The initial investment that can go into cloth diapering might be a bit scary for some.  It does not have to be so.  You don’t have to pay $20-25 for every diaper you buy.

Here are a few economical choices:

Flat diapers (“flats”)
Cotton flats are the most affordable diapers.  They’re big, rectangular or square pieces of fabric which are easy to clean and dry very quickly.  Flat diapers do require a cover, but most PUL covers can be re-used a few times before washing. 

You can use special folds for flats which require pins or a Snappi, or you can just pad-fold them and place them inside a snug-fitting cover. [Read more →]

If you have a question you would like answered, please feel free to submit one via the Contact page with Q&A in the subject line.

Question:
What is your favorite fabric for making cloth diapers?

Answer:
My favorite cloth diaper making fabric is bamboo fleece. The bamboo fleece I use is soft, durable and very absorbent.  I’ve used different cotton fabrics before and I’ve found that none of them are as absorbent as the bamboo fleece.  Also, most cotton tends to get a bit scratchy, especially when line dried. [Read more →]

Due to the heat wave across Canada, a lot of people are wondering about how breathable their babies’ diapers are.  Last year, I ran into a post on Diaper Swappers which talked about results of an experiment performed by a high school student that might answer some breathability questions. The experiment involved measuring temperatures inside different diapers. [Read more →]

Since I love to talk about cloth diapers and answer cloth diaper questions, I decided to start writing Q & A posts.  I hope you’ll find these helpful.  If you have a question you would like answered, please feel free to submit one via the Contact page with Q&A in the subject line.

Today’s question I have been asked many times, so I thought it would be a good idea to write the answer in a blog post that I can link to.

Question:
What diapers do you use?

Answer:
I usually use fitteds and WI2s (Wool-In-Twos).   98% of the time I use fitteds without a cover.  I usually change a diaper after only one pee, so I don’t really need a cover with my very absorbent fitteds.  I love these two types of diapers especially in the summer because they’re a lot more breathable than PUL/TPU diapers.  Also, with the natural fibres I’ve never had to strip diapers, and I have almost no stains.   If I do have some stains when they come out of the washer, they get bleached by the sun when drying outside.

In the past, as a cloth diaper maker, I wondered what people wanted in a diaper, so that I could create that “perfect” diaper.  Today, I know there is no perfect diaper for everyone, but some do get pretty close.

In your opinion, what makes the perfect cloth diaper?

Update (2010/06/26): Since a couple of people have asked, here is what I consider to be the perfect diaper:

• Hidden snaps
• Not too few and not too many snaps
• Breathable
• Made of organic and/or OekoTex certified (natural) fabric
• Does not leave red marks on the baby
• Very absorbent, but not too bulky
• Not too wide or too narrow between the legs
• Does not create a “bubble” butt
• Does not create wing droop
• The fabric stays relatively soft
• Lasts more than a couple of years

I bought the Canadian-made Grasshopper Bamboo AIO diaper after reading some great online reviews.  Since my daughter outgrew most of her diapers, I was in real need of some trim AIOs for going out.  I didn’t have much time to design and make top-stitched AIO diapers at that time, so I decided to buy a couple online – one Rainshine Designs and one Grasshopper AIO.

When I first saw this diaper, I thought it was very small and wasn’t sure it would fit my 32-lb daughter for very long.  Once I tried it on her, I was pleasantly surprised.  The diaper fit and there’s still some room to grow.  The elastic is not encased like with most other top-stitched diapers, but it doesn’t bother me.  Actually, my daughter has no red marks on her thighs because the elastic is not encased.

Pros:

• Very trim
• High quality
• No red marks on my daughter’s thighs
• Natural fibers on the inside, so no polyester touching baby’s skin
• Sized diaper

Cons:

• Not sure this diaper can fit up to 40 lbs as mentioned on the site.  I suspect the rise will be a bit short for most 40-lb toddlers.
• Not a very absorbent diaper if you have a heavy wetter.  I think heavy wetters might need a doubler in this diaper.
• The price is quite high.  I think I paid $24.95 CAD + tax and shipping for this diaper which makes it one of the most expensive diapers I’ve ever bought.

My overall rating: 8.5/10

I have not been paid to write this review. The Grasshopper diaper was purchased by me.

