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SELAMAT TINGGAL 2010, SELAMAT DATANG 2011!

We would like to wish all of Cloth Diaper Malaysia’s readers a HAPPY  & BLESSED NEW YEAR! May the new year bring joy, success, happiness and health to you and your families. Keep up the good work of giving the best for your families by choosing an eco-friendly, natural and healthy lifestyle!

2010 has been a memorable year for me. Why? It was the year my first baby was born – and he taught me a lot of things about life, he made me think about the choices I had to make, he made me more aware about the importance of health and well-being. Yes, if it weren’t for this little person, I wouldn’t have lead this sort of lifestyle that I have on today!

Let’s review what were my favourite Cloth Diaper things (and more!) that I have used, reviewed and in the end, fallen in love with for the year 2010!

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1. Value-for-money Malaysian cloth diaper brands - It was a good year for the local Cloth Diaper market. Malaysia should pride herself for producing local brands which were not only wallet-friendly, but also delivered superior quality like the international brands. Not to mention, the growing number of entrepreneurial mothers who custom & make their cloth diapers, and also those who start their own online shops. Let’s see more Malaysian cloth diaper brands in 2011! My favourites: BambooLite diapers, Bouncy Baby diapers.
2. The growing Cloth Diaper community – I have been hanging out with other moms who cloth diapers on the Diapers Asia forums and made many new friends. It’s great to also see many newbies who are interested to switch to cloth diapers! Throughout the year too, the list of Malaysian Cloth Diaper Moms grew, and recently – there was a Facebook Group called “Malaysian Cloth Diapering Parents” was launched, and allowed an even bigger and happening community of conscious parents who are in love with cloth diapering! Keep it up everyone!
3. Organic & natural fabrics - We all know that cloth diapers are made from many different types of fabric. As for me, I have several favourites, for example, I really love pocket diapers which have microsuede inner lining like the ones from Moo Moo Kow and also Bouncy Baby. However, my favourite items are made from natural or organic fibers such as bamboo, hemp and cotton. They are not only safer, healthier and more eco-friendly, they also have such qualities like antibacterial, super soft materials, and good absorbencies. I love the bamboo and organic fabric-made products from Baby-Mel, Itti Bitti & BambooLite; organic cotton All-In-2 diapers from GroVia, the gorgeous Envibum diapers which is also made from cotton, and any brand of hemp inserts!
4. Switching to Cloth Pads – If our babies are benfiting from using cloth products, why not us mums too? If you haven’t already known the dangers of feminine disposable products, please read about it here! I first started using cloth liners to replace my daily disposable panty liners while I was pregnant, and I have never bought any disposable products since then! Currently, I’m a 100% Cloth Pad/Liner user, I use cloth liners daily, I used Cloth Pads during my confinement (post-partum), and recently for every time I have my period. I can thank Mama Patch for introducing me to the wonders of cloth, and the other brands I have tried are Momiji, Saffa and Snexy. I will definitely try out more brands!
5. Prefolds, Flats & Covers, my perfect newborn cloth diapering solution – This was when my cloth diapering journey started. As an excited first time mom, I initially had problems with my cloth diapering experience. Cloth diapering a newborn was indeed a unique experience, and after trial and error sessions, I went back to basics with the prefolds, flats and diaper cover option, and it worked best for me and baby. It was simple, versatile, less hassle and 100% cloth and comfy! I used the basic flat diapers (kain lampin) and Freshbots prefolds, doubled them up with boosters and inserts, and used them along with newborn-sized diaper covers from Thirsties. Please read more about how I cloth diaperes my newborn baby here.

I hope you have enjoyed your journey to a eco-friendly and healthy living too. I also wish that Cloth Diaper Malaysia has managed to share with you some useful and valuable information about cloth diapering and more. I’m very happy for all the friends I have met in the past year, and hope that we will continue to support and share with each other, for better living in 2011 and beyond!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

About Momiji Natural Cloth Pads (info taken from My Precious):

• Washable and reusable menstrual pad
• Surface material: 100% cotton flannel; Inner core: 100% cotton fabric
• High absorbent power and has special leak-proof lining
• Can be folded compactly using the button fasteners

I received one Medium sized MOMIJI Natural pad in “Purple Flowers” pattern for reviewing. It is meant to be used for normal flow periods. Here it is:

I prewashed once as instructed in the label, and used it for 2 months (during menses).

