Fluffy Mama of the Week- Ashley from Crunchy Clean

Tell me about yourself:

Ashley's beautiful family!

My name is Ashley, and my husband and I started a company making “green cleaning stuff” 3 years ago called Crunchy Clean. The link is www.CrunchyClean.com — we started with an everyday laundry soap that I made when I was in graduate school, and we’ve expanded from there to include a very popular Diaper Laundry Cleaner! We make a hard water version that has been very well-reviewed, and our products are all exclusively made from vegan minerals and nothing man-made.

How long have you been cloth diapering?

3 years — we have a newborn on the way due in the Fall, so I’d say we’ll be a consecutive 6 in a few years!

What made you decide to start?

I nannied for a little boy while I was in graduate school, and something bothered me about the way disposable diapers smelled. I always wondered what was in them, so when I heard about “modern” cloth diapers when I was pregnant, it seemed very natural to research them!

What was your first purchase and why?

My first purchase was a one-size diaper sampler pack — it was all the rage three years ago! It included a Happy Heiny, Bumgenius 3.0, Mother’s Touch, and a Haute Pocket! I put them on my little girl as soon as they came and took a picture of her in each diaper!
When we started, pockets were all the rage — many of you may not believe that hybrid wasn’t even a diaper type back then 😉 We haven’t even gotten to try a hybrid diaper yet!

The Stash!

On the left are two hanging wetbags folded up, then the covers, including Olive Janes covers (olivejanes.etsy.com), some wool, and sbish wool yoga pants!  Then there’s a large stash of one-size pockets — our favorites are probably the BG Elemental Diapers and the FB One-Size, but we even have some BG 3.0s in there from 3 years ago (that pink one on top!) that’s in great condition!  Next to those are fitteds in a plethora of brands and wipes!  Then, there’s the newborn stash starting in the back right — so far, we have some Thirsties Duo Diapers, Thirsties covers, Happy Heiny Mini One-Size, and a Monkey Snuggles Newborn Pocket — there are newborn fitteds and prefolds missing, as well as a bunch of toddler prefolds we use occasionally!  :O)  Can you tell we’re all girl here?

How much do you think you have spent on your diapers total?

I’ve been so blessed with diaper costs — having a work at home mom business, I’ve been able to trade and barter a bunch. So, honestly? I haven’t really kept a tally, but I can tell you that many of the diapers that have come in our house have left via a trade so I don’t have nearly as many diapers as I could have 😉
We have a new baby on the way, so now I’m focusing on the tiny diapers that have been introduced in the last 3 years — I’m so excited to give them a try! 🙂

Have your family/ friends been supportive?

At first, family and friends were skeptical that I’d follow through (and I think they were skeptical of how “easy” they are) and my husband used to say that if we didn’t have a business based on living green, I probably wouldn’t have continued. 🙂

What has been the most rewarding aspect of cding?

Knowing exactly what was going next to my very small and sensitive newborn’s skin was very important to me, and it still is. I also love not having that huge trash bag full of diapers weekly — it makes me feel good to know we’re not contributing our thousands of disposable diapers to landfills.

What is your favorite diaper to use?

It has changed through the years, currently its a Fuzzibunz One-Size. With a 33 lb. 3 year old, she can tell me how the diapers feel. Just recently, several of our standby one-size diapers were “too tight”, and so we’ve had to look for a new option!

What has been the biggest challenge to your success at cding?

I think in the midst of a very busy work at home mom career and raising a child, its hard to find time to wash! 🙂 Thankfully, testing different soaps we come up with and products does give me motivation to have dirty diapers handy at all times! Also — they say that cloth diapered babies potty learn faster, and that hasn’t been the case with us! 🙂 We’re still struggling with the potty unfortunately, and I think part of it may be my daughter loves her “bipers” so much!

And anything else you want to discuss!!!

I’ve been washing our own cloth diapers for 3 years now, but in the midst of all of that, I have answered thousands of questions and trouble shooted for many moms. I hope washing is never a hindrance to cloth users, so please contact me if you ever need help! I think I’ve seen it all!

Thanks Ashley for being this week’s Fluffy Mama!  I am so happy you have another baby on the way!  Your family is going to be even more beautiful!

If you want to be a featured Fluffy Mama of the Week shoot me an email at dirtydiaperlaundry at gmail dot com.

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