Back to the Diaper Drawing Board

I know what you're thinking. Another diaper post? Good grief, does this woman do anything other than sew maternity tops and research cloth diapers?

Actually, those of you who cloth diaper probably understand. From the numerous articles, posts, and comments I've read, it seems that most women who choose to cloth diaper become somewhat obsessed with it. The fact that I've read those numerous articles, posts, and comments, would indicate that I am no exception to that trend!

With a second baby on the way, we'll soon have two in diapers. I had the option of either duplicating my current system, or going with something new -- but one way or the other, purchased or homemade, I *would* need more. So it was back to the diaper drawing board for me!

But that's not the only reason to head back to the drawing board. After 18+ months of cloth diapering, my homemade flannel diapers are wearing out, and I've encountered ammonia issues with the microfiber inserts I've been using. I was having to strip my diapers at least monthly, and use an ammonia neutralizer intended for fish tanks (!) to deal with the odor build-up. As it turns out, it's not uncommon for microfiber inserts to start having stink issues after about a year of use. While my inserts were only $0.62 a piece, I'm not a fan of having to go to the trouble of replacing them yearly.

Add to that a rather mish-mashed stash made of up of a few prefolds, flannel fitteds with lay-in soakers, flannel/alova suede"stuffable" fitteds, two different kinds of microfiber inserts, and a couple of hemp liners, and you end up with a rather complicated system. Too complicated. The variety was a result of (fortunately frugal) experimentation, but I think having two little ones will be enough "variety" in my life. I could squeeze a little more life out of my fitted diapers, but since it's back to the drawing board, anyway, I decided to retire them (though I've stored the better ones in case I need them at some point in the future).

While I was taking the trouble to go back to the drawing board, I decided I might as well get back to the basics, too! There are so many fancy diapers and fabrics in the cloth world today. In the course of my research, I agonized over the merits (and drawbacks) of fancy fibers like bamboo velour, sherpa, hemp fleece, and ZORB. It seemed like every time I found a "miracle fabric," I also found unimpressed reviewers who had found it less than miraculous. Since none of the above-mentioned fabrics are cheap, I wasn't willing to dole out the cash to make an entire stash of diapers with fabric of unknown effectiveness (I could try several fabrics, but I really wanted simplicity).

After a while, I threw up my hands and started looking at prefolds. I figured I could try making some with stash fabric and cheap towels, and see how it went. I was not against buying prefolds, but even though they're relatively cheap (about $2 to $3 each for good prefolds), they typically come in 3 or 4 sizes. With roughly 24 diapers needed per size, the "cheap" prefold suddenly seems a bit more expensive.

It was while I was researching prefolds that the concept of flat diapers finally made it onto my radar screen. Flat diapers are large squares of absorbent fabric that are folded into a diaper shape. This is the very oldest and simplest kind of diaper. When I first investigated cloth diapering during my first pregnancy, I didn't really even consider flats, though I have no idea why. Perhaps I assumed they were complicated and that newer, fancier diapers would do a better job?

Oh me, oh my, how wrong I was! I've been using flats for a few months now, and while that's probably not enough time for a conclusive "study," I'm officially convinced.

I've also discovered a much cheaper alternative to the Thirsties Duo Wrap covers (better quality, too, in my opinion), so I've bolstered my stash of diaper covers with One-Size and Tiny Diaper covers from Assuntastore.com (Disclosure: that's a referral link, so any purchases made through it will add points to my account). Not only do they have phenomenal prices on diapers and flushable liners, they also sell sewing supplies (including hard-to-find nursing bra clasps!), and many of their products ship for free on orders over $25 (plus coupon code LITTLEFLOWER gives a 10% discount). Their products are made in and ship from China, but the company is run by a missionary couple and all proceeds go to a ministry that helps abandoned and special needs children in China -- so I can't really complain about that! *wink* I am pleased as punch by the various products I've tried, and I love the little "extras" they tuck into each package.

I'm still interested in prefolds (as you can tell from my Pinterest board), but flats are so cheap and easy to launder that I'm sticking with them for the time being!

