Although I’ve been cloth diapering since 2008, I didn’t use them on a newborn until 2012. Why?
Here are the reasons I chose to use disposables for the first few months:
Meconium staining: I was worried about that black newborn “tar” poo staining newborn diapers. But guess what? The meconium isn’t any worse than the yellow poo. None of Erik’s newborn diapers were discolored by meconium; it rinsed out very well and any lingering discoloration was easily sunned out. But if, even after reading this, you’re still not convinced, just use flushable/biodegradable liners or fleece liners, for the first few days. Better yet, buy a yard of fleece from the fabric store and cut it into lots of tiny liners for mere pennies (you don’t have to sew or serge the edges). What a great little project for those last weeks of pregnancy! Another tip from experience: cloth wipes work much better on newborn poo than flimsy disposable ones.
Shower Gifts: A lot of us receive disposable diapers as gifts and the obvious thought is “I’ll use these up, and then switch to cloth.” That’s what I did the first few times. But just because you have them doesn’t mean your baby has to use them. In fact, when one of the reasons you use cloth is to cut down on waste, then using it during the newborn phase makes a LOT of sense. Your baby goes through more diapers at this stage than any other, and that adds up to hundreds of disposables in the trash – even if you use throw-aways for just a few weeks. So donate them to a needy family or a community charity. Give them to a friend or expectant mother who has no interest in cloth diapering. Or save just a few to stick in your diaper bag or keep on hand for caregivers who are not experienced with cloth.
Inconvenience: If you’re going to be at the hospital (or birth center) for more than a day or so, then having to deal with a big bag of dirty newborn diapers can admittedly be inconvenient. The type of delivery and the amount of recovery time you’ll have does matter. In my case, we usually come back home within 24 hours of delivering at the birth center, so I only have a small wet bag of soiled diapers to bring back with me.
Ask your husband or a visiting friend or relative to throw the diapers in the wash for you upon arriving home. Write your laundering instructions on an index card before birth, and tape it to the washing machine.
Pictured above: the AppleCheeks size one envelope-style cover
Time Savings: I felt like disposables would save me a lot of time during the newborn phase, and in some ways, they do. However, I did discover something interesting after cloth diapering two newborns. I spent a lot more time changing diapers than I did washing them! Think about it. You stand over your little newborn for at least a couple of minutes with every change. Multiply that by 8 or even 10 and you’ve got 25-30 minutes per day on changes, whether you’re using cloth or disposables. I did not spend 30 minutes every day washing diapers. It was more like 10 minutes every 3 days, and I didn’t bother to fold them but kept a laundry basket handy to toss them in straight from the dryer.
To save even more time while cloth diapering a newborn, use AIO diapers instead of covers and prefolds.
Pictured above: the Happy Heinys Mini newborn pocket
And now……here are the reasons I chose to use cloth diapers from birth for my last two babies:
Investment: If you choose to buy newborn-sized diapers (as opposed to one-size) they have an excellent re-sale value. So if you’re not expecting another child, or have extras that you don’t want to save, you’ll make a good deal of your money back. The ones that I sold were snatched up within hours, in most cases. Why do newborn diapers sell more easily? It’s not just because they are tiny and cute. Many moms are leary of spending a lot of money on a “newborn only” stash, so they cut corners by buying used rather than new. For a cover you’re planning to use from 10 pounds to toddlerhood, it makes sense to get something brand new; for a cover you’ll use for just a month, used condition is good enough.
Output: The doctor always wants to know how your baby is peeing and pooping. And new mothers worry about how much milk their child is getting. It’s tough to tell how many wet diapers they have when using super-absorbent disposables. Cloth diapers make is super easy to track a newborn’s output.
Sensitive Bottoms: Newborn skin is soft and delicate. Fluffy, cozy little cloth diapers just seem like the perfect thing to pamper a tiny bottom! For some mothers, this might not be a very convincing reason, but for me, it matters. I love the idea of tiny, soft diapers on my newborn, rather than crackly throw-away ones.
Pictured above: Duo Wrap – (Thirsties cloth diapers)
Performance: Diapers with real elastic really make a difference when it comes to fit and performance. As veteran moms know, the better a diaper fits, the better it holds in all the yukky stuff. Newborn blowouts can be epic; cloth diapers are up to the job. With less accidents, cloth will save you from washing baby clothes constantly.
Changing Sizes: I don’t like spending money on disposable diapers and then having them sit on a shelf when my baby starts changing sizes quickly. Luckily, newborn diapers can last past the newborn stage, if you buy brands that offer some growing room, like Thirsties diapers (the Duo line comes in size one and size two). My Sweet Pea covers have 2 rows of rise snaps, and Erik was able to wear them for 4 months. With disposables, I would have had to buy two different sizes.
