Katikati's nappy lady brings mountain to Auckland

Katikati's nappy lady is at it again. This time Kate Meads attempted to give the Auckland skyline a new icon - a Nappy Mountain - to kick off International Cloth Nappy Week.

"We wanted to show parents what a year's worth of disposable nappies looks like, giving them a clear visual reminder of the impact disposable nappies have on our environment," says Kate.

Over 30 parents brought along a bag each, along with bags from friends, of used disposable nappies to the Refuse Recycling Station in Henderson, to exchange them for a free cloth nappy.

Monday's event also kicked off The Great Cloth Nappy Challenge involving 20 Auckland parents taking part in a seven-week trial of cloth nappies.

But the fun isn't limited to Auckland. Nineteen Nappuccino Coffee Groups are being held throughout this week, bringing interested parents together with cloth nappy experts.

Mums registering and attending their local Nappuccino Coffee Group will go in the draw to win a prize pack worth $250 and a $1000 prize pack will be given away to one lucky nationwide attendee.

Kate is running a Nappuccino Coffee Group in Tauranga this Friday at Grinds Cafe in 1st Avenue at 11am, where she has lots of nappies to give away.

"All local mums are welcome to come along. Events like these are a fun way to bring education and socialisation together for busy mums," says Kate.

"Modern mums want baby products that are eco-friendly yet convenient,"

Cloth nappies are just as easy to use as disposables and they're far better for our environment as well a our bank balance.

A busy mother doesn't always have the time to research the options, so we're bringing cloth nappies to main centres around the country and inviting mums to come learn more in a relaxed setting - on a coffee date with friends."

Interest in cloth nappies is growing with parents concerned about their family's impact on the ecosystem becoming more keen to find ways to reduce, reuse and recycle.

There is also the cost factor. Using modern cloth nappies for one child is estimated to cost an average of $1448 compared to $5,636 for disposables - a saving of $4188 for parents who choose cloth.

Even celebrity mums are using them on their babies.

"We love using our cloth nappies on Tilly," says media personality and new mum Carly. "We started using them early on after seeing how much waste we were putting out each week with disposables. I think the key, though, has been to be realistic - we use cloth about 80 per cent of the time."