No 'Poo Update from the Kat

It's been a year since I decided to go shampoo free. I love it! I only have to wash my hair twice a week, my scalp isn't itchy or flaky, and my hair is so soft! Plus, it's inexpensive and there are no nasty chemicals in my bathroom, dripping down onto the Bird (my daughter) invariably playing on the shower floor.

I still dilute my baking soda (aka bicarbonate of soda) one tablespoon of soda to one cup of water, but I've found I need four cups of water (and hence four tablespoons of baking soda) for my hair. I saturate my hair fully with warm water, pour on two cups of my water/baking soda and start to scrub. Then I turn my head upside down and pour the other two cups on around the nape of my neck and down toward the crown of my head. Rinse well with warm water.

My baking soda wash is followed by an apple cider vinegar (ACV) rinse. One tablespoon of ACV plus four drops of rosemary essential oil (smells nice and helps with the itchies) diluted in a cup of water. I pour this around the sides of my head, avoiding my crown/part. Rub in then rinse well.

I bought a big 13 pound bag of baking soda at Costco at the beginning of the year, and even with my husband converting to no 'poo several months ago, and with using baking soda to wash my face (1 T of baking soda in my hand, mixed with water to form a loose paste and scrubbed well over my face - avoid the tender skin around your eyes) we still have half a bag left. This is so economical.

And yes, my husband converted! He was having dandruff issues with the shampoos I was allowing him to buy (no parabens, no SLS, etc.) and he's loving the no 'poo lifestyle!

Honey, We Can See Your Nipples

Okay, if you're not a nursing mama, you might just want to skip this one.

Saturday after my run I was walking home to cool down. An older couple was approaching me. The man whispered something to the woman. She said to me as she passed by,

"Honey, we can see your nipples."

"Oh, that's okay," I said, and continued on my way.
As a mama nursing a (very busy) toddler, I estimate that one person every day (other than my husband and my daughter) sees my nipples in the flesh. Bird is constantly popping on and off to take in her surroundings while enjoying her "neenee." This is par for the course and doesn't bother me in the least. That's what they're for!

So seeing my nipples through a bra and a shirt after my run? Not that big a deal.

Not that big a deal as long as they are:
a) level with one another
b) pointing in the same direction

I hope you can have a laugh on me today. :]

We have a winner!

I know I should include a screen grab of the random.org results, but you'll just have to take my word for it because I'm posting on my iPod Touch from my bed where I'm currently nursing the Bird down for the night.

The winner is #5! Congrats to my new friend Crystal! I'll be in touch to discuss your prize.

Thank you to everyone who entered. I bet we'll do another giveaway when we reach 100 "fans." And be sure to check out our Wool is Wonderful post below.

Wool is Wonderful!

You might wonder why we sell hand-knit wool shorts to be used as diaper covers. I can attest that wool is an amazing diapering tool! It naturally repels water (so it is a fairly waterproof diaper cover--assuming you change your babe regularly), which is how it keeps sheep dry. It is also inherently anti-odor and anti-microbial. This means you really don't need to wash it often; I only wash our covers in the event of a pooptastrophe or if I want them to be extra pretty when I'm showing them off (i.e. to get off the food crusties).

I alternate between two wool covers. The first is a lovely deep-plum pair of shorties that Em (aka Mouse) knit for Bird for her birthday. I love these because I don't even need to put pants on Bird. :] If you'd like to check out our selection of shorties, or custom-order a pair by size and color, please head on over to our Etsy store.

The other wool cover I use regularly is a sustainablebabyish | sloomb double layer organic merino wool cover. This cover is thick and breathable, great for overnight. I bought a "seconds" cover, meaning fully functional, but not aesthetically up to their standards, so I got it for about half price.

If you think that wool might be too hot for summer, think about this: would you be cooler wearing fabric that can breathe or a plastic, waterproof rain jacket on your summer outings? Wool allows your baby's diaper to breathe and cool down. It is the combination of urine (moisture) and heat that causes smelly, irritating nasties to grow in your baby's diaper and on their skin. Wool is the perfect solution: waterproof but completely breathable.

Giveaway!

We've reached 53 "fans" on facebook. To celebrate, we're doing a giveaway: a pouch sling and a hand-knit wool ball, though we would be willing to discuss crediting that amount (up to $25) toward another purchase instead, should the winner desire. Simply comment below, once per person, to be entered. I will use random.org to select the winner at 7:00 p.m. CST on Thursday, August 5th. Don't forget to leave a way for us to get in touch with you, should you win!

Other exciting news, we've made another sale and are in talks about our first custom order. Things are getting exciting for The Kat & Mouse!

I promise to have another real post, soon. Life just gets in the way of blogging sometimes!

Our First Sale! and Loving the Line

First off, YAY! We had our first sale today! One of our paisley Mei Tais is off to its new home, where I hope it will be taken on many adventures.

As for the line, I'm referring to a clothesline. We strung up a temporary one (can't wait to own our own place so I can put up a nice sturdy permanent one that doesn't sag!) and I've been using it to dry our laundry. The sun is an amazing natural (and free!) stain remover. Stained diapers and stained clothing are no match for the sun's rays. Plus we're not using the dryer or the energy it requires, our clothes smell of the great outdoors, and I'm enjoying the very meditative time hanging and... unhanging?... our clothes and dipes.

