Why Cloth Diaper
As of last night I have officially placed 2 cloth diaper orders in preparation for baby's arrival. That and online research are the extent of my experience with cloth diapers. Do my family and friends cloth diaper? No. So what are some of the reasons that I am choosing to go the CD route? 1. My husband and I are shocked sometimes at how much trash we have to put out on trash day. There are only two of us with two small dogs and yet we fill up a good sized garbage pale pretty quickly. Granted, we could definitely do better filling our recycling bins. Composting may be something we try in the future also. After reading some of the statistics regarding disposable diapers, however (like how many are thrown out every year and how long they take to decompose), I thought this might be one way to lessen our waste output. 2. Cost. Unless you go with only prefolds and covers, cloth diapers aren't the cheapest things on the planet. Disposable diapers aren't either though, and you go through a lot more disposables. These days, there are so many different options for cloth diapering, and many types of diapers that actually grow with your infant/toddler. There are even places like message boards and ebay where you can easily sell used diapers for many times half of what you paid for them (I don't think anyone would pay you half of what you paid for your used disposable diapers). Most cost estimates I've found online show the cost of cloth from infancy to potty training (including laundering) to be significantly lower than the cost of disposable diapers over the same amount of time. Also consider how much more this saves if the same cloth diapers are used for the next child (again something you can't do with disposables). To me those all the websites on the planet don't compare to the many testimonials of mom's who have made the switch and actually noticed the difference in savings. 3. I am a homemaker. I no longer work outside of the home. So, I do have the extra time to do the laundry cloth diapering requires. The care and changing of my child will be mainly my responsibility, so I think it should be my choice. 4. Chemicals. I used newborn disposable diapers for my little chihuahua for a while, when she'd go into heat. I'd just poke a hole big enough for her tail and strap one of those babies on. After a while though I noticed that lots of powdery stuff comes out of a newborn cloth diaper and it sure doesn't smell like baby powder. I know that placing a disposable diaper on a newborn baby doesn't usually include jabbing a hole in the diaper, but I started to wonder just what was inside these things and if I really want that stuff against my baby's skin 24/7. Many people fill their baby registries and baby food cupboards with organic pesticide/free everything and rush to trade plastic baby bottles for glass when there is a warning about the chemical in plastic bottles, but don't think twice about the chemicals sitting next to those tiny tushies day and night. Being the oldest of 4 children in a single parent family, I remember the smell of dirty diaper well. I guess some of that smell is actual from the chemical in the diapers themselves. Baby pee and poop (ok..any pee and poop) doesn't smell like roses by itself, so why add to it. 5. Cute options and support. Cloth diapers come in so so so MANY varieties! As an added bonus on top of everything else I can chose what colors and materials to use, whether to use snaps or velcro and, thanks to the Internet, have access to lots and lots of cloth diapering mamas for advice and support. I've found that, much like other mothering communities (like la leche league for breastfeeding for example) cloth diapering moms are very willing to give advice and recommendations and share their experiences (good and bad) with you. 6. If I hate it I can always switch. Your first cloth diapering order does not come with a contract stating that if you decide to switch to disposables you will be punished and fined. -So, those are the main reasons that I have personally decided to give cloth diapering a good try. I highly suggest anyone interested in CDing do their own research though. Type "why cloth diaper?" into your search engine or visit different online diapering/parenting message boards and communities. Better yet, see if there is a local retailer of cloth diapers in your area and speak to the owner. Decide what cloth diapering method you'd like to try (prefolds, fitteds, all-in-ones, pockets etc.) and figure out how much it'll cost you to get started (remember, many cloth diapering sites have package deals and "bulk" discounts along with bonuses like free or dicounted covers and free shipping). Research different laundering methods (there is more than one way to wash a cloth diaper! Message boards are a great resource for ideas on what real moms do to get their diapers fresh and clean while still extending the life of the diaper.) and what kinds of soap and accessories you'll need (diaper pail, pail liner, etc.).
Some Online Information Sources
Please also do your own research. I have a list here of some of the sites I have found helpful or that have been recommended on message boards. Look at a variety of sites. Just because one site recommends you buy so many of a certain type of diaper and wash them a certain way, doesn't mean that's the only way. Get ideas and figure out what might actually be do-able for you.
