Fashonista's Review: Washable Breast Pads

In the duration of me being a mom, which is not very long though, roughly about two months and seven days to be exact, I have been fortunate enough to experience breastfeeding (if you've been reading my blog for a while you might have realized that) and breastfeeding comes with (whether you like it or not) leaky breasts. Definitely you would need leaky breasts to be able to breastfeed, otherwise, where would the milk come from, right? To manage leaky breasts, you need to have nursing pads (these comes in two types, disposable and washable) to make sure you don't embarrass yourself in public. I've come to read that later on (which means more than two months of breastfeeding, I presume), your breasts will be more efficient at producing milk, thus leading to less leaky breasts. However, I have yet to experience this efficiency, so I have come to depend on nursing pads to help me manage the let down (this is the term for the leaks that breastfeeding women experience, by the way) and here's my review of the three (fortunately or unfortunately I don't have and need that many) washable breast pads that I have.

Oh, I almost forgot, if you're uncomfortable at me mentioning breasts over and over again, maybe you should stop reading this post (as this is a review on nursing pads there's certainly going to be frequent mentions of the breast in this post).

The first one is Pureen washable nursing pads. These retail for somewhere around RM11 per pair. If you're in Kuching, I bought these at Teck Kong Trading in Tabuan Jaya, it's very near to my home thus the reason for me buying these is simply because it's convenient for me to do so. It only comes in one color, white. The nursing pad has different fabrics on different sides, one side is waterproof (this side of the pad faces your bra) and the other is cotton (this side should face your breast). After using this pad for about a month (I stopped using it once I experienced less let down, I think due to my milk production is getting more efficient), I would have to say that I don't recommend this pad to moms out there. The reason for this is because I find that the breast pads are not that comfortable to use. For one thing, when there's let down, your pads would absorb whatever leakage from your breasts. Unfortunately, this would cause the pad to stick to your nipples thus making it quite sticky and if you are experiencing nipple sore due to breastfeeding it would hurt (not much but it's noticeable) when you're removing the pads from your breasts. And another thing, the breast pads are flat in nature (if you've noticed, a woman's breasts are not flat in nature), thus the pads do not rest comfortably underneath the bra (the pads are unable to mold itself naturally to the breast). So if you're wearing a flimsy bra like the nursing sleep bra, the irregular shape of the pad is quite noticeable underneath your t-shirt.

Following that, I decided to try another brand, Autumnz washable breast pads. These pads comes in four colors, glorious graphite, natural nude, pure white and sugar pink (I don't know why they need to overdo the names of the breast pad colors, I would have preferred grey, cream, white and pink but maybe that's just me). I bought these online (I forgot which store unfortunately) and these are priced at RM15.90 for three pairs. The pads have different fabrics on different sides, one is lace (which faces your bra) and the other is soft cotton (to be used facing the breast). To tell you honestly, I really recommend these pads as they are really soft and comfy, it's contoured to fit the breast and the best part is, it's not sticky even after a let down (psst, it's even cheaper than Pureen). Unfortunately, it doesn't hold well, meaning I do find that sometimes there are milk stains on my shirt despite me wearing a nursing pad. This usually occurs when I've positioned the nursing pad too high up; due to gravity, the milk flow downwards and is not absorbed by the pad, or sometimes because there's too much milk leaking out and the pad is unable to absorb them all. Despite the occasional leakage, this is still my preferred breast pad. 

The last pad that I bought is Philips Avent comfort breast shell. I bought these for RM72 from Little Kids because they offer free shipping on orders above RM100 (if you've purchased as many things online as I have, you might be tempted to save on shipping costs as they could add up to be quite a lot). The reason for me buying this is that it has two functions, it can collect let down when you pump or it can also be used as a breast pad (do note that you are supposed to throw away any milk that is collected when you are using the shell as a breast pad). Unfortunately I only used this shell a couple of times and since then have never used it again. The reason being is that because it is waterproof and non-absorbent, breast milk will pool in the breast shell after a let down and if you are not careful (or just plain clumsy like me), spillage might occur when you're removing the breast shell from your bra. After using it twice and spilling the milk both times I decided to stop using it. And another thing, the shape of the shell is quite noticeable underneath my shirt so I wasn't comfortable with that either. So, I don't recommend this to moms as a breast pad, but as a milk collector when you're pumping, maybe yes, it's quite handy (although I don't use it as a milk collector).

Unfortunately my experience is limited to these three because since I've gotten Autumnz's breast pads, I'm happy with them that I don't need to buy any more pads. Initially I wore the pads night and day (changing them whenever they're soaked or at the very least twice a day). However one month after giving birth, I don't experience as much leakage as I did before, so I only wear the pads whenever I go out to town. That could also contribute to me not needing that many pads. And oh, I almost forgot, all three pads wash easily and dry easily.

