I have always loved to cloth diaper by babies since my first born, Karis, was just a few months old. It’s not just the cost savings and environmental benefits that appeal to me, but also the pure cuteness of cloth diapers. I appreciate putting something completely natural against the skin of my babies, but I also love the pleasure that comes in simple sustainability. With the huge selection of cloth diaper choices available on the market today, with the wealth of cute patterns and colors, I don’t know why any one wouldn’t want to at least try cloth diapering. 
We decided it would be best to use disposables for the first week while I was in recovery so I wouldn’t have to think about washing them, but I was so eager to start trying out our sampling of newborn diapers that I only lasted 4 days! We are huge fans of one size pocket diapers at our home, and have always used Bum Genius pocket diapers, which fit well starting around 10 pounds and continue through potty training. Since most babies cannot fit into that size right away, it is nice to have a collection of newborn diapers to use for the first 1-3 months. Here is my review of the newborn cloth diapers we tried.
Grovia Organic Newborn All-in-One
The Grovia Organic ($14.95 per diaper – pictured above on Eden) is a very nice comfortable diaper with an excellent fit and easy to use. I did not find the lower row of snaps to be useful at all, but my baby was also nearly 8 pounds, so she immediately went into the top row of snaps. I love the durability of snaps, so that is my preference. But I did find that AIO’s in general take an excruciatingly long time to dry in the dryer and this was no exception and the absorbency was certainly lacking. The side gussets tend to leak unless changed frequently. Doubler was required. My baby grew out of this diaper at 10 pounds.
Bum Genius Newborn All-in-Ones
Since I love the style and fit of Bum Genius pocket diapers, I was eager to try their newborn all-in-one style ($12.95 per diaper). I found it was very wide on the crotch making it difficult to get a really good fit and more bulky. While the velcro tabs are easier to put on a baby, these diapers starting piling very quickly, especially as the tabs share a center laundry tab in the center back of the diaper, and easily came undone in the wash. For an AIO, they surprisingly did not take that long to dry in the dryer, but the absorbancy was lacking. I found I had to use a doubler (the Bum Genius newborn inserts, which come with the purchase of a one size diaper, worked very well as doublers by simply folding them in half lengthwise inside the diaper) inside every diaper otherwise I would have a leaking accident nearly every time. From my experience, AIO diapers just don’t have the absorbancy like pocket diapers. With the required use of a doubler for us, baby grew out of these at 10 pounds as well.
Prefolds & extra small covers
For my first two babies, we always used simple infant size prefold diapers with an assortment of newborn covers. We would fold the infant prefold in thirds horizontally instead of vertically for a more comfortable fit. While it is a more complicated multiple step procedure to put these style diapers on, they had good absorbancy and the fit was always great without leaking. You will find prefolds do add a lot of bulk. A great option for those on a tight budget. I don’t recommend newborn size prefold diapers as they have little absorbancy compared to the infant size.
Fuzzi Bunz Perfect Size Pockets -Extra Small
The Fuzzi Bunz extra small diaper ($15.95 per diaper) were certainly my favorite choice among all the diapers we tried! The pocket style made them fast drying and easy to add an extra doubler for absorbancy if needed without being bulky. I absolutely loved the selection of colors available for these diapers. The snaps make them extra durable and long lasting. One row of snaps on this size also made them very quick to put on. She did grow out of them at 11 pounds but they certainly were well used in the interim and have plenty more life left for the next baby.
Kissaluvs Cotton Fleece Size 0 Fitted Diapers
We tried the Kissaluvs fitted size 0 diapers ($13.95 per diaper) when Titus was a newborn and I found them just has complicated as prefold diapering with the two step process of putting on the fitted diaper and then putting on the cover. It was certainly less bulky than prefolds. The fabric originally was very soft but within a few washes they were very rough in texture and caused irritation to the skin. They also were soaked through very quickly. In the end, I honestly preferred the prefolds and covers.
