Wool: Part 1

I have found a new love that I haven't even shared with you yet.  It feels like forever that I've done a post on diapers.  In fact, I wrote this last week and haven't had a chance to take some super cute pics to add to this, but that never happened.  Time got away from me.

So, you want to know what my new obsession has been for the last few months? 

Wool!  I even love fitteds now, too.  I wish I had listened to everyone sooner and tried wool long ago. 

E wearing wahm knit shorties.

I had tried fitteds last year, but didn't really get the point of them.  I tried them with PUL covers, and it was like putting on 2 diapers under his shorts.  It was just too much.  So in January, I tried another fitted, the Thirsties Duo Fab Fitted with a PUL cover for overnight.  That didn't turn out so well.  The microfiber caused major stink.  So I sold them and moved on.  I kept using a pocket with a gflapper, but wasn't very happy with it anymore.  It seemed E needed something better for all night.

My wool love started with a visit to the Just Between Friends Consignment Sale in Fort Worth last spring.  I found a pair of lightweight green wool shorties for $6(!).  So I figured, what the heck?  For $6 if I don't like them it's no big loss.  Everyone had told me that wool and fitteds were bulletproof for overnight, but I was skeptical and wasn't sure about it.  Wool is what I wear in the winter, so wouldn't they just be hot?  We live in Texas, not Canada!


I also thought that wool would be hard to care for.  They have to be handwashed (I hate handwashing anything!).  And lanolized.  I thought that was just too much work.  But for $6, I'd give it a try.  In the back of my mind I just knew I wouldn't like it.

I held on to the wool for several weeks before even opening the bag it came in.  I finally did, and then lanolized them.  I had bought some Eucalan wool wash, and just used some spare Lansinoh brand lanolin that I had leftover from the early nursing days.  I line dried them in the bathroom.  I was surprised when they were still damp 2 days later. 

When they were finally dry, I put a spare fitted diaper that I had laying around under the wool.  E didn't seem to mind it at all.  I thought, okay, maybe this isn't so bad.  When it came time to change his diaper, the wool was still dry on the outside.  I guess I was a little skeptical and thought it wouldn't really be waterproof.  But it was.



Interlock wool
Wild Child Woolies



So I decided to break down and buy some wool and a fitted for overnight.  At a trip to Babies Bottoms & More, I bought a Tiny Tush wool cover and a Tiny Tush Trim fitted diaper.  I figured I would add a gFlapper to it and it would be good for overnight. 

But I didn't get the chance to try it for a couple months.  I didn't lanolize the wool right away, and then Ryan and I were in our motorcycle accident.  Life was turned upside down for awhile, and my mom took over diaper laundry.  So E continued to wear a pocket with an added gflapper for overnight.

Once I was feeling a little better, I lanolized the wool and waited the few days it took to dry (which is my biggest complaint about wool -- the long dry time).  Then I put the Tiny Tush fitted on him (with the trusty gflapper) under the Tiny Tush wool.  The next morning, I knew we had finally found the best night time option.

Why didn't I listen to everyone sooner?!

I immediately went on a search for new fitteds.  I also bought my first Sustainablebabyish (aka Sloomb, aka Sbish) wool and fitteds (and this, too!) from Baby Rear Gear.  Elise, the owner, warned me that the Sbish sized fitteds run a little small, so I ordered the large.  She was right, it does run small, but it is my favorite fitted for overnight!!  I do not have to add any inserts, it is plenty absorbant enough for all night.  I now have 3, and absolutely love them!  The snapless multi is also very absorbant, and good for overnight (though I do add a gFlapper for that).



Custom Shorties by Fluffabebe.



I have added to E's wool and fitted stash.  In fact, I sold literally half of my stash of pockets and AIO's to make room for fitteds and wool.  I found Little Fancy Pants fitteds, which, next to Sbish, are my favorites.  I also found FluffaBebe woolies.  She is local, and shared her brand new business when I asked on the DFW Cloth Diaper Group's page asking about wool.  In fact, the green woolie and the shorties you see on her Etsy page belong to E:)

I do not find the wool hard to care for.  In fact, it's easier than the diapers!  While we are at home and at night, E wears fitteds and wool.  Out of the house he still wears pockets or AIO's, since they fit better under his regular shorts.  But in this heat, the wool is breathable and keeps his bottom cool.  He's had some nasty rashes from his very acidic teething poo, and the fitteds with wool have helped clear those up quickly (with my favorite rash remedy, Grandma El's!) since the heat is not trapped in the diaper.

