Cloth diapering - So confused....

[DragonflyMom]

I want to cloth diaper, I really do. I have planned on it before even thinking of conceiving (Im a planner) and now that Im 5 months a long Im trying to get a list of what I need to get started and make some purchases.

And boy am I flipping confused, every website I look at says I need different things and different amounts and have tons of ads which makes me think its all marketed and Im just getting really frustrated.

So, Im asking you oh wise mothers...what do I need to get started and be prepared for a newborn?

Are then pre-assembled kits out there for this purpose that would make this easier for me?

I think I want pre-folds with a cover rather than an all in one but Im open to your opinions as this is my first experience with cloth diapering and a kid of my own.

Thanks ladies!

[greenmulberry]

I felt the same way!!!!

I finally just ordered small prefolds. I skipped the newborn size because they are so small, and some babies are born too big for them!

I also ordered four covers, I got four different kinds to see which one I liked best, we actually usually rotate between my two favorites, with the other two as back up if there is a poopsplosion.  They make covers that grow with the baby and that is what I got. I found I prefer velcro to snaps.

I use the "snappi" attachments instead of pins to hold them in place.

So for us, prefolds and covers worked out just fine. I was too overwhelmed with the other options.

I did, use disposables for the first week when I was really overwhelmed with having a baby. Just letting you know. I felt guilty about it but it let me not feel so frustrated when I was having trouble learning to diaper a tiny baby while totally exhausted.

[DragonflyMom]

Thank you so much for this reply, I work in childcare and had to laugh that someone else uses the phrase poopsplosion!

I have been debating about the grow with me covers so its good to hear someone else likes them too.

[trekkingirl]

thirsties are really popular covers. I have covers with prefolds as a back up stash but I mostly use pockets called fuzzibuns and all in ones called kushies. The pockets are somewhat like a regular diaper except they have snaps and a big pad that you slide into the pocket at the back of the diaper. These are a fleece type diaper and don't hold as much pee as the kushies and tend to make the baby a bit stinky. At night I use the kushies because they don't require a change in the middle of the night. These are a lot like a regular disposable diaper. HTH

[Ola_]

We went with fitted diapers plus covers.  I found these to be very user friendly and the two (diaper and cover) give extra protection with those explosive poops, they hold anything in.  They are a bit more expensive than prefolds but I got ours on a local craigslist so the cost was not too bad.  I really don't think disposables would have been much easier for me.

[kadevoe]

I started using cloth diapers for the first time on baby #3 last year when she was about 6 months old.  When I started looking into it I was totally overwhelmed and had no idea what to try.  I ended up doing a cloth diaper trial program through Jillian's Drawers: http://www.jilliansdrawers.com/products/clothdiapers/tryclothfor10/tryclothfor10

I'd highly recommend the trial program once your baby comes.  Their program also came with very detailed step by step washing instructions for each of the diapers in the shipment so there was no way I could mess it up.  It was so helpful to be able to try all of the different kinds of diapers and it took me less than a day to figure out which ones I liked and which ones I didn't.  I ended up stocking up on BumGenius 3.0 one size pocket diapers and have been pretty happy with them except the time it takes to stuff them all once I wash a load.

[DragonflyMom]

Thanks to everyone who has responded, I really appreciated it.

I had to go to walmart for some stuff today and as I was wandering through the baby section (drooling over a carseat) I discovered that they had some cloth diapers!

I bought a pack of padded which feel really nice and absorbent and a pack of regular pre-folds which also feel nice, Im going to pick up a few more packs and some covers before the baby gets here and I also might try out that jillian diaper trial.

[TNmommyBFB]

Y

Originally Posted by DragonflyMom 

Thanks to everyone who has responded, I really appreciated it.

I had to go to walmart for some stuff today and as I was wandering through the baby section (drooling over a carseat) I discovered that they had some cloth diapers!

I bought a pack of padded which feel really nice and absorbent and a pack of regular pre-folds which also feel nice, Im going to pick up a few more packs and some covers before the baby gets here and I also might try out that jillian diaper trial.

You realllyyy don't want to use Wmart prefolds. Or babies r us target or anywhere else that sells the gerber like ones. They will make you HATE cloth diapers. They don't even work well as burp cloths.
You need to buy prefolds ,Indian or Chinese, from a cloth diaper store or site.
Cottonbabies sells them for a little over $1 a piece, no shipping charge.

http://www.cottonbabies.com/product_info.php?cPath=28&products_id=277

And you can get covers on that site, but for a newborn that won't wear them too long you might want to think about buying some cheaper second quality covers since you can start using One size diapers within a few weeks.
Tinytush.com has newborn covers,seconds ,in their clearance section here and there for $5-$6.50/each.