Kawaii Baby Pure & Natural Diaper
The Kawaii Baby Pure & Natural is a remarkably great diaper for the price ($7.95 per diaper). With its multiple snap levels, this diaper will fit roughly from 6-22 lbs. The crotch is nice and narrow giving a nice fit without excess bulk. The pocket style makes them fast drying and easy to use. The only problem I found was the velcro laundry tabs did not hold in the laundry, causing diaper chains. And the stretchy tabs are incredibly wide, making it difficult to use for a very petite baby as the tabs fold over each other. I found that while I did have the tabs folded over each other they did not come undone most of the time. My baby’s are pretty skinny, so I don’t think this would be a problem for the average user. They have held up very well as we continue to use them. They also don’t have a good selection of colors – which is disappointing for me as a cloth diapering momma whole loves bold cute colors!
Rumparooz Lil’ Joeys All-in-One
Eden in a gumball print Lil' Joey
The Rumparooz Lil’ Joeys All-in-One ($29.95 for a two pack) come in an assortment of adorable prints. While these diapers are supper cute and have a wonderful fit and have the bonus feature of the fold down snap for the umbilical cord, I found these were really designed for preemie’s. They are very small in size and will not last the average child to 12 pounds as they say. We never used the snap down feature (Eden’s cord fell off at 4 days) or the bottom row of snaps because of her size. They were the first for my baby to grow out of around 9 pounds or so. It did also take the longest of all the diapers to dry, but then again it had the best absorbency because of its extra thickness compared to the Bum Genius and Grovia.
So overall, was it worth it to invest in a stash of newborn cloth diapers? Yes and no. First off, the newborn AIO and pocket diapers that we tried were certainly far easier to use than our previous prefold experiences. They were far less prone to rashes. Secondly, I was able to buy most of our newborn stash used which certainly saved us money. We could then either sell them again for the same or slightly less than what we paid for them, or we could keep them for the next baby. But I was certainly disappointed that my baby grew out of most of them by the time she was 1 month old. Buying disposables would be comparable in price for that short of time. So the value does depend upon the growth rate of your child. My first child wasn’t 10 pounds until she was 2 months old – so they would have extended longer in that case. If I were to do it again, I would certainly consider just using the Kawaii Pure & Natural diapers, because they were the best priced for the longest use because of the two size adjustment.
Obviously these reviews are my own personal preference and any other might have a different opinion. Please take this as simply a reference from my experience.
Stay tuned for a fun newborn giveaway soon!
Lindsay, thank you for this info! I was wondering, after trying all of these, what your suggestion would be for me (I am expecting my third in August and am new to CD). I want to go with the Bum Genius pocket OS for baby, but I know baby wont fit in those right away. My other two children were born 9lbs, so I’m assuming this third one will be in the larger range. Do you think getting the newborn sized cloth diapers will be a waste? I was thinking about doing the fuzzi bunz perfect size but can’t decide between small and extra small considering the weight of my kids. Any thoughts after having tried them? Thanks so much!
I would probably recommend you just use disposables during those first few weeks especially if your baby is 9 lbs. the BG one size will definitely fit by 10lbs and those first few weeks are nice just to rest and take it easy. To invest in a whole load of newborn diapers is not really economical unless you have smaller babies in my experience.
We’ve been using cloth diapers on our first baby since jump and love them. I added many different brands to a couple registries and had our cloth diaper collection complete before our son was born in August. Unbeknownst to me (as I’m sure most women whose first babies are large), our son was 9 lbs 8 oz else I many not have registered for or purchased so many of the Lil Joey’s. I had ten, washed and ready to go for him that I brought to the hospital, but we used them for all of a week or two before giving up because they leaked due to his size. I agree with Lindsay that they’re meant for preemies.
I suggest using cloth diapers with bamboo and/or hemp inserts. They’re far more absorbant than microfiber inserts and less bulky. My favorite cloth diaper is Bummis Tot Bots because they’re fitted and so soft! We prefer velcro closures over snaps because they’re easier and more adjustable. I also recommend SwaddleBees’/Blueberry’s smaller diapers for newborns because they’re less bulky. We tried to save money by purchasing the ‘one-size fits all’ diapers, but I felt especially bad for our son when he was smaller wearing the bulky diapers because his legs poked out like toothpicks.
