Did you know that this week is reusable nappy week? It’s almost over in fact; only two more days to go; 11th – 17th of October; lots of info can be found over at the Australian Nappy Network.
Miss Punk was in cloth from birth until some months after her first birthday when constant, persistent, dastardly nappy-rash appeared. Devastated, I tried every trick in the cloth nappy book; new washing powder, no washing powder, lotions, potions, liners, different nappies… but whatever the issue was, it would not be deterred, so it was with a heavy heart we gradually shifted to disposables (the amount of waste we started sending to the bin then – My God! Quite honestly, it was a wonder there was room for any other household rubbish, it was truly shocking…), using some of Punk’s extensive MCN (Modern Cloth Nappy) stash only in emergencies (or for swimming – an empty pocket nappy is an ace swim nappy…).
Happily, she is out of naps now & we’re going back to cloth for bubba#2, even if the same thing were to happen again, 14 or 15 months worth of disposable nappies heading to landfill will have been averted.
Plus.
I love cloth nappies.
I adore them.
Ask any Modern-Cloth-Nappy using Mama about her feelings towards her nappy stash & prepare for an outpouring of love you think should probably be reserved for the children whose bottoms those nappies adorn. They become an addiction, for many reasons;
They are frikkin cute.
A big cloth booty is so much more appealing than an anaemic spossie-clad one; and it provides much appreciated crash padding when bubs are learning to stand & walk!
You never have to run to the shop at an inconvenient hour to buy more.
It’s fun choosing new nappies, getting them in the mail (fluffy mail… oh how I have missed fluffy mail!!!), trying them out…
They save you moolah… if you don’t go too overboard with the fluffy mail that is… (..but even if you do, you can sell on your unloved fluff!)
Did I mention the cute factor at all?
They’re better for the environment… which is kind of obvious but it makes you feel all righteous & earth-mothery….
I think I am much more prepared for cloth nappying this time around – the first time I had NO IDEA (this is where the cloth nappy section of any baby forum will come in handy, or special cloth nappy sites like Nappycino). I hadn’t a clue about Modern Cloth at all – My Mum had used terry squares on my little brothers & sister so that’s what I bought first up; & just this week I got some more (I’ve found Big W to be the most reliable source, if you’re looking), they are, in my opinion, an essential baby staple. In the early days you go through a lot of nappies, but at the rate new babies grow I don’t think I could really justify the cost of newborn MCN; even if I’d known what that was in the beginning. They are a great fall back nappy even when the MCN stash is in full-swing, having a stack of them on hand means not having to stress about washing constantly, they can be used to mop up baby-related messes, as change mats, sunshades… the list goes on!
While looking online for covers for my cute fluffy terry flats, I began to discover the MCN world – & it really can seem like another world, with it’s own language (Do YOU know what an AIO is? An AI2? A BBH?!) & everything – & fell further down the rabbit hole, so to speak.
In the beginning, it pays to do a lot of reading. Always look for reviews of nappies you are thinking of buying, think about how you are going to use cloth with your bub & what are the most important things to you; do you want daddy-proof nappies? Quick drying? Super absorbent? Do you want something in one piece so you don’t have to worry about covers & inserts…? It does seem daunting & even overwhelming at first, but there is a wealth of information online about using cloth & where to start, & the benefits are definitely worth a bit of time getting informed, in my humble opinion. Oh, I should also mention that it is not that much more work to use cloth full time. It really isn’t – Modern Cloth Nappies especially take the same amount of time to put on as a spossie & you can fit a WHOLE lotta nappies into one wash… seeing all your pretty cloth nappies swinging around in the breeze on the clothes line can make you happy too – sad but true kids (even in the pic below, nappies hanging inside are okay too…)!
Where to get your MCN fix: I am looking forward to perusing the virtual aisles for a boy themed nap or two, to replace some of the overly, uh…. pink (is that where her obsession started I wonder, with the occasional cute bit o’pink MCN fluff….?! No!) nappies I still have. Some of my favourite nappies & places to shop for them below (most have lay-by options too, if you are a poor ass like me) – you’ll also find info on using cloth on most MCN shopping sites;
There are also a TONNE of WAHMs (Work At Home Mums) in the MCN business, and some of the best nappies & covers come from them, satisfying the lust for handmade AND cloth nappies with one fell swoop;
An extensive list of cloth nappy stores in Australia;
Don’t forget you can always sew your own – crafty minxes that you are, but in my case I prefer to leave it to the experts.
So…. Happy Reusable Nappy Week! If you have any questions about MCN or cloth I’ll do my best to help or point you to someone who can, but if you get addicted… I take absolutely no responsibility for your needing a regular fix of fluff…
Ah! Woman of my own heart!! I've been re-stashing of late too... many new MCN developments since little owlet was last in nappies! I've been buying mostly second hand via various forums and facebook groups, but its still lovely to receive fluffies in the mail :) Happy stashing to you! x
ReplyDeleteWhat an awesome post! Preach it sister ;)
ReplyDeleteTotally committed to cloth here too. I say committed rather than addicted because while we do cloth fulltime I actually haven't purchased any nappies since Titch was born!
