OK. Now you know why we use cloth diapers, you know about all the different kinds of cloth diapers available, and you know how to wash them. So what else do you need? Accessories!
Here’s what you need:
diaper pail
2 pail liners
2 wet bags
diaper sprayer
rubbing alcohol
rubber gloves
And, if you’re going to use pocket diapers:
Trader Joe’s bar towels
For a diaper pail, all you need is a trash barrel of some sort. The Husband and I splurged a bit here and bought this Simple Human can. Yes. It’s quite expensive. But we wanted something that would last and that would hold the smell in, and this can delivers. We smell nothing until that lid is up, and then…. wooooeeeee! Not having tried any other pail, I can’t say that a cheaper one would not have sufficed, because the liners do a good job of keeping in the smell. But in my experience, cheap trash cans fall apart. So we got the fancy one.
As for pail liners, there are a myriad of choices out there, and they probably all work just fine. We use Wahmies pail liners are quite happy with them. I told you that you need two of them so you are never without when one is in the wash. I should also mention here that there are hanging diaper bags available if space is an issue; in this case, you don’t need the pail at all, just the bag.
You will also need something to carry the dirty diapers when you are out and about. This is called a wet bag. I recommend getting a small wet bag for shorter outings and a larger one for longer trips. Again, lots of choices abound here, and I’m sure they’re all great. We have a Dinkerdoodles bag that holds about 10 or so diapers. The pull string kind of broke so now it doesn’t really close properly, but that doesn’t matter as far as you are concerned because Dinkerdoodles bags are no longer available. We also have a small Bummis tote bag; it can hold about 4 diapers and is ideal for a typical day’s outing. It also seems to be impermeable to odor.
Ladies and gentlemen, we have finally arrived at what you have all been anxiously awaiting: the explanation of the diaper sprayer. A diaper sprayer is a fixture that you attach to your toilet and works just like the sprayer on your sink. You use it to spray the diapers clean, saving yourself from having to dunk and swish the messy diapers. Because although the diaper websites tell you that you don’t have to rinse the diapers because the poop just rolls right off the fleece, they are lying. Yes, sometimes you don’t have to rinse, but, as Kerflop notes, sometimes you do. Trust me, you’ll be able to tell the difference.
Technically, you don’t actually need the diaper sprayer because you can just dunk and swish, but you will probably want the diaper sprayer because, ew. I have been places with no diaper sprayer at critical times, and boy, do I miss it. When you tell your mother (or possibly your grandmother) you are going to use cloth diapers, watch how her skeptical expression changes to amazement when you tell her about the diaper sprayer. My diaper sprayer has impressed cloth diaper veterans far more than my fancy designer pocket diapers.
The diaper sprayer we use is no longer offered at Cotton Babies; instead they have this one and they claim that it does not splash or drip. I hope they are correct, because ours splashes and drips. We have solved the dripping problem by closing the valve when we’re not using it, and I actually recommend getting one with a valve you can shut off if only to thwart your eventual curious toddler. The splashing remains a problem, but we always wipe down the toilet with toilet paper soaked in rubbing alcohol and then flush it, so it’s no big deal.
As for the rubber gloves, we just leave a pair by the toilet and use them when we need to. It’s not totally necessary because you can just wash your hands, but we are squeamish. Again, I have dunked and swished when out somewhere without gloves and I’m still alive, but it’s nice to have the gloves.
I also listed cloth wipes as a needed accessory. While not actually a requirement, I like using cloth wipes when he’s really messy, just to get the bulk so that I can rinse the wipe in the toilet and not have smelly disposable wipes stinking up my bathroom. Diapering sites usually sell special washcloths designed to be wipes, but you can just use a regular baby washcloth. I also keep my Peri bottle from the hospital filled with water to rinse him off if necessary. I always end by wiping with a disposable wipe, though, because I can’t seem to maneuver the cloth ones into all his cracks and crevices.
Last but not least, I would be doing you a disservice if I did not tell you about the Trader Joe’s bar towels. (Trader Joe’s does not have them on their website, so I can’t give you a link.) We ran into a problem with the bumGenius One Size pocket diapers when Jack was about 5 months old or and starting to sleep through the night, because the diapers could not contain a full night’s worth of pee. We tried stuffing them with two inserts, but that made them too tight. In desperation, I emailed Moxie, and she suggested I get some bar towels from Trader Joe’s. They are made of viscose which is thin but highly absorbent, and they CHANGED OUR LIVES. The combination of the insert plus bar towel is enough to keep Jack comfortable all night. We still have occasional leaks, but they don’t wake him up and we are all much happier.