I'm revamping my initial cloth diapering posts to reflect the changes in our system, and adding a new post to the series to (hopefully) make things a bit neater and easier to navigate:

Adventures in Cloth Diapering
Part 1 -- Initial Considerations and Counting the Cost
Part 2 -- What We Use
Part 3 -- How We Use It
Part 4 -- What We've Tried (and Ditched)

For more on the pros and cons of flats, our new covers, and our current system, you can check the updated posts (particularly Part 2).

Must-Haves

Perhaps cranberry pecan scones are not really must-haves, but when a friend gives you a jar of creamy, homemade lemon curd, they certainly seem like a necessity.

Crisp mornings are our first signs that Fall is on the way (though the sun quickly reminds us that Summer is not yet over in Florida), while my ever-expanding belly and bruised ribs heighten my anticipation to meet our little one in just a few short weeks. I really just can't wait to hold this baby in my arms! But before then there's plenty of nesting to be done, both the sewing/crafting kind (love!) and the cleaning kind (not so excited).

Not to mention answering a million questions of "Whazzat?" (What's that) from a certain curious and very lively toddler.

Now, on with the day, whatever it may hold in store. May yours be blessed!

Parlay Voo Fronsay?

I just can't take it anymore. I really can't. And it seems like it's all over the Internet, lurking around every blog post:

Viola.

Don't get me wrong. I love violas, both this kind and this kind.

What I don't love is reading something to the effect of:

"Snip your threads, and viola! You're done!"

I speak almost no French, having taken just a smattering in my grade school days. I am not a multilingual snob, nor do I expect other non-French speakers to be experts in a language not their own. But the butchery of this poor word really must come to an end.

Switch the "i" and the "o" and Voila!  Vwa-lah. Ah yes, that's the word we're looking for!

And while we're on the subject, there's another French faux pas lurking on the Internet. The worst of it is, it's not even supposed to be French! I've got you wondering, right? So without further adieu...

*cough*

Did you spot it?

Without further adieu would roughly translate to "without any more goodbyes." What we're really after here is without further ado, meaning, "without any more delay." Pronunciation may be similar, but that's where the similarity ends.

Ah, how nonchalantly we trample our poor, defenseless idioms. Yes, I do realize idioms have no feelings. But perhaps if we pretended that they did, we'd be far less glib about mauling them. Just today I saw case and point on a blog. I swallowed hard and tried to move on, but it's still bugging me.

Am I far too distressed about something that's ultimately of little consequence in the scheme of things? Absolutely. I totally acknowledge that. But really, a little respect for proper usage goes a long way.

Anyone want to recommend a good psychiatrist? Or perhaps I'll just re-read Eats, Shoots & Leaves to restore some equanimity to my battered grammatical soul.


P.S. -- Perhaps I should make it clear that I'm not (quite) as psychotic as this post might suggest, nor am I some embittered grammarian with perfect capitalization and punctuation. But I do enjoy a satisfying grammatical rant now and again, and you, dear reader, are lucky enough to be my audience. Assuming you've made it this far...

The Nursing Poncho -- Or, "Aprons Belong in the Kitchen"

A nursing cover is definitely one my list of "must-have" baby items. The first apron-style cover I made was fine.  Sure, it stayed on my neck. But as Little Man got bigger and bigger, it seemed to cover less and less. Even though Little Man wasn't extremely squirmy, I was always tugging at it and readjusting it. Granted, I never did much nursing "in public," even with the cover. But I needed something for family gatherings and occasional visits with girlfriends.

Then came our trip to Puerto Rico. Several hours on a plane would entail at least one feeding, and there was no way I was going to nurse on an airplane with my back -- and maybe more! -- exposed to public view. After some web surfing, I came across the nursing poncho concept (they've shot up in popularity in just the past year, and are quite plentiful now). With limited time and no desire to spend extra money, I used some polyester burgundy Alova suede I had on hand. What I ended up with was a square with a hole in the middle (bound with self-bias, though Alova doesn't fray), and rounded corners. No need (or desire) to hem, and I was ready to go. 

It worked like a dream! For once I actually felt covered, and by making my own I was able to make a cover large enough for my preference. I decided at once that I would leave aprons in the kitchen, and stick to ponchos from now on.

