Top 10 Favorite WAHMs!

I've been thinking about some of my favorite WAHMs (Work At Home Moms) lately and wanted to share my top 10 favorites. It was hard to narrow it down. (There are SO many wonderful moms out there!) There is no particular order. I am not including diaper makers because that would make the list even harder!
1.) Crafted By Cassie. She is an awesome WAHM who makes some wonderful things. Everything she makes is high quality and she has such a big heart. Some of the things she makes are chalkboard mats (I bought my son one for Christmas! I'm so excited!!), cooking aprons and chef hats that match (they are adorable), custom nap mats, and so much more! Everything is so unique and adorable. You can see all her albums of everything she makes here.
2.) The Ruffled Cupcake. She makes some of the *cutest* headbands, bows, and hair things ever! They are not the normal kind of hair accessories you see on Facebook. They are fancy, classy, and vintage. I've bought a few things from her (I'm actually wearing one of them right now!). They are high quality and not expensive (and not just for babies!). She makes a wide variety of  items. You can see all of her amazing things here and her Etsy page here.
3.) Educated Mama Decals. She makes car decals (or decals for windows and walls). I have 3 decals (and plan on ordering 2 more soon!) and I love them!! They are made very well (I've had my first decal on the car for months and they look great even through the weather and all the dirt roads I drive on.) and are fairly priced. You can see all her customs here and her HyenaCart page here.
4.) OrangePiggy's LittleDog. She makes custom wool knit pants, shorts, sweaters, and more! I found her forever ago and won a little bear. My son loved it! It was made so well. If I had the money, I would totally buy some custom longies from her. (They are on my wish list) Everything she makes is so pretty. You can see her work here. (Aren't they gorgeous?)
5.) Sugar Sweet Baby. She makes bamboo baby carrier wraps (like a Moby wrap but super cute and comfy). Someone gave me one when I was pregnant and man oh man! It was such a life saver. We went out when my baby was 3 days old. I wrapped him up and he slept the entire time we were shopping. Everyone commented on how cute the wrap was and how crazy I was for going out and about after just giving birth 3 days ago. We used it for 9 months. Almost every single time I wore him, he would fall asleep. I wore him almost all day long at our family reunion (when he was about 4 months old). It was so amazing to be able to make sure he got his naps during the day and not have to leave so he could nap. There were lots of parents there (we have a HUGE family) who had to leave so their kids could nap. He was being held and was happy the entire day. The mama behind the business is awesome as are the wraps. They are SO soft and cute! She has tons of cute prints and colors. You can see pictures on her Facebook page here and her website here.
6.) Ever Sew Clever. She makes a ton of awesome things. Some of the things she makes are reusable bowl covers (They rock. You can see my review of them here), reusable snack bags (I have one and I love it!),  a ton of cute toys for the kids, and more. Everything is made very well and is reasonably priced. She also does FFS giveaways (usually on Fridays).You can see more of what she makes on her Facebook page here and her Etsy page here.
7.) Little Lady Designs. I know I don't have a girl but I have bought many things from her. She makes cute little bows and clippies for girls (and moms too!). I have given some of them to my nieces and even worn some myself (I totally rocked a turkey clippie for Thanksgiving last year. Everyone loved it). They are well made and are pretty cheap. She always does sales and even has a monthly giveaway on her Facebook page. You can see all her work here.
8.) Pink 'n Yellow Butterfly. She makes adorable hats and custom knit things. I won a custom hat last year and I'm SO glad I did. It's gorgeous and SO well made! Everyone loves his hat and always acts where I bought it. She's one talented mama! You can see all of her custom work here  and her website here.
9.) Bouncing Woolies. She makes dryer balls. I rave and rave about how wonderful they are all the time (you can see my review of them here). She does some AMAZING custom work! (She needle felts them by hand, no tracing or outlining. Done all by imagination.) I have said in my review about how well they are made. I've had mine for about a year and a half with no problems. (I have her older 'yarn wrapped' styles and they are still going strong!) She's an awesome mama who puts a lot of love and time into her products. You can see her products on her Facebook page here and her website here.
10.) Cotton Cheeks. I know I said I didn't include diaper makers and even though Cotton Cheeks does make diapers, she also makes a bunch of other great things! She makes my favorite mama pads (You can see my review here), fleece pants/shorts/covers, wet bags, trainers, and some adorable dresses (her mom makes them). Everything is very reasonably priced and SO well made. I love everything she makes. You can see custom work here and her HyenaCart page here.

