Cloth nappy wishlist

I’m really happy with the cloth nappies that we’ve chosen for our current stash but there are so many other types of nappy out there though and I’d really like to try a few just to see what they are like, all in the interest of blog research of course…

So, each month I’m going to buy a nappy or wrap, use it for a bit and write about it here. Might need to buy a new nappy box first though since the existing two are already full to bursting…

My current fluffy wishlist is (links are to the manufacturer’s website or to retailers that I’ve used and been happy with in the past):

• Blueberry coverall wrap – they do one in the same pattern as Eli’s sling, I am powerless to resist.
• Bumgenius Freetime
• Tots Bots Flexitots – Tilly used the original version as a baby, I’d like to have a go with the latest design
• Motherease Wizard Duo 
• Little Lamb Microfibre and Bamboo
• Itti Bitti Bitti Boo
• Itti Bitti D’lish All in One
• Bambino Mio Mio Solo
• Thirsties Duo All in One
• Ones & Twos All in One
• Close Parent Pop-In New Generation
• Blueberry One Size Bamboo
• Flip Organic
• Bumgenius v4
• Charlie Banana One Size

With one a month this could take a while to get through but I’m going to try as many as I can before Eli potty trains.

Our nappies – Itti Bitti, My Little Patch and Bum Deal wet bags

If you use cloth nappies then at some point you will need to change a nappy outside of the house and then you will need to figure out a way of returning said nappy home so that you can wash it. Some people simply use nappy bags or supermarket bags but I much prefer to use a purpose made wet bag. When I used cloth nappies with Tilly I had one wet bag – it was big, drawstring neck and not particularly pretty. Now I have 8 wet bags, which sounds excessive but I’ve needed each of them although they aren’t all in my regular rotation.

We have:

• 4 Bum Deal wet bags
• 1 Itti Bitti wet bag
• 2 My Little Patch wet bags
• 1 Junior Joy wet bag

All of my bags work for the purpose for which they were designed but are different in a variety of ways. In order of least to most favourite for day to day use my wet bags are:-

Junior Joy Wet Bag

This is not the prettiest of the bags I own but it was reasonably priced and it does the job. I think it’s a little big for daily use but it can hold a day or mores worth of nappies if needed. I used it for overspill before I bought my second nappy bucket but it’s retired for the moment. I tend to prefer zippered bags now and this one has a drawstring which I think tends to lead to more smells if the nappies have to remain in it for a while.

Bum Deal Wet Bags

We have 4 of these wet bags – 1 in each of the sizes they make; small, medium, large and x-large. I bought a set because we wanted to take our nappies on holiday with us and needed a big wet bag that could hold a lot of nappies and would contain their smell as well. The XL Bum Deal wet bag was brilliant – I used it to store all the day nappies and its slightly smaller sibling the L bag to contain the night nappies. The zips did a great job of holding in smells and I could fit a lot of nappies in both. Having the option to buy the bags in a set – for much less than all four together – made these bags very economical too. I don’t use them regularly but that’s no reflection on the bags, it’s just that I prefer to use my double wet bags (My Little Patch) day to day. I would definitely take the Bum Deals if we headed off on holiday again.

Itti Bitti Wet Bag

This was the second wet bag I ever bought and I used it regularly until I bought my first double wet bag. It’s still in use as my back up bag for when I’m going to be out for a while and will need additional wet nappy storage. The Itti Bitti wet bags are a perfect size for nappy changes when you’re out and about as they hold about 4 nappies and fold down small when not in use. They aren’t the cheapest bags available (keep an eye out for sales) but they do look great as they’re available in the same colours and prints as the Itti Bitti nappies.

My Little Patch

I love my My Little Patch bags. The choice of sizes and fabrics is fantastic and the bags can be hung from a wrist or buggy. Both my bags are medium doubles. This means that they have two pockets and so I can put clean nappies and my bag of wipes in one side and dirty nappies on the other. I often just take the wet bag instead of a fully changing bag if I’m not out for long as it cuts down on all the stuff I end up carrying otherwise. These aren’t cheap bags but they are well made and there are regular sales and discounts offered (hence why I just had to buy one more), plus loads of different fabrics to choose from.

So, that’s our wet bags – an essential but not one that needs to be any less pretty than the fluff it carries.

Related articles

• Our nappies – Itti Bitti Tuttos
• Our nappies – Tots Bots Bamboozle Stretch
• Our nappies – Tots Bots Flexiwraps and Motherease Airflow wraps
• Our nappies – gNappies

Our nappies – Itti Bitti Tuttos

When I was looking at nappies online, before I bought any new nappies for Eli, I really liked the look of the Itti Bitti nappies. We then bought three at the Baby Show to try and well we haven’t bought any more.

I just don’t like these as much as my other nappies but I still use them regularly and they do look very cute!

Pros

• look really cute and the minky outer is really soft;
• lots of colours and prints to choose from;
• trim fitting;
• one-size and lots of poppers to get a good fit;
• the ‘poo fence’ really works.

Cons

• I find the trim fit around the legs means lots of wicking.

The vital statistics for our Bitti Tuttos:

How many do we have?

Three.

Which sizes do we have?

They are one-size nappies so will fit from newborn to toddler – there are three levels of poppers on the front to make the nappy smaller.

How long would we be able to use just this part of our stash?

Not long – less than a day but in theory if we had extra soaker sets we could make them last longer.

How often do these nappies need to be changed?

To avoid wicking it is best to change these every 2-3 hours.

How easy are these nappies to wash?

We wash all our nappies together and don’t need to do anything special for these. I unpopper the inserts and wash them with the covers.

How long do they take to dry?

• the covers can be tumbled but I air dry them and they’re ready by the next day;
• the soakers dry in the tumble dryer (the small soaker is always the last thing to be dry) or will be dry within 4-5 hours on the line outside.

Nappy stash

Our current daytime stash:

• 6 patterned Tots Bots easyfits
• 7 rainbow Tots Bots easyfits
• 3 Itti Bitti tuttos
• 6 gNappies (12 gCloth and gPouches)

Not pictured (but included in the count above):

• 1 game day (red and navy striped) gPant
• 1 green gPant

Night nappy stash:

• 3 bumbles
• 6 rainbow Tots Bots cotton tots
• 2 Tots Bots flexiwraps
• 4 Motherease airflow wraps

Not pictured:

• yellow cotton tot
• pink cotton tot
• orange flexiwrap

We currently have enough nappies to mean I only have to wash every third or fourth day. We may have enough (but they are so lovely and I might be ever so slightly addicted).