Pros to a poncho? Coverage, pure and simple. It covers front and back, and allows a large range of movement while still being discreet. Cons? Well, it's admittedly harder to see your baby unless you pull the neckline away from your body. This doesn't bother me, personally, and Little Man never really made eye contact while nursing (even without a cover). 

With this new little on on the way, my mind has turned to nursing covers once more. My last attempt was rather make-shift, and hardly my ideal choice of fabric, either fiber or color. Plus, I'll be using a cover a lot more for this baby, since I don't plan to nurse without a cover when my toddler is around (personal preference). This time I wanted something a bit more like the DRIA cover, which is made from super-stretchy jersey. The bonus to this type of cover is that it also serves as a car seat cover, stroller cover, impromptu blanket, and "fashion accessory" (if you go in for ponchos). At any rate, it doesn't scream "HEY! I'M NURSING A BABY!" when it's worn. *wink*

A coupon for 60% off any fabric at JoAnn's was perfectly timed, and fortunately their luscious rayon jersey was not on sale (by the by, isn't it frustrating when you get a great JoAnn's coupon, only to realize that the fabric you want is already on sale for a measly 30% off? Just saying). 1 1/2 yards in a yummy chocolate color cost me less than $8. Considerably less than $80 for the DRIA.

My plan was to "construct" this poncho in the same way as my first -- a neck hole cut in the center, and no sewing (since I'm terrified of sewing knits, especially on my vintage machine). Well, I didn't account for that beautiful 4-way stretch when I cut my neck hole, and the thing was practically falling off my shoulders. Okay, it was falling off my shoulders.

After considerable finagling, I ended up with a french seam along the shoulder to reduce my too-large neck hole (bonus: having shoulder seams makes it easier to figure out how to put it on). I found the DRIA cover measurements, and that helped me figure out a good size. The DRIA is a bit too off-the-shoulder for my taste, so I made my neck hole a bit smaller. I did end up with a bit of zig-zag along the inside shoulder seams at the neckline, so my inner perfectionist is not entirely satisfied. However, you can't see it from the outside, and I was considerably consoled when the binding I added around the neck worked perfectly! No hem around the bottom, since jersey doesn't ravel (and I think it drapes better without a hem).


A Few Construction Details:

As I mentioned, I used the DRIA's measurements as a guide, and mine ended up being the same basic length and width, with a 10" neckline (instead of 12"). The size seems good, but I guess I'll find out for sure in a few months! If it's too big (which I doubt), I can easily cut it down. If it's too small, I can buy some coordinating jersey at JoAnn's and turn it into a color block poncho! Which might be cute, anyway...

Focus, Shannon.

I was worried about sewing 4-way jersey without a stretch stitch (they didn't come standard on '57 Singers, apparently...), but using a very narrow zig-zag seemed to do the trick! This has upped my confidence in sewing knits considerably.

The front neckline is a little lower than the back, since I don't like the feeling of being strangled! But both front and back have a very mild curve, giving the poncho a boatneck look.

If I ever make another one, I'll probably do the two-pieces-sewn-at-the-shoulders to start with, rather than trying to cut a perfect hole in the middle. I like having french seams at the shoulders, since they look so tidy. But with knit, it's not really necessary.

The neckline is bound with a 2" strip of jersey that I'd cut off the side. I sewed it right-sides-together to the poncho, then folded it over to the inside and pinned. I then sewed it down (from the right side) with a narrow zig-zag. The stitching caught the edge of the binding, giving an unanticipated but very welcome decorative finish to the binding edge. After that, I trimmed the knit about 1/4" from the stitching on the inside. It curls a bit, but you don't see it when the poncho is being worn. Oh, and the binding seam is at the center back of the poncho, making it easier to tell front from back. The neckline is still stretchy, and it looks a bit more professional than leaving a raw edge at the neck.

So there it is! One more project checked off my sewing-for-baby list (which is finally dwindling). Unfortunately, this has done nothing to lessen my impatience for this little one to come. But maybe in the meantime I can tackle one of those other still-unfinished projects...