Having a baby can be very expensive, and so if you can find ways to cut corners, it's worth doing. That's where homemade baby wipes can be of great benefit. Not only do you save money, you can also be more confident what it is that you're using on your baby's precious skin. You can be reassured there's nothing that might cause irritation.

Like baby wipes you purchase in a store, homemade baby wipes are portable and convenient. To make them, start with a roll of paper towels, such as Viva or Bounty. You will also need baby bath liquid, water, and a sturdy plastic container with a lid. I'm sure you can already see how you're saving money - buying baby wipes costs from $3 to $5 a package. You're paying for chemicals, fragrance, alcohol or other ingredients that dry the skin, and water. The ingredients listed for homemade baby wipes make two batches of wipes, so you're only paying around 60 cent per package. Even better, you choose the baby bath liquid, and can therefore use organic or all natural if you wish to.

Firstly, choose a cylindrical plastic container, slightly bigger than a quart container. It needs to be tall enough to hold a roll of paper towels cut in half (so a bit bigger than a roll of toilet paper). Make sure the container's lid fits tightly. Use a sharp blade to cut an "x" slit in middle of the lid.

Now, cut your roll of paper towel in half using a sharp knife. You will end up with two smaller rolls that look quite similar to rolls of toilet paper. Put one half of the paper towel roll into the container.

Grab a bowl, and mix together 2 cups of water and 2 tablespoons of the baby bath liquid. Pour this mixture into your homemade baby wipes container. Now you can go and make yourself a coffee, as you'll need to wait about five minutes while the paper towels soak up the bath liquid mixture. Once the five minutes has passed, gently pull the cardboard core out of the middle of the paper towel roll. As you pull the core out, the innermost piece of paper towel should follow it up. Pull the piece of paper towel through the slit you cut in the container's lid, and put the lid back on.

Now, when you're ready to use a wipe, just pull the paper towel up through the lid of the container. The paper towel is perforated, so it will tear off easily at the perforation, leaving the next wipe poking through the lid, ready to use when you need it.

The container works well when you're at home, but homemade baby wipes can also be used when you’re out and about. Pull out the number of baby wipes you'll need and put them in a zip lock plastic bag. You can then just unzip the bag and take out a wipe when you need one, or you can cut a small hole in the bag to pull through one end of the first wipe, ready for use. In that case you may want to put the whole zip lock bag inside a plastic portable wipes box, both to stop them leaking and protect them from drying out in the air. Now you have portable homemade baby wipes!

Homemade baby wipes are very simple to make, cheap, convenient and much better for your baby's skin - so make your own today!