Upcycling with Habiliment

Alright, Eco-Moms, it's time to really live up to the "eco" in our Eco-Mom title.  Let me start by bringing up the term Upcycle.  Upcycling is a critical concept when we think about the idea of living an eco-conscious lifestyle - it's the idea that you can take an old thing and make it new.  Re-purpose and re-use the old to make it functional, beautiful, and/or relevant.  In order to be as ecofriendly as possible, us mom's have the responsibility to repurpose items in our homes and give them new life. 

Going out to the mall to buy clothes, shopping online for toys... these are common actions nowadays.  Doing that shopping while also supporting the idea of upcycling?  Not so common.  With that in mind, I want to share a discovery with you - Habiliment.  This company is a way to combine shopping and upcycling, bringing eco-conscious products into our homes and giving them new life.

Made from an old houndstooth coat, this pillow toy in the shape of a bunny rabbit is a new favorite in my daughter's nursery.  It's amazing to see what a sewing machine and an old coat can do!  I don't want to sound like a used car salesman, but this is a seriously exciting concept.  This toy is adorable - I've even found my six year-old carrying it around the house... and to think that it might have been a just dusty coat somewhere in a landfill.

Plus, how cute is the packaging?  When I received my pillow toy in the mail, I almost didn't want to unwrap it!  The obvious time and effort put into every product is another big reason why I'm so supportive of this brand.

One potential misgiving about upcycled materials is always quality - when you're reusing something old to create something new, will this "new" thing be rundown from the start?  Absolutely not the case with our adorable pillow toy.  The sewing is outstanding and the materials selected are vintage, but high quality.  In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if this upcycled toy lasts longer than my daughter's factory made teddy bears.  Here's a close up of the "ears" on our bunny - Does that looked recycled to you?

All of the items available from Habiliment follow this same idea, or are produced using the Indian handcrafted fabric of Khadi, which is both culturally important to the people of India and also made outside of a sweatshop or factory, as so many fabrics unfortunately are.

I am passionate about being ecofriendly, and I'm extremely supportive of brands that seek to provide consumers with ecofriendly products.  I hope you'll take a look at the different clothes and upcycled products that Habiliment has to offer - they definitely get my stamp of approval!

Habiliment Website

Image (c) Habiliment

Cozy Life Bonus: WIWTM

Quick bonus post - I started a YouTube Channel!  My first video is a fun WIWTM (What I Wore This Month), showing you guys what makers, lengths, and absorbancy I needed for my cycle this month with my Cloth Pads.

While a lot of the pads I wore are ones I made myself, I did use a lot of different makers as well! Below is a list of the pads I wore, with links out to the shops I bought from, just in case you want to check out those makers!  I don't sell the pads I make myself, but all of the topper material in my stash (at least to this point) is from Joann Fabrics.

Day One

12 inch Heavy, Flannel top, Fleece back - Lucha Libre: Self-made

10 inch Heavy, Cotton top, Fleece back - Paris: Self-made

13 inch, Overnight, Flannel top, Windpro back - Foxes: Eco Alternatives

Day Two

12 inch Heavy, Flannel top, Fleece back - Cake Plate: Self-made

12 inch Heavy, Cotton top, Fleece back - Star Trek: Self-made

12 inch Heavy, Cotton top, Fleece back - Paris: Self-made

12 inch Heavy, Flannel top, Upcycled Fleece back - Mermaid: Self-made

10 inch Heavy, Cotton top, Fleece back - Sugar Skulls: Self-made

10 inch Heavy, Flannel top, Fleece back - Superhero: Craftynook

13 inch, Overnight, Flannel top, Windpro back - Ninjas: Eco Alternatives

Day Three

9 inch Heavy, Flannel top, Fleece back - Wonder Woman: Craftynook

9.25 inch Heavy, Cotton top, Windpro back - Kokeshi: Yurtcraft
12 inch Heavy, Cotton top, Fleece back - Tula Pink: Mother Moon Pads
10.5 inch Heavy, Flannel top, Windpro back - Owls: Yurtcraft
10 inch Heavy, Flannel top, Upcycled Fleece back - Pink Floral: Self-made
10 inch Heavy, Flannel top, Fleece back - Mermaid: Self-made
13 inch Heavy, Cotton top, Windpro back - Koi Fish: Beach Bottom

Day Four

9 inch Moderate, Cotton top, Windpro back - London: Annybell's Essentials
9 inch Moderate, Cotton top, Windpro back - Retro Mermaid: Beach Bottom
10 inch Moderate, Cotton top, Fleece back - Retro: Mother Moon Pads
10 inch Moderate, Cotton top, Fleece back - Matryoshka Dolls: Self-Made
10 inch Liner, Cotton top, Fleece back - Cute Woodland: Self-Made

EcoMom: Recycle Your Breast Pump!

