How We Cloth - A Tutorial

First and foremost, I am not an expert by any means, nor do I pretend to be! I am just a real first time mom who is really into cloth diapering and all things holistic. This journey has just started for me, so I am learning a lot as I go, which I why I wanted to start blogging in the first place! I am someone who, when I find something I really enjoy or that works really well I just want to share it with the world! I guess that is why I became a teacher...because I love sharing new knowledge and things that make life a little easier!

Since my last post I have gotten some requests for an explanation of exactly what cloth diapering looks like and what goes into it. So my little model and I had a photo shoot just for this tutorial! This post is epically long, so I thank you in advance for reading it all!


There are TONS of kinds of cloth from types of cloth diapers to brands, you name it, it's out there. Like I said, I am still learning and am in NO way an expert. But I DO know what works for us. So I thought if I showed the world what WE do, and how EASY it is, people would understand...and maybe be inclined to try it!

First things first, the diapers...

Like I said there are tons of types of diapers. Prefolds, fitteds, AIOs, AIO2s, Duos, Pockets, Flats...the list goes on and on and on.

We have used prefolds, pockets, fitteds, and AIOs (all in ones). Each type of diaper does different things for us but you honestly could get by with one type. I just like to consider my options so I tried a lot of different things. I have to give my friend Kim another shout out, because since I wasn't sure what kind of diapers we wanted to start with, she actually lent us ALL of her son's newborn diapers to try and figure out what we like. Between Kim and Justin's generosity and our showers, we were lucky to have almost all the pieces to start. As I am finding out what I like the most, I purchase those things for myself. But I would not be where I am without the help of my fluff friends :)

Prefolds

Prefolds are a piece of quilted cotton that you put into a diaper cover. They are nice and thick and can be washed over and over again. You secure the prefolds with a snappi. It takes some finesse and practice but I can now do this in a dark room at 3 am, so it's easy to master! There are lots of different folds and twists you can do and what I did was google how to do it and tried a few of them. We do what this website calls the Angel Wing fold, but there are lots of different names. This page gives other info. about prefolds as well as some other folds and how to do them. I use Green Mountain Prefolds. These are the thickest I have found and they do a nice job of keeping everything in as long as they are folded correctly. Here is little miss modeling a prefold without a cover. She is wearing an orange which is the basic newborn size, although when she was born I had to get preemie ones because she was such a peanut! She is now in the next size up, which is yellow edge. She will wear those until she is about 15 or 16 pounds.

The yellow thing securing it is a snappi. No more pins, see? Prefolds are awesome because newborns poop A LOT. With a prefold you just change the actual prefold and reuse the same cover all day, unless it gets poopy. I always wipe my cover with a cloth wipe before I put it back on if it is damp, but usually it keeps everything contained in the prefold itself. Once the prefold is secured and ready to go, you put your cover on.

My friend Julie let me borrow this cover. Isn't it cute? Love it! The covers are made of a fabric called PUL. I don't know what it is, but it's waterproof and keeps poop and pee off of your baby's clothes and everywhere else. This cover is a Thirsties brand cover, which are my favorite as they have a double gusset for keeping leaks contained. There are a lot of different brands of covers, but my favorites happen to be Thirsties and Bummis.


The bottom line: If you are looking for the cheapest way to cloth diaper, this is it. You need about 2-3 dozen prefolds and about 6-8 covers. This would have you doing wash every other day or so. We use prefolds during the day and at home and love them. We have never had a "blow out" and rarely have leak issues with prefolds.

Fitteds

Fitteds act the same as prefolds except there is no folding or twisting. You put the fitted on, snap it up, and put a cover over it. Some people call these "daddy" diapers but Hubs resents that because he is really good at putting on prefolds. I like to call them good grandparent or babysitter diapers. I didn't put little miss in a fitted but here's what they look like. They are really easy because they just snap together with no snappi or folding or twisting. It's as easy as a disposable! I really love fitteds. These are what I throw in the diaper bag for when we are going to be out because they are just a titch quicker and easier to change. The brand we use is Kissaluvs. They are really absorbent and little miss has been in size 0 (newborn) since she was born and they still fit her with a little room to grow. These are a little bit more pricey but they will last you from newborn to about 15 pounds. We are going to try out the medium/large ones once she is out of the newborn to see if we like those to replace prefolds as she gets bigger. I will keep you posted when that happens!

Pockets

I LOVE pockets. Pockets are great because you can tailor the absorbency to your baby's needs. They are also the easiest way (in my opinion) to cloth diaper. My favorite brand of pocket diaper is Fuzzibunz. We use the perfect size diapers and they are fabulous! They come in XS, S, M, and L. We used the XS size from newborn until now. Little miss can still fit in them but they can't be double stuffed anymore. So she wears them for nap time. She is now in the small size and we have them on the tightest possible snaps because they are still a little but big but they work just fine. This is my cutie pie modeling a size small. See how it's so big on her still?