What I Like:

• Very straight-forward and easy to use design
• The 2 snap button adjustment allows me to fit them with my, ahem, different types of panties (midi? bikini? low waist? high waist? G-string maybe??! )
• Easy to care for – Durable enough for machine washing (some Cloth Pads are better off hand washed), but just ensure no softener is used!
• The inner cotton fabric gets fluffier and thicker after each wash – The absorbency gets better too this way

What I Don’t Quite Like:

• The fasteners were not the usual plastic resin snaps I’m used to. They are lead free buttons (some sort of metal material) – My first thought was, “Won’t these rust or something?!” But of course they wouldn’t rust..
• The surface material could have been softer, I find it to be a little coarse/rough
• In terms of thickness and texture, I felt like I was wearing a regular disposable pad (Compared to fleece material pads, which tends to be slimmer in design).

This is another brand of Cloth Pads that I have added to my collection It’s great now that I can fully use Cloth Pads and Liners daily, no more disposables! In the long run, using these will definitely save a lot on my expenses, and I absolutely love the health benefits that comes along with using Cloth Pads!

MOMIJI Natural cloth pads are available in sizes Small, Medium, Large and Night. They come in a variety of prints too. Also, the MOMIJI One Zipper Purse is suitable to be used to carry your pads on the go.

If you are interested to get these, they are available at http://syadreamzsew.blogspot.com/

Read up more about Cloth Pads/Liners here too: Cloth Pads/Liners Articles. Cloth Diaper Malaysia loves to review products! If you want me to review your product, please Contact Me

Sangat menjengkelkan apabila kita mahu melakukan sesuatu untuk alam sekitar, tapi orang di sekeliling kitatidak memahami atau sungguh ‘ignorant’ mengenai hal tersebut. Contohnya begini:

Satu hari RABU yang indah, saya pun pergi ke pasaraya untuk membeli-belah, sambil menjinjing beg membeli-belah saya sendiri (cloth bag). Semasa di kaunter pembayaran:

Saya: Cik, takpe. Tak payah beg plastik ye. Masukkan je dalam beg saya ni.

Juruwang: Eh, kenapa pulak? Hari ni bukan hari SABTU, plastik percuma je hari ni, tak payah bayar 20 sen. (Di negeri Selangor, setiap hari Sabtu adalah “No Plastic Bag Day” – beg plastik dicaj 20 sen setiap satu)

Saya: Takpe laaaah… Takkan hari Sabtu je nak bantu alam sekitar kot…. Kan? *sambil memberikan senyuman yang paling manis*

Jurujual: *buat muka blur dan masih tak faham* (Agaknya dia tengah fikir: “Pelik orang ni, benda free pun tak nak.”

Macam itulah kan. Nak buat macam mana. Kalau kita kurang kesedaran sivik, kita mungkin hanya “menyelamatkan alam sekitar” pada setiap hari Sabtu sahaja kerana kedekut/sayang hendak bayar beg plastik 20 sen. (Tapi kalau pergi grocery shopping mingguan yang memerlukan berbeg-beg, banyak juga jumlah yang perlu dibayar, betul tak…?)

Banyak caranya untuk melakukan sesuatu untuk alam sekitar, walaupun nampak remeh dan mudah. Kata orang putih: “A little bit goes a long way”. Jika anda adalah pengguna Cloth Diaper, walaupun hanya di waktu siang atau seminggu sekali, tahniah – anda tetap telah melakukan bahagian anda untuk mengurangkan sampah-sarap berbentuk Disposable Diapers di atas muka bumi kita ini. Jika belum lagi menggunakan CDs, bermakna anda belum cukup menelaah website ini, hehe!