Oh, and one more thing, it's pretty! Look at our lovely Fuzzi Bunz® dipes, so colorful!

No-Poo update from The Mouse

It's been four months now since I stopped using shampoo and I love it. My hair feels and looks great. There are so many benefits to not using shampoo. The first is the savings. I've been working off the same $6.00 bag of baking soda for the entire four months and still have some left over. Also it's nice not to have all of those plastic bottles to worry about recycling (Our recycling center here in Lawrence only takes a few different numbers of plastic). I also only feel the need to wash my hair about once a week now. This is saving us money on our water bill and limiting my exposure to all the nasty stuff that they put in the water.

The dreadlocks are slowly forming all on their own! This is a much different experience than the last time I got dreadlocks, which included hours of back combing, recruiting lots of friends to help, and back rubs needed to counteract the pain of holding my arms in weirdo positions to get each and every dreadlock. Half the time I couldn't even see what I was doing so I never really new if I was putting hair in the right place. This time around I am letting my hair do all the work. I have to say I've never been so pleased with my hair. Naturally, or at least while using shampoo, my hair was very straight and I would have many bad hair days when I'd have to fight to get my hair into a proper pony tail. Now, I hardly even think of my hair (except when I look in the mirror and say "Hair, you are mighty fine!") all I have to do is throw on a headband or pull it up for work and I'm ready to go.

If you're looking for a change I would highly recommend switching from shampoo to baking soda, and see what your hair wants to do on its own.

Play Silks

For her birthday, Bird's grammy got her some play silks. I just got around to dying them with Kool.Aid (three months later). I thought I'd share the process. Such pretty results! I used the tutorial here and the scarves were purchased here (we got the 30x30" ones).

I should probably apologize for not keeping my pictures in order (i.e. skipping from red to orange to purple), but I'm not going to. Such pretty colors, who cares what order they're in?

First, we soaked the scarves in hot water in the sink, with a splash of vinegar for good measure. I swished them around to make sure they were all saturated and left them until I got the rest of the supplies ready (probably closer to 20 minutes than the 30 recommended in the original tutorial).

While the scarves were soaking I mixed up my dyes. These are cherry, orange and lemonade. I used two packets of colorful beverage mix as opposed to the three recommended (not making a run to the store for more!), 2 cups of water and 1/2 cup of vinegar in each microwave-safe container.

Then I gently put each scarf in its dye bath. I did this gingerly and didn't smoosh them down too much as I wanted them to look mottled and imperfect. You also don't want them too tightly balled up because then the dye won't penetrate to the middle.

I covered each dish with plastic wrap and then the lid from the dish (I'm sure the lid part is optional if you just have plastic wrap). Zap it in the microwave for three minutes, then very very carefully (steam burns hurt just as much as any other type of burn; I had to re-learn that the hard way) peel back the plastic wrap and stir your scarf around with a fork. I flipped them over so the white parts were in the dye, which was diluted by this point.

Pardon the smudgy microwave. Each scarf should be microwaved and stirred a total of three times. I did my scarves in batches of three, so after the first was done I'd pop in the second and stir the first.

The tutorial said to wait until they were cool to handle them. I, however, am horribly impatient. I dumped them into a colander and handled them with rubber gloves, holding on to just the corners (do this at your own risk, I don't want anyone getting burned). They cooled quickly when exposed to the air. Then I wrung them out and put them on the line.

After your first three colors (red/cherry, orange/orange, and yellow/lemonade) are done, repeat the process with the next three colors. I used lemon-lime for green and grape for purple. Note: I purchased tropical punch for blue as it was in a blue pouch. The beverage turned out red. As you can see on the left, I grabbed my handy dandy gel food coloring in blue and put in about a 1/2 teaspoon. That was probably overkill, but you get the idea.

After all of your scarves are done in the dye bath, they're ready for the line. After they're dry, wash them (I did this separately, by hand, with cold water and some dish soap). The red ran pretty significantly, the rest just a tad. Then back to the line until dry and you're ready for play!

So far, daddy has used them for some magic tricks. Bird has loved draping them around her neck or piling them on the floor and running through them. I am simply trying to fight the impulse to constantly rearrange them into Roy G. Biv order (curse you elementary school art class!... not really). An added bonus: when Bird wants to drink this stuff, full of its harmful food dyes and needless sugar, I can point out that "hey, that's probably best left to using for dye! remember your play silks?"

Summer Lovin'

I just wanted to pop in and let you know we haven't disappeared altogether!

Bird and I looove the summertime! We've been spending our mornings and evenings outside (watching fireflies and being bitten by mosquitos) and the heat of the day napping and at the pool. If you get a chance to spend a summer thusly, I highly recommend it. Having a 15-month-old to share your days with is an added bonus. She is happy, talkative and communicative. Love it!

We'd love to hear what you're doing with your summer!

Baby Carriers

As a follow up to my last post, I thought I'd mention some of the carriers I've loved/used.

