How I Tie Dyed Flat Diapers

On the 2012 Flats and Hand Washing Challenge forum, I've had a few questions about how I tie dyed MissE's flat diapers. In this post, I'll be sharing the tutorials and materials I used to create the different tie dye effects.

I used some condiment squirt bottles, Dylon Permanent Fabric Dye, disposable gloves, a funnel, rubber bands, a baking rack over the sink to dye, washing soda, salt, scissors, and a dozen GMD large unbleached flat diapers.

The basic instructions are: I twisted into the effect I wanted, secured with rubber bands, squirted the dye where I wanted it while the diaper laid on the baking rack over the sink, put in a plastic bag or wrapped in plastic wrap, set on the table for 24 hours, cut rubber bands, rinsed with warm water until the water ran clear, washed on hot with detergent, dried on hot. I had mixed the dye with warm water and I had pre-soaked the flats in warm water with washing soda (about 1/2 cup for the sink full) and salt (a couple of Tablespoons).

To get the black streaks in this one, I used this tutorial.

To create the pictures in these two, I used this tutorial. I wasn't sure if the Rebel Alliance symbol would turn out but I was pleased with the results. I accidentally switched the colors with the one that was supposed to be a heart though. I had specifically chosen the colors of that one because they were Star Wars colors (red for the Rebel Alliance with purple, green, and blue because they're light saber colors). I was very distraught over the mix-up at first (just ask Mister), but I'm happy with it now, it makes the Rebel Alliance one look more girly. I'm very excited to know how to tie dye a Mickey Mouse silhouette as I'm a Disney World freak and will definitely be tie dying some Mickey stuff for our next trip to Disney World! Mister is a massive Star Wars fans (as in, has a couple of Star Wars tattoos) so the Rebel Alliance symbol was for him. If I had to do it over again, I'd definitely use the colors I had intended for the Rebel Alliance symbol and I'd use the same colors for the Mickey one but switch them around. I think I'd do the Mickey silhouette black and swirl the other colors.

This one was supposed to be a heart shape but didn't really turn out. I was a little rushed as we were late for a prior engagement while I was trying to finish up my tie dying and I had done this one last. I think it would've been a bit better if I had taken my time. I do like how it turned out though, I think it kind of looks like an alien. I used this tutorial for this one, but you could definitely use the running stitch tutorial from the previous two flats to make this shape.

For the rest of the flats, I used this tutorial.

 

 

 

 

I'd love to see pictures of your tie dye creations! Please post the link in the comments below! You can bet that these won't be my last tie dye projects, I already have so many ideas for what to do next!

Flats & Handwash Challenge: Day 7 - Reflections

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!  

Today is Day 7 and the last day of the Flats and Handwash Challenge. I will continue to exclusively use flats through tomorrow as they're all I brought for our trip this weekend. Hand washing the flats this week hasn't been difficult, it's just a little time consuming. I can definitely see this as a viable option in a low-income time of need, travel, and during a natural disaster.

I've already written most of what I've learned in previous posts and in the Tips post. I think the best tip is simple practice, practice, practice. If you must, read tutorials or watch youTube videos to learn folds and see how to get a snug fit around the legs and waist. I put the reasons why I am taking this challenge in the first post.

I began using flats exclusively last Sunday and will continue to use them through tomorrow night. I have hand washed all 7 days of this challenge.

I will recap with an update when the results are posted as to how many people successfully completed the Challenge and how much money was raised for Giving Diapers, Giving Hope. And with that, good night.

Flats & Handwash Challenge: Day 6 - Traveling with Flats & Hand Washing

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!  

Today is Day 6 of the Flats and Handwash Challenge. Today I'd like to talk about traveling with flats and hand washing. We traveled for the Memorial Day weekend to a cabin with my in-laws and drove for 6 1/2 hours to get there. (The drive itself is about 5 hours, but we made a couple of stops for the baby). Sprinkled throughout this post are pictures from today on our trip.




While finishing our packing on Friday morning, we let MissE run around naked for a while and then in a coverless flat. We started the drive with a large flat in an Airplane Fold with a smaller one padfolded inside, then graduated to using two padfolded flats inside the cover for the rest of the changes of the drive. When we arrived, she used one flat in an Airplane fold fastened with Boingo's for the rest of the changes of the day under wool bloomers.