Selain itu, apa lagi yang boleh anda lakukan? Oleh kerana ini adalah website CLOTH Diaper Malaysia, saya akan memberi cadangan dari segi penggunaan Cloth atau kain berbanding “disposables”. Produk-produk ini bukan sahaja mesra alam, tetapi mungkin boleh menjimatkan wang dan juga lebih elok untuk kesihatan:

Bertukarlah kepada Cloth untuk produk-produk ini:

1) Cloth Pads & Liners

• Tuala wanita pakai buang bukan sahaja memakan belanja bulanan yang banyak, tetapi juga berbahaya untuk kesihatan wanita. Baca lebih lanjut di sini: Cloth Pads in Malaysia & Adakah Tuala Wanita Berbahaya?

2) Cloth Bags

• Elakkan penerimaan beg plastik semasa membeli-belah. Sungguh membazir dan menambahkan sampah-sarap sahaja! Jika terpaksa, guna semula beg plastik untuk mengalas tong sampah, jangan dibuang begitu sahaja! Oleh itu, bawalah beg sendiri semasa membeli-belah!

3) Reusable Breast Pads

• Ini juga satu lagi produk yang mungkin kita tidak endahkan. Semasa jangka masa anda memberi susu ibu kepada anak anda, jangan lagi menggunakan disposable breast pads. Ia juga satu pembaziran dan mungkin juga membahayakan kesihatan. Gunakan Cloth Breast Pads yang boleh dibasuh dan diguna berulang kali!

4) Cloth Wipes

• Lupakan sahaja jenama-jenama Baby Wet Wipes yang ada di luar sana! Mengapa perlu menggunakan produk pakai buang jika ada alternatif lain yang mesra alam? Gunakan Cloth Wipes!

5) Cloth Napkins

• Semasa jamuan makan, majlis hari jadi, kenduri-kendara, kita biasanya “menghidangkan” kertas tisu atau paper napkins untuk tetamu kita bukan? Apa kata menggunakan Cloth Napkins pula? Mesra alam pun satu, tetapi ianya juga lebih elegan dan sofistikated berbanding tisu! Nampak mewah gitu.

Produk-produk Cloth yang ingin kita gunakan tidak perlulah comel-comel seperti gambar di atas… Tetapi jika ianya boleh memberikan kita kepuasan dan kita juga seronok apabila menggunakannya, bukankah itu satu lagi alasan yang bagus untuk menjadi mesra alam?

Lebih menarik lagi, jika anda mempunyai minat atau kemahiran menjahit, produk-produk di atas juga boleh dibuat sendiri dengan corak dan design yang unik dan tersendiri! Satu lagi kepuasan untuk diri kita.

Kesimpulannya, cuba anda kurangkan atau jangan guna sama sekali produk-produk “pakai sekali dan buang” atau disposables. Amat mudah untuk menjadi seseorang yang mesra alam dan sayangkan alam sekitar! Amat penting juga agar kita memupuk nilai ini kepada anak-anak kita. Ini juga bumi mereka, dan kesedaran sebegini amat mudah untuk diajar semasa mereka masih kecil lagi. Semoga mereka juga boleh hidup di dalam dunia yang indah sebegini di masa hadapan juga Amin.

SOALAN: Berapa item di atas ini yang sudah pun anda gunakan?

Lalala! My cloth pads package has arrived!! *happy* Always happy to receive fluffy mail (but this time it’s MUMMY’S fluffy mail )

These are Saffa pads from Mum7kids. I bought 3 packages worth RM43 each, plus shipping which includes:

• 1 pantyliner
• 1 medium pad
• 1 heavy pad

(so I have 9 pieces altogether)

First Impressions:

• Medium Pads: I love the looks of these! Very well made, it’s contoured and shapely. Looks very comfortable, and the printed flannel are really cute!
• Heavy Pads: Made from fleece material on the surface, so it feels very soft. They look so HUGE and bulky though, looks quite intimidating. I am wondering whether they’ll be comfortable for use. But it is called “Heavy” pads for a very functional reason right? On second thought, I think those disposable overnight/maxi pads from the supermarket are way THICKER compare to these…
• Pantyliners: Seemed to be larger than my previous Mama Patch pantyliners (read my review of that here). We’ll see how these will fare.
• The prints are really fun, you can choose the fabric and color combinations since it’s made to order. How nice is that!

