with the inside of the cover having a polyurethane layer sprayed on to laminate the fabric. This makes it waterproof but still very soft any pliable. By laminating the fabric, it gives the wrap a high degree of water resistance without compromising the breathable quality needed for the comfort of your baby. When cared for properly they will last. Most PUL covers can be washed with the nappies and dry in minutes.

They are my favorite for day and night time use.

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Fleece and Wool Covers Fleece and wool covers both work quite differently from PUL. With PUL, the cover is used contain the moisture, while still allowing a little air to pass through. Fleece and wool covers tend to allow much more air in and out of the nappy and this air-flow can allow some evaporation of moisture from the nappy. So while they contain the moisture in the nappy they can actually help get rid of some of it as well. Contrary to what most people think, this actually makes them the coolest cover option. The cooling effect of the evaporation makes the cover a personal, bottom-sized air conditioner.

Fleece and wool both also act as a barrier to prevent leaks because they do not hold water and are generally a fitted wrap with elasticized legs. One issue with wool is it is only made water resistant by the presence of lanolin so wool covers need to be re-lanolised every now

and again. This is done by soaking the cover in a diluted lanolin solution.

The only times I would avoid using fleece or wool covers is when a synthetic fitted nappy is being used or if a baby is sitting in the car or pram for extended periods because of the lack of airflow. This will restrict evaporation and could potentially cause leaks as the wool and fleece covers are not technically water proof, they are highly water resistant.

How many covers will I need?

Unless a cover is attached to the nappy like a pocket or an all in one, it will not need to be changed at every nappy change. Some parents can use a clean cover at the start of the day and use another clean one for overnight. Or sometimes it is possible to use the same cover for 24 hours. However, once poo makes contact with the cover it needs to be washed. I generally suggest that customers have 4 covers so they

“Unless a cover is attached to

the nappy like a pocket or an all in one, it will not need to be changed at every nappy change.

“

have one on baby, one in the wash, one drying and one ready to be used.

The same cannot be said for wool covers as they cannot be used for two consecutive nappies because the fibers need to ‘air’. Most parents tend to alternate between two wool covers throughout the day or just have one wool cover for night time use only.

Birth to potty nappies

What are One Size Nappies?

They are nappy that is designed to be used from birth and until the baby is toilet training.

They are available in most styles - Pocket, All in two, Fitted and All in One. Some of the terms used are: • B2P – Which Means Birth to potty • OSFA which means “One Size Fits All” • OSFM which means ‘One size fits most’ The obvious advantage of birth-to-potty sized nappies is that parent’s only need to buy one set of nappies. There is no doubt that this makes them extremely convenient.

However, when using a birth-to-potty size nappy on a newborn, in the early days, the nappy may look out of proportion. Because it is made to fit a newborn and a toddler, you may also go through stages where the nappy does

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not always fit perfectly. But babies grow so fast, they will grow into the nappy quite quickly.

Most birth to toddler nappies will be fastened with either a Aplix or poppers.

The nappies may only last for one child simply because they will be washed twice as many times as a sized nappy system. It is most likely that you will need to invest in some new nappies if you have another baby.

However, the overall investment for two children in a birth to potty system will be around the same price as if you invested in a few different sizes.

It also pays to note that they are made to fit only up to a certain weight range. If your baby surpasses this then they may not fit until your child is toilet training. That is why they are mostly referred to as One Size Fits Most.

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Accessories for Cloth Nappies

Fleece Liners Re-usable micro fleece liners are one of the most popular reusable liners.

One of the benefits of fleece, being a synthetic material, is that it does not absorb moisture which means it always sits dry next to the skin.

Basically it allows urine to pass into the nappy but does not let it pass back to the skin unless the nappy is totally saturated. The natural fiber of the nappy will hold the urine, while the non-

absorbent fleece liner will not.

Fleece liners also make disposal of the poo less difficult. Generally the poo will just roll off when the liner is held over the toilet. The liner is then put in the nappy bucket and washed along with the nappies.

Fleece liners are cheaper than using disposable liners. They can be brought for around a dollar each and they will last for a considerable time.

Other fabrics that liners can be made from include 100% knitted polyester; sometimes know as suede cloth, or silk, which is excellent for very sensitive skin.

Flushable liners The main benefit of using flushable liners over re-usable liners is that disposable liners make it much easier to deal with faecal matter. They are exceptionally useful when out and about because of their easy disposal.

The main advantage of using paper liners is obviously that they are disposable. However, it is important to note that only a few paper liners are actually flushable. It pays to check with the manufacturer if their paper liners are flushable, biodegradable and septic tank friendly before investing in any.

Note that the blue & white disposable liners that you see in supermarkets need to be disposed of in the rubbish and not flushed down the toilet.

