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Chloe's cloth nappy journey started at a Cloth Nappy Chat session at Little Peacock Coffee Shop, and she's now such a huge fan she's become an official volunteer for us! We're so happy to have her on board - she's amazing at spreading the word and has been very proactive in setting up a petition for a council run cloth nappy initiative, as seen in many other parts of the country. If you'd like to sign to support it, click here.
Read on for her cloth nappy journey...
Why did you start thinking about using cloth nappies?
I actually first started thinking about using reusable nappies during pregnancy, but with this being my first baby and already feeling overwhelmed with everything we had to buy, as well as knowing nothing about cloth nappies… this idea went on the back burner!
When did you start looking into it?
I found that with adjusting to life with a newborn and being extremely sleep deprived, I didn’t look into it again until we were having issues with disposables when Ember was around 3.5 months old.
We seemed to have tried almost every brand of disposable nappy, none of which stopped the daily poosplosions from happening… they always seemed to occur when we were out and about and on the odd occasion when I have forgotten a change of clothes for her… Typical!
With the constant changing and washing of her poopy clothes. I really thought now was a good time to try reusables to see if they would suit us better!
Luckily, one of my friends from a pregnancy yoga class volunteers for the Nappy Library. She suggested I attend a Nappuccino session at the Little Peacock Cafe on Rose Lane. This really helped me to feel more confident about trying cloth. I got to look at a range of cloth nappies and I learnt about the hire kits available from the nappy library at Big You, Little You on Aigburth Road. I literally ordered my hire kit as soon as I got home and dived straight into it with the full time kit.
The hire kit was a great way to get a feel for cloth without committing to the expense. It can also be quite overwhelming with all the different types and brands of nappies. The hire kit allowed us to try a range of nappies so we could find what suited us best!
What were any concerns/misconceptions you had before you started? How did you overcome these?
Initially I was concerned about how to store the dirty nappies; I had only ever heard about soaking the nappies in a bucket until wash day which I knew wouldn’t suit us, as we have a dog that is into everything! We also have limited space in our house and I didn’t want an unsightly bucket in the dining room or kitchen!
From attending the Nappuccino session, I learnt about wetbags for storing nappies between washes and whilst out and about for changing bags. This seemed like a better option for us with limited space and keeping out of the dog's reach!
I also had concerns about dealing with the poop. I was unaware that breast or formula fed babies have water soluble poop, so no need for scraping off the poo, they simply go straight in the washing machine which makes it so easy when starting out.
When did you start using cloth nappies?
The full time hire kit from the cloth library is for a month, you can then renew this three times if needed… However, I was using my hire kit for two weeks and decided I wanted to commit to using cloth full time. I ordered 18 nappies, some wet bags and extra inserts for nighttime from the Baba+Boo sale. Then a week later I had brought 10 more nappies from preloved Facebook pages. The main reason is because the prints are adorable and irresistible, but it also takes the pressure off having extra for washing and drying time.
How did you find it?
I absolutely love using cloth, I feel like it’s a new hobby. The washing and hanging out, even stuffing the pocket nappies and making them up just feels so therapeutic and satisfying seeing them come out so clean and smelling amazing.
Since using cloth (1 month in now) we haven’t had a single leak or poos-plosion with Baba+Boo nappies. It’s also such a feel good thing knowing you're not sending thousands of nappies to landfill by the time your baby is potty trained!
How did you get past any issues you found? Where did you go for advice?
Fortunately for me, I had my friend who volunteers at the nappy library to pester 24/7 with questions whilst I was using my hire kit and still now I have been using cloth for a month! She has been very patient with me and has made the transition to cloth much less daunting!
People reading this may not have my personal number, but our Facebook group is available to ask any and all questions you have while using the kit. And you can DM us on Facebook or Instagram if you'd rather it be private. We are here to help!