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I’ve already talked about how I started cloth diapering for under $100 and how much I love cloth diapering. Now let’s take a look at how I cloth diaper. I’m not saying it’s the right way or the best way. But it’s how I do easy cloth diapering. 

How I Chose My Diapers for Easy Cloth Diapering

When I found out I was pregnant, one of the million things I began researching was cloth diapering. 

Even though I didn’t know much about cloth diapering, there were a few things I didknow I wanted after all my research.

I knew:

• They had to be cheap.
• I wanted cloth diapers that had removable inserts.
• I wanted cloth diapers with snaps. Not Valcro. Not pins.
• I didn’t want to spend my life savings on them.
• I wanted them to resemble disposables as much as possible so others could easily change my baby’s diaper. 
• They had to be durable.
• I didn’t want to deal with rubber outer pants.

I follow Kristen at Natural Birth and Baby Care and read her experiences with Alva brand cloth diapers. 

Kristen talked about how affordable Alva diapers are.

I figured if a mom of 8 puts her stamp of approval on a cloth diaper brand I better check it out, too. 

I began reading about Alva diapers. There were a few bad reviews I came across. Other reviews talked about how they have lasted them through several children. Mostly the reviews were great.

I put several packs of Alva cloth diapers on my Amazon baby registry. 

I received all the cloth diapers I had registered for but I was running out when washing every other day. So I bought another pack of six for a grand total of 36 diapers. 

 

How I Fit My Cloth Diapers

From the reviews I’d read about cloth diapering, most people suggested not investing in a newborn stash because most babies don’t fit in that size very long. 

The general consensus was to use disposables until your baby fits into the one-size-fits-all. For some babies this will be right away, for others just a month or two. 

My baby ended up being a preemie. When he came home he didn’t even fit in the newborn size cloth diapers! 

I decided it would be worth the investment to get a few newborn cloth diapers. As it went, my baby was in preemie disposables for about two months. 

When he grew into newborn cloth diapers I was ready with my stash. He fit in these for another two or three months and I made my small stash work by washing very often and drying them in the dryer. 

I did not worry about the dryer heat breaking down the water-proof shell because my baby would be in these diapers for such a short time. 

Finally I moved him up to the one-size-fits-all. 

Fitting Learning Curve

As your baby grows there will be stages of lots of wet clothes as you find the next best diaper fitting.

Don’t get discouraged!

Just keep adjusting the snaps and closures until your baby keeps his clothes dry again.

For me, there were several rough times of transitions.

The first rough transition was going from newborn size diapers to the one-size-fits-all. I struggled with loosening the snaps just right and doubling up the inserts to keep my baby dry.

After more research, I realized that my baby was having compression leaks. Even though I had enough to absorb, there wasn’t enough free space inside the diaper. So he graduated up a size. 

My next rough transition was when my baby began drinking more milk to keep up with his growth. He was soaking through his diapers even though he was still waking every three hours or so to eat and get changed. 

This was the time I invested in charcoal and bamboo inserts. I only got one pack because I just used them at night. Stuffing his diapers with these eliminated that stage of soaking clothes. 

The last rough transition I had was after I stripped my diaper inserts. Apparently after stripping them you have to wash them several times to get the proper absorbency back. So I went through a few days of wet clothes just 30 minutes into a fresh diaper. 

That was a couple months ago now and we are smooth sailing again! 

I Use Disposables for Easy Cloth Diapering

As my baby transitioned to solid foods he quit waking as often during the night.

I wasn’t about to wake a sleeping baby just to change his diaper! So I took my troubles to Google once more. Many cloth diapering moms switch to disposables at night. [It was at this point I discovered that a lot of moms just use disposables at night from day one.] 

For shorter excursions I cloth diaper my baby. My diaper bag comfortably holds four diapers along with everything else I need. And one wet bag can hold about four dirty diapers. 

When I am heading out for a long day I always use disposables. They are more convenient for changing on the go and I can just throw the dirty diaper. Dirty cloth diapers get heavy to lug around in your diaper bag, too. 

I definitely use disposables on trips. I’m just not going to do poo laundry in someone else’s machine! 

What Creams I Use

With cloth diapers, you have to be careful what creams you put on baby’s bum. Most of the mainstream diaper creams will build up in your cloth diaper and make them repel water. Specifically petroleum based products.

I play it safe and only use coconut oil with a bit of lavender essential oil mixed in.

I melt 1/2 a cup of coconut oil and before it solidifies I stir in about 5 drops of lavender. I keep this in a little jelly jar with an old mayo lid. Remember, anything with essential oils in it should be stored in glass. 

Coconut oil melts very easily so I only apply it at home. Summer months will easily make a mess of my coconut oil! When I’m out and about my baby is usually fine with just wiping his bum. 

If you have a case of severe diaper rash and need something a little stronger, use a disposable diaper liner. This will keep the cream from wrecking the cloth diaper. Otherwise just use disposable diapers during the use of the mainstream creams.  

Easy Cloth Diapering

Once you have purchased your diaper stash, figured out the fit and persevered through the leaks you are a champion! Remember, watch what creams you use and feel no shame in disposables. These things will give you an easy cloth diapering experience!