Whichever type is used, please note that you should ALWAYS use a fresh liner at every nappy change Boosters / Inserts Boosters / Inserts are used to provide extra absorbency. One of the advantages of using cloth nappies (as compared to using disposable nappies) is that one can adjust the absorbency by adding in extra fabric in the form of a booster.

A booster / insert is normally a three layered pad that can me made out of any absorbent fabric. Some have a fleece top on them to give a stay dry layer. They are generally used at night time to add absorbency to the nappy extending the nappy’s overall capacity. Some parents never need to use them because the nappy’s absorbency is enough and others add a booster or two as part of their night-time nappy combination.

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Reusable wipes Reusable cloth wipes are a great alternative to buying disposable wipes!

Washable wipes are all I ever used. I purchased 24 terry wipes when my son was born and only ever used them with water, saving myself hundreds of dollars. Water works wonders on bottoms! I never used a solution with them and generally used 1-2 wipes per change. When I have had to use disposable wipes while out, I found I was using at least 10 to 20 wipes per change because they are so small and flimsy.

Washable wipes can also be made by cutting up a towel or buying some fabric to make your own. Mine are around the same size as a face cloth.

Washable Nappy Bags These bags are waterproof and made out of PUL. These are used to put your wet or dirty nappies in when out and about. Then when you get home, empty the nappies out of the bag into the nappy bucket or washing machine and wash the empty bag with them.

Nappy Mesh An optional extra. I used one of these to wash my covers in, thus keeping them separate from the nappies. In the UK, they have the bucket lined with the mesh bag. Come laundry time, the bag is lifted out and the whole bag is placed in the washing machine, with the bags neck open, allowing the nappies to fall out in the washing machine through the wash.

Nappy Sprayer This handy little nappy tool is fantastic for cleaning the nappies over the toilet. It fastens to your toilet cistern and is a piece of hose with a spray head at the end of it. You simply hold the nappy over the toilet and spray and anything nasty goes away.

Pre-fold nappies a basic, low-cost nappy option The Liner

p

p

Optional for convenience

The Pre-fold

p

The absorbent layers

The Cover-

The waterproof bit

A cover with leg gussett

- A two piece cloth nappy system (3 pieces if you are using a liner) - The pre-fold is the absorbent part and the wrap is the waterproof component.

- Pre-folds generally have extra layers of fabric sewn into a panel down the middle of the nappy.

- They are rectangular in shape and are generally made of cotton twill 54

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Features:

TIP:

• Minimal folding - compared to a flat nappy.

Pre-folds are a good basic cloth nappy without

• Single Containment Layer - unless a fastener like a Snappi or pins are used to fit the nappy

all the frill’s. They are quite similar to traditional

• 2 - 3 Sizes of pre-fold

nappies are generally fast drying and the

• 3 - 5 sizes of cover - to go from birth to potty

Fabrics: • Prefold Nappy - Cotton - Indian Cotton and Chinese Cotton • Waterproof Outer / Cover - PUL, Fleece or Wool.

cloth nappies but much easier to use. The cotton prefold is generally quite durable. One suggestion I have is if you have a baby with skinny thighs, I would look at using a prefold system that has a cover / wrap that has a leg gusset to give a smaller fit around the thigh.

Tip: If the waterproof outer is clean when you change the nappy you can keep re-using it over and over again by just putting in a clean Prefold nappy

Notes:

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Fitted nappies p

just like a disposable, only washable

The Nappy The absorbent bit is attached

p

p

The Liner

Optional and would go here

The Booster Adds absorbency to nappy

The Cover

The waterproof bit

p • A two piece cloth nappy system (3 pieces if you are using a liner) • The fitted nappy is the absorbent part and the wrap/cover is the waterproof part.

• 100% bomb proof against newborn explosions • Often comes with a booster which provides extra absorbent layer TIP: If the waterproof outer is clean when you change the nappy you can keep re-using it over and over again by just putting on a clean fitted nappy 56

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Features:

• No Folding Required • Double Containment Layer - provides a good fit on all baby shapes • 1 or 2 Sizes of Fitted Nappy • One Size fits most fitted nappies - are available in some brands • 2 - 3 sizes in Cover / Wrap

Fabrics:

• Fitted Nappy - Cotton, Bamboo, Synthetic or combinations • Waterproof Outer / Cover - PUL (Laminated Polyester), Fleece or Wool

More Info:

A fitted nappy has elastic around the waist and legs of the nappy then the cover/wrap goes over the top.

Combined with the correct size cover/wrap they can last around 4+ hours and, with additional boosters/inserts - should be able to easily last overnight. They often contain runny newborn poo better than other nappy styles including disposable because it uses a Separate cover which provides a second leak guard. They are generally the most absorbent nappies for night times because of their booster layers.

