It's Christmas Time! :)

So I am just giving you a heads up! Any orders you want by Christmas must be placed by the 11th of Dec.

Also I am taking a Christmas break! I love the holidays and I don't want to spend them stressing about how I am going to get all the diapers made plus the quilts for my kidds and the Christmas dresses for the girls! so...

I am not sewing on any orders placed from Dec. 12th until Jan. 4th. This means they won't ship out until around the 11th of Jan. Orders will be accepted, just not sewn up! :)

I wanted to say thanks for making the black friday a sucess! You guys are great! :)

happy diapering,
Vilate

I'm gonna have a BLACK FRIDAY SALE!!!!

Wow, am I big enough to do this? Don't know I guess we will see how well it goes over huh?

It has been pretty dang cold where I live, what about you? I sit and think how nice it is that my baby's little legs stay all warm in her longies! So can you guess what the sale is?
How about:

Buy 2 Nifty Nappy's get a pair of longies FREE!

How does that sound? You can also use the code for a discount!
code: BFNAPPY for 20% off your entire order!

I will email the customers who order on Friday for the choice and measurements for the longies. There is nowhere to enter the info on the webpage, so don't stress about it! :)

Go ahead and buy away- Oh, and I would love it if you would Tweet this :
BF Sale @myniftynappy buy 2 Nifty Nappy's get wool longies free! Also 20% off code:BFNAPPY #clothdiapers http://niftynappy.com RT :)

Love my customers!
Vilate

Giveaway and felting!

I love to read reviews of my diapers! I love, love, LOVE it when people like them as much as I do! :)

Here is another review/giveaway for you to check out!

Unique Baby Gear Ideas

BTW -she has lot of other interesting things on her blog so check it all out! :)

So check this out...

This is what happens when you put a Woolie Wrap in the washer and dryer! It is doll size now!

This was my baby's favorite woolie! She loves the purple. now I guess she can put it on her dolly.

So the felting process is easy enough. You can just throw it in the washer with hot water and then right into the dryer. BUT if you don't watch it and check on it ofter you might get something like this.

To have better control you can hand felt. Just get the water as hot has you can stand to put your hands in and then agitate the wool. When it starts to get the size you want it then you stop. Gently squeeze the water out, don't rig it, this distorts the shape. Place the wool on a towel and roll it up. Then you can mash (don't twist) the towel. This is an important part here if you want your wool in a certain shape....you need to block the wool. This is simply gently stretching it and putting it into the shape you want. Then lay out or hang the wool to dry somewhere

Wa-la! you are a felting pro now! Go and have fun!

Just a side note. I don't usually felt my wool for soakers. The wool works the same. I do felt it if it is a really thin sweater and it is going to be a soaker or a pair of longies.

Update!

there are 2 givaways right now!

Truth Be Told : $36 Gift Certificate + 10% discount code

Life Happens During Naptime : $45 Gift Certificate + 10% discount code


There are a few more coming up too!

So I think I am going to have a surprise for ya!
*Wait for it, watch for it, then you can use it! :)

happy diapering,
Vilate

well, what next?

Hey, hope you got entered for the last giveaway...

But not to worry if you didn't, here's another for you try your hand at!

Hurry over to Life happens During Naptime to enter the latest giveaway

Isn't that a GRAND sight? I love it! All that wool!

All freshly washed and lanolized... Hanging out in the sun for a few hrs... Then off to the new excited owners!

Are you one of the expected owners? Maybe yours is hanging there! :) If not.. sorry you are missing out, cause it is all luscious wool!

Happy Diapering,

Vilate

Giveaways!

Reminder: Today is the last day for this givaway!
hurry here

I love doing giveaways, but I have to decide if it is worth it!
I have a long list of giveaways already planned, but I also have a bunch lined up that would like to have my diaper on their list.
So I know that once I had someone win a giveaway they fell in love with my diapers and ordered 5, then came back and ordered 6 more so they had a full dozen. That giveaway was worth it! I also know that I have had a few orders placed from folks who didn't win, but wanted to try the diapers.

So what do you guys think? I mean I know you like the giveaways cause you like the chance to win some, BUT what would you do if you were me?

Fluff Talk Thrusday!

k, so the topic is "stinky diapers"....

This can be a real issue, but I have found a few solutions I will share.

WASHING:
Smell can be caused by the detergent you use. -well usually from what is in the detergent you use.
I did some looking and I found a recipe for homemade detergent.
We have had great luck with it! It works good on the diapers, isn't harsh on baby's bum and had saved us LOADS of money. (sorry couldn't help the silly pun!)

here is the secret...
1 cup grated bar soap (use a fels naptha or Ivory)
1/2 c. borax
1/2 c. washing soda (I used Baking Soda)

Use 1-2 TBSP (really that is all you need!)

k, I don't use the washing soda. It can be found in the store by the laundry soaps. along with the borax and the fels naptha soap. BUT it is kinda harsh on the fabrics. I have substituted just plain ol' baking soda. This works great and is a lot softer on the fabric. When I use it for whites I throw in some OxyClean to help with whitening.

If you need a fabric softener. 1/4-1/2 c vinegar added to the rinse cycle works great!

So there you have a great super cheap soap! Go give it a try really it isn't that hard to make!

Happy diapering,
Vilate

hello? hello...hello...hello -and a GIVEAWAY!

Hey are you guys reading this? i would love some comments! Do you know how to leave them? There is a little clicky thingy that says Comments... you just click on it, then you type in a nice little thing and put the button that means ok. -I can't remember the exact word on the button :)

So you go ahead, make my day and leave a comment. Even if it is just "hi, I was here"! That would be great, then I would know someone is reading this.

BUT! There is another giveaway! There is a rave review and all! Don't ya just love free stuff?
Momma In Flip Flops is the blog. Check it out! It goes until Nov. 18th.

