Tag: clothing

Kelly Northey, owner of Australian company Bamboo Bubby, came to know of EczemaBlues.com and introduced MarcieMom to its Bamboo Bubby Bag – a sleeping bag that is made from a blend of cotton and bamboo with an Adjust-a-Sleeve design. It is created to reduce damage from scratching at night, so that the whole family can have a good night’s sleep.

Marcie Mom: Thank you Kelly for taking time for this interview. I’m happy to know you, a mom who has built a business from finding a solution to your son’s eczema. I read from your site that you have designed Bamboo Bubby Bag at a time when your son has outgrown sleepsuits with handcovers. This, I’m sure many parents, myself included, can relate. It’s indeed the toughest period because the child can’t be swaddled safely but can roll and scratch. Can you share a little about your background? For instance, did your healthcare industry background help or do you like sewing and why have you decided to make your own sleeping bag?

How Bamboo Bubby Started

Kelly: I think both of these things have helped in the conception of the Bamboo Bubby Bag. I work in the healthcare industry but with a focus on research and information technology roles, so when I noticed a real gap in the market here for a product to solve my baby’s problems, I definitely utilised my research skills when trying to find a solution to our problem and while I do have some sewing skills, I haven’t actually practiced them properly for a long time, so I am grateful for the assistance of my sister-in-law for her expertise when it came to sewing the first lot of prototype Bamboo Bubby Bags.

However deciding to launch my business as a predominantly online one has definitely been the best use of my previous skills in information technology systems and website design and I love everything about the world of online marketing and social media as a means of sharing information and helping each other and when I realised there was no other product quite like it on the market, I knew I had to get Bamboo Bubby Bags out there in the world to help as many others who are struggling with sleeplessness caused by eczema.

Bamboo for Anti-Bacterial

Marcie Mom: Your Bamboo Bubby Bag is made from 70% bamboo and 30% organic cotton interlock fabric. From your site, I understand the bamboo has anti-bacterial properties, not likely to irritate baby’s skin and able to expand when warm (for baby to be kept cool) and contract when cold (for additional warmth).

Do all bamboo have the same anti-bacterial properties and texture and which type of bamboo is used in your Bamboo Bubby Bag?

Kelly: Bamboo naturally contains anti-bacterial and bacteriostatic bio-agent called “Bamboo Kun”, which allows it to naturally flourish and grow in the wild without the use of pesticides or fertilizers. There have been some studies undertaken in whether or not this anti-bacterial benefit remains when bamboo is manufactured into fabric. The Japan Textile Inspection Association (JTIA) completed a study that claims that even after 50 industrial washes, bamboo sheets showed a 70% effectiveness of antibacterial properties.

The China Industrial Testing Center completed a similar study, where bamboo fabric was tested over a 24 hour incubation period with the bacterial strain Staphylococcus aureous. Their results showed after a 24 hour period, the 100% bamboo fabric showed a 99.8% kill rate. These reports suggest bamboo may be an ideal fabric to use on eczema skin which is often inflamed and even infected.

The bamboo fabric used by Bamboo Bubby has passed Oeko-Tex 100 Class 1 testing which means that it is free from harmful substances, manufactured to cause the least possible harm to the environment and safe to use for baby products.

Bamboo For Wicking Effect

MarcieMom: It is mentioned on your site that bamboo has the property to remove excessive moisture. Can you explain to us how this works? Also, why is the decision to have it 70% bamboo, in other words, is 70% proven to give the optimal properties – thermal regulating, anti-bacterial, softness, durability?

Kelly: The scientific term for the ability to remove excessive moisture is the capillary effect or wicking effect and research shows that of the five leading fabrics available on the market, bamboo has the highest capillary effect, absorbing more moisture and drawing it away from the body than other fabrics and also decreasing the level of abrasion and damage to sensitive skin.

When skin becomes sweaty, fabric used to cover it causes the level of abrasion to increase, which then worsens skin conditions like eczema and is especially harsh on the delicate skin of babies with eczema. This is why synthetic fabrics which do not let the skin ‘breathe’ are notoriously bad for eczema skin.

It is a fact that if a baby sweats under their clothing then the level of abrasion caused to the skin is almost doubled.

So therefore, Bamboo fabric is the softest and least abrasive fabric to delicate skin, due to its ability to pull moisture away from the body. When compared to other ‘breathable’ fabrics such as cotton and viscose rayon, bamboo is superior due to the spaces between the individual fabric fibres, allowing greater moisture absorption while at the same time allowing more air ventilation through the fabric.