If you don’t live near a Trader Joe’s and you run into this problem with a pocket diaper, check the online diaper stores for “doublers.” Or consider going with a different type of diaper for overnight. Tallulah Baby, for example, offers “Simply Nights” diapers; maybe they’ll work. And you would only need two or three of them, because the diapers should be washed every two or three days anyway.
So that’s it! That’s cloth diapering! It may seem overwhelming at first, but once you actually start experimenting, you will find that it is not nearly as complicated as this four-part dissertation makes it seem. And remember, you are allowed to buy things for your baby even after he’s born! So if you try a few diapers but don’t like them, you can try a few others until you find the system that works for you. You can start with one wet bag and then add another later. You can even decide not to buy the diaper sprayer and then change your mind!
Good luck, and feel free to email me with any questions.
Manifesto Part I: Why cloth?
Manifesto Part II: Diaper types
Manifesto Part III: Washing the diapers
Showing posts with label Cloth diapering. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cloth diapering. Show all posts
Friday, November 16, 2007
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Cloth Diapering Manifesto: Part III
If you’ve done any kind of internet research on how to wash cloth diapers, you are probably extremely confused. When I was looking into it, it seemed to me that every site said something different, but no matter what they said, washing diapers sounded very complex. Detergent, not soap! No fabric softener! Baking soda! Vinegar! Pre-soak! Wet pail! Dry pail!
In actuality, it’s no big deal. You just wash them. OK, yes, soap and fabric softener leave residue on the diapers which makes them water resistant, so you have to use detergent and skip the dryer sheets. But good news! Detergent is what you already use! Laundry soap is stuff like Ivory Snow and I think Dreft. Don’t use those. As for vinegar and baking soda – I have never figured out what they’re for, and I don’t use them.
Here’s what we do. We have an LG front loading washing machine, and when we wash diapers, we turn the pail liner inside out inside the washer. We add Tide Free HE and about an eighth of a cup of bleach and run the cotton cycle on hot, heavy soil, with a pre-wash and an extra rinse. After they’re done, we run a quick cycle just to make sure all of the detergent is rinsed out. (Just for the record, our washer actually has a cycle called “quick cycle.”) We run all those extra rinse cycles because front loaders use a lot less water, and we were noticing suds in the water even at the end of the cycle when we didn’t include the extra rinse and the quick cycle. Detergent on the diapers is bad, because it decreases their absorbancy. But because they use more water, I would expect that top loaders need less rinsing cycles.
Now, you might have noticed that we wash the diapers on hot, with bleach. “Noooooo!” you are crying out right now. “All the sites say not to use hot water or bleach!” I know. But washing diapers on cold squicks me. And we tried leaving off the bleach, but without it, the diapers smell terrible. I believe there are oils you can add to the wash to take care of the smell, but I’ve been wary because Jack broke out in a rash after using Burt’s Bees lotion. So we use bleach. And finally, we occasionally “strip” the diapers by running them through a couple of cycles with no detergent. This is just to make sure all the detergent is really gone. We do this when the mood strikes us, or else when the diapers seem to be not holding as much as they used to.
We usually hang our diapers to dry because it saves energy, they last longer, and because we think that residual from the dryer sheets in the dryer may get onto the diapers. But sometimes I tumble them dry if I’m in a hurry.
OK. That wraps up Part III. It’s a lot of words to describe a pretty simply process. Washing the diapers is like doing any other load of laundry, but without having to sort. It’s really, truly, not a big deal.
Tomorrow will bring Part IV, in which I explain all the remaining diapering accessories, including that holiest of holies: the diaper sprayer.
Manifesto Part I: Why cloth?
Manifesto Part II: Diaper types
Manifesto Part IV: Accessorize!
Edited to add:
Sources in the know have informed me that I, in fact, wore disposable diapers, as did at least two of my older sisters. I really thought I was born when disposable diapers were not any good, but apparently I was misinformed.
