are you taking the flats challenge? and giveaway

Are you doing the Flats Challenge this year?
if you do not know what it is check it out over at Dirty Diaper Laundry

i did the challenge 2 years ago. i have not participated since the first year since my little one has been using the potty. so this year i would love to help someone else try the challenge.

prior to taking the challenge i had never used a flat or hand washed diapers. i started cloth diapering with prefolds and pins. when i took the challenge i was using prefolds and covers, so it wasn't a huge change.. but it did take some adjusting. my first few tries at folding and putting them on were not so great...

but i got better quickly

while the challenge gave my arms quite a workout after making it through the week i had such a feeling of accomplishment and pride. i felt prepared if we ever faced a state of emergency that required us to hand wash. i did use a few prefolds which i found we needed for night time (because i tried to make flats work but they were not enough alone) and with hand washing i couldn't believe how clean they were. i also had a renewed sense of the impact that cloth diapering can have for families that cannot afford diapers, that even someone without steady access to laundry facilities.

i used 5 covers, 4 PUL and 1 wool and flats. i made a makeshift campstyle washer out of my diaper pail and a new plunger that i drilled several holes in to decrease the water resistance. i used my regular laundry soap, Purex free and clear (local for easy accessibility) and tea tree oil in the rinse

so now for the fun.  when i did the challenge i did not have any flats so i picked up a few packs of flour sack towels at our local target (i wanted to stay local to prove the accessibility of flats and to keep costs down) i thought they worked great. they are currently $3.99 for a 4 pack and you can find diaper pins st Kmart $2.50 for a pack of eight. i also picked up some gerber flats to try but only used those as back up because they did not seem to work as well. 

if you do not have any covers you can start with the cheapest option of Gerber pull on covers, w they may not be the best choice in covers they are incredibly affordable at $6 for a pack of 4. i used these when i first started cloth diapering and they did work just fine

i am giving away 2 sets of the same flour sack towels. they are no longer carrying the colored ones so i hand dyed half of each set. each set will be 8 flour sacks, not enough for a full set but enough to you started.

one set includes 2 baby blue and 2 gray and 4 white undyed and 2 diaper pins
the other includes 2 pink 2 gray and 4 white undyed and 2 diaper pins
* i will let the first winner pick and the second winner picked will get the other color








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