Friday, December 5, 2008

Everything you ever wanted to know about wool diaper covers and soakers...















Ok, at least everything I can think of. I am not going to write a huge amount of information because there is so much out there, but I am going to add my input and tons of links for everyone. Hope you learn something new.

The first reason to buy wool is because they are just so darn cute! See the pictures of Kenton above?



One thing to add is my all time favorite website for wool and organic clothing Cambridge Baby- UK. You simply must shop there to see the prices. Use a currency converter to figure out the cost in US dollars and don't worry about shipping- it's cheap and your items arrive in less than a week. View it here.

Also my favorite Etsy knitter: Amy from True 2 Ewe.

First things first. Let's talk about why you would chose wool? It can hold up to 40% of extra fluid without feeling wet, it's natural and non-flammable, it rarely needs washing without smelling bad, it keeps your baby warm in the winter and cool in the summer, and it is the most breathable for babies bottoms of all the different fabrics.

Here are some good links explaining why to choose wool:
~eBay Guides - Wool Cloth Diaper Covers The Comprehensive Guide
~why wool's cool
~diaper pin-why use wool
~firefly- why choose wool
~Why Wool Diaper Covers? - Attachment Parenting
~ Real Diaper News Why Wool's Cool" by Heather Sanders
~danish woolen products- why wool
~Why Use Wool Diaper Covers?
~Why Wool? | Sunshine Diapers
~How to Use Wool Diaper Covers | eHow.com

All right, now that you know how wonderful wool is you probably want to know what products are out there, which brands are offered and what's different about them. This is my quick version of the different styles. Each site goes into more depth about their style of cover.

~Felted wool covers are made from wool that has been pre-treated and felted. They are thinner than knitted ones and most can even be machine washed. Check with your brand before machine washing though. They usually come in a wrap style that has a snap or velcro closure.

~ Knitted wool covers come in three basic styles with all sorts of interpretations in between.
1. Wool soakers for day and night. Some are single layer and some are at least double layer for night time.
2. Wool "shorties" which are a more like a pull-on wool diaper cover. They can be lanolinized to use a diaper cover or used as a decorative cover over a regular cover.
3. Wool "longies" are a pull-on wool pant. They can be lanolinized for use over a diaper/cover or used as pajama bottoms.
4. Variations of shorties are board shorts and variations of longies are skirties which is like a skirt over a pant but all-in-one, capri pants, and ruffle pants.

Here are some of the brands out there. Remember the websites are endless so I am just listing the ones that I am the most familiar with:
~Better for babies- Little Beetle
~Tiny Birds Organic Wool Diaper Covers
~Green Mountain Diapers: Wool Diaper Covers, Wool Diaper Wraps
~Thanks Mama wool covers
~Amazon.com: wool diaper cover: Apparel
~Vermont Diaper Company - wool covers
~kelly's closet wool covers
~Fuzbaby wool covers
~Babyworks: Product: 'Nikky Wool Diaper Cover'

There are so many more out there- too many to list. Just Google or Yahoo for "wool diaper covers" for more. There are two more sites to recommend which has multiple listings for WAHM made products. They are some great deals here and beautiful workmanship:
~Etsy :: Search Results
~Hyena Cart :: Search


Here are some sites that highlight the big names in knitting covers which are made by machine:
~Aristocrats Diaper Cover
~Disana wool
~LANAcare


How to wash and care for wool? You can hand wash or use the gentle cycle on your washing machine. First I will list sites that teach you all about caring for wool, then I will list products for caring for wool:
~natural family online- wool care
~Cotton Babies how to lanolinize
~How To Care for Wool - Cut of Cloth
~ehow to wash wool covers
~GMD video on how to wash and lanolinize
~info_on_sudzndudz.pdf (application/pdf Object)

Products for caring for wool:
~Eucalan | clean clothes , clean planet
~Imse Vimse USA: Laundry Accessories
~hugadubdub.com - Wool Care
~Amazon.com: liquid lanolin
~Northern Essence wool products
~Lansinoh
~Sonett wool wash
~Sudz 'n Dudz

Want to make your own wool covers? Here are some free patterns:
~ottobre diaper cover pattern
~soaker pattern

Some wool review sites:
~Wool Cover Reviews
~Diaper Pin - Cloth Diaper Reviews - List
~Safe mama wool reviews

Some WAHM made covers that I really like:
~Adorabubble Knits Online Shop
~green way wool covers
~Llamajamas, Llamajama wool diaper covers longies soakers

Here are some really neat wool products worth mentioning for baby:

~Ruscovilla wool
~recycle wraps
~MamaPoncho - Birdie's Room
~Baby Carrier Blanket




I hope you have enjoyed this post. I am not going to update all of these links unless you drop me a comment that something is wrong or missing. Thanks and enjoy!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thank you SO much!

I was at Joann's and noticed some felted wool on clearance. I am planning on making some fitted cloth diapers of my own and I was wondering about wool covers, but no one could tell me as much as you just did!

I didn't know I could use that felted wool to make the covers! I make just do that!

Jacque said...

fabulous!! this is great! thanks so much for all the info. bookmarking it.
and, your little guy is adorable!

shalom~

Tanya said...

I LOVE the "breast man" shirt. I think my 8-month-old grandson needs one!

What a nice blog you have. I'm telling my daughter about - she will love it!