In actuality, it’s no big deal. You just wash them. OK, yes, soap and fabric softener leave residue on the diapers which makes them water resistant, so you have to use detergent and skip the dryer sheets. But good news! Detergent is what you already use! Laundry soap is stuff like Ivory Snow and I think Dreft. Don’t use those. As for vinegar and baking soda – I have never figured out what they’re for, and I don’t use them.
Here’s what we do. We have an LG front loading washing machine, and when we wash diapers, we turn the pail liner inside out inside the washer. We add Tide Free HE and about an eighth of a cup of bleach and run the cotton cycle on hot, heavy soil, with a pre-wash and an extra rinse. After they’re done, we run a quick cycle just to make sure all of the detergent is rinsed out. (Just for the record, our washer actually has a cycle called “quick cycle.”) We run all those extra rinse cycles because front loaders use a lot less water, and we were noticing suds in the water even at the end of the cycle when we didn’t include the extra rinse and the quick cycle. Detergent on the diapers is bad, because it decreases their absorbancy. But because they use more water, I would expect that top loaders need less rinsing cycles.
Now, you might have noticed that we wash the diapers on hot, with bleach. “Noooooo!” you are crying out right now. “All the sites say not to use hot water or bleach!” I know. But washing diapers on cold squicks me. And we tried leaving off the bleach, but without it, the diapers smell terrible. I believe there are oils you can add to the wash to take care of the smell, but I’ve been wary because Jack broke out in a rash after using Burt’s Bees lotion. So we use bleach. And finally, we occasionally “strip” the diapers by running them through a couple of cycles with no detergent. This is just to make sure all the detergent is really gone. We do this when the mood strikes us, or else when the diapers seem to be not holding as much as they used to.
We usually hang our diapers to dry because it saves energy, they last longer, and because we think that residual from the dryer sheets in the dryer may get onto the diapers. But sometimes I tumble them dry if I’m in a hurry.
OK. That wraps up Part III. It’s a lot of words to describe a pretty simply process. Washing the diapers is like doing any other load of laundry, but without having to sort. It’s really, truly, not a big deal.
Tomorrow will bring Part IV, in which I explain all the remaining diapering accessories, including that holiest of holies: the diaper sprayer.
Manifesto Part I: Why cloth?
Manifesto Part II: Diaper types
Manifesto Part IV: Accessorize!
Edited to add:
Sources in the know have informed me that I, in fact, wore disposable diapers, as did at least two of my older sisters. I really thought I was born when disposable diapers were not any good, but apparently I was misinformed.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Cloth Diapering Manifesto: Part II
Modern cloth diapers are not your mama’s cloth diapers. If you are pregnant and mention to someone that you’re planning to use cloth diapers, there’s a good chance you’ll get a condescending, pitying smile at your naiveté. “Oh, sure,” they think. “She says that now, but she’s not going to want to deal with the hard work of cloth diapers when she’s faced with an actual infant instead of hypothetical dream baby who never poops.” But this sort of attitude just makes using cloth diapers all the more sweet, because you can rub your success in their faces. Not that I am the sort of person who would do that.
So what makes today’s cloth diapers so much better? First of all, no pins. Second of all, one-step diapering. And third and holiest of all, the diaper sprayer. But I’m getting ahead of myself, so let’s just start with the different types of diapers.
Prefolds
Prefolds are the old-fashioned diapers your parents used on you, back in the day. (Please don’t tell me that you are old enough to have worn modern disposable diapers and are now considering cloth for your own children. Let’s all pretend that you are the same age as me. Or older! Older is fine.) They come in two flavors*: Indian and Chinese. Frankly, I only just discovered the difference between them. It seems that Indian prefolds are softer, but therefore less durable than Chinese prefolds. Both kinds cost somewhere around $1 each.
Prefolds must be used in conjunction with a diaper cover. They can be fastened with a pin, a Snappi, or you can just use the diaper cover to hold the diaper in place. Snappis are rubbery little things with teeth that hold the diapers in place by tension. Here, just look at one. They are hard to describe in words, but easy to use.
Prefold Pros: Cheap cheap cheapity cheap cheap. Remember how I said in Part I that cloth diapering costs $400-$500 at the start? Not if you use prefolds. Also, these are easy to rinse because there is no elastic to trap the… uh… particles.
Prefold Cons: Fancy diaper covers and Snappis aside, these are kind of tricky to put on a squirmy baby. Probably not as tricky as you think, but certainly much more difficult than disposables. Also, the prefold-plus-diaper cover is very bulky.
