My opinionated opinion

[Juliacat]

For those of you who don't know me, I have a potty-trained 4.5 yo and a six-month-old baby, both cloth diapered from Day One.

I think BumGenius pockets are the diaper of the future. They're as easy to use as disposables, keep the baby dry, dry quickly, and the size adjustability makes them reasonably priced in the long run.

That being said, they're not my favorites. I prefer snaps to Velcro, I prefer natural fibers to synthetics, and I prefer separate diapers and covers so that the baby can go coverless at home during the day, and just use covers for nights and outings. My favorite diapers* are plain old diaper service quality prefolds, with which I use pins, Snappis, and laying-in all about equally, with Swaddlebees ABC snap wraps when we need to use a cover.

Cloth diapering is a really really really really really important issue to me, and it's taken me this long to sort out my Cloth Diapering Advocacy side (which diaper will be the most likely to convince people to make the switch and stick with it) with my Cloth Diapering Fun side (which diaper is the most aesthetically pleasing and makes diapering most fun for me).

*Except for newborns, in which case, Kissaluvs 0 are my favorites.

[rightkindofme]

I can't freakin stand BumGenius. They wear out too quickly. Happy Heiny's are very very similar in design but they actually stand up over time. I also strongly prefer Rumparooz or Swaddlebees over BG.

I only have a two year old, but I'm about to put kid #2 into my stash of those diapers and many of them still look brand new.

[Juliacat]

And I can't stand Happy Heiny's! They always leaked for us. Rumparooz I've never tried because they're so expensive, and Swaddlebees I've never tried because I hadn't heard good things about their overall performance, except I had some of the pocket fitteds with DD1 and absolutely LOVED them until they started getting holes in them. I am completely in love with their covers, though.

To each her own

[jenrett]

I'm a huge fan of the prefolds and covers, for reasons the OP mentioned. However, I do not like the kissaluvs after all, because they are not very absorbant and take forever to dry. I prefer 100% cotton and don't mind folding prefolds at all.

However, I am only 15 days into this cloth diapering ordeal....so my opinion isn't very opinionated yet!

[Perdita_in_Ontario]

My BG pockets haven't worn out at all - I unearthed all my BGs, including four 1.0s, for DS, and they're still working like new, and look pretty great too. They're the diaper I trust the most of my whole, varied stash. I sure wish they had some funky prints, but I say that about most diapers.

Happy Heinys are my favourite too because DS has super sensitive skin and anything tight around his legs, especially wet, cause rash issues. All these gorgeous "innovative" diapers on the market, and really I'm going to have to stick with HH. All the solids came out of storage in great condition. All the cotton laminated prints came out (probably went in too) with pinprick holes and are basically just "show" diapers now.

Overall, though, for around the house, we're a prefold family for the same reasons as Juliacat. We used Sandys and KL 0s when DS was a newborn and they worked really well, but I can't say I particularly miss them.

[Juliacat]

Originally Posted by jenrett

I'm a huge fan of the prefolds and covers, for reasons the OP mentioned. However, I do not like the kissaluvs after all, because they are not very absorbant and take forever to dry. I prefer 100% cotton and don't mind folding prefolds at all.

However, I am only 15 days into this cloth diapering ordeal....so my opinion isn't very opinionated yet!

Totally agree about all the reasons NOT to like Kissaluvs, I just found that newborn fitteds were a godsend during the first few weeks, and those were the newborn fitteds I happened to have, with both babies. It's entirely possible I would love a different brand more if I had another newborn, but I'm not going to have another newborn just to test it out.

[Katie T]

I love the bg I converted mine to snaps and use them for naps and bedtime now. I use pf for the same reason you do during the day. I love cloth diapering. Even more now that I have the perfect stash and the perfect wash routine.

[rlmueller]

You know whats funny?

I have 1 kisssuluvs, 3 under the nile, 20 pfs (generic or GMD), 2 homemade by me, 3 homemade by me pf-->fitted, a pamapered bunz, 1 bamboozle. Wool covers, shorties (I'm about to make a few too), and PUL covers that are actually crappy repellant one size dipes (but great covers cuz they don't absorb anything), some flats, some imsevimse cotton, and motherease for the sitter. I bought everything used from craigslist or handed-down from friends, except the GMD which were worth full price.

I love 100% cotton quilty pfs and wool covers the most. I have a good wash system down, but I mess with it often and it doesn't seem to hurt.

In short I have the most random stash imagineable, a decent wash system (we are switching to soap nuts as soon as they come in the mail).

I've never ever had a problem with a single diaper or cover in my stash. Some I like better than others. I think the Motherease are my least fav only because of their bigness but that is all.

I love Cloth Diapering And I wish that cloth diapering technology had made the same leaps disposables did at the same time. We may not be knee deep in the disposable mess we are in now if it had.

[Juliacat]

This post really has been a huge for me. The whole time I've been researching cloth diapers (it's been 6 years!!!) I've struggled with trying to find what I think is the "best" system, when my problem could basically be boiled down to "the difference between my preferences and other people's."

