Thank you for purchasing a handmade, organic Rebourne diaper. I hope it brings you a smile when you use it, and that your baby loves the organic bamboo velour against his/her skin!
To prep your diaper, follow the instructions below for washing. ((If you ordered a hand dyed diaper, please wash it separately the first time, on hot with no detergent, just about 3 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar or white distilled vinegar. This will help set the color into the diaper. (I have already done this, but to prevent further running of the dye and to prevent accidentally dying other diapers, I recommend this second treatment)))
Caring for your diaper should be simple and as easy as possible. Your goal in washing your diapers is to get all of the pee and poo out, but not to infuse your diapers with scents. Your diapers should not smell like ANYTHING when they are done their wash: if they smell like poo, pee, OR SOAP, go to “troubleshooting” below. **If you are using cloth-diaper-safe scented detergent, then please expect your diapers to smell like that fragrance 🙂 ** I highly recommend A Happy Green Life lavender-vanilla essential oil scented detergent!
Just like anything else, your laundry routine will be your own. These are the main points I try to keep in mind, and my routine, to give you an idea.
Here are the big no-nos:
Bleach, enzymes, fabric softeners, optical brighteners, any added scents, dryer sheets, and anything else that you wouldn’t use on your baby’s skin.
I currently use and recommend A Happy Green Life powdered detergent. Take caution in using diaper creams: I recommend LuSa Organics’ Booty Balm. I have heard horror stories of moms spending days hand-scrubbing creams out of their cloth diapers: do a small test if you’re not sure a cream is cloth diaper safe (put some cream on your diaper and make sure it comes out easily with soap and water). The cream could cake onto the diaper and then it won’t be absorbent.
After knocking solids into the toilet, I store dirty diapers in a pail liner, in a lidded diaper pail. A small cloth wipe dabbed with a few drops of tea tree essential oil helps cut the smell.
Ideally wash your diapers every 2-3 days. My wash routine goes as follows, in my top-loading machine:
1) Set machine to cold/cold. Start the machine on ‘rinse’. Add diapers and wet bag(s), let run through rinse and spin.
2) Set machine to hot/cold. Add 1/2 scoop detergent. Optional: add 4-6 drops tea tree essential oil (antibacterial/antifungal). Let machine fill and agitate for a minute or two. Stop machine and let it soak for 10-30 minutes. Start machine back up and let it run through the wash/rinse/spin.
3) Rinse and spin once or twice depending on preference/water type.
4) Hang to dry or wash in your machine with 4-8 wool dryer balls.
Troubleshooting:
Stink (either soap or poo or ammonia): Wash all diapers on hot/cold WITHOUT detergent, three times.
You can also try adding a shake of baking soda to the main wash cycle. Another stink-buster is white distilled vinegar: add it to the rinse cycle of the hot/cold wash cycle.
Stains: put your diapers out to dry in the sun.
For other troubleshooting, contact me via the ‘contact’ tab. We can troubleshoot together and I can connect you with information on your water type and ideal wash routine. Your cloth diaper detergent company should have detailed information on the best way to wash your diapers with their detergent.
Rebourne Diapers 