[summerdubois]

We have been cloth diapering (CDing) our now 18 month old twins since they were a few weeks old. We started out with prefolds and covers and were very happy. We're STILL using the prefolds we bought back then and they've had fabulously! We've already used many other kinds of diapers along the way and I'm currently loving our flips. I included a lengthy blog post of my own. Please don't be discouraged. Feel feel to message me with ANY questions. I love helping people discover and love cloth!

http://wellroundedhippie.com/2010/06/26/loving-cloth/

[SuzyQ-ME]

Hi - I found both these websites very helpful just for learning about the options:

http://www.greenmountaindiapers.com/

http://www.maineclothdiaper.com/

I am fortunate, I live close to the second place so I was able to in person and learn about the different options.  But they have great links on that website and if you wanted to call and chat with them, they'd be happy to help you.

[Jaimee]

I teach cloth diapering 101 seminars at natural parenting stores and upon request from friends and family I uploaded the seminar to youtube (in 7 parts).  Sometimes it's really helpful to SEE it all in action.  I go through all the major cloth diaper systems, how to use them, pros and cons, quantities and prices, accessories, and washing.  HTH!

http://www.youtube.com/user/JaimeeGleisner?feature=mhum

[Jaimee]

Originally Posted by TNmommyBFB 


You realllyyy don't want to use Wmart prefolds. Or babies r us target or anywhere else that sells the gerber like ones. They will make you HATE cloth diapers. They don't even work well as burp cloths.
You need to buy prefolds ,Indian or Chinese, from a cloth diaper store or site.
 

   For great deals on used diapers check out www.diaperswappers.com (it's a forum like this) and don't forget about Craig's List.  A lot of CDers try to sell locally first.

[merbear0929]

I second the trial package. I think that is a great way for you to see what you really like. Every mom is different, and even every baby can be a bit different. Diapers that fit your first child perfectly may not work as well on your second child. Also, I would definitely suggest checking out the videos that Jaimee posted. It was super helpful for me to actually SEE the diapers that I was going to buy. You may also want to do an internet search for "cloth diapers" and the name of your town. See if you have any stores that might be local that actually sell them!

[Minalas]

I'm doing cloth diapers for three years now. When I was pregnant with DD, friends gave me a pack of 12. BumGenius One size pocket diapers. I thought the pocket diapers were overkill at first, but I soon learned to love them.

A newborn usually can't go very far on his/her own, so diaper changing works fine, even if it requires several layers. However, I found prefolds work better with a polyurethan cover than a woolen one, because the runny poop tends to leak out of the diapers. Fitted diapers work fine with woolen covers. DD had very sensitive skin and usually did better with a woolen cover, because it allowed her skin to breath. DS was a very heavy wetter and needed polyurethan covers, because he tended to pee straight through the woolen ones. On his best days, he went through 16 diapers a day. DD was mostly around 10 diapers a day as newborn.

As my children got older, I found prefolds increasingly inconvenient, because they didn't like like still for a diaper change. Changing diapers on a moving target is soo much easier with pocket or one- in-alls. Personally, I prefer pocket diapers to all-in-ones because they move the moisture better away from the child and I can double and triple stuff them to accomodate DS peeing habits.

The one problem with one size diapers is that they usually don't fit newborns for the first month or two. Some brands have a bit wider ranges: Happy Heinies and Butter Bears are pretty good in catching both very small and very big babies. But even with these brands, having prefolds with covers for a newborn, or fitted newborn diapers is often necessary, because the one-size- diapers don't quite fit yet, and a newborn typically needs more diapers than an older baby, so you would overbuy on expensive pocket diapers by putting your newborn in them exclusively. Personally, I find you can never have too many prefolds at hands, they have many uses. I tend to stuff DS's pocket diapers with prefolds, because they are more adsorbent than the inserts they usually come with. I never used the newborn prefolds, the normal smaller ones just do fine, even on small babies (DD was 5.15 at birth).

The amount of diapers I'd recommend: At least enough, so you don't have to wash every day. So as a minimum I'd start out with thirty prefolds plus three covers. For an older baby, I'd recomment about 20 diapers of whatever style you prefer. That amount allows for at least one wash free day and line drying under less than optimal conditions.