Happy shopping peeps!


xoxo Mrs Fashionista

PS: I am not affiliated with Autumnz in any way nor do I earn commission when you buy any Autumnz washable breast pads.

Preparing for the Baby: Cloth Diapering 101

Knowing that I am about to give birth soon, I have gone all out in preparing (buying stuff and etc.) towards cloth diapering my baby. Indeed in my previous post I have mentioned that I am planning to try out cloth diapering (something that surprised even myself because about two months ago me and hubs had bought TWO huge pack of disposable diapers for the baby to use).

My main motivation for cloth diapering is twofold; to reduce on waste and money. In my ignorance (as a first time mommy) I only know now that infants use up to 12 diapers (or more) per day (in the first month or two). A disposable diaper costs about RM0.50 to RM0.70 each (these are non-environmentally friendly ones, the environmentally friendly diapers costs more). This translates to a minimum cost of RM6 - RM8.50 per day or RM180 - RM255 per month (which equals to an average of 360 diapers being thrown out monthly *gasp*). Assuming that the baby uses 12 diapers per day in the first two months and maybe about 8 diapers a day by the third month onwards, you could be looking at spending RM1,560 to RM2,190 in disposable diapers alone for the first year (this equals to 3,120 diapers being thrown out per baby per year *yikes*). This site even claims that the average baby goes through an average of 6,000 disposable diapers before they are potty trained (costing parents between RM3,000 - RM4,200 just for diapers alone). I think that could buy me a Louis Vuitton handbag =).

The costs of diapering didn't alarm me as much as I do expect to spend a reasonable amount of money in the upbringing of my child (as did my parents and other mommies before me) but the thought of contributing thousands of disposable diapers to our landfills from just one child (specifically, my child) gave me quite a rude awakening.

My second motivation is purely for selfish reasons (I'm sure other mommies would agree with me on this). I was told by my friend Khai (and by other mommies in this Facebook group that I've joined) that using cloth diapers leads to less rashes (on the baby's bum) because you need to change the nappy more often than disposables. Less rashes equals to more comfort, better sleep and less fussing, so, let's go for it, I say!

And my final motivation is for the baby itself. I have read that cloth diapered babies are potty trained earlier compared to babies with disposable diapers; some mommies even claimed that their babies were already potty trained by the age of 1 plus and I do hope that my baby would be potty trained as early as possible too.

So I asked my friend Remus for advice on cloth diapering and she told me that cloth diapering has gone a long way from the old flat cloth diapers and plastic 'ikat' pants that we had to wear when we were young (if you're clueless on cloth diapering like I was when I heard all those fancy cloth diapering jargons, you may want to visit this site to find out more). 

The selection of cloth diapers and liners are made based on one objective; convenience (you may be doing cloth but it needn't be difficult). Based on Rem's advice, I decided to settle for All-in-Twos mainly for the convenience of separating and washing the inserts (also known as flats/ prefolds/ soakers) separately from the shells (the technologically advanced version of our plastic 'ikat' pants). Thus I can wash the inserts and still reuse the shells (without having to clean both every time the baby pees/ or poo). Flushable nappy liners was selected also based on convenience; once I'm changing the inserts, I can flush the dirty liner down the toilet (without having to put it in a bin and throw out the trash later) providing less hassle and saving time (hopefully).

After much googling, reading and research, I have decided to go with Grovia Hybrid All-in-Twos, Autumnz Pocket Cloth Diaper (I adore their cute designs) and Bayu Diapers (limited edition) Matrix a try (as much as I'd like to try and save money, I'm actually not that good in being thrifty, most of the time I buy things simply because they're cute or they are a limited edition). For the nappy liner, I have decided to go with Grovia BioLiners but if you like there are other brands selling flushable nappy liners like the Autumnz Stay Dry Diaper Liner (Grovia BioLiners averages at 19.95 cents per piece and Autumnz at 19.90 cents per piece; I bought Grovia only to save postage, it's available locally while I haven't found a store in Kuching selling Autumnz liners). 