This morning I had a bit more diaper laundry to do than what I've had the rest of this week because we doubled up on several changes. Mister set up a clothesline between two trees for me and I went to work scrubbing away while he went for a morning run with his sister.

I was rinsing when they returned, my mother in law had breakfast ready, my father in law and brother in law had very strong coffee brewed over the campfire, and my niece and nephew were running around with MissE watching. I hung everything on the clothesline and we all enjoyed breakfast as the flats flapped around in the wind. The good thing about it being so windy is that the wind beat my flats into submission and they came off the line so soft instead of stiff!

My parents in law watched MissE while Mister and I went into town for a while to check out the I left them with some flats padfolded inside Velcro-closure covers and there were no issues or confusion about how to put them on.

All in all, traveling with flats and hand washing once a day is very easy and will be my go-to travel solution from now on.

Today's topic was an open discussion. To see what other bloggers talked about today, click on any link below!

Flats & Handwash Challenge: Day 5 - Tricks of the Trade!

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!  


Today is Day 5 of the Flats and Handwash Challenge and I'd like to share a few tips I have learned during this week. 



First off, getting a good fit is key! When you are fastening the flat diaper, make sure to have your baby's legs parallel to the floor instead of "frogged up", and pull the side of the diaper out and up before pulling to the front to fasten in order to get a tight fit around the leg. You could also fold in the back about 1/2" to an inch in order to keep things a bit more contained, if you know what I mean.


Second is absorbency. You can manipulate a flat to have most of the layers anywhere you please! Whether you need more absorbency in the front, the middle, all around, or only through the center, you can customize it to your baby. You can also use two flats for overnights or leaving the house for extra protection. There are also different materials used in flats to achieve more absorbency besides your regular birdseye bottom such as hemp and bamboo.


Third is a good cover. You need a cover that will suit your baby. A good fit and the right materials will make all the difference in success or failure. If you have a cover that is gaping at the legs or cutting off the circulation, you'll likely have an uncomfortable baby and leaks. Likewise, what it's made out of can have an impact for babies with particularly sensitive skin, such as my MissE. She does not do well in non-breathable or slightly-breathable materials such as PUL and TPU. She does best is very breathable materials like fleece and wool.


Fourth is the detergent amount. You will be rinsing forever if you use too much detergent! On that same note, it goes without saying that your diapers will not get clean enough if you don't use enough detergent. It's a fickle subject.


Fifth is to not underestimate the power of the sun. The sun has amazing bleaching abilities! It can take a stained flat that looks dirty and shabby to a bright flat that looks good as new in less than an hour! It also helps to sanitize and disinfect naturally, plus makes things smell good.


Sixth is to not get caught up in the hype. I had over two dozen flats ready to go for this challenge, plus two dozen bamboo flats just in case. I could have easily done this challenge with one dozen flats as that is all I have used so far.We go through 8-9 flats a day and then I have three left to use while the others are being washed and drying. By the time I run out the others are dry and ready to go! I have also not used more than three covers per day and if you read my post about supplies, I have quite an arsenal of covers.


Seventh is to take the time to practice. Flats have the steepest learning curve to any of the cloth diaper options available today, but they are definitely worth it! All it takes is a little practice and you'll be folding and fastening like a pro in no time.


Eight is to fully prep. Flats should be washed at least 3-5 times before use in order to strip them of their natural oils so that they'll absorb. They reach maximum absorbency after 10 washes. In an effort to save time and water, you can cut some of the washes by boiling your flats. I posted about how to do this before the challenge with the GMD flats that I've used during this challenge.


(Edited to Add: Ninth is to not use bleach without gloves! I started putting a tsp of bleach in my wash water before scrubbing with the wash board and my hands are torn up!)


Just for fun, here's a few pictures of MissE enjoying her first marshmallow around the campfire today!





If you'd like to see what tips others have to give, click on any link below!

Flats & Handwash Challenge: Day 4 - Thoughts on Hand Washing and How I'm Doing

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!  


{Warning: Pic Heavy Post} 


I tie dyed a dozen of MissE's flats! Check them out! Click here to see how I did it.

