Newborn cloth diapers on a budget (afraid of pre-folds)

Angela - posted on 05/04/2011

I must say prefolds using a snappi and the plastic whisper pants is my favorite combination on my newborn.. I bought some fancy covers and use them sometimes.. but nothing beats the plain old simple prefold with the plastic pants over.. now I do LOVE my snappi's.. beats messing with pins! the covers are time consuming when your changing so many and the plastic pants are nice and thin.

Chelsea - posted on 04/23/2011

I was afraid of prefolds to until i took a cloth diaper class now we decided to go ahhead and by nb prefolds and covers to use till she grows into the onesize, try finding a class it may help

Tammy - posted on 04/22/2011

I didnt start using cloth until my son was three months old. I started out using the old fashioned terry squares and plastic pilchers, as this was the only way I knew how. I hated it as it was really bulky and I was forever having to stretch his clothes over his nappies. Then I discovered all the different types of cloth nappies and decided on one size pockets. I bought my stash off ebay for only about $5ea. I am pregnant with our second and extensively researched what I would like best for cding our newborn, as I am aiming for cd'ing right from birth. I decided on Kissaluv's Size 0 which also has a snap down for the umbilical cord. These should last until bub is 5mo. Hopefully by that time our son is fully toilet trained and I can transfer most of our pockets stash to our youngest. I do still have some of the terry squares which I could possibly use for the first few days for the meconium as I dont care if they are thrown away. But I did buy a couple metres of fleece inexpensively so that way I can also just throw away the fleece liners if need be.

Winter - posted on 04/18/2011

I found it kinda difficult to fold the cloth diaper for my newborn down in the front to avoid the umbilical area. I was a total cloth diaper rookie though. Maybe somebody has a folding technique for that? I ended up using newborn fitted diapers that had an umbilical cut-out. When she outgrew them, I stuffed them inside pocket diapers. Definitely wait until the meconium period is over before putting anything expensive on, that stuff is like road tar.

Samantha - posted on 02/03/2010

I used the flat terry sheets- going right back to scratch! loved it though- did this for 7 months xx

Katrina - posted on 02/02/2010

go to www.theluvyourbaby.com
I got all in ones for $6 a piece! She even shipped them for free. And so far, they have worked great! I think she has some newborn sized diapers. Would be worth a look!
Congratulations!

Amber - posted on 01/31/2010

when my little one was a newborn i used a diaper service but only for the first month

Kristina - posted on 01/31/2010

Okay I know pre-folds can be a bit frightening.... but one day in desperate need because I was behind on the laundry I did it.... That was with my second child.... I'm now on my fourth and I have used pre-folds ever since that day.... I make my own covers because my kids are all short and chunky and I have trouble finding covers.... pre-folds are cheapest (unless you go super fancy, but we use Gerber!) and I think laundry wise way easier and faster!!! I have a 5 month old and a 17 month old in prefolds around the clock!!! Just saying give it a shot, it may end up being something you prefer or at least find doable durring the fast growing newborn days....

Yolanda - posted on 01/19/2010

We purchased pocket diapers and used them as soon as he was 4 days old (when his poop wasn't so black). They are a two size system so they fit him really well, and we don't have to purchase 3-5 different sizes, which makes it cheaper. Plus, the liners/inserts fit into both sizes. They are a good fit and pretty economical if you are afraid of prefolds and covers. The pocket is really nice for grandparents and baby-sitters :)

Brookie - posted on 01/19/2010

Whilst I didn't used them on my daughter till a couple of months old, I believe Rumparooz G2 one-size diapers will snap down small enough to fit a newborn (from 6.5 lbs according the website). They also sell an AIO for new babys that fit from 5 to 12 lbs. The G2 are a really good, durable birth-potty diaper although the liner does stay a bit wet against babies bottom, but we never found this a problem.

Gwen - posted on 01/18/2010

I bought some small prefolds at a yard sale that I used with wraps. I bought the cheapest newborn wraps I could from thebabymarketplace.com. You could try making fleece diaper covers. I made night time training pants for my daughter with just a fleece cover and it keeps the bed dry. I would think as often as you change a newborn that would work. I would buy high quality fleece or cut up your old wool sweaters and use them to make covers (do try the fabric under running water first and see how it reacts). I made my diapers when the kids were bigger from old towels and flannel so you could even go that route for a newborn and then use the diapers as night time doublers when they get bigger. Diapers don't have to be super high tech to work. Anything that sheds water will work as a cover and anything that absorbs water will work inside. Don't be afraid to think outside the box:)

Jennifer - posted on 01/18/2010

Prefolds... lol

and you should totally go look up videos on prefolds on youtube! I was scared to death of them but after seeing a couple videos I wasn't all that scared anymore and decided to give it a shot.. we did that for the first 9 months of his life.. then he rolled around all over the place and got a little too crazy to even try anymore, but yeah, we had a great run, i wish i would of never bothered with the pockets and AIO's that i spent trillions on that leaked and gapped and were just horrible on my newborn that had thin little stick legs. I would honestly just give it a shot.. you never know, you might actually like it. lol

Mollie - posted on 01/16/2010

I used prefolds that I cut down with our covers. I just got some cheap ones from Target so I didn't need to worry about staining my diapers with meconium.

