Cloth bum mums nappy to see you
Group are in town to pass on advice
A cloth nappy group is visiting Hamilton this week to spread the word about its benefits.
Laura Baxter and Jen Marshall of the Lanarkshire Real Nappy Project will be hosting an event in Castle Street community shop Swaddle on Thursday, February 22, at 6pm.
The event will be an opportunity for people to come down and talk about everything cloth nappies.
Laura (28) said: “Either complete newbies or people who currently use them can pop along to see us at Swaddle.
“There will be a variety of nappies out for people to have a look at, and see all the different options.”
Tea, coffee and cakes will also be available as well as the chance to chat with other mums about cloth nappies, among other things.
Laura added: “We try to arrange monthly meet-ups with the mums within Lanarkshire, so this is an opportunity to reach out to mums who don’t know we’re here.”
The Motherwell mums met at a baby music class back in May 2015, and Jen noticed that Laura’s daughter Oswyn (3) was wearing a cloth nappy.
Jen had also been using cloth nappies on her son David (3), so they instantly bonded and launched the Lanarkshire Cloth Bum Mums in September 2015.
Then the following year they took over the Lanarkshire Real Nappy Project, which also promotes the use of cloth nappies.
Laura said: “Looking at the figures for how long disposable nappies last in landfill really shocked me. It is up to 500 years.
“After research I found that it [cloth] seemed to be better for babies’ skin.
“All the chemicals so close to their skin quite often results in nappy rash or sometimes, in worst-case scenarios, burns.
“So cloth just felt like the right choice for us.”
Jen (29) said: “We took over in May 2016 and quickly built up a demo kit where we go out to people’s houses or locations of their choosing and show them all the different nappies and discuss what might be the best option for them.
“We started doing this because there are so many options in cloth and it’s easy to get lost in it or be put off because of all the different options.
“We wanted to help make it easier for people to get started; make it a little less confusing and daunting.
“Becoming a mum is scary enough without having mountains of information thrown at you, so we aim to answer as many questions as we can and we think the demo kit really helps too.”
The pair hold monthly meetings at various venues with the Lanarkshire Cloth Bum Mums, taking along the kits for people to look at.
And having both just last year given birth to their second babies – Ezra and Luke – the pair decided to really spread the word this year.
Laura said: “We’ve still been kept going over the nine months of being pregnant.
“We did an event in Cumbernauld last month and we’ve still been meeting clients and handing out our demo kits while pregnant and with the babies.
“But we want to be more involved with Swaddle, and having a busy event will help us build a good starting point with them.
“Plus we have never really reached into the Hamilton area so looking to the other side would be great!”
Search for ‘Lanarkshire Cloth Bum Mums’ or ‘Real Lanarkshire Nappy Project’ on Facebook for more about the group and information about cloth nappies.
You can also email Laura. lanarkshireclothmum@gmail.com or Jen.lanarkshireclothmum@gmail.com.
We wanted to help make it easier for people to get started