Why do I use cloth diapers?

  • They easily fit into your existing laundry routine: Wet diapers go directly into the washing machine, dirty diapers are rinsed. Cotton materials can be machine-dried, laminate covers are line-dried. Nothing caustic is ever used, so you can wash (select) items with your diapers. The hardest part to incorporate into your life may be the pre-rinse. I have a sink in my laundry room, but without that, some options might be a bathtub, toilet, or large bucket.

  • Simple skin care: Baby life is already frustrating enough as it is; my child is immobile, emotional, and helpless. Does having constant rash make his life any more tolerable? Hours in simple cotton diapers keeps his skin soft and smooth. Changing him more often keeps him clean and good-tempered. Simple skin care (water and coconut oil) maintains an easy laundry routine.

  • That awful smell: As a teenager, when I helped care for my infant brother, I believed the smell of disposable diapers was just part of caring for a baby. Urine smells, right? Not so much. That overly perfumed sickly smell of a used disposable diaper is not the smell of infant urine, it’s the smell of hyper-absorbant chemicals that enable the diapers to hold as much liquid as they do. A trashcan full of used disposable diapers is my least favorite smell associated with the care of babies, far worse than any poop.

  • Each in its place: Disposable diapers do best at holding in a large amount of liquid for a long period of time, while keeping baby relatively dry. I am not a believer in diaper-system monogamy; part-time cloth diapering has improved my life. A disposable is great for nighttime wear, when parents need as much sleep as they can squeeze in. During the day, cloth diaper use improves the condition of the skin and prepares the child for the future use of cloth, not paper, underwear.

  • Waste Concerns: Disposable diapers do not naturally degrade easily and are a burden to our societal waste. Your cloth diapers will last you through all your children’s years in diapers. Even one or two cloth diapers a day can make an appreciable reduction in your household’s produced waste.

  • They’re cute! I am sick of seeing children’s products plastered with cartoon characters designed to indoctrinate them to beg their parents for familiar faces on their toys. Does my child need more exposure to a famous mouse or puppet than is already repeated over again? Kiddo looks great in cloth diapers; our stash is various cool colors and a few simple prints that make me feel good that he’s clean and comfortable. The edge of a cloth diaper cover peeking out under a onesie makes a more attractive look than paper frill.