How do you decide?

[MeredithK]

I have to admit that sometimes too many choices are not a good thing. I am feeling overwhelmed with all the different cloth diapers choices out there.

As a first time mom, I have no idea what is going to work for this babe. I want to CD but will probably do disposables for the the first week. The only other thing that I know is that I probably don't want to do prefolds (I think that they will be too tricky for DH!).

But, other than that...how do you decide what to do? One size seem like a good deal and people seem to like their BG's, but they might not fit for a little while. I can knit wool covers, so fitteds seem good, too.

Where do you begin and with how many? I'd hate to buy a bunch that don't work out. Help!!

[ShwarmaQueen]

You could do an assortment for the first couple of months, then decide what you feel comfortable with. Even though you said your DH wouldn't like prefolds, I'd get a dozen of those for you to try, maybe 6 fitteds, and 6 or so pockets/AIOs. That should give you feel for what works best.

Personally, I'm doing mainly PFs because of cost and ease of cleaning. I've just seen way to many posts about leaky/defective/stinky pockets & AIOs, even at their high price! :

[Beauchamp]

Originally Posted by MeredithK

Where do you begin and with how many? I'd hate to buy a bunch that don't work out. Help!!

I thought I would looove PFs, because there is a lot of prefold-love on these boards. Unfortunately, I didn't feel the love.

I bought 3 dozen PFs (one dozen orange-edge/newborn GMD, one dozen Cotton Babies Indian "Infant" PFs, one dozen yellow-edge/premium GMD PFs.) For these PFs, I bought three kinds of covers (the ones I found had the best reviews, or at least the most consistent)--- Thirsties, Bummis Super Whisper Wraps, and Lite Wraps. (The best, IMO were the Thirsties. I'd only buy these again and not the other two, but all babies are different.) MY baby HATED the feeling of pee on her skin and would scream every hour for her dipe to be changed. And she started getting little red bumps, even though I seriously prepped and boiled those PFs. Alas, the PFs have been put away maybe until she is older and pees less, but honestly, I'd rather sell 'em and get rid of them. (The PFs take FOREVER to dry in the dryer because they are so absorbent.)

When my LO was big enough I tried the one-size BG 3.0 and Fuzzi Bunz (size small) on her. I got 3 BGs as a gift, and I bought one FB myself. I liked how the BG worked, and I bought 18 more. The FB is good, but the velcro tabs on the BG are easier, and the FB fit is not *as* adjustable as the BG. But the FB are less worrisome to wash, easier to stuff.

(Gosh this is getting long, sorry!)

Anyway--- I thought the same as you in the beginning...there are TOO MANY choices! So I stuck with two kinds of AIO/Pockets and the PFs with three kinds of covers. I just told myself that one or two of these would work, and if not I would MAKE one of them work.

In the very, very beginning (we had a hospital birth) we did use the sposies they gave us. (The Pampers Swaddlers are actually quite helpful for a new mama because they have a yellow line down the front that turns green when LO is wet, so no peeking in the dipe and no question of whether they need a change.) I also used Natural Choice sposies because they are better than traditionals in terms of environmental impact. They feel more papery, but we've never had a blowout or leak with these. (Found at our grocery store and also on Amazon.) I was too wrapped up in getting into a BFing groove to worry about a CD routine. For a second baby I'd feel more confident starting with cloth since I know more now.

Best of luck figuring out what works best for you!

[RGsMom]

I agree with what the others say, especially if you don't plan on CDing the first couple weeks get a few to try out in that time. I do like using prefolds mainly because of the cost factor, but I do not like using them when we are out and about - for that I like the Pockets and AIO's - but really if the cost wasn't a factor, I would probably use all Pockets and All In Ones.

So try a few different ones and then you will be able to go from there!

[Gabes Mommy]

I read a lot of reviews, and looked for good discounts. We bought a few different kinds to try out until we found our ideal diaper. Then we've just watched for deals and discounts, and built our stash up! Good luck mama =)

[Adsullata]

Here's another in agreement- try different things. And I like to use the pockets/AIO's while out and about too, mostly because changing is a tad faster. Although, I happen to love my prefolds (Indian unbleached cotton) because they are incredibly, amazingly absorbent.