I'm glad I finally broke down and tried wool.  My only regret is that I didn't try it sooner.

I will explain how to care for wool (complete with pics!) in an upcoming post!

the "A" word.

This post should be about my review of Country Save laundry detergent.  However, I am going to have to put that off until a later date.  I have had some major issues, with only 3 diapers, so I am unable to give an honest review of Country Save at this time.  So instead, I will share all about my battle, and how I've had to strip multiple times in just a few weeks.

For those who are new to my blog (welcome!), I did a review on the new (at the time) Thirsties Duo Fab Fitted diaper for overnight use.  I loved it!!  It seemed bulletproof.  But after only 1 short month of use, there were issues.  They never leaked, they were definitely great in that aspect.  Every morning when changing E, I was nearly knocked out by the strong smell of the dreaded "A" word......

Ammonia.

For an entire year of cloth diapering, I only once experienced this, after a brief affair with Tide Free & Gentle.  But one stripping and back to Tide original did the trick, no more stinky and leaky diapers.  I didn't even use anything special to strip them, just did multiple hot washes.  I knew my current ammonia problem was not caused by detergent build up.  After all, the Fab Duo's never leaked, even after all night.  And no other diapers, even the thick microfiber AIO's, smelled of ammonia.

In January, I tested EcoNuts Soap nuts.  Towards the end of that month, I started smelling ammonia every morning.  I suspected it was because the Eco Nuts just couldn't get the thick microfiber fitted clean enough, since the thick microfiber AIO's also had a faint ammonia smell.  I thought a good stripping would take care of it.

At the end of January, I soaked half of my clean stash in RLR Laundry Treatment. Then the entire next day I did hot wash after hot wash.  I think it was about 5 hot wash/cold rinse cycles (a few days later I did the other half of the stash in the same way).  I figured the diapers would have no more residue of any kind after this.  So I started my month long test of Country Save detergent.

For the first week or so, I could not smell any more ammonia.  Yay!!  But my joy did not last long.  This time it was only the Thirsties Duo Fab Fitteds.  Once the ammonia returned, I stripped the diapers again (all of them).  That only lasted one use.  After washing them again, I smelled the ammonia yet again.  Over the next couple of weeks, I tried multiple things to get rid of the stink

Adding white vinegar to the pre-rinse.

Adding an extra rinse, and even an extra hot wash.

Soaking in white vinegar.

Soaking in OxyClean.

Soaking in a white vinegar/OxyClean mixture.

Soaking only the Fab Duo's in boiling water.

Adding a little RLR to each wash.

I also bought Bac Out, and soaked them (and all of the other microfiber while I was at it, just in case) overnight.  I did this twice.  The inserts came out a brighter white!  But the Fab Duo's still had the stink.  This was the last straw.  I do not want high maitenance diapers.

Everyone told me to try a few drops of blue Dawn dish soap to strip.  And I was told to use Rockin Green's Funk Rock.  Or to spray them after each use with Bac Out prior to putting them in the diaper pail.  I know all the tricks, but I was tired of trying to get rid of ammonia that just did not want to stay away.  I even thought about ditching my detergent reviews and going back to Tide original.  But, I decided not to do that.  I figured if I was having problems with ALL of the diapers, not just these 3, then I would do that.  But it was only the 3 Fab Duo's that made a nice home for ammonia.

I'd had enough.  I am done with the Fab Duo's.  I am a little sad, though, since the diapers worked so well. 

In case you're wondering, I have an older top loader, not an HE machine. This is the first time I have ever had a problem with my wash routine in over a year of cloth diapering.

