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Original poster

Calling all prefold snobs, I have a question

45 replies

TinkerbellesMum · 28/01/2008 09:02

Everytime I say to someone else who uses real nappies that I use Cotton Bottoms I get a snobby "Oh prefolds" and I want to know, what's wrong with prefolds?

I am doing my bit for the environment, aren't I? Granted it is in plain white, none fluffy nappies, but I am doing my bit!

I don't have the money for an obsession of any kind, the birth to potty pack cost me half of my grant but it's given me everything I need.

I'm getting fed up of the snobbery over it and I would like to know what people's problem is.

OP posts:

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leifmum · 28/01/2008 09:14

nothing is wrong with prefolds! the two friends i know in rl who used real nappies used cotton bottoms and said they were the best they tried. i'm using mothercare smart nappies and don't really like them but persisting until i find a better one!

ignore them and well done for doing your bit

babyjjbaby · 28/01/2008 09:18

it doesn't matter what u use aslong as u like them like i use the mothercare terries but that is from where i prefer them to anything else so it is jus t what u prefer and prefolds are really quick to put on to and they are not bulky

nannyL · 28/01/2008 09:40

so long as they work for YOU its fine

have used loads of different types of washable on dfferent children and cottom bottom prefolds are my all time worst...

but only because they leaked SOOOOOO badly. given all the difefrent ones i have used and liemd a disliked i KNOW that when i ahve my own (I WILL be using real nappies) I WONT be using prefolds, but if they work for you three is nothing wrong with it at all....

and IMO you are SOOOO much better than those using nasty disposables

also when your children out grow them you can use them as dusters etc and i cant imagine dusting with a shaped nappy!

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Original poster

TinkerbellesMum · 28/01/2008 10:06

I don't care what people think tbh, it's the whole snobbery, I just want to know what it is about. When I said in at a nappuchino that I use real nappies someone said "yes, but you use prefolds" like I don't count. I can laugh it off, but I just want to know where it comes from.

I don't have problems with leakage, unless she either isn't in them properly (thanks Daddy) or is wringing wet anyway (she can wee for England sometimes). I've already passed the ones she's grown out of onto a friend, saving them for my next baby and my sister has put her order in (she's a 21 year old career woman too lol).

I agree, the most important thing is we're saving the planet, I know I could do better by using reusable wipes, but at least it's not disposable nappies and the wipes go in the toilet so no different to an adult (especially as one that prefers to use baby wipes than tissue) anyway; and we are getting on with them.

OP posts:

Original poster

TinkerbellesMum · 28/01/2008 10:08

Oh and with cotton bottoms, there's a knack to folding it so it leaks less. It did take us awhile to find the best fold and I have a couple of ways I use now depending on my mood and tolerance for messing around.

OP posts:

jes74 · 28/01/2008 10:16

prefolds are great if you can get away with them then the benefit of a system that dries so quickly as well as being economical to purchase is great. i also brought a birth to potty kit which is still sitting largely unused in a cupboard after 4dc because i have found that they leak alot, in the newborn stage it wasn't to bad but as the children get older the less reliable i have found them. But i do find the newborn and next size up prefold make perfect boosters in my other nappies and have also found them not to leak so much if in a motherease rikki wrap so i guess that its more the wraps that dont work for me, yet i love the cute designs on some of the wraps i have.
i have a friend who has been able to use them with no problems on her two children except at night where she has to use disposables as not absorbant enough. so i know they work for some just fine.

jes74 · 28/01/2008 10:31

took me so long to post hadn't seen your new posts. When i started looking at nappies 8yrs ago prefolds were all the rage and prefold users gave me snobby comments as the first nappies i got were traditional terries, then i brought prefolds and sure enough they were no longer the in thing according to them. as i see it to some it has become the ultimate fashion accessory to ensure dc have the in season nappy and if you can afford it great for you even i admit nappy buying can become addictive. and i have brought nappies because they look good but only 2nd hand due to pennies alas i dont have enough money to be a nappy snob.

FlameNFurter · 28/01/2008 11:31

There is a snobbery over prefolds?

I tend not to like them because they are the least reliable of cloth nappies - they work beautifully for some people (I'm thinking Colditz got on well with them, and you obv), but for many they are a disaster and turn them away from cloth (as was my first experience).

I am worried that you spent £250 on a btp pack of prefolds though, they shouldn't have cost that much! One of their benefits is that they are cheap.

You will always get the fluff addicts excitement over snuggly, bright colours etc, but that is the same with clothes and everything else.

As a general rule any threads I see saying noooooooooo to prefolds is purely on function.

Annoyed with your nappucino group How are comments like that going to help anyone???

bestignored · 28/01/2008 15:15

Ha! Maybe it is jealousy that you managed to get cheap, slim fitting, quick drying nappies that worked for you while the others have to spend an awful lot more on nappies to get the same effect (or mnaybe spend an awful lot and still not get the same benefits)

My DD didn't get on with Prefolds but I wished she had - esp since the cotton bottom ones were sold off so cheaply .

