Cloth Diapering

I have been getting many questions about cloth diapering. Some people don't understand why I would do it, others ask because they need help finding what's best for them, and others are just curious. So I am going to share with you our cloth diaper experience thus far. There are MANY cloth diapers and diapering accessories to choose from and we didn't stick to just one so I will start with my favorite.

Most of what we own is Thirsties brand so I am a bit biased still. My favorite dipe in the stash is our Thirsties Pockets All-in-Ones.These are just like a disposable diaper. They velcro on and get thrown in the wash just like that. They also have a pocket for stuffing for extra absorbency. There is a fleece lining inside that does great wicking away moisture and the leg gussets hold in the poo really well. Molly LOVES the soft fleece lining (she has sensitive skin and has yet to get a rash using these). For overnight I stuff them with an insert/doubler.

We also have the Thirsties diaper covers which we pair with Unbleached Chinese prefolds or Unbleached Indian prefolds. The covers never leak as long as I put the prefold in right. I have been known to leave some hanging out the back of the cover or forget to add an insert/doubler for overnight and they will leak then... my fault not the dipes. These don't need to be washed as often and dry much faster than AIO's.

As mentioned above we use prefolds with the covers. I am finding I like the Indian more than the Chinese for no other reason than they fluff/quilt up more and seem more absorbent than the Chinese but not by a lot. I use the newspaper fold without snappis or pins (although I am interested in trying the snappies). For overnight they are doubled with an insert/doubler. The prefolds are a bit longer than the cover and I could fix that by trimming them but the Serger isn't working well enough so it is solved by folding the front over a bit which would be perfect for little boys!

For overnight, long car rides, or just for heavy wetting you would use an inserts/doubler. In our stash there are Thirsties Mircoterry inserts, hemp doubler (ours look similar to the ones on the linked page), and another sort of terry cloth insert. The mircoterry inserts work just fine (especially in the pocket AIO) but I like the hemp the best. The hemp seems a bit more absorbent but it is softer against Molly's skin so I don't have to worry about it rubbing against her if I pair it with a prefold and cover.

I have also made some fleece undies/shorts for Molly that I have had to stuff with a prefold on occasion when everything else is dirty or drying. I use the newspaper fold and pull the shorts up over the prefold. I thought they would leak if she wet too much but it holds wonderfully. I have only used this method during the day or at nap not at night yet.

Washing:
The poo diapers (prefolds, AIO's, and the covers if they get messed on) get rinsed or shaken off then thrown in the washer for a prewash/soak on hot followed by a normal hot wash and cold rinse. After that load spins I start it over without the prewash/soak and add the pee AIO's, covers, and prefolds to it. I use hot water with 2 cold rinses to make sure the soap is out. I would use hot with a hot rinse but my washer doesn't have that option. I make my own detergent using this recipe:
Powdered Laundry Detergent- Top load machine
1 Fels-Naptha soap bar
1 Cup Washing Soda
½ Cup Borax
-Grate soap or break into pieces and process in a food processor until powdered (mine look more like dipping dots instead of powder). Mix all ingredients. For light load, use 1 Tablespoon. For heavy or heavily soiled load, use 2 Tablespoons. Yields: 3 Cups detergent. (Approx. 40 loads)

I use about 1 Tablespoon per load. I have yet to wash a very large load of diapers so you might need more. It does not make the dipes smell like anything... just clean water. I also add 1/2 cup white vinegar to each load to kill bacteria and to soften the dipes. You can not smell this either. *After we run out of the batch we have now I intend on trying soap nuts which I hear are great for cloth diapers*

Drying:
I hang the covers to dry always, the prefolds and inserts go in the dryer without a dryer sheet, and the AIO's get hung up to dry as well. I can dry the AIO's in the dryer but I want to prolong their life as much as possible and this could alter the life of the elastic. Now during rainy weeks it takes sometime for these to dry (sometimes days) so if they are refusing to dry I will throw them in the dryer for 15 minutes or so to help out. The sun is the best for getting out stains! Leave them in the sun to dry. For really stubborn stains you can add lemon juice to the stained area and hang in the sun... be sure to wash them again before putting it on baby though!

We decided to cloth diaper Arwen and bought a small stash that we think should last us at least 6 months. When the packages arrived in the mail I was a little intimidated that I wouldn't get it right SO I decided to practice on Molly. I bought Molly a few AIO's and a couple covers with prefolds online from diaperswappers.com. Some were used and some were new but all were cheaper than the online stores which is always nice! She loves loves loves her cloth dipes! Her favorites are the AIO's too because she likes the fleece. She liked them so much that she refuses to pee in them for the most part. She still sometimes has "accidents" at nap and night times but it is MUCH better than before. When we realized this we took the next step and started putting her in panties during the day. Because of the cloth diapers she is almost completely potty trained!

Noticing Molly's love for the soft fleece I decided to make some fleece liners for Arwen's prefolds. Not only is it softer against the skin than the prefold it wicks away moisture so it will keep her dry better! I have also made up a batch of flannel wipes that I can't wait to use on Arwen.

I know that doesn't cover everything and I am certainly no pro at cloth diapering but if you have ANY questions because you are curious or need help feel free to ask and I will answer the best I can. For those of you who do cloth diaper feel free to share your stories and/or tips especially if you use a different brand. I will try to add pictures of a diaper changing process with Molly soon and Arwen after she gets here :)