Fitted or Contoured Diapers
Contoured diapers are, well, contoured. There is no messing around with folding a square diaper into the correct shape because they are already shaped like a diaper. Fitted diapers are contoured diapers with elastic legs so that they… fit. Both fitted and contours usually also have snaps or other fastener built into the construction, so they are pretty easy to put on; they work pretty much like disposable. They are still made of only cloth, though, so just like prefolds, they must be used in conjunction with a diaper cover.
There are a lot of different brands of fitted diapers. The ones I am aware of off the top of my head are Mother-ease, Kissluvs, and Swaddlebees. They all look adorable to me, but I can’t be bothered with a diaper cover, so I’ve never used them.
Fitted and Contour Pros: These are much easier to put on a baby than a prefold. They can be made of natural (and even organic) fibers. Um. Have I mentioned I don’t use them?
Fitted and Contour Cons: They are easier to use than a prefold, but also more expensive. A quick look online gave me a range of price from about $7 - $15 each, depending on the brand. They still require a separate diaper cover, which is an extra step.
Pocket diapers
Pocket diapers are kind of like a diaper cover but with a cloth lining that makes a pocket against the waterproof material into which you stuff something absorbent. The fasteners are built in as either snaps or Velcro tabs. No diaper cover is required, but you do have to take the diapers apart to wash them.
Pocket Diaper Pros: These are very easy to use because they go on just like disposables. Absorbency can be adjusted by stuffing them with more or less material, depending on your baby’s needs. They dry very quickly.
Pocket Diaper Cons: These babies ain’t cheap. The brand I use costs $18 new. That is the only con I have though, because I love these diapers.
All-in-ones
AIO diapers are just like pocket diapers except without the pocket. There is no stuffing with absorbent material, and no diaper cover. The fasteners are built in as snaps or Velcro. Basically, these work exactly like disposables in every way except that you wash them instead of throwing them out.
All-in-one Pros: Easy easy easy easy easy. No stuffing, no diaper covers, just wash and wear. They’re also pretty trim and take up relatively little space in a diaper bag.
All-in-one Cons: These are just as pricey as pocket diapers, but they dry more slowly. The absorbency cannot be adjusted.
My reviews
We have a stash of Chinese prefolds seeing as how they are so cheap, and there have been occasions when we have used them as something other than a changing pad. They work just fine. We use Snappis, but sometimes I just let the diaper cover hold the diaper on. As for diaper covers, we have three each of the small, medium and large Bummis Super Whisper Wraps. I also tried a Pro-Wrap, but I hated it. I think the Bummis are worth the extra money because they stay in place much better and because there are places to fasten the Velcro tabs while washing them. My advice is to just buy a bunch of prefolds and a couple of diaper covers even if you’re planning to use one of the other types. They are cheap and come in very handy in an emergency.
As I said above, I love our pocket diapers. Currently, we use bumGenius One Size, and yes, the “One Size” does mean that they fit babies for their whole diaper-wearing life. I know that Maggie had issues putting them on her SMALL BABY back in the day, but I secretly think that they probably would have worked even if they did look ridiculous. And so far, Jack has not outgrown them. So that is another benefit of these particular pocket diapers: they are three times as cheap as diapers that come in three sizes.
We also used FuzziBunz pocket diapers when Jack was a newborn. I liked them well enough, but I had two complaints. First, they fasten with discrete snaps instead of the continuum that is Velcro, and sometimes Jack was in between snap settings. I also think the snaps would be harder to fasten on squirmy one-year-old Jack, but that wasn’t an issue for newborn Jack who lacked the gross motor skills to squirm. Second, they come in small, medium and large and are therefore three times as expensive as the BGOSes. Otherwise I liked them.
I can’t tell you a thing about fitted or contour diapers. I think I have one Mother-ease One Size that I bought on Ebay in Jack’s closet, but it seemed ridiculously huge when he was new, and then we got into a rhythm with the bumGeniuses, so I have still never tried it.
We also have five bumGenius AIOs in medium and five in large. (We didn’t need any smalls because of the FuzziBunzes**.) I like using the AIOs when I’m out and about, because they take up less room in the bag, but also because it is kind of gross to take apart the pocket diapers when they are wet and cold. I don’t know why wet and warm is less disgusting, but there you go.