Deciding upon the best type of bamboo fabric to manufacture the Bamboo Bubby Bags from was difficult. 100% bamboo fabrics are beautifully soft and silky, but this softness also seemed to wear quicker and for a sleeping bag that will last throughout a baby’s entire first 2 or more years we needed an element of durability to the fabric. So a 70% bamboo/30% organic cotton mix interlock fabric was the best option. Still plenty of softness, but with added strength of organic cotton to help maintain its shape and be able to outlast a baby’s first couple of years.

Adjust Sleeve Design

Marcie Mom: Your Bamboo Bubby Bag has unique design features, such as Adjust-a-Sleeve design and double-ended zipper. Apart from allowing the baby to use up till 2 year-old, it can also help to make night changes easier. Given that the design is meant for the sleeping bag to ‘grow’ with the baby, how many machine washes can it withstand? Can it be washed in 60⁰C cycle to remove dust mites?

Kelly: Bamboo fabrics will maintain their special qualities when washed in cold to warm water (up to 60 degrees Celsius) on a gentle-normal cycle with a gentle detergent, free of bleach. Line dying is best, however when necessary they can also be dried in clothes dryer on the cool setting. I have Bamboo Bubby Bags here that have been washed regularly like this for more than 18 months now!

Selecting Bamboo Fabric

Marcie Mom: One last question – for parents who want to try out bamboo clothing or sleeping bags, what would you recommend them to look out for before making the purchase? For instance, the source of bamboo or any certification?

Kelly:  Yes, definitely check that any bamboo fabric products you purchase meet the Oeko-Tex 100 Class 1 testing standard which means that it is free from harmful substances, manufactured to cause the least possible harm to the environment and safe to use for baby products.

And we always to recommend following the SIDS & Kids Safe Sleeping Guidelines to ensure your baby sleeps safely. Recommendations from these are that baby sleeping bags have a fitted neckline, armholes and sleeves and no hoods. Baby sleeping bags also help to encourage babies to sleep on their backs. And when sleeping babies with their feet to the foot of the cot (as recommended in the guidelines), you can also tuck excess fabric from one size sleeping bags into the end of the cot mattress just like you would a sheet or blanket.

Eczema Kid, Family, Business

MarcieMom: On a personal note, how did you juggle your business, family and childcare?

Kelly: We had to change a lot of things about our working life to make it more flexible and to suit our particular family needs. We have both in the past year changed jobs and I’m now more easily able to also juggle the Bamboo Bubby business I have built steadily over this time as well alongside everything else.

I am now quite proud of the fact that I started the entire Bamboo Bubby business as a way to give my mind something positive to focus on in the few hours every evening when we would anxiously await the next midnight wake up, knowing that our baby just never really slept until after this time. I hope it can now help others and give them also a place of support during a really distressing time.

On hindsight now too, I’m also very glad that my now toddler has had such great experiences at childcare. It has been great for him in every possible way and he’s made some wonderful little friends. Much as I have struggled with the ‘return to work juggle’, I would say to anyone who is contemplating childcare that just because your child may have some special needs, if you feel in your gut that the place is right and that they can look after your child according to management plans then the benefits for your child overall do outweigh any of the mummy-guilt that we naturally place on ourselves!

Marcie Mom: Thank you Kelly so much for answering my questions. It’s great to see your business flourishing and being awarded to be part of the Young Australian Entrepreneur scheme. p.s. to readers of eczemablues.com, I didn’t receive any money from Bamboo Bubby or Kelly for this interview.

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Last updated on 17 November, 2024 12:52 pm

MarcieMom saw on twitter that Silver Sense is active in eczema community and events and connected with Sarah Davies, co-founder of Silver Sense. Silver Sense is a company based in Nottinghamshire, UK, that creates children clothing made from a blend of natural cotton and silver fibres. Silver Sense’s clothing comes in a family of animals, and MarcieMom interviews Sarah to find out more about Albert the Whale, Gilbert the Gecko, Jeffrey the Monkey, Sidney the Spider, Jude the Crocodile, Olivia the Duckling and Erica the Elephant!

Marcie Mom: Thank you Sarah for taking time for this interview. I’d have to commend you that indeed the clothing looks gorgeous! I read from your site that Silver Sense is set up by your brother, Richard Lamb and you. While his work experience is in medical textiles, yours is in fashion design and product development. Both of you started Silver Sense because you were looking for a solution for your son Jonathan’s eczema. Could you share a little about your journey? For instance, how severe was Jonathan’s eczema? And for how long did you try other treatments before you decided to create Silver Sense? And what other skincare regimen and treatment (if any) do you use even after Jonathan is wearing Silver Sense?

