So since I am going the cloth diaper route, I obviously had to address the baby wipe situation as it is slightly hypocritical to use disposable baby wipes when choosing to use cloth diapers! So I decided to try and make my own. I haven’t sewed in years and I have to admit I am super excited to take on a project like this. I personally love looking through fabrics and the idea of turning nothing into something, especially when it is for my little one on the way, is so gratifying.

So I decided to make a double sided wipe, one side with a cheerful pattern and the back side in a solid, checkered or striped.  Since these will be used very often and washed frequently they need to be durable so double sided was definitely the way to go.  I chose two different materials to make two different wipes with and chose a fabric for the backing that would match both materials.

I figured that a 7 in by 7in wipe would be an ideal size, so what I did was cut out a cardboard template from a cereal box that was 7 by 7 and used that as a guide for my wipes.  I made sure to cut the fabric about 1/2 an inch wider than what I needed so that I had room to sew the wipe and cut the edges off so that I didn’t lose width in my wipe.

As I did not have access to a serger, I used a sewing machine instead.  I chose to use a wider patterned stitch that was durable and pretty.  All you have to do is start a 1/2 inch in from the edge and sew in a square pattern.  I chose to round out my corners and I did this by my eye, I did not measure it all out properly because really…it’s just a baby wipe!

Once I had sewn all around the edges I simply cut off the outside material as close as I could to the stitch without cutting the stitch of course.  Since I am not using a serger the edges of the material will frey a bit which is why cutting off the edges as cleanly as you can is helpful.

The end result was perfect.  They are adorable and will do the trick nicely!  For a closer look into making your own cloth baby wipes feel free to watch my video!

So I decided that if I am to use cloth diapers I had better use cloth baby wipes as well.  I mean what good is there in using cloth diapers and then using disposable baby wipes?

The idea of a sewing project truly excited me, I haven’t done anything like it before but I do enjoy looking through fabric and saving money so this has to be a great assignment for me.  So a couple of weeks ago I made a trip into Vancouver and sourced out some great flannel there, decided on my fabric patterns and then headed to the cutting table for some advice on how much fabric I would need for my project as I had no clue.

I figured that I wanted to make around 50 baby wipes that would be double sided in fabric and roughly 7in x 7in.  I bought two different patterns of fabric and another fabric that matched both to be used as the second side, so I would have a two sided wipe, one with a patter and the other a solid colour.  The assistant told me I would need 5 meters in each pattern and 10 in the solid in order to make the amount I wanted.

So I watched as they measured out my fabric and I was absolutely sure that there was waaaaayyyy too much material, but as I am not the expert here I said nothing.  That was my first mistake!  Once it is cut the material is a final sale!  The second mistake was that I should have asked what the price was before they started measuring.  The assistant filled out an order sheet for me first which would have been my warning sign as the bill was $154.00!!!  And that was with a 30% discount!

Ooops.

So much for my inexpensive project.  The other day I started cutting out my squares and stopped at 60 wipes and I still have enough fabric to triple this project!  So instead my project has gotten larger, now I plan to make some fitted sheets, receiving blankets, bibs and whatever else I need.

Besides the material is sooooo cute!

So as I was saying earlier, choosing to use cloth diapers might be an easy choice, but deciding on which brand to go with and which type to use is certainly not!   There is so much choice today on the reusable diaper market so it is important for new parents to do some research to figure out which type of diaper will work best for you.

Types of Cloth Diapers

Prefolds – If you are looking for the most inexpensive way to cloth diaper your baby, this is the way to go.  Basically this is what our parents used!  Prefolds work by using various folding techniques to properly fold the diaper so that it is thicker in the necessary places for your baby.  Then the diaper is either secured with pins or a very snug diaper cover. Prefolds do require diaper covers to protect them from leakage.

They might be cheap but they require a lot of folding, pining and securing.  Not the most convenient option for me anyways.

Fitted Diapers – This type of cloth diaper is one step up from the old classic prefold.  Fitted cloth diapers are fitted accordingly to your baby’s size eliminating the folding process.  These diapers use elastic around the legs and waist for maximum leakage protection.  Since fitted diapers are essentially prefolds that have been appropriately cut and fitted for baby, they do not have a waterproof outer layer so they all require diaper covers.

Pocket Cloth Diapers – The pocket cloth diaper changed the way we all look at the cloth diapering system.  This diaper and diapers like them are very similar to disposable diapers and truly make cloth diapering accessible.  A pocket diaper essentially means that the diaper is designed with a pocket where an additional cloth liner can be inserted into the diaper for extra protection while having a waterproof exterior shell.

