Debunking Seventh Generation's "Big Green Lies"

As environmentalists, we look at companies like 7th generations with admiration, right? While we have tried to cut down on paper towel use, or gotten rid of the need altogether, have contemplated family cloth, stopped using harsh chemical cleaners, clothes and dish detergents and OF COURSE stopped using disposable diapers - we look at 7th generation as one of the best alternatives, the people that make the "greenest" versions of those things we try so hard not to use! Well......brace yourself - it appears that they are beginning to act like the "Big" business they are becoming.

In their new set of short shows called "Big Green Lies" - 7th Gen attempts to debunk typical green myths - most recently cloth vs. disposable. You can see the segment here. Way to try and over-simplify things, huh? Did they fail to realize that most of us wash our own diapers and that if you use additive free detergent you don't have to rinse the diapers over and over and over....and you certainly do not have to use bleach or even the clothes dryer for that matter if you like to use the clothesline. There are so many different factors that they completely ignore, yet being who they are and assuming the roll of "green authority" lots of people will just watch this and take it as the end all of answers.

Although their diapers are bleach free and lack many of the harmful chemicals that mainstream diapers contain, they didn't mention that when telling people to stop over-thinking the decision because it was 50/50. They also neglected to talk about how disposables can also lock in body heat, raising the temperature of the scrotum which is being studied as a contributing factor of male infertility.

What it really just boils down to for me and lots of other educated moms who have chosen cloth for their kids is this: In the US, 27.4 billion disposable diapers go into the landfill each year - these diapers are estimated to take between 250 and 500 YEARS to decompose...but we really don't know for sure, do we? There were no disposables diapers around 250 years ago, which means that ALL the disposables that have ever been made are STILL breaking down....somewhere in a huge pile of trash.

Shame on you Seventh Generation.

Happy Earth Day!

So we know opinions about the environment, carbon footprint and green living really run the gammet these days. More than in the past especially, since these thing are more popular subjects and more people are aware of the effects of their lifestyles, people are trying to make better decisions for the future of the planet.

Most of the moms I am friends with are generally more environmentally friendly than the average bear on some level, some more so than others. For example, a new mom friend that I have recently made since moving, is quite the *activist* - she is the person honking at the cars and shouting when she sees young children not in their car seat, she will stop a mom in public to show her how to adjust the her baby's car seat straps or her Ergo or a better/more effective way to tie her Moby. Just recently we got into a great "sandbox" discussion about cloth vs. disposable (we were literally in the sandbox!) Oddly enough, there was one other mom there who was an avid cloth diaperer (we suspected it....and she confirmed later in the conversation.) The other adults were a young lady and her partner - they had a 3 yr old boy still in diapers and an older lady, who we assumed was the grandma - she had a 3-ish yr old little girl who may have been potty trained and another on her back in a very nice sling.

My activist friend very smoothly struck up the conversation as a result of the young mom asking if her daughter was still in diapers and my friend telling her that she had just recently potty trained at around 2.5 yrs. The young mom was very impressed which prompted us to launch into our "Cloth diapered kids potty train earlier speech". I love the questions! "What do you do with the poop?" "Do you have to use bleach?" "Does it make your washing machine stinky?" "Do you really save a lot of money?"

I don't think we convinced her, necessarily, but made her think! The boyfriend ran when he heard the word "WASH" *heeheehee*, but she listened, and the older woman smiled and nodded. Our cloth diapering ally piped in a few times - overall a success!

Just a little food for thought for all you "closet" cloth lovers out there - and those who have yet to come into the light! Especially this being the week we all celebrate Mother Earth and communities try and clean her up a bit. Tell someone about cloth! Tell them how easy it is, how healthy it is for the child and if need be, tell them it really is the hip thing to do! Oh and as always.....Happy Diapering!

Cloth diapering on a dime....when money is tight!

Everyone has their own set of reasons for cloth diapering their kiddies, including but not limited to - environmental conservation, cutting back on chemical exposure, vanity and increasingly ever-popular SAVING MONEY!! Over the life of a child, cloth diapering can save thousands upon thousands of dollars, and as many of us can attest to, every penny counts. As a seasoned cloth diapering parent will tell you, there are so many routes one can go when building a cloth diaper stash for either a new baby or as a switchover from disposables. I am going to talk about the most frugal ways that families can cloth diaper on a bare bones budget.

