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2003-02-19 - 11.40am��previous entry��next entry
Nappy list, and Tots Bots!
Thank you Leah for your guestbook entry :) I heartily agree - cloth diapers are the best thing EVER!!! :)
My stuff arrived in the post!!! I now have 3 newborn proraps and they are totally fab. They are also totally tiny and sooooo cute!! The Motherease wraps are way bigger even though they're allegedly newborn size. But that's okay, they can wait till later. The proraps are really good for prefold nappies apparantly. So guess what I did?! I figured that prefolds are kind of bulky at the front on a newborn, so I would have preferred to pad fold them (just fold them into 3 longways and lay inside the wrap). But other mothers say that doing this means that breastfed poo isn't contained very well. Hmmm. So I designed what I hope is a solution. I traced the shape of the open prorap, and made a "nappy pad" - which is an hourglass shape that fills the entire of the wrap. It's a cute soft flannel print on the outside, two layers of burley knit terry for soaking in the middle, and microfleece on the side that faces the baby's skin. They just perfectly line the wrap and then you just fold the wrap up and fasten it, and it holds the nappy pad in place well. I sewed elastic on either side of the narrow part of the hourglass shape and then turned the whole thing right side out and topstitched it. This has given the leg some gather and thus a teeny weeny mock gusset, which I think will catch the breastfed poo just fine. I hope! I am thinking they can't be any worse than prefolds and surely can only be a little bit better than padfolded ones, so I am making loads anyway. I would only use them for a brand new baby, the type that grows out of the newborn proraps within 4-6 weeks. But I need lots for those early days, and I think I am going to make these my main option for the first few weeks. So far I have made five, in all different colours and prints - they are bright colours and look soooo cute!! I am really thrilled.
My Tots Bots nappy also came in the post. I am besotted!! It is the most lovely nappy, and I can tell (also from what other mums are saying) that it's gonna be the most absorbant nappy I own. It's terry towelling and fitted - oh wait, let's see if I can find a photo that will "explain" it better!! Here's one (courtesy of good old Twinkle nappies again):
They are so soft and lovely. Good ole Scottish nappies, yay! Anyway, I've decided I want to used mainly Tots Bots or that kind of thing, and the Honeyboys I'm making. The Tots Bots have a HUGE second hand value, you advertise one on the buy and sell forum at UKparents and it's gone within 20 minutes! I nipped in there quick for this one! So if by chance they're not suitable for my baby I can always sell them again. Even if they ARE suitable, I can still sell them after we've used them. But I won't, because I'll want to keep them for all my children. They only do 2 sizes - the first one fits birth to 18lb and the second one fits from 18lb to potty training :) Well actually they do a third size for exceptionally big toddlers or late potty trainers, but I don't see us ever having a huge child.
Tots Bots also do a couple of wraps - the Tots Wrap is the waterproof stretchy one, a bit like the prorap, and the Redrap is red fleece :) Again, mothers are raving about them. So I am looking out for second-hand ones, but no luck so far. Still, I've got ages haven't I?!! I may make my own fleece wraps - I am having a go at a Quick Wrap right now, but it's kind of hard to bind. I am still a bit of a novice with the old sewing machine so I'm finding it a bit tricky.
Well anyway, the other day I made a list of all the nappies and accessories I think I am going to want/need for the entire time my child needs a nappy. This is sort of to save me from going mad buying nappies I don't really need (a genuine risk!). It is AMAZING how little there is on the list! Of course these are minimum numbers to give me room for not being able to resist stuff online, or longing to make a nappy again one day!! Here is the list (somebody help me if I've missed a hugely important thing off!):
Newborn
First few weeks:
My nappy pads x 20
Prefolds x 6
Proraps x 3
Stretch terry squares (20�) or muslin squares for folding x 10
Either: Homemade fleece wraps x 3
or: Redrap size 0 x 3
or: A combination of the two
After first month:
Newborn Honeyboys x 12
Motherease Rikki Wrap x 1
3 - 6/9 months
Small Honeyboys x 10
Tots Bots size 1 x 10 (bleached and unbleached)
Redrap size 1 x 3 (or homemade alternative, or combination)
Motherease Air Rika Wrap (medium) x 1
Kooshies Infant Wrap x 1
Tots Wrap size 1 x 1
Appropriate boosters (previous terry squares/prefolds?)
