Cloth diapers truly started as an environmental interest for me. After the birth of my second baby, I had two children in diapers; twice the money spent on disposables and twice the trash. We needed bins to contain the diapers before trash day and our trash cans were literally filled to the brim with smelly diaper trash. I hated that wasteful feeling.
Like many people, cloth diapers were not mainstream where I lived. I didn’t really know the distinction between “modern” and older style cloth diapers until I walked into a friend’s backyard one sunny day. A row of pretty pink cloth diapers hung on her line and the sight of those fluffy diapers swaying in the breeze just felt right. Intrigued, I asked her about her diapers and hours of internet research began.
When people ask me why I spend so much time talking and writing about cloth diapers, I can tie my efforts back to several very practical reasons. Cloth diapers save my family money. I started cloth diapering Ezra at eight months and we’ve cloth diapered Kai, now 2 /12, since birth. They boys have used many of the same diapers. Any increase in our water bill has been negligible and we have been through months where the money we saved using cloth diapers helped our family in noticeable ways.
Cloth diapers are a way for my family to be good stewards of the earth. Cloth diapers are one of the ways my family chooses to reduce and reuse. I have read different opinions on the environmental impacts of diapers, but visiting The Real Diaper Association website and reading about the environmental costs of manufacturing and disposing of single-use diapers truly solidified this decision for me. It isn’t a simple black and right decision, but it’s a choice that is right for my family and an important way we hope to positively impact the environment.
Cloth diapers introduced me to a community I love. From the first time I typed “cloth diapers” into a search engine, I quickly understood that cloth diaper blogs, businesses, charities, and Facebook groups are about more than diapers. When I purchase cloth diapers from a family-run store or
choose a brand with goals that align with mine, I am contributing to the cloth diaper community. When I share a post like this or a review of a new style of diaper, I am part of a community. When I chat diaper rash or new fabric releases at the Monday night #clothdiapers party on twitter, I am engaging in community.
I attended The Great Cloth Diaper Change at the St. Louis Cotton Babies store, my favorite resource for cloth diapers, in 2012. This experience is the perfect example of how the cloth diapering community works. I drove 2 hours to St. Louis, where I met my online friend Jill from Life is Not Bubble Wrapped for the first time and gave her a hug. I also met Heather from Cotton Babies, an awesome staff member who I became friends with during the #clothdiapers chats. These ladies are my friends – my community – and two of the reasons I love my cloth diapers.
When I think over all of these reasons why I love my cloth diapers, it all goes back to that initial moment I first spotted modern diapers on a clothing line. I look at photos of my boys in adorable prints, delighted by their fluffy bums; I see my budget minus a line for disposable diapers; I talk with my kids about the positive impact of cloth diapers on the environment; and it all comes back to one thing: I love my cloth diapers because It just feels right.
Why do you cloth diaper or why are you interested in cloth diapering?
Disclosure: This post is part of a contest through Cotton Babies called Love my Cloth Diapers. I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are my own.
Loved this, Mindy! All wonderful reasons and I found myself nodding along with your reasons 🙂 I started out for the financial and health reasons. Didn’t want the chemicals in disposables to be all over my babes. I still do use a mixture of disposables and cloth. Whatever works, right?? 😉
Ahh, I could have written this post myself. I’m not sure what initiated my bug for cloth but I think it may have been my friend when our firstborns (now almost) were babies and she used covers and prefolds on her baby. I loved her cute purple diapers but I never used cloth on my oldest since we didn’t have a washing machine and I just didn’t know where to begin. With my second I knew that I wanted to use them at least some of the time.
I chose to cloth for monetary reasons and am so glad I did. Job changes and out of work time has tightened our budget significantly and because I chose cloth I do not have to worry about diapers each week. I love my cloth because they save us money.