If you have enough $$ I suggest the newborn sized under the nile prefolds.

Ivy - posted on 01/16/2010

We used flats with my first
With the second we used Kissaluvs and prefolds.
The BG fit at 2weeks.

Rebecca - posted on 01/16/2010

Honestly, I think pockets are expensive in general. Plus, most of them are polyester, not cotton, which to me negated some of the benefit of "cloth" diapers. If you are on a budget, I would go for chinese prefolds with a one-size diaper cover like the WonderWraps or the Thirsties One-Size. The Thirsties covers actually come in two sizes to address the sizing issues you mention with a one-size. Proraps also makes an inexpensive diaper cover (I think they are around $6-7). For my twins, we used preemie prefolds and the proraps covers until they were big enough to fit in regular prefolds. However, I had twins and they were really small (4 lbs and 6 lbs). I think if you have an average baby, you will be fine with a few prefolds and a newborn proraps covers or a one-size cover until the baby is bigger. And get Snappis if you go the prefold route.

Amanda - posted on 01/16/2010

I would try to purchase used... I think someone else on here a few thread down is selling... just an option.

Anissa - posted on 01/16/2010

I used both prefolds and Kissaluvs size 0 fitteds. The fitteds were by far my favorite newborn cloth diaper and they lasted us until she was 5 months old. They worked really great at containing the runny breastfed poo so the covers didn't get messed up. Dappi pull on covers are inexpensive and worked great also.

Kyna - posted on 01/16/2010

OS is nice but, depending on your baby's size they might not go up to the size they say they do. My son has big thighs and the OS diapers are getting a bit small on him. I know some mom's use them right up till potty learning time as well. :)

Leah - posted on 01/15/2010

it's true. prefolds are super-easy! and you don't have to stuff them like the pocket diapers. you just need some small covers. the ones with umbilical cut outs are nice cloth diapers for newborns.

Crystal - posted on 01/15/2010

i used prefolds also, you can buy them at target or walmart but you need to wash and dry them 4 or 5 times to get the absorbency you want. when my little guy was really tiny i'd use birdseye cloth diapers because they were thin and so soft. i really love the snuggie diaper fastener too, they're pretty cheap and no chance of poking them. the rubber pant covers from gerber (also at target or walmart) are also an inexpensive way to go about it, and great for preventing leakage. props for going the cloth diaper route with your newborn!!

Katya - posted on 01/15/2010

We used small sized prefolds and snappis in the beginning. Oh and fleece liners (I made my own out of a big bit of fleece from the fabric shop). It was actually amazingly easy and so economical. If you're really prefold=phobic I've heard good things about newborn fitteds with a cover. I'm not sure if anything without a cover (ie pockets) would hold that explosive newborn poo! :)

Liana - posted on 01/14/2010

Trifolded prefolds in covers...easy peasy. I prefer my own homemade fleece or PUL covers as snaps are hard to come by and velcro and I do not get along. Plus its cheap and pretty easy to make. If you sew at all, the Rainy Days pattern is my favorite. It is 2, 2 size diapers (nb/sm and m/l)...no snap down rise. Darling Diapers as another posted stated is a great little FREE pattern that makes an excellent diaper...your baby won't fit them long though (unless you have itty bittys)

Stefie - posted on 01/14/2010

I found a pattern for fitted newborn cloth diapers. I am making them out of old t-shirts for me. I have decided to make them pocket style so I can adjust the absorbency as the baby grows. I am using the darling diapers patten because I like snaps.

Jenny - posted on 01/13/2010

I didn't get to cloth diaper my sons when they were newborns because we didn't have diapers small enough. We decided to not spend the money to buy another size. I am not going to have more kids for a couple of years, Lord willing, but I am already thinking about how to cloth diaper from as soon as the meconium stops. I am experimenting with making contour diapers cheaply and just purchasing some covers to go over them. We use fuzzi bunz diapers because our son had such nasty rashes. He has to have the microfleece next to his skin to keep him dry, and even then it doesn't eliminate the rashes, just makes it better. There are some excellent cloth diaper patterns that are free on the internet, just google it. Get cheap cloth, or use things you have around the house that you aren't using. I am going to make my contours with microfiber towels (from target) as the absorbant layer and microfleece as the outside layers. I'm making one size ones where the back is shaped, but the front is just rectangular so that you can fold it down to the correct size. Hopefully they will work. Anyhow, just some ideas....hope they help.

