Am I doing this right?!

[Jessikally]

I apologize for such a basic question, but I'm hands-on learner and just reading descriptions and looking at pictures of diapers has my head swimming

I used Bumgenius when DS was born, but sold most of them. I kept a few and use them now, but really want more (and would like to make them myself).

I googled patterns and found one that I tinkered with and made on my own. I did about 5 layers of an old flannel sheet, and a layer inside of a fleece-y material. I sewed it together, with no snaps or closures of any kind. I had no cover, and out of curiosity, I used a pair of Gerber rubber pants I had laying around (they were part of a baby shower game. lol). It worked well! The diaper seemed to be quite absorbent and though the rubber pants dug into DS's leg terribly, they did what they were supposed to do.

I would love to make more, and love the idea of using materials I have laying around or can find at a local fabric store (i.e. not PUL, etc.) But, I have a lot of questions before I start mass-producing them.

1) Are the layers/fabrics I used for the inside of the diaper good? Any suggestions on how to make them ultra-absorbent? (I did sew a 'pad' or fabric and sewed it in the center of the diaper, for extra absorbency.)

2) Should there be snaps or closures on the inside part, or just the diaper cover?

3) Couldn't I just buy a good diaper cover (like all of the cute ones I see w/ adorable patterns and nice velcro closures) and make the insides like I did? They don't need to 'go' together, do they?

I appreciate any input...I know the rest of you are much more advanced diaper makers, but I'd love to learn more and stop using so many disposables!!

[AnneCordelia]

Sounds like you've got the right idea!!! 100% cotton works best for absorbant material. Like flannel sheets and old t-shirts.

You can use thick fleece as a cover. Or you can make pants out of fleece and use that as a cover.

Covers and dipes don't need to match. If there's a cover on it then the dipe won't be seen anyway.

[TrishWSU]

Yeah, what she said!

I made a lot of dipes out of old t-shirts and they worked great! You could reduce the # of layers in the body to 2-3, and have a soaker (the pad in the middle) of 4-8 layers (depends on your wetter) to make them a little trimmer. I have 3 body layers-1 cute outer, 1 hidden inner, and the layer closest to baby- and I make my soaker pads out of 3 layers of flannel and 2 layers of microfiber (I get the towels in the auto section at Wal-Mart-I use WM flannel too.) They are trim but still super absorbant.

If you have a snug wrap cover (i.e Bummis or Very Baby style) you can probably get away without using any closures on the diaper. If you want to use a pull-on style cover or fleece or wool pants, you will need to add snaps or velcro or use a snappi to secure the diaper. You can use the velcro found locally, but it usually doesn't hold up as well after the repeated washings that diapers get. Your best bet for "longevity" would be to order some touch tape or aplix from a diaper supply website (check out the sticky at the top of the forum for stores.)

Diaper making is totally do-able and fun! Just play around with different materials and combinations until you find what works for you.

[love2bmom]

I agree with the others. Sounds like you're on the right track. My only advice is to always make one test diaper before you dive in and make a whole bunch only to discover that you wish you'd done something differently.
You can most likely use any cover you want. But again, it's good to buy one and make sure it fits well over your diapers before buying a whole bunch.
Good luck!

[Teddy'sMom]

Another closure idea

Another idea for easy closures is to sew patches of a material that a snappi can grip on (terry from an old towel, fleece, etc...). You only need to sew these patches on to the wings and the diaper front. Then you only need 1 or 2 snappis and don't have to worry about ordering velcro or getting a snap press. About the velcro, I completely agree with the pp, the velcro you can buy at the local fabric store will not hold up. I have used verybaby.com to buy hook and loop online and had great luck with that.

And...I do exactly what you said you want to....I make my own fitted flannel diapers and then I buy some covers to go over them. It still saves a ton of money because you only need 3 or 4 covers, but lots more diapers.

Happy sewing!

[TrishWSU]

Originally Posted by Teddy'sMom

Another idea for easy closures is to sew patches of a material that a snappi can grip on (terry from an old towel, fleece, etc...). You only need to sew these patches on to the wings and the diaper front. Then you only need 1 or 2 snappis and don't have to worry about ordering velcro or getting a snap press.

That is a really great idea! So simple, but so smart! I have a snappi but when I started making dipes out of flannel and t-shirts the darn thing wouldn't work anymore! I think I still have some of my first diapers that have either no h&l or the cheap store bought h&l. I'll have to dig them out and find an old towel!