Saffa medium pads – I really liked these (photo from Mum7Kids).

I really think this is a deal. You may buy the Saffa cloth pads/pantyliners individually, but when you add them all up, it is definitely cheaper to buy in bulk packages like this. There are other package combinations available too.

This will be my first time trying out cloth pads, previously I have only used cloth pantyliners (and I’m a convert – no more disposable panty liners for me please!) I’m planning to use these during my postpartum period soon in February, will post up a review on them when I get the chance

You can check out these Saffa brand homemade cloth pads by Mum7Kids here: Mum7Kids.

P.S: Oh, I’m also waiting for another cloth pad package from SNUGG too. *hehehe* Is this one cloth pad too many? *shrugs* I’m planning to convert FULLY to cloth anyway, so I think this would be a good starting stash for myself

Read also about Cloth Pads/Liners in Malaysia and my very first experience with cloth pantyliner from Mama Patch.

Ok, I have to admit -I am already a Cloth convert. My first experience with Cloth for Women and I am wondering, why I haven’t discovered Cloth from the very beginning!?

As referred to my previous post about Cloth Pads/Liners in Malaysia, the first brand of Cloth Pads I tried were Cloth Panty Liners from Mama Patch. I obtained them from the Fabulous Mom retail shop in Puchong. When I first saw the bunch of colourful Cloth Pads bundled up on the shelf, I wondered “What are those?” I was a little bit skeptical about using CLOTH, so I picked up 2 pieces of Cloth Liners just because I thought they were cheap enough for a try. They were priced at RM9.90 each.

Here’s my review of the Mama Patch Liners:

PROS:

• Comfortable material: What a relief after my experience of daily disposable panty liner wearing all this while! It feels like I could “breathe” and just like wearing cotton panties Also, no more glue from disposable liners sticking in between your legs (very annoying!).
• Easy to use: The snaps are very convenient and easy to put on your panties, and it looks really cute when bunched up and snapped into a “square” during storage
• Easy to wash: I just rinse it with cold water in the shower, then soak it in handsoap/mild detergent for the night. I didn’t rub too much to ensure the fabric doesn’t wear out. Then just hang to dry!
• It’s reversible: If at any time during the day you want a fresh clean layer, just snap it on the other way around, just like changing to a new one! It’s ingenious!
• No more discomforts: I used to have minor discomforts, discharge and itchiness when I used disposable liners, and once I started with cloth, they’re gone! Seriously, there were days when I didn’t manage to dry the cloth liners for use the next day and I had to use the disposables –at the end of the day the problems came back! Wow, it just shows how good using Cloth is on your body (and intimate area).

CAN BE IMPROVED:

• More colours: The liners come in solid colours only. They are still very nice and obviously not related to its main function, but still seeing cute patterns and designs can really perk up your day!
• Wear & Tear: I only have 2 liners that I rotate to use, so it is justifiable that they are fading and wearing out (fabric starts to “berbulu”) after 2 months of daily washing. (Yes, I know have to get more!) To use a higher quality material perhaps?

I can say I am a VERY pleased user of these Cloth Liners from Mama Patch. They are such a wonderful experience that it got me changing to Cloth completely. Yes, that’s right, I am not going to spend my money on disposable liners anymore! I can’t wait to get my hands on more Cloth Liners, and also venture into Cloth Pads too! I don’t remember how it was anymore to have my period because I’m in my 7^th month of pregnancy, but I will be stocking up Cloth Pads for my post-partum, Insyaallah

Well done Mama Patch!

