Tell me what to buy!...

[rebeccamax]

I really need some help. I have done hours of research to decide where my cloth nappy journey should start but now feel like I am going around in circles... I would love to get some recommendations from the more experienced nappy people out there.
I bought a bambino mio trial nappy in my local baby shop last week, which I now know is a cotton prefold and a PUL cover (hope I am getting my terminology right). I loved how well it contained my daughter's explosive breatsfed poo (which her very expensive top of the line disposables do only about 20% of the time!). I now think that I will change over to cloth at least during the day - and maybe night time later on if I get brave. I think I will go with AIO's or maybe a pocket system. It has to be simple to convince my husband! My priorities are:
a. slim, trim fit. The least bulk possible while still doing the job
b. easy to use
Thankyou soooo much for your advice. I'd like to stick to just one type of nappy (or possibly two). I don't think we could cope with lots of different nappies/brands that work in different ways at this stage.
Will love hear your replies!

[saulylee]

I find I use a combination of GAD AIOs if I'm going out so I don't have to worry about a liner then I use tots bots bamboozles or bamboo babybeehinds or terry squares any other time. Oh I also have a pair of possum pouches shorties which are great and really funky colours. I have an assortment of other covers I've bought or made as well but love my possum pouch lol. Sorry if my answer isn't very succinct (sp) too late in the night but thought i would let you know what i do.

[johT]

how old is your daughter?
the cheapest system would be what you have already tried, prefolds and a cover. did you just padfold (layin the cover) the prefold?
the easiest most leakproof system would have to be a fitted with a cover as there is 2 'barriers' for the poo to try and get through (or you could pin/snappi the prefolds to create 2 layers). you can get sized fitteds or OSFA (one size fits all) like Baby beehinds.

pockets are great, they dry very quickly - but theres only one layer for leaks to get past. i started mcn when my dd bree was 3 months and i used pockets with no leaks - but i didnt really get leaks with sposies either however once she hit older toddler stage and did the few big adult sized wee's they couldnt cope
i find pockets very easy to stuff and prefer them to aio, mostly for the drying time - aio's are really just glorified pockets that you dont stuff to me but can take longer to dry

[Lousmum]

AIOs and pockets can be great nappies, but my personal opinion is that a fitted and cover system is much more reliable and versatile than these types of nappies, especially in the early stages of a babies life.

Fitteds and covers give two lines of defense against leaks and poo explosions! whereas with pockets and AIOs, the waterproof cover is attached so there's just the one. Pockets can also be a bit tricky to stuff, at least at first, and it's easy to overstuff them which will also cause leaks. Having said that though, I use both AIOs and pockets, and they are just fine, but I certainly find my fitteds much more reliable and my AIOs/pockets are left for going out. I didn't use either of these types of nappies in the early days either - my DS is nearly 2 now. I would suggest that if your DD is doing explosive poos still, that AIOs and pockets may not be as "easy" as you think they might be. Once all that settles down though, I'm sure you could use them quite successfully. There are some AIOs on the market that are one-size, and some that have gussets too (which I've never used so can't comment on their effectiveness) but you'd have to try them out yourself to see if they work for you. AIOs can also sometimes be more expensive than other types of nappies, but of course they pay for themselves eventually

Most people in here will tell you to try a few different nappies to see which one's suit your needs and your DD the best. That can get expensive though! but you can sell unsuitable nappies secondhand on places like Buy for Baby, or offer them up as swaps and trades in here after you've been in here for a while, so that might be a way to give a few things a go.

Some of the larger nappy makers/sellers have demonstrators around the country - Nurture Nappies, Baby Beehinds for example - so maybe you could see if there is one in your area that could come and show you their products so you can check them out beforehand? You can also get trial packs of nappies, which lets you try stuff out for minimal outlay - ie, you don't have to buy an entire package only to find it doesn't suit.

You probably also might want to think about whether you'd like a OSFM or sized nappies - there's pros and cons for each, but this can make a difference to what you choose, and how much you spend.

Some trim fitteds I use are:

Very Baby
Baby Beehinds
Itti Bitti

All of these brands do both trim fitteds and AIOs I can highly recommend them all.

[rebeccamax]

Thanks for your replies so far... Joh, my dd is almost 5 months. My concern with using fitted's and a cover is that the end result will be bulky and hard to fit under normal clothes... Is there much of a difference between the overall bulk of a fitted & cover compared to an AIO?
Thanks so much everyone.

[johT]

not a huge difference, itti bittis for example, not much difference at all with the fitteds and a pul cover or the aio's IMO. or you can use wool pants (longies) and bypass a cover
if the clothing IS too tight over a pocket/aio you could get leaks IME we make sure we dont buy too tight clothing here..

[Pandamum]

He, he, he... you've asked the million dollar question.

For every person that responds you will get a different answer!

I'm an AIO girl all the way

For a trim and super reliable AIO you can't go past

Itti Bitti's or Wildchilds

There are other great AIO's but they are more bulky

Hope this doesn't do your head in more than where you started.

[Lousmum]

not all AIOs are trim

Just upsize your clothes - bottoms at least - or shop around for roomier clothing. Pumpkin Patch clothing is notoriously trim and doesn't really fit well over an Itti Bitti AIO for me (and that would be the trimmest AIO I have!). Kids clothing sizes vary so much from brand to brand, just find the brands that work for you

[Beanie]

I used flats and Bambino Mio covers at that age for a few months before gradually increasing my stash.

I found to my amazement that a flat nappy in the Jo fold with a Bambino Mio cover was very trim under clothes. My DS was even wearing those stretchy Bonds pants and it looked fine. So if you are really keen on trimness and you are budget conscious, I think the prefolds with the covers are a great option. Because the Mio covers have gussets they are a little trimmer, and they are good at catching leaks.

The only thing I did find was that you don't get those two layers of protection, as others have said, unless you use a fitted nappy underneath - ie, a non-waterproof nappy that has elastic on the legs. We rarely had blowouts onto the clothes, but frequently had to change the cover with every change since it got poo on it. With fitteds you can often reuse the cover as it doesn't get dirty or wet.

Soooooo, I think if you have a few covers, the prefolds and covers can be great. Otherwise, a fitted and cover will also do a great job, but for trimness maybe try ones that come in different sizes rather than one size. the one size ones seem to get trimmer as baby grows.

I really understand how it's baffling, I had a lot of trouble getting my head around it at first. If I had my time again I'd probably just get all Baby Beehinds Bamboo fitteds and covers and be done with it, knowing that they may not be super trim when the baby's little, and also that they take a while to dry. As it is, I have a big stash made up of one of heaps of different kinds!

[jas24]

we have a combination of fitted's and AIO's....the AIO's for his dad which are mainly honeyboys I made.
I tried pockets and hated them as they leaked so they are having a visit at my friend house being used there cause she likes them. A perfect example of not everything works for all. I would suggest buying a few different types till you are happy with a fit etc. Some nappy makers will provide a trial pack at a reasonable price so look for that too.
And if you sew or your mum/MIL sews then that is a great option too
goodluck
jill