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The Only Cloth Diapering Essentials You Need

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Read time: 5 minutes
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Have you been researching the pros and cons of cloth diapers v/s disposables? Do you know all about cloth diapering benefits but still confused about how exactly to start cloth diapering? Most probably the first question that comes to your mind is, “How many cloth diapers do I need”? In today’s post, I will answer this question and talk about the different cloth diapering essentials you will need to get started with cloth diapering.

Related reading : Diaper bag checklist.

This post is sponsored by Bumberry Diapers, but all opinions expressed here are my own.

CLOTH DIAPER ESSENTIALS-Minimalist cloth diaper-cloth diapers for beginners
A Minimalist list of cloth diaper essentials for beginners

A CLOTH DIAPERING CHECKLIST FOR BEGINNERS

  1. Cloth Diapers

To answer the question of how many cloth diapers you will need. Well, a cloth diaper stash of 24-30 should be enough in order to cloth diaper exclusively and be able to have an alternate day wash routine.

There are many different styles of cloth diapers available, so the style of cloth diaper can be something that suits you and your baby.

There is everything from prefolds, pocket diapers, covers to all in one style cloth diapers to choose from.

Our cloth diaper stash consisted mostly of diaper covers and pocket style diapers as I felt these styles could easily last the entire duration of diapering a baby from birth to potty training.

Bumberry was one of my first choices when it came to cloth diapers. The brand makes many beautiful cloth diapers in solid colors which make it easy to mix and match different diapers with different outfits. The inserts that come with the diaper covers too are made of high-quality materials and are wet free. I even bought extra inserts to go with the different diaper covers.

Our Bumberry Diapers lasted from 2 months of age to 26 months of age (until the end of potty training) and still look brand new.

  1. Wipes

Some go with using soft cloth wipes and others use disposable baby wipes. My favorites are: Water wipes and Mama earth bamboo wipes.

  1. Diaper cream

Make sure to use a natural diaper safe cream. Many diaper creams leave a stain on the diaper.

One product I found useful as a diaper balm when using cloth diapers was Earth mama angel baby diaper balm. Its made of natural ingredients and doesn’t leave any visible or difficult to remove stains.

If you are wondering, how to avoid a diaper rash? Well, the simple answer is to give your baby short time periods of diaper free time. Changing cloth diapers frequently, say every 3-4 hours during the day also helps keep diaper area dry and clean.

  1. Night sleepers and extra inserts

For night diapering, you may need to add a few extra inserts for better absorption. If you find adding extra inserts too bulky on your baby, you can try the new Bumberry Sleeper Diaper.

The Bumberry sleeper diaper has two partially stitched wet free inserts on either side of the diaper which helps adjust absorbency and saves time. The overlapping wet free inserts are made of 2 layers of microfiber each and an additional wet-free fabric that keeps the baby’s bum dry. There’s an additional pocket to cater to the needs of heavy wetters too.

  1. Wet Bag

A wet bag is a bag that you carry in your diaper bag when you are out and about. It is used to neatly dispose of soiled diapers during travel. An easy way to carry a used cloth diaper without anyone knowing!

They contain the odor and can be used to put in soiled clothes, burp clothes, and napkins too. A wet bag is like a catch-all for dirty baby things, keeping soiled clothes separated from the other diaper bag contents.

  1. Cloth Diaper Pail

A cloth diaper pail comes in handy to collect used diapers at home. You don’t need something fancy, any type of long cylindrical tub with a cover will do. If you worry about stains or odors you can add a diaper pail liner too, to keep the odors in.

  1. Cloth diaper sprayer

A cloth diaper sprayer is an attachment that can be fixed in your toilet and used to knock off solid waste from a cloth diaper. Once solids are removed you can add the soiled diaper to the diaper pail.

  1. Laundry detergent

Choose a Cloth diaper safe laundry detergent. If your baby has sensitive skin you may want to try a fragrance-free detergent.

  1. Foldable drying rack

A sturdy foldable drying rack is the best bet in city homes. If you have a backyard, place the rack in direct sun. Sun drying of cloth nappies is the best way to retain whiteness and remove stains off the inserts.

  1. Other accessories depending on individual preferences: Snappies and flushable diaper liners

These are not really essentials, but depending on your individual preferences. You may prefer using prefolds, and when using prefolds,  a snappi is a must. A Snappi is a cloth diaper fastener that can hold the cloth nappy in place and is the safer option compared to the use of safety pins.

Some parents also like using flushable diaper liners so that one cloth diaper cover can be used for more than 1 pee.  These prevent the staining of the cloth diaper.

There you go!

These are all the cloth diapering essentials you need to start cloth diapering. What cloth diapering essentials listed here do you think made your mom life easier? For me having a cloth diaper sprayer and a good quality wet bag definitely made the yucky part of cloth diapering more easier at home and on the go.

7 Amazing Cloth Diapering Benefits That Will Make You Want To Switch

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Read time: 6 minutes
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Are you wondering if the cloth diapering benefits outweigh the use of disposable diapers? We all want what’s best for our kids. But when you first become a parent, there is so much information to wade through and decisions to be made, that it can get confusing and overwhelming.

This post is sponsored by Bumberry Diapers, but all opinions expressed here are my own.