I'm proud to say Titch has never worn a disgustable... probably saved about 2000 nappies going into landfill so far.
Hooray for cloth!
Great post! I've just started researching all this and it all gets a bit overwhelming. At least the options for fitteds seem to be relatively limited (I want to avoid hemp and velcro), which makes the choice a bit easier.
ReplyDeleteYay for MCN! I have a reasonable stash from last time but that still does not stop me from making more LOL.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was pregnant with Baby #1 I decided I could sew all the MCNs I needed, and who needs to buy a tried-and-tested pattern? I copied a friend's Green Kids AI2 cover and spent weeks and weeks making 20 covers (while working part time and sewing bridesmaids dresses part time). Six of them I made from patchworked offcuts, not knowing they'd leak along every seam, so that left me with 14. But that was enough, and we used disposables at night anyway. Surprisingly they've survived nearly two years of use.
ReplyDeleteA week before Baby #2's due date I started using only disposables for #1, so I wouldn't come home from hospital to find a decaying bucket of cloth nappies waiting for me. I'm still on cloth hiatus and even though the number of disposables two kids go through is horrendous, I'm dreading going back to having to standing over the toilet with a pooey nappy and spatula! I haven't decided if I'll go back to using cloth for #1, who we'll start toilet training in a few months, or wait until #2 is big enough to fit my Green Kids copies and only use them on her. I sure as hell aren't going to spend my time sewing enough covers to keep two kids in MCNs!
A great post- full of helpful tips. I like the idea of doing MCN when we have kids but it'll take some research to make sure we know what we're getting into. Thanks for all the links.
ReplyDeleteI'm so happy to see new mums are still using cloth nappies. There are so many that aren't. I used Terry Squares for all 4 of my kids. When I did Family Day care all the bubs turned up with disposables and none of the Mums were happy having to take the dirty ones home. We didn't have rubbish collection here and I wasn't having a mountain of stinking nappies waiting for a trip to the tip!! There is nothing disposable about a disposable nappy!!!
ReplyDeleteThis is a real eye-opener for me, I didn't know that you could even buy cloth nappies anymore. Everyone that I know used (and still uses) disposables. But - if we are blessed with No. 3 I will be using cloth nappies for sure. No doubt I'll be surfing through these old posts looking for help!!
ReplyDeleteI wonder if cloth nappies can eve be bought here (Ireland)...maybe I could be one of those WAHM's??
Gonna start surfing...
Thanks for this GREAT post!
Sorry only scanned this post as am way past reading about all this. Good luck though with it all!
ReplyDeleteI love MCNs!! I'm sure all my Mummy friends are sick to death of me talking about them, I can't recommend them enough! So much better for the environment, so much cheaper in the long run, so cute and so easy (well I think so anyway, it's what you get used to right?!).
ReplyDeleteI think it's a shame many people I know aren't willing to even give them a try. Good on you with a great post!
Love your photos. Good luck with bub #2 and cloth!
ReplyDeleteWe love our MCN here too. They are ever so cute. I make my own nappy wipes too (and sell them in my madeit shop)
ReplyDeleteI hope your next bubba's bottom loves them too :)
Oh I love all your nappy pics! I swear, before Pony Girl was born I went mental on cloth nappies. I found every free pattern on-line that I could, bought some patterns and created my own pattern in search of the perfect nappy. The Engineer was quite worried with me feverishly sewing nappies in all colors and shapes. I don't think he realized just how many nappies a baby goes through in an afternoon.
ReplyDeleteJust recently with my basement clean out, I found my big stash of nappies and donated them to low income mums. One of the women who received my bundle wrote me a note exclaiming that her daughter would have the best dressed bum in all of Oregon! Fantastic!
When I had my daughter 13 years ago, I was only 22 and everyone I knew that had babies were using disposables. There weren't any MCN back then but I stuck to my guns and used cloth. My daughter slept better, had no rashes, and potty trained easier than any other bubs I knew around the same time. I would have loved those MCNs me thinks! My Mum also paid for a nappy service for the first 2 months of my daughters life, and that was a huge help, not having to wash but also still using cloth. I remember that the costing worked out slightly cheaper to use the service that it would have if we had only been using disposables. Something for people to think about if they're stuck for new Mum gifts I think. Great post Vic.
ReplyDeleteGood for you using cloth. I did too, although I bought a whole bunch of ready made ones (I used & loved totsbots). I was the only one out of my whole circle that did so, and it was almost like I had to defend myself. :)
ReplyDeleteLove your handy tips and ideas you have on your blog. Just discovered you!
Your experience with Punky sound similar to what happened with my daughter - persistent nappy rash that wouldn't go away unless her bottom was lathered in cream. Even though we used disposables in the end I feel better for having had her in cloth for nearly a year. And I recently sold my BBH nappy stash for about 75% of what I bought it for!
ReplyDelete