Destination: Contour Diapers

Apologies for no videos yet; our master bathroom is being remodeled, and there has been a lot of noise in our house. Hopefully, I will have some instructions recorded in a few weeks!

Now let us sojourn on to what really interests you, which is most likely NOT my bathroom...

As the name suggests, contour (or fitted) diapers are shaped to fit around the contours of Baby’s tushie without pre-folding. Some contour diapers must still be secured with a Snappi, but many have snaps or Velcro to hold them together. All contour diapers should be covered with a waterproof diaper cover.

Kissaluvs contour diaper. Many cloth diaper users claim these are the best for "blow-outs"; the fabric is very absorbent, and the elastic on the legs helps contain runny infant poo. The variety pictured can be secured with a Snappi, but the company also offers contours with snaps.

Mother-ease offers contour diapers in a variety of natural fibers, including bamboo (which is very soooooft!). Available in different sizes or an adjustable all-sizes diaper, these can be snapped securely onto Baby. 

Thirsties offers "fitted" diapers in an assortment of colors (which, despite being cute, is a bit pointless because the diaper will be covered by a diaper cover). However, the front snaps make the diaper adjustable as Baby grows, and the velcro around the middle gives the diaper a snug fit.

The main reason some people might "upgrade" to a contour diaper from a prefold is to avoid folding. Like a prefold, a contour diaper can be washed while the cover still reused. Most contour diapers come in natural fibers, such as cotton, hemp and bamboo. This is a plus if your baby is allergic to synthetic materials.

Some contour diapers have an elastic opening around the leg, which is good in the case of “blowouts” (when a young baby hasn't pooed for a few days, then lets it all out in one go).

Like prefolds, contour diapers should be changed every 1-2 hours with a small baby, and every 2-3 hours with an older baby. When the natural fiber becomes wet, it keeps the wetness against Baby’s skin and can cause diaper rash. A microfleece liner can create a “stay-dry” feel against Baby’s sensitive skin; if baby is allergic to synthetic fibers, then diaper ointment (avoid ointment with petroleum or zinc oxide) with a rice paper liner will work best.

In terms of pricing, contour diapers cost a bit more than prefolds. A contour diaper costs between $12-$17 each new, so at an average of $15 per diaper, and 24 diapers needed for a two day rotation, you're looking at a $360 investment; add to that approximately $13 per diaper cover, of which you will need 4-5 for a two day rotation.

Destination Prefolds

A prefold diaper is the closest you will find to what your grandparents probably used on your parents. As the name implies, a prefold is a folded piece of cloth, usually made of cotton or a cotton/ hemp blend, fitted over the baby and fastened into place (the plastic Snappi has replaced the infamous diaper pin of yesteryear). There are many different ways to fold the cloth based on the needs of your baby.

A prefold diaper is not waterproof, so a shell or cover is needed to keep baby’s clothes (as well as Mommy, Daddy and other cuddlers) dry. Most covers are made of polyester and plastic, a few are wool—more and more, reusable diaper companies are creating covers with adjustable sizes and super cute colors and designs.

When cloth diaper advocates talk about prefolds, they stress on the fact that they are the money-saving option. A high grade prefold diaper costs, on average, $5 per square, and the covers to go over the cloth square about $13 per cover; using 24 squares in a two-day loop with a newborn, as well as 6 covers, you’re looking at about a $200 investment—IF it is a system that works for you and Baby from newborn to potty-training.

Besides being a cheaper option, prefolds are good for a trimmer look (if your baby is not a heavy wetter, which would result in using multiple prefolds at a time, or adding doublers). A tri-folded prefold is going to fit better under baby’s pants than a bulkier All-in-One or pocket diaper. At night, prefolds can be joined with hemp doublers, but this may not work so well for babies who rash easily (like mine). The natural fibers of prefolds will keep the wet against baby, and after long exposure this can create diaper rash. To prevent rash, you can use a fleece liner between your baby’s bottom and the prefold; diaper cream is also an option, although not all diaper creams are good for cloth diapers.

