Q's from a newbie diaper sewer

I advise taking a look around the diaper making boards at the old posts. I did a lot of reading before I actually started sewing diapers. There are old posts about the different types of fabric and layers of absorbancy.

Absorbancy cheat sheet. I also use old t-shirts as absorbant layers, they soak up a ton.

An easy way to make a soaker that will dry fast is to sew a square 14 x14 or so, of 2 layers, say one terry and one flannel. Then fold it in thirds to put it in the diaper and you end up with six layers total but it dries fast after washing.

As for fastening, get something other than Velcro. It doesn't hold up as well as Touch Tape or Aplix. I order mine from www.sewshoppe.com. I use touch tape because I like all the different colors.

Flannel and terry are good absorbant materials. You can use fleece for wicking inside the diaper, to be a stay dry layer. You can also order MM thick fleece for waterproof covers, but I've used 2 layers of regular fleece to make a cover and it's worked well.

As for patterns, there are a lot of free patterns in the sticky, I just recently started using the Very Baby fitted pattern. I like it.

And be sure to post pictures when you are done!

WTG sewing your first diaper! Doesn't it feel great?

For a wicking, stay-dry layer you could try Alova suedecloth, I just read here recently that it is available at Walmart right now. The other choice for stay-dry linings is microfleece, it is thinner than the regular fleece. Walmart carries regular fleece in season, I am not sure if they sell microfleece. I would try terry or sherpa as an inside layer too. It isn't 'stay dry' exactly, but it will feel drier than a flat knit thanks to the loops. Both are nice and absorbant too.

The best elastic choice at Walmart is probably Stretchrite polybraid elastic. It is white and at my Walmart, is sold only in little packages that hang on the wall. I would recommend 3/8 inch for your diapers. The general rule of thumb is 1/4" for newborn and small diapers, and 3/8" for medium and large diapers. Other elastic choices are swimsuit elastic, which is natural color cotton on the outside, and again I would use 3/8", or lastin, which is thin, clear,and very stretchy, 1/4" is good. But you would probably need to order these online, though swimsuit elastic is available at most fabric stores(if you should find yourself near one ). Lastin is best purchased online.

I ditto fek & fuzz. buy your hook and loop online, chose either Touchtape or Aplix. Velcro is not worth the money or the time to sew it on. If you want an alternative, you could make fitteds that snappi. Terry works really well with a snappi, you could use it for the outside of the diaper or sew patches on the wings and the front where the snappi needs to attach.

I think Fern & Faerie's diapering pages for sewing your own diapers would be a good resource for you to check out, if you have not already. Lots of great ideas there.