9 months to potty
Medium Honeyboys x 10
Tots Bots size 2 x 10 (bleached and unbleached)
Rainbow Bots x 8 (2 of each colour or 4 red, 4 green)
Bright Bots Terries x 6
Fleece liners for Tots Bots and Terries
Appropriate boosters (previous terry squares/prefolds?)
Redrap size 2 x 3 (or homemade fleece wrap/combination)
Tots Wrap x 2
Motherease Air Rika Wrap (medium/large) x 2
Accessories
Nappi nippas x 6
Travel bag
Wet bag for dirty nappies (travelling) x 2
Travel water spray bottle
Washable wipes x 48
Water spray bottle (home)
Lavender oil
Tea Tree oil
Nappy pail
Nappy pail bags x 3
White vinegar
Isn't that terribly thrilling for those of you who are bored silly with nappy talk?!! Heh. Well it's FAB for me!! I love it all, I am so obsessed! Oh I forgot to say that Tots Bots do Rainbow Bots as well, in one size only (bigger), which are obviously different coloured terry nappies like their original white/unbleached ones. The Bright Bots are flat terries that I couldn't resist, even though I don't plan on using flat nappies to fold at all, except for the first few weeks due to everything else being too big or bulky. Bright Bots are exactly what they suggest, six beautiful bright colours! I can't wait to see my toddler in my garden on a hot summer day wearing nothing but a Bright Bot! :)
I have lots of the newborn things already which is good. I have some nappi nippas (snappis for the US readers) which make pins redundant (hooray!) and they are gonna look fab. I am so excited about seeing my baby in all these gorgeous nappies!!! I am going to make my own nappy pail bags out of PUL (waterproof fabric) and a cute print. And the wet bags too. The other day I started wondering how hard it might be to make my own Tots Bot style nappy. Is this illegal or something?!! Hmmm. Copyright laws? Don't know about such stuff. Anyway I thought it couldn't be too hard, surely I just buy some nice coloured towelling (I wanted colours you see), and trace round the shape of the nappy when it's stretched out, and off I go?
So I went shopping in my local high street the other day. I bought a metre of yellow terry at the fabric shop for �5.99, and then I found a huge lavender bath sheet (bigger than the metre of fabric!) at Woolworths for �4.99, and then I went in a charity shop and found a lovely purple bath sheet for �1.50. So I brought them all home and boil washed them, and then I set out to make a yellow "Tots Bot" style nappy. And it worked!!!!!!! It's so pwetty, I am so pleased! And mine has a cute flannel print that matches the yellow terry on the inside. I made a booster with yellow microfleece to go on top :) It does up with aplix (like velcro) and it should fit a child from birth up to 9-12 months which is a SERIOUS money saver! I am really happy with it! I could go mad sewing purple nappies today but I have to do housewifey things like food shopping and cleaning the house, which I love too so that's okay.
WOW this entry is long and nappy-ish!!! Sorry! I just can't ramble like this anywhere else about my beloved nappies! Heh.
My maternity clothes also arrived and they are much better than I even expected. They fit me perfectly for a start - well, with the obvious exception of the abdominal area! ;) The jeans are soft and loose and comfy, and they have a biiiig stretch panel at the front. This week I've had really rough IBS and also some sort of bladder infection (how nice), and my poor tummy's been swollen right up. I found the only trousers I could be comfortable in were the maternity jeans. Okay so I admit it was also an exciting feeling (in a three-year-old type of way!) to be wearing maternity clothes! But it was so comfy on my poor tummy. I had to roll the panel down a bit so they didn't fall off! Yay for maternity clothes. I can tell they are going to be my most comfy thing when I'm pregnant :)
Neil told his mum yesterday that we are going to try for a baby in the summer. She seemed..... okay about it. Why is nobody excited yet?!!!!! I guess they are all thinking well maybe it won't happen, or maybe it's not right to get excited before it happens or whatnot. I don't care. I am excited NOW.
Well I think that's all my news. I will update again when I have more :) Well done if you've read this far!! ;)
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