And this is what I have so far (it's not much, I know). To those who might be interested in cloth-diapering and are wondering where to get them in Kuching (also as a point of reference for me so that I'd remember where I got them): Grovia Hybrid (also known as All-in-Two) Snaps Woodlands and Nature from Bebe Heaven, Plaza Merdeka at RM60 each, a set of 8 Disney Baby Napkins (flat cloth diapers) from Anakku, tHe Spring at RM28.90 and Grovia BioLiners also from Bebe Heaven, Plaza Merdeka at RM39.90 each. Not in photo, Snappi Nappy Fasteners from Poppies, tHe Spring at RM9.90 per pair, a set of 6 Infant Prefolds at RM48.60 (with additonal Poslaju shipping costs at RM10.50) currently awaiting shipment from BambooLite, 2 Autumnz Cloth Diaper (one Minky Snap Button and one PUL Button) from One Baby World at RM31.92 each (not inclusive of postage at RM9) and one Bayu Diapers (limited edition) Matrix at RM29.90 from Sentuhan Bayu (not inclusive of RM12 postage). Both diapers from Autumnz and Sentuhan Bayu comes with two microfibre insert each and this brings my collection of cloth diapers to a total of 8 flats, 6 prefolds, 6 inserts and 5 All in Twos. Total costs so far, RM382.49.

Based on the advice from my Facebook group and my friend Remus, my current diaper stash is definitely not enough (so if you're thinking that spending only RM380 for cloth diapers is way too cheap, that's only possible because it's not enough). At a minimum I need at least 36 diapers (lasting roughly for about three days at 12 diapers per day) and maybe at the very least 12 shells (the plastic 'ikat' pants). But I do have a feeling that should I continue to cloth diaper my baby until he or she is one years old (or even better, potty trained) I could be saving quite a sum of money from cloth diapering my first child (and the costs of cloth diapers will almost be practically free for my second child onwards, needing only to buy diaper liners and detergent for the cloth diapers).

Since I was in the midst of contemplating on whether I should add more diapers or wait until I know what I'm doing, I decided to learn the methods of folding flat cloth diapers.

Firstly I tried out the instructions at the bottom of my newly acquired Anakku Disney Baby Napkins (I simply adore the Mickey Mouse silhouette prints on these flats!):

And this was the outcome of my first try:

This is also known as the Origami method. However, I think this folding method might be a wee bit too big for a newborn. So I googled around and found a website that teaches you several methods of folding flat diapers:

1. The Triangle

I don't know how leak-proof The Triangle would be but the best part about folding it this way is that you can adjust the size of the triangle according to the size of your baby. So if you have a newborn, and The Triangle is too big for him or her, you can just fold it again to make a smaller triangle that fits =).

2. The Kite-fold

I am thinking that this folding method would be perfect for newborns (unless the newborns are huge to begin with) so I intend to try this folding method first when using flat diapers with the baby.

3. The Terry Square

And this is another method that I liked. I think I'll follow up with this folding method once the baby is bigger (maybe at two or three months of age).

Unfortunately I didn't really agree with some of the folding methods as shown in the website because they looked like they would leak easily.

I am definitely looking forward to cloth diapering and reviewing the cloth diapers that the  baby will be wearing =).

xoxo Mrs Fashionista

Ps: Updated on 28th May 2013

These arrived in the mail today *woot*woot*: 

Skip Hop wipes case that I bought from Merrily Baby at RM45 (not inclusive of RM10 postage), the set of 6 Infant Prefolds from BambooLite, and Bayu Diapers (limited edition) Matrix from Sentuhan Bayu. I didn't mention the wipes case in my earlier writing simply because I don't think they're relevant to cloth diapering (well, they are relevant but they're not a part of cloth diapers if you know what I mean). However, I wanted a wipes case so that I can make/ buy baby wipes in bulk and should I need to carry a small amount with me, I'll just take some from the huge pile that I have and put them in the case (without having to bring the whole big pile with me). So I'm only waiting for my final online purchase of the Minky Snap Button and PUL Button Autumnz Cloth Diaper from One Baby World.

Fashionista's Review: BambooLite Cloth Panty Liner

I have gone green.

No.

That's probably not true.

Before you read more of this post, let me just make one thing clear, I have never aspired to be Captain Planet, or even Mrs Captain Planet. Neither is my husband a candidate for Mr Save-the-Earth (let me think for a moment, nope, he wouldn't even pass the qualifying rounds unfortunately).

Anyway, in my quest to learning more about cloth diapers (you know, the reusable diapers that I'm planning on using for my baby), I have stumbled across a whole new world of alternative environmentally-friendly products (sadly, this goes to show just how small my world is). This company came to me by surprise (interestingly I did not discover it while googling cloth diapers, it actually found me). You know how Facebook now recommends pages that you might like based on the pages you have liked before (beware people, Facebook knows you better than you do yourself), so a few days ago I came across a suggestion for this page: BambooLite (and Facebook also informed me that 3 of my friends like the same page). So I clicked on the page, found out that they were selling cloth diapers and went to their website to get more information on their products.