In the beginning, Bird lived in a Moby Wrap*. My mother-in-law bought us one for a baby shower and I used it every day. Whether I was out and about or around the house, she was wrapped and close. I even bought a water wrap for showering (which we now use when we're at the pool or the lake and she's in need of a snuggle).

When she got big enough we started using an Ergo. We originally bought this for my husband so he could wear her, but I liked how quick it was to put on and off. I still used my Moby a lot, too, but I was in transition.

Now I really love the mei tai**, or Asian-style, baby carrier. The Ergo is wonderful, but too big to keep in a purse or diaper bag. The mei tai is wonderful because it folds up incredibly small but is still comfortable for long-term wear (i.e. at the zoo or for an entire nap). I made my mei tai, with the harness going all the way through the body of the carrier for safety. (I was afraid, even with double-stitching, that a strap might pop off.) Every mei tai I make is different, my "pattern" is still evolving. I love trying a new one on and seeing how it's different (for better or for worse) from my previous versions. I'm also working on thread sketching because I have great ideas in my head for decorating the outer panel or pocket of my upcoming mei tais.








* I am not compensated in any way for mentioning any of these products, these are just things I use and genuinely love.
**I would, however, be compensated if you bought this because I made it! Thanks for checking out our Etsy shop!

Babywearing is Amazing!

I love love love wearing my baby, Bird. Here's a list of my favorite babywearing benefits:

• It’s been proven that worn babies cry less.
• Wearing your babe makes it easy for you to go about your day, and even breastfeed on the go!
• Wearing your baby helps them to learn about adult rhythms, noises and activities; they also get to take advantage of your warmth, the sound of your heartbeat, your breathing and your voice. This helps them adapt to life outside the womb and regulate their own cardio and respiratory systems.
• Being worn is great for your wee one’s mental development. They can passively participate in your world, learn what’s “normal” human behavior, and see from your vantage point.
• I love wearing my daughter because it actively involves her in my world. I am constantly talking to her, pointing things out to her, and generally engaging her. When she’s in a stroller she feels like she’s removed from the activity. And now that she’s older, I’m able to see what she’s curious about and explain it to her.
• Worn babies have a sense of trust, attachment to and reliance on their babywearing caregiver(s).

And here are a few babywearing safety tips:

• Choose your carrier carefully and talk to experienced babywearers. For instance, a mei tai is generally thought to be unsafe until around 15 lbs. It’s good to try different carriers to find something you are comfortable with.
• Be sure to check your carrier for wear and tear before every use.
• Practice with a spotter or on the ground/over a bed until you feel comfortable getting your baby in and out of the carrier by yourself.
• Remember you are responsible for your child’s safety.

Speaking of the Bird, she's requesting a reading of Goodnight Moon.

Earth Day Fair and Etsy Update

We had a blast at the Earth Day Fair in Lawrence a few weeks ago. It was an absolutely gorgeous day and spending it outside with friends and family was a delight! We talked to so many people interested in babywearing and cloth diapering, as well as many people interested in being better stewards, both of our wee ones and of the Earth.


We also finally uploaded our hand-knit shorties and balls, as well as our mei tai and pouch style baby carriers, to our Etsy store. We'd love it if you'd hop over and take a look!

We've been bad bloggers

So sorry for the lack of updates! I promise we'll get better with time.

This weekend we'll be photographing baby carriers and hand-knit wool shorties and balls to post on Etsy. We'll be sure to post here with some photos as well! Thanks for your patience and support!

Hard at Work

Lest you think we've forgotten you, a few glimpses at what we're working on for the Earth Day Celebration.

An Introduction

The Kat:
I'm a full-time mama to a beautiful girl (she'll be one this month). It's been a long journey to the type of parent I am now. I started by researching breastfeeding and cloth diapering. I then realized I wanted to do things as "naturally" as possible, which led to babywearing (I don't really know how people parent without wearing their babes). Now I'm obsessed with all things cloth diaper and babywearing, and I hope to share that with you!

The Mouse (aka Em):
I always wanted to be an artist, I just thought it would be visual but now I'm more into creating practical art and crafting. Most of my jobs have involved working with children, so although I am not yet a parent children's products are a natural outgrowth of my artistic ability.

The Kat meets The Mouse:
We met in kindergarten. Mouse's mom watched Kat after school. There was animosity. There was a (literal) slap in the face. There was guilt-induced niceness, which led to genuine niceness, which led to best friendship. Twenty years later, we have the kind of friendship where we can go months without talking and pick right up where we left off (though we rarely go months without talking anymore), where we can always say the truth (even when it's not nice), and where we know we will always always always be there for one another.

Thus, we begin our endeavor in the natural parenting world. We strive to create thoughtfully repurposed children's products. In an effort to save previously loved items from the landfill, we
thrift most of our materials. Old sheets, towels, and clothing, gently softened by time, make lovely, malleable children's products. We hope you'll love them as much as we do. Perhaps, as we teach ourselves to be thoughtful with our earth, we can pass that knowledge on to our children by giving them beautiful things that have new life breathed into them.

We will forever be learning. It gladdens our hearts that you join us on this journey.