So for the last few nights E has been wearing a Thirsties Duo Diaper with an added bamboo/hemp gFlapper.  I only have 2 of those, and they are set aside for my husband to use (easy hook & loop).  So today I bought a Knickernappies OS Pocket, which includes 2 LoopyDo inserts (microfiber and hemp).  I hear amazing things about these LoopyDo inserts.  If this works, then E may have a new nighttime diaper. 

Next week, after getting back into a normal wash routine and stripping all of the diapers yet again, I will start my month long test of Rockin Green.  Without the Fab Duo's, I am hoping to be able to give an honest review.  I have another detergent planned for May, and will return to Country Save in June.

FABulous Night!

Please see my follow up post about the Thrirsties Duo Fab Fitteds.

Recently E's night diapers have been leaking more times than not.  So the search for a new night time diaper began!  The BumGenius 3.0's just aren't cutting it anymore as he's gotten older and bigger.  The hook & loop is so worn out that rather than investing in either new BG 4.0's or converting the 3.0's to snaps (and also buying new more absorbant inserts), I decided to try new options.  Plus, it gave me an excuse to fall off the wagon!  And who doesn't love trying out new fluff?!

I saw via Facebook that a local cloth diaper shop (the Nappy Shoppe) was going to be open all day, so I decided to stop in and see what I could find.  I talked to the shop owner about what I need, and she suggested the new Thirsties DUO Fab Fitted, with a G-Flapper Insert (made of hemp and bamboo).  I love how the new Duo Fab Fitted offers a pocket to add extra absorbancy as needed.  I decided to try it. 

Let me tell you before getting to the review that I do not have the fitted love.  I've tried them, but sold them off since I never used them.  I prefer to use pockets, wahm AI2's (work-at-home-made all in two's), or AIO's (all in one's).  And even though E has only worn the Fab Duo one night, I highly doubt my opinion is going to change, except maybe for the better!

For reference, Elijah is 14 months old, ~24 lbs, and ~30" tall.

Here is what I used for E's overnight diaper.  The Thirsties Duo Fab Fitted size 2 in Meadow, Thirsties Duo Wrap size 2 in Blackbirds, and a G-Flapper insert.

Here is the Thirsties Fab Duo on the small, medium, and large rise settings.  And the inside with the G-Flapper already in the pocket.  As you can see, there are actually 2 openings, which should allow the insert to agitate out in the wash!  The inner of this diaper is so soft!





Here it is on E (note that red mark on his leg is from his jeans not the diaper).  Since I got snaps, I couldn't get the perfect fit on him around the waist.  This looks a little snug, but one snap back it was a little loose.  The velcro would ensure a better fit, but I prefer snaps for their durability (though Thirsties seems to have good velcro).  It is on the smallest rise setting.  The elastic is very stretchy!  The medium rise setting left gaps around his thighs, even with an extra insert.  And yes, that is a CD keychain. ;)



Here is a side and back view of the diaper on E.  It isn't super trim, but I'm not expecting that for his night diaper.  I have not used the regular Fab Fitted, but I did compare them side by side at the CD store where I bought this.  The Fab Duo is not as trim as the regular Fab Fitted, but I like how it's the duo size to allow a better fit longer, and I love the pocket to add extra absorbancy!  I prefer OS diapers over sized so I do not need to continually buy a new stash as LO grows, so this was a huge appeal to me in buying this diaper.

And here is the front and back view of the Duo Wrap on him.

This lasted all night, no leaks!  I even BF'd him 3 times (twice overnight and once in bed before getting up to change his diaper in the morning).  The outer fabric of the Fab Duo was wet, but not completely soaked.  I will definitely buy more of these and use them as his new nighttime diaper!! 

The one thing I do not like so far is the dry time.  It was in the dryer on low heat for about 1 hour 15 minutes (the other diapers usually dry in about 50 minutes, but this was still really wet so I added another 25 minutes).  It was his bedtime and it still wasn't completely dry, so I turned it inside out and dried on high for another 15 minutes.  That really helped.  I would imagine it would take a really long time to line dry since it took so long in the dryer.

So, I love it!  Even though I don't love fitteds, I like this one for overnight!  When I bought it I didn't realize it just started shipping last week, and that I am one of the first to try it out.  I hope this helps you if you've been thinking about buying one.