I have a confession to make: for the last year, I have been obsessed with my kid’s diapers. I shop for them with excitement and brag about them to my friends. If you had told my pre-parenting self that I’d long for the lastest print or hue of poo catchers, I would have thought you were crazy, but it’s all true. And I’m not alone. Cloth, although still only accounting for a small percentage of diapers, is in fashion and demand again.

I am a proud cloth user, maybe even a cloth addict, so I’m always pleased to see Mom Talk cloth-related questions grace my newsfeed. As a veteran of the cloth, here is my greatest wisdom for the curious or questioning:

1. They’re adorable– There`s no cuter baby bum than one in an adorable cloth diaper. Brand name disposables can try all they want to pretty up their dipes with characters, but the countless options of colours and prints available in cloth will always beat them hands down in the cuteness department.
2. They’re easy to use– Old-school cloth diapers from our parents’ generations were hard work to manage, with pins, folding and hours spent laundering. By comparison, the cloth on the market today are typically closed quickly with snaps or Velcro. Many brands offer one size-fits-all cloth that are slick to stuff or prepare, and washing them are as easy as washing a regular load of baby clothing.
3. They’re an investment- Think: poo catching equity. Disposables are just that- disposable, and are literally like throwing away money. Cloth is definitely more of an investment up front, but once your baby is toilet trained, you can sell your cloth stash for a pretty penny.
4. They’re acceptable hand-me-downs- Although it may at first seem a bit strange considering their purpose, it’s totally normal, encouraged practice to buy your diaper stash used. In fact, it saves a considerable amount of money. Cloth diapers that are well cared for and have been washed following proper procedures have a long life and can be passed on to many babies. There are strict sanitizing guidelines to follow before putting your baby in a used dipe to ensure proper health and safety, but once they’ve been bleached, they’re good as new.
5. They don’t have all the pesky chemicals that can be found in disposables- Disposable diapers are a concoction of man-made fibers and chemicals, which can irritate a baby’s sensitive bottom. Rashes still happen with cloth, especially if your washing process isn’t fine-tuned, but can be fewer rashes than with disposables.
6. They can cure diaper blow-outs- My daughter was talented, even as a newborn, because she could time major diaper blowouts during really important moments and outings. For first Christmas picture on Santa’s lap, she wore a mismatched combo I dug off the bottom of the diaper bag post massive blow-out, and I had to make quick exits from more than one birthday party to get home to a bathtub for my girl. Cloth diapers came into my life and blow-outs were no more. It was magical.
7. They’re not as gross as you may think- Prior to using cloth, I had visions of hippy moms leaning over toilet bowls, dealing with poo. That`s not been my reality as a cloth user at all because of a few modifications I`ve chosen to use. Disposable liners are on the market, making diaper changes much like those of disposables because you just throw away the soiled liner like you would a disposable diaper and keep the rest. To keep waste as little as possible, I simply buy scraps of 100% polyester fleece, cut them to fit the inside of the diapers and, voila, a green option that doesn`t involve touching grossness. If it`s dirty, it gets thrown away; if it`s poo-free, it lives on through another cycle of dipes.
8. They’re more work, but it`s not unmanageable- I have enough of a diaper stash that I wash once a week and keep them contained in a sealed container until washing day each weekend to contain any smells. It`s become a regular part of laundry day and is no more tedious than folding laundry.
9. They’re not an “all or nothing” decision- I use disposables at night because we had leaks and because midnight diaper changes were not something I was interested in doing. Sometimes we choose a disposable for long car rides. When we vacation, we leave the cloth at home. The good news is that a pack of diapers lasts about three months because the majority of the time my girl is rocking the cloth, keeping more out of landfills and more in my pocket.
10. There are tons of brands and options available- I have used several different brands and, although I have preferences based on cuteness and loyalty, the fact is they all do the job. Shop around, look at reviews, talk to other cloth users, compare prices and make your choices based on what works best for your family.
11. They’re the greener option- We need to be concerned about our planet and do more to make greener choices. Facts show that, despite the water usage for washing and the effects of factory production, choosing cloth is the more environmentally responsible choice and greatly reduces a family’s carbon footprint.
12. They’re made even easier through online help- Choosing cloth was like joining a secret society. I become one of the cloth diapering cult and suddenly had more information at my fingertips through online support, Facebook groups and how-to online bibles than I ever considered possible. Choosing cloth was actually pretty overwhelming because of the multitude of options available for your every lifestyle and diapering need, but because people are passionate about cloth, there’s always guidance and help available to get you started and troubleshoot any issues you encounter, having you well on your way to being a skilled member of the proud cloth community.

Kayla

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Meet Kayla!

I am the proud mother of two sweet girls: one an independent, chatterbox, and the other an easy-going, happy ball of joy. A book lover through and through, I have followed my passion from a degree in English Lit to a career teaching middle school literacy. I spend my days teaching the proper placement of the comma (amongst other things), my evenings surviving bedtime routines and stealing cuddles, and my nights binge watching reality tv and late-night snacking with my husband, Scott. My obsessions include keeping up with current events, sharing useless facts, watching American politics with a horrified look on my face, travelling and the idea of “tiny homes”.

Likes- eating noodles, planning future vacations and scoring sweet deals while online shopping.

Dislikes- bananas, bigotry and being cold.