Pictured above: newborn Sweet Pea cover
Trips to the Store: Finally! The first time we had a newborn in the house and no one had to run to the store in a panic when the diapers ran out!
Cuteness: This factor cannot be denied. A beautiful newborn in a tiny little cloth diaper is simply adorable. Perfect for those first photos, too.
Pictured above: Baby Coon newborn fitted
I’d like to hear your thoughts about using cloth diapers on a baby, right from the start. Do you prefer to wait? Or are you putting together a stash right now for your next baby?
And if you’re really curious about all the different newborn diapers I tried on Erik (yeah….it was at least 30 different kinds LOL) then you might find all my reviews helpful:
Review of 14 Different Newborn Covers
Review of 7 Different Newborn Pocket Diapers
Review of 9 Different Newborn Fitted Diapers
Review of 8 Different Newborn AIO Diapers
I did with my recent one, but it was mostly due to recovering from a c-section. That was only a week at most, after that my husband and eldest two daughters kept up with the laundry for me until I was back on top. I do have to say there is something AWWWWE-inspiring about those itty bitty little newbie diapers. 😉
My first was a c-section and I would definitely agree – using cloth at the hospital would be trickier because you have to stay longer and the recovery is more difficult. ~Anne
I just used the package of disposables that they gave us in the hospital (lasted a couple of days)… then switched to cloth full time. I still use an occasional disposable, but those I got as free samples too 🙂
You can’t beat free, I guess! ~Anne
I didnt try cloth until my first was about three months just because I was new to it and didnt know where to start. I did not know anyone who used cloth so basically just started getting different brands until I found what I liked and what was easy to use. With my second, I just have one size diapers so decided to buy some newborns since the one sizes where too big, so my second was in cloth at a week old. Now that I have newborn diapers, I will be using cloth from the beginning with my next (whenever that will be). I definitely agree with the cloth diapers holding in poo better than disposables. I like sai, my second was in cloth at a week old and is now five months old and still in cloth. A few weeks ago, we took a three day family vacation and I thought it would be easier to use disposables since we would be in the car and drvivng around national parks. Well, I changed her outfit three times in one day due to blowouts up the back of a dispoable diaper. That was the first time I ever had to change her clothes due to a blowout. Five months in cloth with no blowouts and one day in disposables with two blowouts….if that dont say something about how well the fit of cloth holds in poo 🙂
Thanks for the info and sharing your experience. I pinned this for later too.
Thanks for sharing your story, and for pinning, Aimee! Wow, that blowout saga is a great testimonial for how well cloth fits. I rarely had to change Erik’s clothing because of runny newborn poo. His diapers, especially when they were used with a double-gusset cover, just didn’t leak. ~Anne
Did you buy newborn specific cloth diapers or did you use the one size fits all ones? I am wanting to cloth diaper but was going to wait till the baby was a bit older but you make very good points plus I do agree that cloth diapers are so cute!
Hi Shelby! Yes, I bought a lot of newborn-sized diapers – covers and prefolds mostly, but some AIO’s and fitteds, too. I published reviews of ALL of them back in January. You can see them here, and hopefully they’ll be helpful to you in building a newborn stash:
Review of 14 Different Newborn Covers
Review of 7 Different Newborn Pocket Diapers
Review of 9 Different Newborn Fitted Diapers
Review of 8 Different Newborn AIO Diapers
I totally would have right away but my son was in the nicu for 6 1/2 weeks, but the day he came home he was in cloth! grovia newborn aios and tiny g diapers with gerber prefolds:)
The GroVia newborns are some of my favorites! Love the snaps they use, and the colors are beautiful. ~Anne
lol at 23 weeks my little man is already an estimated 1 and a half lbs that is up from 10 oz 4 weeks ago, I am pretty sure as soon as we get home his OS diapers will fit! LOL
Wow, I guess so, Jessica! You make super babies! ~Anne
I have my stash all ready for our Newbie that will be here some time in October. I have a couple more wool items to get and make, and I have a few more Happy Flute AIOs on the way, but other than that, I’m all set! I will be selling some of whatever gender baby is not though. We will be using cloth in the hospital 🙂 Honestly, I’ve gotten really weird about disposable stuff. Everything disposable just grosses me out. I cringe when I see mamas with a stash of disposable diapers in their nursery already. I know it’s bad and judgemental….. I just keep chatting up cloth whenever I get the chance, hoping that more moms will get on board with cloth diapering their littles. I think the few of us that CD have added about 5 more mamas on board since we got pregnant 🙂
BTW – I have TWO littles currently potty training right now!!!! My diaper shelves are so bare now that I’ve packed away almost all of my OS diapers except for their overnights, some fitteds and their trainers and undies!!! I can’t wait to see all those little newbie diapers on the shelf in a few months!!!
