All about cloth diapers.

Amy - posted on 07/30/2011

I know regular diapers for us was about 40-100 dollars a month. It's worth it financially for us - especially if you have two kiddos in diapers.

wipes - you can cheat if you don't want to use washclothes and get paper towels, take out the cardboard roll in middle and put them in soapy water in a tupperware bread container. :)

I do think it makes it easier that I'm home all the time, though. Not sure how I'd do trying to deal with them in public. I still had some disposables on hand for going to friends' homes.

i have no printer. not sure how well i could guess with patterns like that. new at sewing. not quite sure what looking for beyond snaps and it working for a one month old and i also have a 2 year old son who uses cloth, but am trying to potty train. Not working so well so far. I was told to just let him run naked for a few days. that thought frightens me with the cleaning. lol.

I started using them just because the ones given to me were free. now....wow, with all the chemicals and hte chlorine in them, not to mention if one is full that gel stuff, what is THAT made of? Just creepy that it's on their skin 24/7.

Amy - posted on 07/30/2011

I know regular diapers for us was about 40-100 dollars a month. It's worth it financially for us - especially if you have two kiddos in diapers.

wipes - you can cheat if you don't want to use washclothes and get paper towels, take out the cardboard roll in middle and put them in soapy water in a tupperware bread container. :)

I do think it makes it easier that I'm home all the time, though. Not sure how I'd do trying to deal with them in public. I still had some disposables on hand for going to friends' homes.

i have no printer. not sure how well i could guess with patterns like that. new at sewing. not quite sure what looking for beyond snaps and it working for a one month old and i also have a 2 year old son who uses cloth, but am trying to potty train. Not working so well so far. I was told to just let him run naked for a few days. that thought frightens me with the cleaning. lol.

I started using them just because the ones given to me were free. now....wow, with all the chemicals and hte chlorine in them, not to mention if one is full that gel stuff, what is THAT made of? Just creepy that it's on their skin 24/7.

Good Day! - posted on 07/30/2011

That's cool Britt. Cloth is not for everyone. But I'd challenge you to calculate how much you've spent on disposables and wipes. Compare that to less than $400 that I've spent on everything I need for my diapers. And that's probably at the high end of spending on cloth. Maybe it won't change your mind, and you'll still be a Luvs fan, and that's fine. But it's interesting to compare nonetheless.

Britt - posted on 07/30/2011

never used cloth, i usually buy Luvs' i havent had any problems since my DD was a newborn and she is 18months now.

Good Day! - posted on 07/29/2011

I use a brand called Rocky Mountains. They are one size pockets. I wanted one size so I could use them until my children potty-trained, and I think pockets are more sanitary. I chose this particular brand, because they are 100% made in the USA. They are comparable in quality and price with other one size pocket brands that outsource. I don't make my diapers, because sewing is a skill that I have repeatedly failed at. ;)

I have 12 diapers total. I have three set to my three year old's size, and she wears them for sleeping only. The other 9 are set to my 4 month old's size. I typically wash once a day. Sometimes I'm able to skip a day.

I use Charlie's Soap to clean them in my washer. I do a cold rinse with no detergent and hot wash with detergent. If they were really icky I'll do another cold rinse. I like to line dry them, but it's been so rainy this summer that I've had to dry them on low heat in the dryer. I love line drying, because the sun eliminates the smell and naturally bleaches the stains.

I bought my diapers from a company local company that hires stay at home moms to sell the diapers out of their homes. The company also sells products that stay at home moms make, like slings and wipes. I love supporting my fellow stay at home moms! The representative I bought from spent four hours teaching me all about cloth diapers and how to use them. I've called her several times since with questions, and she's been more than willing to help. I may not have gone the cloth diaper route without her help and support, because cloth diaper users are scarce around here (though I've met many more through since I've started). In case someone wants to know, the company is called Elemeno-Pee, and there are reps in south Louisiana and Texas.

Lisa - posted on 07/29/2011

@Amy - there are quite a few free pattern out there. What type of cover are you looking for? Katrina's soaker is a good pattern. I have a pattern that I've been wanting to digitize so I can sell but I'm struggling finding the time to get it digitize and figuring out how to make it print right.

if you want email me and I can get you some more links or google cloth diaper cover patterns

Amy - posted on 07/29/2011

Mine are all hand me down cloth diapers. I have no clue where she got them or what brands they are. go through about 10-20 a day. I wash daily or every other. I have a big ole sink right by my washing machine. breastfed baby poos are really easy, i think. and i line dry outside and sun pretty much bleaches out any stains. i was told never use fabric softener because it'll repel pee. I use all free and clear. i have soaked some in water and vinegar when i can't get to them right away. i run them in their own load. poos i spray off with our awesome spraying in that huge sink in the laundry room. when they get bigger, most poo goes right dumped into the potty. you learn to strategically hold the cloth while flushing so the flush process takes a fair bit of poop with it. lol.

I was looking for a diaper cover pattern that works really well. what pattern did you use lisa? or did you make your own without a pattern [i'm new at sewing.]

Lisa - posted on 07/29/2011

I make my own cloth diapers. For what the materials cost, commercial cloth diapers are ridiciously expensive!
I wash daily but I have one in diapers and one potty training. I usually wash at the end of every day to every other day. I either wash once everyone is in bed and hang them over a drying rack or wash in the morning and hang them outside to dry.
If there is BM, I shake it into the toilet. I wash on hot with a hot rinse and use our regular laundry soap. My diapers are on my third child!