When our family and friends heard we were going to cloth diaper the responses were usually two-fold. One, “Cloth diapering is a nice idea in theory, but we’ll see how long you last.” Two, “That’s totally gross.” We have been cloth diapering for over a year now and I could not be happier. In fact, my most disgusting experiences with diapers have been when I’ve used a disposable on my daughter.
My Decision to Cloth Diaper
I am a planner. When creating my baby registry I did a ton of research and kept coming back to cloth diapers. I was intrigued and the positives definitely seemed to outweigh the negatives. I just had to convince my husband that cloth diapers were the way to go.
Advantages:
1. Cost – Undoubtedly, over the course of diapering a child cloth diapers will save you money. You will save even more money if you use the same cloth diapers with future children.
2. Better for the Environment – Everyone knows that disposable diapers are one of the top waste items in our landfills plus they take forever to decompose.
3. Better for the Baby – Babies who wear cloth diapers often have less diaper rashes. Cloth diapers don’t have the chemicals, fragrances, dyes, gels, etc that are in disposables.
4. Convenience – I never have to make late-night diaper runs. The diaper grows with the child so you aren’t stuck with old sizes. Furthermore, bringing a cloth diaper along on an outing is just as easy as a disposable. Instead of throwing the soiled diaper in the trash you put it in a wet bag to bring home. Also, our garbage doesn’t have to be taken out all the time filled with disposable diapers – what a pain that would be.
5. No Blow-outs!! – Seriously, the only times my daughter has had a diaper blow-out was when she was wearing a disposable.
My Stash
When you hear the words cloth diaper most people think of a large, rectangular piece of fabric folded and held together with safety pins. No longer my friends! Cloth diapers have come a long way. I won’t bore you with definitions of each kind (you can do your own research) but there are now a bunch of options; pockets, hybrids, all-in-ones, etc.
After all my research I knew I wanted all-in-one cloth diapers. All-in-ones are basically a disposable you don’t throw out. All the layers are sewn together. No stuffing, no snapping, no extra work compared to some other types of cloth diapers.
I have 20 cloth diapers. You can get them in different colors or patterns. I rotate two reusable pail liners. Plus, I have 24 cloth wipes.
Okay, let me tell you about the cloth wipes. I LOVE my cloth wipes . . . love, love, love. The wipes work so much better than disposable wipes. I keep them in a wipe warmer and make the solution for the wipes every couple days. If you are interested about how I make my wipes, click here. You throw the used wipes in with your dirty diapers. Why would you use disposable wipes if you use cloth diapers? Two different diaper pails seems silly to me.
Every three days I take the liner out of the diaper pail full of dirty diapers and throw everything (including the bag) into the wash, hang it all to dry, and that’s it. Easy peasy.
But What About the Poo?
Until your baby really starts eating solids you don’t need any additional steps, just toss the dirty diaper in the pail. Around six months when the poo becomes more solid then it is time to start shaking, swirling, or spraying the poo off the diaper into the toilet before putting the diaper in the pail. Often, I can just give the diaper a little shake and everything comes rolling off nicely. Other times we use a diaper sprayer that is connected to our toilet. Either way, handling the poo is no big deal, it gets flushed down the toilet.
Your Possible Concerns
- Childcare – Would my daycare cloth diaper? Yes! Lots of child care providers are now open to it. There is nothing different about putting on a cloth diaper vs disposable. You will just have to provide a wet bag for the soiled diapers to go in that you will then take home to wash.
- Money – The initial investment in cloth diapers can be large but cloth diapering saves so much money over the long run. I would recommend putting the diapers on your baby registry. You can also buy cloth diapers used on many reputable sites or at consignment sales. Plus, you can eventually sell the cloth diapers!
- Gross Factor – Cloth diapers are no more gross than disposables. Know what is gross? When my friend’s baby blew out her disposable diaper all over my other friend’s lap at a coffee shop and she had no other clothes to change into. That’s gross.
- Laundry – If laundry is the bane of your existence then cloth diapering isn’t for you. I don’t mind laundry, every couple days I do a load of diapers. When I have two children in cloth diapers I will have to do a load every other day for sure. Hint – if you ever get stains on the diapers lay them in the sun and the stains come right out.
Truth Time
I am going to be real with you.
Use disposable diapers until the newborn is done with the meconium poops. It is so not worth using cloth diapers those first few days.
I still use disposable wipes and diapers. I take disposable wipes in the diaper bag when going anywhere. At six months, we had to start using a disposable diaper at night (otherwise she would leak). If going on vacation just pack disposables. No one wants to do laundry on a trip.
In the end, I absolutely love my cloth diapers and wipes. Cloth diapering is one of the best decisions I’ve made. My husband and caregivers have totally embraced them but it’s not for everyone, no judgement. If you are on the fence about using cloth diapers go check them out, do some research, ask me any questions you might have. Cloth diapering is way easier and much less gross than you think, I promise.
