cloth diaper question... « Back to Group Discussions

[brusselsmama]

hey all,

thought some of you lovely ladies might have CD experience and could help me out...  i am cding my little girl using a service, but we dont love it.  planning to switch to buying my own/washing my own.  figured since she is already 4.5 kilo, 10lbs,  i will skip buying the nb size and stick with the service till she fits others.  i would do a trial pkg to test out some diff kinds, but living in europe makes that impossible.  so, i'm going to buy one of each of a few diff ones and then more of what we end up liking.  i have 3 grovia covers so figured i'd get a few diapers from them and see if i like the covers as all-in-2s.  other than that what would you all suggest?  I'm thinking some flats and i'll trifold them and maybe a few diff types of covers to compare, though we do like the grovias.  i am leaning away from all-in-1s because i'd like to be able to dry in the dryer or line dry overnight, and because the are pricier.  i like the idea of a trimmer fit if possible and do not care about cute colors/patterns etc.

thanks for your thoughts

[CarlyVHT]

I'm assuming the service provides prefolds? That was the diaper services in the US do anyway. How do you like those?

If you are going for quick drying overnight, don't care about cuteness, relatively trim, and want something relatively inexpensive, I'd go with prefolds (or flats or a combo of both). It's by far the most bang for your buck.

Anything one-size is going to be bulkier on a smaller baby.

I have seen some pockets and hybrids that fit pretty trim - IF you get the sized version or once baby gets older.

[brusselsmama]

actually the service uses fitteds for the newborn size, and I dont love them... there ends up being a lot of cloth going around the hips (where it isnt needed) and if you arent careful it peeks out of the cover and wicks the pee right onto her clothes. I have used prefolds before however and liked them (though it was for a friends baby who was older at the time).  I'm thinking prefolds might be a good way to go.
 

this actually brings up a question i had though... what is really the difference between a prefold and a flat?

[CarlyVHT]

A flat is one very thin, very big layer of fabric that you fold up a bunch to make it several layers thick before putting on baby. A prefold is a flat rectangle of several layers of fabric that is already layered to be thick enough to be absorbant. So you just fold on baby under a cover whereas with a flat, you have to fold the fabric several times first, THEN fold it onto the baby.

I like prefolds a lot. They are the bulk of my stash. I could (and have) diapered exclusively in prefolds & covers.

[ReadingRenee]

I like covers and flats or prefolds.  My favorite covers are Thirsties sized and Thirsties Duo.  I had some Flips but they really didn't hold up well even though they look cute.  Right now for our newborn we are using flats and prefolds with a snappi and Thirsties Duo size 1's.  Duos are good for trifolding and for snappis, another reason they are one of my favorite covers.   I also like the new diaper rite covers for trifolding but I can't speak  to their longevity as I only have had mine for a few months. 

[jess in hawaii]

I used almost exclusively prefolds with my first four babies (got a bunch of pocket dipes this time thanks to itsasecret). Prefolds are definitely cheapest and work well with a good cover. I liked wool covers best, the kind that pull on over the pinned diaper. You can buy or knit them, or do like I did and get 100% wool sweaters at thrift stores and yard sales, felt them in the washer & dryer, and make covers out of them... Very cheap! One suggestion about prefolds- look for the "diaper service" style, which are a twill type weave with a fairly thin but absorbent middle layer, not the birds eye weave with the fluffy middle layer.

[CarlyVHT]

I agree with ReadingRenee - I like both Thirsties and Thirsties Duo Covers. I also love Imse Vimse (but know they run big). The new style Bummis covers are okay too - I used to hate them but they have changed them up since I diapered DD and I like them better this time around. Thirsties and Imse Vimse are still my fav.

[brusselsmama]

Know anything about Kushies prefolds? 

[saudade]

I'm a prefold freak and the three kinds of prefolds that are my very favorite are GMDs from www.greenmountaindiapers.com, extended tab prefolds (Megaroos) and my new all time favorite diaper is Sustainablebabyish Bamboo Terry Flats (which are really more like a prefold only it's all the same number of layers). My fave cover is Thirsties Duos.

Lennon in a Megaroo ETPF (I have a bunch of these en route that are the Au Natural Bamboo Terry ones...LOVE!)

And my new fave...SBish Bamboo Terry Flat:

I would recommend all of those!

[Jessimaca]

Can I gleam some knowledge from you ladies?  I use a service with prefolds and Thirsties covers.  My covers get poo on them a lot!  Is that normal or am i doing something wrong?  Just seems like we leak a lot

[CarlyVHT]

Jessimaca - It is normal to get EBF poo on the gussets from time to time, but generally I am able to keep it contained. It could be the fold you are doing that is causing that to happen to you so often. How are you folding the diapers?

Or, maybe your LO poops with major force! :)

[lalazap]

jessimaca: we also use a service with prefolds and covers. we had a lot of leaking until we started snappi-ing the prefold inside the cover, and it did take a few tries to get our snappi method figured out. i actually posted about it here and got a good description of how to fold/fasten:

http://www.mothering.com/community/t/1352745/too-small-for-snappi#post_16975140

i have since figured out that it's easier for me to get the snappi on right if i start with the center/bottom end of the y and then do the left and right ends. we're also careful to tuck in the edges around the legs to make a 'poop curb'.

i felt like such a flail with the cloth diapers at first but now we're in a better groove, and hardly any leaks!