Get more info about Mama Patch Cloth Liners here: http://www.mamapatch.com/category/modern-cloth-pad/

Read also about Cloth Pads/Liners in Malaysia.

Dalam dunia moden kita kini, amat mustahil mahu mencari sesuatu yang betul-betul “selamat” dan tidak memudaratkan. Dengan adanya kuasa-kuasa besar syarikat korporat yang mahu menjual pelbagai jenis produk dan jenama – semuanya atas dasar keuntungan, dengan menjaja nama “kemudahan, penjimatan dan teknologi”.

Tetapi benar kah? Terlalu banyak produk pakai buang (disposable) yang berebut-rebut mahukan perhatian di pasaraya dan di iklan televisyen/surat khabar/majalah. Produk-produk sebegini digelar Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCGs), di mana ianya mempunyai jangka hayat yang pendek (pakai & buang) dan memberikan faktor kemudahan kepada pengguna. Kita pula terlalu sibuk dengan kehidupan seharian dan mahu menjimatkan masa sebanyak mungkin sehinggakan tidak terfikir akan bahaya yang mungkin ada pada produk-produk seperti ini.

BAHAYA PRODUK PAKAI BUANG (DISPOSABLES)

Dioxin (Proses Pemutihan)

• Tuala wanita, tampon dan lampin pakai semuanya berwarna putih, bukan? Ini kerana majoriti produk-produk ini melalui proses pemutihan kain kapas (bleaching) yang menggunakan bahan kimia bernama Dioxin. Jumlah akhir Dioxin yang wujud mungkin kecil, tetapi bahan kimia ini boleh berkumpul di dalam badan kita kepada jumlah yang berbahaya selepas penggunaan yang berterusan. Cuba bayangkan, kaum wanita menggunakan produk-produk sebegini setiap bulan semenjak remaja sehingga menopaus, berapa banyakkah Dioxin yang akan berkumpul dalam badan kita?
• Dioxin dikaitkan dengan penyakit-penyakit seperti: Endometriosis, Keradangan pelvik, Kanser payu dara, Kanser ovari, Kecacatan bayi, Keguguran, Masalah kesuburan, Diabetes dan Kerosakan sistem imun.
• Produk-produk yang diperbuat daripada bahan sintetik rayon (untuk fungsi penyerapan lebih) juga mempunyai Dioxin.

Bahan Kimia dari Racun Serangga

• Tuala wanita, tampon dan lampin pakai buang diperbuat dari kapas. Tanaman kapas ini disembur dengan bahan kimia seperti racun serangga dan pembunuh kuman yang mempunyai bahan kimia bernama Furan. Bahan kimi ini juga kekal dalam produk-produk ini dalam jangka masa yang lama dan boleh berkumpul dalam badan kita.
• Furan dikaitkan dengan: Kecacatan bayi, Bayi pra-matang, Kemandulan, Gangguan fungsi thyroid, Gangguan kestabilan hormon,  Diabetes dan Endometriosis.

Bahan Plastik, Pewangi Dan Penyah-Bau (Fragrances & Deodorants)

• Pewangi & penyah-bau ditambah semasa pemprosesan untuk “mewangikan dan meyamankan” keadaan. Ianya boleh menyebabkan alergi kulit dan mengganggu kestabilan vagina.
• Plastik yang digunakan untuk lapisan “dry weave” atau “dry feel cover” boleh menyebabkan alergi kulit, infeksi vagina dan kegatalan.

Penggunaan Tampon: Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS)

• Penyakit ini amat biasa kepada pengguna tampon. Jika tampon digunakan untuk waktu yang lama, bakteria Staphylococcus aureus akan tumbuh di dalam vagina, dan ianya membebaskan toksin dan bahan beracun ke dalam saluran darah.
• TSS sangat bahaya! Ia boleh menyebabkan tekanan darah turun secara mendadak dan lebih teruk, kematian!
• Tampon juga mungkin boleh menyebabkan: Cirit-birit, Muntah-muntah, Pening dan  Demam.

