Cloth Diapering a Newborn Without a "Newborn Stash"

Many soon to be cloth moms are anxious to put their soft and colorful cloth diapers on their newest arrivals from day one. A tiny newborn stash is great, but can be very expensive and many babies will outgrow their newborn diapers in either weight or absorbency in just a few weeks. However, most "one size" diapers are not only bulky but often too big and may leak on a newborn. What's a cloth mom to do? There are a few great options for moms (and dads) that are weary of investing in an entire newborn stash but still want to be able to use cloth on their baby from day one.

Thirsties Duo Diapers. Thirsties makes a great tried and true diaper cover called the duo wrap, it comes in two sizes with three rise settings each. Size one adjusts to fit babies 6 - 18lbs making it the perfect option for most newborns but lasting much longer than a typical newborn diaper. It pairs well with a cotton osocozy flat for a very affordable diapering system and the flat can be pad folded and used as a doubler later on.

Grovia makes wonderfully soft and absorbent bamboo prefold that comes in 4 sizes, many moms can skip the newborn and start with the infant size which can be wrapped around baby or padfoled and laid in the thristies cover. If folding and wraping and snappi-ing sounds like too much, thristies makes a duo insert - converting their awesome cover into an all-in-two system. Simply lay the insert into the cover, fasten around baby and go! If the diaper is just wet, toss the insert in the pail, wipe the cover, grab a new insert and go again! Thristies even has a duo fitted diaper for maximum nighttime absorbency for even the littlest heavy wetter.

Softbums Echo and Omni. Softbums makes an incredibly soft and trim diaper with adjustable leg elastic and fabulous aplix, making it a one size diaper that truly works well on a newborn. The Echo is another all-in-two system with stay dry or bamboo snap in inserts that come in both newborn and larger sizes. The Omni can also be used with their snap in inserts as an all-in-two, but has a pocket opening and a more generous cut so that it can also be used as a cover, making it a very versatile diaper!

Applecheeks is another two sized system, with size one fitting from 7-20 lbs it should last well into baby's first year. It's also versatile, with their bamboo inserts it can be used like an all-in-two, or you can stuff an insert into the envelop opening and use it as a pocket, with the added bonus of the insert agitating itself out in the wash, so no unstuffing dirty newborn diapers!

Fuzzibunz perfect size diapers in size small fit from 7 - 18 lbs, making this a great choice if you are looking for a pocket diaper.

Rumparooz one size covers have 4 adjustable rise settings instead of the typical 3 and start fitting around 6 lbs, but last all the way through potty training and come in a rainbow of adorable colors and prints.

Lastly, Blueberry Capri covers in size one fit from 6-16 lbs and when paired with their stay dry cotton Capri insert makes another great all-in-two option.

With the abundance of choices available to cloth diapering families, every mom (and dad) should be able to find a cloth option that will not only fit their newborn on day one and last well into - if not all the way through - their cloth diapering journey, but also fit their budget and diapering preferences.

Bio: Emily is a stay at home wife to Will, and mom to 11 month old Owen, living in Houston TX. She loves Jesus, cooking, cloth diapers, and learning to live a greener life in a big city. Maybe one day she will even blog about it?


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