I hear it all the time! It's funny how to those that don't participate in this age old baby care tradition find it mysteriously scary and daunting. But is it really so difficult?
Yes it IS MORE WORK than the disposable diapers, but from a girl who hates doing laundry it really isn't that bad. Once you get your routine down it's just one of your normal chores... And I am very GLAD that I chose to go this route.
To get started you have to choose your brand of diapers, or shall we say brands. Not all diapers are created equal and there are different times when you'll want different kinds.
I've created a getting started checklist for you.
Everything You'll Need
- Variety of diapers = 20-30 total
- Covers (I reccomend Thirsties and GroVia Shells)
- Inserts/soaker pads or prefold sheets
- Snappies
- AIO (All in one)
- Extra inserts
- Micro-fleece liners (make yourself)
- Cloth Wipes
- Water squirt bottle
- Solution squirt bottle (optional)
- Diaper rash ointment
- Disposable Wipes (optional)
- Changing pad
- Drawers or bins to organize diapers
- Diaper pail
- Diaper pail liner
- Travel wet/dry bags (2)
- Laundry soap
- Laundry Booster
- Laundry line
- Drier balls
Carolyn's dresser has 6 drawers, 2 of these are dedicated to diapers. I have the diapers separated by type of diaper, such as keeping covers with liners together and accessories in the same drawer. The Dollar Tree sells little plastic bins that work great for corralling small items (like the snappies and micro-fleece liners).
Where to buy?
We were very blessed to have two different friends donate their old diapers to us. This is especially nice when you're starting out because you won't be sure which diaper will work best for you. If you don't get hand-me-downs another great place to look is through mom groups. When a mom finally potty trains that little one she will be jumping up and down with excitement to get rid of those diapers! I've found groups through Facebook where moms sell and trade their old diapers. Just search for groups in your area about cloth diapering/baby wearing.
When your baby is a newborn your options are to buy a whole set of newborn diapers that they'll only wear for 1-3 months or to use disposables for that time. Luckily because they're only used such a short time a lot of moms sell their barely used NB diapers, I've seen a lot of great deals for these available. I've purchased most of mine off of Amazon and in stores like Kissui. Another website that I know a lot of people like is Green Mountain, I've never purchased anything there because I have an Amazon prime membership and it seems to be more cost effective for me to order there. My best score was actually at a second hand children's store, they were brand new and still in the packaging!
If you purchase used, or get hand-me-downs, make sure to sanitize your diapers before using them. Fluff Love University has info on everything you could possibly wonder about cloth diapering, that's where I learned about how to to bleach my used diapers so that my little one didn't get a yeast infection from the previous owner.
Diaper Choices
As I said earlier, you'll want to start with a variety of different diapers to see which ones you like the best. I registered for 2 Thirsties Covers (this is a great deal on a 3 pack that would work well for boys or girls) that worked great on top of two different diaper interiors - the old traditional pre-fold sheet (make sure to get 6-ply for more absorbency) and this convenient snap cotton cover by Kissaluvs.
Carolyn is just over 30 pounds and finally needs to move up to the size two of these Thirsties Covers. That means we've been using them for 1 1/2 years! They're also great because you can reuse your cover multiple times a day (as long as they don't get poop on them)!
The same thing goes for the pre-folds. I'm starting to struggle with getting them around her belly, otherwise they're great (so long as she's in a patient mood for hanging out on the changing table). I usually gauge her mood before deciding which diaper I'm going to attempt. I'll probably be picking up some of these OsoCozy Toddler size next.
This is a great video showing you 5 different folding techniques for a pre-fold diaper. My preferred method is the Angel-wing Fold.
If folding and snapping is too much work, these are a great alternative. I was so lucky to receive several of these as Kissaluvs hand-me-downs. Since those are so old (but still going strong) they don't seem to be as readily available on Amazon, but I did find these great Cloth-eez alternatives!
