Whenever I complain about how females are portrayed in mainstream superhero comics, inevitably half a dozen people pop up to tell me this:
“Men are idealized in comics, too.”
Yes. Yes they are. I am aware of this. While I think the idealism is harmful, that isn’t actually what I have a problem…
Abigail Brown, has the most unbelievable range of every kind of bird, this peacock is just my favourite of the flock.
Washing Baby Toys
We all know that babies make a lot of mess and that they like to try out everything with their mouths. So, anything that belongs to Baby is likely to get spit up on, dropped on the floor and also tasted. It will all have to be kept clean, therefore!
However, many people choose not to use harsh chemical cleaning products near their young baby, worrying about toxic ingredients being swallowed or irritating sensitive baby skin.
Here are some top tips on cleaning up after your baby gently but effectively:
1) Toys with batteries - Take the batteries out, and wipe down the outside of the toy with a cloth dipped in a bowl of half water, half clear vinegar. Vinegar will cut through any grease and fingerprints and is antibacterial, but it is safe to eat! This will also work on any other hard plastic toys, but don’t use vinegar on cloth or wood in case it soaks in and leaves the lingering smell of the chip shop…
If there are small cracks that you can’t get into with a cloth, use an old toothbrush to get out any dirt trapped inside before it can go manky.
2) Books - Baby books are surprisingly sturdy. You must never soak a book or the pages will curl up, but a damp (not wet!) cloth sprinkled with some of the vinegar-and-water mixture can be used to wipe sticky marks off book covers and shiny book pages. Stand the book up on a countertop to dry with the pages slightly apart so that the air can get between them.
3) Toys made from Cloth and Wood - Good old fashioned soapy water is the way to go here! Squirt some fairy liquid (or similar product of your choice!) into a bowl of warm water and wipe down the toys, rinsing off the soap suds with clean water afterwards. Try not to soak teddy bears that aren’t too bad as the wet stuffing will take a very long time to dry and could go mouldy in winter, a surface clean should be all they need.
Very dirty soft toys and teddies can be put in the washing machine to give them a thorough clean, but if you do this, bear in mind that your toddler might be confused or upset by you doing this to their favourite companion if they have been told that pets and other children must never be put into the washing machine because it is dangerous. It might be better to give their special teddy a ‘bath’ in a bowl of water with their help, or even by going in the bath with them at their own bathtime! Baby shampoo works fine on teddies too. If you do use the washer, do check the toy over before you give it back to make sure that no pieces have come loose, and try not to wash all a child’s favourite things at the same time in case you need one in an emergency!
Some wooden toys (and plastic toys without batteries) can be put through the dishwasher to sterilise them, but there is always the risk of damaging the paintwork or even melting plastic, so it is best avoided if you aren’t sure it will work.
Hmm….which looks cuter in knitwear, babies or cats? You Decide! www.buzzfeed.com/expresident/109-cats-in-sweaters(I think the babies have it)
History of the Baby Knit - Part One
Did you know that British babies have ‘only’ been wearing knitted cardigans for around 500 years? Knitting did not become popular in Northern Europe until the 1500s, although people had been using related crafts such as naalbinding and weaving to make clothes for centuries by then.
Between the 1650s and 1850s nearly all baby clothing was white. Babies who were starting to sit and be active moved from swaddling bands into miniature versions of adult woman’s clothing - possibly because wide skirts made toilet training easier! Although this clothing was female in style, it was considered unisex on babies because all children were simply classed together as ‘infants’ until they were three or four years old, at which point little boys began to be treated and dressed differently (and by five, many children would be doing some kind of limited work to help their family).
Baby outerwear throughout this period was usually knitted from the bottom up so that seams run along the shoulders, and the sleeves were added after the body had been made. This is different to today, when many baby knitting patterns use a ‘raglan’ sleeve (which has a diagonal seam going from the side of the neck to the underarm), invented after the Battle of Waterloo. However, modern baby handknits and knitwear from the 7th century use remarkably similar decorative patterns on the front and around the bottom of the garment - a mixture of textured stitching and chevron lace patterns made with Yarn Over stitches. Knitting was not only done using wool, many surviving baby clothes are knitted from fine white cotton instead.
Photo of an 18th Century Knitted Baby Vest from the Knitting & Crochet Guild collection: http://preview.tinyurl.com/6kptooe
Source: Museum of London and Victoria & Albert Museum, London. Knitting & Crochet Guild, Ravelry.com.