Katie - posted on 01/13/2010

I actually switched to cloth a little later on and never cloth diapered my son when he was a newborn but I use prefolds and love them and I know other women who have used cloth diapers for newborns and use a variety of types but liked using prefolds on their newborn very much.

Jenna - posted on 01/13/2010

I don't really have any suggestions for newborn cloth diapering (other than - check diaperswappers?) but I do have a suggestion for bigger-than-newborn cloth diapering, if you need more diapers for after kiddo outgrows newborn sized stuff. Kawaii Diapers have gotten some EXCELLENT reviews recently, and I'm planning on picking some up myself. Incredibly inexpensive. www.theluvyourbaby.com

Kati - posted on 01/12/2010

We used pre-folds and covers and honestly, it was no big deal. We used the snappies to "pin" them, but you really don't even need those. Sometimes, I just put the pre-folds inside the cover and attached the Velcro snuggly and it worked just fine. I found that it was economical b/c my baby wasn't in that small of a size for very long and we needed to change her often. I have about 2 dozen pre-folds that I now use for just about everything - under her when I am changing her (very absorbent), extra liner for pocket diapers, in the diaper bag, etc. They were cheap and convenient for us.

Winter - posted on 04/18/2011

I found it kinda difficult to fold the cloth diaper for my newborn down in the front to avoid the umbilical area. I was a total cloth diaper rookie though. Maybe somebody has a folding technique for that? I ended up using newborn fitted diapers that had an umbilical cut-out. When she outgrew them, I stuffed them inside pocket diapers. Definitely wait until the meconium period is over before putting anything expensive on, that stuff is like road tar.

Anissa - posted on 01/16/2010

I used both prefolds and Kissaluvs size 0 fitteds. The fitteds were by far my favorite newborn cloth diaper and they lasted us until she was 5 months old. They worked really great at containing the runny breastfed poo so the covers didn't get messed up. Dappi pull on covers are inexpensive and worked great also.

Leah - posted on 01/15/2010

it's true. prefolds are super-easy! and you don't have to stuff them like the pocket diapers. you just need some small covers. the ones with umbilical cut outs are nice cloth diapers for newborns.

Crystal - posted on 01/15/2010

i used prefolds also, you can buy them at target or walmart but you need to wash and dry them 4 or 5 times to get the absorbency you want. when my little guy was really tiny i'd use birdseye cloth diapers because they were thin and so soft. i really love the snuggie diaper fastener too, they're pretty cheap and no chance of poking them. the rubber pant covers from gerber (also at target or walmart) are also an inexpensive way to go about it, and great for preventing leakage. props for going the cloth diaper route with your newborn!!

Stefie - posted on 01/14/2010

I found a pattern for fitted newborn cloth diapers. I am making them out of old t-shirts for me. I have decided to make them pocket style so I can adjust the absorbency as the baby grows. I am using the darling diapers patten because I like snaps.

Jenny - posted on 01/13/2010

I didn't get to cloth diaper my sons when they were newborns because we didn't have diapers small enough. We decided to not spend the money to buy another size. I am not going to have more kids for a couple of years, Lord willing, but I am already thinking about how to cloth diaper from as soon as the meconium stops. I am experimenting with making contour diapers cheaply and just purchasing some covers to go over them. We use fuzzi bunz diapers because our son had such nasty rashes. He has to have the microfleece next to his skin to keep him dry, and even then it doesn't eliminate the rashes, just makes it better. There are some excellent cloth diaper patterns that are free on the internet, just google it. Get cheap cloth, or use things you have around the house that you aren't using. I am going to make my contours with microfiber towels (from target) as the absorbant layer and microfleece as the outside layers. I'm making one size ones where the back is shaped, but the front is just rectangular so that you can fold it down to the correct size. Hopefully they will work. Anyhow, just some ideas....hope they help.

Katie - posted on 01/13/2010

I actually switched to cloth a little later on and never cloth diapered my son when he was a newborn but I use prefolds and love them and I know other women who have used cloth diapers for newborns and use a variety of types but liked using prefolds on their newborn very much.

Jenna - posted on 01/13/2010

I don't really have any suggestions for newborn cloth diapering (other than - check diaperswappers?) but I do have a suggestion for bigger-than-newborn cloth diapering, if you need more diapers for after kiddo outgrows newborn sized stuff. Kawaii Diapers have gotten some EXCELLENT reviews recently, and I'm planning on picking some up myself. Incredibly inexpensive. www.theluvyourbaby.com