Another super nice hand-me-down were a set of Kushies diapers. This girl set is adorable, but I have to say this unisex set is a great deal! The set that I have has been through 2 kids previously and the elastic is starting to wear out. So if Carolyn is on a liquidy poop streak I choose to save these till she firms up - or else I'll have some leaking problems.
These GroVias are the newest addition to my diaper stash and are my FAVORITES for daytime. They come in snap or in hook and loop. I have no problem with snaps but the hook and loop (velcro) is a lot easier for daddy so I've been slowly buying them. They are a two-part system the cover and the insert. I love them because they're easy, beautiful and the slimmest fitting for most absorbency diaper I've found!
The cover has two little snaps and so does the insert. I HIGHLY recommend getting the organic cotton inserts over the stay dry ones, they have much better absorbency. I have both, so I've done the testing for you...
Attach and done!
Then I simply layer on my homemade micro fleece liner. I'll talk more about that in a little bit... I have the Calico, Roller Coaster, Vanilla (goes great under anything see-through), and I want to get the Sugar Rush and Holland pattern next!
My second favorite brand of diapers are the Bum Genius Freetime. You get double the absorbency layer and less work because they're attached! Bum Genius also makes diapers that you stuff, but I find this so much easier. When Carolyn was littler these were super fluffy on her. Which was wonderful for nighttime, so they got promoted to bedtime diapers.
I unfolded the two flaps for you to see how they're attached.
The last type of diapers I'll talk about are these charcoal AIO but also with pocket for stuffing diapers. There are tons of different brands available such as these cute Happy Endings and they're affordable. For over a year they worked great by themselves but as Carolyn got older she started holding her pee for longer periods of time and then peeing in larger quantities. I found it useful to add an extra layer in her diaper to absorb the liquid. I happened to have some cotton inserts my friend gave me that served the job well, she kept the hemp version because she liked them even better, I found them on Amazon here.
This is what they tend to look like when opened up.
Most of these type of diapers come with a pocket hole in the back so that you can stuff extra pads inside.
I'm lazy and discovered that I could simply lay my insert pad on top.
On top of that layer I add my micro-fleece liner.
**Important tip: when selecting diapers look for ones that have the extra gusset on the leg. When Carolyn has soupy poopies this helps contain them. In fact, I don't think I've EVER had a true diaper blowout. The elastic bands that go across their backs and around their legs really help contain the messes. Once in a while a little poop will leak out around the legs, but that only happens when she explodes a big one... I've NEVER had poop go up her back the way I've seen babies in disposables have happen. Now, truth be told, when she pees a lot she does get wet around the legs.
This is that double gusset.
As promised, I'm going to tell you about my secret weapon, the micro-fleece liner! Go to the fabric store, purchase 1' of micro-fleece fabric, wash it the same way you wash your diapers. Then cut it into 4" wide strips. Each liner should be about 12"x4" but it's okay if they're not perfect, because let's be real here, they're going to be pooped on and no one is going to be examining them. If for some reason you want them bigger/smaller, cut them to the size you desire. This fabric is great, it doesn't fray, so no hemming required! You're done!
Cleaning Up Baby
Here is my changing station. Since I knew I'd be spending a lot of time here I wanted to make sure I found it to be pretty and inviting to me, not just the baby. Ironically, I've found the decorative white pegs we hung up above her pad to be very helpful for letting me hang up covers that just need a little airing out.
Next to her pad I have two baskets to help corral the mess, some silk flowers, the humidifier, and some tiny book that she can easily hold while I'm changing her.
Do you see some cute woodland fabric in the bottom basket? Those are my wipes! Yup yup, just because it's wiping poop off a bottom doesn't mean it needs to be ugly! Originally I had these simple wipes on my registry, but my sweet friend sewed me a whole stack of different patterns flannel wipes! It sure makes cleaning up baby more pleasant!