Breast is best, right?  But what happens once you've transitioned your baby over to solid foods and you no longer need your breast pump?  Do you shove your pump away in a dark closet never to see it again?  Maybe you have no idea what to do with it?  Here's a breakdown for us mom's with Medela Breast Pumps and the process of recycling our pumps once we're done with them.

Medela Recycles

If you're like me and you opted to buy a Medela breast pump, there's a really cool program that you NEED to know about.  It's called Medela Recycles.  This is a program where you can send off your old electric breast pump to be recycled at zero cost to you.  Added bonus?  Each month Medela sends a donation of two Symphony Preemie+ Breastpumps the Ronald McDonald House Charity thanks to the mom's that are recycling their old pumps through Medela Recycles - FANTASTIC! 

Many of these mom's have babies in the NICU and the only option to get breast milk to their little ones is through pumping on a daily basis.  Getting a free pump can take away just one of the added stresses that these mother's face during such a difficult time.  

Fun Fact: Medela began this recycling campaign through learning of a Change.Org petition started by a regular EcoMom looking for a way to recycle her old pump in a way that was ecofriendly.  It just goes to show that us mom's CAN make a difference!

Get more details on the program by clicking the image below!  So far, they've received almost 3,000 donations.

What if I have a Manual Pump?

Not everyone is going to have an electric pump, though, so what can you do if you'd still like to recycle your pump, but don't qualify for Medela Recycles?  If you have a manual Medela pump, you need to know that they aren't "closed system" pumps - so, essentially, they aren't really made to be used my multiple moms.

However, the good news is that Medela does make their pumps out of recyclable materials for the most part, so all you need to do is take your pump to your local recycling center and Ta-Da!  You've sent you pump to breast-pump-heaven without hurting the environment.

That's great, but my pump isn't Medela...

There are so many brands of breast pumps out there and I'm sure a few readers might not have gone with Medela as their pump choice - But it's important to empower yourself with knowledge!  Check the materials your non-Medela pump is made from and see if they're recyclable.  Go to the manufacturer's website and see if their pumps are suitable for multiple mom's - you may be able to give your pump to a friend or family member for sterilization and re-use.

Why Cloth? An Opinion Piece.

Outside of my blog, cloth diapers and cloth pads really don't come up in conversation all that much.  It's just my "normal" - I don't expect those using disposables to scream it from the rooftops, so why should I?  I'm an advocate for this "lifestyle choice," but I advocate for cloth through this medium - a blog - not sandwich boards and flyers to my friends, family, and co-workers.

But when it does come up, my friends and family recoil.  Laugh.  Grimace.  I get responses like "Eww," "How gross," and "Why????"  Oddly enough, my husband and father - two manly men - have been the only ones to not be "grossed out" by my decision to pursue reusable products.  Even my sisters and mother have been weirded out by the concept of RUMP's (reusable menstrual products) and cloth diapers.

So, out of frustration, I'm writing this.  I feel, somewhere deep down, like this choice needs to be JUSTIFIED.  Why?  I don't know - perhaps society's view that anything outside of the "norm" is in some way threatening to peace and prosperity?  The world around me seems to think I'm some sort of crack-pot who sunbathes naked in my backyard and eats insects for breakfast, all because I don't buy into highly processed, chemically laden,  plastic diapers and pads.

Why am I against disposables?

It take 800 years for a disposable sanitary pad or diaper to decompose in a landfill.  800 YEARS.  The diapers that I used as a baby are sitting somewhere, right now... Still.  That's disgusting.  In fact, some studies suggest that a pad (much smaller than a diaper) contains the same amount of plastic that is in FOUR plastic grocery bags.

What are disposables made of, you ask?  Here's the interesting thing: Major producers like Always and Kotex don't disclose the contents of their sanitary products because in the United States they are classified as "medical devices" and can get away with a lack in transparency.  They will admit that their products have patented synthetic absorbent materials (Always, for example, will admit to having Infinicel in their pads... what that is, I have no clue), but that's it.

