Many of you have asked about cloth diapering since I began with Malayna so I thought I would write a little bit about our journey. I remember years ago thinking women were CRAZY for cloth diapering. By the time you buy all the cloth diapers, spend money on laundry and time, it was just not worth it. Well, like many things I used to think, it’s actually not that bad and we definitely save money. Motherhood definitely has a way of changing a lot of assumptions I used to have about a lot of things! Please forgive me for ever voicing my opinion on something only to later find myself doing it.
I started cloth diapering using Bum Genius one-size snap closure with May around 2 months. We received many diapers to last us the first few months, and as many of you know, I had no extra time to spend doing extra laundry those first few months. Someone kept me a bit busy…
I received 15 cloth diapers from my work shower (many thanks to my wonderful school I taught at- Westminster Christian) for buying me them!! 15 has been a great number so far that easily last me several days. I love all the bright colors!!
Here is a little good, bad, and ugly on cloth diapering…
The Good:
I love the Bum Genius Brand cloth diapers. They are adjustable in size as she grows bigger so you can use them on babies from newborn until they are potty trained. This is so nice because you don’t need different diapers as they get bigger- you just change the snap size.
When I change her diaper I place the diaper in the Planet Wise wet-dry bag that seals in the odor.
I place the diaper (with the bag) into the washer so I don’t have to touch any of the dirty diapers.
I lay the diaper on our clothes rack to dry- they do not need to go in the dryer (this is why we have extra diapers because they do take a while to dry). You can put the liners in dryer, but there is no point since the shell can not go in you might as well dry both!
Finally I stuff the diaper with the liners as the final step.
Obviously, saving on not buying diapers has been a major bonus. We spend roughly, 10-12$ a month on disposable diapers. We do amazon subscribe and save and get around 3 months worth for around $32-38. We use disposables at night due to being such a long period of time, and May tends to be a heavy wetter. I have not tried to put her in a cloth overnight, but judging from her full diaper in the morning, right now keeping her in disposables works. We also use disposables when we travel or go out somewhere. That way we do not need to deal with the mess and hassle of the cloth diaper.
Everytime I empty our her Diaper Genie I am amazed at how many diapers are going into a landfill after just one or two weeks! Yowzers! Cloth diapering helps our landfills little by little.
They are so stinkin cute. I love matching her diaper to her outfits. I know I am crazy, I think it stems from matching my underwear to my outfits (I know TMI). My roomates from college can attest to this little secret. 😉 Love my brownie townies!!!!!!!!
Before solids, the breastmilk is all water-soluable and all you do is place them in the bag (even when she poops). The bag definitely keeps the smell in because when you open it it smells AWFUL!
The Bad:
Occasionally May will leak, but to be honest I think it is because I don’t have them fit properly (they snap in). She does not like getting her diaper changed so I don’t have very much time to play around with the snaps, I try to get them nice and snug, but I am sure there are times they are not snug enough. Also with cloth you need to change them more frequently, and I have found that helps with the leaking.
They do take time to fold and stuff, but I often do it while watching TV or a movie.
A potential bad would be if you have to invest up front for the cost of the diapers (around $100-150, depending on how many you buy), but thankfully we got them all as gifts so we did not have to pay for any. Also, you can use them for multiple children, so there is added savings in the future.
The Ugly:
Having to do the laundry. You need to wash the diapers every other day multiple times so it is a hassle and we do spend some money on the laundry end. (I don’t do full loads for each cycle just a quick cold rinse and then warm rinse, and set it to a small load). Although lately I have just been doing one warm rinse with Shaklee’s detergent and it seems to do the job!
Now that she is eating solids the diapers aren’t quite as easy to deal with. We have to rinse of the poop in the toilet after she goes. Again, another hassle. I have the bum genius sprayer that I use to rinse off the poop into the toilet.
Sometimes the liners do get stains. Previously, I was having to bleach them, but when I started using Shaklee’s laundry detergent I was quite pleased with how well it works on the diapers (also free of any toxins and chemicals, another added bonus). I also hated using bleach (it seemed to stay on my hands forever if I accidentally got any on me) and I just was reading recently how chlorine is linked to many serious medical issues. I used to have to do multiple washes to make them clean, but now one simply wash and they are clean! Natures Bright also works really well with stains and brightening whites and colors! I can not tell you how many people love how well the Shaklee laundry works and the Natures Bright! Both last us a long time and end us saving us money.
Overall I understand that cloth diapering does not work for everyone, but Sam and I try to cut corners where we can to allow me to stay home with May. I hope this post was helpful as I had to do a lot of research before deciding on cloth diapering (as well as understanding HOW to cloth diaper). I also find there are just some days I don’t wan to deal with them, so I use disposables. To each their own!
If you do cloth diaper, I am curious what brand is your favorite?
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