Monday, April 30, 2012

Meet the Team - April of April's Baby

Today I'd like to introduce you to April of April's Baby on Etsy. April is joining us from Toronto, Ontario.


Hi April, it's nice to meet you. To begin, where did you get the name for your shop?

My husband picked the name. He didn't get to name the kids so I figured I could let him have this:) Really, it was easy. My name, plus baby items...you get the picture. As well, April (the month) makes me think of hope, renewal, new beginnings...all the things a new baby brings.


What makes your products unique?

Every item is handmade by me. I only purchase limited amounts of fabric so most items are truly one of a kind.


What are your most popular items, and why do you think they're so appealing?

Hands down, my most popular item is the one size diaper cover. They are appealing for a number of reasons. Being one size ( 8-35 lbs) they are a really good value for money. They are good quality and they are pretty cute. I use a cotton fabric outer and a polyurethane laminate inner. So, they are waterproof but the fabric outer makes them unique. I like fashionable little babies.


What made you decide to open your business?

I wasn't really happy with my cloth diapering options. I wanted cloth diapers that were hip and modern; fresh and fun without being too cutesy and babyish. I wanted items that matched my own personal sense of style. So, I decided to make my own. I never had any inkling that it would turn into anything more than just a way to diaper my babies. But, people seemed to like them. It's definitely become more than I ever imagined...but it's great!


What's been the most challenging part of running your own business?

I think that my struggles are familiar to most parents. I try to strike the right balance between my day job, running my own business and family but it isn't easy. I have three little ones that need my love and affection. They keep me pretty busy and now that they are starting to get involved with school, sports and other activities it's always go, go, go! That and receipts. I am terrible at keeping receipts. My accountant is always on my case about it.


Has anything been easier or more difficult than you imagined it would be?

Building a clientele is hard work. I want people to trust my brand and feel confident in their purchases but that of course takes time. I am in no hurry though! I really want people to be happy with their purchases!


Why do you like selling on Etsy?

Etsy is a great community. I feel really lucky to be among such creative and talented individuals.


How long have you been sewing?

I cannot answer that directly as some of our readers may excel in mathematics. It may date me. However, I will say that my first sewing experiences were in junior high home economics class. I'm glad that I paid attention.


At the moment, what's your favorite thing to make?

Anything newborn...newborn all in ones, newborn covers, newborn fitteds..I adore making teeny, tiny, squishy diapers for wee ones. Newborn babies have a very special place in my heart and I absolutely swoon when I see a brand new babe sporting a cloth diaper. I am melting just thinking about it!


Why is cloth diapering important to you?

I can honestly say that I haven't always been cloth diaper crazy. I toyed with the idea when I was pregnant with my oldest son and daughter but it never really amounted to much.


It wasn't really until my daughter began suffering from chronic kidney infections that cloth diapering entered our lives. She suffered through so many infections I had a list of things she could and could not do, things she could and could not eat. She had tests and more tests and so many rounds of antibiotics but a definate cause was never discovered.


Finally just in a random conversation our physician, she suggested that the chemicals in the diapers could be to blame for her problems. That was really all I had to hear. I went straight home and ordered every cloth diaper possible. I am happy to say that she has been infection free for over a year and a half and while I have no scientific proof, I am pretty confident that the switch to cloth is the reason. Needless to say, when #3 made his debut, he went straight into cloth.


I can also say that cloth diapers has awakened something inside of me and made me a better, more thoughtful person. I work with my local midwives and use my business to help cloth diaper babies in families who are experiencing difficult times. But aside from that, cloth has helped me to be more conscious of the choices that I make each day and it helping me to set a better example for my children. I feel really good about that and truly cloth diapering started it all!


What's your favorite diaper to use at home?

That depends on who is doing the diaper changing. During the day I am a prefold and covers kind of girl. I just love the absorbency and simplicity. My husband is a pockets kind of guy. At night, organic bamboo fleece and a wool cover. That is the only thing that keeps my heavy wetter dry!


Do you have a favorite cloth diapering memory?

When my son was just a few months old I took him to a massage clinic that was being run by students at a local college. He was rocking his cloth diaper and one of the students starting asking questions about it. Pretty soon, the entire class, the instructor and many other moms were hovered around us asking all kinds of questions about cloth diapering. It was a really great experience. And my son loved the attention.