There are so many ways to fold a prefold that often one feels they are taking a course in origami rather than diaper-folding. But when you have a crying newborn, or a wiggly toddler, on your changing pad, one often isn't up for fancy folding. Something practical and simple is what works best. Below are photos of the most common (as well as most simple) ways to fold a prefold:

Prefold fabric before folding

Bikini Fold: Good for when baby has chunky thighs and needs more room between legs.

Angel Wing Fold: Adds more fabric
around thighs to prevent leaking.

Tri-fold: The most basic fold. Several can
be folded ahead of time so that the prefold
 only has to be placed in the cover. These are also
convenient when out and about.

There are inserts you can use instead of tri-folded prefolds. Babykicks and Thirsties both make hemp and cotton doublers that can be used as inserts. Bumgenius makes a polyester insert called Flip that has microsuede sewn on one side of it; when baby pees, the wet goes through the microsuede into the insert, keeping both the microsuede and the baby’s bottom drier. I highly recommend that you do NOT use diaper cream with microsuede, because over time the oil and zinc oxide in the cream can build-up in the fibers and actually make the insert water-proof! If that ever happens (believe me, it happens), never fear—you will just have to strip your diapers.

Strip diapers? What's that? Another post for another time, I'm afraid, but an important post nonetheless.

The video below features the following brands:
BabyKicks Prefolds
Gerber Flat Sheet
Mother-ease Diaper Cover
Thirsties Diaper Cover
Flip Diaper Cover
Flip Diaper Insert
BioBottoms Wool Diaper Cover
Rebourne Wool Diaper Cover
Snappi

Please watch, learn, comment, teach. :-)

Cloth Diapering: Introduction

My journey through cloth diapering was a bumpy one. One must remember that there are sooo many different KINDS of cloth diapers on the market that there must be some system that works for you and Baby. Also, there might be more than one system that works for you and Baby in different situations, so don’t expect your diaper “stash” to be all the same brand or system.

Good friends were kind enough to lend me their reusable diapers when my daughter was born; we had a stash of Mother-ease cotton contour diapers and a selection of covers, both Mother-ease and Imse Vimse.

Mother-ease Cover

Mother-ease Cotton Contour Diaper

Imse Vimse Cover

While my husband and I were fine with washing and changing them, our little girl soon developed a rash. We changed her diaper at least every two hours, and gave her an hour-long “air time” (no-diaper time) twice per day, but her rash would not leave unless we slathered her with zinc oxide diaper cream and put her in a disposable. We were sad to think that cloth diapers would not work for us, even though they had worked for our friend’s son.

DON’T THINK THIS IS A POST BASHING CLOTH DIAPERS (nor even Motherease, for that matter). We had a lot to learn. Our daughter’s cloth diaper experience does have a happy ending (pun intended). If I met myself from those newborn days, I would have recommended the following options to help prevent my daughter's rash: A.) Use olive-oil based diaper cream with every diaper change (olive-oil based creams are cloth diaper friendly); B.) Put a microfleece liner between the cotton of the diaper and my daughter's skin (microfleece is like a colander-- pee goes through it into the cotton, leaving the microfleece dry against Baby's skin); or C.) Switch to microfleece pocket diapers. When my daughter was 3-months-old, I inherited a set of used FuzziBunz pocket diapers from another friend, and our rash problems dropped dramatically.

RULE ONE for cloth diapering: Just because a certain system or brand works for your friend, or your neighbor, or your sister, does not mean it will work for you. Of course, read reviews, and get feedback from other parents. But the reason there are so many diapering systems out there, as well as companies that keep in business (and more appearing each year), is because there are so many people and babies with different needs.

I work part-time at a consignment shop that also specializes in natural parenting products (The Nesting House). People come from miles around to check out our “Diaper Wall”, where they can touch and feel actual cloth diapers that they would otherwise just read about on the internet. My job (and the fact that I have tried all of the diapers carried in the store) has built a huge learning curve for me, and the best reward is that I was able to find diapers that worked for my little girl. I also love helping new parents decide what diapering system will work for them, and to trouble-shoot any problems they meet along the way.

I will follow this post with descriptions of different types of cloth diaper systems, accompanied with examples and prices, feedback (from myself and customers), and care tips.