And this is where my world suddenly opened up and I found out that they were selling cloth feminine pads *gasp* and cloth panty liners (something that I didn't knew even existed). I immediately googled reviews on cloth feminine pads (which I previously thought to have gone extinct since the introduction of disposable feminine pads) and found quite a few positive reviews on the stuff. Since I am not that adventurous (the only adventures that I go on involves exploring foreign countries and not introducing foreign items to my va-jay-jay), I've decided to test the waters by trying out BambooLite's cloth panty liner (and the fact that they're so many pretty designs to choose from helped out in me making that final purchase decision).

Among the designs for cloth panty liners available by BambooLite.

I made an order on Friday and voila, the item arrived three days later, on Monday. I decided not to try them out that very night but rather to wait for the next day so that I'd be testing them for a regular day at the office.

The cloth panty liners, neatly packed in a transparent plastic envelope complete with an instruction manual.

I ordered two cloth panty liners (at RM15 each they totalled to RM30) and also paid for PosLaju shipping cost of RM8.50 thus my total cost for these items only amounted to RM38.50. I would have to confess, my initial attraction to cloth panty liners is mainly due to economical reasons. By opting for cloth panty liners, I do not need to get disposables and therefore save money on future disposable purchases (besides helping the environment by not adding waste, definitely a win-win situation, right?). However, I am cautious in my decision to becoming a convert towards environmentally friendly products and that is why I bought only two of these. I'll buying more once I'm confident that cloth panty liners are here to stay (permanently in my knickers drawer that is).

These are the designs that I opted for: Rings N Bars (left) and Cashew Flowers (right). 

Despite it being a cloth panty liner, the size (they're about 17cm in length) is almost exactly the same as disposable panty liners, I previously assumed that it'd be bigger (and less efficient, being cloth after all). 

On how to wear them; the colorful fabric is the outer fabric, that side of the fabric should rest onto your knickers and the plain minky fabric (in bright orange as in the photo above) will be saying hello to your va-jay-jay (in their website they did mention that the minky fabric does not stain, so that's definitely a plus point). As you can see there are snaps by the side of the panty liner, the snaps are fastened in a way that the panty liner encloses over your panties just like a regular disposable panty liner would.

Storing the panty liners is just as easy, just follow the instructions and once folded, they'll look like this. Washing is also as easy, you just soak them in cold water for 30 minutes then the panty liner can be hand washed or machine washed (washing instructions are also available on their website). 

So how did my day fare as a first time cloth panty liner user? When I first put it on, I felt weird (well, that's due to my preconceived negative thoughts on cloth panty liners and I did have a wild thought on how I would react if I see my cloth panty liner fell to the ground while I was walking?), but the minky fabric felt incredibly soft to the skin. My main concern for panty liners is to keep the private parts dry and comfy (and let me tell you, being pregnant and having to go to the loo every hour or so does not make that easy) so after using BambooLite's panty liner for the day, I'd say that it absorbs moisture really well, keeping my va-jay-jay comfortable and dry during the day. The only con is that I do feel that compared to my disposable panty liners, they are slightly (not much though) bulky, it's like I can feel their presence but it's not that noticeable (maybe it's due to the fact that it's my first time so I'm a little bit self-conscious).

 

And this is my experience on using it for the night. As using it for the night meant that it would be the second time for me using the cloth panty liner, I find myself relaxing and not noticing that it was even there! I find the liner to be as good as disposable (if not better!) and felt comfortable using it throughout the night (despite the regular toilet visits that I have to endure now that I'm in the final week of my pregnancy).

 

The ultimate question is, would I convert to a cloth panty liner user? I certainly do think so. The pros definitely outweigh the cons; they're good for the environment, they last longer than disposable panty liners (that's for sure) and they help you save a pretty penny (so that you can go out and get yourself a pretty bauble as a treat!). Some even say that it's better for health as there are no harmful chemicals involved in manufacturing cloth panty liners (thus no harmful chemicals will be released to your va-jay-jay). And the part I like best about this product is how easy it is to wash them, just three steps, soak, rub with soapy water then rinse. Squeeze the water out and hang it to dry. Easy, right?

 

And the next question, would I try out cloth feminine pads or menstrual pads? I do think it is a possibility in the near future (I think it's like learning to ride a bicycle, initially you'll be learning how to ride on a tricycle, and once you've gotten the hang of it, riding a bike is as easy as ABC). Maybe I'll give the cloth pads a try for my lighter days (during menstruation) and when I feel comfortable (and confident) enough, I'll upgrade to using them all the time during my menses. But one thing for sure, I'll be getting more of these cloth panty liners and leave my disposable ones exclusively for traveling =).

 

Let's go green peeps! It's not only good for Mother Earth, it's also kind to the wallet.

 

 

xoxo Mrs Fashionista

 

Ps: Just in case you were wondering, the panty liner never did fall to the ground like I imagined. It stayed in its designated place minding it's own business, keeping me dry and comfortable *grin*.