Where do you find your inspiration?

Inspiration is all around me. I am a slave for fashion, so I draw a lot of inspiration from current fashion trends. My older two children tell me what they like and don't like as well and they have some pretty discriminating tastes. I also draw inspiration from fellow Etsy cloth diaper team members. I am in the company of some very talented and very creative individuals. I try to make sure that I have something for everyone.


Do you have anything new going on now, or coming soon?

1. Inserts. What's a cute cover without a really great insert to put in it?

My serger has been crying out for some attention so there will definitely be some bamboo trifolds unveiling themselves in the near future.


2. I would like to do something for mamas. I want my shop to be a one stop shop for moms and moms to be. Keep checking in...


Is there anything else you'd like to tell us?
I am just really grateful to be able to share my passion with others. I am thankful to my friends and family for their support! And of course my customers are amazing.

Where can we find your products?

www.etsy.com/shop.aprilsbaby

I adore custom work so don't be afraid to ask! aprilsbaby@hotmail.ca

www.facebook.com/aprilsbabyclothdiapers


Sunday, April 29, 2012

Eco tip of the day - Gift-giving!


For the past several years, my family and I have changed the way we do gift-giving.  Whether it is someone's birthday, a certain holiday or even a present given "Just because", we have decided to change how we approach each gift.

Before we re-evaluated our gift-giving habits, we lived with constant unspoken rules such as "So-and-so always gets a DVD box set for such-and-such TV show".  "Your mom gets something crafty, from Michael's."  "My mom gets anything to do with tea, whether it is purchased at Chapters, Distinctly Tea or even Winners."  "So-and-so always gets clothes or jewellery."  It was starting to get monotonous, boring, not to mention just plain expensive.

I forget who brought it up, but one day in random conversation someone in my family made the confession that even though DVD box sets are nice gifts to receive, there isn't very much thought put into the giving of the gift itself and it was a pity that so much money got spent every year on gifts that weren't fully appreciated.  It's so darn EASY to just order a bunch of DVDs or books online and to even have them sent to various family members, pre-wrapped...  Sure, it's easy, but is it special?

After a few of us had discussed this, we got together a few months before Christmas and decided together that from now on we would exchange only hand-made gifts.  At first I admit I felt a little scared and disappointed with this decision, because I like getting electronics and jewellery or other store-bought items as gifts.  It didn't take me very long to realize though that a lot of the time I actually just buy those types of things for myself, and I tend to know more precisely which necklace I like the most or which DVDs I already own or don't own.  As we got closer to Christmas, most of us had gotten over our inital panic about having to actually be creative and make an effort, and were starting to get excited about what we were planning to create.

My family is big on inside jokes, and as luck would have it, I have a lot of creatively talented people in my family.  I could hardly wait to give my brother in law (I had drawn his name) the framed pictures of images by an artist our whole family has made fun of for years (my hand-painted take on his art-work, anyway).  I knew what my husband had decided to get for my second brother in law (a big gift bag of home-made Christmas treats, a framed picture of our little niece and a coupon for a weekend of free babysitting) and I was so excited to see his reaction when he opened his gift.

It's funny how much our attitude changed towards christmas morning in the rest of the time leading up to it.  Normally we would have been worrying that we hadn't purchased the right thing for so-and-so, or if we had spent too much or not enough on their gift.  Usually we had a feeling of relief that we had been to the mall enough times to purchase everything needed for gift-giving in time for the big day... or, panic, knowing we wouldn't be able to pull it off in time.  I know for me personally, I would normally wonder what I would get this year, and I selfishly hoped that so-and-so hadn't bought me a certain DVD box set that I had recently purchased for myself, because it is such a pain to drive to the mall to exchange gifts these days.

We were actually excited to see the reactions our loved-ones would show in opening their gifts from us.  This was our main focus... we couldn't help it!  We had put so much effort and thought into what we had chosen to give. I couldn't wait to see the look on my brother-in-law's face as he opened the framed picture from me.  It was going to be priceless, I just knew it... and nothing beats the feeling of knowing you spent actual creative-power and thought deciding on a gift for someone.

