We finally decided to ditch regular toilet paper and switch to homemade TP, otherwise known as “family cloth.” (And we’re telling the whole internet!)
My husband and I moved away from toilet paper for a number of reasons:
(1) It’s dry.
(2) The chemicals it’s processed in are bad for those sensitive areas.
(3) It leaves particles. (Gross.)
Also, did you know that it takes 37 gallons of water, 1.3 kilowatt/hours (KWh) of electricity and some 1.5 pounds of wood to make a SINGLE roll of toilet paper? [1] Not to mention all the energy it takes to process it from our sewer system.
Chemical-laden baby wipes are no good either. They have things like methylisothiazolinone in them, which I can’t pronounce. As a general rule, if I can’t pronounce it (or eat it), then I don’t put it in or on my body.
For years now, I’ve been getting really thin tears “down there” that feel like paper cuts. I’ve now learned that these are called vaginal fissures and can be caused by certain soaps, artificial fragrances, tampons, scented or colored panty liners, and paper toilet paper. When I got married, these vaginal fissures became even more of a problem, as they made intercourse very painful.
Think about how MUCH bleached, processed plant material we put in that area! Tampons. Disposable pads. Toilet paper. It’s all highly processed and full of chemicals, and we put it RIGHT THERE all up in our most sensitive bits!
The solution? Eating a balanced diet (check!) and cloth toilet paper. (I also gave up tampons to use a Mooncup instead, but that’s a different post!)
Okay okay. So is giving up TP taking it too far? Maybe for some of you who are less sensitive than me, it seems absolutely nuts. But guess what?
After we switched to family cloth and cloth pads, MY PAPER-CUT TEARS DISAPPEARED.
For me, it’s life-changing. Living with those tears was terribly painful, and it made fun married-people stuff really hard. I’ve had zero tears since we switched. ZERO. Not even one. And to be honest ladies, I really feel like I’m pampering myself! It’s like when you go to a spa or fancy hotel and they don’t have paper towels, they have fluffy white washcloths that you throw in a woven basket. You know, THOSE? It’s like that, 3-5 times a day. :)
How to make family cloth
First, get some organic flannel patterns that you just adore. (I am seriously in love with these little birds!) Then, I suggest you get a cute little fabric bin to put the finished squares in. Simply cut, double layer, and sew into squares. Then you’re done!
Some of you might be thinking that this is going a little too far or that this is gross, but it makes so much sense to me. For you cloth diaper users, this may not be too much of a stretch. And if you’re really concerned about bacteria, instead of throwing the used cloths into a dry bin, you can throw them into a vinegar and water solution, and perhaps add a little tea tree oil, as well. Voilà!
Many people around the world prefer to rinse first, using bidets, some sort of water bottle or vessel, or even spray bottles. We use this bidet from Amazon, and we love it. It leaves us feeling so clean that the cloth is more just to dry than anything. We only ever need to use one square at a time; and overall, it seems much more hygienic than regular paper toilet paper, which sometimes doesn’t get everything and can leave paper particles. (Ew.)
Also, if you’re wondering if they smell. They don’t. At least ours don’t. Using water and cloth is so much cleaner than paper….I can’t even describe it to you non-water/cloth using folks. Pooping shouldn’t be that messy. If you’re having that much stink and mess…well…I think maybe you might want to evaluate more than just what you’re wiping with.
For me, family cloth has made my bathroom time just *that* much more luxurious, AND it’s helped to heal my body. Go on! Try it! ;)
Also, if you’re wondering about the squatty potty, you can learn more HERE.
Or…get a bidet? I mean…do you really want shit stained pieces of cloth in your house? The smell must be awful…this is just absurd.
Yeah, we have one. :) You must not have seen that in the post.
Hello,
Although this is an old post, I got here by searching for “toilet paper alternatives”. All disposables bother me and I’m always on the lookout for alternatives.
Your spray bottle reminded me of the fact that in the country where I grew up, you weren’t considered clean if you didn’t wash your bum with water after you went to the toilet.
So if you’re ever in the house of a person with south East Asian origins (I believe the same is true in middle eastern origin homes) you will often find a little contraption called a “lota”, which is a pot with a spout. If they don’t have a lota, eastern-origin-people-in-the-west substitute lotas with small watering cans, or empty plastic milk jugs or juice bottles.
Following the washing with wiping is a necessity in cold climates, but one can very well dispense with it in warmer climates where you wear loose clothing – as you can dry off pretty quickly.
Been using family cloths for over 2 years. Hubby actually asked if we could do it. I’d already known about but never thought he’d go for it. Daughters and I used cloth pads for quite a while before that. We keep a basket of cloths about 6×6 made from flannel sheets from the thrift store next to the toilet and bucket for used under the sink. When time to wash, start the washer, add some bleach then pre-wash the FC’s. When pre-wash is done and spun out, I add the rest of a white load for a full wash with no more bleach added, just using any residual for the wash load. They really don’t take up that much room in the washer and we end up maybe running 1-2 white loads a week for 2-3 people.
My main beef with modern plumbing has to do with why do we use potable water to flush toilets in the first place? Seems to me it shouldn’t be too hard to run greywater through a household filter before plumbing it to the toilet for flushing to the sewer/septic.
Hi
What do you do when you have company over and they have to toilet?
Do you save toilet tissue for these times?
