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January 19, 2010

Make your own baby wipes

It's so easy! It's cheap and involves less chemicals, processing and packaging and is therefore gentler on baby's bum and on the earth. I'm hooked. Google it and you'll find plenty of variations on the theme, here's what works for me.

What you need:
1 roll of kitchen towel (recycled paper if they exist)
2 plastic containers with lids (big enough to fit half a roll of kitchen wipes, mine are 1.25 litres)
3 cups water
2 Tbs baby and earth friendly soap ( I use envirocare body and hair cleanser, which is cheap, locally made, available online and can be used as shampoo and soap for the whole family)
4 Tbsp oil (I use sesame, but for nappy rash I'd switch to coconut)
4 drops of lavender oil (for it's antibacterial qualities)
What to do:
  1. Cut the paper towel in half with a knifes (not a serated knife as this will leave jaggedy edges) and remove the cardboard roll inside.
  2. Boil and cool the water and then mix with soap and oils.
  3. Put half the kitchen towel in each container and cover with half the liquid each.
  4. Close the lids tightly and leave on container of wipes at your change station and the other in the fridge for later.
You can pull a few wipes off the roll and store them in a small snap lock bag to take them in your nappy bag with you.

My main concern at the moment is that I can't find recycled paper kitchen towels, but I'll keep looking. One alternative if your really keen to be green is the keep the solution in a spray bottle and spray it onto reusable cloth wipes.

5 comments:

Anna said...

Julia - I really enjoy your blog but have not commented before! I am eager to understand Ayurveda and am seeing an Ayurvedic doctor next week. When I saw him for the first time some months ago he diagnosed that i had a Vata-Kapha imbalance. What does that mean? Is that my dosha? Am I Vata with a Kapha imbalance or do I just have a Vata-Kapha imbalance?

Also how does that translate in terms of food I should have been eating at that time?

I reallly appreciate your help - a thirty minute consultation can be too hard to get everything into one's head!

Julia said...

Your doctor may mean your prakruti, which is the constitution you are born with and will stay with you for life, or your vikruti, which is your current condition as affected by the seasons, diet, illness, emotions etc and changes constantly.

It is more likely to be your vikruti, as prakruti can be hard to diagnose on a first visit as it is probably hidden under your vikruti imbalances.

Different doctors have different ways of explaining things so you would have to ask him exactly what he means.

But try not to worry about the details too much, Ayurveda is more instinctual than that. Start balancing Vata and Kapha with your diet and lifestyle and listen to how your body reacts. Go slow, Vata Kapha does not like rapid changes!

If you don't have enough Pitta then you need some more fire, but do it gently. Warm spices such as ginger and pepper will help your digestion.

Anna said...

Thanks for your reply!

Anonymous said...

hi julia,

i am wondering how your meditation practice has been while pregnant? are you still meditating daily? how has your awareness shifted?

I love your blog and the stories are great.

With love,

S- a Yoga teacher and Ayurvedic Therapist Student (almost done:)--> from Toronto, Canada.

Julia said...

A very interesting question, worthy of a long answer, I'll write a post about it...