Diaper Covers? - Tualatin,OR

Hi T.--
I'm going to paste in most of an answer I typed to another mom in October. It's really long, but it has a couple of hints--like how to get poop out of the crevices of wraps--that I wish _I_ had known with my first kid ;).

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If you want to make your cloth as convenient as disposable, get about 6 (maybe 8) good wraps. About $6 each, which seems like a big chunk of change until you consider how fast disposables add up ...

However, the ones at Babies R Us and Target and suchlike are NOT worth buying(!) except as temporary solutions while you look for good ones ... the velcroes don't last long and they aren't actually waterproof. There are lots of fancy types online (for more than $6, but again, it's an investment), but if you are in a city with a diaper service, that business has a real reason to want moms to be happy with the cloth diaper experience, so they sell wraps that _work_. I got mine from Tiddee Diddee here in Portland (unfortunately you have to drive out there unless you are getting diaper-deliveries; they aren't internet-available).

But anyhow, once you have a wrap, you just fold your diaper to be that "center liner" section (no fussy shapes or pulling out the sides for pinning) ... I keep two wraps 'active,' and never fold a diaper until I change a diaper (pull wet one off baby, put ready-and-waiting dry one on baby (just like a disposable), let baby loose to run and play, dump wet diaper into diaper pail, fold new dry diaper, load now-emptied wrap with dry folded diaper, leave newly-loaded wrap ready for next time).

[Oh, and for poops? This is specific advice for any cloth diaperers who are reading you advice because they feel like they just can't rinse another full-of-nooks-and-crannies wrap ;) ... it took me a couple of kids to figure this out. DON'T try to rinse the wrap in the toilet like a diaper: just wipe the guck off with TP. (Brilliant!, I know ;). Man, I was amazed when I realized this! )

However, it takes some technique even with the TP. Here's my technique:

I put a clean cloth diaper on the floor next to the toilet,
open the wrap on the floordiaper,
remove and stash the poopy diaper itself in the toilet (high up, out of the water),
stand on the two flaps of the wrap with my toes,
and pull up the front of the wrap with my left hand, to pull it 'flat' for my right to wipe ...

once you get the hang of it it's fast, really ;) ...

so then I use small wads of TP to wipe it,
velcro shut the wrap and lay it on the floordiaper,
fold the floordiaper over it,
rinse the poopy diaper (like I always did, sigh ;) ),
and put the rinsed diaper on top of the folded floordiaper ...

then I use the folded floordiaper to transport all the nasty stuff to the diaper pail ... no more carrying sopping nastiness to the diaper pail!

If I'd only had one or two kids, I would never have known it could be easier ;). (Of course, maybe everyone else figured this all out and I'm the slow one ;). ) ]

Anyhow, cloth can be just about as easy as disposables, with good wraps.

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All of my friends seem to have chosen the fleece wraps, that don't hold moisture next to the kids' skin; one of the arguments made for cotton is that the kid notices when they are wet and is therefore easier to pottytrain ... but I don't know; I wait until the kid is ready to train themselves in any case ;).

Hi and congrats,
I highly recommend a trip to BabyWorks in NW Portland. They have a sampler pack as well as a variety of different types of covers. We found that basically, you have to wait to see what kind of baby you have to pick the right covers. Ours had really skinny legs and a big waist, so Bummis super whisper wraps ended up being the only ones that fit without leaking, until he'd plumped up a bit. Other people have great luck with Happy Heinys. I say just try a few. Some are even returnable.
A.

I used a diaper service for 4 months with my daughter before moving to pockets I wash on my own. I used Bummis Whisper Wraps, and they worked really well with the diaper service prefolds. While she was in the Newborn size, I had 10 covers. As newborns poo so much and the prefolds don't contain it always, I would have at least 8 covers (6 bare minimum). In the small size, I had 8. I washed mine every other day. Basically, you will use a minimum of 2-3 covers a day (rotating wets, washing if pooed). Though, the diaper service prefolds really do not fit a baby well until they are over 8lbs. My daughter was 6lbs and they were way too big on her. You may want to have a backup in case they don't work for a few weeks (we put our service on hold and used Seventh Generation disposables).

I use the prefolds with covers. I got lots of different covers to try since I never really had a favorite. There are so many kinds to try. I like Imse Vimse and Bum Genius the best. I never used wool with my first, but my second is due any day and I plan to try it.

I find the diaper pin website helpful, also mothering magazine has a lot of info.

http://www.diaperpin.com/howto.asp
http://www.mothering.com/articles/new_baby/diapers/diaper...

Good for you for choosing cloth! We are currently cloth diapering for the 2nd time, and are still so happy with the decision. There are a lot of options out there- what we chose are the Imse Vimse brand covers, and I also picked up some more random covers at second hand stores. i have found that I need at least 6 or 7 covers for little babies who poop often, but more covers are even better. If the cover gets wet only, I just hang it up and let it air dry and use it again until it gets poopy. that way you get more use out of it between laundry days. I think we have about 30-40 prefold diapers to go inside, and that seeems to be enough.

Some of the covers are much more luxurious than the ones we have- softer, thicker, etc. but also more expensive of course. I suggest that you go to a store so you can compare different kinds and see what you like. We love Mother Nature's on SE Clinton and 26th. Also, I personally would reccommend using disposables at first since you are going to be very tired and overwhelmed and may not be up to the task of using the cloths for the first month or so.

And one more thing- if you get tired of paying for the diaper service, it's really not that bad to wash them yourself- I just throw them in a bucket till it's full, then put them in the wash with some vinegar. it saves so much money!!

Anyway, good luck with everything!

I don't know a ton about the diaper covers, but I always see them online in different Etsy shops. If you go online to Etsy.com and search for "diaper cover" I bet you can get an idea of what's out there, even if you want to buy locally.

Hi T.,

I would be happy to go over cloth diapers and covers with you. A great and very easy option would be wool covers. If they get wet with urine, just trade them out with another cover and let the wet one dry out. You can rotate through a couple covers for 1-2 weeks and then simply hand wash them. I fill my bathroom sink with warm water and add a tsp of Eucalan Wool Wash. I put the wool cover in there and let it soak for about 20 minutes or even overnight. I drain the sink and gently roll it a little to get the water out. Then I lay it on a towel and roll the towel gently to wring out the diaper and then hang it over the shower to air dry. Every 3-4 months, you may have to re-lanolize them. It's the same as washing them except you add a little lanolin to the water instead of wool wash.

Of course, if your baby gets a little poop in the diaper, you need to wash the cover before you use it again.

There are a lot of other diaper covers out there, and they all have pros and cons. Others you may want to look at are nylon or PUL covers and fleece covers. You can read all about washing diapers and covers here:

http://www.punkinbutt.com/easy-wash-specific-cloth-diaper...

Also, enjoy your diaper service. If you decide to continue with them, that's great, but you can also save money if you decide to wash the diapers yourself. It's actually pretty easy especially since you will be doing a bunch of baby laundry already since they manage to get poop, spit up, milk etc all over themselves on a daily basis.

I am happy to help you out with any questions you have or any concerns you encounter.

Sincerely,
A.
www.punkinbutt.com
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