A foreign language... break it down please

jengalbraith818

I am 6 weeks pregnant with my 5th pregnancy, (4th baby if this one sticks which I feel like it is) I did cloth diapers with my oldest but wimped out on 2 and 3 since I had 3 babies in 3 years and I was TIRED( that and I had zero support of my DH at the time). Jump forward 12 YEARS LATER and my "new" (not new but not the same DH) DH and I are very into homesteading and being eco friendly and I am going to give the cloth diapers a go again. Here is the problem, y'all are speaking a foreign language to me!! I have gone through several posts and I feel like my head is going to explode!! I think there were like 2 maybe 3 decent brands when I did it last time. Now there are tons and I know you can even get them on Etsy by WAHMs. Can someone break it down for me? What am I looking for and where do I start? I thought I was silly for starting this early but, now I am glad that I did!! Thanks in advance!

countrycotton

Like she said. Cloth 101 is a great place to start! There is a link in the FAQ's. The language of cloth will not be so foreign after watching it and you have a better idea if what will work best for you. At that point we will be more than happy to convince you that you must buy ALL the diapers.

Kelly11235

The videos are super helpful.

But can I also suggest that you try flats sooner rather than later?  They're a cheap option and can last the entire time your baby is in diapers.

jengalbraith818

ok I just watched the video about the differences in the types. I am thinking all in two! Now what can you all tell me about those and where to start? I like the idea of flats or prefolds but I can see my husband getting really frustrated really fast.

JEPES1348

I use AI2s. We use Best Bottoms pretty much exclusively, and they're well-liked here. Flip is an AI2 system, and Grovia has some as well, but the Grovia shells are mesh, and therefore not as wipeable, so you may end up going through more covers.

Trifolding and laying in a prefold into a cover is also an AI2 system, and it's dirt cheap. However, a trifolded prefold will not catch runny poo until LO starts solids, so you'll go through a lot of covers this way (same goes for using an insert/cover system like Best Bottoms or Flips). Before solids, we went through a cover for each poopy change, but we had plenty of covers, so it didn't matter. 

Also, OS diapers will not fit a newborn, so you'll need NB covers. Many people find good ole' prefolds, flats, or workhorses (fitted-like prefolds from Green Mountain Diapers) with a NB cover to be very easy and cost-effective. 

jengalbraith818

@jepes would you recommend using something else for a newborn or just buy a lot of extra covers? I am going to be trolling these rooms and absorbing as much information as I can! I know I have time, but really I don't and I know you ladies know what I am talking about! LOL

JEPES1348

I personally ended up buying a ton of NB covers. However, I just had my 1st, so I am still planning on re-using my NB stash for future children. Workhorses are affordable, contain NB poo really well, and maintain their value to you can easily resell them and recoup a lot of you money, since NB stashes are only used for a couple months. 

SO, I think the general recommendation will not be to just have a ton of NB covers. But usually 8 NB covers and 36 changes (a combo of prefolds, flats, and workhorses) would be great for the NB phase. 

As far as OS goes, 24 changes are recommended for EOD washing, though many of us have more because it's easy to be spendy. Once LO starts solids, if you're still thinking AI2, I think you could easily get away with 6+ OS covers and 24-30 inserts. I say 6+ because I like having extra covers to stash in the diaper bag, leave overnight at daycare for the next day, etc. I also like having a good number of inserts so I'm not tapping my feet waiting for the dryer to finish so I can use them.

Brandiewine11

I had a mix of prefolds, fitteds (workhorses & kissaluvs), and kawaii P&N for the NB stage. I also had a few blueberry AIO's. I loved the AIO's and workhorses best for the NB stage. Now that DS is a little bigger, I still like the workhorses & AIO's, and I'm also liking Best Bottoms & BG 4.0's a lot. However, i have to change the BB covers a lot since we still have runny NB poo.  

I'd recommend getting a couple of different types for the NB stage so you know what you really like and what works for your LO as you build your OS stash. 

jengalbraith818

@Brandiewine11 what is a P&N?

Brandiewine11

Kawaii Pure & Natural. It's an inexpensive pocket diaper. Also helps bridge between NB & OS stages.

https://www.amazon.com/Kawaii-Baby-Newborn-Reusable-Natural/dp/B00HNCEZ4U/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1406218061&sr=8-4&keywords=kawaii+pure+and+natural

Rrrrrachel

My favorite ai2 system is a cover with a trifolded prefold or a bamboo insert.

jengalbraith818

I am really leaning toward the workhorse. Would I still need 36 in NB? My last baby was 9 lbs at birth!

mrshudson618

jengalbraith818 said:

I am really leaning toward the workhorse. Would I still need 36 in NB? My last baby was 9 lbs at birth!

You can usually skip nb prefolds and go straight to small, but this doesn't usually work as well with fitteds. Maybe get a mix of the two sizes? You just might have to wash more often at the beginning if the small don't fit.

jengalbraith818

@ovenrack I was planning on doing snapless anyway. Thank you for the input!

Kelly11235

If you are worried about running out of covers, it's quite easy to handwash a cover or two in between loads of diaper laundry, even if you have no interest in handwashing the rest of the diapers.

painttheair14

For what it's worth, my husband found prefolds easy to use. Once he noticed our all in ones leaked on our newborn, he was sold on the prefolds.

painttheair14

Like pp said, I vote for getting a variety at first.

There are a few swap groups on Facebook and even a thread on this board if you want to test out a few for cheaper.

rlb284

DS was born at 8lbs 2oz but gained really fast (11.8 at 2 weeks).  We started size small GMD workhorses and prefolds at two weeks and could have started much sooner.  He actually grew out of them by 7 weeks.  So if i could start over i'd have mostly small workhorses with small prefolds.

Also, don't be intimidated by the prefolds.  Your husband may really surprise you.  My DH really got into it. 

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Kaylalaa

I'm getting my sisters fuzzibunz stash they are from newborn all the way up because they are easy to adjust using snaps. https://www.fuzzibunz.com