Anyone used muslin nappies from birth?

[mitfordsisters]

I'm planning to use shaped cloth nappies as soon as baby (not yet born) is big enough for the second size, and had thought about using disposables until then.

Someone has suggested muslins instead, and I'm tempted as I don't really want to use disposables. Anyone done this with success, or will I make unnecessary work for myself?

muslins work well when they are really little, sort of for the first few weeks, couple of months really. They don't really have the absorbency for when they are bigger. It will kind of depend on how heavy a wetter your baby is and when they fit the size 2 of what ever brand of nappy you choose as to whether muslins will fill the gap. You could always try pad folded 50cm terry squares instead-the price would be only a tiny bit more as decent muslins aren't that cheap.

I used them for ds3 and 4 for that purpose, and they worked really well. I just folded them into a pad shape and shoved them inside the wraps i had. Used them like that for about 6-8 weeks I guess until they fitted the totsbots etc a bit better.

I used muslins for the first few weeks, but only until DD was big enough for size 1 bamboozles. I have also used them in emergencies since then, sometimes 2 muslins together for extra absorbtion.

Not sure if it will get you all the way to the second size

we used muslins as a fall back when i had not been organised enough to get the washing done in time, they seemed to work fine on a new born, up until 3 months we used mainly terry squares which were perfect..... infact they are still being used now as mopping up clothes etc so they are definately not a waste of money.

I used them like that and it worked fine. They are better than terries when they are tiny as they aren't as bulky and dry much faster. I didn't pad fold them though, I did a jo fold and used nippas.

Ace - glad to hear this worked for you lailasmum and loshad. Re absorbency - I was concerned about that - did you find you needed boosters?

The nippas do allow a good fit don't they ib. I guess it'll depend how much the baby wets... Going to try it.

i did this too and added boosters at night. but was changing napppies at night anyway to wake dd up to take bothsides and a full feed!! it worked well for me.....

with muslins you might need boosters after the first few weeks, hence why the terries might work out a bit less hassle in the long run.Lets say if you were going to use them on a 3 or 4 month old you pretty definately would need boosters. There is nothing to stop you folding up a couple of muslins though it might be a bit bulky though. Have you decided what size 2 nappies you are buying? I mean if you had say a size 2 nippa tots with the front folded down and you baby was fairly large muslins could work as a stop gap. But if your babe is on the small side you could get a gap.

I used muslins in the early weeks as that was all we had in at the time, baby 4 weeks early! They were great. We still use them now combined them in with a terry. I also used the liner of a One-life nappy as a nappy in itself and that worked well.

I've been using muslins as the terry squares are far too bulky at the moment. Just jo folded and nippa'ed under a wrap. Just thinking about adding a booster of some sorts for some more absorbancy - any suggestions anyone?

I should think some value microfibre dishcloths would do the job nicely. Tesco and Asda do 3 for 89p. They are very absorbant and very quick drying. Being small they would fit inside your muslins nicely. What would also be good is that you can use them after you have past the muslin stage. I use them for DD2 20m as a booster, some people on here you 3 on their own inside a pocket nappy.

Being microfibre you may find you need to do a quick cold prewash before you wash them properly as they hold smells quite well. tbh, it's a good practice to get into anyway. It shouldn't cost much in elec to add the pre wash but it does make the proper wash much more effective IME

Yes I did they were great. Fold up nicely, soft, not too bulky. Then they are bibs, burp cloths, boosters for bigger nappies etc etc.
I used cotton facecloths for boosters before I moved up to bigger nappies.
If only all nappies dried as quick as muslins!

Thanks for the thrifty ideas re boosters - more money left for gin...

Lailasmum: I'll get bumbles, which are suitable from 10lb. Don't know when my baby will be that big, but guess I'll gamble and stop the gap with terries if necessary

Should be ok then, As long as you don't have a miniscule sprog. or one with really skinny thighs.