Plus, he had to wear larger sizes in clothes because they were so big, which killed our initial stash of clothes donated from a friend. I lived, learned, and got some fitted diapers that we like better.
Thank you, Lindsay, for your website and inspiration. I look forward to putting some of your practices into use in our house.
We’ve used Green Mountain Diaper prefolds and covers since our baby was 10 days old, and still are, at 11 months! We use Kawaii pocket diapers at night, because I can stuff them full.
Unless you have a tiny baby I don’t necessarily recommend buying “newborn” sized prefolds. They only lasted a few weeks. I could have gotten by with size small just fine. However, the NB prefolds are handy as extra doublers in the pocket diapers.
I like how cute the cloth diapers are, and they saved me money, since we’ve gone about as economically as you can. We use prefolds and covers almost exclusively, and bought a half dozen pocket diapers used off Ebay for nighttime. Can’t beat that!
Hi, I’m expecting my first baby next week. I wonder if anyone has tried these tie on ones and if they are any good? http://www.naturalnursery.co.uk/cloth-nappies/organic-knitted-tie-on-nappy-disana.html
Cloth-diapering a newborn here as well. I had the same complaints about the GroVia. We’ve used fitteds from Muttaqin Baby and BubuBebe (both on hyenacart.com) plus the orange-edge prefolds from Green Mountain Diapers. My favorite covers are Thirsties Duo Wraps (size One). Not a huge fan of the extra steps but we don’t have leaks. My ‘little ones’ have been big (this little girl was 9lbs,6oz) and at 3 weeks we’ve already moved into the next size of prefolds and the fitteds are getting a little small as well.
Thanks for the review on newborn cloth diapers! We use bum genius aio’s for our almost-2 year old and love them. I was wondering what to try with a newborn when we have another one someday. Hope you continue to enjoy your little ones-and cloth diapering, too!
You know what I found I love the most on my newborn is flat diapers with an Imse Vimse cover. The flat diaper is less bulky than the prefold by far and I just fold them all before I need them. I think its worth it in the investment and I don’t have to buy them again for the next babe. : )
Bum Genius flip diapers are my personal favorites. Thanks for sharing all your insight and a huge congrats on your new little one, my youngest is now 3 months old:).
I love my Kawaii diapers! My MIL picked them up at a yard sale and they have been a life saver for me. They are so easy to stuff and wash great! I have the pockets with snaps and if I had the money I would get some of the pure and natural ones for sure. I got some used newborn hemp aio’s and some tiny wahm diapers on diaperswappers.com and I am hoping those will hold me over till my sunbaby os fit my new little guys due in a couple weeks. The regular kawaii diapers do run on the big side (so they will remain my 23 month olds until he is potty trained) and the sunbabies are a bit small so I think my stash should work out.
Thanks for sharing Jessica G about your husband. My husband also made comments and decided for us that disposable was better than cloth and I have thought about doing nothing but switching to cloth for the last 1 yr and a half. Our son is now 2 1/2 and we have #2 on the way in December. It is a good reminder from you guys that the marriage relationship is more important than the type of diaper. I hope my husband comes around this time (plus I’m being more bold and just going to buy some and try) but I tend to beat myself up that I didn’t protect the environment/follow my conscious with all the diapers we’ve thrown away over the last 3 yrs. It’s a good reminder that I listened to him because I knew at the time it wasn’t worth the battle between us; we needed more growth. thanks for the reviews too! As starting to look into it, it’s overwhelming g all the options. Plus my first one was a super preemie, so I have no idea what it’s going to be like to have “normal” baby growth!
Started nearly 7yrs ago with the Mother-ease diapers. LOVE THEM!! Planning to use them for our fourth child in a few months. They make great training pants too for potty training. I purchased the one size fits all with the outer pant separate. I find the separate outer pant allows the diapers to pre-soak and doesn’t wear down the outer pant, which can be sprayed with a mild detergent spray and wiped between changings. Cloth is superb
I’m with ya! I love mother-ease one size too. They do have the classic puffy cloth diaper butt, however these are super reliable! Never once had a blow-out in diapering two kids, and only wicking at night with my heavy wetter (of course I never used a doubler, which may have made a difference). I’ve never had one daytime diaper leak on my clothes or my kids’ clothes with these. And I agree that they make great training pants using them coverless.