There are just some of my favorite WAHMs! Who are your favorites? I love finding new shops. Feel free to post a comment here or on our Facebook page and let me know who your favorites are.

What's My Favorite Diaper?

I have been cloth diapering for about 16 months now. I have always loved All In Ones. I go through different stages (trying new brands or styles) but I always go back to my AIOs. They are easy! Simple as that. Maybe it's because my first diapers I tried were AIOs. They are trim, absorbent, and cute!

LO in his first cloth diaper! A BumGenius AIO. Even though the PUL was messed up (He peed straight through the diaper in less than an hour, as if it were a fitted.) I LOVED them! They were easy to use and easy to get started with. The only thing I hated about the BG AIOs were the VERY long drying time. But I still used them and bought many more. 

Then our new love because our GroVia AIOs! They were even trimmer than the BG (which shocked me. The BG were very trim), just as absorbent, and the best part. Quicker drying time! YAY! I love the natural fiber (even though I would prefer to have a stay dry top) and love the side snaps. The tabs are super soft and stretchy and it seems like a very comfy diaper! 

In his GroVia Nature print. 

And then I found RagaBabe. I had heard tons of great things about them but couldn't justify the price. $28 plus shipping for just ONE diaper? I'm cheap. Spending that much was very hard for me. Heck, spending over $20 was hard for me. But I quickly learned, you get what you pay for. I bought plenty of cheaper diapers and they leaked and fit horribly.
After months of looking and looking, I finally made the plunge. I bought one to try out. It was a tie dye diaper. I knew I would love it just because of the way it looked. Very cute and unique. When I first got it I was excited and impressed. The cute star shaped velcro was adorable and STRONG! Way stronger than any other Velcro diapers I had. I love Velcro on AIOs. I am not sure why. Maybe because I know anyone can use it and it makes it even easier for those who are unsure about snaps (like grandmas or dads).

We tried it and I loved it. The fit was amazing. I love the wide elastic at the back of the diaper. Makes it seem like such a comfy diaper. So trim and such a cute little bum. It is very absorbent and actually has a very quick drying time. Another thing I love about RagaBabes are the stay dry lining. I have taken the diaper off my LO and even though it's wet, he feels DRY! I also love that the absorbent part of the diaper is made from bamboo rayon so you get the natural fibers plus a stay dry lining! Perfect combo.

I ended up buying two (3 if you count a newborn diaper) more as soon as I could. I actually sold most of my stash just so I could afford to buy 3 RagaBabes. Right now I have  5 AIOs and I wish I could have my whole stash RagaBabes! I usually like to have a nice variety of diapers. Sometimes I'm in the mood for a fitted or a pocket diaper or I like different prints and colors other brands offer. I like to have a big variety. Since getting RagaBabes however, I would love if my whole stash was RagaBabes! I love to buy and trade every few months but I could never even being to imagine giving up my Rags!  

My little stash.

My Star Candy 2 Step

What is your favorite kind of diaper? What type of diaper do you love and prefer? Tell me your experience! 

SoftBums Omni Review!

SoftBums asked me to review their Omni diaper with SUPER DryTouch pods. I was very excited about it. I have heard nothing but good things about their diapers and was glad to be able to try one for myself. The Omni diaper is an All In Two, pocket diaper, AND a cover! Plus it is a one size diaper which is a HUGE plus! Their unique design makes the diaper trim for any age. (Even newborns!)

The shell is made of a waterproof layer on the outside and a micro fleece inner. There is a pocket opening (if you prefer to use it as a pocket diaper) and a snap on the inside of the diaper (to use it as an AI2). [The snap does not touch the babies skin if using it as a pocket diaper.] The elastic is soft and stretchy. There is a small hole in the front of the diaper which is where the drawstring elastic can be found (to adjust the diaper). [Video on how to adjust the drawstring elastic coming SOON!] I preferred to use the diaper as an AI2 (you get more bang for your buck if you use it as an AI2 since you can reuse the diaper more than once).

You can see that the insert is much longer than the diaper. That is actually a great feature! Not only does it mean more absorbency for your baby, but it also means that you don't have to buy sized inserts like other AI2 systems. What I do is lay the diaper down like it is shown above. Lay the baby on top of the diaper.

I fold down the insert on the baby as shown above.

Then I stretch the cover up over the insert so that it doesn't bunch up and so it goes up high enough.

Perfect fit!