Bahan-bahan yang Tidak Diketahui

• Kebanyakan produk pakai buang dibuat di negara China dan India (untuk jimat kos lah, apa lagi?) Bahan-bahan dan cara pemprosesan mungkin tidak diiktiraf, tidak dijalankan pemeriksaan dan diberitahu diberitahu umum. Kita tak akan tahu apa lagi bahan-bahan kimia lain yang ditambah ke dalam produk-produk ini!

Tiada Tarikh Luput

• Tuala wanita, tampon dan lampin pakai buang juga tidak ada jangka hayat atau “expiry date.” Kita tidak tahu bila ianya dihasilkan, dan berapa lama ianya sudah berada di dalam pasaraya. Mungkin sudah berbulan atau bertahun! Apakah kesan menggunakan produk-produk yang sintetik, dan juga mungkin telah luput?

Kesemua fakta di atas dipetik dari sumber dari internet. Untuk kepastian, kita boleh lah bertanyakan lebih lanjut dengan pakar kesihatan atau doktor peribadi. Namun begitu, dengan informasi yang telah ada, adakah kita masih mahu menggunakan produk-produk yang mungkin membahayakan kesihatan kita ini?

Penggunaan produk alternatif seperti tuala wanita organik dan Cloth Pads & Liners mungkin pilihan yang lebih bijak! Rujuk pula mengenai Cloth Pads & Liners di Malaysia.

Cloth Pads from Mama Patch (link below)

Mummies, women and girls can wear cloth pads as an alternative to sanitary napkins and panty liners. The advantages of using cloth pads can be similar to using cloth diapers:

1. It’s comfortable!: The feel of cloth on the skin compared to plastic-ky disposable pads
2. It’s suitable for sensitive skin: If you are prone to infections, itchiness, rashes –it can be a solution because it has no chemicals in it!
3. Less odors: The bad smell/odors from disposable pads actually come from the reaction of chemicals with your bodily fluids.
4. Saves costs: Because it’s reusable and will last you years, you can buy a few and use it many times (no need to spend on pads/panty liners each month - can spend on baby’s Cloth Diapers instead )
5. Less environmental waste: Nothing is thrown away, which means less waste in our landfills!
6. They’re cute too!!: Too many pretty and funky patterns to choose from (can’t have that with disposable pads right ?)

I guess some will be scared of the prospect of using cloth pads because of the washing it requires. We might feel grossed out, but actually it IS stuff from our bodies anyway, what’s the big deal? Looking around at the information, it isn’t really so difficult to manage – just rinse and hand wash/throw in washing machine!

Personally for me, I haven’t tried out cloth pads meant for that time of the month (periods). However, I do use disposable panty liners on a daily basis, so I really wanted to give cloth panty liners a try before I start experimenting with cloth pads. Besides, it’s cheap enough to trial out before fully switching to cloth perhaps.

If you want to give cloth pads or panty liners a try, here are some Malaysian brands or blogshops selling them. (The links will take you directly to the cloth pads/liners category):

1. Mama Patch – This was the first brand I tried out and I’ll review it soon
2. My Luvly Pad *Thanks Eleena for the link!*
3. Mum7Kids – Carries Saffa brand Cloth Pads & Liners (would really like to try these soon)
   
4. Blu[e] Boutique – Carries BluCotton brand Cloth Pads & Liners
5. Baby-Mel.com – Carries Fresh Moon Organic cloth pad.
6. Mia Bambina
7. Baby Sasha n Mom
8. Tiny Tapir
9. Lil Danzell
10. Nice Cloth Diaper
11. SnuggBaby
12. Lunatots

(Gee, I really wish I could try one of each!!!)

Did I miss out on any blogshops/shops? Want to link your items here? Drop a comment below and I’ll add to the Cloth Pad database on this page

Next related posts: I’ll search the blogs for cloth pads and liner reviews from Malaysia. Mama Patch pantyliner review.

*Question: Has anyone tried cloth pads or liners before? Would you try them? Do drop a line here and share your thoughts!