Cloth Diaper Washing and a Giveaway!
A couple weeks ago I shared how we made cloth diapers. They were all ready for baby except they needed washed, along with the others that I had bought.
From what I had read, cloth diaper washing wasn’t the same as washing bluejeans and dresses. Apparently if you don’t wash and dry your cloth diapers correctly they will lose their absorbancy and won’t last as long.
So you need certain soaps for diapers and you need to strip them on occasion. Since my cousin full time cloth diapers her little one I asked her about stripping. Turns out she doesn’t strip her diapers at all, she doesn’t need to. I asked her how she washes them and her response was soap nuts.
I started researching soap nuts a little more and learned something interesting. Moms who used soap nuts for their cloth diaper washing rarely if ever, had to strip their diapers. The only time this seemed to not be the case is when they had really hard water.
I contacted Greener Living and asked if they would be interested in partnering with me to share this with you. They said yes and sent me some of their products to try. The fun part about all of this is, that they are going to give one of you the same stuff to try too! Keep reading for the giveaway. 🙂
I was sent the above items to try out. 3 bags of soap nuts, the soap nuts bath bar, and the safix scrub pad.
The scrub pad. They are made with coconut fibers which is pretty cool because normally coconut fibers are just thrown away. The pad works very well, it doesn’t seem to get a stink like most sponges do, and unlike a metal scratcher, they don’t hurt my hands. Best of all, I read that it can be tossed into the garden or compost pile when it breaks down and is no longer “scratchy”. Mine is isn’t worn out yet, and from what I have read, they will last you months.
The soap bar. We don’t use bar soap very often, I prefer a liquid body wash, but I did want to let you know how it worked. Make with both coconut oil and olive oil, this bar is very gentle on skin and leaves you feeling clean and fresh.
The soap nuts. Ah yes, the soap nuts. I have to admit I was a little skeptical, I mean would those little berries really do the trick? It would seem that they have. I tried them on a couple different things and the results were the same. Clothes came out clean and fresh.
The one thing I did notice was this. Other reviewers mentioned that it also softened their clothes leaving no need for softener. I also noticed the clothes were soft and fluffy. However, they were not static free 🙁 I mainly use softener to get rid of the static and it appears I will still be using a natural softener with our other clothes.
How do you use them? You put 5 nuts into a bag, tie the bag shut and put in your washer. I was worried about the bag being in there on rinse cycles, but apparently warm water is what activates the sapiens of the berry and most machines rinse with cold water. At any rate, the clothes do not feel like they have a residue on them at all. So I guess we are good. 🙂
As for cloth diaper washing? I love the soap nuts, they leave the fabric soft and fluffy, no soapy or waxy feel on them at all. I was able to wash all my diapers and they are now ready for the presence, and “presents” from our little one. 🙂
Drying your cloth diapers in the dryer can cause them to wear out sooner, so I have a drying rack just for bottom fluff!
Below is the promised giveaway, and I want to give a big thanks to Greener Living for allowing me to try their products. 🙂