There are plenty of other brands of pocket diapers and AIOs out there, but I was drowning in a sea of diapering choices, so I just picked one. Well, I picked a few. What I actually did was buy a few each of the different kinds and try them out before ordering a whole supply, and that is my advice to you. Unless you are going to use prefolds, the best diaper for your baby is going to depend on what shape your baby is, as some diapers are better for chubby little pudgy legs, and others are best for skinny little chicken legs.
I should also mention that there are mysterious wool diaper covers available for people who use diapers that require covers. Apparently, wool is waterproof, but only if you treat it with lanolin? Or something? I don’t really understand the wool diaper covers, but they are an option for those of you interested in natural fibers. The BG diapers have PUL on the outside, which is a synthetic waterproof material.
For reviews of diapers all the other diaper brands out there that I haven’t tried, check out diaperpin.com. It is a fantastic resource.
Places I have bought cloth diapering stuff (in no way a complete list of places out there):
Cotton Babies
Zannadu
Jillian’s Drawers
Wildflower Diapers
Ebay***
Coming tomorrow: Part III in which I explain how to wash the diapers. (Short version: Rinse poop into toilet. Put in washing machine. Wash.)
*In proofing this post, it occurs to me that maybe “flavor” is not the best word choice when describing diapers.
**The brand names are a benefit of cloth diapering that I have so far neglected to mention.
***Gently used bumGenius and FuzziBunz diapers sell for almost full price on Ebay, so be careful if you’re buying. If you’re selling, more power to you!
Manifesto Part I: Why cloth?
Manifesto Part III: Washing the diapers
Manifesto Part IV: Accessorize!
So what makes today’s cloth diapers so much better? First of all, no pins. Second of all, one-step diapering. And third and holiest of all, the diaper sprayer. But I’m getting ahead of myself, so let’s just start with the different types of diapers.
Prefolds
Prefolds are the old-fashioned diapers your parents used on you, back in the day. (Please don’t tell me that you are old enough to have worn modern disposable diapers and are now considering cloth for your own children. Let’s all pretend that you are the same age as me. Or older! Older is fine.) They come in two flavors*: Indian and Chinese. Frankly, I only just discovered the difference between them. It seems that Indian prefolds are softer, but therefore less durable than Chinese prefolds. Both kinds cost somewhere around $1 each.
Prefolds must be used in conjunction with a diaper cover. They can be fastened with a pin, a Snappi, or you can just use the diaper cover to hold the diaper in place. Snappis are rubbery little things with teeth that hold the diapers in place by tension. Here, just look at one. They are hard to describe in words, but easy to use.
Prefold Pros: Cheap cheap cheapity cheap cheap. Remember how I said in Part I that cloth diapering costs $400-$500 at the start? Not if you use prefolds. Also, these are easy to rinse because there is no elastic to trap the… uh… particles.
Prefold Cons: Fancy diaper covers and Snappis aside, these are kind of tricky to put on a squirmy baby. Probably not as tricky as you think, but certainly much more difficult than disposables. Also, the prefold-plus-diaper cover is very bulky.
Fitted or Contoured Diapers
Contoured diapers are, well, contoured. There is no messing around with folding a square diaper into the correct shape because they are already shaped like a diaper. Fitted diapers are contoured diapers with elastic legs so that they… fit. Both fitted and contours usually also have snaps or other fastener built into the construction, so they are pretty easy to put on; they work pretty much like disposable. They are still made of only cloth, though, so just like prefolds, they must be used in conjunction with a diaper cover.
There are a lot of different brands of fitted diapers. The ones I am aware of off the top of my head are Mother-ease, Kissluvs, and Swaddlebees. They all look adorable to me, but I can’t be bothered with a diaper cover, so I’ve never used them.
Fitted and Contour Pros: These are much easier to put on a baby than a prefold. They can be made of natural (and even organic) fibers. Um. Have I mentioned I don’t use them?
Fitted and Contour Cons: They are easier to use than a prefold, but also more expensive. A quick look online gave me a range of price from about $7 - $15 each, depending on the brand. They still require a separate diaper cover, which is an extra step.
Pocket diapers
Pocket diapers are kind of like a diaper cover but with a cloth lining that makes a pocket against the waterproof material into which you stuff something absorbent. The fasteners are built in as either snaps or Velcro tabs. No diaper cover is required, but you do have to take the diapers apart to wash them.