Right now CottonBabies is running a sell on BG 4.0 – Buy 5 get 1 free. It ends up taking 24 diapers down from around $400 to $350. A great way to save a little extra on the BG if you are looking to order them. I’m due in january, but went ahead and bought them since they were on sale.
One thing that I have done with my newborn cloth diapers is lend them to families (for a one to two months) who are considering using cloth diapers on their children, but are not sure what type to get. I have Kissaluvs, Fuzzibunz, and infant size prefolds with covers.
I used cloth diapers ‘back in the day’ and I LOVE seeing them make a comeback! Your post was informative and gracious. And your baby … adorable!! Bless you.
We used the BumGenius line of Econobum covers. The nice part is, they are just the shell (no liner), so you can use them again by washing them out with water and drying them. If they get dirty, you can just run them in the wash. Babies R Us runs a pretty good deal on them. 12 prefold and 3 one-size covers for $50!
I decided to cloth diaper our baby this time around (this is our third). I cannot believe how much I had worked myself up about it! The only difference I’ve noticed is that I’m changing the baby a bit more because they feel it faster than in a disposable (but this is definitely better for their sensitive skin). I was finding that I really wanted a one-size CD, but I didn’t want the liner as that meant I couldn’t use the shell more than once before I had to wash it. BumGenius came out with the line of Econobum diapers which are exactly that. We only got 8 shells and that has lasted us plenty and we have yet to run out of them. Babies R Us runs a pretty good deal on them. It comes with 12 prefolds and 3 one-size diapers for $50!
Just wanted to say Eden is so pretty!!!
That picture of her in the little diaper! Precious.
Makes me want another baby!
I have tiny babies, my youngest was still in the 8 lb range at 2 months. I used our newborn diapers for a long time. I used preemie prefolds in the beginning, along with some flats and the little joeys. The little joeys fit her great but they held nothing, honestly. I kept them in the diaper bag as a back up. I loved my kissuluvs fitteds and contours. I also found some wonderful fitteds at a consignment sale, an amazing deal of 8 newborn diapers for $5. I wish I knew who made them! They were bulletproof and the fit was great. I was gifted some best bottom diapers that I really love, the system is nice. I used bum genius almost exclusively with my first, with some babybunz fitteds thrown in the mix. This time around I have acquired more variety and I like it. My husband was a hard sale at first, but then our first DD developed a 2nd degree burn from disposables and I did not have to convince him any more. I make it easy for him. Our second ended up getting hives from disposables so had to switch to only cloth very early, I was using one at night.
We have used prefolds and covers (mostly bummis super whisper wraps) from birth through potty training and had great success with all three of our boys. It isn’t fancy but we have spent maybe $150 on diapering for about five years worth of diapers and the same diapers should last through the next baby as well! My children were all born around 8 lb and we just went straight to a small size bummis with an infant prefold. Lots of bulk but good absorption with very few leaks. I see the smaller sizes for great prices on craigslist often. I have purchased all of our diapers from craigslist and had very positive experiences! I am sure I would like an AIO or pocket diaper but for the cost savings, consider prefolds!
Thanks for posting this! I just started using cloth with my baby a few months ago and can’t believe I never did it with my first! I have a friend who is due in a month who want to cd her baby. She wasn’t going to start until she got a little older so I will have to share this site with her. Thanks again!
I am a huge fan of gDiapers too. They didn’t have the newborn ones when my son was born 3 years ago but my sister graciously gave me her tinyg’s to use this time around. I will let you know how they go. I am so excited to try them! I feel like gDiapers are such a cheaper route to go with cloth since you can re-use the outer part.
For us, we found that the most frugal thing to do is to use disposable diapers when the baby is a newborn. Our church gives huge baby showers for every baby born, whether it’s your first, fifth, or eleventh. Many people brought disposable diapers. We brought many of those back to the store or regifted them when other babies were born, but we also used plenty of them. It’s not earth friendly, but it’s what works for us, especially since I have c-sections and knew I wouldn’t be capable of doing laundry for a while. Fortunately, our son got chunky fast. He never wore Newborn sized disposable diapers and he was up to 10 pounds somewhere around 4 weeks old.