Through the investigation of those like me who are frightened by the lack of information on disposable products, it's been determined that disposable sanitary napkins and tampons contain things like dioxins, synthetic fibers and petrochemical additives.  Do you know what those things are?  Probably not.

Here's the simple explanation: The contents of feminine hygiene products include small amounts of chemicals that can cause skin irritation, embryonic development issues, reproductive problems, heart disease, and organ damage.  Disposable diapers treated with chlorine can also have trace amounts of dioxins as well, which are classified as a "likely human carcinogen" ... and to those of you that don't know, carcinogen = cancer causing.  Now, to be fair, many of these chemicals are present in TINY amounts so the chances of getting an illness is exceptionally minimal.

However... TSS, Toxic Shock Syndrome, is a concern that I just can't ignore relating to the use of disposables.  This sometimes deadly disease is frightening and 100% preventable - While rare, this illness has frightening consequences.  Get more details on TSS by clicking here.

Have I "converted" anyone to cloth?

Yes, I have.  A coworker of mine just ordered her first cloth pad last week.  My father has bought me so many cloth diapers that I barely had to invest in my daughter's stash.  My husband is a SAHD and he deals with more cloth diapers than I do.

Here's the thing though - "converting" people to cloth isn't a sign that cloth use is accepted by the general public and I'm not collecting a headcount of "conversions" to prove my point.  The majority of people that I talk to aren't open to cloth - plain and simple.  They would rather not deal with IT.  "It" being blood, feces, and urine... The idea of reusable products is distasteful to people because it means greater contact with bloody fluids that our society has deemed shameful or gross.

Those of us that use cloth are a minority.  While I will mention these types of products to the people I love and trust, it's not something that most of them are willing, even in the hypothetical, to consider.  This concept of reusable cloth products will be new to the vast majority of the people I talk too - so I explain it if they're open to it, and hopefully it will get them thinking.

But cloth products are SO expensive!

For the cost of 2 cloth diapers, I could buy 60-100 disposables.  For the cost of 1 cloth pad, I could buy a pack of 45-60 disposables... But here's what you need to keep in mind when first buying reusable products.  THEY ARE REUSABLE.  In less than a month, all of those disposable diapers and pads I mentioned above?  Gone.  The 2 cloth diapers and 1 cloth pad?  Years from now, they'll still be here and still be working just as well as they did the day that I bought them.

Reusables are an investment.  Don't let the sticker shock stop you - Buy slowly if you need to.  I spent most of my pregnancy stocking up on cloth diapers & accessories.  Can you sew?  Make your own cloth products!  There are so many tutorials on blogs and YouTube to walk you through the basics, and DIY'ing can save you tons of money.

Do your research & Don't knock it 'till you try it

If you're reading this and you've never tried a cloth product, get over the "gross" factor and do your research.  Get on YouTube and watch a tutorial on how to clean a cloth pad.  Read one of my posts on cloth diapering and what you need to give it a shot.  

Bottom line: reusable cloth products are safer for your family - that's the honest truth.  Don't knock it 'till you try it.  I have loved the experience with both my daughter and myself.  Cloth diapering is FUN.  The prints are beautiful and she's had so few diaper rashes that I'm angry I didn't do this with my son.  Cloth pads have made a formerly miserable experience (having a period) exciting - I can't wait to try my new Yurtcraft pads this month!  I'm also a lot more "in tune" with my body now, which is a priceless and empowering thing, don't you think?

Beach Bottom Cloth Pads

This post was super fun for me... But note that it talks about our "monthly friend," so if that makes you uncomfortable... well, we're all adults here, right?  If you're a regular to the blog, you know that I'm a HUGE advocate for cloth diapering.  But one thing that I've never touched on is the idea of reusable cloth pads... Yes - I said it: REUSABLE pads.  Ladies, it's a thing!

While some of us cloth moms will talk to anyone who will listen about diapering with cloth, it seems to be a much more taboo thing to discuss handling our own hygiene needs with a reusable product.  Why is that?  Disposable pads and tampons are just as expensive and harmful to the environment as disposable diapers are!

Beach Bottom is a small business based out of California, run by someone very much like me - A mom.  Jaime is fantastic and seriously creative, so please check out her store on Etsy  or the Beach Bottom Facebook Page to see all of the amazing reusable pads she has made by hand.  I love the idea of supporting small businesses, so this really is a win/win for me.  I even have a coupon code for you below, so stay tuned!