We started cloth diapering because thinking about throwing away all those disposable diapers was too painful! We saved thousands of dollars by using cloth for our first child, and now we’re reusing most of those diapers on our second child. If I could go back, I would buy mostly prefolds and covers since they work just as well as the more expensive diapers 🙂
As always love your writing style. Thanks for the mention. I gave you a shout out for my fb fans to come see you before I even saw it! other CD bloggers, chat groups, and yes even the workers of the stores themselves all solidify a huge part of it for me: community. At first of course we did it for financial reasons, and then the environmental impact hit back to back with the cuteness factor, not to mention we had leaks with disposables more like fountains even of pee, it was horrible. now I wrote on my birth plan ‘just let me change all the baby’s diapers, we will provide them and wash them at home’…. so not kidding.
good luck with your share the love site, I’ll get another donation your way one of these days. you know, when I go through the diapers and decide which of my beloved bG’s I can give up–pinks or blues. lol!
Cloth diaper communities are really great, I agree! I am a part of a few, and even offline, they’re great. Sometimes it’s just great to talk to other people who have similar interests as you.
Usually cloth diapering moms have other things they do the same also, like natural parenting, or delaying vaccines. Or even if you have nothing in common besides using cloth diapers . . . well there is still that! I could seriously talk about my kid’s tushie cover for DAYS. I’m so thankful for cloth. Having something to be passionate about is great! 🙂
I was initially repelled by the idea of cloth diapers even though my best friend uses them. And then one day I realized: I’m pregnant with my second child and I REALLY don’t want to buy disposables for two. At about the same time my son had an awful eczema flair up and was constantly getting rashes in disposables. We are currently using cloth diapers part time until I can manage to get a full stash. So far we’re really enjoying it!
I just started cloth diapering. I have a few local friends who use cloth, but nobody likes to talk about it for some reason. Surprisingly, it has been blogs and my online friends who have gotten me interested. I like the idea of saving $ and also giving my LO chemical-free diapers.
LOVE this! I’ve missed the boat on savings because I have too many diapers, but I love my fluff. For the first time since I’ve moved here (eleven years ago), I actually have FRIENDS that I do things with and socialize through. (In fact, I was up late at my local cloth diaper store owner’s house socializing and putting together a giveaway plan.) I wouldn’t have gotten ANY of these things without fluff.
That it’ll have resale value and won’t end up in the landfill when I’m done is an added bonus.
I developed an interest in cloth to save money, but the more time I spend on blogs the more I find myself coveting all those pretty prints.
I really like it .It is a such usefull cloth diaper where to buy cloth diapers ?. It’s better for the environment than disposables .
Hi Well I was asked to share my reason for cloth diapers so I will do my best! I am a single mom to a 5 yr old and 19 month old twins! I also work full time as a teacher! So why cloth… Gasp I didn’t do it for the environment… I did it to save money! I know not the most honorable reason but hey I am being honest! I went from buying 2 Cases of pampers every week and a half, so lets say 5 cases a month, at 40$ a case that $200, I am down to 2 cases a month $80 so I am saving $120 a month. Now I have not given up the disposables honestly cause I don’t have a big enough “stash” of cloth! I actually received what I have from the Cloth Diaper Rescue. I have about 18 diapers, which means if I don’t do laundry the sitter gets to use disposables.. Which she doesn’t mind. Is it an adjustment? ABSOLUTELY! Is it worth it ABSOLUTELY! This year on my Amazon wish list I have some cloth diapers on it. I honestly was adamant once upon a time about NEVER using cloth diapers, what are people thinking.. Gross.. umm yea not that gross.. ( well once in a while its awful and yes I tossed one diaper out… that bad)
For now Im entering contests, bidding on ebay and hopefully can just use cloth soon!! ☺ and they are super cute!!
Jill
we started to save money, we knew we wanted one more baby so being able to reuse our cloth stash was a big drawl. now that we cloth we live it for tons of reasons including less rashes, less waste & more natural. so glad we switched we will never go back.
I love it because its so cute
I started cloth diapering because of the cute factor. It’s become sort of a hobby for me and I love that it’s better for my baby and the environment. I also love the community of cloth diapering moms that I’ve met. It’s been a blessing.
I wish I had something unique to add to the discussion, but you and everyone else echo my sentiments! What was a practical decision turned into something so much more…
I love this post! Most of my friends and family think im crazy for cloth diapering. I love them half for the super amazing savings and the cute prints! There have been times when we couldnt afford even one pack of disposables and cloth saved us.
I cloth diaper to save money but love the community it has brought me into. I have never met so many nice and lovely people over the internet to share my experience with.