Sunday, April 1, 2012

The Beginning of Cloth Diapering

I started my journey to find the best cloth diaper for our son about 4 months ago and I did it ALL wrong. Before he was born I was interested in giving cloth a try but was so overwhelmed by all the different brands/styles/material etc. that I quickly gave up. Then I came across a book in Michaels called Cloth Diapering Made Easy. I figured if it's easy I can do it! I was sort of right. Word to the wise, don't try to make your diapers before you find out what works for you and your baby. In short, the hybrid/ AI2 did not work for my explosive pooping power pissing 4 month old. I loved the 'idea' of an all-in-two but it just wasn't for us. I do plan on trying it again once we're more 'solid' and I can just use something like Best Bottoms with a snap in liner. I think I would like that. I spent hours and months trying to troubleshoot our homemade cloth diaper problems. Finally my husband and I agreed I should just buy the diaper I was trying to mimmick (the G-diaper) $60 later I found that the G-diaper didn't work either so it wasn't just me. This was somewhat relieving, to know at least that I can make a diaper.  :) Even if that style would have worked I didn't like the velcro in the back and the way the snaps pinched my little guy no matter how tight or loose I made it. So on to another style.

Next we tried covers and the washable microfleece G-diaper inserts. Even with the $21 Gen-Y covers we still leaked. So thanks to their excellent costumer service I bought some prefolds to stuff in there. Problem was the amount of absorbancy I needed for him was too thick for the cover so we went with the size 2 OS diaper cover. That one was too wide at the hips and rubbed the tops of his legs. I do plan on using that as a potty training diaper or when we get older and it fits him better since it snaps on the sides. It was also too bulky for my liking. I emailed back and forth with their 'diaper technician' and finally decided I was going to try something different. The hardest part of all of this is that I was pretty much alone. I have family who live far away who can help but it's hard to skype and sew at the same time. :) so she offered to help me out whenever I needed it which I thought was awesome! On to another style.

I ordered the cloth trial kit from Jillian's Drawers for $10... It's $160 up front but you get that back at the end of your 21 day trial of some of the major brands and most popular styles of cloth diapers. I wish I would have done this in the beginning because it would have saved me a lot of heartache, time and money. I sure taught myself how to sew though! What I got:

Ordered: 1       1023-18to32-neutral Changing Diapers, Changing Minds Program $150.99
Ordered: 2       OsoCozy Indian Prefolds
Ordered: 2       OsoCozy Better Fit Unbleached Prefold
Ordered: 1       Bamboozle S-T-R-E-T-C-H
Ordered: 1       aplix-crimson  Rumparooz G2 One-Size Diapers
Ordered: 1       starburst Tots Bots Easy Fit One-Size Diaper
Ordered: 1       snaps-noodlevanilla  bumGenius V4.0 One-Size Pocket Diaper
Ordered: 1       aplix-grasshoppergreen bumGenius Freetime Diaper
Ordered: 1       applegreen  FuzziBunz Elite One-Size Pocket Diaper
Ordered: 1       honeydew Thirsties Duo Wrap, Aplix
Ordered: 1       white    Snappis Diaper Fastener
Ordered: 5       samplesheet  Flushable Liners from Imse Vimse

On top of these I ordered two Sunbaby's 4.0 size 2 and two Alva's size 2. Both pocket diapers with microfiber inserts to try before a Co-op ends.

I've kind of got a system set up and will hopefully get some pail liners soon. Something else that would make the transition into cloth easier is 1. Don't buy a disposable :) and 2. Be ready for poop and pee diapers. When I was making diapers I just put them on then thought about what to do with them after the fact. Totally Ass-backwards.

Once a week has passed (Monday) I'll update with pics and video of the diapers and what I like about each one and dislike. I can already tell you that my pickiness is making me lean towards making one with a little of everything. :)

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