For future babies, we’ll either do the same or go with prefolds and covers.
Thanks for the great reviews. My 2nd is due in January, and we’re looking to do cloth diapering for our newborn. We are gParents – we love gDiapers. We used them for our son, who is now potty trained. We will use them again. We didn’t use the gBaby diapers for newborns? We’re considering buying the tiny gPants, but were wanting some reviews. Thanks!
I have a question that’s (somewhat!) related. I’m wondering what you use for nightime during potty training. My 3 yr old is totally trained, but needs pullups at night. Is there a cloth pullup you’d recommed or do you just use a regular diaper for a toddler at night?
If anyone has any night training tips, I’d appreciate it!
Do you sew at all? I am a terrible seamstress, but I found a SUPER easy pattern for waterproof cloth pull-ups that only took me an hour to make start to finish. They are REALLY easy to make and you can watch a tutorial online and sew it with the lady! The pattern cost $3.50… well worth the $. I bought a yard of PUL (waterproof material) on ebay for $8 and used old blankets for the inner layer. Cost me next to nothing to make several pairs of these. They are like a pocket diaper, so you can decide the absorbancy level. They can be pulled up and down like underwear. Google Kayla’s Cloth Kits for patterns and help. Also, for 12-14 $ you can buy similar ones on etsy and ebay… just depends on if you want to spend $ or make your own and save a bundle.
Thanks for the info on the cloth patterns. Yes, I do sew, so I will look into it. I keep thinking that soon she’ll stay dry, but the months keep passing and I’m still spending money on pullups!
I tried the gerber waterproof pants, which is the only reusable pullup I could find, and they were a joke. Crinkly and bulky and yet leaked right through!
We always tried to get them in underwear as soon as possible and it has worked very well…a few accidents was really all it took for them to understand the importance of getting out of bed and using the bathroom. We did like using the Knickernappies large size pocket diapers as a great option for potty training as they are easily pulled up and down for using the potty.
Just wanted to point out that physically not every child will night potty train when they are day trained. My daughter was potty trained by 2 but was still wet at night until 5. She just honestly wasn’t ready no matter how many nights of wet sheets we had. Our doctor agreed – some kids will just be wet at night for much longer. I just wanted to point that out so that no one feels bad about their use of nighttime diapers.
Thanks for the encouragement! I must say that some moms get it into their heads that every child should be like theirs. But it’s just not true. I know someone whose kids have potty trained(day and night) by 18 mos. Good for them, but sorry, my kids aren’t like that.
I haven’t even started training my 2 yr. old. I’m sure I could, but he doesn’t seem ready. He has no clue how to pull his pants up! I started with my daughter before she was 2 and it took 6 months before she quit having daily accidents. I don’t feel like going through that again, especially since his diapers are a whole lot messier!
We haven’t used cloth diapers completely while potty training, but instead of pull-ups, we just use the cheapest disposable diapers out there. The kids seem to get the idea of potty training well enough when they’re ready, whichever kind of diaper we use, so I’m up for cheap! Being in cloth diapers as much as you can though also seems to help them understand the wet/dry concept alot faster than using disposables all the time does (in my humble opinion after potty training my 3 own vs. other children). We’ve also used the Toilet Training in a Less than a Day book (by Nathan Azrin) with good results, although I know others who haven’t had great results with it.