Having many mom and dad friends myself, I can say their personalities and skill sets vary as much as one can imagine and while it would be great to have the skills to sew up your own stash of diapers, many of us just don’t have the time or the sewing experience. For those of us who don’t want to go that route, our best friend in the frugal cloth diapering world would have to be the cotton prefold! They are by far the budget diaperer’s best choice. For around $70 you can have 3 dozen infant size unbleached Indian cotton prefolds which is right around the amount that one would need to successfully diaper a newborn, washing a load of diapers twice a week (give or take of course – as a child gets older the number of diaper you need decreases as a general rule).

Paired with the prefold, one will need some type of cover ranging from wool, to plastic or vinyl – the least expensive being the old fashion Gerber rubber pants that many of our own mothers used diapering us and our siblings (which now have a softer lined leg casing and are chlorine free!) These are a simple pull on style with elastic waist and legs and come in 5 sizes from 8-35 lbs. One step up in my opinion in both ease and cost would be the Prorap wrap style covers with either snap or aplix – they add another element of ease in that they are more like the basic design of disposable diapers where you fasten them on either side with the child laying down without the help of pins or a Snappi to close the prefold since the cover holds it tightly in place when fastened correctly. We recommend having a minimum of 4 covers, depending on your washing preference. When my daughter (now 2) was a small infant I got along fine with 3-4 covers which I rotated hanging on a hook over my changing table (we didn’t go out much). When one either became soiled or very smelly, I would take it into the bathroom and wash it out in the sink with a tiny squirt of soap, wring it out in a hand towel and hang it over my shower to dry. Simple as that – if it was very dirty I might let it soak or even throw it in the diaper pail with the prefolds to go in the washer. Of course the more covers you have, the less you wash – many people like having 6-8 covers allowing them to be washed right in with the prefolds every time.

Other add-ons that are helpful, but not required:
• A small water resistant bag for outings (or you can use a grocery bag, but these are so cute!)
• Wipe solution and flannel/fleece squares (this will save a ton of money in the long run)
• Washable liner bags for the pail (I recommend 2, one in the wash, one in the pail)
• Some type of doubler (micro fiber is usually sufficient for a smaller child, while something more absorbent like hemp or bamboo is better for older children or heavy wetters). I would use the doublers for night diapering or if I was taking a longer car ride and hoped the baby would sleep the whole way without wetting through the clothes onto the car seat cover :)

We have some ready made systems available that make this whole process effortless. Our basic MCDC infant, baby and toddler packages include the prefolds, covers, wipes, solution and bag. We also have an ultra basic preemie package which is simply the preemie prefolds and the preemie covers. Lastly we have the mother of all packages which will take you from birth to potty training - our MCDC Complete package. Of course these are all customizable and we encourage you to contact us if you would like to build your own package or have questions or concerns.

Oh and as always…happy diapering!

One Size Fuzzi Bunz are in Stock!

Get them while they are hot! Click here to check out the *NEW* one-size Fuzzi Bunz pocket diaper.

If anyone has any qustions about fit, adjustment or anything else, please call or email us!

Thanks and happy diapering!

Fuzzi Bunz One Size!

We have some exciting news to announce and wanted to hop on straight away in the hopes that you are hearing it from us first!! Fuzzi Bunz have come out with a new One Size Pocket – yes the answer to all our die-hard FB fans’ prayers! We put our orders in this month and hope to have them in stock mid-February….so stay tuned. Now a little about the long awaited diaper.

Fuzzi Bunz have always been set apart from the rest in that their design does not mirror any other pocket diaper and these new one-sized diapers are no less original. With most ones-size diapers, there are 3 distinct snap-down sizes – not with the new Fuzzi Bunz OS. Through adjustable leg elastics and the 4 adjustable waist sizes you get 10 different sizes in one diaper rather than the typical 3 – WOW.

We anticipate these being VERY popular and are only allowed a small order for this first run BUT have been promised monthly stocking as well as changes and tweaks to the diaper in the first 3-5 months. If you miss out on these during February, we will have more in March and April and so forth until they feel they have perfected the design and begin their normal production. We will definitely let all our blog readers know the minute the diapers are available for sale in our store and on-line orders so stay tuned. Below is a little chart showing the new design and how it works.

Oh and happy diapering :)

More on SALE!

We have a few more great sale items - we didn't want anyone to miss anything.

