Soaked
This has been really bugging me. Don't ask me why, but clearly it's bugging me to the point that I'm going to share it with all of you. Hand knit soakers. Why why why why why do people make these things?
Let me back up. Hand knit soakers are all the rage in the world of knitting. All the rage. They are all over Ravelry, all over Knitty Bloggy Baby Bumpers, everyone is making hand knit soakers. They are wool diaper covers that all moms who are better than I am use to cover cloth diapers. Cloth diapers that are used to save the environment and prove they are better moms than I ever was during the 6 years I purchased disposable diapers in my diabolical way to help clog up the land fills and aid in destroying the earth. I also use hairspray in an aerosol can.
So, many knitters are making these wool soakers to cover the cloth diapers. Here is my issue. Knitters are making them out of 100% unwashable wool. Unwashable wool. Wool that will shrink the soaker to the size of your Barbie doll's butt if you wash it. Wool that CANNOT BE WASHED. AFTER COVERING A LEAKING DIAPER. Two regular knitters that come to the shop have been making these soakers for their kids. They are making them out of this darling hand spun wool that CANNOT BE WASHED. Now keep in mind that there is a lot of washable wool out there. A lot. In fact, I sold some Cascade 220 to one them for this very purpose the other day and when I tried to direct her to our enormous display of Cascade 220 SUPERWASH, she said, no, she wants the regular stuff. Seriously. She made a point of choosing the unwashable wool over the machine washable wool. So I just had to ask her the obvious question: How does she wash her soakers?
Her answer? When they need to be washed, she just hand washes them. When they need to be washed? WHEN? In other words, there are times when they don't need to be washed? There are times when the soaker, which is covering a leaking diaper, doesn't warrant a good spin in the sanitizing cycle of the washing machine? And she has time to hand wash these things? What--does she have 239 pairs? I barely have time to hand wash my kids, let alone their fine unmentionables. I don't hand wash my own clothing.
Seriously, this is really bothering me. People come into the shop all the time to buy yarn for baby projects. And every sweater, hat, and blanket must be machine washable. I hear it time and time again. People want to make washable items for babies. And yet, that criteria does not seem to apply for the one item that, in my humble opinion, should be boiled into oblivion.
I'm sure someone will read this and comment on the evils of disposable diapers and try to educate me on why superwash wool destroys their baby's brain cells or something of that nature. But honestly, you can say anything you like and it won't change my opinion of unwashable diaper covers.
Tiffany, if I ever see one of these things on that new baby of yours that you are about to issue forth, I will gently rip it from his tiny little body and ever so carefully protect him with a nice sanitary Pampers.
And P.S. don't your kids get HOT?
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5 comments:
all I did was look at the picture and think, ok - what am I going to tell Jen about her latest knitting invention. Thank GOD you're not knitting those. How do those help with absorbency, and wouldn't they itch when they got wet? Those are THE MOST RANDOM thing I've ever seen - next to the reusable maxi pad.
Ooh, ooh, I've got it. They're actually for the poser moms who want to make it look like they're all environmentally conscious. They put them over the disposable diapers to give the appearance of a cloth covering and thereby obtain the approval of those with their nose in the air.
So now, not only is your child WET all the time (because of the cloth), but itchy, too??!! And, with a permanent wedgie due to the shrinkage?
Good grief. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for making all our (adorable!) baby gifts out of WASHABLE materials. My kids barfed so much I would NEVER have gotten the smell out otherwise.
Ugh. I feel sick just thinking about it.
On another note, can I just say how glad I am to be past the whole diaper-debate phase?!
~Leah
my pink toes
I used cloth nappies and plastic pants. Did my kids no harm and in my day the disposable nappies leaked a lot from my observations. We don't use wool soakers here in Australia, I just put it down to another of those crazy yankee ideas, like knitting your own disclothes, we just don't do that here. We aren' big on knitted socks either. Wool soakers are just that, they are not waterproof, and I would see the need to have to change the soakers every nappy change, or they would stink. And who needs wet sheets all the time??? Or do the soakers go over disposable nappies??????
I don't care what you knit for Blake, and I don't care when he gets it. All I ask is that it NOT be hand-wash only! These women are crazy.
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