Let's Keep Handmade In Business

I'm musing at the Green Phone Booth today about the new craft and toy safety regulations that may put lots of independent artists out of business in February if we don't speak up. Check out my post - I link to some great background reads on the issue and to ways take action to keep our kids' toys (and one-of-a-kind clothing) safe and unique. Read more!

Little Alouette Discount Today (Sunday)

If you're in the market for a baby gift, check out Little Alouette this weekend for some simply, beautifully made wooden toys. I met Ms. Turn Sharp in San Francisco last summer and she's as warm and sparkling in person as her toys. Love the wooden keys (you know how I feel about the real ones as a toy) and the new tagline for the store:

"Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children play is serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood."

Little Alouette's offering 10% off with the code "Mamabird10" if you shop today (Sunday, Dec. 7) -- Happy Weekend!

P.S. This store's in Ohio - if you're looking to support independent artists in your area, check out Etsy's Shop Local feature. If you're in the DC Metro area, check out CREST, a consortium of local etsy artists. Read more!

Too Late For Cloth Diapers? LemonCadet Guest Posts!

Well, I could not be more excited. I threw a random challenge at one of my favorite Etsy crafters a little while ago (What? You don't fall in love with the people who make your kids' clothes? And then pepper them with questions? Maybe you should be shopping on etsy!).

LemonCadet? I asked, should I bother to switch my almost-two-year-old-boy to cloth diapers? I figure lots of folks out there already do the comparisons (like I did) back when they are pregnant, but who's out there doing the math for us late bloomers (heh, heh)? I won't bore you with our tale of switching from a diaper service to the 7th Generation whole wheat diapers and now on to the theoretically compostable Nature BabyCare diapers (for the moment). If there's anyone out there on the fence like me on the cloth scene, check out the LemonCadet wisdom on the washable nappies. And if you live in DC, you've got to check out her a-dorable stuff at the CraftyBastards fair in Adams Morgan on Sunday, Sept. 28th. See you there!

LemonCadet: "Since I have recently become absolutely obsessed with cloth diapers, MamaBird here asked me if it was too late to start using cloth on her 21-month old son. Always up for a challenge, I got started on the research --and the math.

There are many reasons to use cloth. Many mamas use cloth because of the environmental impact (I've read that one baby's disposables take up as much space in a landfill as a car!). Others choose cloth because their children are allergic to the chemicals in the "sposies." One of the most common reasons to use cloth is that it's just plain cheaper (well, it can be). MamaBird will spend almost $500 on disposable diapers for the few months left until potty training using only 3 - 4 diapers per day (the average age of potty training for boys is 31 months, longer for kids not in day care). It will be devastating for her if we add up just how much she has spent on sposies so far so we'll leave it up to the imagination while remembering that newborns go through at least 12 diapers a day for the first few weeks. My 5-month old is still using about 8 - 9 dipes a day. And how many times have you put on a clean diaper only to have the kid pee on it before you get the tabs closed?

I personally use cloth because I hate throwing stuff away. We recycle, we compost, we use dishtowels to dry our hands and hankies to blow our noses. It only made sense to use cloth diapers. We have a washer/dryer in our basement and a clothesline in the yard. Hanging up the wet diapers on a sunny day has become a routine that I look forward to. I enjoy stuffing my clean pocket dipes in the evening after the baby's in bed. It's one of the few mindless things I get to do.

At the bare minimum, I would suggest that MamaBird buy about 15 pocket diapers and at least 20 inserts. This is an easy combination allowing for fewer trips to the washing machine and little to no dryer use. Pocket diapers (the most popular brands are bumGenius for their one-size diaper and FuzziBunz for their sized diapers) have an inner layer of a polyester fabric that wicks wetness away from the baby. The outer shell is PUL, a waterproof material that keeps the clothes from getting wet. Inside the pocket there's room to stuff an insert.

I prefer FuzziBunz because they have snaps that are harder for babies to remove than velcro. They also dry really fast --and that's the key in this experiment. Inserts take longer to dry; that's why I recommend having more of those on hand. Most people get by with one microfiber insert, heavy wetters may need two. Plain microfiber doesn't take too long to dry but hemp and bamboo do take a while. Many mamas opt for an insert that combines layers of microfiber and hemp for maximum absorbency without a lot of bulk.

Sadly, I recommend that she stick with sposies at night because I have yet to find a good nighttime option that I feel comfortable sharing. This may soon change.

