Reusable nappies

[blueseawhitesand]

I'm looking at reusable nappies for when my baby arrives and was originally set on little lamb ones. Now I've seen bambino mio. Has any one tried both to compare and help me decide? I have a tumble drier. Which are easiest to use? Most absorbent? Wash well? Thanks :-)

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MNHQ

I haven’t tried little lamb ones but can vouch that bambinomio are good washing and do well in the drier. Also dry super fast if you leave them on the airer overnight too

Little lambs do a few different styles. The fitted nappies with covers are great for overnight and work really well in the day but are quite bulky. The one size pockets are a more ‘budget’ nappy but they can work really well once you get the fit and boosting right. The sized pockets are slightly pricier but tend to have less fit issues. I wouldn’t use pocket nappies overnight though.

I’m not a massive fan of Bambino Mio. They are microfibre so prone to compression leaks (useless in slings or car seats), and it’s not the most eco friendly material. They are also quite large fitting so not really a ‘birth to potty’ nappy.

Have you tried doing the nappy lady questionnaire?

I haven’t started using mine yet as my little girl isn’t due until January but I have decided to use reusable nappies and have bought her some Alva ones which I have found to be a super price compared to the others! X

I am planning on using them. A friend bought one from a few different brands and is going to lend me the ones she doesn't use. She has done this for a few friends and each friend has liked a different brand. Lots of areas now have nappy libraries where you can borrow different types to see what works best for you before you commit to buying a full set.

We used reusable nappies when our daughter was a baby. A mix of little lambs with covers (most reliable) and Bumgenius free time (slimmer and prettier but more prone to compression leaks). A good starting point is the Nappy Lady website, there's a questionnaire you can fill in which gives a good idea of what might work for you - also no obligation to buy. www.thenappylady.co.uk/nappy-advice-questionnaire.html
Bamboo is very absorbent but takes ages to dry. Microfibre is quick drying but not so absorbent.

Thanks for all of your replies. I hadn't heard of the nappy lady website but that seems like a good place to start!

I didn't like Little Lambs due to the thick waistband and I preferred not to use a separate cover in the day (we did at night though). I think different nappies suit different babies. We like Bumgenius picket nappies in the day and Tots Bots Bamboozles with Motherease covers at night. The Nappy Lady questionnaire and advice is great. I wouldn't buy loads of one kind till you have tried one.

I’d really recommend not buying lots of nappies before your baby is born. I bought some bambino mio ones and they don’t work for us at all. Look for your local nappy library - they’ll lend you some for a trial, this will let you figure out which ones work best.

We just used muslins and wraps when she was born though, really easy and dried quickly for when you have to change nappies so often.

We ended up liking pocket nappies best for day time (Baba and Boo and Petite Crown) and little lambs two partners for night time.

We are using muslinz nappies with a mix of bambino mio and rumparooz wraps.
The muslins dry quickly which is good in the early days when you are going through 10-15 changes. It was a cheap introduction to cloth nappies too.
She is now 11 weeks and we are starting to look at birth to potty options. We are going to keep with the two parter system with the absorbant and the waterproof layers being separate. I have some Terry squares as we didn't find the folding of the muslin difficult and some shaped nappies to try before committing to a style. We have three different styles of wraps to try. With the newborns wraps we preferred the rumparooz for day time and bambino mio at night so we bought more rumparooz than bambino mio. There is definitely a degree of personal preference mixed with baby's needs that makes it difficult to say x will be better than y for you.
The nappy lady questionnaire is a good starting point, it takes into account you budget, drying options and lifestyle. They have been helpful for follow up advice too.

There are lots of VGC 2nd hand newborn nappies and wraps around. With investing in those and trying different kinds to see what fits your baby best and suits your lifestyle.