I got most of my diapers at Jillian's Drawers.

[hennylou]

www.greenmountaindiapers.com has made cloth diapering so easy for us.  they are so helpful and practically hold your hand through all the confusing diapering choices.

what we use for our 4 month old baby (doing laundry every 3rd day):

2 imse vimse organic cotton covers

2 biobottoms wool covers

2 dozen organic prefolds

2 dozen reusable wipes

[swd12422]

I agree that you need either Chinese or Indian prefolds! I would start there, b/c they're the least expensive option, but I have to admit that I did love the fitteds for keeping the poop contained. Maybe do mostly prefolds and a few fitteds to try to see if you think they're worth the extra $$. DS outgrew his prefolds before he ever really used them, but I kept them b/c they make great doublers for bigger kids at night time and when that's over they're great rags. So they WILL get used, even if you decide you don't like them as diapers!

If you are looking for recs for an online store, try www.zoolikins.com. That's where I got all my diapers, and they were so nice and patient and answered all my questions. And they didn't make me feel like they were just trying to get me to buy more. I let them know I was on a budget, and they helped narrow things down and actually removed some things from my order that they felt weren't necessary! (I was in the store, but have since done online orders and always get great service.)

[Michellemae]

A couple friends of mine have advised getting a couple of 2 or 3 kinds to see what you like. Some sites even offer a variety package where you can order 3 different kinds of diapers at a lower price for that very purpose! A great source is also craigslist. They have tons of options, even new diapers! There's lots of moms who get stuff as a gift or try it for 1 day or never bother and want to sell em! I bought a few from there, but I'll have to wait till October to try em out on our little one's bum:) From what I see, I like the pocket style. I googled "cloth diaper patterns" and I found a few good sewing patterns too. I haven't gotten as far as sewing yet though!

[greenmm]

My best advice would be to not buy a lot of anything until you try it out & find out what you personally like. As you are realizing there is so much out there.  I started with fitted diapers & covers for the newby stage & they worked very well...I used Bummis & Thirsties. Both worked very well. I buy & sell on Diaperswappers & if i had known about it before i would definitely get my newborn stash from there. Or clearance online sales. They won't be in them that long but you will prob need about 12/day of dipes & 3 or 4 covers. I have a lot of pockets which i really liked in the beginning but got sick of stuffing them & went to AI2 & AIO. Then I went back to fitteds again. lol. I now use fitted with wool mostly. I actually hate velcro & most don't seem to fit DS very well, i can get a much better fit with snaps, esp. side snapping. So that's another factor you think you like something or it will be easier ie velcro & don't esp. when you have to wash & dry it & it sticks to everything. Or I know one poster liked Happy Heiny's & those were the worst fit for my son. The OS are great economically but as one person said they don't fit newborns at all & if you want something that actually fits under clothes you will like sized better, they are much trimmer. It just depends on what your needs are & baby's body type. I ended up getting a little of this & a little of that & selling what i didn't like. Fuzzibunz were one of our favorite pockets too. For a OS diaper they are fairly trim compared to some others. A trial program is a great idea, many online diaper sites offer those & see what you can find on diaperswappers.

[1love4ever]

Jaimee's Youtube videos are what finally convinced me to cloth diaper.  I started at 11 months old and use Happy Heiny's Organic one size pocket diaper with Fuzzibunz hemp inserts.  I dont like the pocket diapers with polyester fleece because it is petroleum based and right next to baby's skin.  But, although these diapers are a one size, they would be too small for a newborn I think.  Also you could look into the Bioliners by GroVia, which help with cleaning up poop. 

I recommend hemp cloth diapers over cotton because it has natural antibacterial properties and is more absorbant. 

 I am almost 4 months along and just as worried about CDing a newborn, because i didnt with my first.  A good disposable is Tushies.

[guatemama1]

Originally Posted by Jaimee 

I teach cloth diapering 101 seminars at natural parenting stores and upon request from friends and family I uploaded the seminar to youtube (in 7 parts).  Sometimes it's really helpful to SEE it all in action.  I go through all the major cloth diaper systems, how to use them, pros and cons, quantities and prices, accessories, and washing.  HTH!

http://www.youtube.com/user/JaimeeGleisner?feature=mhum

That was the best use of my time...  Oh so very helpful video for this confused first-timer trying to understand cloth diapering options!! :) Thank you!!