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    How Do I Get Started With Cloth Diapering?

    Dear Catherine;
    I want to switch to cloth diapers. Please help. I don't know where to start. I have heard nothing but rave reviews about your company. Please tell me what I need to start...

    The best place to start is with a sample pack of diapers covers and /or liners. Buying a cloth diapering system by mail order can be a bit like buying a dress for someone you never met! Babies come in all shapes and sizes, and what fits one baby perfectly will fit terribly on another baby. What one mom raves about, another mom hates.

    It truly is a personal choice. You need to actually try some samples on your baby, and see what you like, and what fits your baby well.

    So, how do you put together a sample pack, when you don't even know what you like yet?
    First think about what your main concerns are....

    Refuse to pin?
    You may be best off with fitted or all-in-one diapers.
    Money is a concern?
    Prefolds are economical, and work great for many moms and babies. If you still don't want to pin, you can simply fold a prefold inside a Velcro®-closing cover and use the cover to hold the diaper on. If your baby isn't 30 pounds by a year, a one-size fitted diaper could be very economical as well.
    Baby will be left with a lot of sitters?
    People unfamiliar with using cloth diapers find all-in-one diapers (AIO) to be very similar to "disposable" diapers and easy enough to use without help.
    Got a big baby?
    Start out with the larger size diapers, and avoid the one-size-fits-all type of diaper. When baby is 30 pounds at a year - one size diapers definitely won't fit at all!
    Got a heavy wetter?
    Look for diapers with at least 1 cup or 250 grams absorbency. Doublers (narrow pads of multiple layers of cloth to be laid inside a diaper), such as All-Terry Doublers (150 grams absorbency) can boost a medium absorbency diaper to a better level, if you love a diaper that just isn't absorbent enough on its own....

    Now, what about covers? Again, what is important to you?

    Breath-ability?

    Try some wool (AJ's Wool Soakers, Aristocrats) or all-cotton (Cot'nwraps) covers.
    Waterproofness?
    Try some vinyl or poly-coated nylon (Babykins) covers.
    Inexpensive?
    Try pull-ons (Babykins, Whisper) or vinyl (Snap Vinyl Wraps) covers.

    What will you do with the samples you bought and didn't like?
    Sell or trade them on some of the online auction sites!

    Here's a few places to start:

    Cloth Diapering is Natural! Bulletin Board

    Amity's Mama Swap, WhaMall, Mother's Nature

    Hope that helps! Write again to catherine@borntolove.com if you have a diapering question you would like answered.

    P.S. Here are some other articles that might interest you:

    Feeling Confused by Your Cloth Diapering Decision?

    How to Choose the Perfect Cloth Diapering System

    Do Cloth Diapers Seem Too Expensive?

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