Real nappies: they either leak or leave red marks and I'm fed up

[hairylegsdontcare]

I'm using Bambino Mio, all in one, one size nappies on my 5 week old daughter, but can't get the fit right. To avoid leaks they seem to need to be very tight, but then she gets angry red marks in her groin, and they cut her in half at the waist.

What am I doing wrong? I'm really disappointed and considering giving up and using disposables again.

She might be too small still. I know they claim to be birth to potty, but a lot of one size nappies aren’t really small enough for newborns.

I didn’t start with cloth until my daughter was about 4 months so I’m not very well versed in newborn cloth options. There are newborn sized all-in-ones but they are pricey. Alternatively you could try prefolds/terry squares and covers? Or just park it for a while until she fits into the bambino mios a bit better?

I tried to get on with reusable nappies but I'll be honest, they are no where near as good as disposables. If you don't change them at least 2 hourly they leak or can lead to nappy rash. They don't last long enough overnight - I was frequently changing bedsheeets. Plus the amount of washing was ridiculous! I needed 4-6 disposables per 24 hrs once they are out of thatbpooey phase compared with 12-14 cloth nappies.

I love Aldi Mamia nappies (and fragrance free senisive baby wipes by them too), used them after swapping from pampers wehn DS was 2wks old and never looked back

Cloth nappies and skinny newborn legs are a bad combination. Try again in 6w or so.

I found we had phases of them being really good and then dc would grow a bit and it was tricky to get a good fit. I've used them on and off for years across two dc, every cloth nappy is one less disposable but I don't beat myself up on the weeks where I don't manage any cloth.

I also found the birth to potty training nappies far too big for my newborns and in the end bought some newborn sized ones, which were great. My babies had less nappy rash with cloth than with disposables.

It is hard finding the right fit when their legs are so skinny, so I agree with PP that it's probably best to leave it a few more weeks then try again when she starts getting chubbier.

And congratulations on your wee bundle. 5 week olds are so snuggly.

5 weeks is too small. I started using from 5 months and never had a leak

I used cloth with my first from about 3m to 8m. I second she may be a bit young. However.

By 8m he just leaked through within 90 minutes to 2 hours. I had two parters and was stuffing them til the poor kid could barely move and still they leaked. I tried every type of insert to no avail. The well known website that I bought them from said 2 hours is how often they should be changed for hygiene anyway I'm still not sure it that's bullshit or I'm disgusting but I don't change wet every 2 hours by that age.

Used disposables when driving 9+ hours to stay with family for the weekend and my god it was good. We never went back. Feel bad about the environmental aspect which is why I had reusables in the first place but I couldn't be doing with them anymore.

I resold them on Facebook for decent money. So. Don't worry about changing your mind if you want.

I've only used cloth ones which I folded myself from a square/rectangle of cloth, so for new born (c. 5lb onwards) I just folded them smaller. Are yours pre cut/shaped?

All in ones are too big for newborns. Try again in 6/7 weeks

In defence of cloth - I’ve been using them for a year (my DD is 16 months and we started at 4 months) and we’ve never had a single overnight leak. We have had a few daytime leaks, but only a very very few.

We change every 3-4 hours or so during the day and she does 12 hours overnight. When she was smaller we did change a bit more often than that. I love cloth nappies, because I think they feel nicer and for my daughter they result in fewer rashes. But there is unfortunately a bit more trial and error involved than with disposable nappies.

Thanks for all the advice. I might wait a bit until she is a bit bigger, as she has pretty skinny legs. I can't be arsed changing them every 2 hours when disposables last twice that time. If I really can't get on with them, like pp said, I will consider reselling :)

Thanks!!

Different brands fit different babies better. And all-in-ones like Mios will leak more than two-part nappies. It may be your DD will grow into them, or it may be they aren’t the right nappy for her.

We used Litte Lamb size 1 nappies and Bimbles from birth (2.7kg) to about 7kg. Moved on to Sandy’s and Little Lamb size 2 now DS is bigger. No leaks (unlike disposables - I get smug reading about poonamis because they just don’t happen with well-fitting cloth). And they last for hours - easily 14 hours overnight, you just have to boost them enough.

Of course you need to change them every 3-4 hours during the day to avoid nappy rash, like you do with disposables. Not because they leak (they don’t), but because it’s gross to leave your baby in a dirty nappy for hours on end.

We found one part nappies a bit unreliable, for us what worked was little lambs size 1 and the tots bots stretchies. Motherease outers. We found these very reliable.

Disposables can be unreliable for little ones. There isn’t much to keep poo in the nappy. We found two part washable more reliable: good absorbency and two sets of elastic.

Another vote for starting later: 4 months here. I use pocket nappies (Alva - very good value on Amazon) with two inserts for heavy wetting DS and they last well for 3 hours or so. I do use disposables overnight though as he pees a fuckton. He never gets nappy rash in cloth and I'm hoping it will make potty training easier later. It doesn't have to be all or nothing, or start from birth.

I was a pampers snob for a while but they kept leaking and I was finding he was waking up wet most nights. Tried Aldi nappies and haven't looked back! Been using them a year now!

Give her a couple more months to grow a bit, then try again.

Mine leak through any wrap except motherease. Those are bomb proof. You do have to try a few and see what you like- the nappy lady advice form is excellent.
I'm on my second cloth nappies baby, both from birth. Eldest went through to potty, youngest is 16 months.
Leaks are rare, Day or night (unless they are in a dodgy wrap)

I agree that Motherease wraps are superb.

I second Little Lamb two parters, you can buy a pack of 5 for £25 online (outer wrap is extra) so they're some of the cheapest but I've found them much more reliable than the all in ones. Check out the nappy lady site. Plus they're Velcro so you can adjust to fit better than poppers. I tend to use the fleecy microfiber ones in day and cotton/bamboo ones with an extra booster pad at night and they don't leak. (Currently doing mainly cloth with my youngest - 4.5 months - after using them on DD1 till she was about 18 months and finding them a bit too bulky.)

Seems a shame to go back to disposables if you don’t want to! There are definitely nappies out there to fit newborns.

If you want to use something else while you’re waiting for her to grow into the Mios, DS wore these from birth (he was a 2.7kg premmie with skinny legs, and we had no leaks):

www.easypeasynappies.co.uk/sized-bimble-nippa-10-pack-158-p.asp
£6.25 each

www.thenappylady.co.uk/shaped-sized-nappies/little-lamb-bamboo.html
£24.99 for 5

Plus you’ll need about 3 covers.

You can fold up muslins for nappies when they are tiny too, which saves buying any more nappies.

Do you have a nappy library near you? They're great for advice and support, and most can hire you kits of different brands which can help clarify what's most suitable for your baby. www.uknappynetwork.org/find-a-library.html

Agree little lamb part ones are far better.
Bambino mio all in ones will need her to be 14 or 15lb realistically to get a good fit.
All in ones do leak more and need changing more frequently.
Our little lambs would go 3 hours plus when boosted correctly (and this was in a baby who could out wee a disposable!)
Lots of second hand ones around to try which are far cheaper.
I would also recommend a nappy library. Firstly to check how you're fitting as they shouldn't be tight around waist at all. Secondly as every baby needs different things depending on their size and shape.

Do you have a local real nappy group near to you? Some offer a lending library so you can try different nappies and maybe find one that's a better fit. I've found that some styles suit certain body shapes better than others.