cloth nappies

OllieNorth

Hi all,first time poster on this forum. We have our first on the way, :eek:mid august for due date. We were thinking about using cloth nappies that you wash. Does anyone have any experience of using these.
Any advise or recommendations would be welcome.:) Thanks in advance, Ollie

Ayla

Hi Ollie, we were determined to use cloth w/ our first & bought a number of different types only to find that they wouldn't go around her (enormous!) buddha belly :rolleyes:

We've since used them sporatically on our second child (we've just plain gotten lazy, really). They fit her fine, but whether she has a reaction to the non-bio soap we use or its something else, but she always seems to break into a rash when we use them.

Not to say anything against cloth nappies...I know a number of people who use & swear by them, and they're really not all the hassle they're reputed to be. There are zillions of types, though, and it's easy to get carried away by the cute designs. My suggestion - do your homework, determine exactly what type you'd look for (i.e: all-in-one or two part systems, how you'll be drying them, what your budget is, etc) then get a trial set. They *absolutely* are do-able, but you'll want to find a system that works for your family. No point buying all the adorable ones out there only to find they take 2 days to dry or they won't fit your kid.

thenappylady.co.uk is a fantastic site for independent info.

willow tree

exciting times ahead! we want to look into this too but we are between moves at the moment, but just wanted to say a few friends use them and as ayla said, they are not the hassle you might think. also there is a woman in north dublin, she sells them but she will meet you and you can try each one (i think she may even give you samples to try), i can pm you details if you want (if i can find them at this stage!)... best of luck with everything;)

woggie

Hey Ollie, congratulations to you and the missus, exciting times indeed!!!

My little man is 15 months old and we've been using cloth nappies since he was about 6 weeks old.
They are no hassle at all and to be honest I really hate when I have to go back to disposables (if we're on hols etc).
I second the ladies on the research bit, my God I read everything I could find, theres some great threads on magic mum http://www.magicmum.com/phpBB/viewforum.php?f=122

They can be very expensive as an initial outlay but if you're planning on having more kids then you'll save heaps, not to mention the envirnomental savings.

To begin with I just bought 4 different types; 2 fuzi bunz , 2 bum genius, 1 happy heiny and 2 little lambs.

From what I'd read fuzi's seemed to be the most popular but to be honest they were never top of my list. The bum genius have velcro tabs and I used to find them annoying in the wash but love them now, the fuzi's have poppers that are a bit time consuming now that DS is a wriggler when i change him. We have since bought some of the flip nappies but again not my favourite. My all time fav is the little lamb nappy. It is the softest nappy ever and it NEVER leaks, even though my DS is a very heavy wetter at night. They are made from bamboo so super absorbant. You will need a wrap to go over them, i'll list some details of websites that I bought my nappies from so you can compare them - as you can see they're mainly uk, very limited over here. Also you need to be aware that they are more bulky than disposable nappies. I recommend buying some vest extenders, they're just little pieces of cotton that clip onto the babie's vest and give them more room around the nappy. You'll need a bucket with a lid to store your nappies in - we bought a great one in homebase that is very tall and thin, almost looks like the ones in the ladies toilets for sanitary disposal. It fits neatly into our downstairs loo.

www.littlelamb.co.uk
www.littlecomfort.com
www.straffordnappies.co.uk
www.nappyzone.co.uk
www.hipbaby.ie

You will DEFINITELY get addicted to them, they are the cutest colours. Don't be afraid of buying second hand either, it's all part of the beauty of them and once i finish up baby making i plan on sticking my lot on ebay



One last tip....I used to get really upset over peoples reaction to me usnig cloth nappies - the in laws, my own family and even friends used to raise their eyebrows and basically imply i must be raving mad to be doing such a time consuming messy job (in truth it's neither!), i've only ever met one other lady who uses them and she gets the same reaction - we almost feel embarrassed over it! So I just gave up telling people, and if anyone notices I just say yes we use them and we love them and they are no trouble and then i change the subject immediately LOL

If you've any questions just ask, it can be a real minefield out there and a lot to get your head around at first but you don't need to start off from day one, let yourselves get accustomed to your new arrival for a few weeks, ours was almost 2 months before we started using them.