Pockets have a layer of fleece on the inside. Then you stuff them with an insert. Fuzzibuns come with one microfiber insert. When your baby wets the diaper the insert absorbs the wetness and the fleece keeps your baby drier longer. It works the same way that a disposable does in that the stuff that absorbs is on the inside. The picture on the right shows the inside of the diaper and where the insert gets stuffed. Once your baby wets the diaper you pull the pockets out (as I am demonstrating) and put everything into the diaper pail. These are one time use diapers before they have to be washed but they keep your baby dry for longer so they are really good for being out and about and for overnight. At night I stuff her diaper with a hemp insert. Hemp is awesome for absorbing! I love love love my hemp inserts. I also just recently acquired a bamboo insert that I love just as much so I will be making a trip to fresh & fluffy soon to buy some more bamboo.

Here's what the insets look like. From left to right is a hemp, a microfiber, and a bamboo. There are tons and tons of kinds these are just the ones I have tried and liked. I have found Fuzzibuns to be the best brand of pockets for us but there are tons out there.

This is a stock photo of a diaper we just got. It is a Just Simply Baby one size pocket diaper with snaps and it will fit sizes from a 7 lb. newborn to a 38 lb. toddler! So far I really like this diaper. It's similar to the Fuzzibuns but the inside is made of microsuede instead of fleece. I will probably get a few more of these as little miss gets bigger. How could I resist getting the bees for my bee? This is a really great overnight diaper as well and is not bulky despite it being a one size diaper. Oh and for those of you who are wondering how clothes will fit with cloth, yes cloth does make your baby have a little more junk in the trunk, but it is so cute to squeeze a fluffy hiney! Fuzzibunz are actually very trim for day to day so when I am going out I will put her in a FB. The bottom line (hehe no pun intended!) is that pockets are a really great all around diaper. A little pricey to start, but they will last and last and have a GREAT resale value! And remember you buy them ONCE for all of your babies. SO the upfront cost repays you over and over in the savings over disposables! Additionally, if you want to buy local, Kim P. of Dotty Dipes makes her own pockets! She has tons of cute patterns and her pockets have an opening in the front to pull the pocket out which helps if it's a really messy one! She has a great website full of fun stuff and also sells her diapers at Bumblebeez consignment in North Tonawanda. Just another option for pocket diapers!

Other diapers in my stash

Like I said earlier, I am in no way an expert, and there are countless types of cloth diapers, but I wanted to share what we like and what works well for us. Here are a few other kinds of diapers I have tried.

Duo Diapers

This is a duo diaper, made by Thirsties. It has snaps on the front to adjust the size from 6-18 pounds I believe. This picture shows it on the smallest setting. Duos are basically hybrid pocket diapers with two inserts included. There is a microfiber and a hemp and they snap together so you can stuff them both at once. These are nice because you basically get your inserts included and don't have to buy them separately. These are good overnight or out and about diapers because they function like a regular pocket diaper. They are a little more pricey than the Fuzzibuns but that's because of the extra insert. The one thing I like about these over Fuzzibuns is that they have super duper cute patterns like this flowery one! There are tons of these available at fresh & fluffy!

 Duo All in One (AIO)

This is another diaper made by Thirsties called the Duo All in One. It is basically the same as the pockets mentioned previously except the insert is sewn into the diaper for extra absorbency, and there is also a pocket for adding an additional insert. The difference between a pocket and an AIO is whether or not the insert is sewn in. On the right, little miss is wearing it on the smallest setting. On the left I undid the snaps to show you how it grows with your baby. Another really great diaper that I like for overnight and out and about but again, these are a little more expensive than Fuzibunz. But aren't the patterns cute?!

Accessories

Cloth Wipes

Well if you are cloth diapering you should also be cloth wiping! SO much money to be saved here people!!! My favorite wipes are these ones from Imse Vimse. They are very big so you can generally get away with using one per change. I have about 30 wipes in my stash and that is more than enough to get me through to the next wash day. Other good wipes are osocozy which we also have. They are a little smaller than the Imse Vimse but are made of really soft flannel. My friend Kim swears by the double sided wipes at Green Mountain Diapers, but I haven't tried those yet! I trust her judgement though!

We have a Prince Lionheart wipes warmer which is a really nice thing to have! You don't need it, but it's definitely worth the money if you are cloth diapering. The baby loves when the wipes are warm and can you blame her?! I was also lucky to find a second one at Once Upon a Child for only $10 so we have one upstairs too! But you can also just use a regular old wipes container or wet your wipes as you go with a squirt bottle. That's what I have for my diaper bag. I use CJ's Carcass Cleaner for wipe solution which is completely all natural and AMAZING. It comes in SO SO many different scents and is really reasonably priced too. We mix a squirt or two of this stuff into a cup of water and add a few drops of baby oil and pour over wipes in the warmer. This stuff is really nice and keeps the baby moisturized. My favorite scent is Oatmeal, Milk, and Honey. You can get it online or at fresh & fluffy if you're in the Buffalo area.


