Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Homemade Baby Wipe Solutions

my moist cloth wipes in wipe warmer

A few friends of mine have had lots of ideas we have used for making our own baby wipes and solutions. If you read some articles online and research information on the ingredients in diapers, wipes, lotions, etc., you will find  that a lot of the ingredients most likely cause skin irritations like diaper rash and dried out skin.

At Walmart, I found an organic brand for wipes which worked great until they stopped stocking them :(
Since then, I found a few ideas.  I think the best solution is to have wipes you can either make or buy and re-use by washing. Otherwise, you keep spending money just to throw the wipes away.

Baby wipe solution recipe, scroll down below and laundry soap recipe,

1. Make your own wipes! It is super easy. All you need is some good fabric and a sewing machine. You can buy a flannel sheet and use that or even an old shirt that is soft and cut it into squares. If you want to buy fabric, you can get organic cotton, regular cotton, bamboo, flannel, or even hemp. Hemp is fairly thin, but absorbs a lot! Terry cloth is another fabric, but the ends curl up easily after you wash it for the first time.
If you want to make your own, a  4 or 5 inch square is large enough. 

 You can find also buy pre-made ones online or at the store  that you can just buy in bulk and wash them with your cloth diaper laundry load. You can even buy a package of 12 or so wash cloths and use those. Dish cloths and burp rags are other items that you can buy in packages and cut to size.

Craig's List is also another good way to buy cloth diapers or wipes.

3. Buy a roll of paper towels and place them in a jar of solution. (recipe below)

4. Buy organic wipes. The wipes themselves are super soft and really moist.

5. Buy biodegradable ones. Sometimes the organic brands are already biodegradable.

Search YouTube and you can find all sorts of ideas too. I have not checked out the videos below, but maybe its a start. 
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=homemade+baby+wipes&aq=f

Cotton Babies has some info on this also http://www.cottonbabies.com/index.php?cPath=110



Wipe Solution Recipe

Ingredients: Olive Oil, baby body wash/bubble bath, water

Depending on the method you use, you will need either a spray bottle or a jar to keep it in next to your changing table.

Fill your spray bottle or jar 1/2 way full or a little more with water. Add 1 table spoon or so of olive oil ( a little goes a long way) Add as much soap to it as you like. Some like it mild, some like it soapy and bubbly.
That is it!! I keep mine in a spray bottle and then spray however much I need on the wipe.

The olive oil will help moisturize the skin and keep it soft while the soap actually cleans the area. I also keep a cloth wipe  near each time and pat Emery's bottom dry so that extra moisture is absorbed before the diaper is on. Diaper rash is usually caused by a large amount of bad moisture trapped within the diaper. (plus the chemicals don't help) If you use the jar, just get a container with a lid!

FINALLY,The last idea you can do is buy a cloth wipe warmer. You can roll up your wipes once they are dipped or sprayed in the solution to keep moist and warm until needed. Here is one example  http://wipeswarmers.com/prince-lionheart-warmies-bamboo-cloth-wipes-warmer




Some moms like warm wipes verses cold ones! I may try this next time.
All of the wipes I used, I bought from the Cotton Babies store in St. Louis which were organic cotton. They were only 35 cents each! That beats making them!!! I got them that cheap only because they were damaged with a few holes.


When I travel, I always bring disposables, but then have a few extra cloth ones stored in the dashboard. You will need a wet bag for those, but I will mention that when I get to cloth diapers.

Let me know if you find other solutions or ideas! Have fun!

1 comment:

Izzy said...

We use the cloth wipes and wipe warmer combo, works great!