Clothing a baby over a cloth bum :)

[Rover]

Hi,

We're just about to move home, from a place where it's always summer to the gnarly old end of a Sydney winter.

Is there anything I should know about putting pants over cloth? We always just show off the nappies here - I bought a heap of cute very short dresses and t-shirts so we could feature whatever adorable nappy Maia was wearing But that's definitely a warm-weather luxury.

I had been cursing aplix closures - I have a couple of beautiful ME covers and a brilliant, wonderful VB AIO that are aplix, and I was actually going to give them away to a good home (because Maia takes them off, LOL) before I remembered ah! In Sydney we can put clothes over these!

Anyway, wandering around the shops here this afternoon I saw some really lovely little sets - tops and bottoms - and realised they're totally useless because there's no way they'd fit over a cloth-clad bottom.

What do you do to buy pants or bottoms or suits or leggings for your kids?

Is this another fab idea for a super-talented WAHM? BIG bots for cloth tots?

Thanks,

Rover

[vanessa]

We normally just wear longies or leggings or trackies. Rachel is a size o in most things but some pants I do buy size 1 instead especially bonds pants.

[Jamie]

When they were younger i would just buy a size larger. Luckily i have tall kids!
Pumpkin patch pants often have the buttom elastic around the waist which is handy. Or stretchy trackies work well, too.

[MadMumof3]

i must admit most of kaelins normal clothes fit over his nappies incl PP and target. but we have taken to longies n bumjumpers since our heater died (we are in melbourne)

[Sheree Scott]

Hi there from even colder Wagga Wagga.
You have a very good question. I waiver from being offended when people imply I would need to dress my girl in bigger clothes to fit over THOSE CLOTH nappies to getting frustrated when I'm given clothes that are very impracticable (however you spell that word!) for cloth wearing babies.

My experience with my first daughter, who is a solid build, was make your own track pants and use wondersuits, but my second daughter is not as solid and I'm not as frustrated!

I am happy at the moment with:

Tights then knit type material pants/trousers, eg tracksuit fleece, velour type material etc. In Sydney I doubt you would need the tights under the trousers though!

Tights are a skill to buy as every brand has a different version of size, so trial and error is needed in moderation. Some brands won't fit over a cloth bottom too easily. And after the first wash they tend to change!!! With my first daughter I used a wondersuit underneath the trousers etc and this was fine. I just find tights easier for nappy changes and layering the clothes on her top half, now I have a warmer house.

I can even get my daughter into her new trousers that are woven material (ie not knit or stretchy) in size 0 (she is 72cm long 10kg) with a little effort - she can still crawl so they can't be too bad. She wears a hemp fitted nappy with PUL cover.

What I avoid due to the clothing fitting issue is: fleece covers (wouldn't need to if she was a slight build!!), terry fitteds or flats.

Clothing I avoid is: leggings (as distinct from tights), woven material trousers, eg denim.

The night nappy: well, this has taken some thought! but turned out good in the end. I use a size larger wondersuit over a singlet and then over the top a polar fleece sleeping bag with arms and zipper front. It is a thick fleece.
If I have to put her in the car to go home at night or something then I have to resort to disposable because I don't have suitable nightwear for night nappy that could go in the car seat, besided, the night nappy itself would make her not fit in the car seat properly. lol.
cheers,

[marnie]

I agree with the longies! At first I thought "where's the fun in that?, I waited for so long to be able to dress a little girl, I want something pretty!" but now I have really grasped the concept of wool I have managed to add some gorgeous and very girly wool longies to our collection!

I also use tights and dresses/skirts when we are getting dressed up! It eliminates all the dramas of finding jeans and pants to fit!

Marnie

[sarah_jane]

I have never had a problem with clothes, even when I changed from disposables to cloth when he was 6 months, the same clothes fitted. his cloth bum helped some of the pants stay on though!

That said- Jai is tiny, he still fits in 00 :blush:

How cold is sydney? (I am in vic) could you put a skivvy and tights under her dresses?

[Rover]

I hadn't thought of tights - what a wonderful idea - thank you!

We have yet to actually acquire a winter (or even Autumn or Spring) wardrobe. It's always 32-40oC here, so singlets and nappies are the go. In fact the poor darling sweats like crazy when done up for bed She's in a singlet on top, but on the bottom tonight are a BBB boosted to the max and a Wee Wuns woolly cover. We have AC, but whoa ... before it kicks in the poor sweetie is pretty hot!

I know Sydney doesn't get really really cold, but we've lived in SE Asia for more than five years, and the kids were born here. So we're all going to feel it!

Thanks - as always! - for your time, and generous, wise advice

Rover

[KristyMum]

Most of the time we don't have a prob with clothes fitting
for Jake, who was (and still is) a slim jim, the nappy helped his clothes stay up
for Brooke, I dunno we did okay, and she was spot on 'average'
and my big little man Zeke, well he has quite trim fitteds and covers, so clothes fitting him isn't usually a prob either...
so you may find the same thing?
other than that, totally no help lol - the others have given you most of the good suggestions I can think of!
Best of luck!