This is my basket of necessary supplies. From 0-6 months diapers were even easier to clean up because you could wash the diaper with the poop in it! So I just would squirt my wipe with some water or special solution that my friend made me (the same awesome friend who sewed me the cute wipes) and then toss it in the pail. Anyone recognize those squirt bottles??? At the baby shower all the mommies in the room happily laughed at how great they were, I didn't know yet, but after delivering my daughter I was able to join the club! Yay for the Mommy bidet! I cleaned my bottles up and saved them for my diaper bag, so now I can cloth wipe on the go!
With cloth diapers it's important to use a cloth diaper friendly diaper rash cream, otherwise you'll end up ruining your cloth diapers. I've been using Boudreaux's Butt Paste - Natural (Green tube) and it's worked very well for me - heals baby quickly and washes out of diapers easily.
I also have a package of Seventh Generation Wipes, especially when Carolyn was a newborn and I was figuring this whole cloth diaper thing out I wanted to make sure her wipes were fragrance free and had no bad chemicals in them. I mostly pack these in my diaper bag for times when you just need a wipey.
Back to the dirty business! Now that she eats food we've switched to the toilet paper method. First I wipe her bottom with the TP to get as much off as possible, then I finish the job with water/solution and a wipe. The beautiful thing about those micro-fleece liners is that you can just pick up the poop and dump it in the toilet along with the TP I used. I hold the dry end of the liner and swish it around until all chunks have fallen off. (I'm nuts and do this with my bare hands and then wash with antibacterial soap afterwards because let's face it I already feel dirty after wiping her bottom and figure what's some more poop going to do??? But you could always use tongs or wear gloves). I then use TP to grab and poop that missed the liner and landed on the diaper. As long as most of it is off I haven't had a problem with washing it later. Once in a while she gives me a horrific gift and I have to resort to dunking the whole diaper, I bring my diaper pail in with me so that I can put it right in without dripping.
** Lot's of people love their diaper sprayers, but Ben and I realized that once we had a mobile toddler in the house the idea of a sprayer hose hooked up to the toilet sounded way too dangerous.
Once the diaper is dirty it goes into the pail till wash day. I was diapers every 2 or 3 days, depending on how full the pail is and how my schedule looks. I use this Sterilite wastebasket on Amazon they want $49, but I found it at Target for $10. Important tip, get one that locks!!!! Again, one day that cute little newborn will be a crazy toddler who touches everything - including the poopie diapers! So prevent that with a good locking diaper pail/wastebasket! The one downside with this Sterilite version is after about a year the easy open handle broke off, but of course at that point we were locking the pail and weren't using that handle anymore...
I found this adorable pail liner that matched her nursery theme, if it shows it's always worth making sure you enjoy looking at it. Unfortunately they don't sell my pattern anymore, but I did find this adorable owl one! It might look like it's upside down but once you fold it over the pail and down the side it will look right side up. Make sure to get 2, so that when one is being washed you have another one to put in and use. I found this cute 2-pack available also!
My pail can hold up to 4 days worth of dirty diapers.
Time for a poopie change! No no no no she cries! Oh yes, you're not sitting in that! I usually hand her a small book and she happily looks at that while I get to work.
I'd show you more of this, but lets be real it's gross and no one wants to see that... Just know, the double gusset helped contain the mess! You can see the dirty TP sticking out.
Laundry
Once your pail is full, or your halfway through your diaper stash, it's time to wash those diapers! There is this amazing website out there called Fluff Love University - they have so much info on cloth diapering! I went through their list on recommended detergents and ended up choosing Biz, one of their Top Picks, because it has enzymes to help breakdown protein-based stains (pee, poo, and baby spit-up)! That means I can use it on her baby clothes too, 2 in 1 woo-hoo! Also, I love that I can easily pick it up when I'm at Target for $8. I also add Borax to my load to help add some scrubbing power and get rid of all that brown business. I choose my soak/wash load and wash on hot.**Important: normally I add vinegar to my laundry as a laundry softener, but my friend warned me that it breaks down the PLU (water proof liner) in the diapers and ruins them. So I quickly stopped using it, and the good news is my diapers still feel the same so I guess I didn't need it.