OllieNorth

Thank everyone for your replies, they are very helpful.:D There is so much info out there its hard to filter all the bull. Its great to get other peoples opinions.
Thanks again,
Ollie.

TommyTippee

Our little lad much prefers the cloth nappies. They are more comfortable and he sleeps and rests a lot better in them.

Only thing is that when he wets them, he really wets them. They end up drenched, whereas the disposables absorb much more.

We use both as a result and it works quite nicely.

littlemissfixit

Hi! Good on you for wanting to use washables. I have used them from birth, my little one is now nearly 9 months and still using them. I got them on lizzies real nappies.co.uk, I bought a starter pack of birth to potty Bumgenius. It came with loads of nappies, a bucket, 4 waterproof wrappers, liners, etc. Nappies are adjustable and use a seperate clip to attach so no velcro or buttons. There are also extra absorbant liners if needed, but I have never used them.
At the time when I researched, it was the best value pack around. I have had no leaks, no mess, while I did with the disposables, at the start I was washing every second day, but now I can get away with twice a week, but its really not much hassle.
From about 6 weeks, I used a disposable at night for longer absorbancy, and I can count on one hand how many packs of disposables I have bought in the last 8 months, so it was definetely worth it!

NextSteps

I got Bumgenius nappies from Earthmother.ie, and the service was very good. I find them grand, and better absorbency than Pampers which I occasionally use for travel or weekends away. They really are very little hassle, and seem very cosy. Baby is about four months old now and we've had no issues.

soc

We cloth nappy our 15mth DS full-time & have absolutely no regrets. If anything the experience has opened up the eyes of friends & family as they see how easy it REALLY is, and how cute the nappies are.

Personally we use FuzziBunz & Charlie Banana and LOVE THEM!! So much so, that we opened our own store (www.JoeyRoo.com) for parents & kids, stocking items we use, love or have come highly recommended from friends, and made sure we included our favourite cloth nappies! We only stock ONE-SIZE nappies, as we feel that these make cloth diapering even more economical, especially in these times: you buy your supply of nappies and they will last the entire duration that your little one (and other kids) are in nappies.

Cloth nappies nowadays are VERY SIMPLE, in comparison to 'the old days': no soaking is required, and the pocket nappies dry pretty quick. If you use a flushable liner, it also makes disposing of solids easier & thus leaving little on the nappy itself.

We use (and stock) FuzziBunz & Charlie Banana - both are similar in style (pocket diaper) but designed slightly differently, giving each advantages/disadvantages over the other.

The thing I LOVE about Charlie Banana is that it is a hybrid nappy so for those occasions where you'd prefer a disposable nappy (e.g. leaving baby with someone not comfortable with cloth nappies, or travelling), you can use their disposable insert... and then for normal everyday use, you use the usual microfibre inserts. Plus having use of the disposable inserts also give you flexibility when you're doing a nappy wash: if your outer pocket dries super quick, but reusable inserts aren't quite dry & you need to use a nappy, slapping in a disposable insert does the trick until your cloth inserts are dried.

If you have any questions, about using cloth nappies, FuzziBunz or Charlie Banana products, please don't hesitate to PM me via Boards.ie, or send a message to me via JoeyRoo, and I'll get back to you.

-soc

Little My

Does anyone know of any shops in or around Galway that stock cloth reusable nappies?

I asked in Mothercare - they don't do them and don't know anywhere that does.

soc

Little My wrote: »

Does anyone know of any shops in or around Galway that stock cloth reusable nappies?

I asked in Mothercare - they don't do them and don't know anywhere that does.

Reusable nappies are VERY DIFFICULT to find in a 'bricks & mortar' store in Ireland... which is such a shame when you see how freely available they are in the likes of Australia & USA.

Little My

I just would rather have a look at the options and get a feel for them before buying. I have seen the Bambino Mio in stock in an actual shop but they don't seem to have great reviews.

Squiggler

Maybe try buying sample packs, or a single nappy of several different types, that way you can get an idea of how well they wash, how quickly they dry out etc, which can all be pretty important.