It is such a trim diaper! We really like this system. We have never had any leaks in this diaper even when the soaker was very wet. I love that it is a one size diaper and that it fits your baby perfectly no matter what your babies body type is! Some OS diapers don't fit right because the rise is too short or the legs are too lose or tight but you never have that problem with the SoftBums diapers!

Another great thing about these diapers is that the cover rarely gets wet or damp like other AI2 diapers that have a micro fleece inner. The back of the insert is wide which helps prevent leaks. Since the insert folds down in the front, there is less of a chance that the cover will be wet by the time you change your baby. We have used this diaper at night and haven't had a leak! Very very amazing! (I used one pod plus the newborn insert)

I would highly recommend this diaper! You can buy it here.

"Changing Diapers" by Kelly Wels Review.

I was excited for the chance to read and review this book. I love talking about cloth diapers to friends and other moms who don't know about modern cloth diapers. I have always wished there was a pamphlet or book I could give to them to help them learn more about how different cloth is today. This book is great for just that! It is simple yet detailed about everything they need to know about cloth diapering.

It took me about 2 hours to finish the whole book (with little breaks here and there in between). The chapters are short and easy to read which is great! Plus the pictures are adorable. Kelly covered everything from different styles of diapers to even using cloth at daycare! She gave great advice on everything. She also gives great websites at the end of the book which is great for moms and dads interested in trying cloth.

I think this is a must have book for every cloth diapering parent! It also would make a wonderful gift for soon to be parents. I plan on giving one to all my pregnant friends and moms interested in trying cloth for the first time.

Kelly is giving each each of my lucky readers a 50% off code! Pre-order your own autographed copy at half price here! Use the code ADDICT to get the book at half price. (The book is normally $17.95 but you can get one for only $8.97) The book will be released on October 1st, 2011.

She is also giving one lucky fan

• 1 OS diaper (Winner gets to choose either a RumpaRooz or FuzziBunz)

• 1 ”I’m a Hip Mom and Love Cloth Diapers”

Eco-Friendly Tattoo

*CLOSED*

To enter:

LIKE Ramblings of a Cloth Diaper Addict on Facebook
LIKE Kelly Wels on Facebook and thank her for the awesome giveaway!

Please leave your Facebook name!

Post a comment saying you are a fan of both pages (1 comment)

For extra entries:

1.) Follow @CDAddict on Twitter (Please leave your Twitter ID)

2.) Follow @KellyWels on Twitter (Please leave your Twitter ID)

3.) Tell me why you want to buy this book

4.) Become a follower of my blog (through Google Friend Connect which is off to the right)

(Please post a separate comment for each of entries)

If you have any problems or questions please feel to email me at addicted2clothdiapers@hotmail.com or post on our Facebook page.

Giveaway will end the night of August 29, 2011

Ever Sew Clever Bowl Covers

I recently bought some reusable bowl covers from Ever Sew Clever and I LOVE them SO much that I am going to be reviewing them : ) They are made of a cute cotton print on the outside layer and a food safe material (water resistant nylon ripstop which is PVC and BPA free!) on the inside. There is also an elastic band to hold onto the bowls for a tight fit.

Here is my custom set she made for me. I sent her the fabric (it matches my kitchen set). I was very impressed with how well it is made. I also bought a snack bag and it too is made very well! Didn't it turn out perfect? I explained what it is to my husband and he seemed interested. The first night we got them we used them on our left overs. Husband was the one to clean up and he told me that they were "Really neat" and that we "Should get more"! How awesome is that? He doesn't really like my whole 'save money by reusing' stuff so I was really shocked that he liked them. He is set in his 'easy' ways (Disinfectant wipes instead of unpaper towels and all purpose cleaners, etc) so I was really blown away that he liked these.

I ended up buying more of these because I love them so much! They keep your food fresh and they are a TON easier to use that plastic wrap. That is why my husband love them so much. He HATES trying to use plastic wrap. It always sticks together and he can't pull it apart but then doesn't stick to the bowls, you know how it is. It's a pain in the butt and expensive!

These are cute and last a long time! All you have to do is wipe it out or wash them in your washer (NOT dishwasher) after you are done using them. SO easy and simple. I let mine air dry and it doesn't take long for them to dry either. She makes them in whatever fabric you want (she has a LOT of cute fabrics here) and makes them in small (6 inch bowls), medium (8 inch bowls), or large (10 inch bowls). I have found that even my larger sizes can fit smaller bowls. The prices are $6.50 (sm), $7.50 (med), and $8.50 (lrg) which is a great price for something you will be using everyday over and over again!

You can find her Etsy page here. Her web page here. Her Facebook here.