Christmas morning was a great success.  There were beautiful hand-made shelves for the younger kids, a sewing storage board for my sewing room (which has been SO helpful to me), lots of beautiful or funny framed pictures of family members or other images to do with inside jokes shared with my family, wonderful homemade snacks and goodies, and hand-painted items such as breakfast trays or pictures to display. Crocheted throws and clothing items were passed around.  

You could feel the pride and appreciation in the room.  It was a truly special morning, and ever since then we have agreed that home-made is the way to go.

I didn't even touch on the most important part of all this:  how excellent this approach to gift-giving is on being eco-friendly! Each gift was quite inexpensive to put together.  No money was wasted on useless plastic or styrofoam packaging that would either require recycling or just simply being thrown out because of being un-recyclable.  Many of us reused certain items in our homes as items used to create the gift.  Baking home-made snacks was a great approach too, because we knew exactly what ingredients were being used and those of us with diet-considerations (such as gluten-free or dairy-free) didn't have to worry one bit.

All in all it was a worry-free, waste-free, joy-FILLED occasion.  And I highly recommend it!



Mark's reaction as he opens his home-made gift from me on Christmas morning!

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Tuesday ECD Members Picks.

Enjoy these selections made by the Etsy Cloth Diaper Treasury Team

'The Animal Kingdom' by cuddlebuttcloth

Take a tour of the animal kingdom, featuring items from the Etsy Cloth Diaper Team (and a few more of my favorites, besides.)


wooden fox, waldorf animal, ...
$13.00

AI2 re-usable shell with gus...
$20.95

Stuffed Animal Pattern - Pea...
$5.95

Giraffe Animal Print Beads -...
$8.00

Kids Wall Decals Animal Safa...
$38.00

Forest Critters - 11x14 Wate...
$14.95

Bohemian Butterflies One Siz...
$25.00

ORGANIC Bear Onesie (avocado...
$20.00

Wet Bag for Cloth Diapers Wa...
$21.75

Three Pack of Cloth diaper i...
$12.00

Wooden Noahs Ark Toy Deluxe ...
$299.00

giraffe necklace, giraffe je...
$24.95

Felted Barn Owl, Hand Felted...
$22.00

Foxy - Small OBV BedBug Nigh...
$42.00

Pincushion, Hedgehog: Joy - ...
$7.50

Set of 3 Wooden Animal Toys
$59.99

'Lots of Dots Baby' by monkeytoediapers

Baby and dots are just so cute together


Wet Bag Orange Polka Dot Fab...
$15.50

Monkeys and Dots Large Cloth...
$15.00

Small Side Snapping All-In-O...
$15.00

Small Polka Dot with Buttons...
$10.95

Adorable Pink and white polk...
$11.50

Baby BOY fabric neck tie - G...
$7.00

Toddler-Infants Baby Girl Su...
$19.90

Rock Star Polka Dot Boutique...
$8.50

All in One (AIO) Cloth Diape...
$24.00

Bamboo cloth diaper, any siz...
$18.00

Organic One Size Pocket Diap...
$24.95

Multi-coloured polkadots NEW...
$20.00

Home of the Orignial Baby Se...
$26.99

Baby Boy / Toddler Necktie &...
$27.85

Baby Blanket, Sun Spots in M...
$35.00

Polka Dot Girls Pink Black ...
$50.00

'Frogs and snails and puppy dog tails' by HoldensLanding

that's what little boys are made of!


Hand Knit Baby Boy Sweater S...
$28.00

Free Ship - Small Fitted Clo...
$32.00

Upcycled Cashmere/Wool Shor...
$24.00

Medium Leaves Unisex Wool Ha...
$32.00

NB/SMALL Wool Diaper Soaker-...
$25.00

Sweet Bobbins Cloth Wipes - ...
$7.50

Laguna - Toddler OBV BedBug ...
$40.00

Blue Green Water One Size Cl...
$25.00

Baby Hats, Newborn Knit Hat,...
$24.00

Baby Blanket for Boys Light ...
$16.50

Waldorf Doll, 15 inch, luvki...
$150.00

Bamboo Velour Teether, the B...
$20.00

Cool Baby Boy Clothes - &qu...
$47.00

Newborn Photo Prop Baby Boy ...
$22.00

Ducks, Snails and Frog Baby ...
$195.00

PUPPY DOG HOUSE Green White ...
$12.00

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