[Jessimaca]

Thanks gals! I think I'm close-- just need to tweak my folding.  And, my LO does poo with force!  Lol!!

[rik8144]

I have had no problems keeping EBF poops in the diaper and off the cover with the jelly roll and the angel wing. I have only had one poop escape and that was seriously the most poop I have ever seen come out of her. The thirsties covers are what I use too. 

[thomatuttle]

the majority of our stash is prefolds and covers.  i have a ton of covers that were handed down from others, so i have a few different types.  i also have knitted a few of my own.  of course, DS has already outgrown half of the covers that he should still fit in.  my favorite covers are definitely thirsties.  the extra leg gusset helps keep anything in that may have leaked out of the prefold.  usually, the fold i use keeps everything pretty contained.  we also have 8 bumgenius one size pocket diapers.  we got them when DD was born and mostly so DH would be more comfortable with CDing because they were easy.  funny thing is, i think he has only changed a handful of DS' dipes since he was born 7 weeks ago!  it's almost like he's more wary this time around then last time!  we got about 3 dozen newborn/small size prefolds from DH's cousin who had twins and the rest of the prefolds that we have are from green mountain diapers.  we snappi the prefolds and then put a cover on.
 

[saudade]

Every time Lennon poops in a prefold (which we pretty much only use prefolds, I have lots of fitteds that I'm in the process of selling because I am so loving prefolds!) we get poop on the gussets of the covers. Lennon only poops usually once or twice a day and I have plenty of covers so it doesn't bother me. I wash ever 2-3 days and I use 8 different covers so it works out. Never once have we had a blow out that a Thirsties Duo Wrap didn't contain, and as long as it stays in the cover I consider it a success! I suppose if I had a baby who pooped 12 times a day then I might not love prefolds that much but so far, it doesn't bother me at all.

Originally Posted by Jessimaca 

Can I gleam some knowledge from you ladies?  I use a service with prefolds and Thirsties covers.  My covers get poo on them a lot!  Is that normal or am i doing something wrong?  Just seems like we leak a lot

[Rasa]

Chiming in with prefold love.  I've only tried 2 brands because I wanted something organic, Under the Nile (very soft but quite bulky in the center portion so they take longer to dry) and Bummis (I really like them though they're not quite as soft as the UTN ones).

I have a handful of fitteds that I figured we'd use at night for absorbency but now that she's staying pretty dry, a snappi'd prefold works fine (actually I find the soft cotton used on the UTN prefolds does not Snappi well so I just use the Bummis with Snappis).

For covers I rotate between 2 pull on wool soft-knit covers (Kissas) for night and for day I pretty much use only 1 cover, Imse Vimse wool wrap (with velcro).  I have a couple non-wool wraps as backup but have barely used them.  The IV wool is trim, soft, and dries quickly the few times it's gotten so soiled that it needs to be washed!  I don't snappi the prefolds inside the wrap.  I do have some all-in-one's (bum genius organic) which I thought would be trimmer for going out but they are about the same as a prefold/wrap or even bulkier and then I need a huge bag to carry them all vs a smaller stack of prefolds.

[lalazap]

Rasa - what sort of fold do you use without a Snappi under the wool wrap?

[brusselsmama]

thanks for everyones thoughts! keep them comming :)

i had the chance to try a flip diaper yesterday.  as compared to the grovias they do not seem to have much elastic at the legs... is this typically true (or maybe the cover I had was just old?).  am I making a mistake by expecting the covers to have enough elastic to keep me from being able to see in to the diaper- and pee/poop from coming out- or should there only be enough to keep the diaper from peeking out and maybe I need to change more often to prevent leaks (currently changing at least once every 2 hrs, sometimes more depending on her naps/pooping).  or possibly she is just still a little long and lean for the flip?  Just wondering what others thought because the grovia are the only covers I've found with tight enough elastic so far (Imse Vimse also not tight enough) so i wanted to make sure my expectations werent unrealistic.  she is just at the beginning of fitting non nb diapers (a bit over 10lbs) so that maybe part of the issue, though the waist fit her ok on the tightest she is long overall so maybe her legs are to skinny still?

going to a cd shop in town later this week to see what they have, maybe even try on a thing or two, and start buying :)
 

[CarlyVHT]

I just tried Flip for the first time yesterday and I actually liked them. I am not convinced how well they will hold in a major poo but so far, they are my favorite after prefolds & covers (and an awesome Nannie's Fluffy Bottoms AIO but I could never afford a stash of those). I have used Grovia before but only on a friend's baby so I can't remember exactly how they fit. I actually liked the Flip. You are right that they should be tight enough so that you can't see in. If they aren't, they will never contain an EBF explotion. Sounds like either the diaper you used had worn elastic, or perhaps your babe has some skinny legs.

Imse Vimse has gussets so the inside of the gusset should be sealed with the leg. I LOVE Imse Vimse covers (with both my babies) but they do run very big overall so that could be the issue too. If you are using NB in other dipes, NB Imse Vimse is probably still too big.