Flats and hand washing challenge 2013 Day 2

                                            

I am taking part in the Third annual flats and hand washing challenge hosted by Dirty Diaper Laundry.  For 7 days I will be using only flat cloth diapers and hand washing them in an effort to prove that cloth diapering can be affordable and accessible to all.  You can learn more about the rules and why this challenge was started by visiting the announcement post.  This year there are over 430 participants from all over the world!

Today I am going to write about how I prepared for the challenge, including a list of my supplies, where I got them and how much I paid. 

The first thing I did was get out my receiving blankets and wash and rinse them. They must have had some major build up from last year since it took 2 FULL days to rinse the suds out of them!!! I am so glad I took the time to prep them thoroughly. It should make for a much better week for me! 

The next thing I did was clean out my tub really well and clear out the drain. It had been moving very slowly from my long hair building up in there and I thought that would not be fun to deal with during the challenge! 

I then gathered last years supplies which included gloves, camp washer, drying rack etc. I washed the camp washer and put it in the place that will become it's new home for the next week, beside the tub.

After this, I checked out some videos on You Tube for some folding ideas. I used mostly pad folds last year and I wanted to do more pinning this year.

I was generously given some flat diapers to use for the challenge which I also washed and rinsed thoroughly. I have only used receiving blankets in the past so I was curious what it would be like to use an actual flat.

Although I am doing the challenge this year with out spending any money at all, I did pay a price for my supplies at one point, so those are the prices I will be posting.

Here are my covers. I also have a cute skirtie that is just like the purple and pink shorties and longies here. My 2 favorite colours :) All of these covers plus the skirtie cost around $110. I could EASILY get away with only 3 pul covers for $21.

Here are my flats. Some are pad folded and some are kite folded. I also have my wipes and pins shown here. I paid $20 for the receiving blankets. I also had some from having a baby and was generously given all of the white flats on the right.

Here are the ingredients for my wipe solution. Baby wash, lavender oil and tea tree oil. The high end oils are not necessary. I paid around $60 for those. The wash was free and I don't remember where I got it. The wipes were around $25 for all of the ones I will have in rotation.

Here is my drying rack and clothes pins. I paid $30 for the rack and $8 for the clothes pins.

Here is my camp washer. Plunger $5, bucket $7. I have to guess for the gloves since my husband bought them and we did not keep the receipt so I spoke with a friend and we came up with  $3. So we will say $15 for this lot.

I am using a teaspoon of tide free and clear liquid detergent in each load. I am planning to do one load every morning.

Again, I have not spent a penny this year for the challenge, but the total that I spent on the items I will be using is around $270.

It would be entirely possible and even EASY to spend WAY WAY less.

See how others have been doing on day 2 of the challenge :)

Flats and hand washing challenge 2013 Day 1

                                            

I am taking part in the Third annual flats and hand washing challenge hosted by Dirty Diaper Laundry.  For 7 days I will be using only flat cloth diapers and hand washing them in an effort to prove that cloth diapering can be affordable and accessible to all.  You can learn more about the rules and why this challenge was started by visiting the announcement post.  This year there are over 430 participants from all over the world!

The reason I am doing this challenge is because I really enjoyed learning a new way to cloth diaper last year. It made me feel good about myself to complete a challenge that seemed impossible for me to do. I am excited to take part in this again! 

So it is officially time to say good bye to my pockets and hybrids

and hello to my covers and flats!

My goal this year is to spend little to no money. I have plenty of supplies from last year to use, but I might have to buy a new pair of gloves. 

You can see how others are doing on day one by clicking here :)

10 things I love about....

10 Things I Love About My Husband:

1. He works hard

2. He is patient

3. He is generous

4. He is intelligent

5. He is kind

6. He is handsome

7. He is helpful

8. He is brave

9. He is loving

10.  He is thoughtful

 

Day 7 comes to an end!

I am taking part in the Second Annual Flats and Handwashing Challenge hosted by Dirty Diaper Laundry.  For 7 days I will be using only flat cloth diapers and handwashing them in an effort to prove that cloth diapering can be affordable and accessible to all.  You can learn more about the rules and why this challenge was started by visiting the announcement post.  This year there are over 450 participants from all over the world!

The week is over! What an exciting journey it was! I learned so much! In fact, I think I will continue to diaper this way AND hand wash for at least a couple more days :)

So today is a day for reflection. Here are some of my thoughts about the challenge on this final day:

So how much did I spend???

Bububibi covers 4x $7 and 5x $6.30= $59.50

3 Fleece soakers, home made by a friend 3x $10= $30

Wash board purchased online $30

Laundry tarts, I estimate I used about 65 cents worth

Plunger $5, bucket $7. I have to guess for the scrub brush and gloves since my husband bought them and we did not keep the receipt so I spoke with a friend and we came up with  $3 each. So we will say $18 for this lot.

Drying rack $30

Receiving blankets $20

Diaper pins $1

A second bucket $7

Salad spinner $10

Clothes pins $8

Swish stick $3

So the grand total is about: $217.15

I think if I would have been more careful with money, and left out what I didn't end up needing or using, I could have easily brought that down to $120 or even less!