Below is a shot of three sizes in Beach Bottom's collection - Pantyliner, Light, and Moderate (there is also a "heavy" option).  A fun element of these is that all of the sizes have their own snap/closure color - pink of pantyliner, white for light, purple for moderate, and teal for heavy.  That way, when you're looking for the size you want, it's easy to find!

Fabrics: What are they made of?

Much like cloth diapers, cloth pads need to have both barrier layers and absorption layers.  Beach Bottom uses cotton, flannel, and micro fleece.  The fun fabrics that make up the top layer of the pads are 100% cotton.  Beach Bottom has numerous prints to choose from, all of them fun and bright - One of the reasons I like cloth diapering is that the diapers themselves are adorable, and the same can be said for cloth pads.  My favorite of Beach Bottom's options is the dream catcher design - super cute!

To absorb and retain liquid, the middle layers of the pads are cotton flannel.  Each size has a different level of absorption - Pantyliners, for example, only have a single layer of cotton flannel.  As you go up in size, more cotton flannel layers are added.

The bottom layer (the backing of the pad) is a soft micro fleece.  This helps to form a barrier from the liquid reaching your undergarments, and also serves to help anchor the pad in place - no one wants their pad slipping around as they go about their day, right?  Beach Bottom even incorporates fun colors for this part too.

How to Travel with Cloth Pads

As a cloth mom, I had several wet bags on hand that I use for my daughter's diaper bag.  When I went to work, all I did was put a small wet bag in my purse, snapped the used pads closed after use, and put them in the wet bag for sanitary storage until I got home.  It really wasn't any different than a disposable pad, only I threw nothing away.  If you don't want to buy a "wet bag," small makeup bags would be ideal for this too, and would easily fit in your purse or handbag.

Comfort and Use

I'm being 100% honest when I say that once I used these cloth pads, I knew I couldn't go back to disposables.  The cotton fabric is SO much more comfortable than the synthetic and bleached wood pulp or viscose rayon (ew) that disposable pads are made from - and Beach Bottom's pads are WAY less bulky than your typical pad.  I almost forgot I was wearing them... No joke!

I used the pantyliner as I was getting the indications that my cycle was coming, then the light and moderate once my cycle actually started.  I have a heavy flow, so these pads were most suitable for the first and last days of my cycle in order to limit any potential staining to my clothing - the days in between would have been ideal for the heavy pad (I'm heading over to Beach Bottom's store to load up on heavy pads soon!).

Clean Up

But, while all of this is great, I haven't brought up why most women don't want to try a cloth pad... the clean up.  It's the same with any reusable hygiene product - people don't want to see it or touch it, so they just keep using synthetic and bulky disposables.

So here's the truth - hand washing for all three took less than five minutes and was amazingly simple.  The care instructions that Beach Bottom sent over said that the pads were machine washable following a rinse, and could be dried in a conventional dryer (Beach Bottom pre-washes all fabrics so potential shrinkage is minimal).  I, however, opted to hand wash to see how it would go.  As directed, I used cold water to limit staining.  I started with rinsing out all three pads until the water in my sink ran clear.  

At that stage, I opted to use OxyClean (a handy product for cloth diapers as well) with a tiny bit of my plant-based cloth diaper detergent and scrubbed the powder into the fabric with my fingers, then rinsed again.  All signs of possible staining were gone and the fabric looked just as great as it had before use.  Below are the pads following wash, laid out flat to air dry:

Final Thoughts & Coupon Code!

I wouldn't recommend anything if I didn't love the product - and seriously, I LOVE Beach Bottom's pads.  They are adorable, comfortable, easy to clean, and super cost effective considering how long you'll be able to use them.  I am thoroughly impressed with the quality of the product and I know that I'll be a customer for a long time.

In celebration of Memorial Day, Beach Bottom is offering 10% off all products this weekend using the coupon code NYU2015.  It's a limited offer, so don't wait!  This limited offer has expired!  But don't worry - Beach Bottom's cloth pads are actually much more cost effective than other cloth pads out there, so still check them out!

Beach Bottom's Etsy Store

Beach Bottom's Facebook Page

Beach Bottom on Instagram

 

Images Copyright Beach Bottom