What are the best resusables for a beginner? Are any as easy as disposables (bar the washing of course)?

[wem]

I was thinking of resuables for my first when she arrives in October, but I'm worried about the outlay if we then give up and end up using disposables.

Should we start on disposables and then look into reusables once we're feeling a bit more human?

i would advise getting a trial pack from one of the many sellers out there, or get some tailored advice from flame or nappyzone (look in the classified ads on here)

For something as easy as a disposable you couldn;t go far wrong with bumgenius. they come with two microfibre inserts and once put together are very disposable like, with stretchy velcro tabs.

another option would be the snap in all in ones that are becoming more popular like modern baby pop-ins, blueberry minky or itty bitty d'lish. They tend to be more expensive, but you don't need a separate wrap

i started off using disposables and then got some 2nd hand assorted ones from a classified ad. when i'd worked out what suited us best (it's often dictated by the shape of your baby and how heavy a wetter they are) then I bought more.

consider washing and drying facilities as well....pocket nappies like bumgenius dry quickly and you can get extra inserts so it works out quite cheap to do it that way as you don't need lots of the outer bits. bumgenius are also a birth to potty nappy, so you would only have one outlay.

The choice can be a bit bewildering I admit.

disposables are certainly much easier in the ealry days of meconium and whan you are so sleep deprived you don;t know what day of the week it is!

some links

bumgenius

modern baby

berry plush

itty bitty d'lish can't find a link to who sells these though!

There is a scheme called lollipop that has local representatives that will come & talk you through all the variouse types & options.

We went for onelife birth to potty (though did have to wait untill dd 2 months old to use as had VERY skinny legs) & once we knew we had a girl bought a few slimmer style ones to use under pretty dresses.

I have found no problem with re-usables you just have to get your self into a routine of washing & drying etc.

there are loads of advisory services out there....lollipop, babykind are the biggies, but there are always lots of local ones as well.

If you are anywhere near Leeds I'd be more than happy to show you my stash ..in a nice non psycho way that is

look here to find cash incentives for using cloth in your area. Some local councils provide as much as £50 in vouchers . You msy also find you have a local nappy project which offers a trial scheme.

They are all easy to use tbh - you get used to it all very quickly.

i think its much easier to put a load of washing on and hang it out than it is to bundle baby up in the car at the most inapropriate time and drive to supermarket for some disposables (especially in the winter or when its peeing with rain!)

my absolute faves atm are thirsties. you can get them from kittykins.
very very slim fitting. and fleece lined so no need for a separate liner.
just bung it on, put wrap on and you're done. they're ace

once you have the routine sorted, and once that initial period of pooing for a small country is over, it's second nature really.

and fluffy bums smell, even when wet, so much nicer than disposables...especially pampers; they smell truly vile.

I got my first bumgenius today and loved it, i have a blueberry minki for tommorow to try out and then will decide between the two for my dd4 who is also due in october. TBH i found simple terry squares and nippas ideal for the first few days until i was in the swing of things but this time i will have 2 in cloth so will just throw myself in at the deepend. I'd definately look into the council incentives my council are giving me £30 cashback for £45 sspent on nappies, and they are doing it twice as dd3 is only 9 months old and i have never claimed before.

Pockets are as easy as disposables, differnt ones suit but most people find bumgenius the most reliable/ fool proof....

I've been using bumgenius for six months.I love them, very easy to use and they dry so quickly.

I use little lambs and find them dead easy, but TBH any shaped nappy is just as easy as a disposable. It somes down to personal preference whether you want velcro/poppers or nipa fastenings.

Microfibre drys quicker but has a habit of smelling, cotton are less absorbant than bamboo but bamboo take an age to dry.

Most companies do trial packs, it may be worth researching and coming down to a few companies you like the look of getting one of each b4 you commit to buy a whole load.

Also better value for money to buy second hand, try, www.usednappies.co.uk or thenappysite.co.uk

nappyzone, have you not found that new name yet?

no - fraid not - i was going to change it to nappyzonesellsbumgenius just for this thread just for a laugh but thought some would find it offensive lol!

shameless advertising......oooh no

nappyzone is who you are and what you do though. sort of like a mini advert every time you post

Yes which is why my new name needs to have nappyzone in it lol! Oh anyway shameless or not i paid my fee to mumsnet!

I cant be just nappyzone anymore as some threads come up in just googling the name and my dad might read something i dont want him to ha ha - me being addicted to mumsnet !

oops...better not say anything about your Dad then

sorry wem...slight hijack of your thread there.

there are good deals on bumgenius V2 (there is a new zippier V3 out now) on ebay at the minute. I saw 15 new without inserts for £69...bargain city as I paid £7.50 for my V2s a few months ago.

Blimey, posted this at a busy time in the afternoon and saw it drop off active convos in about a minute and thought it'd never see the light of day again - thanks for all your replies!

I've had a scan through but will read more thoroughly when I'm not already late for work.

LackaDAISYcal - I'm in Leeds! Would be very handy to have a look at your stash at some point, in a nice non psycho way of course

email me on daisybump at yahoo dot co dot uk and we'll arrange a meet up at some point if you like.

The council do a baby beehinds pack of one bamboo npaay, one hemp nappy and a wrap. They are birth to potty and are very thirsty. Either that or they give you money off. I went for the pack as the value of it was more than the amount of the voucher!

ooh, just checked and it now includes a bumgenius

you could always give kiwi quick flips or packers a go. They're dead easy to use, once you get the hang, and easy on the budget too. I believe you can get a set of nappies and wraps for about 80 quid at the moment. Might be worth a look?
Cloth is easier in the long run than dispos though, no running out of nappies, no bins full of crap.

I've only ever used resuable on both my babies, BUT,

would advice disposables on a newborn until you know:

1. the size of your baby
2. what nappy suits you and baby - there is a difference!
3. You are not feeling so overwhelmed with the birth, the feeding, the sleepless nights, as reusables means washing!

I think you're right to use resuables when you're feeling a bit more human! In the scheme of things, a few weeks, or even a few months, if you start using resusables means a huge cost saving to you, and to landfill.

Great you are thinking of doing the reusable option!