So I’m sad to say my little guy has decided to potty train and now is using only 1 diaper a day max. This means no more diapers 
I wasn’t rushing him switching to undies because I’m expecting #2 any day now and had heard all kinds of stories of older siblings reverting once the baby comes along. We had started talking to him about using the potty but never made it a big deal. Then all of the sudden, he starts telling us he needs to pee pee or poo poo. WOW! Well I’m not one to stop him if he is interested so we went along with it and yesterday was his first day of using the potty all day with NO wet diapers! We did get him this great Elmo Potty since he had been asking for an Elmo Potty every since he saw an Elmo Potty Seat at a friends house. We will see how long this will last.
If you have been using disposable diapers for a while you may ask why should I switch to cloth diapers? Besides the reduced waste you will created, there are some other tangible reasons such as:
- It will save you money. You can get All-in-one or pocket one size diapers (made in the USA) plus all the supplies that go along with cloth diapering for approximately $350.00 and then reuse it all on the next child or sell it all. Cloth diapers hold value pretty well.
- It may encourage your child to potty train. Even stay dry type cloth diapers allow the child to feel the wetness. This helps children to realize that they have gone potty and for many they do not like to feel wet so they will begin to tell you when they are wet.
- It is never too late to keep the extra chemicals off of your child.
- It will take some of the pressure off of potty training because you have already paid for all the diapers so it doesn’t cost any additional money if your little one doesn’t want to train fast.
A Prefold Cloth Diaper is a flat piece of cotton with extra absorbency on the sides and in the middle. We used Indian Cotton Prefolds that had four layers of absorbency on the sides and eight layers of absorbency in the middle. This is typically listed as an Infant Indian Cotton Prefold 4x8x4. This lasted us until around 3 months and then we switched to Premium Indian Cotton Prefolds 4x8x4 which lasted until 6 months and would have lasted longer if our little guy wasn’t so wiggly. The premium prefold also has four layers of absorbency on the sides and eight layers of absorbency in the middle.
They can be used with a Snappi or Pins as a folded diaper or you can fold them in three long ways and lay them in the diaper cover. They are also useful as inserts in pocket diapers or for extra absorbency in night time diapers as baby grows.
Prefold Cloth Diapers come in bleached and unbleached. We chose unbleached to avoid having the chemical residue on baby for so long.
There are also different lengths. If you go with a diaper listed as an indian cotton prefold, they are typically going to be longer than if you choose to use the Green Mountain Diapers perfold.
When looking into cloth diapering, many ask the question about the staining of meconium. We only used prefolds until all the meconium passed but found no issues with staining once we sunned the cloth diapers. If you are worried, you can use old pieces of flannel cut up as a liner and then throw the pieces out. We found there was no need for disposable diapers during this period of passing the meconium.
Once your baby can roll over, you may find that it is almost impossible to use prefolds or flats. This is when it is best to use a Fitted, Hybrid, Pocket, All-in-One or All-in-Two. These are all different types of diapers that are much more forgiving when trying to get them on a moving baby.
You will have around 6-8 diaper changes a day so I recommend getting 12 – 16 total diapers for this age.
This seems to be an infamous question and at the time I was looking for diapers I couldn’t get an exact answer from anyone. I think that what you need for a newborn is 24 diapers, 6 covers, 24 wipes, 2 pail liners, diaper pail (new trash can), 2 medium wetbags. An extra that is nice but not needed: wipes warmer. With a stash this size, you need to wash every other day since most infants go through 12 diapers a day.
Our family preferred prefolds using a newspaper fold with a snappi to fasten it. Our favorite diaper covers were Baby Beehinds, Thirsties Duo Wrap, and Bummis Super Bright. Now that our little one is on the move we have switched to Hybrids, Pockets, All-in-Ones and, Fitteds. Since about 2 months old, we have used the Tiny Tush Elite Pocket Diapers with 2 inserts for our Night time diaper. If you have a family member that is reluctant to use cloth, you may want to look into getting something other than prefolds.
We are now expecting baby #2 and will be using crochet wool soakers and wraps in addition to the PUL wraps we already have.
This pattern was written for a Toddler size. I needed to make a wool cover quickly for my son to help us get rid of a diaper rash. I looked and all the covers (not soakers) I found free patterns for were smaller sizes. I decided to use our favorite PUL cover as a guide and make my own pattern. It was trial and error and I haven’t had it tested so please give me any feedback you have. I hope you enjoy the pattern!