Sarah: Jonathan’s eczema started at approximately 4 months old, to begin with it was quite mild so we tried to treat it solely with emollients which had been suggested by other Mums however we didn’t find anything that offered much improvement. We made changes to our daily routine such as stopping using fabric softeners and just bathing him in water. We found that some of the creams we tried actually made things worse as he had allergic reactions to some of the ingredients. His eczema wasn’t clearing and was in fact spreading to other areas so we made the first of our trips to the doctor.

Our doctor was very understanding and assured us it was ‘just’ baby eczema so armed with more creams and washes we tried again to treat it. Again, the washing cream made it worse and the prescription lotions did nothing, including the very mild steroid cream. By now the patches were infected and would bleed, Jonathan would also try to scratch them whenever he could. He had eczema on his tummy, tops of his arms, shoulders, back of his neck, cheeks and the backs of his knees, these patches were crusty and bleeding. It was very distressing for all of us. We went back to the Doctor and were given a stronger steroid cream which we could only use very sparingly and not on his face, it was horrible to see him scratch his cheek until it was bleeding and I couldn’t find anything to help improve this. The stronger steroid cream did offer some improvement but I hated using it on him and found that when I stopped the eczema just returned to how it was. It was at this stage when I learnt more about the healing properties of Silver and was desperate to find a long term solution that Silver Sense was born.

Jonathan now sleeps on Silver Sense bedding which has cleared up the patches on his cheek and neck. He also sleeps in our jammies and wears a vest every day. In conjunction with his Silver Sense clothing we moisturise him with Doublebase gel, use Oilatum bath additive and on any particularly dry patches we use Lucas Papaw Ointment. We find that we have no further patches on his torso, arms or face, everywhere that is in contact with the silver. He still gets eczema starting to appear on the backs of his knees towards the end of the day as they are not in contact with Silver in his other clothes however his sleepwear prevents scratching in the night and has dramatically improved his skin again by the morning.I do wonder how bad this would be without his Silver Sense clothing? Since using Silver Sense we have had no infected eczema patches.

Marcie Mom: Your range of clothing is very colourful and stylish, featuring babygrows, tops, bottoms, hats, bibs and blankets, all carefully designed to have the seams and labels on the outside. Do all these products have the same amount of silver fibres in the fabric? And of what percentage of the (end) fabric has the 99.9% pure silver sourced from medical textile company X-Static? Is there a minimum % of silver required in the fabric before its anti-microbial properties can be useful?

Sarah: All of our products are manufactured using fabrics that contain a minimum of 4% Pure Silver yarn; this percentage is a requirement to ensure that the products perform. All products are certified by X-Staticto ensure that they contain the correct amount of Pure Silver.

MarcieMom: It is mentioned in your site that silver has been ‘clinically proven to prevent inflammation by naturally calming itchiness..’. How does silver do that?

Sarah: Pure silver kills bugs by breaking down the DNA of bacteria, it is this bacteria that causes the inflammation, itchiness and infection in skin conditions. Bacteria cannot become resistant to the silver ions in our products so continual treatment is provided. The clinical studies that we refer to have been commissioned by X-Static and as such we use the amount of Silver as required by them, to meet their infection kill rates. Continued use will soothe, heal and protect delicate skin.

Marcie Mom: I did a quick search over the internet and saw a few companies that sell silver clothing– what advice would you give to parents who want to assess which clothing brand to choose? For instance, is there a certain type/ grade of silver or certain size of silver fibre to look out for? Or should parents look out for where the silver textile comes from and where the clothing is made? Or is there a certification body that can give product quality and safety assurance to parents?

Sarah: Firstly we would recommend that parents make sure that the clothing is using pure metal silver fibre instead of Nano silver which is a coating that can wash off and leech (leech is the transfer of particles from the material to the surrounding environment). We would recommend X-Static as it is accepted as being the market leader; it is not the cheapest yarn however it is the best in terms of performance and durability. We choose to make our products in the UK as it is where we are based and ensures we have complete control and visibility at all times of our production. Unfortunately there is no certification body however this is something we would welcome and actively be involved in.

