Cloth Diapers: Five Tips to Get You Started

Pockets, AIOs, Prefolds … blah, blah, blah … yah, yah, yah! So many terms! How do you decide what works for your family?

I want to offer five tips that worked for us to get you started with cloth diapering.

1. If this is your first baby, wait until you’ve had time to get used to being a parent before taking on cloth diapers.

Now this isn’t a rule everyone must follow. If you want to cloth diaper, go for it. I’m certainly not telling you that you can’t. I am more or less talking to those mamas who are nervous about cloth diapers like I was. There was just too much NEW for me to try to do something else totally foreign to me, such as using cloth diapers.

Following this rule was freeing for me. It allowed me to focus my efforts on learning to nurse my baby, his schedule, how to manage a shower, and get a few extra moments of sleep without worrying about cloth diapers sitting in a pail needing to be washed. Transitioning to life with a new baby is hard. Don’t add extra laundry to your list when everything is so new!

You can take it or leave it. It’s just my suggestion. 😉

2. Set a goal for when you want to start cloth diapering.

When Samuel was three months old, we entered the world of cloth diapers. This was the goal I set before he was born. Honestly, I was itching to get started immediately, but I knew there was wisdom in waiting until he was three months old.

By this time, we were settling into being a family of three, and we were on a pretty good routine. I half way knew what I was doing with a baby; we were ready to take on the new challenge of cloth diapering. Much to our surprise and delight, it wasn’t challenging at all.

3. Do your research.

Read about cloth diapering. Ask others what they are doing. There are so many seasoned veterans out there that would LOVE to talk to you about what they do and how they do it.

I know I asked about ten women what they did, and not a single one said, “I don’t have time for this.” On the contrary, they all freely and excitedly shared with me their experience with cloth diapers.

I learned what worked for them, what they would do differently, how they cleaned the poop diapers, what they did if their diapers stopped absorbing, and the list goes on. I learned so much from those who have walked the road before me.

So don’t be shy! Ask someone any and every question you have. I guarantee you they had the same question at some point.

4. Buy used.

I know some people find this a little … weird. However, it is just poop people, and we live in a world where washing machines can do anything but make you coffee! Not to mention, the powerful abilities of the sun. 😉

Seriously, check Craigslist, thrift stores, and your local consignments. I shared with you where I got my pocket diapers. In what spare time I had after Samuel was born, I checked Craigslist for deals on cloth diapers. Eventually, something popped up, and I pounced on them. We have had zero trouble with our diapers. {Update: We will be using these same diapers with our second little boy!}

5. You don’t need a lot of special equipment.

I have my diapers, cloth wipes, spray bottle with baby wash, and diaper bag/pail. That’s it.

• I don’t have a sprayer that attaches to your toilet.
• I have diaper liners only because they were given to me, but I never use them.
• I have one Snappi for when I used prefolds on Samuel – just one.

There are several other things, I’m sure, that can be used to aid in cloth diapering, but I haven’t found them necessary.

As I have said before, cloth diapering is what you make it. Take your time. Give yourself a break. But more than that, have fun with it!

What tips can you share about cloth diapering? Is there anything you find essential to making cloth diapers work for you that differs from me? I would love to hear from you – leave your tips in the comments!

Check out all of our cloth diaper posts below:

Cost of Cloth Diapers vs. Disposable Diapers

Cloth Diapering – What Do You Do When…?

My Cloth Diapering Routine

Cloth Diapers: How to Use Prefolds with Covers and One-Size Pocket Diapers

Cloth Diapers: 5 Tips to Get You Started

Trouble Shooting Cloth Diapers – 5 Real Life Cloth Diaper Problems and What I Do to Resolve Them

Confessions of a Cloth Diapering Mama

 

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