Felling stupid! dont know the first thing about cloth nappies help!

[Charlee]

God i feel like a bit of a twat posting this everyone seem's to know about cloth nappies but i dont. I want to use them for when baby number 2 comes along but havent the faintest clue what i need and what to do with them!

I cannot afford a birth to potty pack at all.

I have however brought 5 new born cotton bottoms wraps second hand (all in excellent condition)

Now i figure i need the actuall cloth nappy bit's that go iside, theres hunderds on ebay but i dont know the difference between all of them, do i need prefolds, muslin squares or what and how many? do they have to be cotton bottoms to go with the wraps or can i use different brands?

I have been told i will also need liners which are pretty self explantery even i can get that bit.

But is that all i need for each one a wrap, nappy and liner?

What do i do each time i change baby throw away the liner obviously do i put a new cloth nappy in and a new wrap each time or just the cloth nappy?

Then i will be washing myself everyday probably so i need a bucket, some of them say they dont need soaking, is this true do i literally just stick them in the washing machine like i would clothes and wash and dry them?

I know, i know alot of questions! anyone who can help would be a great help. i used disposables with DS from the start so never had any experience with cloth.

thanks

I have to ho and tend to my children, but good luck with it!

it's not too hard when you get the hang of it. personally I use tots bots (and I started with 10 size one applix ones) - they have built in liners anyway. and yes, rinse off poo, stick in bucket and then bung in washer. wraps only need changing first and last thing ime.

I'm sure someone else will be along soon with more info.

Thanks for not laughing!

So i need to get some liners and the actual cloth nappies, does anyone know if i have to get cotton bottoms to go with the wraps or will others fit?

Most wraps will fit most nappies but if using prefolds the legs need to be gussetted. IIRC the one cotton bottoms wrap I got fit over my tots bots as well. I started by getting prefolds, them gradually increased my supply of "nice" nappies as I went along.

i didnt get on well with the pre-folds to be honest, i do have one prefold 'nappy' for some reason which i can send you free. email me [email protected] and i'll get it sent out. i would get some terry nappies (again i can send you one) to practise folds to see which one works best with the wraps you have.

Right, so let me get this straight- (sorry Im in Japan, and I dont have the language skills to ask the shop assistants or anything, although they do seem to sell cloth nappies everywhere here!)
Ive bought some muslin squares, and also what you seem to be calling "prefolds" (Like soft, puffy material padded rectangles). These prefolds have a gap in them like something should go in there- would that be the liner? So the liner isnt the nappy- is it just made of paper? Is the liner the thing that stops the wee running through to the clothes?
What about with the muslin squares- does the liner go on top of them next to the babys skin, or underneath them next to the wrap? Sorry, theres more. Are the wraps the cute little things with buttons, and velcro straps that I can see everywhere (tot bots etc?)
Ive looked on the nappy lady website, but still cant catch how to use everything.
THanks!!

LOL! I was upstairs changing ds3 into a terry nappy when I suddenly thought, "Why don't I tell Charlee to get terries instead of prefolds?" But misdee beat me to it! It was misdee who told me about the Jo fold which, now I have the hang of it, is as good as a Tots Bots nippa! It seems daunting, the idea of folding the nappies a particular way but its not origami! Its easy when you get the hang of it, as inexpensive as prefolds, more effective than prefolds and very pretty too!
The best site for advice (apart from MN!!!) is The Nappy Lady site and they have a section showing all the different terry folds.

Sakura, crossed posts! Liners can be paper or fleece. I prefer fleece because it keeps the baby's bottom dry and they are non-disposable, you throw the poo into the loo and then throw the liner into your nappy bucket.
The wrap is the outer part which is waterproof.
The liner goes next to the baby's skin.
Don't know what you mean about a gap in the prefold? Prefolds are rectangular nappies which are usually folded into 3, then placed inside the wrap. The liner is placed on top of the prefold. Will try to find a link for you.....

Okay, I just found the "Tips" part of the website, so I`ll read that, but please, still feel free to respond

Thanks Charlee for letting me hijack your thread

Tried to do a link but couldn't get it to work. If you go to www.bambino.mio.com and look to the left on the homepage, if you click on "as easy as abc" they show pictures of someone putting a prefold on a baby. You could fold a muslin the same way. But still don't know what the nappy with the gap is!

Thank you chipmonkey (crossed the last post too!)
So have I got this straight; we need the wrap (the cute thing that goes outside), and the liner, (which goes next to the baby`s skin), and then the muslin squares or prefolds which is the main "nappy"/

Dunno either what the gap is!
Its like a rectangle of soft padded material (looks like a luxuriously soft material maternity pad or something). Its obviously for people who cant be bothered to fold the muslin squares into the right shape. But it has two layers, so its sewn together at each end and its designed so it looks like something should be put in between the 2 layers (liner possibly?). The shopkeeper was pretty adamant that this soft pad thing is what touches the babys skin, so I`m wondering about the liner...

Thanks for that bambino mio link! I`ve got it now, with the cover, nappy and liner.

Don't think I've seen those pad things over here Sakura, maybe they're just a Japanese thing? Does it look absorbent? Is the inner part fleece?

Hi, yes they look absorbant, quite thick cotton (they feel lovely) and it looks like you just place them inside the cover. I dont think Ive seen any liners anywhere to "catch" the extra poo, so maybe this is just what they use here.

Cloth nappies seem to be sold everywhere. Im sure that Japanese women would be shocked that I just dont know the first thing about them, so I thought I`d better build up some knowledge from mumsnet
Thanks again.

Sorry, don't want to confuse you more, but just to add a money saving tip!
If you use paper liners, you can wash the ones that have only been peed on. They should last a few washes.
Good luck, M x

We use Weenee pants with microfibre cloths inside...they are used in the same way as prefolds. Lovely and soft, they dry quickly, we got ours from ASDA for 90p each.

also, I have been known to wash even Pampers Wipes and re-use them just by wetting. I hate buying them but on those occasions when I have, I have felt a bit better about it!

I also have a cotton bottoms newborn prefold sat here (I think), and probably a wrap. If you CAT me your address I'll hunt it out and post it.