Cloth Diaper Update

{Hey, my last post was #1000!  Celebrate!}

Just popping in to give an update about how we cloth diaper and how it's going for us.  Occasionally some of my friends inbox me for tips and help regarding what our system looks like so I thought I'd compile it quickly.

We currently use 2 diaper systems that work great for us with about equal absorbency.

We use pockets, stuffed with a folded bamboo, flat bamboo, and hemp insert.  These 3 inserts are slender and don't make for too much bulk on missy's bum.  The folded bamboo is necessary because she wets more in the front than the back and it keeps her dry for the duration of naps and while she's crawling and scooching around on the floor.  I've tried charcoal bamboo, microfiber, and microfiber blends and much prefer the hemp and bamboo over anything with microfiber in it.

 

{This diaper was new at Christmas.  It's the national breastfeeding symbol with "eat local."  He he he, get it?}

 

[the inserts]

I have about 19-20 pockets that I stuff weekly.  It takes me about half an hour to get them stuffed.

In addition to the pockets, we've also started using flats and covers.  This system is much more like the "old" way of cloth diapering where you use a big piece of fabric covered by plastic pants.  I have a dozen large flour sack towels from Sam's Club that I "pad fold" and then stick a skinny hemp insert in.  That goes right inside the cover and up and over baby's bum.

 

 I have 4 Alva brand covers...

 And 4 Diaper Safari brand covers (the aqua one isn't in the picture)...

The nice thing about covers is that, just like the old plastic pants, they don't have to be washed every time.  If she's just wet the cover can be aired and reused...obviously if she's soiled it goes in the wash.

 

If I were going to buy more covers I'd purchase Diaper Safari brand.  As you can see they are much bigger and I really like the fit (remember, my chubbers is 25 pounds). The Alvas are nice with double gussets, but for the deal I got (2 covers/$10 + free shipping the day after Thanksgiving) I really like the larger Diaper Safari ones. 

The flats take me about twenty minutes to fold for the week.  Both diaper systems (pockets and flats/covers) can get me up to 3-4 hours before there's any wicking or leaking (obviously I change her straight away if she's messed).  I do try to change her every 2-3 hours but if she's sleeping or playing it's nice to know she can go longer.

Quite truthfully, if I were starting again I would probably go with all flats and covers.  They are cheap, easy to clean and easy to use.  I would likely still have purchased hemp or bamboo inserts to go with the flats (in my case flour sack towels), but likely wouldn't have invested in all the pocket diapers that we have.  That said, we do have a large stash of pocket diapers, we have the inserts for them and we've found an insert combo that works great for us so I'm not looking to churn them any time soon.  I won't lie, one of the reasons I don't want to get rid of the pockets is because the prints are so darn cute. 

We currently aren't cloth diapering at night.  We use Honest Company diapers for sleeping, because of ease and less bulk.  I do have some absorbent fitteds that get us through the night but they are bulky and sopping by morning so we use disposables when we have them (we don't always - I buy them when we are going to travel or when I get a great deal or have a coupon on a brand I like {Honest, 7th Generation, or Earth's Best}).  

We also use cloth wipes and find it just as easy to quickly spray them off when we are spraying a yucked diaper before throwing it all in the pail.  The pail has a large liner that gets washed with the diapers and it sits in the bathtub right beside the potty that has the sprayer attached.

Overall, I'm super pleased with our system, it works well for us and I do feel like it saves us some cash in the long run.  It adds one extra large load of laundry every 5-7 days, which is really nothing when you think about it.  I know I'm relieved when I go grocery shopping to not need to be buying the large boxes of diapers every week or two!  It's not for everyone but it's working great for us since I'm home so much.

And it's cute to boot!