If you are using pre-fold nappies, you can use the same covers over top of a fitted nappy. Also with fitted nappies you only need 1 waterproof cover to every 5 fitted nappies.

Notes:

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All in Twos

(Snap in’s) = fast drying nappies

The Cover

p

The waterproof bit

p

The Liner

p

Optional - would go here

The snap in nappy The absorbent layers

• A two piece cloth nappy system (3 pieces if you are using a liner) • The snap in part is the absorbent bit and the wrap is the waterproof component.

• Snap in nappies generally come with extra layers of fabric sewn in the form of a booster • Are a modern version of a pre-fold nappy system but more like a one piece nappy 58

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Features: • No Folding Required.

• 1 - 3 Sizes of Snap in / All in Two Nappy –

depending on brand • One Size fits most nappies - are available in some brands

Fabrics: • Snap In Nappy - Cotton, Bamboo, Synthetic or combinations.

• Waterproof Outer / Cover - PUL (Laminated Polyester)

More Info:

A snap in / all in two nappy is where the nappy (absorbent part) snaps in to the cover (waterproof part) and is secured by domes.

The nappies are generally fast drying because the absorbent layers can be separated from the waterproof layers. They are quick to assemble because you don’t have to stuff them or fold them. One suggestion I have is if you have a baby with skinny thighs, I would look at using a snap in / all in two system that has a leg gusset to give a smaller fit around the thigh.

TIP: If the waterproof outer is clean when you change the nappy you can keep re-using it over and over again by just popping in a new absorbent pad

Notes:

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Pocket Nappies fast drying nappies

p

The Nappy The absorbent bit is attached

The Liner

p

Attached to the waterproof cover

The Cover

The waterproof bit

p - A three piece cloth nappy system (The liner is attached to the waterproof) - The Insert / Booster is the absorbent part and the pocket is the waterproof component.

- The liner provides a stay-dry barrier - They are generally synthetic and so most will dry quickly 60

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Features:

More Info:

• No Folding Required – but you must pop the

Pockets are a popular nappy because once the

insert inside the nappy after laundering.

insert has been put inside they are essentially a

• 1 - 3 Sizes of Pocket Nappy – Depending on

one-piece nappy.

Brand

The absorbent capacity and drying time is

• One Size fits most Pocket nappies - are

highly dependent on the fabrics used for the

available in some brands

insert/s and how many layers can be inserted

• Single Containment Layer - so a snug fit is

inside the pocket without distorting the fit

essential.

around the leg and waist of the baby. Over

Fabrics: • Liner - Synthetic - Generally Fleece or Suede cloth • Inner Absorbent Layers - Natural, Synthetic or a combination of fabrics • Waterproof Outer / Cover - PUL (Laminated Polyester) or a combination of PUL and fleece / wool

stuffing could cause the nappy to leak.

Most pocket nappies dry reasonably quickly because they are made from synthetic fabrics and the absorbency comes right out. With pockets, the synthetic liner is attached to the nappy so if you want a natural fabric nappy, this is most likely not going to suit your requirements.

TIP: If your inserts are not dry you can use any absorbent fabrics inside the pocket. If you have pre-fold’s you could use them inside the

Notes:

pocket.

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All-in-one nappies just like a disposable, only washable

p

The Nappy The absorbent bit is attached

p

The Liner

Optional and would go here

The Cover

The waterproof bit

p • • • •

A One piece cloth nappy system (the liner is optional).

All of the nappy components are sewn together so it is all in one piece.

Very convenient because you only have one piece to put on baby.

A popular style with dads, grandparents and daycares.

TIP: Great for Dads and Daycare because they are just like using a disposable nappy.

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Features:

More Info:

• No Folding Required - the liner, absorbent layers and waterproof outer are all sewn together.

• Single Containment Layer - so a snug fit is essential.

• 1 - 4 Sizes of All in One – depending on brand • One Size fits most nappies - are available in some brands

All in ones are by far the most convenient nappy because they are a one-piece nappy.

They are often the most preferred nappy with Dads and day-cares because they are so easy to use. All in ones were always known to be slow to dry. There is no doubt that some of them still are slow to dry but most brands are now using modern technology to build faster drying nappies, so look for faster drying nappies if you can.

Fabrics: • Liner if included - Synthetic - Generally Fleece or Suede cloth • Inner Absorbent Layers - Natural, Synthetic or a combination of fabrics • Waterproof Outer / Cover - PUL (Laminated Polyester)

They can be a bit more expensive per nappy but that is because you are getting a nappy and a cover in every nappy. All in one’s make great day nappies because they are so easy to put on but they are not a popular night nappy because they are not as absorbent as some of the other styles of nappies available.

