Anyone cloth diapering?

[k2bdeutmeyer]

Well, if you wanted to get your feet wet you could use either thrift store recieving blankets or flour sack towels from walmart as flat diapers, and then either buy some Econobum covers or get some wool covers made from recycled sweaters..those are pretty cheap on etsy. Or if you sew, and live somewhere where you can find cheap wool sweaters at Goodwill you can make the wool covers very very cheaply, often only a few dollars each and they are quick and easy to make.

 

I think if I was going to invest any money at all in it, I'd rather jump into where I think I would end up vs spending (even small amts) money on something that I wouldn't continue in the long term......if that makes sense. Based on the research I did when DD (almost 6 now) was a baby, I think I'm most attracted to pockets.

 

Is there someplace to get a free or really low cost sample?

 

This is a great question......I'm guessing not, but it would sure be cool if there was!

[MomtoCandJ]

Well darn :( I only want one to try with a liner or two and can accommodate disposable liners that I can buy someplace like babies r us. Oh well I tried.

[Whereneverever]

I want to try it so, so bad, but for many of the above mentioned reasons, I just can't. First and foremost, I cannot afford them. I know they're cheaper in the long run, but I don't have that kind of cash to invest initially.

 

 

You can buy prefolds for $1-$1.50 online. You can pick up wool sweaters at Goodwill or a different local thift shop- almost all of them have discount days, too. There are a ton of tutorials online for turning sweaters into longies or soakers. I get the largest sweaters I can find and can usually get enough covers out of two to three sweaters. It lets you make a whole diaper stash for about $25. If you need you could buy the prefolds and later make the covers to spread that expense out.

 

Ha, now I see Kokotg posted essentially the same thing! Oops.

[prairiewindmomma]

Jillian's Drawers offers a sample package that you "rent" for $10. http://www.jilliansdrawers.com/products/clothdiapers/tryclothfor10/tryclothfor10

[AdventureMoms]

Well darn :( I only want one to try with a liner or two and can accommodate disposable liners that I can buy someplace like babies r us. Oh well I tried.

 

 

Most diaper companies will let you buy a single diaper. I know cottonbabies sells singles of Flip diapers which use disposable or reusable liners. You can get single fuzzibunz or bumgenius pockets almost anywhere. They're not super cheap though, usually $16-20 each. They are cheaper if you buy a bunch at once, of course. Sunbaby (which are very cheap) does not sell individual diapers, you have to buy at least 12, I think.

[indigomama]

I cloth diapered for kids #2-5 (until she was one). I loved it for a long time. We used mostly Fuzzibunz, Tide detergent (tried others, never again, tide only now), and we have a front loader. One wash one dry no problems.

 

However, once my DD turned one, we made a cross country move and so used disposables for her and DD age 2 1/2. I feel bad to say this but I love the break! Cloth is a lot of work. If I only had one or two kids, no problem, but with lots of kids, and more than one in diapers it just adds so much more work to my plate right now.

[Ellie]

I used cloth with mine, I prefer cloth to disposable for many reasons. Fabric softener can cause fabric (including towels and diapers) to be less absorbent.

Amway fabric softener doesn't do that. I've always used Amway products on all my clothing, diapers and towels included, and everything is nice and soft and absorbent. :-)

[VeritasMama]

Well darn :( I only want one to try with a liner or two and can accommodate disposable liners that I can buy someplace like babies r us. Oh well I tried.

 

 

You can buy used diapers from www.diaperswappers.com. It is a cloth diaper forum that has a FSOT section where moms sell their used diapers. I am going to buy some different used diapers to see what I like, and then I'll resell what we decide not to use on the forum. The thought of used diapers may bother some, but it really doesn't bother me.

 

I decided to get started. Toay I bought a few used Bumgenuis Elemental AIO's, I also found some flip covers for around $5.00 on ebay, and I'm going to pick up some prefolds at Walmart. I also ordered a few bamboo Kawaii pocket diapers on ebay. I'm also looking into making my own wool covers to try that out. I'm excited to see what works best for us!

[indigomama]

You can buy used diapers from www.diaperswappers.com. It is a cloth diaper forum that has a FSOT section where moms sell their used diapers. I am going to buy some different used diapers to see what I like, and then I'll resell what we decide not to use on the forum. The thought of used diapers may bother some, but it really doesn't bother me.