Safe and natural products for baby are on every parent’s priority list, but sometimes convenience takes priority over some of the more traditional natural methods of baby rearing.

This cannot hold truer than in the case of diapering a baby. Many new moms wonder how to use cloth diapers properly.

In India, all of us are told to use the traditional langot to diaper a baby. A langot is a thin triangular cotton cloth that is used in India to diaper a baby. The problem with this traditional way of diapering a baby is that it cannot hold a pee, it leaks easily and in the newborn stage with multiple diaper changes, this method soon becomes exhausting for the new mom.

With disposable diapers now readily available, most moms make the switch to disposable diapers.

I know your struggle, as a sleep deprived mom, every extra step feels like a task and the last thing you want is to be changing cloth nappies every 1 hour or so.

But here is where modern cloth diapers win. They provide everything that a disposable diaper provides and come in some super cute prints! Yay!

I will list 7 reasons why you should consider making the switch to cloth diapers today. The cloth diapering benefits mentioned here are so impressive that I am sure you will consider cloth diapering your baby.

For starters, you don’t even need to do exclusive cloth diapering to reap these benefits. You can do as I did, cloth diaper in the day and use disposables at night and during travel.

cloth diaper benefits-cloth diaper facts

CLOTH DIAPERING BENEFITS

  1. Baby skin friendly

The first and most important benefit of cloth diapers is the skin-friendly material. Disposable diapers contain harmful chemicals like dioxins, sodium polyacrylates, chlorine, dyes, and fragrances.

While there are no current medical studies that prove health problems caused by disposable diapers. Even so, one cannot exclude the risk. Many chemical substances have been found in disposable diapers well above recommended healthy limits. [source]

Using cloth diapers reduces exposure to these chemicals and allows breathability. In cloth diapers, there is nothing but a soft cloth material in contact with your babies skin. This also makes cloth diapers more comfortable for the baby.

  1. Eco-friendly

Cloth diapers are an environment-friendly alternative to disposable diapers. It is said that an average disposable diaper takes up to 500 years to degrade. You can reduce your contribution to the landfills and your babies carbon footprint.

  1. Cost savings

On average, babies in North America and Western Europe wear more than 3,500 diapers before they are toilet trained, (Toilet training age is taken as age 2) [source]. Assuming a similar figure with rising disposable diaper use in the Indian market, and the average cost of 1 disposable diaper at Rs 10. You spend Rs 35000 from birth to toilet training at 2.

But what’s more interesting is that many toddlers do not potty train at 2, and from our personal experience, we definitely changed diapers more than the average 3500 estimated diaper changes from 0-2 yrs. Our figure rests roughly at 8000 diaper changes from birth to 26 months when we finally got free from diapers. That’s a cost of Rs 80000.

Also, depending on your financial status you may buy more expensive diapers where cost ranges from Rs10-Rs 20/diaper. Therefore diaper costs for individual families can vary anywhere from Rs 35000 to Rs 100000.

Now consider buying a cloth diaper system. An average cloth diaper costs about Rs 600. For a baby to be cloth diapered from birth to 2 years, you will need about 30 cloth diapers. This is a mere Rs 18,000 compared to using disposable diapers for the entire duration.

Cloth diapers are reusable and can be used for multiple babies further reducing the cost. Not planning any more babies? No problem, you can always sell used diapers. There are several Facebook groups that deal in buying and selling old cloth diapers, making cloth diapering a bargain deal at the end of potty training.

Once again these are all rough estimates, but the savings are considerable when you cloth diaper daily.

  1. Reduces instances of rashes

Less exposure to chemicals like the ones in disposable diapers can help reduce instances of diaper rashes. Cloth diapers are made of breathable materials giving skin around diaper area a chance to remain rash free.

Also, since babies are more aware of wetness in a cloth diaper, mothers end up changing cloth nappies more often compared to disposable diapers, this can be another reason why instances of rashes with cloth diapers are rare.

  1. Leakproof

One of the biggest advantages of modern cloth diapers that makes them so easy to use is the fact that they are highly absorbent and leak proof. Once you learn how to properly fit a modern diaper chances of leakage are minimal. Velcro style closures and snap buttons make it easy to fit on a cloth diaper perfectly on a babies bum.

Many new cloth diapers are made of waterproof materials that make cleaning poopy diapers easier.

  1. Pretty designs and different styles to suit every need

Yes! this is the fun part about cloth diapering.

From the different styles of cloth diapers (flats, prefolds, covers, pocket style diapers and all in ones) to prints there is a variety to choose from.

I remember the first time I bought cloth diapers, I was overwhelmed with all the choices available. Ultimately I went with Bumberry diapers and chose solid colors. The diapers are well built and lasted through our rigorous use and wash routine and still look brand new. The inserts are especially my favorite, the material is soft, long-lasting and a good price for the quality of the product.

  1. Helps in potty training

Because the child is more aware of wetness in a cloth diaper, potty training a cloth diapered baby becomes easier. And if your child is potty trained earlier and easily more savings for you, right?.

All of these reasons made me strongly push for cloth diapers. As a new mom, it took me a while to get used to a cloth diapering routine and figure out how to clean cloth diapers properly. But it was definitely worth the effort to try.

Are you willing to try cloth diapers with your baby? If you use cloth diapers, what were some of the cloth diapering benefits and challenges you faced?