When I started out on this whole cloth diaper experience, I was new to EVERYTHING!! And it seemed that there was so much to learn. And not only so much to learn, but it seemed that every blog I read had a VERY different opinion on everything related to cloth diapering. And as a new mom, it was completely overwhelming. In fact, if the prospect of cloth diaper didn't sound so wonderful to me, I probably would have just used disposable diapers because I seriously was so confused by all the lingo, ideas, ways to do things, and types of cloth diapers. :(
And that right there my friends makes me very sad. Looking back to where I was four months ago and my feelings of despair and nervousness over cloth diapers makes me not want any mom to have those feelings.
I think the reason why there are so many different ways to do cloth diapers is because there are so many different types of families! What works for my family might not work for your family! But the way that some families express their views on the subject as "my way or the highway" makes them sound like the ultimate authority on cloth diapers. And let me tell you, they are NOT the authority!! YOU ARE!! You have to do what is best for your family! Plain and simple!
So without trying to be too authoritative and over-bearing ;) I'm going to tell you what I use for cloth diapers.
Most of the cloth diapers we use at our house are prefold diapers with a cover.
When Bug was a newborn, we used Osocozy newborn (yellow trim) prefolds and Real Nappy covers. Once he started to leak with the newborn size, I ordered the medium sized Osocozy prefolds.
When using prefolds, I do not use pins or snappies. I just fold the diaper into thirds and lay it in the cover. I don't know if I just didn't get big enough diapers, but I could never get them to fit around him doing a tradition fold around his tummy. I like the simplicity of just folding them into thirds and laying them in. Most covers have a flap to keep the prefold in place.
For over night diapers, we used Alva Baby pocket diapers with the inserts that came with. The link above to this dino diaper was our favorite, and I loved the inserts that come with it!
I ordered more Alva Baby diapers from shopdiaper.com and they came with different inserts. These inserts did NOT work for the Bug and I ended up trying some different things that I will talk about later.
But low and behold, our over night diaper system did not work anymore. We realized that Bug was holding his pee and then would pee a lot all at once, and the pocket diaper lining could not handle that fast of pee. So we tried putting a prefold inside a pocket diaper and that seemed to work, but that much fabric on a 1 1/2 month old looked absolutely crazy and uncomfortable. So I went in search of another solution...
And I found the world of fitted diapers. A fitted diaper is basically a prefold made into a whole diaper. So no matter where the pee goes, it will get soaked up with the cotton. You have to use a cover with these because it is just cotton material.
And I also found out that cotton and natural fibers absorb much better for heavy wetters than synthetic materials like microfiber.
The fitted diaper I chose to go with was the Thirsty Duo Fab Fitted diaper. It is quite a mouthful, but they are pretty great! It is not a regular fitted diaper because it is not prefold material. In fact, I'm not even sure what it is made of, but it is SUPER soft, highly absorbent, and it works wonders for us! It also it pretty affordable compared to most fitted diapers! You can stuff them with an insert, but you don't have to. I use Thirsty doublers or hemp inserts. I ordered two just to try, and I loved them, so I ordered two more. By pairing this with a cover, we have not had any leaks at night time!
As our Bug got bigger, we needed some bigger covers. I went mainly with Diaper Safari covers and a couple Thirsty covers. I still use the medium Osocozy prefolds and as of right now, my four month old Bug is doing great with the medium size.
I use pocket diapers now mainly when Bug has an afternoon with a Grandma or Auntie, or when we are going out shopping or to church.
I love how adjustable the Alva Baby pocket diapers are! They really are a great diaper to use and use and use as your baby grows and grows and grows!
Now like I said above, the inserts I got with my second order of Alva Baby diapers were JUNK! So I ordered some hemp inserts. Well, I did not know that while hemp is super absorbent, it is SLOW absorbing, and since I have a fast peeing baby, this was not working at all. So I did some more reading and found Thristy Doublers. I absolutely love these colorful, absorbant, amazing pieces of fabric! :)
I have been using a doubler and a hemp or original insert I got with the Alva Baby diapers together. This seems to work really well.
So that is how we cloth diaper in our house. This is what works for us. It might not work for you. The key with cloth diapers is trial and error. For someone who does not like to experiment (I just want it to work the first time), this can be hard. But it is also very rewarding when you find what works for you!
Here are the amount of diapers I currently am using for my four month old little Bug...
7 Diaper Safari snap covers
2 Thirsty Duo Snap Wrap covers - size two
1 Rumparoo Cover - size one
12 Osocozy prefold diapers - medium
6 Gerber prefold diapers - not my favorite, but use them when I don't have laundry done.
6 Osocozy unbleached prefold diapers - size 1 - almost too small
4 Thirsty Duo Fab Fitted diapers - size two
9 Thirsty Fab Doublers - large
2 Thirsty Hemp Inserts - large
3 Baby Kicks Hemp Inserts - medium
4 Inserts from Alva Baby diapers - I really have no clue what these are made of or how to get more besides ordering individual diapers off amazon.
8 Alva Baby pocket diapers
3 Shop Diaper pocket diapers
1 bumGenius 4.0 pocket diaper
I have more diapers than I probably need, but I only have to do laundry every two days. And that my friends is FABULOUS! :)
I know that is a lot of information! But that is what we do. Remember, try new things and see what works for you! But also remember to not order a whole lot of one type until you try it first. A diaper one person might rave about, might not work for you baby. So try a few and go from there.
