Gradual conversion to cloth

[aimee-lou]

Hi everyone,

Hoping you can help.

I have always planned to swap to cloth once Earl got to 3 months....this has now crept up on me well and truly and we can't really afford to buy a full set up. I had planned on getting just plain old terries but even they work out as expensive on the whole.

I had a bit of a brainwave and thought maybe I would buy a few to start us off to use at night - We have big problems with his Pampers leaking in the night, as he sleeps through and I don't want to wake him to change him.

I have quite a tight budget so was wondering if a. anyone could point me in the direction of a cheap-er brand/setup and b. anyone had done a similar thing. Please correct me if I'm completely Whacko here! lol Are the one soff ebay ok or should I go to Mothercare etc?

Thanks in advance.

 

[lfernie]

I pretty much done the Same as you and I'm just starting, I saw in mothercare that u can buy thier smart nappy kit with a pail for £35. Also I got 2 lots of bogof flips from fill ur pants otherwise maybe try some preloved. X

also meant to say I got naughty babies off eBay and they're good for the money i've not had a problem with them x

 

[thelilbump]

Hiya.

I think a majority of people build there nappy stashes up one by one as and when they can afford it. Preloveds a cheaper option but it depends on how you feel about that and you have to becareful because sometimes if it's a popular nappy, like bumgenius, itti bitti, blueberries etc you might only end up spending a little more to get it brand new.

There are cheap options such as naughty babies etc (ebay) but you do tend to get what you pay for

 

[Kaites]

Hey Aimee! If you are looking to start with something just for nighttime, you could start with a couple of Bamboozles and a good wrap over top (I love the motherease covers). The wrap can be used a few times as long as it doesn't get any poopy messes on it (pretty rare) so you could probably get away with 2 fitted bamboozles and 1 cover if you were washing every couple days. We've built up a sizeable stash but for nighttime, it's really just our bamboozles that get used since they are super absorbant. We've got some ebay cheapies too, but I only use them during the day now that Emma mostly sleeps through since they aren' as absorbant. Have fun shopping for fluff- it gets addictive

 

[aimee-lou]

Thanks guys - I did some research when I was still PG but we decided to put it off in favour of getting other things we'd need immediately (like 4 sets of clothes as LO grew like the clappers lol), so now I'm flummoxed by the choice lol. If I'm honest I will most likely just go into my local mothercare and buy as much as I can afford! lol I changed Earl twice last night, as well as his clothes twice as he'd leaked A LOT at both changes - Pampers are really starting to not work for him, even in the + sizes.

I'm actually really looking forward to this....may have to pop onto ebay and price up some stuff....I'm not sure about pre-loved ones. I wouldn't like to wear second hand knickers so I think maybe I have a bit of a thing about that lol.

Thanks for the help and suggestions ....I think eventually everyone will end up on cloth....we're staying with disposables during the day for the time being as hubby and I have both voiced a distate for 'messy' items going through the washing machine lol. But, as I've seen time and time again in here, I'm sure this will change lol.

EDIT:

Ok, I've been on Mothercare online and developed myself a shopping list. As I'm not sure between getting AIO's or Terries I have decided to get a little of both lol.

2 Smart Nappy outers @5.99 (1 x M, 1 x L)
2 packs of disposible inserts @3.49 (1 x M, 1 x L)
1 x Pack of 6 Terries @ 9.99
1 x Pack of waterproof pants @ 4.99 (M 6-12m)
Nappy pail @6.99
Nappy soak @2.49
3 x nappy nippas @ 3.99
Cost: £49.59

Does this sound like a good starting point? My idea was the use the terries at night and try the outers during the day/if we go away they will be less fiddly when we're away. I could of course be wrong lol. I may get 2 more outers (1 more in each size) but I have a £50 voucher left from Christmas so this seems like a good way to spend it lol.

 

[littlestar]

just so you know the smart nappy outers are gusseted inside to hold their inserts, so i'm not sure if they would work with your terry nappys.
as others have said he flips are birth to potty so you only need one size outer and they're on offer at the mo (buy one get one free). the danger of having one wrap is it can't be re-used if it gets poop on it.
i would imagine terrys etc would fit under the flip cover as well (though i don't have any terrys to try it for you.)

i have a wrap or two i would sell for a few pounds, they are used but would be better than the waterproof pants. the material used in standard waterproof pants aren't very breathable.

 

[Rachel_C]

If I'm reading it right, I think you're planning to use terries with the plastic pants, and then the disposable inserts with the smart nappiy outers? Sounds like a good plan. I would actually add some of the smart nappy cloth pads as I find them really good. Plus you could also use them in other nappy systems too (I use mine as boosters in pretty much all my nappies). If you don't want to buy them though, I think you could probably fold up a terry nappy to use instead of a pad in the smart nappy outers. I haven't actually got any terry nappies to try, so don't hold me to it! Like littlestar said though, you probably wouldn't be able to put the terry nappy on like a normal nappy and then put the outer over the top, because of the way the outers are shaped.

If you'd like to try cloth during the day at some point, you could try disposable liners. I wouldn't recommend the smart nappy ones though as they're a bit papery. Boots do some amazingly soft ones (their own brand in a pale blue packet)... as long as your LO's poo isn't too runny, they would catch the mess and you could just flush it then put the wet nappy in the wash.

 

[littlestar]

just a thought babipur do the econobum starter set which is three wraps and 12 prefolds (you can use flip inserts in them too.

it's £45 for the lot that would give you way more nappies than you listed above.

https://www.babipur.co.uk/shop/m17/Bum_Genius/p3093/Econobum_Starter_Kit/product_info.html

 

[charliesmom]

I got brand new bumgenius 3.0s at cottonbabies.com for 12 for $173 total. Quite a deal, considering they are $17.99 individually. I was going to just try a few also, but realized that you're using disposables which also cost money at the same time, so why not put out a bit more at once? If you are able to that is.

 

[aimee-lou]

just a thought babipur do the econobum starter set which is three wraps and 12 prefolds (you can use flip inserts in them too.

it's £45 for the lot that would give you way more nappies than you listed above.

https://www.babipur.co.uk/shop/m17/Bum_Genius/p3093/Econobum_Starter_Kit/product_info.html

Brilliant - I'm really stuck for budget at the mo as Earl is growing out of EVERYTHING but I need to do it now lol. That looks perfect!! Thanks for the tip off!

 

[aimee-lou]

If I'm reading it right, I think you're planning to use terries with the plastic pants, and then the disposable inserts with the smart nappiy outers? Sounds like a good plan. I would actually add some of the smart nappy cloth pads as I find them really good. Plus you could also use them in other nappy systems too (I use mine as boosters in pretty much all my nappies). If you don't want to buy them though, I think you could probably fold up a terry nappy to use instead of a pad in the smart nappy outers. I haven't actually got any terry nappies to try, so don't hold me to it! Like littlestar said though, you probably wouldn't be able to put the terry nappy on like a normal nappy and then put the outer over the top, because of the way the outers are shaped.

If you'd like to try cloth during the day at some point, you could try disposable liners. I wouldn't recommend the smart nappy ones though as they're a bit papery. Boots do some amazingly soft ones (their own brand in a pale blue packet)... as long as your LO's poo isn't too runny, they would catch the mess and you could just flush it then put the wet nappy in the wash.

Thanks - Yes that was the plan. I had looked at the reusable pads (did think they may double up as boosters lol) and you've just swayed me lol. We're going for a mix I think.....seems to fit our lifestyle and who knows, we may be converted. I've also found some wraps etc online which seem to get good reviews so I'm sure that I'll end up with a collection lol.

Thanks