anyone crack the bjm soaker pattern?

[GeorgiaGalHeidi]

i love how these fit but hate the yarn! in her desc, she says she does not sell patterns but to order one to figure it out, so i am assuming that'd be o.k. with her. it seems very easy and straightforward-no ssk or k2tog it apperas...anyone do this yet?

[littleturtlemama]

haven't ever seen one in real life, but I've sen the pics online, and in order to get the legs to taper there has to be some sort of shaping/decreasing in the legs, I'd think.

[GeorgiaGalHeidi]

yeah, that's where i get confused-the ww has noticeable shaping/slanting, and the bjm does not. ?????

[littleturtlemama]

there has to be some sort of shaping in the legs, there's no other way to get the legs to taper in, yk? can you take a close up of the leg holes for me to look at? I'm sure I can figure out what they do if I see it ;)

I defintiely don't think they;ve got short rows in teh bum o ranything, though

[marnie]

theresa: i can send you one, if you'd like. i got one that someone threw in as a freebie when i bought some diapers a long time ago. i also love the fit except that the crotch is a bit too narrow.

[Angela_hk_n_knit]

Whats the link to the site?

[BaysMom]

I'm not going to be much help here, but they do have short rows in the back. It's the first cover I tried to sort of copy when I learned to knit. It too me forever to figure out how in the world there were such and such many rows in the front and more in the back *LOL*. But I never did figure out the leg shaping. I swear it's almost like they knit them from the crotch up and just add stitches to increase.. but then, there would be no way to do short rows if that were the case.

Anyway.. I'm not much help here, but I'll totally agree that the fit is AWSOME and I'd so love to be able to create that fit with better yarn.

[pmcgary]

You can still do the short rows--- I have done shorts that way.

[pmcgary]

I know this is a shift from the "cracking" the pattern code, but can someone tell me how these pants/soakers are getting from China to the US--- at such low prices I can't imagine they are paying duty on them.....

Tonight I can't seem to find the link to the store either.....

[GeorgiaGalHeidi]

I will try to get a pic up today. I am not sure about the duties-I know that she has been asked several times and is very defensive about it-she has a statement link in her ebay desc:

http://members.cox.net/ldbcc/statement.html

I love the fit-I have the ones with leg ribbing/cuffs, so they look like mini-shorts when on. Very snug in the right places, etc.

[pmcgary]

I have read her disclaimer. I just don't see how she can be paying her knitters a reasonable price (even in China) getting them imported and sold for what she does. But then it also looks like she does business in items other than soakers....

[averymybaby]

I have read her disclaimer. I just don't see how she can be paying her knitters a reasonable price (even in China) getting them imported and sold for what she does. But then it also looks like she does business in items other than soakers....

:nod :chin

[CraftyMommaOf2]

It makes me leary that it's an import company that deals in electronics. Just a weird combo.


nak

[hunnybumm]

Ahhh the forever going debate about BJM soakers. ;) I have a pair of pants and a soaker, I really love the fit but the yarn is very thin. I can't use the soaker when we are out because he pees once and it is damp. But I am truely amazed at how stretchy... yet fitted the soaker was. It fit DS great, but I also would like to use nicer thicker yarn. The pants work fine however. I use them for night time because they are thin enough so he can really move around, but they somehow (no clue how since they are so thin) manage to keep us and the bed dry.... except for during the morning pee and my thickest soaker doesn't hold that in. ;)

There is definitly short row in the bumm too.

[GeorgiaGalHeidi]

Hey ladies. :) I was thinking about this and other BJM type threads, and something dawned on me...We are very critical of these soakers because of the possible childhood or unfair labor involved, but what about our CPFS and IPFS? I think I would be naive to assume that they are not made in sweat shops! Although I do not like to think that ANY product I buy is made by tiny hands or with unfair labor practices, I think it is unfair to isolate the soakers when we all use CPFS without mention. Just a "on the side" thought.

[GeorgiaGalHeidi]

Oh, and here is finally a pic! I know I need a closer and inside out pic, but I had this one on the compute already, so I thought I would post it cause you can see that the leg slant decreasing you usually see in a soaker is not there. I have been meaning to get a better pic, but you all know how that goes! :)

[pmcgary]

I don't know about other's concerns but my concern was mostly that the business looks like any other WAHM site - but it isn't --- I think most of the CD moms realize CPFs come from overseas but don't expect handknit soakers to not be domestic....