MarcieMom: I read on your site that Silver Sense wants to be a truly British brand; you design the clothing, source the silver textile from X-Static (US?) and the fabric is then made in UK and clothing knitted locally in Nottinghamshire. I note with interest that as opposed to certain manufacturers who spray silver on the fabric, you knit it into the fabric. This translates into a more durable product where the silver won’t be washed away. Tell us, what is the product life of Silver Sense clothing and is there any trial conducted as to how many machine washes it can withstand? Also, if the silver can be washed away, is there a chance that over long-term use (say, a mom only uses Silver Sense for her newborn all the way till 5 year old) the child’s skin will be exposed to excessive silver that has leeched onto the skin? Is there any research done in this area? And what is the side effect (if any) on having silver on the skin all the time?

Sarah: We are the only childrenswear brand to knit pure metal silver fibre into our fabrics, when developing Silver Sense we researched many techniques of production and feel very strongly that this is the best and most effective way of adding silver to garments. X-Static have provided us with study data showing fabrics knitted with X-Static are capable of withstanding over 200 commercial laundry cycles without any performance reduction, it is accepted that industrial laundering is far more aggressive than domestic washing however we stress that customers must follow our product care guidelines which include no use of fabric softener and chlorine based bleaches. Without a doubt the pure silver in Silver Sense products will last the life of the garment and will not be washed away.Silver Sense garments will not leech. There are in excess of 300,000 US military personnel that wear X-Static base layer garments on a daily basis and there have been no known adverse side effects, in fact it is quite the opposite, soldiers report that skin conditions are improved in field conditions.

Marcie Mom: Thank you Sarah so much for your time and understanding where I come from when I asked these questions. My readers would know that while I don’t do any product review (nor subject Marcie to product testing), I am always open to knowing more products and asking questions that I think will help parents to assess better their options for their child with eczema. p.s. to readers of eczemablues.com, I didn’t receive any money from Silver Sense or Sarah for this interview.

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Last updated on 19 November, 2024 6:49 pm

Andrea Thomas, the mom behind the company Short Stacks that makes the PTPA (parent tested, parent approved) winning product, ScratchMeNot, talks to Marcie Mom at eczemablues.com about her passion and mompreneur journey. ScratchMeNot is an eczema clothing innovation that Andrea created to help prevent her daughter from scratching, and has since grown into a thriving business.

Marcie Mom: Hi Andrea, we know that you first created ScratchMeNot to prevent your daughter who has eczema from scratching. What motivated you to decide to make ScratchMeNot for sale?
Andrea: Yes, I first created ScratchMeNots for my daughter who was scratching non-stop! Before she was born, I knew very little about eczema so I was blindly searching for anything to help her. There seemed to be an endless supply of creams and ointments available, however I needed something for the immediate act of scratching. I went to brick and mortar stores & I googled like CRAZY to find anything to stop the itching. I tried the tradition baby mittens, but they did not solve the problem, as my daughter would rub or pull them off. Not being able to find a product out there to fit our needs, I decided to create my own, that would help my daughter immediately. Since I had such a hard time finding the right product, I thought maybe other parents were too. ScratchMeNots followed soon after, a product that is an all day solution for a scratching child’s needs.

Marcie Mom: Tell us more about your passion. Were you already into sewing before making ScratchMeNot?
Andrea: To be honest, the most experience I had in sewing, before ScratchMeNots were a pillow and a pot holder! Thankfully, I knew a friend who had the time, energy, and great skills to help me bring my visions to life. She taught me how to sew beyond pot holders. It was exciting to go from a thought to a finished product. It’s amazing how much parents can learn, when the driving force is meeting a need that allows their children to feel better, and helps other parents at the same time.

Marcie Mom: How do you find time to make the product, sell the product, manage a business and parent your children?
Andrea: Thankfully, we have a manufacturer that I work closely with to create our ScratchMeNot inventory. This is a great help to free up more time for me to focus on managing Short Stacks, family, and parenting! It is not easy to balance working from home, while my little one is here with me needing my attention. I’ve learned to plan ahead, to create a schedule, and to stick to it. Each portion of my day is dedicated to specific tasks, learning and/or quality time. I’m still trying to master our routine! A lot of work usually occurs early in the morning and late at night. It is challenging, but it’s worth every moment. I have learned to accept that everything I planned to do might not get done, and that’s okay. I also have come to understand the importance of networking with other companies that have an expertise in areas that I don’t. Especially with other moms, it helps all of our companies succeed!

Marcie Mom: Thanks Andrea, and we certainly look forward to more products from your store! p.s. To readers of eczemablues.com, I asked Andrea for the interview because some of you have feedback to me that ScratchMeNot works for your child. I did not receive any money from Andrea or Short Stacks for this interview.

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