Lemon coconut cleanser

Here is another version of the lemon cleanser. This one has coconut oil along with rose hip seed oil. It is wonderfully fragrant and a real treat for your skin.

Lemon coconut cleanser
This is a creme cleanser that does not need water. I massage it on my face and remove it with a washcloth and toner.

2 tablespoons almond oil
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1 teaspoon rose hip oil
2 tablespoon emulsifying wax
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon borax
20 drops of lemon essential oil

In a double boiler, melt the wax and oils together. Warm the lemon juice and borax in another pan. Remove both from the heat and add together in a bowl using a whisk to blend. Add the lemon essential oil once the mixture cools a bit. Transfer to a container. I store the cleanser at room temperature, but I use it within a few weeks. If you are keeping it longer then it may need to be refrigerated.

Microfleece swim shorts

We are taking swimming lessons at the local pool. We have one more week to go and then he will have completed Starfish level 1, so very exciting. The water temperature in the indoor pool is very chilly and he shivered through a few of classes until I decided to make him a pair of warmer swim trunks. I made the shorts with the same monkey pants pattern and cut them a bit shorter. I used microfleece from Mill Direct which is the same fabric that I use to line his new diapers. The shorts turned out very nice and comfy. I also put him in a long sleeve microfleece onesie that I made for him last winter. He was very toasty at the last swim class. The shorts do absorb more water than the nylon version, but they dry pretty quickly once you wring out the water.

Easy hemp jersey diaper insert or prefold

I am busy working on the new diapers. The hemp/organic cotton jersey material came in the mail last week so time make the diaper inserts. I ordered the fabric from the usual place at Pick Hemp. They have the best prices and a large selection of hemp fabrics blended with organic cotton. For the inserts I am making my own version of open end prefolds. The prefolds wind up being 2-5-2 as far as layers go so nine layers total once it is folded in thirds. They are super easy to make, dry quickly and work great so very happy with the end result.

Hemp jersey prefold

Materials: Half a yard of Hemp/organic cotton jersey fabric. I don't prewash the fabric. I cut it larger to accomodate shrinkage.

1. Measure and cut an 18 inch piece of hemp jersey fabric. The insert will shrink to about 15 inches in length once washed and dried.


2. Cut off the selvage and zig zag around the entire piece of fabric.


3. Fold in the ends of the fabric 6 inches on both sides and sew.


4. Bring the ends of the fabric piece to the center and overlap. Pin and sew through all of the layers on both sides. All done

A wonderful treat!!

Yesterday, I received a wonderful treat in the mail from Dolores at Achtung Kinder. During the month of May Sewmamasew hosted a giveaway and I was one of the lucky winners. It was a treat to open the box and see the sweet wrapped package. I opened the package and found a beautiful handmade bib and rattle. Little guy loves the rattle. He likes to shake it around our kitten who loves it too. I also received baby lotion and chocolate spice tea. Both are such a treat to the senses. Thank you so much Delores for sending the wonderful gifts our way. We love everything!!

Super diaper

I made a pocket diaper from the recycled fleece and pul fabric. It turned out really nice and was fairly easy to sew. I realized once I got the fabric that I didn't think too much about how the two fabrics would match. I really wanted to get the pul fabric in aqua and I didn't have a lot of color choices for the recycled microfleece so I just went with the brightest option which was the lady bug red. I am happy with the combo though since they look like super hero diapers. In particular I think they look like superman diapers.

Before I started sewing the new diaper I watched an all in one diaper tutorial at Kids in the Garden. It has lots of tips including cutting the tabs separately to use the fabric more efficiently. I tried this with the celtic cloth pattern and was able to get four pul backs out of one fabric width as compared to only three with the full pattern. Very slick and a great way to economize on fabric. I also used the elastic method they suggested and it worked great. The best part though is the music so definitely worth watching if you are sewing diapers. The only problem I ran into with making the diapers was sewing the pul fabric. I used a regular sewing stitch and the seams bunched. I looked for tips online and switched to the stretch stitch. It worked fine after that so problem solved.

I really like the functionality of the new diaper. I have used it a lot this past week and it works great. It has survived the poop test so very good. It also keeps him dry and comfy for a few hours so I am happy I am making the switch. I was a little reluctant at first because I wanted to stay with natural fabrics as much as possible. But on the other hand the microfleece liner does work great and is a breeze a clean the messy stuff. I can also dry the diaper a lot quicker with the separate hemp inserts so great energy wise. So sort of mixed bag environmentally for me, but I think it is going work great for us both. One thing I have learned after being a mom for a year is that being flexible is a good thing.