From Linda Byerline, CEO of Happy Heinys:

We have been very saddened to hear that due to the recent earthquakes in Haiti in the Port Au Prince area, a couple of the orphanages we have worked closely with over the last fews years have been completely devastated. Through the years we have not only sent them diapers and clothing for these babies but also toys and help with food. When we work with any orphanage in any third world nation we work closely with missionaries who actually travel to the orphanages and personally bring our donations to the babies in need. We opt to work this way because sadly we have found that when attempting to donate directly the goods do not always arrive to the proper place due to the civil unrest of many of these countries. [Read more →]

My 24 month old has officially outgrown her Northern Baby diapers (version 1 with single row of snaps).  Because my daughter is quite tall, the diaper rise was getting really short and the snaps were starting to leave more noticeable marks on her hips.  As most of you probably know by now, I hate when diapers [Read more →]

A few months ago, I decided to buy a GroBaby cloth diaper probably because I wanted to try something new.  I must admit that now, after a few months, the diaper gets used very rarely.  I thought that at least my husband would like the diaper, but it looks like he has more trouble using it than I do.

What I do like about the GroBaby diaper:
1. The insert can be snapped in and out.
2. Can use other inserts with the shell (they will not snap in though because of the different snaps).
3. The diaper is quite trim.

What I do not like about the GroBaby diaper:
1. Elastic at the back is way too tight and leaves major marks on my daughter’s back.
2. Velcro does not stick to the laundry tabs in the wash.  When I take the diaper out of the washer, the velcro is usually stuck to the lining of the diaper and not the laundry tabs.
3. It’s not as absorbent as other diapers I’ve tried.
4. I find that I have to wash the shell after every poop.
5. Can’t make my own more absorbent snap-in inserts for the diaper because of the different snaps.

Overall Rating: 3 out of 5

Northern Baby Fitted Diapers (v. 2)

When my daughter was born we had a package of Pampers Swaddlers ready, and we thought we’d be using disposable diapers until she was potty trained.  We had a couple of packages of cloth diapers, but they were too big for my daughter for the first month or two.  Also, because I didn’t know anything about modern cloth diapers, I wasn’t in a hurry to use them.  I’ve heard some horror stories from my mom about cloth diapering, so I didn’t think I’d ever want to do it.  I later found out that modern diapers are not the same as what my mom used on my sister and me when we were babies.

So, we used disposable diapers for a couple of months until I couldn’t handle the rashes anymore.  My daughter was a lot more sensitive to the chemicals in disposable diapers than my friends’ babies, and there was no cream that would prevent the rashes from coming back every few days.  The constant rashes led me to do some online research.  After reading about the chemicals in disposable diapers, I decided to give cloth diapers a try.  Even though the diapers we had weren’t amazing, I kept using them.  Thanks to more online research, I found out about bumGenius diapers and just had to try one.  Thanks to the bumGenius diaper, I actually enjoyed changing my daughter – a task that I’ve always hated before.  Also, the rashes weren’t as frequent anymore which made me want to stick with cloth diapering.  So, I decided to buy 6 more bumGenius diapers.

Even though my daughter had fewer diaper rashes, she still had some from time to time.  One day while doing more online research on cloth diapers, I discovered that some babies can be sensitive to synthetic fibres.  I knew that the bumGenius pocket diapers had a synthetic lining, so I decided to look for diapers made with natural fibres.  The diapers I decided to purchase next included an AMP hemp fitted diaper, a Sugar Peas hemp fitted diaper and six unbleached Indian cotton prefolds.  I couldn’t believe how fast my daughter’s rashes went away and stayed away after I started using those diapers.

In the first couple of months, I also learned which detergents to use and which not to use with cloth diapers.  However, I still run into detergent issues many months later.  Whenever I use a different washer or want to try a new cloth diaper detergent, I’m running into some issues.  The one thing that’s never given my daughter rashes is soapnuts.  To find out more about the soapnuts I use, please visit the Superior Soapnuts website or the Eco Bebe Boutique.

Today, most of my daughter’s diapers have been made by me.  I’ve tried a lot of other diapers, but there was always something about each diaper that was bothering me.  It took me many months to perfect my diaper pattern, and since I’m a bit of a perfectionist, I’m still not 100% satisfied with it and probably never will.

I’ve never regretted switching to cloth diapers even when the poops got more stinky and detergents almost drove me insane.  To find out exactly why I’ve stuck with cloth diapering, please read one of my previous posts titled, “Things I Love About Cloth Diapers“, if you haven’t already done so.