How long in newborn size prefolds?

songs4drowning

I'm a FTM and I'm starting to prep diapers and clothes for LO's impending arrival. We're planning on mostly doing prefolds and covers to keep cost down (the biggest factor in getting DH to agree to cloth) and I have plenty of covers but I'm a little worried about the number of prefolds we have.

How long were your LOs in the newborn size prefolds? I have 15 infant size prefolds, but only 7 newborn size. I plan on doing diaper laundry every other day, so while I plan on picking up a few more of the infant size, I'm thinking I should really only spend money on the newborn size if I'll actually get use out of them?

adoxyinherear

DD was (and still is) petite. She wore her newborn prefolds for probably 8 weeks.

jesselayne8

My newborn prefolds fit into my xs and small covers. She outgrew the xs at 3 months and the small around 8 months. You can get a lot more use out of a newborn prefold than a newborn AIO or pocket.

Aurora_Borealis

I'll provide a slightly different perspective - I never used newborn prefolds and started in with the infant size (7-15lbs).

DD was a little over 7 lbs at birth and a little under when we brought her home from the hospital and started using CDs. The infant PFs were quite big on her until she was 8 lbs at about 2 weeks old. We folded them down or used the bikini twist fold to make them the right length.

While it would have been nice to have the smaller diapers those first couple of weeks, I'm glad I didn't buy them. DD got really chubby really fast, so she was out of the infant prefolds and into mediums by 3 months.

kjsmith9

We switched to infant size around 6 weeks... she technically still fits in them, but they aren't absorbent enough anymore.

freezorburn

As you get closer to your due date your Dr. may be able to estimate your baby's birth weight. One rule of thumb I've seen for expected weight gain is to double the birth weight at 3 months.

DS came out at 6 lbs 8 oz. He had some issues gaining weight, didn't double until 4 months. We started our NB CD trial at 3 weeks, added to our stash so we could CD part time, and tried out other diapers to figure out what we wanted for our infant/OS stash. Gradually took NB diapers out of circulation, as some fit longer than others. Probably put the last of our NB diapers away around 13 weeks. So if I had CD from the start I would have gotten 3 months of NB diapering.

bunniekrissy

We never used newborn size prefolds. We used infant prefolds from age 2 weeks and folded them over in back to shorten them. They were very bulky but worked just fine.

matthew_elizabeth

We didn't CD full time right away. DD never really wore her newborn prefolds, but I got a ton of use out of them as doublers when she started peeing more. The newborn prefolds are so inexpensive, so I would say get them, use them while you can, then use them as doublers or burp rags. You will get your money's worth out of them.

skio

I'm curious about this, too. I'm going to slightly hijack your post and ask for opinions on my situation...

DD measured large the entire pregnancy and was born two days before her due date at 8lbs 13oz, 21.5" long. She never fit in newborn clothes and went right into size 1 sposies. This baby is also measuring big and will probably be in the same general size area.

Is it a total waste for me to get newborn PFs/covers? I'm looking at GMD PFs and Workhorses. Should I go straight to small or will they leak? Bulky doesn't bother me. DD was over 10lbs at 4w so I assume it won't be long until she fits into OS. I'm just a little hesitant to spend money and for it to be a waste. I was also going to get a mixed bag [Kawaii, GroVia, LilJoey, Alva] of NB AIOs; even more of a waste? Halp!

Aurora_Borealis

skio:

I'm curious about this, too. I'm going to slightly hijack your post and ask for opinions on my situation... DD measured large the entire pregnancy and was born two days before her due date at 8lbs 13oz, 21.5" long. She never fit in newborn clothes and went right into size 1 sposies. This baby is also measuring big and will probably be in the same general size area. Is it a total waste for me to get newborn PFs/covers? I'm looking at GMD PFs and Workhorses. Should I go straight to small or will they leak? Bulky doesn't bother me. DD was over 10lbs at 4w so I assume it won't be long until she fits into OS. I'm just a little hesitant to spend money and for it to be a waste. I was also going to get a mixed bag [Kawaii, GroVia, LilJoey, Alva] of NB AIOs; even more of a waste? Halp!

If you're expecting a larger baby, you will probably be unhappy with newborn AIOs. (I was unhappy with them with an average size baby because she started peeing through them by 3 weeks old). If you want some non-PF diaper options that will fit before OS fits get the Kawaii Pure & Natural pockets. 

Regarding prefolds, if you anticipate skipping newborn disposables, it's probably safe to say that you won't get much use out of newborn prefolds. The smalls might be pretty bulky, though. I would consider getting OsoCozy size 1 prefolds instead of the GMDs since the size 1s are for 7-15 lbs whereas the GMD smalls are 10-15 lbs. (GMD newborn are 5-10 lbs, think). I've used both GMD and OsoCozy prefolds and think they are of equal quality.

songs4drowning

Thank you, everyone! I'm thinking we'll probably just get more infant size, as I'm not too concerned with a bulky diaper pre-crawling.

lawjjg522

Aurora_Borealis:

I'll provide a slightly different perspective - I never used newborn prefolds and started in with the infant size (7-15lbs).

DD was a little over 7 lbs at birth and a little under when we brought her home from the hospital and started using CDs. The infant PFs were quite big on her until she was 8 lbs at about 2 weeks old. We folded them down or used the bikini twist fold to make them the right length.

While it would have been nice to have the smaller diapers those first couple of weeks, I'm glad I didn't buy them. DD got really chubby really fast, so she was out of the infant prefolds and into mediums by 3 months.

 

this is what we did too.