Resource #1

I have decided to try a different approach to listing my resources. This will allow me to spill the details about what I like and don't like about the particular resources. Today is my first installment.

Name of Resource: Diaper Decisions

Location of resource: www.diaperdecisions.com

The good: There is a good bit of information for someone who is just getting started. A lot of free downloads. They also host The Great Cloth Diaper Hunt once or twice a year. This is a brilliant way to bring publicity to many cloth diapering and related sites. Once I get started I will HAVE to look into being a part of The GCDH!! Great forums to join!

The bad: Not a very attractive site as far as appearances are concerned. Not updated very often.

Overall: I like it! It could not be my only resource but it gives a stable foundation of knowledge on which to build. It will be awesome for gaining business if I can get into the GCDH!

If I had to grade it: 3.5 (B+)

How adventurous am I?

So I've decided that it's time to start making some decisions and answering some questions. There are a lot of decisions to make and a lot of questions to answer! For example:

Do I want to sew my own diapers or just retail bigger name diapers?

How do I go about getting a website set up?

What do I need to do to get an online store set up?

What do I need to have in place before I get the website/online store set up?

How much is everything going to cost?

And the list goes on and on and on...

I am currently trying to arrange to borrow a sewing machine from my sister (after her wedding in July) and buy some fabric and notions at a regular craft store to see if I want to go the sewing my own route.

I'm also compiling my resources. I have quite a long list at this point. They provide information on cloth diapering, small business/entrepreneurship, or both. I'll be providing my list in a future post.

I've also ordered a book about small business. It's called E-Myth Revisited. I am very excited about it! I can't wait for it to arrive! I'll let you know when it arrives and how I like it as I read it.

Speaking of Adventures...

It's been a few days since I've posted. Part of that was due to some late nights away from home, and part of that was due to just needing a little time away. Rather, there were other things that needed to be attended to that required a little time away.

At any rate, this post will not be long because I just got home from the hospital. I went to see a midwife today because as of last night I started having trouble urinating. So 7 hours, 2 catheters and a trip to the hospital later, I'm still having trouble but not so much they felt they should keep me.

Today has for sure been an adventure, in and of itself. Hopefully after a few hours of sleep I will be ready to resume my cloth diaper adventure!

Thanks for following!

The Adventure Continues...

I found myself pregnant again when my son was only about 6 months old. We weren't trying either time. At about 20 weeks along I had an ultrasound and found out I was having another boy. I went back to Abby's Lane and registered for more cloth diapers! I knew I would need them!

I don't remember for sure if that was how I came across it, or if a ran across it in a random Google search. The "it" I'm referring to is Diaper Decisions. Near the top of the page was a large question mark and the simple question, "Do you want to start a cloth diaper business?" Such a simple question hit me like a ton of bricks! "This could be it!" I thought to myself, "This could be what I've been looking for!" I made up my mind to start looking into it. I figured that in the worst case I would spend a lot of time learning about something I have a lot of interest in (cloth diapering), and best case I could end up owning a successful business that would bring in a modest income. I'm prepared for all options in between, but being very careful not to rush into anything.

While perusing the Diaper Decisions site, I came across The Great Cloth Diaper Hunt. I quickly registered and began my hunt. For those of you who are unfamiliar with The Great Cloth Diaper Hunt... you'll just have to check it out for yourself. ;-)

While on my hunt I began learning more about cloth diapers than I ever knew there was to know! The wheels were really turning now. What about sewing my own diapers? I've only used a sewing machine once, and I wasn't a fan back then (I was about 12). Could I borrow someone's sewing machine and give it a try? Would sewing them by hand be completely insane? Should I stick with retailing diapers other people have made? What would set me apart from other cloth diapering business/websites? Would I like to eventually have a brick & mortar store? How much is it going to cost me to get started?

Yes, there are a lot of questions to be asked. Many I've thought of, many I haven't, and many that I'll think of later.

Indeed the adventure continues... and I'm having fun already.

The Adventure Begins...

It's hard to believe that this all began over a year ago. I was pregnant with my first child and very interested in cloth diapering. I knew that I wanted to at least cloth diaper at night, and I started learning a lot about cloth diapering.

I found that there were a lot of styles out there... we were no longer limited to the little squares of cloth called prefolds that my mother had used to diaper me. I learned about things like Aplix and snaps. I learned about One Size diapers and All in ones. I learned about pockets, and a little more about prefolds, and about diaper pins, Snappi's and Soakers.

I was intrigued and enthralled! I was disappointed however that there didn't seem to be any physical retail location in my area that sold any of these things except standard, boring prefolds. Undaunted, I set about to find a site that would let me register for the things I wanted to try. The site I found was Abby's Lane. I registered for the diapers I wanted and, to my surprise, received nearly everything I registered for.

Fast forward to today - I have a son who will be one at the end of the month, I've been cloth diapering at night and now, son number 2 is on the way! Ahhh!!! I need more diapers! Not to mention more income! And I've always wanted to start my own business... could this be leading me somewhere?

Indeed, I have come to the point of wanting to start my own cloth diapering business. I'm extremely early in the process and I thought it would be nice to chronicle my journey in blog format. I'm somewhat overwhelmed at the moment and I welcome comments and suggestions. I especially welcome comments and suggestions from those who have been where I am and who have tried this whole starting a business thing.

Welcome to my adventure!

Kayla - The Cloth Diaper Adventurer