 

I decided to get started. Toay I bought a few used Bumgenuis Elemental AIO's, I also found some flip covers for around $5.00 on ebay, and I'm going to pick up some prefolds at Walmart. I also ordered a few bamboo Kawaii pocket diapers on ebay. I'm also looking into making my own wool covers to try that out. I'm excited to see what works best for us!

 

 

Do not bother with walmart prefolds! They don't hold. I have several diapers for sale, some listed on diaperswappers. Prefolds, pockets, covers, and wool. PM if interested. Would love to help out someone who was interested in trying them. Selling on DS can be a pain.

[VeritasMama]

Could anybody recommend some prefolds that hold up well, but won't break the bank? I also have plenty of old recieving blankets, so that is an option.

[indigomama]

We use Megaroos Although it says she is closely up shop. That is such a bummer. She was wonderful!

And you can use receiving blankets but I found they got drenched with each pee, and I didn't like that every part of where the wet diaper was touched my DC skin. I change the megaroos with each pee also but it was contained better in the diaper area.

[BrookValley.]

Do not bother with walmart prefolds! They don't hold. I have several diapers for sale, some listed on diaperswappers. Prefolds, pockets, covers, and wool. PM if interested. Would love to help out someone who was interested in trying them. Selling on DS can be a pain.

 

I agree, no walmart prefolds! Don't do it, don't do it! :laugh: If you don't find them used, you can get new Indian or Chinese prefolds for around $1 to $1.50 each most places. You wouldn't need too terribly many to get started...a dozen would probably be fine, assuming you were going to do laundry every other day (for a newborn or young infant youight want more, but again, totally doable with a dozen dependingon how frequently you wash). I was given three dozen Chinese prefolds as a gift and I only ever had two dozen in circulation. I never even got the last dozen out of the box, and eventually gave them to a new mom. I used prefolds as my only system during the day (used pockets at night).

 

ETA: my Chinese prefolds held up very well through my son's diapering years. I have no doubt they will see me through 'till potty training for our new little one. They all have some degree of staining, though not terrible, but are otherwise none the worse for wear. I have heard that Indian prefolds don't hold up quite as well, but they are softer (though I thought my Chinese prefolds were plenty soft enough).

[mellifera33]

Cheapie pockets can be bought for under $5 each via coops--i'm a member of a facebook coop that is currently running Alva pockets for ridiculously cheap. I have not used Alva's so I can't recommend them one way or the other. I started out with prefolds bought cheaply on eBay and Bummis covers, and they worked really well on my 10 1/2 pound newborn.

[BlueTaelon]

I agree, those gerber prefolds are crap and are not even good for spit up, they are great for mopping floors. I CD'd #1 because I couldn't afford diapers, I was really grossed out at the thought but we were out of sposies and someone was kind enough to give me some they made. dd had nasty, explosive, nothing contains it poop, I didn't even know she had a poopy diaper in the cloth. I was an instant convert lol:) dd LOVED her CD's and HATED sposies. #2 came along and I didn't have a washer so we started with sposies, when I tried switching her at a few months she protested big time, she HATED cloth so we stayed with sposies. I could go either way with another baby. CD'ing doesn't take that much time once you get into the swing of things. The washing thing is not a big deal at all if you have a top loader.

[paceofnature]

I had heard that you can put towels in with the diapers to make the load heavier, and then your front loader will use more water and the diapers will get cleaner. Has anyone tried this, and if so does it work?

 

 

I have done this and it works. My routine is to rinse the diapers in warm, add a wet towel and wash in hot with an extra rinse. We haven't had any problems. I also line dry when I can. Honestly, I never saw an increase in our utility bill when we started cloth diapering...

[Aoife]

I am on #4 in CDs and wouldn't switch it at all! I also have had a front loader since #2 was born so this is the 3rd baby in CDs with a front loader and I have no trouble getting them nice clean and stink free. I can share my tricks or routine if that helps anyone. I do it mainly cause well I love it and also because my littles have horribly sensitive skin and get bad rashes in every disposable we've ever tried. I mainly use pockets and AIOs

[MomtoCandJ]

I'm not even sure I will like them so that's why I only want one with some inserts. Dd was 100 percent disposable because I worked and at the time they seemed cheaper. Although dd did use Gerber cloth training pants because she hated pull-ups and we also used the cloth pants in the summer time before she was trained while at home to let her "breath" done there (we lived in GA).

[happypamama]

Could anybody recommend some prefolds that hold up well, but won't break the bank? I also have plenty of old recieving blankets, so that is an option.

