Real Nappies in the Real World

My journey through the world of real nappies; sometimes good, sometimes bad but [almost] always real

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[realworldnappies]

I wash my nappies every other day having left them, dry, in a bucket for that time. I use the Tots Bots potion, mainly because I know it won’t do any harm to my nappies. There are lots of ways to wash your nappies, but this is what I choose to do. I then either dry them on the line, if the...

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I use both washable and fleece liners. It seems a little over the top, but I find they each have a purpose. The flushable liners collect all the solid matter, so then all you need to do is flush it down the toilet…easy! I also use reusable wipes, because I thought if I’m washing nappies I might as...

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Trying to make sure your nappy bucket doesn’t stink the house out every time you open seems to be something that puts a lot of people off using reusable nappies.

I’ve tried a few things that seem to work well. I started by using a damp tea towel and sprinkling some lemon oil on to it. I put this...

[realworldnappies]

For far too long I was putting the nappies and liners together at the time of the nappy change. So, I was there with a half-naked baby trying to put the liners in the nappy without her either peeing everywhere [which happened a lot!] or her just getting cross!

When I say I did for a long time, I...

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Get with the programme!

For far too long I was putting the nappies and liners together at the time of the nappy change. So, I was there with a half-naked baby trying to put the liners in the nappy without her either peeing everywhere [which happened a lot!] or her just getting cross!

When I say I did for a long time, I mean months!! It then clicked, I should put the liners in the nappy when I fold the nappies and then they're ready to put on or to put in the nappy bag.

Why it took me so long, I don't know. I can blame baby brain I suppose...

[realworldnappies]

Keeping it fresh

Trying to make sure your nappy bucket doesn't stink the house out every time you open seems to be something that puts a lot of people off using reusable nappies.

I've tried a few things that seem to work well. I started by using a damp tea towel and sprinkling some lemon oil on to it. I put this on top of the nappies in the bucket. The great thing about this it, you can wash the tea towel with the nappies, and as it comes out of the washing machine damp, you just pop the oil on and you're good to go.

I then put a cotton bud soaked in tea tree oil and taped this under the lid of the bucket.

What I'm doing at the moment is using some [very] old lavender spray and just spaying inside the bucket after I've emptied it for a wash.

[realworldnappies]

Liners / Wipes

I use both washable and fleece liners. It seems a little over the top, but I find they each have a purpose. The flushable liners collect all the solid matter, so then all you need to do is flush it down the toilet...easy! I also use reusable wipes, because I thought if I’m washing nappies I might as well wash wipes too! I used to put these in a laundry bag and wash them with the nappies but this meant that they weren't really getting clean. I now put them in a separate bucket and was them separately. I have loads of wipes so I wait until I have a full load [or can't stand the smell any longer!] and then put them all in the wash.

Many manufacturers recommend using liners if you’re using a barrier cream. This is so the cream doesn’t build up in the fabric of the nappy making them less absorbent. I’m currently using Weleda Calendula cream, which smells lovely and works really well.

[realworldnappies]

Washing / Drying

I wash my nappies every other day having left them, dry, in a bucket for that time. I use the Tots Bots potion, mainly because I know it won’t do any harm to my nappies. There are lots of ways to wash your nappies, but this is what I choose to do. I then either dry them on the line, if the weather’s good, or a dry them on an airer over the bath. The Easyfits dry really quickly, as do the wraps, but the bamboozles take a lot longer to dry. I have quite a few nappies so I don’t really use my tumble drier very often. Although there was a time when I only had a few night time bamboozle nappies and so had to ‘finish off’ the drying with the drier

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My routine

A lot of people think there’s a lot of work with reusable nappies. It is usually this that puts most people off. If I’m honest, there is a bit more work involved, but it’s not hours and hours of laborious washing and drying. So, I thought I’d go through my ‘nappy routine’.

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Where to next...?

After my disaster with the gNappies, and it was a disaster, I was back to the drawing board. I did some more research, again still searching for that elusive perfect nappy and still not finding it. I needed some kind of focus, something to distil all the makes and types in to something tangible.

So, I went on ebay and looked for nappies for sale in my area. There was someone selling a big bucket of Tots Bots easy fits. She had 18 nappies and some fleece liners, a nappy bucket, you name it! So, I thought, what the hell. They seemed as good as anything else I’d read about.

I was impressed with their fit [my daughter was 2 months old by this time]. The bold colours were lovely and there were so easy to put on. But, then I was hit by the leaks again! This time, it was just a little bit of wetness around the outside of the crotch area. But, as it was winter and my daughter was wearing lots of layers, this caused major problems!

I had, by this time, acquired some very old Tots Bots bamboozles. They are like the current bamboozles but made of towelling. As I needed a wrap with these nappies, I thought I’d try my easyfits with a wrap. Hey Presto!! Problem solved. I realise this goes against the idea of an all in one nappy, but it solved my problem without too much extra expense. And let’s face it, although real nappies work out cheaper in the long run, they do have quite a large initial cost and I really didn’t want to go back to the drawing board....again!!

[realworldnappies]

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On the real rocky road

When starting out in the world of reusable nappies, I decided to go second hand. This had several advantages

Cheaper

No need to do the initial washing

If you’re lucky, you can get some advice from the previous owner

I started with gNappies, which I got via someone in work. What I did was buy a bundle of the newborn size gnappies and a few of the small size. I had read some good things about these nappies. I liked the fact that the disposable insert was compostable [without poo!] and that you could use either a disposable or reusable insert. These did indeed sound perfect!

In my humble opinion, the newborn gNappies were fab. I used them with the compostable inserts and had no trouble with them what so ever. They held even the most explosive of nappy contents. They were also a really good fit, I got many compliments from the midwives about how well the nappies fitted my little girl [7lb13oz born].

I did, however, experience issues when I moved on to the bigger size. Every nappy leaked. It was just soul-destroying. I tried so many things and followed every suggestion online about how to put them on etc but I just could not get on with them at all. I was really quite upset, because I really wanted the real nappies to work having committed to them. I had to use disposables, particularly when I went out because I couldn’t deal with all the leaks.

It was time for a re-think...

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Getting Started: Looking for perfection

I had always thought that I’d use cloth nappies. Not that I’m an environmental crusader, nor was it just for the money-saving aspect [although that did appeal!] Basically, I just don’t like sorting out our rubbish! And if there’s one thing that disposables do, they create rubbish! I have always preferred to re-use rather than use once, and so re-usable nappies seemed like the right way to go.

I don’t have anything against disposable nappies, or their users. I can completely understand why so many people use them. I’m not here to be sanctimonious about my nappies, to berate those who don’t do as I do. I’m just here to talk through some of the things I’ve learned along the way; and all the things I am yet to learn, about using reusable nappies.

I had one friend who had used reusable nappies successfully, without fuss or celebration so I decided that I would do the same.

I was initially a little overwhelmed by the choice; not just the types of nappy [all in ones, pocket, 2-parters] but also by the number of brands that do them!  I tried to do as much research as I could, but of course everyone has a different opinion. I basically came to the conclusion that some nappies will suit some babies and not others. This seems like a very obvious conclusion to draw, but, if I’m honest, I was looking for the ‘perfect’ reusable nappy and was nothing short of disappointed to realise that this simply doesn’t exist.