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Baby Wipes_: Porter's Lotion recipe

Catherine McDiarmid-Watt | Tuesday, February 19, 2008 | 1 comments
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Porter's LotionThanks to Angela for this Frugal Baby Tip!

I see the discussion come up occasionally of what to use for homemade wipes, so I thought I'd tell what I use, and how it works for us.

I bought a bottle of Porter's Lotion (a liquid, aromatic concoction - I found it at a fancy store in downtown Seattle, but I know the J Peterman company also sells it). It contains among other things, camphor and green soap. I put it on my hands once. Woof! About fumed myself to death. It may be wonderful on chapped hands, but it smelled too strong for me! But I hated to waste it.

When I started making my own cloth wipes (you ladies would probably be
horrified, but I bought the cheapest cloth washcloths available at my
supermarket, and I do mean cheap - they're quite coarse - cut them in half,
zigzagged the raw edges, and tossed them into an old wipe container with
water)
I was concerned about mold and so on. So I put a squirt of the Porter's in with the water, thinking, hey, essential oils and stuff. And you know? I've never had mildew. I don't change the water every couple of days - just put the freshly-washed ones on the bottom to rotate, run in more water, put in a new squirt of lotion, et voila'.
It smells good diluted that much, is possibly even good for my daughter's skin, keeps mold/mildew away, and best of all, keeps me from wasting a perfectly good (expensive) bottle of lotion.

Also, that bottle has now lasted more than a year and I'm nowhere near the
bottom of it, so it's quite economical when measured per use. I love making do with what I have.





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Catherine

About Catherine: I have been writing my Frugal Baby Tips since 1982, when I was a young divorced mom of two - for my baby product company, Born to Love. I am now mom to three grown up sons, and a grandma - and happily married to a wonderful man. We have rescued two little dogs, Denny and Dexter - and a rescue cat, Bella.

Taking care of baby and mom needs naturally, does not have to cost a whole lot of money! Money-saving tips on diapering, diaper washing, safety, sling and baby carriers, toys, clothing, nursing, menstrual needs, traveling with kids, and more!

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1 comments

  1. Actually I am a real fan of Porter's Original Lotion and have been using it for about six months for really bad dry skin. My son has even worse dry skin (and some patches of eczema) and it has does wonders for him. I now recommend it for all my friends kids with problem skin. By the way, the smell dissipates really quickly and leaves no residual scent on the skin.

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