Hello sisterhood
I am just embarking on the whole first baby thing and looking at nappy options which seem to have gotten really complicated - it's no longer a choice of disposable or cloth it's all about what cloth and how and as you can tell my head is spinning.
Just wondering if you great ladies could share your experiences with this novice to help straighten it all out. I am leaning toward trying cloth for various reasons. But....
1. Did you ever use cloth? If so how long did you last with them?
2. What sort of cloth did you try (traditional or new age snap on ones)
3. Which brand of new age snap on ones did you use?
4. Were the new age things hard to use comparatively.
5. Any other help. Much appreciated.
4 Replies
Yep we use a mix of modern cloth nappies (mcns) and disposable. Disposable when we can't be bothered with the washing and also when bubba has bad nappy rash.
1. Only started using them from about 10 months old but with number 2 we'll start from newborn until 3 yrs old or baby has been toilet trained.
2. We used the modern ones not old ones.
3. Soft bums purchased from darlings downunder.
4. Nope they were easy to use. They have like a nice outside cover and you just snap pad like things into them.
5. I chose soft bums echo with the Velcro tab. Soft bums brand because they have awesome adjustable leg holes which a lot of them don't have which will mean lots of leakage. Also the Velcro waist is great because if they are between sizes (in the clip ones) they may not fit properly whereas the Velcro is adjustable to all sizes. Capital outlay is about $500.
Perhaps look into a nappy library so you can have a look at several types.
Good luck!
I went for a combo of cloth nappies and disposable. Modern cloth nappies were not really thought of yet (Im jealous). I found for long outings disposables were so much easier or if there was illness or something. Cloth over time works out so much cheaper and I really didn't find the washing very difficult at all. I got slack when there was a washing machine breakdown when my son was about a year old and I had to keep going to the laundromat!
With my first I used cloth (modern ones) at home through the day, and disposables when we went out and overnight. I tried to use environmentally friendly disposables but they are expensive and only a couple of brands were as nice on their bum as cloth nappies. I was intimidated by the idea of using cloth full time with my first. With my second I used the same cloth nappies (they were still in great condition) and bought some more, as there were more available at better prices by that time. I decided to go the whole hog and use cloth full time, and she stayed in them full time (except when we went on holidays) until she was toilet trained. It was easy really, no idea what people get all worried about. I only spent a few hundred dollars on the nappies, plus water and detergent to wash, and it felt so good to bypass the baby aisle at the shops. I also LOVED the lack of bin-stink!!! Disposables are really gross, they make your bins and wheelie bins absolutely pong. Human wee and poo sitting for a week in my wheelie bin, waiting to go and sit in landfill forever? No thanks! I used a combination of Baby Beehinds (they were one of the only brands of MCNs available at the time I had my first) and then added to my stash later with Bum Wraps and some extra boosters to make them more absorbent. There are loads of brands around now, just make sure you get ones that are adjustable in size. I had a pile of backup traditional terry cloth nappies that I used when I got behind on my washing or if it was raining a lot and my MCNs were taking a long time to dry. I found that having them drying under a fan on a rack was a good trick, much cheaper than using the dryer and doesn't age the elastic in the legs. The modern nappies aren't hard to use, they're a similar shape to disposables, and once you've had a chance to muck around with them it all makes sense. And if you have trouble just post again on here and hundreds of us will be happy to post pics I'm sure! Good luck xo
As a child care worker I highly recommend the mcns buy them off eBay for cheap as chips... They last child after child wash after wash...