I polled some of my cloth diapering friends on their favorite wipe solutions and here is a list of what some other moms use. Honestly there are tons of options, so choose your fav and you are good to go.

• Plain ol' H2O
• Castile soap mixed with water
• Water and baby oil
• Water and coconut oil
• Baby wash and water
• Baby wash, coconut oil, lavender and/or tea tree oil
• Soap bits  from "Wee Essentials" (etsy store)
• Grated honey goats milk soap, coconut oil, water

See how many options there are? It's really up to you how extreme you go or how simple. Just choose whatever works best for you and for your baby! 

Creams

This is important! So listen up! Regular diaper creams will ruin your cloth diapers!!! One of the great things about cloth is that you don't need a ton of creams and chemicals on your baby's bottom! But you DO need to make sure that whatever you are using is safe for your diapers. Creams can build up (like detergent, but we will get to that in a minute!) over time and make your diapers repel and that leads to leaks.
This post has a really handy guide for what creams are safe to use. You will notice that my brand of choice is one of the safe ones! Scroll down for the list. Again, CJs is my brand of choice (Thank you Kim!) The BUTTer is awesome. It smells great, comes in about a million scents, and there's even a vegan one. AND it can be used on tons of other ailments. I have been using it on my c-section scar and it is really helping it fade a lot! I have used it on dry skin, hangnails, chapped lips, and on my stomach when I was pregnant, and I got NO stretch marks! This tub is 12 ounces and costs around $19 I think. Which seems like a lot, but we got this one in July when little miss was born and we are not even halfway through it! CJs also make a stick of this stuff for your diaper bag. It's like a big glue stick and I love love love having it in my bag for on the go! We also got one for daycare. Good stuff! A little goes a LONG way! Some other people use coconut oil, or a mix of coconut oil with essential oils. Earth Mama Angel Baby is popular from what I have heard too. Recently I got a sample of Punkin Butt Bottom Balm and I really like it. It smells nice and is not too thick or messy. A mom on WNY cloth diapering mommas (facebook group) gave me this recipe which I may try some time when I have the urge! 1T beeswax, 6T coconut oil, 2-5 drops tea tree oil. Melt wax in jar in a pot of hot water (think double boiler) then add coconut oil and tea tree oil. Let cool. Use sparingly only when bum is red. (Use an old baby food jar). Again, tons of option for creams but remember to find out if it is SAFE for your diapers!

Wet Bags, Pails, & Pail Liners

Again, tons of options for storing your dirty diapers, but the best thing to do is KISS (Keep it Super Simple!) You may have heard horror stories of old fashioned cloth diapers where parents had to dunk, rinse, and swish in the toilet (some people still do that, but it is NOT for me!) I learned from the best, at a FREE cloth diaper class offered by my pal Mary Jo at Baby Bongos. At the class MJ showed us the pail she uses and we chose a similar one. We use this one from Safety First. I like it because it is small and has a foot pedal. Also, on the top is a compartment for deodorizers. We have never had a stink problem with this FYI! But if you want a fresh smell each time you open it you have the option! Recently, Stephanie over at fresh & fluffy gave me some scent circles to try and I love them but I don't know what the brand is so once I find out I will share! 

 


Now in your diaper pail you need a liner or wet bag. We use Planetwise pail liners. Love these! There are lots of different ones, but these are my favorite. They come in tons of cool colors and prints so you can match your nursery. When the pail is full just take the whole bag down to the washer. Easy peasy! It can go right into the wash with your diapers! 

 For on the go you want a good wetbag. These are awesome because you can use them for wet clothes or swim stuff too! Again, there are tons of brands! We use Bummis Fabulous Wet Bags in size small. I keep one in my diaper bag at all times for changes when we are out. We also hook one to the changing table to put diaper covers in because your covers shouldn't go in your diaper pail. Lots to remember but I promise, if I can do it, so can you! We have four of these and it's more than enough. At daycare they will use these for the soiled diapers that are being sent home to be washed. Easy peasy, see? These are awesome because they are totally waterproof!!! And a few times I have even left the wetbag with dirty diapers in it for a few days or a week (I know gross! But moms are busy!) and it didn't smell at all! Until I opened it of course! But the moral of the story is that wet bags contain the smell!!!


In summary...

Ok, I think that's enough for one post. I don't want to overwhelm anyone too much because I know how overwhelming it can seem at first! I was terrified I was going to do something wrong and there is a huge learning curve, but once you find out what you like and get a system down it just WORKS!

If you are a fellow cloth diapering parent, please feel FREE to leave feedback in the comments about what works for you and any other suggestions for parents new to cloth diapering! And for new parents considering cloth, there is no "wrong" way to do it. I promise! 

I will follow up this post soon with washing and storing instructions but I will let all of this information sink in first. Please stay tuned to my blog for more posts about local resources on all things cloth, holistic, and of course, updates on our parenting journey with our lovely little peanut baby! 

Love and laughs,

Danielle