Starter on reusables, your advice greatly needed

[Teoroy]

Hello ladies,
here's what I am planning to do. I am still expecting but from what I've read I decided to go for 10-15 muslin (early weeks) and 10-15 terry squares. I am thinking of buying 2 small and 2 medium Rikki wraps.
(My ultimate goal is to practice elimination communication but would like to master the breastfeeding first).
Do u think this would be enough? What shall I use to catch the poo/moisture? I read about fleece..will just ordinary fleece do?
Shall I get more wraps? Are ME Rikkies as good as ME Airflows?

Sorry for the simple questions but I am overwhelmed by the info and not sure what to choose.

Thanks
Teo

Hello!

I'd go for 15 rather than 10 of each. 10 probably won't be enough tbh. They used to say 24 of each but I'm not so sure - you should be OK with 15 if you're happy to wash every 1.5 days or so - really depends on how 'regular' your DC is I guess. btw - I got some nice cheap muslins on ebay yesterday - £10 inc postage for 15 (and a choice of individual colours ).

You will definitely need more wraps - at least 4 of each size, maybe 6 in the smallest size (as early poo tends to leak quite often).

The Rikki works better than the airflow with flat nappies. The airflow is great but is a biggier fit so may allow the fold to come undone underneath - I prefer the airflow with all other nappy types though.

Terry square wise I've found mothercare and junior joy very thin - fine for young ones but would need boosting / very regular changing for older ones. Also they are less likely to hold their shape which is a PITA when it comes to folding. Little Ewe and Babeco are a good make as are Harringtons (I've only seen the latter on ebay so far). You could maybe try a bamboo terry or two - they are fab, very slim, very absorbant but a bit slippery so you have to fix them well. Don't get the ebay ones as they fray. I think Babeco make a good one.

Don't buy 40cm terry squares - most people find they can go straight to 60cm after using muslins for the first few weeks.

You don't need anything to catch early poo unless you want to - it comes out very easily in the wash (and you can always do a quick cold prewash before the main wash if you wish). You can use any type of fleece - just buy a metre from your local fabric shop (if you have one) and chop accordingly.

Good luck

sorry, forgot to mention that you may need XS Rikkis if your baby is very small - say under 7lbs IME. If you're concerned about the cost you could consider second hand wraps if you were happy to use them.

Fleece is very good inside nappy, poo won't stick to it really, swill it in the loo to rinse most of solids off, then pop it into nappy bucket to soak. This isn't essential but makes emptying the dirty soaking water less yucky later! When solids end up producing solid jobbies (oh the joys!) the whole thing just rolls off the liner and the nappy itself is often merely damp. It all goes wrong if they get lactose intolerance though.....!

We had 4 liners of the first size, three of the next two and now get by with two large ones, all Airflow (with Motherease one-size) they're grrrrrrreat!

just got 4 wraps off ebay for less than £6.... always worth a good look!

I would buy at least 24 squares as this fills a washer well. Also at least 6 wraps if not more...

We never saw a need for liners but booster are good for at night. We find an old flannel folded up works very well.

Best of luck with breast feeding, nappies and e c!

oh yuck, i meant wraps when i said liners.....we have as many liners as we have nappies and the wraps are the ones we only have a few of.....

Thank you ladies!!
Just a quickie.

DO I need to pin the muslin or the terry under the wrap?

Muslin-do I need to fold it in a jo fold or I can just stick in in the wrap?

Which terries shall I get in terms of absorbancy then?

LOve
Teo

oh! And how often do you change the wrap?

Have a good weekend to all!!!!

I would have thought nappy nippas would be better than pins, Teoroy. Twinkle have a good guide on folding - download here.

Re: Terry absorbancy.....

Mothercare / Junior J - least absorbant but thin, don't hold shape too well but cheap and you ay like them for a young baby who doesn;t need to much bulk or absorbancy.

Little Ewe / Babeco / Harringtons - much more absorbant, softer and thicker than the above. Hold their shape better - about £2.10 each - Harringtons are £15 for 12 at Tony's Textiles shop on eBay (think you need postage on top of that though)

Bamboo Terries - Slimmer fitting, more abosrbant and stay softer than cotton however they can lose their shape quite easily, may lose their fold shape due to slipperiness and are bit more expensive than cotton terries. Bamboo tends to take longer to dry than cotton but bamboo squares are so thin that I find they dry in about the same time as the better quality cotton terry. Don't tumble dry bamboo though.

Thats all I've tried .

Thank you for your kind answers!

With regards to fleece liners.

Buy half a metre of fleece (make sure its anti-pil) from your haberdashery & cut to size. It doesnt fray so you dont need to hem it or anything. Cost - about £3.

we have one wrap a day, taking it in turns, and rinsing our every day off, as they dry quickly. if one gets dirty, the other one stays on for a couple of days, so the dirty one can go in the wash.

every now and again, they get a full wash, even if not actally soiled. 40 degress with napisan so that the membrane stays more intact than washed at the recommeded 60.