 

 

Receiving blankets make really nice fitteds/pockets, if you sew.

 

My prefolds are Chinese prefolds from jardinediapers.com, and I've been really pleased with them.

[raceNzanesmom]

NO Gerber type prefolds! The sizing is weird and most are useless at absorbing anything.

 

You can often find used Chinese or Indian prefolds for super cheap, start with infant size- and a Snappi.

[3_monkeys_mom]

Could anybody recommend some prefolds that hold up well, but won't break the bank? I also have plenty of old recieving blankets, so that is an option.

 

 

I personally use the Flip organic inserts (prefolds that you trifold in the Flip cover). I LOVE them- they are very absorbent, and since they are a natural fabric (100% cotton), they are easy to wash, don't hold stink/smell, and you do not need to strip them like you would for microfiber.

 

Green Mountain Diapers (GMD) also sells prefolds. Their orange prefolds are especially popular for cloth-diapering newborns (because they are fairly cheap, good quality, and have good resale value). Couple those with some covers (Flip covers, Thirsties covers...) and you are all set.

 

I paid about $200 for 3 day packs of Flip organic (includes 2 covers + 6 organic inserts in each pack), and then bought a few Stay-Dry Flip inserts for nighttime (I add those to the organic inserts for nighttime). In comparison, I paid about $40-50 a month for diapers when using disposables, so in 4 months, I recouped my initial investment (not to mention, I have another baby on the way, which I'll cloth diaper mostly for free, except for the extra water/electricity cost of washing the diapers, which I haven't found to be that much honestly).

 

Of all laundry, cloth diapers are actually my favorite to do (and I loathe doing laundry!), mostly because it is simply a matter of adding detergent and pushing some buttons on the machine :) There is no sorting or folding to do.

 

I also do not use any special cloth diaper detergents. After trying several of them (Rockin' Green - which I had a very bad experience with, Charlie's Soap, Allen's...), I just use regular detergent (for us, Tide). I have a front loader, and I really haven't found it that hard to get our diapers clean (as long as I use enough detergent, make sure I wash on hot, and do not use any fancy cloth diaper detergent). Hot water, enough detergent, and enough water will be your best friends to get your diapers clean :) (enough water on a front loader may mean an extra rinse/wash cycle, and finding the cycle which uses the most water - for us it is the Heavy Duty cycle). My diaper laundry routine is fairly simple: short Heavy Duty wash cycle on hot with a small amount of detergent, then long Heavy Duty cycle on hot with regular amount of detergent, and then rinse cycle on warm or hot (no detergent for this cycle). It takes about 3.5-4 hours total to go through these 3 cycles. Then I hang dry the covers and dry all the Flip inserts in the dryer. Done :)

[Reya]

Guilt is not a good reason to cloth diaper! Don't burden yourself if that's why you want to do it. :)

[ChrisOR]

Could anybody recommend some prefolds that hold up well, but won't break the bank? I also have plenty of old recieving blankets, so that is an option.

 

 

Try flats (Green Mountain sells 12 for $25)! They are the best!

[mommymilkies]

Green mountain diapers has the best prefolds.

[MomtoCandJ]

What other baby stuff websites allow you to pin on Pinterest? I have Walmart and babies r us. Amazon and diapers.com doesn't allow pinning (at least not with my phone). I'm not sure if I'm expecting yet but dh still wants me to price stuff so we can prepare. Dd is 4 so I'm sure lots has changed.

[BrookValley.]

Guilt is not a good reason to cloth diaper! Don't burden yourself if that's why you want to do it. :)

 

 

I agree with this--you should feel good about doing something more energy efficient/"green" and saving money, but don't guilt yourself into it. If you want to do it, great--do it, have fun, and enjoy the cuteness that is cloth--if not, well don't, and don't feel bad about it.

[prairiewindmomma]

I agree with everyone who recommends greenmountaindiapers for prefolds!

[ktgrok]

I think if I was going to invest any money at all in it, I'd rather jump into where I think I would end up vs spending (even small amts) money on something that I wouldn't continue in the long term......if that makes sense. Based on the research I did when DD (almost 6 now) was a baby, I think I'm most attracted to pockets.

 

 

 

This is a great question......I'm guessing not, but it would sure be cool if there was!

 

Gotcha. Sunbaby pockets are pretty cheap. Or Diaper Safari or Imagine. You can get one at a time, and build up a stash, lol. I bought a lot of diapers used, as well, and just bleached them.