Last Saturday in the basement of the lovely Natick Library, we FINALLY got great info on Cloth Diapering. On a recommendation from my co-worker Allison we attended a demo from Joanne of Zannadu Diapers. Considering cloth is probably what many of us over the age of 35 experienced as infants, “what’s to know” one might ask?
Well Boy Howdy, let me tell you! The options for keeping babies bottoms clean-ish, dry-ish, and stylish are TRULY mind boggling. Thanks to an extremely handy book we were given early on (thank you Kristin!) called “Baby Bargains” , our suspicion that not only were cloth diapers a “green” choice, but an economical choice was confirmed! If you choose cloth diapers washed at home you’re saving the planet AND money – how great is that? We felt pretty smug. Of course, that cost was calculated for cloth diapering basics, and since the book was published, there have been MORE options added including the Julia Roberts approved G Diaper. Not sure how G diapers would fall on the economic spectrum, but environmentally they are flushable and compostable, so they look pretty good. We didn’t know much about G-Diapers until after we’d decided to go with cloth. Since we have a septic system though, we have stuck to our decision to use Cloth Diapers.
Full Disclosure:Based on sound advice from our friends (and new parents) Karina & Elena, and pleas from my sister who is a flight attendant: we will be using disposables probably for the first few weeks until we figure out how to handle our new bundle of joy, and while traveling! Seventh Generation disposables are good enough for us on this score.
OK, back to CLOTH diapers. Do you know the difference between Microfiber and Micro-fleece? Thanks to Joanne, we do! Microfiber = small loops (like terry cloth) for extra absorbency, and can be all natural/organic material (cotton, hemp, bamboo). Micro-fleece = the fuzzy, warm stuff made of recycled plastics. It is a plastic material. Why is this important? Well, what do you want next to your baby’s skin, natural fibers or manufactured ones? From a comfort perspective, micro-fleece appears to keep the skin dryer. Every “Pocket” diaper on the market is micro-fleece lined, with a pocket that you can stuff with other absorbent materials. Several “All-in-One” diapers provide an either/or solution to natural vs. microfleece next to baby’s behind with flaps of different materials that can be switched depending on the absorbency level wanted, etc. I’m not qualified to speak on the absorbency of “fleece vs. fiber”, but it appears to me that microfiber, no matter what it’s made of, is the most absorbent material.
From an environmental perspective, which material is better? For us, it is a natural fiber – those options being cotton, hemp, and bamboo fabrics. Sure, micro-fleece is made of RECYCLED plastic, but for us the idea is to get away from all petroleum based plastic products as much as possible. That, as it turns out, is not so easy.
This is what a diaper is – ANY Diaper – cloth, disposable, etc.: 1) an absorbent layer to collect waste and 2) a waterproof layer to keep waste from spreading outside the realm of the absorbent layer. Pretty simple, right?? Not if you’re anti-petroleum products, apparently. For the absorbent part, it is easy – the Cotton, Hemp, Bamboo trifecta are natural and absorbent! BUT, what about that pesky waterproof part? That comes in the form of a diaper cover. Even the coolest, greenest organic bamboo covers need layer of “lamination” between them and the absorbent layer, to prevent moisture migration. This appears to be in the form of some poly-something, but it’s definitely not natural. Other choices are Nylon (what is that stuff made of anyway?), Micro-fleece (as previously mentioned, plastic), and Wool.
Ah-ha! WOOL. I was convinced this was the perfect solution for our diaper covering needs. OK, actually, I still am. Check out these qualifications: 1) Wool covers only need to be washed every 3-4 weeks- and you HAVE to air-dry -super green! 2) The natural lanolin in wool reacts with any moisture leakage to decontaminate it automatically as it dries 3) Wool is more breathable than the other options, helping prevent diaper rash 4) It’s completely organic, renewable,etc. etc. etc.
Sooo, why have we not purchased 3 wool covers in each size? Kirby is not convinced, and the fact that the overnight Lana “soaker” I want is in the $50 range (vs. $8-14 for most other covers), made me willing to step back a bit. Kirby thinks the care of wool will be too much of a pain. All the websites say it’s easy though! Just a soak in luke-warm water with special lanolin-restoring soap, rinse, roll in a towel to eliminate excess water, then place over a mild heat source to dry, and voila! I’ll probably get one to start, for overnights anyway… shhh… don’t tell Kirby! I think he also has a concern the wool would be scratchy or too hot, but I think since wool is more breathable than plastic it is therefore better in the heat. One really good reason we heard NOT to use wool – if your family has a history of sensitivity or allergy to it.
Bottom line, we just placed an order for a bunch of cotton pre-folds, a few extra hemp pre-folds, and a handful of cotton covers. Oh, and the all important – DIAPER LINER! It is a “disposable” piece of the cloth diapering experience we can live with. Even my Mom – the most “reduce & reuse” person I’ve ever met – blurted out “Liners!” before I could say more than the word “cloth” about our diapering plans. They must be pretty handy therefore, and we have about 200 on the way. Who wants to scrap off chunks when they can be peeled off and flushed away? All that and a bunch of special no residue laundry detergent should see us off to a good start. Hopefully it will at least get us through a few months, and we’ll be able to continue cloth diapering until the kid figures out where and how to sit on the potty all by itself (by some estimates a year earlier than kids in disposables) ! Take THAT and stuff it in your Diaper Genie, Huggies and Pampers… 