If someone said that to me at a Nappiccino I'd get their address so I knew where to post the next dirty nappy. I can't say I have ever come across that sort of comment at a nappy meet - what a strange (and sad) person

Sanguine · 28/01/2008 16:03

No idea what people's problem is! I didn't even know there were so many types of washable nappies until very recently. Next time it happens, smile sweetly and step away from that person, and look for someone else to talk to. Preferably someone who doesn't spend their life getting het het up about what other people use to catch their babies' poo...

bellabelly · 28/01/2008 17:18

I don't get the difference between prefold and non-prefold . I use One Life - are they prefold or not?

bestignored · 28/01/2008 21:11

Nope, they are shaped . Prefolds are flat squares nappies which have three sectioned panels - the middle panel is thicker than the outside ones and you fold the whole thing into a pad and put it inside a wrap.

mybabywakesupsinging · 28/01/2008 23:15

I have also come across a slightly disdainful attitude to prefolds. I think it's because a) not cute/colourful and b) produced "industrially" not by small companies.
However at MUCH cheaper they are doing a fine job for ds2 (I also use bamboo and terry squares, like both but can't see DH learning to fold them...).
I don't worry about it .
When I am rich I will buy ds2 some funky nappies (should he still require them!)

bellabelly · 28/01/2008 23:19

Aaah, they are shaped - thank you, bestignored, I feel less ignorant now. (Honestly, I just thought there were 2 types - cloth and disposable!)

fillthatnappylittlekiwi · 28/01/2008 23:42

prefold snobbery is a bit like what sort of mobile phoneyou have. A few years ago just owning one was a big deal and now it has t be all singing all dancing to even qualify for a nod. Prefolds are really easy to use and care for and were what I started out with. Had I not been seduced with the ease of fastening a shaped nappy I guess I'd have stuck with them.
Fingers up at the comment at the meeting though what a bloody cheek.

Original poster

TinkerbellesMum · 29/01/2008 09:48

It's nice to see I haven't had any comments like my previous ones!

The lady who made the comment (which is just one of a few of I've heard, infact even the lady employed by the council was a little funny about prefolds) is one that I met through a BLW site and lives near my parents so we met up (not Aitch's, she doesn't use Aitch's site) we are into a lot of the same things, babywearing (but then I only like wraps and don't have the babywearing addiction) BLW (but I'm strict on spoons) and nappies (but I use prefolds) so you can imagine we only met up a couple of times, it wasn't a friendship I wanted to persue.

I do think a lot of the thing with Cotton Bottoms (can't comment on other prefolds) is in the fold. At first we had a lot of leaks and would be constantly changing her and this was living in a flat before we had a dryer! But as I've messed around with the fold I've found it can be done a lot better. I think that's where it differs, those that get on better with them have mastered the fold better than those who didn't.

I've got to stop now cause my taxi is here, will finish later.

OP posts:

babyjjbaby · 29/01/2008 10:19

TinkerbellesMum have u tried the bikini fold i think it is called where u lay the nappy flat out then pull the bit up between there legs and as u are doing so u twist tehn just use a nappy nippa

BigBadMouse · 29/01/2008 11:51

Tinkerbelle, I suppose if you ever wanted to rekindle the friendship you could just wave a white prefold (flag folded) on a stick at her....although, she might not appreciate that I suppose (best make it a proper cloth nappy )

Had a nose at your profile. Your DD2 is very cute. I must read up on all the BLW and babywearing stuff - all sounds very interesting

paow · 29/01/2008 13:03

Hi there, I use Cotton Bottoms too and have been for about 8 months.
I've never had any comments from anyone, but I do have some fleece wraps that make ds' bum quite funky!!
I have never found they leak, how is that?
I fold them 3 times and then the top bit down as if to make a thick cushion on the front part of ds where his bits are, that way he gets extra absorbence there.
I think it depends on the child but and age but I know that if in the morning ds has lots of milk, he will need changing sooner than in the afternoon when he doesn't really drink that much (he's 15 months).

The only thing is that I haven't found a decent night time nappy and have to use a nature disposable as it broke my heart the day he woke up soaked even with 2 nappies at the same time.

MaeWest · 29/01/2008 13:13

I use prefolds too, but mainly because I'm super lazy and use a nappy laundry. I do find that I have to rinse poo out of the wrap, but v rarely have a leak down the back/legs as often happens in disposables.

For environmental reasons I don't have a tumble dryer (luckily have a garden so can dry outside) so the quick or not drying is an issue for me. I have tested a shaped nappy (sim to one life) that the laundry is introducing soon, and found that there was less leakage into the wrap. The price of the service will be going up tho, so am thinking I may need to bite the bullet and buy some for washing at home really...

At the end of the day, nappies are jsut for catching sh*t aren't they??? .

Bouncingturtle · 31/01/2008 12:07

OK questions for you prefold users, I've just bought a few for my first foray into the world of reusables. Should I wash them before use?
TIA

FlameNFurter · 31/01/2008 15:47

Yup - they take a few washes to reach full absorbancy, so you either need to prewash a few times (you don't need powder after the first time), or just go with the fact that they will need changing more often the first few uses.

jumpyjan · 31/01/2008 15:53

I use bambino mio pre folds and think they are great.

I didn't know people were snobby about prefolds!

Bouncingturtle · 31/01/2008 16:24

Thanks, guys. Should be getting them any day now!
It's the bambino mio ones i'm getting.

Yorky · 31/01/2008 16:26

Jumpyjan, have you ever had a problem with the velcro fastening irritating your LOs tummy? or red marks on their legs. We used bambino mio as my midwife gave us a load and we got some more from and nct sale but sometimes I worry he isn't comfy, although they've been leak free and wash well.
What other wraps can I use?

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