Intrepid Murmurings

Diaper Research 101
So crunch that I am (at least in some areas), I have been doing my research in the cloth dipe department. Most of this has to be online, since there are not a whole lot of retail stores marketing the full range of cloth diapering solutions these days (though quite a TON of online stores, it seems)! This website has been really useful, as they have reviews for so many of the different brands that are out there. I saw a statistic somewhere that said only 5% of folks use cloth. I believe it! It can be a big pain in the ass, though these new ones are a lot easier to deal with than those of the past. Mostly, I like the idea of steering clear of the chemicals and gel packs that are in current disposables, and the diaper rash issue, which I hear is way better with cloth. And I like not sending so much off to the landfill, though I know we'll be using more water & electricity to clean them. Things have come a long way from the cloth diapers of the past! I have garnered quite a few good tips from folks online, though really have only seen a few "in action", so to speak. You can still find the traditional "flat" or "prefold" diapers and waterproof nylon covers, though folks now tend to forgo pins in lieu of velcro or snapped covers, and the covers can get pretty fancy and range in all sorts of fabrics from waterproof cotton or polyester stretch, to fleece and wool "soakers". There are also the newer pocket diapers, contoured diapers, fitted diapers and all-in-ones. So much to choose from! So many options and pretty colors! The kinds that have caught my eye (and heard the best reviews of) are the "pocket diapers," that have a washable lined cover with a pocket you stuff with some kind of washable liner (cotton, hemp, terry, microfiber) to make it more absorbent. They tend to be trimmer than other cloth diapers, which is nice for fitting into clothes and such. Generally, you don't have to soak or "swirl" these, either, just shake them into the toilet if there is any solids, remove the liner, and drop them in the pail/bag to launder. Easy! The others that look good to me are the fitted diapers, where the inner part is separate but has elastic and snaps to make it very adjustable. Then you add a wrap to make it more waterproof. The only downside to these (and the pocket dipes) are that most of them come in different sizes, so you do have to buy more than one set as the kid grows. And they can be spendy! So thanks to Ebay and Craigslist, here's our stash so far: Pocket Diapers (no wrap needed, insert comes out for washing): 6 Fuzzibunz (size small) 3 Happy Heiney's (one newborn and two small) Fitted Diapers (these need wraps or covers): 6 Kissaluv fitted diapers (one newborn and 5 size ones) 2 Fun Organic fitted diapers (size small) Wraps/Covers: 1 Prowrap (newborn) 1 Stacinator fleece cover (small) And one handmade All-In-One (one piece, no wrap or insert to remove) that I think looks more useful as a wrap, since the padding/absorbency really does not seem sufficient as a stand alone. So...I'm excited to give them a try! Originally we were thinking of going with a service for the first few months, but it seemed silly to shell out for that and have to buy wraps for those anyway, then go out and buy the ones we really wanted later. We definitely do need a few more wraps to go over the fitted diapers we have, and I have my eye on a couple different kinds to try. We don't have enough to go totally cloth from the beginning (especially since some of them may be a wee bit big for the first month or two), but we are intending to do some disposables at the start while we figure out what sizes and types we like best...