                                       

Can you spot the shapes? There's a Mickey Mouse head, a Rebel Alliance symbol (from Star Wars), and what was meant to be a Heart but didn't really turn out. I did the shapes towards the top of the flat instead of in the middle on purpose because most of the folds that I use do not showcase the middle, the back of the diaper would end up being more towards the top.

 

 

    

 

     

Back to the topic at hand. Today is Day 4 of the Flats and Handwashing Challenge! We're halfway through! So far, the hand washing is going great! I could definitely do this on the occasional circumstance such as travel or natural disaster, but honestly, it's a lot of work for day to day. If I had to choose between hand washing flats or switching to disposable diapers, I'd definitely take this route and hand wash flats though. I still love it! I'd also definitely take hand washing flats over buying disposables if we were in one of those situations that you keep hearing about on the news where families are having to choose between food and diapers or are trying to rinse out and re-use disposable diapers or leaving baby in them longer than they should to make that pack go further. It breaks my heart that people are in that situation when there are other affordable and sanitary options out there.

My current wash routine is to either leave the flat diapers dry or last night I soaked them in the sink overnight. Then I rinse them first thing in the morning with warm water. Next I fill the sink with water as hot as I can stand and detergent. I use my wash board to scrub each piece individually until I feel it is sufficiently clean and set aside until all pieces have been scrubbed. Then I fill the sink with a few inches of water to swish everything around in, then rinse each individual item under running water until I feel that the detergent has been completely rinsed out, wring out, and then take outside and hang to dry. 


Today I washed all of the flats. In MissE's normal diaper laundry in the washing machine, a small bit of bleach (1/4 cup or less) has been the only thing that will guarantee that her skin will stay clear. I haven't been using bleach during this challenge and yesterday evening she broke out in a rash. So today I re-washed all of the flats by hand with a tiny bit of bleach, plus did regular laundry, packed for our trip tomorrow, {attempted to} cleaned the house, and chased the baby. It was a long day.


MissE was trying to pull down the flats that I tie dyed last night while I was washing diapers this morning.

As I had said in a previous post, the flats dry within two hours and most covers within four. My wool must be dried overnight but I haven't washed any wool covers during this challenge yet and the fleece takes a few hours longer than the regular covers. I live in South Texas about 20 minutes from the beach so it is hot and humid here. MissE went out to help me hang her flats this morning!


                 

 

If you'd like to see how others are doing with their hand washing, click any link below!

Flats & Handwash Challenge: Day 3 - What Do I Do With This?

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!  


Today is Day 3 of the Flats & Handwash Challenge! The topic of the day is how I use my flats. For Mister, I simply pad fold them and lay them in a cover so he can put the diaper on just like you would a disposable. (I pad fold differently than in that video, but basically you're just making a long pad). I like to play around with the folds for myself. My current favorite is the Airplane Fold, but I've been using an Origami Fold with a pad folded flat inside of it for nights. I used to use the Diaper Bag Fold a lot and will probably revert back to it, as well as try out new folds. I'm particularly interested in trying out the Gaynor Fold For Girls and the Jo Fold.


There are also a lot of alternate uses for flats. I'm just going to list what I can come up with off the top of my head:
- Burp Cloth
- Baby Blanket/Swaddling Blanket
- Nursing Cover
- Clean Up Spills
- Wash/Buff Car
- Household Cleaning Rag
- Pillow
- Shade
- Tie Things Together with a Flat


And some we tried last night:
- Bandana Top
- Baby Toga

Mister and I were talking about the flats and he came up with the idea that it would make a great baby toga. Later on after MissE was asleep, I went to take a shower and forgot to take a shirt to the bathroom... but there was a clean flat in there, so I tied it on like a bandana top!


Today I woke up and washed 8 flats, a few wipes, and one cover. We alternated two wool skirties yesterday so no need to wash those, but I washed the night cover. So far so good!


My sweet girl napping:

Edited to Add: I tie dyed a dozen of my flats tonight! Can't wait until tomorrow evening to see how they turned out!


I started out with a dozen GMD large unbleached flats, 7 different colors of Dylon permanent fabric dye, 8 squirt bottles (was planning on mixing 2 colors but didn't), rubber bands, and gloves.

This is the end product for tonight!

(ETA: See how the tie dyed flats turned out here, and how I did it here!)


If you'd like to see how other bloggers are using their flats during the challenge, click on any link below!