Wool and Fleece Longies and Shorties

[Megan Davis]

Hi!

I have a few questions, First is do I have to line a wool or fleece longies or shorties (just in the crotch) and if so, what would I use

Can I use any pants pattern (as long as it fits snugly) to make longies and any under dress panty pattern to make shorties

does fleece work as well as wool and does it have to be lanolized as well.

do these really prevent leaking when worn to bed overnight

can I put them on over a pocket instead of a prefold or fitted.

(sorry my question mark does not work)

Thanks in advance for any help!

[cristeen]

do I have to line a wool or fleece longies or shorties (just in the crotch) and if so, what would I use?

No, you don't need to line them.  You can use a double layer in the crotch area for better protection, but it's not necessary. 

Can I use any pants pattern (as long as it fits snugly) to make longies and any under dress panty pattern to make shorties

Doesn't need to fit snugly.  Just needs to fit.  For pants, that means they stay up - I always preferred drawstrings for this.  Most pants patterns will not fit over CDs without some alterations because the butt is fluffier, the rise is longer, the hips are wider.  So either pick a pattern that is intended for CD'd babies or plan to go up a size.  The entire diaper has to be covered by the cover, or you might as well not use one. 

You need to remember that the cover is only there to protect your furniture/lap/etc.  It's not there to catch pee, that's the job of the diaper.  If your diaper is doing it's job, then the wool/fleece just has to provide a water barrier.  I've used commercial poly fleece pants as covers any number of times - they're not as effective as a Malden Mills Fleece cover, but they work.  When wool or fleece fails, the first thing you have to look at is the diaper - did you go too long between changes, is it inadequate, does it need a doubler, is the fit wrong, etc. 

does fleece work as well as wool and does it have to be lanolized as well.

If you get the right kind of fleece, yes, it works great.  No lanolizing needed.  The benefit of fleece is it's machine washable.  It's nowhere near as cute IMO, though. 

do these really prevent leaking when worn to bed overnight

They can.  We exclusively use wool at night, and have for 2.5 yrs now.  Any time I tried using PUL instead, I'd either get leaks or he'd have a nasty bright red butt by morning (ammonia + heat = chemical burn).  There are certain pairs of pants I'd never trust in bed though, they're just not up to the challenge.  For bedtime, a double layer of wool is my preference, and I use machine knit (like Babyology) or woven (flannel) rather than hand-knits (which I save for daytime). 

can I put them on over a pocket instead of a prefold or fitted.

Why?  Pockets don't need a cover, the cover is built in.  I suppose you can, but it's a bit of overkill. 

[Brambleberry]

I would second everything that Cristeen said, except I have no experience with fleece.  I usually shrink my wool sweaters in a hot wash first before making pants/covers, so I've not found a need to double up in the crotch area.  I do use double wool for night time: a wool wrap and then either wool sleep sack or longies over that.  For summer I made double layer wraps for night time use.  If you like to wing it without a pattern, you can make nice longies with sweater sleeves.  Use a pair of sweat pants that fit your DC for a pattern.  Add a triangle of fabric in the crotch for a more fitted look (again, use a pair of pants to determine the size of that triangle).  There are directions somewhere online.  I've also found that I can wash my woolies in the washing machine with very minimal shrinkage, since I pre-shrink the wool.

[Megan Davis]

Thanks for the info ladies,

The reason I ask about putting them over a pocket is because no matter how I try at least once a week my older daughter gets up wet. I've resorted to changing her at like 2 am but she is NEVER wet then. I think she may be holding it over night and then when she wakes up she just has to go (usually I'm BF my 3 month old when she wakes up).

My understanding of longies and shorties is that they help to eliminate excess moisture by turning it into 'soap' in wool and then helping it to evaporate so it doesn't soak clothing, bedding etc. If it's simply a water barrier wouldn't it just run down the leg if standing or up the back if sleeping-laying down.

would polar fleece work well for shorties....I have a bunch in really cute patterns but I don't want to waste it if it won't work well.

[cristeen]

Wool does absorb some small amount of the pee.  But it's job is not to absorb, it's job is to protect.  Fleece has zero absorption. 

If your toddler is getting up wet, you may need to add more absorbancy to the pocket she's wearing.  My toddler for a long time required 2 tri-fold PFs and a heavy duty doubler to make it to morning.  Same thing, he'd be dry in the wee hours, but by about 5 am he'd be sopping.  It's massively bulky, but it was the only thing that would get us through the night dry. 

Check your pocket though, is the insert uniformly wet, or are there dry patches?  If she's peeing too much too quickly, it may just not be able to keep up with her (this is a problem we have had), and then longies would probably be a good choice.  But if it's uniformly soaked, then you need to add more absorbency to the dipe and see how it goes from there.

[Brambleberry]

With our double wool system at night the inside wool cover will get pretty soaked sometimes, so yes wool will hold moisture, BUT it stops being very effective at keeping the moisture from passing through at that point.  If we use just one layer of wool it will be wet in the morning and so will the sheets.  It could be worth a try with the pockets, especially in the situation that cristeen suggested, or if it's just a slight leak problem.