All in One Diapers – Most All in One diapers are very similar to pocket diapers only they are generally suited to certain sizes.  Most have pockets for cloth liners and some allow liners to lie in the center of the diaper essentially making the outer layer a diaper cover instead.  This allows for parents to simply change the liner and reuse the outer shell.

The trouble with the All in One’s is that you need to purchase different sizes as your baby grows therefore the initial cost might be higher than expected.  That being said though, your diapers will not wear out as quickly and you will most likely get through two, possibly even three children with them.  So in the long run financially, this diaper might be the wisest choice!

One Size Diapers – These are All in One diapers that will grow with your child!  Definitely the most convenient style of cloth diapering system.  Generally these diapers will fit babies from 7lbs to 35lbs or from newborn to potty training!  The issue with these diapers is that they can be very bulky on newborns and may not offer the best fit in general as can an All in One diapering system.

These diapers offer convenience while being cost effective as well.

So which one works best for you???  I have no idea!  I think the first thing we need to do before purchasing the right type of cloth diaper is to determine our needs and requirements from a diapering system.  Ask yourself,

“How often do I want to do laundry?”

“How many kids do we expect to use cloth diapers with?”

“Will we be using cloth diapers at night time?”

“How much time do I have to fold properly?”

“What is my ideal budget?”

“Will I be the primary ‘diaper changer’ or will my care giver?”

“How much space do I have for storage?”

Through a process of elimination the right cloth diapering system might suddenly appear!  All the best with your decision.

Now which brand to use…….?

There seems to be only one thing that is a must for me in having a child and that is to use cloth diapers. I am just not ok with throwing out that much waste for my own personal convenience. I understand it is not for everyone, and I certainly have had to work on my husband on this subject, but with today’s technology cloth diapering has changed drastically!

Gone are the folded squares with plastic pants and pink plastic covered safety pins. Now cloth diapering has been made easy… or is it? As I recently found out, making a switch to a cloth diapering system is not an easy choice at all! In fact there is so much choice today, picking the right system requires the same amount of studying as a University case study! Seriously!

But first I wanted to share some statistics with you to put the fear of global destruction into your heads! Not really…but It’s worth seeing to believe right?  Unfortunately, the only official statistics I could find from the Canadian Government was from 2004, but even then the numbers are still staggering, and staggering numbers are what I’m going for here!

According to Environment Canada on disposable diapers:
* Over 4,000,000 disposable diapers are discarded per day in Canada.
* Approximately 250,000 tonnes of disposable diapers are sent for disposal each year in Canada, according to 2004 figures.
* Disposable diapers represent approximately 3 percent of the total quantity of residential waste for disposal in Canada.
* Effluents from the disposable diaper manufacturing process (plastic, pulp and bleached paper) are more damaging to the environment than the cotton and hemp growing and manufacturing process used for cloth diapers.

Their website also makes a case against using cloth diapers in the usual debate over water and energy consumption used to wash diapers.  They do make a good point in the importance of researching your local waste and water resources within your community.  If your community uses a landfill, consider cloth.  If your community has water resource issues consider disposable.

That to me seems like a fair point, however all disposable diapers take anywhere between 250 – 500 years to decompose in ideal composting conditions which landfills are not.  4,000,000 diapers per day Canada!!  No Way!  That’s horrific!

There are ways to reduce water and hydro consumption when using cloth reusable diapers and that seems to be purchasing enough diapers for your rotation to allow for washes every 3 days and hang-dry diapers whenever possible.  Plus it is important to have enough diapers in your rotation to reduce their wear and tear.  The biggest advantage of these cloth diapers is that they can be used through 2 even 3 children if cared for properly!  This presents an enormous opportunity for great savings for parents over the long run.

The trouble with cloth reusable diapers and the biggest reason parents do not welcome the idea of using such a diaper is the additional effort required.  The way I see it, it requires proper planning.  With planning comes less effort, which is why I am starting my search today…with 7 months to go!  To get on the cloth diapering train you need to plan ahead and get your system ready to go so you don’t have to think about it when the baby comes.  When the baby arrives there will no doubt be an adjustment period but the pay off is saving the environment, your bank account, and getting a head start on preparing your baby for potty training.

The easy choice is to choose cloth diapering.  The difficult part is deciding which reusable diaper to use!  So I am starting the process of researching various cloth reusable diapers on the market today.  Stay tuned for my finds!

P.S.  The adorable baby I am featuring is wearing Apple Cheeks reusable diaper envelopes, I took the image from their site, hopefully they won’t mind but I like this company and they are entirely made in Montreal!