As a familiy we committed to cloth diapers before even having a child. For the entity of Katherine’s pregnancy, she met with her mother weekly to sew our first stash of cloth diapers.
With the help of her mother, aunt and her own commitment on the day that our little arrived we had a stash of:
• 40 homemade pocket diapers
• 6 newborn covers
• 10 adjustable one-size pocket diapers.
• 20 Flour sack towels
• a few random inserts
The Diaper Addict is a real person: they look for fluffy butts while out; they casually mention that they cloth diaper to anyone who will listen; they post about how cute their diapers are; they photograph “stash” shots.
We are almost "done" our cloth diaper journey and we love cloth diapers. When we started out Barry really wanted us to keep disposables on hand for “When we need them.” The 120 diapers that were gifted to us have now found new homes with people who will use them. Number of disposables used since Zetta came home: 0. Number of disposable diapers Barry has changed in his life: 0.
Many people who use disposables do not understand why someone might choose cloth; you may encounter social stigma for using cloth diapers. If you aren’t sure if it is right for you start small. For many they find that it is easier to do the “all or nothing approach” for others it is easier to pick and choose when to use cloth.
Many people do not know or understand modern cloth diapers and picture pieces of fabric, pins and plastic pants; this is a cost effective way to diaper that is still available. Many of us in the cloth diaper community choose adjustable polyurathane laminated (TPU) fabric diapers. This packet has an overview of types of cloth diapers.
Why we choose flour sack towels (FSTs) for our family. FSTs are easy to clean and dry fast. This means that as long as you don’t mind folding them into pads it is a great and very cheap option for absorbency. Folding FSTs is Zombie Work. It is best done at the end of a long day in front of your favorite show or while listening to music. We have a little over 30 FST in our rotation and we both like to fold. Even though Katherine is better at it, but Barry thinks that he is. Either way they work!
After we began using cloth we got into a rhythm for washing, folding, stuffing and changing. You will find a full explanation of how WE wash diapers in this packet. There is a lot of information about bleaching and stripping diapers in online forums: if you have a good wash routine from the start this will not be needed. There is a great graphic in the packet about cleaning diapers when you have an issue.
Things to think about when considering starting your cloth diaper journey:
• Cloth diapering is not for everyone.
• Anyone can cloth diaper.
• Know “Why You Cloth Diaper
“We started because my wife said so. We continued because it was easier than we thought. We plan to keep using cloth because my wife need an excuse to buy more cute diapers,” Barry.
“We started because I was nervous about rashes and allergies. We continued because I love the fact that she knows when she is wet and lets us know. We plan to keep using cloth because I need all the cute diapers,” Katherine.