Thanks for being such a great cloth ambassador, Justice! Your enthusiasm is very catching, obviously. Wow, what a small world. My toddlers are both training now, too, and my little girl is making MORE headway than her older brother. All my boys have really dragged their feet on this…..
Congrats on the little one!! ~Anne
LOL!!! That is EXACTLY what we are dealing with here too!!! Matty will be 4 in November and I really wanted him out of diapers forever a go, but he’s so lazy and uncaring about diapers. He’d rather wear them 🙁 In the push to get him moving, we offered Candy!! His brother seized the opportunity right out of his hands! LOL 22 months and actually doing a pretty great job with it. My boys have all been slow to train for the most part too.
Thanks so much! <3
Yeah, we have a candy stash in our bathroom. I freely admit it! LOL ~Anne
Great post! Admittedly, I used disposables in the hospital (didn’t want to mess with 4 days of cloth w/ my c-section) and for a week afterwards. I honestly didn’t feel guilty using disposables in the very beginning, because there was so much else going on (as a first time mom). I think the choice to use cloth from the get-go will depend upon whether this next baby is a boy or a girl. Not to start a debate, but we circumcise, and I think it’s just easier to care for without having to worry about the ointment ruining cloth diapers. I am, however, curious about newborn fitteds. I feel as though I can’t trust anything but prefolds with those explosive BF poos…
Yeah, I’m really with you and Jami (who posted above). A c-section is a special circumstance, and disposables would be a welcome convenience. My first was surgical, so I know what the whole experience is like. And speaking of surgery, you’ll find no debate here as far as circumcision goes.
Newborn fitteds….the ones I tried worked really well, maybe because there’s a gusset on the diaper AND a gusset on the cover. So it’s like double protection. You might just buy a few cheap ones (like GMD workhorse or Tinkle Traps) and give it a whirl. I get so curious about things I eventually HAVE to try them, even if it means buying a used one in a diaper swap to save cash!
~Anne
This post could not be more well timed for me! My baby is due in early October and I’m making decisions now. And thank you for the links to your newborn diaper reviews. I’m actually setting up my registry now and I am registering for A LOT of cloth diapers and one pack of disposables. I’m hoping that I will get the message across and maybe even get some free cloth diapers for my shower!
I never thought to register for cloth, Colleen. That’s such a sensible idea! Hope you get some nice things, and thanks for taking time to comment. Congrats on your little one! ~Anne
Colleen – I registered and received ALL OF OUR DIAPERS but I had friends who didn’t receive any. The trick is to add a note about them on your shower invitations. People will go crazy buying prefolds but I find the cheapy prefolds we got as gifts (not on registry) make excellent diaper bag residents. They take less room and are just fine for my NB’s bottom in a pinch or for a few hours until we get home. Congrats on your little!! Using cloth from NB is FANTASTIC!! I love it.
Thanks Anne and Jess. And great advice Jess!!
I didn’t start using cloth until about 16 months because I didn’t know anything about it until then! But I can definitely say that when my niece (I don’t have children of my own, but she’s in my care) had a nasty poo experience that WOULD have definitely been a blowout with any child at my workplace, her Charlie Banana diaper contained it so well that I was surprised! I did go with a disposable one day though because I had forgotten her diapers at home but found a disposable in my car… Needless to say, it was another nasty poo experience, but it was all over her pants and shirt 🙁 So I try to tell everyone I know just how great cloth is at containing those awful messes!
That’s a great story, Felicia! ~Anne
This is such a great post! So informative and I love all the sweet pics too!
We’ve been using cloth since our first baby was born, over ten years ago. But I must confess we started our newest little guy (about to turn 2 mos) in disposables. (“Paper diapers,” I call them. Keepin’ it real. 😉 ) His legs were just simply too skinny to get a snug enough fit with our cloth covers. (I could have bought something different that fits smaller, but it seemed a bit silly – and pricey – for just a couple of months.)
I would love to know, though, for future reference, if there are particular brands/styles of covers you (or your other readers) have found good for skinny babies. (My guy is over 10 lbs, but he’s still in the up-to-10-lbs newborn disposables – he’s just so long and THIN.)
I did the same thing at first, Rachel! Erik is #7 and the first one I’ve cloth diapered from birth. You can read all my newborn reviews here:
Review of 14 Different Newborn Covers
Review of 7 Different Newborn Pocket Diapers
Review of 9 Different Newborn Fitted Diapers
Review of 8 Different Newborn AIO Diapers
He was not a large or chunky newborn and had little bird legs and we found a lot of things that worked great! ~Anne
I used cloth after the first week. It was great. I did still use disposables when out of the house for the first month or so just to make life easier. My favorites were Bitty Bee diapers and swaddlebees simplex AIO newborn.