Size: Toddler (rise = 16.5)
Materials:
Malabrigo Worsted 210 yard
Jumbo Merino 50 g ball only need small amount
Hook: 4.5mm
Stitch Guide:
ch = Chain hdc3tg = Half Double Crochet 3 Together
hdc = Half Double Crochet chs = Chain Space
dc = Double Crochet sc = Single Crochet
dcfp = Double Crochet Front Post dcbp = Double Crochet Back Post
(##) = Stitch count at end of that row
Row 1: ch 60
Row 2: hdc in second st from hook, hdc in next 58 stitches (59)
Row 3: ch 1 turn, hdc in each stitch (59)
Row 4: ch 2 turn, dc in each stitch (59)
Row 5: ch1 turn, hdc in each stitch (59)
Row 6: ch1 turn, hdc in each stitch (59)
Row 7: ch1 turn, hdc3tg, hdc in next 54 stitches, hdc3tg (55)
Row 8: ch1 turn, hdc2tg, hdc in next 51 stitches, hdc2tg (53)
Row 9: ch 2 turn, dc in 52 st across, hdc in last stitch (53)
Row 10: ch1 turn, hdc2tg, hdc in next 49 stitches, hdc2tg (51)
Row 11: ch1 turn, hdc2tg, hdc in next 47 stitches, hdc2tg (49)
Row 12: ch1 turn, hdc3tg, hdc in next 41 stitches, hdc3tg (45)
Row 13: ch1 turn, hdc3tg, hdc in next 37 stitches, hdc3tg (41)
Row 14: ch1 turn, hdc3tg, hdc in next 33 stitches, hdc3tg (37)
Row 15: ch1 turn, hdc2tg, hdc in next 33 stitches, hdc2tg (35)
Row 16: ch1 turn, hdc2tg, hdc in next 31 stitches, hdc2tg (33)
Row 17: ch 1 turn, hdc in each stitch (33)
Row 18 -27: Repeat Row 17
Row 28: ch 1 turn, 2 hdc in first st, 1 hdc in next 31 st, 2 hdc in last st (35)
Row 29: ch 1 turn, 2 hdc in first st, 1 hdc in next 33 st, 2 hdc in last st (37)
Row 30: ch 1 turn, 2 hdc in first st, 1 hdc in next 35 st, 2 hdc in last st (39)
Row 31: ch 1 turn, hdc in each stitch (39)
Row 32: ch 1 turn, hdc in each stitch (39)
Row 33: ch 1 turn, 2 hdc in first st, 1 hdc in next 37 st, 2 hdc in last st (41)
Row 34: ch 1 turn, hdc in each stitch (41)
Row 35 – 37: Repeat Row 34
Row 38: ch 1 turn, 2 hdc in first st, 1 hdc in next 39 st, 2 hdc in last st (43)
Row 39: ch 1 turn, hdc in each stitch (43)
Row 40: ch 1 turn, 2 hdc in first st, 1 hdc in next 41 st, 2 hdc in last st (45)
Row 41: ch 1 turn, 2 hdc in first st, 1 hdc in next 43 st, 2 hdc in last st (47)
Row 42: ch 1 turn, hdc in each stitch (47)
Note: you are starting your ribbed waist band here so you want the ribs to line up
Row 43: ch 2 turn, *dcfp, dcbp* repeat ** until you reach the end (47)
Row 44: ch 2 turn, *dcbp, dcfp*, repeat ** until you reach the end (47)
Finish Off
Row 45: Starting at the foundation ch join yarn ch1, 2 hdc in first chs, 1 hdc in chs of foundation ch that was not previously worked, 2 hdc in last chs (62)
Row 46: ch 2 turn dcfp, dcbp until end of row (62)
Row 47: ch 2 turn dcbp,dcfp until end of row (62)
Finish Off
Using super chunky merino sc in stitches along the side of soaker, finish off. Repeat on opposite side.
You can skip some side stitches here to make this like elastic so it is tighter around the legs to prevent leaks.
Weave in ends. For the super chunky, I used the crochet hook.
Now to sew on buttons:
I used 20 mm buttons.
First, I tried the cover on my toddler to see where on the front of the diapers the wings ended. For me, this was right in the middle of the diaper. I used all purpose thread (you may want to use yarn or quilting thread for more strength) and sewed two buttons in the middle of the soaker. I found the center and counted 2 stitches out on each side of center and sewed on the buttons so the thread did not show on the backside of the cover.
Then to prevent wing sag, I added a button to each end of the inside front row. Again, sew so the thread does not show through on the back side of the cover. See Picture below of buttons.
If you need to have additional adjustability for the leg openings, you can use either of the double crochet rows and sew on additional buttons.
Click the link below to download a *.pdf version of the pattern
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