Introduction: How to Make Your Own Decomposable Baby Wipes

Baby wipes are mostly made of polyester, even the supposedly 'eco' ones... *coughseventhgenerationcough*
Which means they'll probably still be sitting in landfill sites when giant cockroaches take over the earth. Here's how to make your own decomposable wipes. They happen to work out a bunch cheaper than the other kind too, so you know, win win.

Step 1: You'll Need....

A roll of paper towel. Recycled, unbleached gets you extra points... I used Bounty 'cause it's what we had.
A resealable box (an old baby wipe container is good)
A bread knife or an electric knife

A moistening/cleaning solution. We'll get to that in a minute.

Step 2: Cut Your Roll of Paper Towel in Half.

Saw away. It's easier with an electric knife, (NOT an electric saw... I mean you, dad) but any serrated blade will do.

Step 3: Yank Out the Cardboard Roll

Pull that sucker out, or you could just roll out a smaller roll and make a smaller batch of wipes.

Step 4: Mix Up Your Solution

The solution I used was
  • 1 cup distilled water (warmed up)
  • 2 tablespoons baby lotion
  • 1 tablespoons vinegar
There's a link to more recipes, including fancy essential oil ones here ( it's near the end).
My recipe uses vinegar instead of soap, 'cause soap is super drying if it's not washed off.
Pop all the ingredients into a clean receptacle then shake or whisk them together.

Step 5: Pour Your Solution Over the Paper Towel

This is easiest to do if you set the roll upright in the box then pour 'down' it. You might not need all the solution, you want your wipes to be moist NOT drippy. Give the roll a squeeze to get rid of any extra goo, but plump it up again when you're done squeezing.

Step 6: The Finished Pruduct

Use wipes on stinky baby bottoms. Bear in mind that stuff needs air to decompose, so don't wrap the wipes up in a disposable diaper and redo the tabs.