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| Beni rockin a Thirsties Fitted and Cover |
But, the main reason we chose to use cloth diapers, I think, is because of the horror stories we had heard about getting your hands on disposable diapers while living abroad. I like to make eco-friendly choices as much as I can, so when we do use disposables, we always use earth-friendly brands, and none of those are available where we live.
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| Bummis prefold under a Thirsties cover |
But not just that, from the stories we had heard from a few other parents, just as with almost everything else, you can't count on the store having diapers when you need them. Or they have them, but not in the right size. Or they have diapers, but not the brand you like. Everything is imported to Angola, and when you drive by the port you can see loads of cargo ships...they litter the port, and they sometimes sit there for months on end waiting to get through the red tape to offload their goods. So you can imagine, the diapers you like, in the size you need, might be stuck on a ship! Hence, pretty easy choice to go ahead and take the plunge with cloth.
And aren't I glad we did! I just love, again, how cute they are. I love that my baby has soft cloth against her girly bits instead of....well, everything that a disposable is made of. I love that I am only ever about 5 hours away from a whole load of clean diapers (that's wash and dry time all together). I love that I don't have to leave the house to get clean diapers.
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| Bummis swim diaper |
So I have to tell you first where we bought the majority of our diapers. I wouldn't have been able to make any decisions about what to use or buy without the help of Kellie, owner of EcoBuns. I found her store via the Internet, and then found all the help I needed at her store in the form of herself! The first time I went to visit she talked to me for over an hour about all the different kinds of diapers, how they all work, what is better about one over the other, etc. She was AWESOME, and brought my level of confusion about cloth diapers from a 10 to a 1. EcoBuns is online and has a lovely little store in Holland, Michigan- and they carry a lot more than diapers. If you go, know your spending limit and bring an iron will because I promise you, you will leave wanting WAY MORE than you ever thought possible!
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| Bummis prefold under my favorite Thirsties cover! |
We ended up buying Bummis organic prefolds
and a few Bummis covers
, as well as a few Thirsties covers
and Thirsties fitteds
to use when Beni was itty-bitty (0-6 mos). My husband and I both really, really loved the Bummis prefolds. They were easy to use, easy to wash, easy to pack and did a good job of containing whatever Beni produced- not to mention also doubling as burp rags, nursing covers, and the list of other functions could go on. We loved the Thirsties covers the best, because they fit Beni better and didn't let ANYTHING leak. All of these diapers were also very easy on the pocketbook.We made a larger investment in BumGenius Organic All-in-ones. These diapers are definitely more expensive, but, they are worth it. They have been our night time diaper from day one because they could hold more than a prefold. They are SO easy to use, as using them is exactly like using a disposable, just put it on and go. No pining, just one piece, no stuffing anything...couldn't be easier. This is the diaper that Beni wears most of the time now. They come in nice solid colors, and just recently in some cute prints as well.
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| Bummis Tots Bots Easy Fit diaper |
diapers, which are also an all-in-one system, and super easy to use. They come in RIDICULOUSLY cute patterns- which is the main reason I HAD to get my hands on a few. The mushroom one is my favorite.  |
| The Happy Heinys Cow Print |
So those are our diapers. I love them. I think Beni likes them too. And honestly, my husband finds disposables harder to use than cloth, because, cloth is basically all he knows. So he loves them too!
Cloth diapering was the right choice for us because of our circumstances and our preferences.... was it yours, too? How do you feel about cloth diapers? Love them? What's your favorite? Hate them? Why? Thinking about trying cloth with your next baby? If you're in Holland, Michigan or within a reasonable driving distance- visit EcoBuns! I promise you won't regret it!
8 comments:
So, I don't think I've spread the word enough yet, so you might not know, but we are expecting in June! And, we are definitely cloth diapering! It's taken my husband some convincing, but we've done some research, and along with what you've shared here, realized that it is less expensive, better for baby and for the environment, and way cuter! I've also realized there isn't one set that we'll need to buy - it seems like the mix and match deal is better. I love the Bum Genius All-in-Ones, but they are pricey. I'm looking for used ones on Craigslist, but they go fast around here! I think we'll start with prefolds and see how we do - and then invest in some All-In-Ones when the hubby is fully convinced! (Love your blog, by the way!)
Well you know I love cloth diapers! :) I'm a pocket mama, I don't mind the stuffing and it helps the drying process go a bit quicker (we line dry). Now if only I could figure out if night time cloth diapering would work for us. I really want to do it 24/7!
As an Aussie cloth-nappy mamma, I was always amazed surfing US sites and looking at all the colourful designer cloth nappies available. We used plain old white cotton terry towelling nappies - you know, squares of fabric, like square towels. And learned to fold 'em in a blink of an eye! What's the nappy terminology in the US for that?? + plastic grippy T shaped things to fasten them (what're they called?) and "placky dacks" on top. Yep, that's definitely the technical term for waterproof pants. I loved cloth nappies!! Mind you, we used disposables at nighttime, for a more uninterrupted sleep :) When we got here to Latvia I was stunned by the fact that they didn't use cloth nappies at all, because everyone had horror stories of remembering the soviet era and no washing machines, and having to boil the nappies (which were thing cotton gauzy things) on the stove in a big pot. So we were totally radical by using them in Riga. Nowadays ecomammas here are returning to clothies, but not as enthusiastically as elsewhere :) One question about all the fancy prefolds etc - how easy/quick is it to dry them? Because I bought one in the very beginning and was amazed how LONG it took to dry compared to the classic nappy.
Mook, I think we would call that classic kind of nappy a flat.
Prefolds probably take a bit longer than flats to dry, but, for me, they were always dry within one dryer cycle, so I don't think they take that long.
Ang, look for an email from me...and if you want to try my Happy Heinys I haven't actually sold them yet...
Also Mook, I wouldn't really know, because I never used them, but I don't think American flat diapers were made out of "terry toweling". (I think in the States we call this terry cloth.) I think flats in America were mostly made of some kind of plain cotton. Looks like more of a giant scarf, not a towel.
In general, I think Aussies really love their "terry toweling". For nappies...for baby suits (like pajamas)... I think America mostly stopped using terry cloth for anything but towels in like, the 70s. :) Maybe I'm wrong...I think there was a small comeback with it at some point... but I don't think it lasted.
OK, sorry, one last comment to you, Mook... if you're asking about drying time for the fancier all in one diapers, etc... they do take longer, especially when air/line drying. But, we wash diapers every two days, so that is about 12 all in ones and maybe a fitted or two, and I set the dryer for the 120 minute setting, which is a low heat setting, and they are always dry by the end of that. So, works for me. I always throw them in the dryer just before going to bed, and they are dry in the morning!
Terry towelling makes the world go round. Didn't you know?
Ah forgot about the dryer dimension. Never had one of them! Not planning to either ;) But I can see they would be useful when drying prefold nappies!
I love all your cloth diaper pics! So cute! We cloth diaper as well but we use the flip one size diapers along with 4 bumGenius one size and we absolutly love them! My DH has no problem with them either so thats a plus!
I've been meaning to write a review on my blog about those two cloth diapers that I own, i think you have just given me the push I need :)
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