cloth diapers

Ellie - posted on 09/30/2012

I am planning to use them with my firstborn because several of my friends have raved about them. There is a whole community here on Circle of Moms for cloth diapering... check out "Cloth Diapered Munchkins".



If your budget is tight, you might look into buying used cloth diapers. There's a thread on here in the above community that facilitates buy/sell/trade. There's also a Cloth Diaper Swap group on facebook. And a huge market for them on ebay and craigslist. You can also register for them on several websites, including Amazon.com, in case you're planning on a shower.

Elfrieda - posted on 09/30/2012

Cloth diapers are way different than when our moms used them. There are good websites that go into detail, but basically there are a few basic kinds:



1. The oldfashioned enormous square ones where you have to fold many times and then put them in plastic pants. Probably these are the ones your mom used, with safety pins.

2. The newer version of these, called Prefolds. They're already folded to be thicker in the middle and then sewn like that so you don't have to fold them much. They are shaped like a rectangle. They also need a waterproof cover. This is the cheapest option. I just bought Bummis prefolds but I'm still pregnant so I don't know how they work. I'm optimistic, though. :) You can use safety pins or this new easier thing called a Snappi.

3. Fitted diapers. They're shaped like disposable diapers, kind of hour-glass-ish with elastic around the waist and legs. I had the Kissaluvs brand for my son and really liked them. They close with snaps. They also need a waterproof cover.

4. Pocket diapers. The waterproof cover and the absorbent part is all together. After you wash them, you put the absorbent pad into the pocket and then usually they're held on by velcro. They act pretty much the same way as a disposable, so there's no need to learn a new way of putting a diaper on.

5. All-in-ones. As far as I know, these are the easiest to use (because it's all in one, no stuffing, no covers, etc) but they are the most expensive and they take the longest to wash and dry.



It's really hard to choose, so good luck. :P One thing that took me a long time to figure out is that some are called "one-size" which means you can put them on a very small baby and use them all the way until that baby is pottytrained. They are very bulky on a small baby, obviously, but the upside is that you only need to buy one set of diapers.



I have the Kissaluvs size 2 (I used them on my son from 8-33 months) and I just bought the Bummis Infant Prefolds which I hope will take me from infant to 8 months when I can stick him or her into the kissaluvs. So I have two sets. It kind of depends on whether your baby is skinny, has fat legs, etc, which ones are the PERFECT ones. Some people get very excited about cloth diapers, and they have all kinds and it's kind of a hobby for them. Myself, I see it as a way of catching all the nastiness while saving money and not messing up the environment too badly, so it's not really a hobby for me, more of a functional product.

Danielle Lee - posted on 09/29/2012

:o) Thanks alot. this is my second pregnancy and our budget is very hard on us. I asked my mom if she's ever used cloth diapers and she said yes but she discouraged me by saying it was hard work. I'd like to try it though, Just to help with our budget and the experience.

Amanda - posted on 09/19/2012

I use prefolds for my 6 month old. They can be a little bulky, but my child is also extra chunky, which makes it hard to fit some pants over them. I like them, we had a tight check this pay period and not having to buy diapers really helped us out. It also depends on what type you want to get, some are an easier clean-up. Cloth diapers must be changed more often, too. With a disposable I might go 3-4 hours without changing my son's diaper, with a cloth diaper I change him about every 2 hours. Normally I use disposables at night because they hold more without leaking, I'm using cloth for now though, as long as I change him everytime he wakes up he doesn't get a rash. There's also a cloth-diaper group if you have more questions, they're very helpful.