The goods: I found seconds at the FuzziBunz site for only $12 each! Several websites sell packs of inserts at a discount so 20 microfiber inserts would run about $50 (you would need more of these because of drying times). That's a total of $230; a whole lot less than will be spent on sposies. And just think about the value if you plan to use them on more than one kid. If not, you can always give them away, donate them, or resell them. Another option is to buy used. I have bought FuzziBunz with inserts in excellent condition for only $15 each.

Of course there are hidden costs. I read on my favorite cloth diapering forum, The Diaper Pin, that it costs about $5 a week to wash and dry cloth. That's even less if you line dry. You can put a drying rack in your tub or hang the diapers with hangers from your shower curtain bar if you don't have easy access to a clothesline. If you want to go out for the day, you need a wetbag to haul your diapers home with you ($15) although you could reuse plastic shopping bags. We use a washable pail liner and a laundry hamper to store our dirty diapers at home. These cost $15 - $20 but you could always repurpose a plastic bucket with a lid. You could buy some cloth wipes or cut up your own from old t-shirts and towels. You could buy wipe solution or make your own.

So let's add about $45 to this to be generous for a revised total of $275 --still almost 50% less than what would be spent on disposables. And this is just what I recommend. Everyone has their own favorite brands. This is just a suggestion that I think will work for someone who doesn't have the best access to her washing machine.

On the other hand, you could spend hundreds and hundreds on fancy organic diapers and matching covers but cloth can be done easily and cheaply. Either way, you will get addicted."

Thank you, LemonCadet! What more could I need, personal researcher?! You rock and I can't wait to see your new yetis on Sunday! My little guy already sleeps with two "monnies" (that's monster to you and me) so I have a feeling a little more furry love may be in our future.



P.S. The gorgeous pictures are all from LemonCadet: of the beautiful cloth diapers and wipes she sewed, as well as her darling baby girl, Zadie! Check out Zadie's beautiful nursery (the Flickr set is amazing) if you dig LemonCadet's artistic vision as much as

Saving...

I do. The room is lovely without being sappy. Kind of like LC. Read more!

Make It From Scratch: Nature Art Bag

Check out the Nature Bag I made for EGirl's 5th birthday. She's forever tucking leaves and rocks and flowers into my hand as we walk, so the nature bag should come in handy! I think she's got her grandfather's interest in and love of plants and insects (he's been birdwatching since he was a child and kept a detailed sketchbook of animal drawings as a young boy...later on this morphed into notes on bird sightings which he keeps to this day). EGirl also loves to draw and paint, so much so that when CBoy was born, the way we kept her occupied while I nursed was to set out 2-3 projects every time he napped. They'd consume her interest and keep her rapt for hours. So when I saw the idea for a bag designed to take art supplies outdoors, I knew it was perfect for her.

You know how excited I was about my freecycled sewing machine? This was totally the right project to tackle after the beanbags. Had I actually followed Lori Pickert's instructions (sigh) and measured my existing art supplies before cutting the jeans and whipping the bag out, it's possible that I would not have had to buy anything. 'Cause I had a pair of old pants and a bunch of ribbons hanging around. But I sure do have a weak spot for quality art supplies for kids, as I think it inspires them and makes them feel you're taking their work seriously (in other words, I'm not sorry I got her two spiral bound notebooks just like my dad used, a set of crayons, and a set of colored pencils, all to fit her nature bag!).

Here's a link to the Camp Creek instructions on Making a Field Bag from Recycled Clothing (in our case, a pair of her dad's jeans). They are explicit, step-by-step, and I followed them to the letter. Just in a girlier format, of course. EGirl had shredded one of her favorite butterfly shirts during an ill-fated, scissors-wielding, pushing of the envelope so it was nice to reclaim it on her bag. The ribbons are upcycled from giftwrap. The woven fabric handles I just had lying around (pack ratta!). Now I can't wait to head outdoors and tackle some of Lori's outdoor art lessons.



*Actual photo by MamaBird! Read more!

Crafty New Year

Thanks to BeanPaste, author of the unparalleled blogpost chronicling her husband's dire Crouton Lung diagnosis, I've been inspired to gift something handmade to three lovely readers. I love handmade stuff for many reasons: its individuality in our cookie-cutter world, its tendency to reuse/recycle materials, its potential to support indy and sometimes SAHparent artists, and, of course, its lure for bored 4 year olds needing pleasant indoor activities.

So without further ado, I announce my very first give away! All you have to do is be one of the first three readers to post a comment below.

If you live nearby, I would vouchsafe that this will be something culinary in nature. Further away? Hard to say, but it will be amusing to see the result (I love crafts but tend to create limited quantities of things, never really achieving mastery). Please include your email so I can be sure to contact you to get mailing info.

I will mail the handmade gifts out early in the New Year. Read more!