Good luck!

Happy diapering,
Vilate

As promised...

First a few things to remember and check out...

The last day of this giveaway, and your chances are pretty good, under 100 entries still!

Here Hurry!

I was cruising blogs the other day and I saw a picture of MY woolies! Wait? Who is using my pictures? So I decided to have a little read and find out. Was it good? Well...

see for yourself here

So I promised you shopping results! here they are:

See what did i tell you? Amazing huh? These are some examples of (top) Merino wool sweaters that are soft and thin and great for the inside layer and (bottom) lambswool sweaters that are thick and awesome for the outside! Plus adorable! :)

This is the blister on my finger. I spent all day yesterday cutting! Really I did... I cut 2 sets of 15 diapers, 1 set of 10, 2 sets of 5 and 1 set of 2 and then like 5 for giveaways and giveaway winners. Then I started in on the wool and cut 15 woolie wraps and 2 longies. You can't see the blister very well in the picture, but it is there!

So there you have it! I better head and start on sewing that mountain of diapers and wool!

Happy diapering,

Vilate

Wool Shopping!

I am EXCITED! I get to go wool shopping tomorrow.

First I have to explain that we live in (very) small town USA. The closest thrift store is an hr away, and it is a small one. I have to go 2 1/2 hrs to get to the city, BUT they have lots there.

So I am leaving the kiddos with a sitter and hubby and I are driving out to the city. This is a real sacrifice for him since he HATES to shop! He will get a good lunch out of it though, my treat even! :)

Here, come with me...

So you go to the thrift store and make a bee-line for the closest sweater rack. Ooooh, the excitement...you have done this enough you can tell the ones that definitely aren't wool. There are some that are a big "?" mark, so you check the tag. Aaah, there isn't a tag on the neck what do you do? Ahh yeah, you know that if the tag isn't on the neck it is in the side seam, usually the right one. Darn, only 30% wool, that isn't enough...the next one is 80% that might work...yeah it will it is made with another natural fiber- and it is super soft! SCORE! This one is 100% wool, but it isn't the softest. Hmmm...you rub it on your arm, well.... then you rub it on your face....no, to scratchy! DANG too bad. It might make a cute bag though if you felted it. Throw it in anyway! :) Look, there are three more right in a row. *you do a little dance here
When you get to the check out line you have like 21 sweaters... you did good! :)

There, now you have gone wool shopping with me! Was it fun?

Addressing PUL... and another givaway

Here is another rave review of the Nifty Nappy and the Woolie Wrap! :) Gotta love it.
Julie over at ClothDiaperReviews gave a great review! You have a week to enter the giveaway. There are 5 ways to enter. So hurry over!

I wanted to address PUL today...

I am not a big PUL fan. I do use it to make my PeachyKeen Pockets and my SnappySwimzEaze though. I would rather use a Fitted and wool any day!
BUT that is just my opinion. I know lots of people that love a good pocket diaper or swear by an AIO. They are convenient for going out, leaving with a sitter, daycares, and daddy's. :)

If you have a diaper with a PUL layer in it there are a few things you should know about PUL.

Most PUL fabrics used are made by Fabrite. They are the biggest seller of PUL. They have done lots of testing on their PUL. It is medical grade and has been designed to to hold up to being sterilized. You can wash your PUL diapers the same as you would wash a prefold. You can also dry the Fabrite PUL in the dryer. I suggest sunning the diapers for the majority of the time, but I do like to throw my pockets in the dryer about once a month or so to reseal the PUL.

You should always follow the instructions for care given by the manufacturer of the diaper though. They may use a different brand of PUL, or they may use PUL on cotton which can separate easier. It could also be the type of elastic they use, or the form of closures. If they tell you not to dry them, then there is probably a reason.

My PeachyKeen Pockets are made with fabrite PUL. They are made with a layer of poly/PUL with the PUL sandwiched between the poly and the outer layer of the diaper. Even if your PUL does separate from the fabric...which can happen from time to time...you will not have to worry about it getting ripped when you are stuffing the diaper.

Last day to enter this giveaway... if you entered try to think of more ways you can enter. There are over 400 entries already! WOW!

TheClothDiaperReport

hurry! and good luck! :)

Happy diapering,
Vilate

Give this a try...

I thought today I would share with you my detergent.
I have tried many detergents and I haven't found one that I am so in love with I would pay for it. I have always just bought the cheapest detergents. With 6 kids we go through quite a bit as you can imagine. Well one day I stumbled on a recipe for homemade detergents. I knew you could make it, I just always thought it too alot of work and time. Heaven knows I have enough on my plate without having to spend forever making detergents!
This recipe looked easy-breezy though!
here it is:

1/2 c. borax
1/2 c. washing soda (I just used plain old baking soda)
1 c. grated fels naptha soap (I used Ivory)

use 1-2 Tbsp. per load

That is it! Not to bad huh? If you grate one bar of soap you get a little more than one cup. I also just used plain old baking soda. I did some research and found out that washing soda can be really harsh on your fabrics. I wanted to use this mainly for my cloth diapers, and I don't want harsh detergents. Baking soda has worked just fine. You can find the borax and washing soda by the laundry detergent section of wal-mart of the grocery store.

I have really liked this detergent. In fact I have started using it for our regular laundry too!
the only thing is that you need to be valiant about sorting your colors apart. There is nothing in this to be color safe. If you wash brights with whites you might end up with a lot of pinks! :) In the end this isn't a big thing because you should be doing this anyway!

This detergent has passed the CD test too! My little one has had no issues with this detergent. Other homemade detergents I have tried have been to harsh on her little bum. But this has been fine! YEAH!!

So give it a try and let me know how you like it!