I also wonder if they are somehow circumventing import/export regs. to as I can't imagine that they are paying duty/customs fees and able to sell the items so inexpensively --- but then I don't know how all that stuff works.

[radish]

IIRC, CPFs are not made in China, or used much either..???

[CraftyMommaOf2]

what's iirc? :bag

i know there are wahms that make pfs too.

[radish]

if i recall correctly :)

i think the chinese PFs are made elsewhere - again, i could be way off just seem to remember that from mdc

[pmcgary]

I seem to recall that it is difficult to get diapers through customs??? I thought a lot of the prefolds were coming out of Egypt now....

[pamelamama]

I bet Heather Sanders would know about the prefolds. The Diaper Hyena? Anyone want to email her to come answer the question?

[GeorgiaGalHeidi]

On where they are made...looks like where the cotton is from....some are made here, but the majority are really from India or China:

IPFS:

These prefolds made by Baby Textiles of Indian cotton, made in Pakistan are very popular for their softness.http://www.diaperware.com/prefolds.html

CPFS:
Our diapers are made in China by a privately owned American/Chinese partnership. No child labor is used, and workers are paid competitive wages.
http://www.earthbaby.com/prefoldfaq.html

CPF stands for Chinese Prefolds - meaning prefold diapers made in China and exported.
http://www.cutofcloth.com/article_prefolds101.asp

When they are made in India/China, I think all bets are off-it is hard to say that the labor and wages are fair, because, as we all know, even when a parent company is American, there are diff rules for its subsidiary company oversees. That's why we have so much "outsourcing." Sure, they can say the wages are fair, and they are according to the applicable laws governing these set-ups, but we may not consider them fair.

Customs...I know that Teresa at Granitsmith gets her prefolds and flats through customs legally, and she is still able to offer them at really low prices. Her last shipment was from the middleast as I recall, so they were tied up in customs for a while. So, I cannot assume that she messes with customs. Afterall, Teresa is a lawyer, so I assume she is honest and knowledgable when dealing with customs, and she is able to get her dipes through customs and still offer them at super low prices.

Prefolds and flats make diapering possible for us. I could not afford to buy WAHM diapers only, no matter how much I would like to for various reasons. I often wonder if there are a bunch of little chinese girls knitting BJM soakers. So, I do see what you are saying Pamela. I decided to start knitting my own soakers and longies cause I will never be able to afford a WAHM soaker or longies. But, I also never thought she represented the company as a WAHM owned business...from the amount of soakers she offers and the description, I assumed there were several knitters. She has no website like KSS or MM-it's all mass offerings on ebay. I do not like the idea of lotsa children knitting her soakers, but I also like that some poorer gals can afford a soaker through her services, and who knows, the wages can be great for all we know.

[pmcgary]

. So, I do see what you are saying Pamela. I decided to start knitting my own soakers and longies cause I will never be able to afford a WAHM soaker or longies. But, I also never thought she represented the company as a WAHM owned business...from the amount of soakers she offers and the description, I assumed there were several knitters. She has no website like KSS or MM-it's all mass offerings on ebay. I do not like the idea of lotsa children knitting her soakers, but I also like that some poorer gals can afford a soaker through her services, and who knows, the wages can be great for all we know.

Actually she does wholesale them to other WAHM, b/c I googled and found a woman who was selling them
Here is one link
http://www.mtdiaperstore.com/product_info.php?products_id=114
I doubt that too many people think about how many people are knitting for her (thinking of the woman who wanted to know how many soakers could be knit in an hour!)
...but I am sure that some probably assume they are buying a product made in the USA - Of course if they read her information then they should know.

[GeorgiaGalHeidi]

Ahhh..I see. :)

[hunnybumm]

She also does have a site off of eBay, at least I know she use to, I don't have the link though. The prices are higher off of the site, but still very low. From what Karen (I think that is the lady who runs BJM) she says they have woman knitting and that they make good wages, but like mentioned above 'good' is all comparative and it is almost im possible to know for sure. For a while she had a link to a letter she had written about not useing child labor, that all the woman knitting where conscenting adults and they they weren't machine made. She gets a lot of flack about how cheap her soakers are.