I run mine as a medium load with hot water and a cold rinse. I use about half a scoop of biz (it comes with a handy green scoop in the box) and 2 tablespoons (give or take because I don't measure it, just sprinkle it in) of Borax. If there is poop, which there almost always is, I set my washer to do a 30 minute soak first before it runs the wash cycle. I wash everything together, diapers, covers, wipes and the diaper pail bag.
After they're done washing I hang them up on my side yard. I'm very lucky that this area faces west and gets lots of warm sun. In the summer the diapers are dry before lunch! I was going to purchase a fancy retractable laundry line, but my dad came over one day and just tied up a cotton laundry rope and used the ladder to help support it, and you know what, it works!
I fold the diapers backwards so that the insides get the sun - this is super handy with the white diapers because the sun bleaches out those ugly stains!
I spread my GroVia diapers out so that they will dry better.
Because my laundry line is doubled up I'm able to put my wipes on it and they usually stay on quite well. If its a very windy day I bring them in so they don't get blown off. You'll notice my micro-fleece liners are missing from the line, that's because they dry in seconds! I don't even bother hanging them up!
Going Out
When I go out I like to count 1 diaper per hour (just in case). I usually don't use that many, but it helps me make sure I'm over prepared. My favorites for packing in the diaper bag are the GroVias because they're so slim, I can easily fit 6 across the bottom of my bag. Don't forget the wet/dry bag! I keep an extra one in my car, just in case also. And in a pinch, you can turn the bag inside out and use it as a car seat liner!
I love my SkipHop wet/dry bag, unfortunately my pattern isn't available anymore but this one is super cute! The outside pocket is perfect for keeping extra wipes in! I only registered for one bag, but my cloth diapering friends caught that mistake and wonderfully gave me a second small bag along with an extra large bag. Boy have those been useful! I've used that extra large bag when staying with my parents for the weekend/going out of town. And the best part is these bags will continue to be useful past the diapering years, they can be used for dirty laundry and wet bathing suit bags for the pool/beach!
What happens if my baby poops and I'm out?
Weeelllllllll, truth be told that is my least favorite thing! If you're lucky you'll find a changing table in the handicap stall and will have access to a toilet and toilet paper so that you can dump as much poop in the toilet as possible. Of course, I've never swished my liner in a public toilet. That's the fun part, you get to carry around and bring home the poopie diaper and then clean it up again! **gag**
At around the age of one we started noticing how well Carolyn comprehended things so as a joke we started telling her "Only poop at home!" Guess what??? She mostly does! Of course, when nature calls you gotta respond, it may be a happy coincidence but I'd say 90% of her dirty business is done in the comfort of our home!
Disclaimer:
You may have noticed just a few (cough cough) links in this post. Almost all (except the GroVia for some reason) of them are Amazon Affiliate links. Which means if you decide you like the item that I'm recommending and purchase it using my link then I will get a little % back for referring you to the product. By doing this you are helping this former teacher turned stay at home mom support her family. It's not much, but every little bit helps! Of course, one of the reasons I write this blog is to pay if forward, since I started out reading lots of blogs and learning from other moms too! I will always give you an honest review of a product (example: the Sterilite wastebasket) and won't suggest something if I don't think it's worth it.
Back to the diaper business! Diapers make great toys too! Carolyn loves to help push the laundry basket from the garage to her room. Even better, she loves dumping the whole basket out on the floor for me to fold! But of course, once I get them all nicely put away her favorite thing to do is pull them back out again!
Now for the real truth question: Will I do it again with future babies? Absolutely!
The first one is the hardest, getting all set up, gathering your diaper stash, figuring out which kind of diapers you like best, and figuring out your routine. I feel like after a month it really was just second nature and it's pretty easy now!
Whew! I think that covers it all! It's a lot of info, but once you get started it's really not so complicated or difficult. Feel free to as me any questions you have in the comments and I'll do my best to answer them!
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