Notes:

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The Nappy Lady’s Top Tips for washing nappies

As you can imagine, Cloth Nappies undergo quite a bit of laundering in their lifetime, a good quality nappy will be washed around 300 times or perhaps more.

Washable nappies will spend a lot of in time wet acidic or alkaline solutions, they go through high wash temperatures and may be tumble dried from time to time. All of these things will all take their toll and can shorten the lifespan of your nappies.

The instructions below are a general set of washing instructions, you must always check the care label on your nappies before you use them because the manufacturer will have tested different washing scenarios.

To get the most out of your cloth nappies follow The Nappy Lady’s guide to washing cloth nappies and extend the life of your nappies.

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Do’s • ALWAYS follow the wash care instructions on the manufacturers label.

•

Soak your nappies for 24 hours in cold water only, to kick start your nappies absorbency and then pop them through a normal wash and they will be good to go!

•

ALWAYS Fold back the hook and loop laundry tab’s otherwise they will damage your nappies in the wash. Unfolded laundry tabs are a major cause of fabric balding so please, please use them.

•

Use a one-way liner if you are using barrier creams. This will protect your baby’s bottom by keeping it dry and it will protect your nappy from residue. It won’t keep it out 100% but it will prevent it from building up.

•

•

•

Liners can help prevent your nappies from staining especially from the dreaded bright yellow breastfed poo! It also makes getting rid of poo easier, not to be underestimated.

If you are not using a liner get as much poo off the nappies as you can before putting them into the nappy bucket by sluicing i.e. holding in the flush of the toilet.

Use non-biological powders as they are better for both baby and the environment. There is also an enzyme present in some bio detergents, which is corrosive to bamboo fiber and cotton. It works by digesting the stains out of your nappies but unfortunately takes the fabric with it! From the supermarket, I suggest liquid or anything that you find currently

works best with your clothes. I personally look for more earth friendly choices.

•

Line-dry whenever you can. Not only will sunlight bleach stains out of your nappies but the UV radiation will help kill bacteria too.

•

Some brands say you can tumble dry the nappies on a cool setting if needed but buy some pegs and save your pennies unless it is the middle of winter, then save your sanity.

•

If your nappies are smelly or if you have been using a lot of nappy creams and notice that they are not as absorbent as what they were before, you may need to strip wash your nappies. To find out about strip washing there is a full page of information about it on my website. wastefreeparenting.co.nz

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•

If you continuously use nappy creams, I suggest that you wash your nappies in a warm / hot wash.

•

Don’t use pastes of wash powder and apply direct to stains, this is too concentrated.

•

If you don’t have laundry liquid, you can hot soak (60 degrees but check with manufacturer) using laundry powder, but this won’t be as effective as using the liquid.

•

Don’t wash your nappies in dishwasher tabs!!

•

Don’t boil wash. If you are worried about bacteria, leave your nappies in bright sunlight, even a frost in winter-time is fantastic.

•

Don’t use Bicarbonate of Soda and Vinegar to wash your nappies as it can dissolve cotton and bamboo fibers. Whilst a lot of nappy websites recommend using them to sanitize and soften nappies they will drastically shorten their lifespan and render some guarantee’s void.

Dont’s • IMPORTANT: Barrier creams, oils and bottom balms will coat the fibers in your nappy reducing their absorbency and will cause them to leak. When using a barrier cream you must always use a liner but this does not guarantee that your nappies will not suffer from a build up. If you notice your nappies begin to leak or liquid just runs across the top and does not get absorbed, you will need to strip the nappies. Check out my website for more information.

•

Don’t leave them for more than 2 days before washing if you want to reduce the chance of nappies staying stained or getting really smelly. Daily washing is best for the nappies.

•

Don’t use fabric softeners as this leaves a residue, which coats the fabric fibers and decreases the absorbency of the nappy.

•

Don’t soak your nappies in harsh stain removers. If you do have a pile of very stinky nappies and want to soak, use either water or a mild solution of your washing liquid and only soak for a short period of time.

•

Don’t use bleach or other harsh stain removers. They will shorten the lifespan of your nappies and will void your guarantee.

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A final note:

I have seen some very sad over laundered nappies and it just amazes me what some people do to them to keep them white or stain free. Repeat after me “Whiter than white simply ain’t right”! The nappies are there to catch waste and over time they may become stained.

Also they are a fabric garment so eventually they will wear out - they will not last forever!

On my website I have lots of information about Smelly Nappies, Leaking Nappies, Strip Washing and loads more. Or if you have any questions about the nappies you got today or in the future, check out my website or contact me through facebook https://www.facebook. com/thenappyladynz

Waste Free Parenting educating today for a better tomorrow

reduce, reuse, recycle

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