We still keep TP on the roller. Depending on the company we may or may not leave the FC’s out in the open. If they have small children, we don’t want them flushing FC’s. I’ve told close friends they are welcome to use the FC’s if they want to. I don’t think they did. My daughter went to stay with someone for a month to help out with a new baby. I sent her a bunch of FCs to use because she wasn’t used to the TP and used way too much. lol Guilt-free wiping with FC’s!
Thanks for the great article. I have cloth diapered both my kids and so this is a natural progression. I whipped up some wipes from leftover flannel I had on hand.
Great article! I have been using cloth toilet paper for over 2 years now. I have extremely sensitive skin and paper products of any kind tear my skin up. I also use handkerchiefs and I’m in the process of switching to reusable paper towels. I know there is an ick factor for many people but I think if they start out using them just for pee the ick fact would soon disappear. I save a ton of money and noticed no increase in my water or electric bill. I wish I would have done this years ago and will never switch back.
hello, I have been using baby washclothes for family cloths for about 7 years now. I find the baby washcloths are perfect. I store them folded in 3 and put them in a drawer in the sink vanity along with a blue plastic coffee can with water and white vinegar to keep until full for washing. I have used the same set of baby washclothes and they should last a much longer time than I already have used them for. One feature is that one side of the baby washcloth is tuffed and the other side smooth. It cleans very well. I only keep a roll of tp for guests…I wash with underwear..I never want to go back. I encourage anyone to try it…The baby cloths usually go on sale in February. that was when I bought mine…I have more that will go into use when these wear out…different colors,,,patterns,,, for each person if that is what is desired.
Hi Courtney,
It’s been a while since you posted this, but I wanted to ask about the organic flannel you chose. How is it holding up for you and your family? Which brand did you choose?
I just received some organic flannel from an Etsy shop that sells Cloud 9 fabrics. It’s waxy and thin, even after washing it in hot water. I’m really disappointed. Was yours soft when it was new?
Thanks!
I bought it locally, so I can’t recall a brand. But I haven’t had to remake them yet! Mine has gotten softer through the years.
This for our household is the next step! Both our kids wore cloth nappies and everyone thought we were nuts! Back then it was really unusual and hard to get hold of supplies. I use the mooncup and a cloth pantyliner. I make my own soaps etc as I hate parabens and SLS. I use a potassium alum crystal as deodorant as does the hubby and kids.
My daughter uses cloth and is about to get her first mooncup she’s very excited!
So next week we will be trialling cloth for number ones and see how we get on!
What size are the homemade cloth squares????
4 in x 5 in
HI Courtney, I just wanted to Thank You so very much for this Post to Educate more People about the harms of TP and the Wastefulness of what all it entails to make TP besides the Harm it does to our own bodies. To also Educate People about Family Cloths and how to use them and the Proper way to store the used ones. I guess many are thinking that they are just sitting openly in a bucket full of Feces. But by using a Spray Bottle of Water or a Bidet you actually are rinsing off any matter first then basically using the Cloths to dry. But by putting the Used Cloths in a Solution of Water and Vinegar which would help dissolve any matter left on the Cloths you could simply wear Gloves to then remove them from the solution and rinse before Washing them in the Machine. I will be changing my Home of just my Husband and I to Family Cloths. *********************I know a Family of 12 soon to be 13 that live off the Grid and use a Compost Toilet and have been using Family Cloths for a few years now. They started when they were still living on the Grid in a Regular home to get used to it first before going off the grid and living the Tiny House movement. They currently have to Haul Water until their Rain Water Harvest Collection has been set up. Which it might be by now. They do have 28 Acres and they have Goats, Chickens , Rabbits, Dogs and a Pond with Fish and Turtles. They do Hunt for their Food and they have Several Fruit Trees and are growing a garden. They Cook on a Rocket Stove outside in the warm weather using dead trees from their Homestead. In the Winter they Cook on a Wooden Stove that they also use to Heat their Tiny Home. They have both Solar and a Generator for Power. They also Home School their Children using the Un-school method. Which is basically Teaching them what they are Interested in Learning and much of Hands on and really is Child led. Regardless of their Age. If they want to learn about Medical, or Cooking or Science then that is where they Concentrate on. They do learn of course Reading and Writing and Math just in a different way then most children learn. ******************** Sad thing is that someone had used your Picture of your Family Cloths Bin to Mock this Family. This Family runs a Blog and a Facebook Page to document their Journey. They never claim to know everything but by sharing their Story of what works and what does not helps others who are on the same Journey or maybe thinking of living this way. Their Blogs and Page were always so Friendly and everyone would share ideas. So they had shared about The Family Cloths a few Years Back. they also use of course Cloth Diapers. But recently they have had other people make Facebook Pages about them and really Mocking and being Hateful because they do not agree with their Choices or Lifestyle. I Hope and Pray that No one Treats you unkind for sharing about Family Cloths. I wish more People would be Brave enough to Share about things like this. We all need to work together to Save our Planet. Getting back to the Pioneer times. Not with everything but they were Not Wasteful. Seems with the more Technology that is Created, People become Lazier and want everything right now. Like all the Fast Food Restaurants that is making everyone Obese while filling the landfills with more Trash that will take Years if ever to disappear. There are so many more things that are being Wasted especially Water and Trees which we need. Sorry for the long Post ;)
Ok, it’s a picky question – but 4×5 before or after you stitch them up? I guess I could split the diff- cut them 5×5 for a 4.5″ square finish. ha ha.
This is AWESOME! Last night I got a moon cup and I just ordered some flannel! Thank you!!!