Reusable Baby Wipes
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 at 12:25PM In our home we try and reduce our consumption of disposable paper goods. This means no paper towels or napkins. Instead we have a stack of cotton towels for cleaning and these great "bistro towels" from Ikea that come in handy for napkins and kitchen use. While there is a cost to washing and drying these items, I feel good that I am not adding to the landfill with more disposable items.
When thinking about diapers and wipes for upcoming baby I totally understand the convenience factor of the disposable items. For our baby we have decided to go with cloth diapers so it made sense to add in cloth wipes to our plan. Along with the waste that comes with baby wipes there is also the ingredient list to consider. Classic wipes from major brands contain preservatives that can cause rashes on babies skin. They also contain other ingredients such as parabens, fragrance and propylene glycol. They also are subject to a bleaching process that is harsh on the earth.
There are a few great "natural" disposable wipes if you want to go the disposable route. I really love the wipes from The Honest Co. All safe ingredients and they are compostable.
When choosing to go with reusable cloth baby wipes you have a couple of options. There are plenty of pre made wipes to choose from and all you have to do is order a few dozen to get yourself started. You can find a variety on baby supply sites like Diaper Junction and even sweet handmade cloth wipes on Etsy. There are a variety of fabric choices all of them soft - flannel, micro fiber, bamboo and cotton are a few.
I had some lovely flannel with an adorable tiny grey leopard print left over from a baby quilt a made for a friend and I decided to finish my stash by making my own. I like 8"x8" as a size and they fit into a conventional wipe container or a container made to hold wipes like this OXO Perfect Pull Wipes Holder folded in half.
I washed and dried the fabric then cut it into 8" squares. I also made my wipes double sided, using 2 pieces of flannel on each wipe.
Once I had the 8" squares I used my pinking shears to keep the edges from fraying when I wash them.
Next I zig zagged them on my machine all the way around to attach both sides together and to help keep them from fraying.
Now you have a set of soft and beautiful cloth wipes. Look for tomorrows post where we will explore wipe solution options as well as storage and washing.
