Question for parents who used cloth diapers...

[bettymae1121]

I love Sunbabies! If you go this route, get the bamboo inserts, much more trim than the micro fiber but very absorbant. Sunbabies is all we've used and we are very happy with them. They are also the least expensive pockets out there. You have to order direct from their website, you can't register for them. But a 24 pack with 48 insterts is only something like $150 and that is more than enough to diaper a kid from birth to potty training washing only every 2-3 days.

http://www.sunbabydiapers.com/

Oh and I've found that Trader Joe's power laundry detergent works great. I haven't had any issues with odors or water repeling. So if you have a Trader Joe's near you, getting detergent is easy. I've also heard good things abou Tide free and clear powder.

 

[Nette]

Bolding mine... You do not have to use a special detergent. I used Tide with all my cloth diapers.

OP, Bum Genius were my favorite followed by plain old prefolds with Bummis super whisper wrap covers.

Yep, we used regular tide powder too. NOT TIDE FREE. And we added 1/4 Cup bleach to every load. I know a lot of people say not to do that, but our experience was completely positive.

 

[NHdisneylover]

I never bought special detergents either.

 

[michellev]

We used fuzzi bunz for all 3 of our kids. My youngest is almost 7, so I'm sure things have changed since then, but I was very happy with them. We bought them in three sizes - small, medium, large. When my youngest was out of diapers I sold them all. The smalls weren't used as much and were in the best shape so they sold for about 3/4 of what I paid, the other two sizes I sold for 1/2 of what I paid. Considering I used them for 3 children and they were very well used, I was really happy at the resale value.

We used a drypail, no special detergents and hung them to dry. I sent them to daycare with a wetbag. I think I did a load of diapers every other day. My kids are close in age, so I had a few years of two in diapers at the same time. I never found the care or washing to be overwhelming.

 

[BadgerGirl84]

I'm due with my first baby in July...so I'm not an experienced cloth diapering mom. Here is my plan:

-I'm 100% stocked for the newborn phase...I've picked up 4 dozen newborn and infant prefolds on Craigslist and a rummage sale (more than what I actually need, but a lady was selling 3 dozen newborn Imagine brand prefolds in excellent condition for $3 total at a rummage I went to on Friday...) plus 5 XS Thirsties and 5 S Thirsties covers. I was planning on buying just a few XS Thirsties and then the rest as the Size 1 Duo Wraps...but found a good bargain on the used sized covers.

-I'm registered for a variety of one-size diapers just to try them out. This would hopefully be used once the baby grows out of the prefolds/covers I have and would be a solution until potty-training time. A couple BumGenius, Best Bottom, Happy Heinies, etc. Not sure if I will like the AIOs, pockets, or the AI2 (cover with the removable inserts) better...

-I registered for some of the Charlies Soap that I hear is great for cloth diapers. Read really good reviews of it and if it keeps my diapers absorbant and not smelling funky--great. Would love not to have to strip them very often.

I'm also registered for some cloth-friendly diaper cream. You can't use Desitin or something like that on cloth diapers I hear without it causing your dipes to repel or to stain (unless you use a disposable or fleece cover between baby bottom and cloth dipe). Hopefully using cloth will make the cream not needed very much.

I also registered for a plain ol' garbage pail with a lid, a big PlanetWise wet bag, and a small PlanetWise wet bag for my diaper bag and DH's diaper bag. Oh...and some cloth wipes, too! Not intersted in making my own--not a sewer or crafter.

 

[Handbag Lady]

I have GOT to tell my mom about this thread. She sewed all of our cloth diapers and sized them for me and my sister as we grew. I am 44, so this was some time ago.

The new moms when my mom was a new mom were all into the new disposal diapers and my my was so against it both for health reasons and for savings. I remember my mom was so against disposables that she'd sew cute diapers for every expectant mom in our family: this is how I knew about her stance and what she was fighting "just put the baby in Pampers!" She was aghast at the waste, too.

She's love to hear all the new moms now going back to cloth.

 

[bekkiz]

We used FuzziBunz and Flip. Both were great, although, the microfiber inserts with the FB were not my favorite. The cotton prefolds are so much easier to manage and keep clean.

We didn't start until my guys were a year old, and I switched because we had horrible skin issues and I saw how much my friends liked using cloth. I really wish we had started earlier. Although, I do agree that the newborn cloth might have put me over the edge. Way too much to think about with brand new babies in the house. Most of the one-size diapers fit start to fit best around 12 lbs.