The Birth Source Catalog This site only sells 2 brands of diapers: Swaddlebees and Little Beetle. So, the info on their "how many" page is directed to using just those diapers. I think it gives you a decent idea of some of the accessories you may want to buy and how many diapers you'd need to buy depending on how often you want to do laundry.
Sunshine Diapers - Cloth Diapering University This site has a great description of some of the cloth diapering methods along with average prices for each type of diaper. I highly recommend the "Why Cloth" section and I love that they have a whole section just on diapering a newborn.
The Diaper Lady I like that she gives both pros and cons to different diapering systems.
Diaper Pin Awesome site. Lots of info. Reviews of different types of diapers AND retailers! They even have a dictionary of diapering terms.
Mothering.com
The Diaper Hyena
The Diaper Jungle
Where To Buy Online
This is by no means a comprehensive list of all the cloth diaper retailers available to you online. These are only the ones I have found on my own or that were recommended to me. Remember, many of these sites contain a wealth of information on cloth diapering and welcome questions. Many also offer baby registries or wishlists.
Baby Naturale Free shipping on orders over $100.
Cotton Babies Free shipping on orders of $74.95+ in the US.
Maine Cloth Diaper Company Free shipping on orders of $75+ in the US.
Green Mountain Diapers
CottonTail Baby Free shipping on orders over $80 in the US.
Soft Cloth Bunz Free shipping on orders over $150.
Integrity Diaper Company Chinese Prefolds and Flatfolds only.
Azure Wraps $10 flat rate shipping on Canadian orders only. Cannot ship to US.
Kidalog Free shipping on orders over $100 to Canada. For US only a $5 shipping fee is charged on orders over $100.
Jardine Diapers Discounted shipping rates on orders over $99.
The Cloth Diaper Market A Canadian company. Prices in Canadian dollars. Free shipping on orders over $225. They do accept $US and ship internationally.
Green Acre Designs Free Priority shipping on orders over $100 in the US. Their own house brand of diapers. Many unusual colors and designs. Embroidery available.
Simple Wonders Free and fast shipping on orders over $75 to the US.
Earthy Birthy Mama Free shipping on orders over $75.
For Baby With Love Prices in Canadian dollars. Free shipping on orders over $150 in Canada.
Diaper-Eze Canadian company. Prices in Canadian dollars. They ship everywhere.
Punkin-butt
Sweet Cheeks Diapers Prices in Canadian dollars. They ship worldwide.
Extraordinary Baby Shoppe Prices in Canadian dollars.
Tiny Birds Organics Ship only to US addresses.
Diaper Swappers
Hyena Cart
Mother-Ease Highly, highly, highly recommended on many message boards I've visited.
Wildflower Diapers
Jillian's Drawers I have ordered from this site. Excellent selection. They were the only site I could find that had ALL the items I wanted IN STOCK when I placed my first order. They offer 6 free cloth wipes with an order of 12 Kissaluvs. I placed my order around 9:30pm and it was already out and in UPS's system for tracking by the next morning.
Nicki's Diapers I just ordered from this site last night. They offer a free or discounted diaper cover (depending on which brand you choose) with an order of 6 Kissaluvs fitted diapers (also dicounted). Free shipping on orders over $75. Free shipping also on diaper covers and many other items.
I chose initially to go with 12 Kissaluvs fitteds (size 0) with 6 Prowrap covers (size newborn) and a selection of Pocket diapers (3 Happy Heiny's and 3 BumGenius - both in their "One Size" versions). I went ahead and added 12 more Kissaluvs last night (this time I ordered colored ones in Melon and Berry also in size 0) and took advantage of the discounted diaper covers offered by Nicki's to get 2 small sized covers. I chose Kissaluvs fitteds after reading rave reviews on their newborn fit on many sites. The Prowrap covers I chose because of the reviews I read on Diaper Pin. The pocket diapers I chose because they are both now available in the "One-Size" version and because of great reviews each brand got on both Diaper Pin and message boards I visit.
I'll keep you posted on how cloth diapering goes for me!
~Jessy
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment