Help for New Users!

[Lewis's Mummy]

Thanks! Will have a look for some flushables. GL with the next 20 days too!

[bugalug]

hi

i'm new to the mcn, but am very keen to use them for my first bub.

My mother in law has been buying me the traditional flat terry towelling nappies..they get a huuuuge bum with these dont they?..but i'm not sure how to fold these effectivley for a new born? and are they suitable for a newborn?

Nelle - i love the look of the tots bots nappy on ur little one....what kind of nappy is this?? so sorry if you have already explained.....does it need a cover? Was he in them from nb?

I have researched so much about mcn, bought a few just to see how they work.....so far i like the pocket nappies but not sure on what brands are good from the start, fit well, and grow with bub.....

any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!!!

[Nelle]

Thanks LM! 20 days doesn't seem so long...

Hi Bugalug! Yeah Terry flats can give a bubblebutt for sure! Flannel flats are a bit trimmer. I think you could probably google 'newborn flat nappy folds' or something like that for some fold ideas. I think there's a UK site called 'The Nappy Lady' or something, with fold ideas?
You'll find the flats come in handy for many things though. I suppose (crazy lady idea here) you could iron the terry flats to lessen bulk? That is a crazy lady idea isn't it...

That's a Tots Bots Cotton, which is a terry nappy too! The size 2 would be pretty bulky on a nb, I'd say Riv's about 3 months there, and he was long, which made nappies seem a bit less bulky. We used the Tots Bots Cottons size 1's from earlier I think though. They might be worth a try, simply because they're not too expensive. More expensive, but heaps trimmer would be the Tots Bots Bamboozles or Fluffles. We loved the one Bamboozle we had.
Think Bambineo Mio make a similar bamboo nappy to Tots Bots too.

You can't see in the pic, but that Tots Bots size 2 has the front folded down, to make it fit Riv as a smaller baby - the TB size 2s still fit him (though I boost them with a bamboo or hemp booster for absorbency these days).

I found any nappy that used a snappi to be great, because they're so versatile size-wise, you can adjust to the exact size you need.

Yep, the Tots Bots are 'fitteds' (even though most Modern cloth nappies are cut to fit, it's a silly name really) - which means they'll need a cover. I liked covers with gussets (different fit around the legs) for containing nb poo.
Tots Bots make covers with gussets, I think Bambineo Mio do too, and also Motherease (Rikki style covers). Actually, I think Bummis new covers have gussets too?

What nappies have you bought so far?
BumGenius were the only pockets I used on River as a really young baby, and they were great. I didn't know about many others then, and was a bit preoccupied with new parenthood to do much more research in those first 6 weeks! Some people find them too wide in the crotch, but I musta had a cowboy, cos they were fine on Riv.
It really is trial and error, buy one or so of each type you're interested in now, and when you find what really works for you, just order more!

[bugalug]

Hi Nelle - so far i have only bought 2 nappies, an AIO and a fitted (cotton & bamboo blend) one with velcro fastening both very baby brand. The fitted nappy has a snap in liner?? or booster?? lol I got them from the wee wuns store.

I'm guessing the fitted nappy i already have is similar to the tot bots fluffles??

I just got these to check them out.....do the fluffles come with a snap in booster? Do they have a pocket? If i cut up excess terry flat nappies and sew to tidy them up can these be used as boosters??

there is so much info out there, i think i have confused myself by looking around too much! Just after something easy to fit, with a good snug fit, and good absorbancy and not a huge bum! although a big baby bum is very cute hehe

Thanks so much Nelle for your reply!!

[Nelle]

Hi Nelle - so far i have only bought 2 nappies, an AIO and a fitted (cotton & bamboo blend) one with velcro fastening both very baby brand. The fitted nappy has a snap in liner?? or booster?? lol I got them from the wee wuns store.

It'll be a snap in booster - booster 'boosts' the absorbency of a nappy. But snaps in and out for quicker drying time.
In comparison the Tots Bots ones are sewn in, but only at the end, so they fold out for quicker drying time.
(A liner is something you choose to lay in to make poo easier to clean, or provide a stay dry material like fleece close to bubs bum)

I'm guessing the fitted nappy i already have is similar to the tot bots fluffles??

I just got these to check them out.....do the fluffles come with a snap in booster? Do they have a pocket?

Fluffles are pretty much like the other Tots Bots nappies in design. The differences are yep, the booster snaps, instead of being sewn at the end.
And they have a kind of pocket to tuck that booster into - because fluffles are made of microfibre, which ideally shouldn't touch too much of bub because it's so absorbent that it can dry out bub's skin too much.

If i cut up excess terry flat nappies and sew to tidy them up can these be used as boosters??

Sure can! Anything absorbent can be used to boost. For a newie especially, cotton is just fine for boosting. As bub gets bigger, and the wees get more full on, then you start to depend on hemp, bamboo, microfibre for more heavy duty boosting.

It totally is confusing at times, such a steep learning curve! The best thing you can do, is research as best you can before bub is born, buy one or two of those nappies - and then when bub is born, everything will fall into place! You will learn what you like and don't like in a nappy, what you need, what kind of nappy you would like to try...and then you can ask/research specifically to find what you want, and buy more of what you like. (And of course, after bub is born, you have that baby bonus, and can always set a little aside to help further your stash. )

[Lewis's Mummy]

So my trial is going pretty well - the BBHs are easy to use and wash although I haven't been game to use cloth at night yet. My pack of Bambino Mio arrived - prefolds and covers which seem more fiddly than the fitteds, but should get better with practice. My problem is the washing instructions say to add their detergent powder stuff to the normal wash if I don't soak... I think it's like a Napisan... but I have a front loader and napisan isn't recommended for use in it. I've been dry pailing the BBH without any problems. Should I just chuck the Mios in and not worry about the soak/stain factor? It's not like Adelaide's in for any overcast weather for at least the next week...unfortunately... will the sun do enough?

[Nelle]

Trial and error LM. I reckon I'd just throw the prefolds in and see what happens!
The sun is amazing for stains, but if you ever do come across any problems, just reassess then.

[Lewis's Mummy]

Are the various covers pretty well interchangeable regardless of which brand nappy is on DS? I've got some BBH and Mio ones and saw some cheap ones at Big W for if I find I need extras...

[Junglemum]

Hi nelle :wave: Thought i'd better help you out! Hope you are coping ok in the heat love. Not long now!

LM- Definately interchangeable. I have various fitteds and covers which i swap around all the time. Just be careful with the covers you sometimes find in BigW etc. Some are PUL, but others are PVC, which doesn't breathe which is not so good. But someone had an idea about cutting part of a BIGW nappy cover off to make it more breathable....... hmmmmm but not really sure what that was all about.......sorry! Maybe Nelle will know.

[Nelle]

The BigW one was *I think* a Fleece cover with a PVC layer inside? And so whoever it was just cut the PVC out and found the fleece worked well enough on its own.

[Lewis's Mummy]

Loving BBH bamboo and find the Mio prefolds good for when we're at home... haven't been game to switch to cloth at night. Lewis has started sleeping through (a week or so now...let's hope it's a new trend) and I'm too nervous that the cloth just won't keep the moisture away all night... during the day I've needed to change him straight after a nap and again before putting him down again about 90mins later. Want to try cloth at night too, but what do you suggest? Btw, how are you Nelle?

[Junglemum]

Hi Lewsi's Mummy, Nelle had her little boy, checkout the birth announcements.

I use BBH bamboo at night, cute tooshies bamboo with extra booster, or a BumG with 2 inserts. (My girl usually sleeps 10-12hrs) I havn't had any problems so far, although as DD is getting older i am finding the nappies quite wet in the morning.
Is your bamboo BBH soaked after 90min????? You may need a dedicated night nappy or two.....
There as specialised night nappies out there, google "lotus" "wildchild" "bubblebubs" All of these companies have night nappies that are super absorbent. I have just ordered a lotus so will let you know how it goes!

[MummyTummy]

Just a super quick question - when I have bought my nappies and need to do the prewashes to get them up to absorbency do I need to do seperate washes for the inserts being fluffy to the outsides being not fluffy? Or is it ok to just chuck 'em all in? Or should I put one set in a lingerie wash bag?

I have a front loader if that makes any difference!!

[Nelle]

I'd just throw em all in together. Even just in with your other loads of clothes. Unless you want to do your prewashes without any detergent at all, since they're not dirty.

When you say 'the outsides not being fluffy', are you talking like covers or the shells of pockets? Because they won't need the prewashes that absorbent materials like bamboo/hemp does. You could just wash them once to get any manufacturing residue out.

[MummyTummy]

Thanks Nelle!

Good to see you back and a big congratulations on the dramatic entrance of Silas!

When I said the outsides not being fluffy I was talking about the shell of pocket nappies. I knew that I didn't need to give them (the outer shell) all the washes, but I am mainly talking about the very first wash to get rid of the manuf. residue and excess fluff - which is why I was concerned about chucking them all in to together. Wasn't sure if it caused lint on all the other materials in the wash with them. Especially the boosters. Although now that I think about it if I am worried I should do all the boosters first and then put the shell in the last wash! That would just be too sensible though....

But I will chuck em all in and see how I go!

[miss_treewill]

Hi, I am planning on using prefolds with my baby, due in october, and am wondering what a trifold is?

[Nelle]

Ooh! When I think about it, a trifold's quite similar to a prefold. The difference is in their purpose.

A trifold is a square of absorbent material (or layers of absorbent material), usually hemp or bamboo, that folds in 3, and are often used in pocket nappies. The advantage they have over normal boosters is that they fold out for quicker drying.

And you know that a prefold is a square of layers of absorbent material, usually cotton, that fold in 3, and then are fanned out to be used as a nappy. Prefolds probably are bigger than trifolds

But the lines blur a bit, because a trifold can be folded in 3 and laid inside a snug fitting cover to make a good newborn nappy! And prefolds can be folded in 3 and used as pocket stuffing for bigger kids.

[miss_treewill]

Thanks Nelle! I think I was turned onto prefolds after reading your advice on this thread. I have accumulated 15 cotton ones off buy 4 baby and am trying to gather as many second hand covers as possible. I have also knitted a few nb size soakers. I was thinking of making about another ten small prefolds, would you use bamboo (from snapsaustralia) or would you not bother and just use cotton?
I was also wondering... when you used prefolds for your newborn did u find that your covers needed to be washed allot due to wetness or explosive poo? I guess i am wondering how many covers i should gather for nb stage. one last thing, a friend said that a snappi would not work on a prefold, true or false? Thanks allot again, Rosie