So, given that I prefer snaps and natural fibers and separate diapers and covers, my answer is prefolds or snapping cotton fitteds, with snapping covers; if I had to use AIO's they'd be snapping and have cotton inners; if I had to use pockets, they'd be snapping.

BUT since I am perfectly okay with prefolds and so is dh, it makes no sense to invest the extra money into fitteds (except, as I said, for the newborn phase). And since the whole point of having any pockets and AIO's at all is for other people to use them (since I prefer a separate diaper and cover), for those it's actually better to have synthetics and Velcro, because those make them more like disposables.

If I had thought it all out this way to begin with, there's an awful lot of stuff I wouldn't have spent money on! I would have stuck with prefolds and snap wraps with a mini-stash of BGOS for baby-sitters. (And newborn fitteds. And Velcro-closing fitteds for my mom, who prefers those and changes enough diapers to deserve them. )

[hildare]

there are some things i like about the BG's, but the applex is so gross already after only 6 months of use on mine. ew.

i really like the fuzzi bunz sized pockets, but why, WHY WHY WHY do they have to be the only ones made in China? gads.

I guess overall I really like the kissaluvs size 1's and various covers, though. dd's STILL in them and they work great.
like prefolds but i HATE the way they get wet when they get wet.

[Galatea]

BGOS are my least favorite diaper - I dislike the suedecloth's feeling and super-ability to hold onto stains, the velcro is awful, and unless your child has average/evenly proportioned thighs and waist, they don't fit right. I MUCH prefer the FuzziBunz One-Size - they fit so much better on a variety of body shapes, they are softer, the snaps don't wear out.

[abiyhayil]

I bought waay too many diapers from a different fsot, probably $3,000. I wish I had saved my money and bought pf's since all of the fancy fitteds are holey, droopy and worn out. I use my whole stash (and will till the snaps tear off =p ) , but my favorite are my MEOS, I get a good fit by twisting, folding then snapping. My old school wonderoos that were $6 each work great for out and about too.

[Drummer's Wife]

The only BG's I really like are the organic OS AIO's - with snaps. No synthetic fabric against their skin, they dry quickly (in my dryer, at least), and they are pretty dang trim while still being absorbent. They sometimes sell seconds, so that helps with the cost factor.

Anyhow, my first love will always be prefolds and a simple wrap.

[ExuberantDaffodil]

The BG diapers are the ones that made my husband go from reluctantly agreeing to cloth diapering our baby to being a cloth diapering advocate. I had originally planned on just using prefolds because of the cost factor, but I managed to stock up on a bunch of bg diapers when they had the awesome promotion earlier this year. They are not my favorite by a long shot, but they are easy, and they inspired my hubby to go around telling people that cloth diapers are not hard at all.

I really thing bG needs to fix the velcro issue, and by fix I don't mean send out a replacement kit. I know better quality velcro exists. I have several Thirsties fitteds and covers, and the velcro on them looks and works just as good as the day I got them.

[Juliacat]

That is so funny, because a month or so ago we were at my cousin's graduation party and my husband was chatting with a male friend of my cousin's who has a pregnant friend who is trying to decide between cloth and disposables. Well, dh happened to change the baby's diaper during their conversation, and the guy exclaimed several times that he was definitely going to tell his friend to use cloth because it was soooooooo easy!!!!! Guess what kind of diaper it was? A Snappied prefold with a snap wrap!

[Juliacat]

Oh, and Drummer's Wife, dh and I like the BG AIO's too, they just seem like overkill when we can use prefolds, and daycare providers would probably prefer Velcro closures. Oh, and I like your signature very very much.

[nia82]

I like prefolds and covers (Thirsties are the best, I also made some that look like them)... But when DS got older, we switched to pockets. Bumgenius is way too expensive and after reading positive reviews of eBay Coolababy we purchased those. We love them! The hold up great (snaps!!!!), never leak, fit perfectly, wash up great, no complaints. They now even have one size pockets with bamboo inner, and I am really tempted to buy them (12 for $108).

[MangoMommy]

I haven't been cding long but the BG are SUPER easy and really helped me finally fumble into cding LOL!

[jeminijad]

Well, I like I BGs. I like Blueberries better, but BG is half the cost. I like a big toddler prefold for bed, but the trimness of the BG (she can wear her pre-CD wardrobe in them) is big here, too.

My DD does have average proportions, and they fit her really well. No leaks, ever. EVER. Whereas several other pockets in that price range have wicked on her. I don't mind the aplix looking ratty, because it still works. Even once it doesn't work, I can take an hour one day while she's napping and replace it for $1 per diaper with Cottonbabies' refresher kit. No problem.

They also sell like hotcakes on DS, because of the very reasonable price point and because everyone knows what they are. I can literally get one at Whole Foods if I need to. I don't like having to wait for an online order, having no other choice.

And of course, all aplix pockets are easy, but the stretchy tabs mean a sposie only caretaker can handle them no problem.