Pocket Diaper Pros: These are very easy to use because they go on just like disposables. Absorbency can be adjusted by stuffing them with more or less material, depending on your baby’s needs. They dry very quickly.
Pocket Diaper Cons: These babies ain’t cheap. The brand I use costs $18 new. That is the only con I have though, because I love these diapers.
All-in-ones
AIO diapers are just like pocket diapers except without the pocket. There is no stuffing with absorbent material, and no diaper cover. The fasteners are built in as snaps or Velcro. Basically, these work exactly like disposables in every way except that you wash them instead of throwing them out.
All-in-one Pros: Easy easy easy easy easy. No stuffing, no diaper covers, just wash and wear. They’re also pretty trim and take up relatively little space in a diaper bag.
All-in-one Cons: These are just as pricey as pocket diapers, but they dry more slowly. The absorbency cannot be adjusted.
My reviews
We have a stash of Chinese prefolds seeing as how they are so cheap, and there have been occasions when we have used them as something other than a changing pad. They work just fine. We use Snappis, but sometimes I just let the diaper cover hold the diaper on. As for diaper covers, we have three each of the small, medium and large Bummis Super Whisper Wraps. I also tried a Pro-Wrap, but I hated it. I think the Bummis are worth the extra money because they stay in place much better and because there are places to fasten the Velcro tabs while washing them. My advice is to just buy a bunch of prefolds and a couple of diaper covers even if you’re planning to use one of the other types. They are cheap and come in very handy in an emergency.
As I said above, I love our pocket diapers. Currently, we use bumGenius One Size, and yes, the “One Size” does mean that they fit babies for their whole diaper-wearing life. I know that Maggie had issues putting them on her SMALL BABY back in the day, but I secretly think that they probably would have worked even if they did look ridiculous. And so far, Jack has not outgrown them. So that is another benefit of these particular pocket diapers: they are three times as cheap as diapers that come in three sizes.
We also used FuzziBunz pocket diapers when Jack was a newborn. I liked them well enough, but I had two complaints. First, they fasten with discrete snaps instead of the continuum that is Velcro, and sometimes Jack was in between snap settings. I also think the snaps would be harder to fasten on squirmy one-year-old Jack, but that wasn’t an issue for newborn Jack who lacked the gross motor skills to squirm. Second, they come in small, medium and large and are therefore three times as expensive as the BGOSes. Otherwise I liked them.
I can’t tell you a thing about fitted or contour diapers. I think I have one Mother-ease One Size that I bought on Ebay in Jack’s closet, but it seemed ridiculously huge when he was new, and then we got into a rhythm with the bumGeniuses, so I have still never tried it.
We also have five bumGenius AIOs in medium and five in large. (We didn’t need any smalls because of the FuzziBunzes**.) I like using the AIOs when I’m out and about, because they take up less room in the bag, but also because it is kind of gross to take apart the pocket diapers when they are wet and cold. I don’t know why wet and warm is less disgusting, but there you go.
There are plenty of other brands of pocket diapers and AIOs out there, but I was drowning in a sea of diapering choices, so I just picked one. Well, I picked a few. What I actually did was buy a few each of the different kinds and try them out before ordering a whole supply, and that is my advice to you. Unless you are going to use prefolds, the best diaper for your baby is going to depend on what shape your baby is, as some diapers are better for chubby little pudgy legs, and others are best for skinny little chicken legs.
I should also mention that there are mysterious wool diaper covers available for people who use diapers that require covers. Apparently, wool is waterproof, but only if you treat it with lanolin? Or something? I don’t really understand the wool diaper covers, but they are an option for those of you interested in natural fibers. The BG diapers have PUL on the outside, which is a synthetic waterproof material.
For reviews of diapers all the other diaper brands out there that I haven’t tried, check out diaperpin.com. It is a fantastic resource.
Places I have bought cloth diapering stuff (in no way a complete list of places out there):
Cotton Babies
Zannadu
Jillian’s Drawers
Wildflower Diapers
Ebay***
Coming tomorrow: Part III in which I explain how to wash the diapers. (Short version: Rinse poop into toilet. Put in washing machine. Wash.)
*In proofing this post, it occurs to me that maybe “flavor” is not the best word choice when describing diapers.