Before this challenge, I didn't even know what a flat was! I had also never heard of a camp washer. I had never dried anything on a line or rack. I had only used covers over pockets for extra protection...

Before the challenge, I threw poop in the garbage. From now on, it will be going in the toilet where it belongs!! I am excited about this and I may even quit using disposable liners! I only recently started using them because my daughter is eating solids now and her poops are changing! I really hated switching from soft cloth on her bum to irritating disposable liners!

Before the challenge, I thought washing diapers would be really gross... but it really isn't. It was easy and didn't bother me a bit :) I also thought it would take a lot of time, but it took no more time than stuffing pocket diapers.

I learned about softening line dried items... sunning out stains... and many other great tips!

I was especially excited to find that FLATS WORK WELL AT NIGHT!!!  I was so afraid I would be waking up to big puddles on the mattress but I didn't have one leak in the night the entire week!!! Look at my happy baby in her night time flats!

If I was using flats full time and hand washing, I would have to do a few things differently. First of all, I would have to adopt a posture friendly position while washing. I did quite the number on my back. I would also want to learn all the different ways to let the detergent and water work for me, so agitation was minimal. I would also probably get into more of a routine... like wash diapers at the same time each day so it was just a normal part of my day. I would also probably organize the bathroom and baby's room a little more flat and hand washing friendly and organize the supplies to make the best use of the small spaces.

I was thinking next year it would be fun to have some different goals... this year I just wanted to learn more about flats and prove to myself that I can do it. Some things I may want to try next year:

Spending little or no money
Trying different folds
Using less water
Using only cold water
Using my washboard more
Trying different washing routines/detergents
Using as little materials as possible

Well, this has been so much fun and so very rewarding. Thanks to any and all who took the time to read my blogs! See you next year!

If you are interested, click on the links below to see what other participants had to say about their week!

Day 6- Complete!

I am taking part in the Second Annual Flats and Handwashing Challenge hosted by Dirty Diaper Laundry.  For 7 days I will be using only flat cloth diapers and handwashing them in an effort to prove that cloth diapering can be affordable and accessible to all.  You can learn more about the rules and why this challenge was started by visiting the announcement post.  This year there are over 450 participants from all over the world!


 So, we are at the end of day 6! Wow, this challenge is flying by! It really is just part of my day now and I easily complete the tasks necessary for the challenge :) Today, I thought I would go through my routine as it has evolved over the 6 days, so this is where I am at now. There are some items I never did end up using (salad spinner, some of my flats, some covers), some items I barely use or feel are unnecessary (scrub brush, bucket with holes in it) and some that I use, but only because I spent the money on it (washboard).

 Well I am more of a "picture" person than a "word" person, so here are pictures from this morning's wash :) We had 2 poops in this load!

I flipped the diaper to spare you the details lol!! I start by using my swish stick to scrape the diapers

 I then use it to swish the diaper around

 Then I flush and swish a few times :) I hold the flat in the stream, and back a bit so it doesn't block the opening.

 Here is where I store my swish stick

 First rinse!

 I use my cell phone to time 3-4 minutes. I agitate the full 3-4 minutes.

 Talia wanted to watch :)

Here is the colour of the water after the rinse:

 Time for washing!! I use HOT water and a teaspoon of laundry tarts.

 I scrub the poopy flats on the washboard.

 Timing my hot wash agitation. Again, I use my phone, but this time for 5-6 minutes... agitating the entire time.

 Here is the colour of my water after the hot wash. It is usually a lot more clear but 2 poopy diapers plus poopy wipes/covers in this load!!

 I squeeze out extra water between all rinses and washes against the side of the tub.

 At this point a do a super fast, super vigorous cold rinse. I don't use a whole lot of water for this part, just enough water to cover the diapers.

 Water comes out clear after this rinse.

 Time for the final rinse!

 I do this rinse for 3-4 minutes.

 My plunger was brand new for the challenge... it is getting pretty worn out already!

 Final rinse water is nice and clear. I will now use this water to soak my future diapers as they wait to be washed.

 It just sits in my bathroom, next to the tub.

 To get the extra water out, I first do a gentle squeeze down the length of the flat.

 Then I bring the ends together, and do a bit harder of a squeeze.

 Then I bring those ends together and I twist it as tight as I can.

 All squeezed out and ready to hang!

 But first, I am going to roll the covers in a towel... it works wonderfully. They are practically dry after I do this!!!

 Now I stand on it

 and I stretch out my calves while I am at it!

 Time for hanging!! I hang everything inside and then I check the weather. If it is a good day for drying outside, I just carry the rack out.

 Just documenting the stains, to see how well the sun gets them out.

 How could I resist taking this photo in the process??

 All hung, now to check the weather..

 A great day to hang outside!

 I make sure to hang the stained flats on the top so I can give them better access to the sun.

 Playing peek-a-boo!!

 Wow, there are still some stains, but the sun did a very good job!!

 The wipes take FOREVER to dry!! I had to bring them back outside for the rest of the day.

Phew! All done until tomorrow!! :)

Check out how everyone else's day 6 went by clicking on the links below! Last day tomorrow!!!!