If I had it to do over tho, this deal looks pretty cool: Try Cloth for 10

[schreiberwriter]

I bought one or two of 3-4 different brands of pockets. I tried BumGenius, Tiny Tush, Econappi, Mommy's Touch, FuzziBunz and HautePocket. I sold what didn't work for me on DiaperSwappers.

I have prefolds, flats and fitteds that I use on weekends and evenings. It helps stretch my pocket stash. My husband always uses the pockets when he takes care of DD during the day and sitters use pockets.

[octobermom]

my best advice is to get samples of several types and consider budget. For example if your total cd budget is $300 (and you want to diaper from birth to potty on this) choosing a sized system where each diaper is $34 might not be the best choice. However don't always assume cheepest sometimes a little investment in what works best will save a LOT of headache. Lots of cd stores offer trial and try it packages look around and see what intrests you give them a good month of rotation before deciding to buy more of a certain type this will allow you to test for diffrent situations see how laundry goes ect. Some people end up liking one system others a combo.

Deanna

[leavemealone]

I began with some popular brands of diapers that seemed easy to use. I began with some Fuzzi Bunz and then decided to try velcro/aplix closure b/c I found the snaps to be difficult with my child. I got a couple bumgenius diapers but found that, while I liked the aplix, the diapers caused a rash on my child. I tried to find a hybrid of pocket diapers with aplix and tried a Happy Heiney diaper. I have mostly gone back to Fuzzi Bunz. I like the pocket diapers best but haven't found the perfect one yet.

I also got a few Gro Baby diapers cheap (and one for free) and use those mostly on my youngest. I like them, but again, they aren't the prefect diaper. I guess all diapers have pros and cons and you may have to try a few to find what works best for you, your schedule, and your child.

[MeredithK]

Thank you all for your responses. It sounds like getting an assortment is really the way to go. I love hearing all of your different experiences. Once the baby is here, it will probably be a little easier to take the plunge since I'll know his size and what works for him.

[Logan]

Definitely get one of everything but be warned cloth addiction is probably just around the corner!

[Galatea]

Originally Posted by MeredithK

I have to admit that sometimes too many choices are not a good thing. I am feeling overwhelmed with all the different cloth diapers choices out there.

As a first time mom, I have no idea what is going to work for this babe. I want to CD but will probably do disposables for the the first week. The only other thing that I know is that I probably don't want to do prefolds (I think that they will be too tricky for DH!).

But, other than that...how do you decide what to do? One size seem like a good deal and people seem to like their BG's, but they might not fit for a little while. I can knit wool covers, so fitteds seem good, too.

Where do you begin and with how many? I'd hate to buy a bunch that don't work out. Help!!

One-size diapers don't fit great until about 2 months. You can start using them once the cord falls off (2 weeks) but they will be bulky.

I don't recommend any one-size with velcro as the velcro will get yucky over three years of constant use. Snaps hold up better.

Really consider sized diapers. They fit better and b/c they are only being used for a few months or a year, they can last through multiple children.

You need 30 newborn size, 24 small size, 18 medium size, and 12 large (if you get to large.) This is another reason to go sized - you need fewer diapers as you go along.

If you really want to do one-size, get 18 one-size (I like FuzziBunz OS, Knickernappies OS, Rocky Mountain Diapers One-Size and bumGenius ORGANIC one-size the best) and 12 newborn size diapers. The one-size will be bulky at first so you will wear those at home when the baby is just in a nightgown and blanket. Save the newborn size for going out b/c they will fit better under clothes. Whenever the newborn diapers are outgrown (2-4 months), save them for your next baby and just use the one-size. 18 should be enough, but if you need a few more, then you can get 3 more.

[DevaMajka]

For me, 3 of any kind is a good number to see if I'll like it or not. You get a decent feel for what a stash of them would be like if you use it for 3 changes in a row.

PF's are quite easy to trifold into a cover in the beginning (you just lay it in the cover and put it on baby in one step). It's actually easier than fitteds+cover, IMO.
Another thing to consider is that it's nice to have some way to let them go coverless when they're really little- I loved fitteds (esp. KL0's) for that.

For *me* OS is the way to go. Ds is 6 weeks old and totally out of smalls. lol. Once he was on the biggest setting of the KL0's, he fit well in the OS.

Another thing is that OS diapers aren't really that much more expensive than sized. So even if my OS only last through the small and med sizes (or a year or 2), and I buy a small stash of larges later, I'll still probably come out ahead.