Cotton yarn dyeing

I dyed a two skeins of organic cotton yarn using Dharma Trading Company Procion dyes in ultraviolet and wedgewood blue using the yarn dyeing instructions I found on the website. I also threw in a cotton baby shirt. I put the shirt at the bottom and poured the dye into the pot. The baby shirt turned out really cute and true to color. However, the yarn color turned out different than expected. The base color of the yarn is a dark beige so that is why it has a green tone. Interesting color combination though and I think it will make cute shorties.

B-day gifts

My little guy's sweet little friend had her first birthday also. They are actually five days apart which is very nice. I made a few little items for her birthday including a pair of purple hemp shoes and orange cotton knitted bell bottoms. It was really fun to make a few girly items. I hope to post the pants pattern soon.

Sleep sac

I made a spring/summer sleep sac for the little guy with hemp/organic cotton knit fabric that I dyed in aqua using the Procion Dyes from Dharma Trading Company. I used McCall's 4236 for fleece and since I used a much thinner fabric I went with the size small. It fits him great and he still has a little bit of room to grow which has been doing very rapidly lately. Well, time to get the little guy to beddie and see if he likes his new sleep sac.

Cloth diapering day to day

What is my day to day routine with cloth diapering? When I decided to go the cloth diaper route I spent a lot of time online looking for advice. It is exciting that after a year of using cloth diapers that I actually have my own tips to share. There are many ways to take care of cloth diapers, but the basic principles are the same. Your baby wears the diaper, gets it dirty, you store it for a bit, wash it and then the cycle repeats many many times. Coming from a research background I look for the most efficient method that will produce the best results. I also like to simplify things so I don't take any special precautions when storing or washing the diapers.

Diaper supply
You will need about 24-36 cloth diapers, 4-6 diaper covers. I make hemp diapers and use pul diaper covers. I go through go through anywhere from 6-10 diapers per day. My little guy is a heavy wetter so he goes through a bit more than most babies do each day. I use the diaper covers more than once and hang them up to dry in between changing. I wash all the covers each time I do a load of diapers which is every 2-3 days.

Diaper changing and storage
I store the soiled diapers in a dry diaper pail. I don't add water or pre-soak the diapers. I use a 5 gallon plastic bucket with a pul liner. I made two bucket liners so when I have one in the wash I have another one ready for use. If the diaper is pee only then I take it off and throw it in the bucket. If it is poop then I shake off the solids in the toilet and it usually comes off fairly easy. If not I turn the diaper inside out swish a bit in the water. I then squirt the inside with Bac-Out Stain and Odor Eliminator from BioKleen which is enzyme based and helps break down the waste. I then toss the diaper in the bucket. The Bac-Out does a great job with controlling any odors in the bucket. I also use citrus circles deoderizers that I tape to the bucket lid.

Diaper washing
Once the pail is full I pull out the pail liner with the soiled diapers and bring it over to the washing machine. I dump the diapers and the pail liner into the washing machine. I use warm water and a scoop of BioKleen Premium Plus Laundry Detergent on the longest high agitation setting. Once the diapers are clean I hang them outside on a clothes line or dry them in the dryer. If I hang the diapers then I put them in the dryer for about ten minutes to soften them a bit.

How do you know if your diapers are clean?
The best way to tell if your diapers are clean is to smell them after they are washed. If you don't smell anything then they are ready for use. I do love the BioKleen products though and feel like they do a great job with cleaning and controlling any odors. If I have any stains on the diapers then I use Imse Vimse Wash Away Stain Soap. It works great and I use it on our clothes also.

That's about it for my diaper cleaning routine. Pretty simple and has worked great over the past year.

Recycled baby jeans

I made another pair of recycled baby pants for little guy. This time I used an old pair of my jeans. I used the monkey pants pattern again, but with additional modifications for non-stretch woven fabric. I got the pattern right this time and it worked out great. All the pieces went together very nicely and the pants turned out super cute. I am really excited to use the pattern again. I think I am going to try to make shorts next. Very cute and I love recycling fabric!

Fun summer top

I finished the Spring ruffle top that I made using the pattern and tutorial from Made by Rae. It turned out really cute and it fits great thanks to the custom tutorial. I started the top during spring top week and of course planned to get it done that week, but obviously that did not happen. I seem to be a bit behind on my sewing projects. However, I now have a sweet new top for summer. Thanks so much Rae for posting the pattern and tutorial!