Why?
Why in this world would you make your own baby wipes? Well because I can of course. Plus... have you added up how much you might spend in a year on store bought wipes? The brand we typically buy when we purchase from the store (and they aren't the expensive ones) are about $1.80 per pack of 75 wipes. When buying strictly store bought wipes we went through, on average, 3 packs every two weeks. That's over $140 a year. With my homemade wipes we use one roll (which is two sets of wipes... you will see what I mean in a minute) every two weeks. I buy the six pack of Scott Paper Towels which are $5.95 so .99 a roll or about .50 per container of 102 wipes. Once you invest in your other ingredients the paper towels are all that you need. But for the sake of cost figuring... 2 tablespoons of coconut oil is about .18 and one tablespoon of baby shampoo is about .10, and as I said, you are also only using half of the paper towel roll so approximately .50 there for a grand total of .78 for over 100 wipes. This cost per year is around $40 which is about $100 in savings per year.What You Need
I am going to provide the recipe for one container of wipes, which is a half roll of paper towels, however, you can easily double the recipe (which is what I always do) and make two containers using both halves of the paper towel roll.- Half roll of paper towels (Get a good strong paper towel! I have found that Scott or Viva seem to be the best for us.)
- 2 tablespoons of coconut oil
- 1 tablespoons of baby shampoo
- 1 1/2 - 2 cups of water depending on how "wet" you want your wipes
- Plastic bag or container for storage
- Optional: splash of vinegar or witch hazel
How To
Cut your paper towel roll in half using a sharp knife. Be careful because sometimes they can be stubborn to cut if you do not use a very sharp knife. Try to avoid serrated knifes as they will leave the edge looking torn. Boil 1 1/2 cups of water for 5 minutes then remove from heat. Add your coconut oil and baby shampoo to the water and stir until melted. This is where you can add a splash of white vinegar or witch hazel if you would like. I always add one or the other as they have great properties that will help in avoiding rashes as well is aiding in the longevity of the wipes (if you leave them sitting around for more than two weeks you may start to notice some "moldy" looking spots on the outer wipes, using vinegar or witch hazel will help keep those spots away). Place the half roll of paper towels in a bowl and pour about half of the liquid mixture over the top. Let sit for 5-10 minutes then flip the roll over and pour the remaining liquid over the other side. At this point you should be able to pull the cardboard center from the roll very easily. Let sit until cooled and then store in a container with lid or in a gallon size plastic baggie. You can either pull the wipes up from the center of the roll or you can unwrap them from the outside. These wipes will take some getting use to if you have been using a commercial brand but I assure you they get the job done and are well worth their benefits!Live, Laugh, Love and DIY!
**If you try these wipes or have any questions please leave me a comment below! Also, if you have any suggestions I would love to hear them!**
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