**The brand names are a benefit of cloth diapering that I have so far neglected to mention.
***Gently used bumGenius and FuzziBunz diapers sell for almost full price on Ebay, so be careful if you’re buying. If you’re selling, more power to you!
Manifesto Part I: Why cloth?
Manifesto Part III: Washing the diapers
Manifesto Part IV: Accessorize!
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Cloth Diapering Manifesto: Part I
When people hear that we use cloth diapers, they assume that The Husband and I are either crazy tree-hugging hippies, saintly all-suffering martyrs, or both. Neither is actually the case. Sure, there’s a little bit of tree-hugger in both of us, and, who am I to deny sainthood when it is bestowed upon me? But the truth is that using cloth diapers is not a big deal. Honest.
I’m not going to go into the pros and cons of cloth diapers here because it has been done, but I will tell you that The Husband and I chose to use cloth mainly because of their reduced environmental impact compared to disposable. We consider the cost benefit and the promised quickening of potty training to be happy bonuses.
When I first started researching cloth diapers however, I was completely and totally overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of different types of diapers out there. I was also quite stunned by the prices, because the initial outlay of money, assuming you purchase fancy diapers instead of old-fashioned prefolds, is about $400 - $500. So although cloth saves money in the long run – especially if the diapers are used for more than one kid – it sort of hurts to start up.
But once we got used to the idea of them costing about eighteen times as much as the prefolds, The Husband and I decided that the fancy diapers were worth it. This is The Husband and I are lazy lazy lazy, and the fancy diapers are at least eighteen times easier to use.
So endeth Part I. In Part II, I will explain the different types of diapers and give you my mini-reviews. But right now, I have to hem my jeans. This is because I bought a new pair of jeans on Sunday. They seemed to fit in the store, bringing the grand total of pants that fit me to a thrilling 1. But I discovered today after that after two wearings the jeans stretch a bit which causes them to sag a bit and, lo, they are way too long. I did not notice they were too long in the dressing room because I was just so excited that they fit at the top, but I can’t wear them like this unless I wear heels every day. Don’t think I didn’t consider that.
Why don’t I take them to a tailor you ask? Well, because the tailor is closed on Wednesdays, and I work on Thursdays and Fridays, and I just can’t wait until next Tuesday to have pants that fit. One pair! I just want one pair of pants that fit!*
Wish me Godspeed, because I don’t have a sewing machine and I’ve never done this before.
*This is a lie. I want at least three pairs.
Manifesto Part II: Diaper types
Manifesto Part III: Washing the diapers
Manifesto Part IV: Accessorize!
I’m not going to go into the pros and cons of cloth diapers here because it has been done, but I will tell you that The Husband and I chose to use cloth mainly because of their reduced environmental impact compared to disposable. We consider the cost benefit and the promised quickening of potty training to be happy bonuses.
When I first started researching cloth diapers however, I was completely and totally overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of different types of diapers out there. I was also quite stunned by the prices, because the initial outlay of money, assuming you purchase fancy diapers instead of old-fashioned prefolds, is about $400 - $500. So although cloth saves money in the long run – especially if the diapers are used for more than one kid – it sort of hurts to start up.
But once we got used to the idea of them costing about eighteen times as much as the prefolds, The Husband and I decided that the fancy diapers were worth it. This is The Husband and I are lazy lazy lazy, and the fancy diapers are at least eighteen times easier to use.
So endeth Part I. In Part II, I will explain the different types of diapers and give you my mini-reviews. But right now, I have to hem my jeans. This is because I bought a new pair of jeans on Sunday. They seemed to fit in the store, bringing the grand total of pants that fit me to a thrilling 1. But I discovered today after that after two wearings the jeans stretch a bit which causes them to sag a bit and, lo, they are way too long. I did not notice they were too long in the dressing room because I was just so excited that they fit at the top, but I can’t wear them like this unless I wear heels every day. Don’t think I didn’t consider that.
Why don’t I take them to a tailor you ask? Well, because the tailor is closed on Wednesdays, and I work on Thursdays and Fridays, and I just can’t wait until next Tuesday to have pants that fit. One pair! I just want one pair of pants that fit!*
Wish me Godspeed, because I don’t have a sewing machine and I’ve never done this before.
*This is a lie. I want at least three pairs.
Manifesto Part II: Diaper types
Manifesto Part III: Washing the diapers
Manifesto Part IV: Accessorize!
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