I am cloth diapering my newborn (he’s 3 weeks now) with prefolds (I think they are newborn size) with an old washcloth in them for extra absorbency and am wondering if anyone has any idea how I can go longer without changing. Today I changed him almost every hour and still had a couple leak as he had been sleeping, which takes alot of time when my time is limited (he’s baby #4). He’s a big eater, so maybe that’s it, but I’m wondering if cloth diapering him is worth it at this point since I’m changing him so often. Or if I should just use disposables until he’s big enough for my pocket diapers (15 lbs, which my other kids hit at 2 months)
I’ve tried several cloth diapers, but I don’t like having a whole bunch of different brands. I prefer to find one that works and stick with it. We use Softbums 2-in-1, and Bestbottoms, also a 2-in-1 (prefer the Softbums as the Bestbottoms has PUL that gets up against baby’s skin). They are both one size, so no worries about changing sizes. It was expensive to start up…around $400…but I’m getting ready to start diapering my THIRD baby in the original set of diapers. I have more than gotten my money’s worth. BOth of these come in organic fabric options to make it truly natural for the baby’s skin. I also like that you can change the liners and re-use the covers over and over until the covers are soiled. It really cuts down on the bulk of the laundry and storage space. These dipes have fit my babies from newborn, as I have had over 9, nearly 10, and 11 pound babies. They were more like toddlers than newborns, so I saved even more money by not having to buy nb dipes!
For me I found that I loved the infant size diaper and sometimes had to add a preemie size in for added absorbancy. And then went typically with a Very Baby or Bummi cover. Snappis are fantastic to have for diaper closers. I have babies with high rises so ultimately its not fun to have butt crack showing.
I would say that over all I didn’t care for fitteds or aios as much as prefolds or pockets. But if you have hard water it is more difficult to clean a synthetic fabric like most pockets are made from.
We ended up using a diaper service for the first month of both our boys’ lives. It was SO MUCH cheaper than buying all the tiny diapers in addition to the BumGenius that we use now. It was less than $70 and we changed up to 10 diapers a day. Can you imagine all that laundry? So worth it! My first was 9lbs and my second was 7.5 lbs. The first was never in newborn, but I didn’t want to do laundry and the second fit into the BG at about 2 months. I think I ended up borrowing some newborn AIOs from a friend. That’s the way to do it! Go in with 3 or 4 preggo friends and get the little diapers to share.
That is certainly another great option!
So far with our newest (3 weeks olds) we’re finding that we prefer prefolds and flats inside of size one Thirstie’s Duo Wraps. They provide the best leak protection and will fit from about 6-18 pounds. We only have two right now and I’m hoping to add a few more to our stash.
We used them with our last baby and they did fit well until 18 pounds. We have the velcro and the laundry tabs work great so far. Also the material is soft and they have leg gussets which help keep messes contained well.
$12.75 for Snaps or Velcro (solid colors) $13.75 for prints and available through Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/Thirsties-Wrap-Meadow-Size-18-40/dp/B002FB7FBE/ref=sr_1_9?s=baby-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1316191333&sr=1-9
http://www.amazon.com/Thirsties-Wrap-Snap-Meadow-Size/dp/B003AJXY1U/ref=sr_1_2?s=baby-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1316191333&sr=1-2
We’d also recommend the size twos for older babies. That’s what we mainly use at home with our 19 month old.
I too am using prefolds with Thirsties covers and Rumparooz covers. I have a Fuzzibunz, but I enjoy the simplicity of the prefolds.
I started using cloth from the very beginning (in fact, my little one is almost 16 months old and has never worn a single disposable diaper). I used cotton-eeze (from Green Mountain) prefolds and a variety of newborn covers. My favorite were the thirsties duo size one. With those and prefolds, my “newborn” stash lasted until almost 8 weeks, and Lucy was not a little baby.
I would LOVE to try cloth diapering! I have an 17 month old and I am witness to the cost and waste that occurs with disposables. I am pregnant with #2 and now dread buying even more diapers and more waste! We are a one income family (I am a stay at home wife/momma), with a very tight budget. The problem is, my husband is completely opposed to the idea of cloth diapering. His main issue is that dirty diapers will be washed in our machines, those same machines that also wash his clothes. His guy friends and his family have only gone to encourage him in this thought process. I think this is pretty ridiculous (as how many all over the world cloth diaper?), but I have tried every angle, and we have had heated debates that get no where. Should I just give up? That is what I did with the first baby, submitting to what my hubs wanted.
Jessica, that would certainly be a challenge…but I honestly would encourage you not to push it. If it is causing contentions in your marriage, it is not worth it. If he is willing to pay for disposables, then I would just wait. He might change his mind in due time as he really evaluates the expense.