Cloth diapering is so much fun! I love how my Bug's bottom is always free of redness and I love the fact that I'm not putting chemicals on his little bum.
Hope you are able to find what works for you! If you have questions, feel free to comment! I'd love to talk with you!
Cassandra :)
Most of the cloth diapers we use at our house are prefold diapers with a cover.
When Bug was a newborn, we used Osocozy newborn (yellow trim) prefolds and Real Nappy covers. Once he started to leak with the newborn size, I ordered the medium sized Osocozy prefolds.
When using prefolds, I do not use pins or snappies. I just fold the diaper into thirds and lay it in the cover. I don't know if I just didn't get big enough diapers, but I could never get them to fit around him doing a tradition fold around his tummy. I like the simplicity of just folding them into thirds and laying them in. Most covers have a flap to keep the prefold in place.
For over night diapers, we used Alva Baby pocket diapers with the inserts that came with. The link above to this dino diaper was our favorite, and I loved the inserts that come with it!
I ordered more Alva Baby diapers from shopdiaper.com and they came with different inserts. These inserts did NOT work for the Bug and I ended up trying some different things that I will talk about later.
But low and behold, our over night diaper system did not work anymore. We realized that Bug was holding his pee and then would pee a lot all at once, and the pocket diaper lining could not handle that fast of pee. So we tried putting a prefold inside a pocket diaper and that seemed to work, but that much fabric on a 1 1/2 month old looked absolutely crazy and uncomfortable. So I went in search of another solution...
And I found the world of fitted diapers. A fitted diaper is basically a prefold made into a whole diaper. So no matter where the pee goes, it will get soaked up with the cotton. You have to use a cover with these because it is just cotton material.
And I also found out that cotton and natural fibers absorb much better for heavy wetters than synthetic materials like microfiber.
The fitted diaper I chose to go with was the Thirsty Duo Fab Fitted diaper. It is quite a mouthful, but they are pretty great! It is not a regular fitted diaper because it is not prefold material. In fact, I'm not even sure what it is made of, but it is SUPER soft, highly absorbent, and it works wonders for us! It also it pretty affordable compared to most fitted diapers! You can stuff them with an insert, but you don't have to. I use Thirsty doublers or hemp inserts. I ordered two just to try, and I loved them, so I ordered two more. By pairing this with a cover, we have not had any leaks at night time!
As our Bug got bigger, we needed some bigger covers. I went mainly with Diaper Safari covers and a couple Thirsty covers. I still use the medium Osocozy prefolds and as of right now, my four month old Bug is doing great with the medium size.
I use pocket diapers now mainly when Bug has an afternoon with a Grandma or Auntie, or when we are going out shopping or to church.
I love how adjustable the Alva Baby pocket diapers are! They really are a great diaper to use and use and use as your baby grows and grows and grows!
Now like I said above, the inserts I got with my second order of Alva Baby diapers were JUNK! So I ordered some hemp inserts. Well, I did not know that while hemp is super absorbent, it is SLOW absorbing, and since I have a fast peeing baby, this was not working at all. So I did some more reading and found Thristy Doublers. I absolutely love these colorful, absorbant, amazing pieces of fabric! :)
I have been using a doubler and a hemp or original insert I got with the Alva Baby diapers together. This seems to work really well.
So that is how we cloth diaper in our house. This is what works for us. It might not work for you. The key with cloth diapers is trial and error. For someone who does not like to experiment (I just want it to work the first time), this can be hard. But it is also very rewarding when you find what works for you!
Here are the amount of diapers I currently am using for my four month old little Bug...
7 Diaper Safari snap covers
2 Thirsty Duo Snap Wrap covers - size two
1 Rumparoo Cover - size one
12 Osocozy prefold diapers - medium
6 Gerber prefold diapers - not my favorite, but use them when I don't have laundry done.
6 Osocozy unbleached prefold diapers - size 1 - almost too small
4 Thirsty Duo Fab Fitted diapers - size two
9 Thirsty Fab Doublers - large
2 Thirsty Hemp Inserts - large
3 Baby Kicks Hemp Inserts - medium
4 Inserts from Alva Baby diapers - I really have no clue what these are made of or how to get more besides ordering individual diapers off amazon.
8 Alva Baby pocket diapers
3 Shop Diaper pocket diapers
1 bumGenius 4.0 pocket diaper
I have more diapers than I probably need, but I only have to do laundry every two days. And that my friends is FABULOUS! :)
I know that is a lot of information! But that is what we do. Remember, try new things and see what works for you! But also remember to not order a whole lot of one type until you try it first. A diaper one person might rave about, might not work for you baby. So try a few and go from there.
Cloth diapering is so much fun! I love how my Bug's bottom is always free of redness and I love the fact that I'm not putting chemicals on his little bum.
Hope you are able to find what works for you! If you have questions, feel free to comment! I'd love to talk with you!
Cassandra :)
Oh boy! So many choices! I definitely feel like you did in the beginning! OVERWHELMED! I hope I can figure this cloth diaper thing out! I really don't want to use disposables!
ReplyDeleteFeel free to run any other ideas by me. Also, I don't know if I mentioned this in the blog. But to get started, we just went on Amazon and ordered a few different things. It was a shot in the dark, but we just ordered and when they got here we figured out what worked and what didn't and then ordered more accordingly.
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