1. Pocket Change Pocket Diapers ONLY $13.00 ea.

2. Order 12 or more Bumgenius 3.0 Pocket Diapers and get a pair of FREE BabyLegs! (Make note in the comments which BabyLegs patterns you prefer or don't want.)

**New BG colors are in stock, ready to ship and just adorable too!**

As always, we offer free shipping on orders over $75 within the contiguous U.S.

Happy shopping :)

The Washing Dilema

After reading around on the various boards and having lots of customer questions, we thought it would be good to address washing instructions as well as issues that people often have keeping their cloth diapers clean AND residue free – the later probably being the most difficult, but oh so important. The instructions that we include with each purchase at our store include these very important points:

• Try to wash every 2-3 days
• Set the washer on the highest water level (usually large load on most washers)
• Wash 10-15 diapers at a time
• Do an initial cold rinse with no detergent – then a full hot wash with 1/3 the normal amount of detergent – then follow that with one last extra cold rinse

In the final rinse cycle, people often like to add something - a splash of vinegar (we don’t recommend this for people with hard water) or even a couple drops of tea tree oil, for its disinfecting properties and fresh scent. Adding a bit of baking soda to the hot wash along with the detergent also helps to release soap buildup as well. As for drying, it really varies depending on the diaper. Obviously, the less you use a clothes drier, the longer your diapers will last regardless of their type. Diapers with PUL lining (that is the waterproofing inside of covers, pockets and usually AIOs) should be dried on hot about once a month even if you don’t on a regular basis as this helps re-seal any cracks or holes that occur as part of normal wear. Other than that you should refer to each diaper’s separate instruction to see which ones recommend drying and which recommend hanging.

We get requests for detergent brands from customers all the time. At our retail store we sell this – and it is what most of our employees use, since it’s locally made right here in Maine. The most important things to look for in a diaper detergent is actually the absence of these ingredients (which is more difficult that you would think to figure out just from reading the labels on the detergent containers!) - the following ingredients will leave buildup on your diapers and over time their absorbency and often their quality will decrease exponentially.

• Artificial brighteners, whiteners and softeners
• Enzymes
• Artificial scents
• Pure soap

This chart is actually a great resource. It contains just about every detergent on the market and rates it based on the presence of all these ingredients as well as a few other things.

There are so many things that we have heard customers and friends tell us about their personal perils with cloth diapering. I thought I would pick a few and talk about them – that is, typical mistakes people make.

1. Using fabric softener or sheets: This is a really bad idea! These products stick to your diapers and essentially prevent them from absorbing wetness. Also, I recommend not using them on your regular laundry as well as they tend to build up on the insides of the washer and drier and then are deposited on the diapers. Before you wash your first diaper, if you have used softeners in the past, give the insides of your machines a good wipe with a cloth and a bit of white vinegar just be on the safe side.

2. Washing other things such as rags with your diapers: A lot of things like cleaning product and certain types of spills contain oils and residue that can be deposited on your diapers during washing and drying and will decrease or prevent absorbency. We recommend washing just your diapers by themselves – I have heard people ask about washing cloth wipes with a solution that is part oil – personally we have not had not any issues with this, our wipes go right in the pail and then in the washer along with the diapers. Of course if you feel like you put an excessive amount of oil in your solution then that might be something to take into consideration.

3. Using rash creams with fleece, suede cloth and microfiber: It is so hard to avoid this sometimes – I can’t say I haven’t done it but will warn that it is very difficult to remove from these fibers. What we recommend would be either a paper liner or when your babe has a rash that requires cream, use prefolds. These can be boiled if the cream doesn’t come out in a couple of hot washes and the natural fibers are so much easier to clean.

Lastly we thought it important to talk about residue removal or what most people call “stripping” the diapers. Depending on your water type and the quality of your detergent, you may need to do this anywhere from twice a month to every other. The best method that we have found is using about a tablespoon of plain old blue Dawn original dish liquid. Add this to your normal hot wash instead of your normal detergent and then follow up with as many rinses as it takes before you don’t see bubbles. This will vary – soft water will take more rinsing, hard water less. The other way that many people strip their diapers is to just do a couple hot washes in a row with no detergent, you will need to experiment with this as each person’s situation differs slightly.

These points really just touch the surface of issues and questions people have. We welcome any other questions or comments right here on the blog, by email or by phone (1-866-586-MCDC). Thanks – and happy diapering!