Jessica,
I agree that you should respect your husband’s wishes — that is more important than any money savings or reduced waste. I think gDiapers and BumGenius Flip systems also have a disposable absorbent liner that is used inside of the washable cover. I haven’t used these, so I don’t know how well they work or if there would be any cost savings, but it might be worth looking into — would keep most of the “mess” out of the laundry and some of the waste out of landfill…if your husband is willing to compromise.
You might be able to find a video on YouTube or somewhere that shows how a diaper sprayer works and how most of the mess ends up in the toilet and not in the wash. I love our pocket diapers because the poop usually just falls right off the fleece!!
Convincing my husband is something that has taken a lot of time and research. I finally broke down the cost and showed him that it would be a $4000 savings over the next four years, including water and electricity bills and Rockin Green detergent. His main concern is that it will be too much hassle for me to diaper two kids and keep up with everything else around the house…and we’ll see in about two months if that is true or not
My argument against your husband’s opinion is that if a washing machine truly washes clothes, then it should wash out clean after diapers. That’s my husband’s opinion as well, as a product engineer.
I definitely think you shouldn’t push the issue and you should definitely submit to his wishes. But do have a couple of honest conversations on it. My husband was not convinced that cloth diapering would work, and even I was a bit concerned that I couldn’t handle the laundry. He also felt that we should’ve started sooner to save more money (we started when our first child was 8 months old). Even after seeing the numbers I showed him, he wasn’t convinced that we would save money. But he thought a lot about it and ultimately decided that this was a mommy area and he would trust my mommy judgment. Two years and another baby later, he not only loves cloth diapering, but I can tell he’s actually proud of our family (and me) for doing it, much in the same way that he’s proud of me for nursing our babies. It’s pretty sweet, actually. But I do try to make sure that he doesn’t have to change poopy cloth diapers or deal with prefolds.
Sorry, I meant to reply to Jessica’s post!
Jessica G.,
Have you looked into G-Diapers? They have the option of using disposable and resuable inserts. I haven’t used them, but I’ve heard they’re great. I don’t know if this will help convince your husband to switch to cloth diapers, but if you breastfeed, anything coming out of your little one is 100% biodegradable, all-natural, and go directly into the wash. I believe this is also true if you make your baby food with all-natural ingredients as well (maybe someone else has more information on this one–might be a good idea to get the lumps out before washing, though).
I’m pretty sure adults are more than capable of bringing our fair share of “nasty things” to the laundry basket like sweaty socks and dirty underwear. With his argument no clothes would get clean because they would continually be recontaminated by previous loads. Honestly, my husband’s running clothes smell worse than our baby’s cloth diapers and both come out the wash clean. Cloth diapers are better for babies’ skin, your wallet, and the earth–in a big way. By breastfeeding, cloth diapering, and making our own baby food with foods we eat, our baby is basically cost-free (after the initial cloth diaper purchase). Best of luck with this!
Oh, and we also use reusable wipes, too. If you’re going to wash the diapers, you might as well throw the wipes in, too. Another great money-saver. We use Thirsties Fab wipes and BumGenius flannel wipes. I suggest avoiding colored wipes because sometime colors make it difficult to see what area of the wipe you already used.
Our favorites are the BG One-Size pocket diapers, and we use disposables for the first few weeks ’til they fit. I found that the laundry tabs are a joke. I bought a big roll of the soft side of velcro (actually Aplix brand) and cut strips of it to place on the velcro tabs on the diapers when not in use. We just take the strips off when we’re ready to use the diaper, and replace them when it goes in the diaper pail. The tabs still look like new using this method
I recently switched to the BG one size pocket diapers with snaps and they are awesome! I love them and much prefer them to the velcro edition.
LOVE the BGs with snaps! I actually prefer snaps to velcro, even without the wear issue. They seem to fit better somehow.
Thanks for the reviews. I am due in December with my 4th and I’m thinking seriously about cloth diapering. I have a collection of the Bum Genius AIO, although I didn’t use them for more than a few months with #2. I appreciate your review because my last baby was 9 pounds. I’m thinking I’ll just use disposable until she is big enough to fit into what I have.
We are huge fans of cloth diapering! We used TinyTush, love the products and help line was a nice bonus in those first few weeks!