29 Diapers

Modern cloth diapers are as easy to use as disposables. In fact, they pretty much work the same way. There are a few different ways to fasten cloth diapers, depending on what kind of diaper you use, but all modern cloth diapering options are pretty easy, once you know what to do. Here is a simple guide to fastening cloth diapers, with a few photos to illustrate. Please let me know if anything is still unclear, and I will update the post with whatever info you need.

How To Use All-In-Ones

This is why people love All-In-One diapers. They work just like a disposable. To put on an AIO diaper you:

1) Put the diaper under baby

2) Fasten the velcro tabs or snaps of your diaper or diaper cover at baby’s hips. The diaper will work best if you fasten the tabs straight across, not angling the velcro. If you angle it too much, you might get “wing droop,” which means the leg holes aren’t tight and can leak.

3) Baby is ready to rock!

4) When the diaper is soiled, just unfasten the tabs and fasten them to their “laundry tabs” so the velcro doesn’t stick to anything in the wash, and throw it in the diaper pail as-is. If you are using a diaper with snaps, you don’t even need to do that step; just throw it in the pail.

There are just a few extra steps if you are using pocket diapers or prefolds, but once you see how it works, you won’t think anything of it anymore. It’s simple!

How To Use Pocket Diapers

1) After you wash and dry your diapers, stuff the terrycloth insert back into your pocket diapers so they will be ready to go at changing time.

2) Follow the steps above.

3) When the diaper is soiled, pull the insert out of the pocket, and throw the cover and insert into the pail separately. This step may disappear when everyone follows Thirsties’ lead and starts making pocket diapers that unstuff themselves in the wash. How fabulous is that?

How To Use Fitted Diapers

Fitted diapers are just like all-in-ones except they don’t have a waterproof outside layer attached, so you:

1) Snap or velcro them on just like an all-in-one.

2) Snap or velcro a wrap-style diaper cover over the top.

3) When the diaper is soiled, throw the fitted diaper in the diaper pail, fastening any laundry tabs as needed. If your cover wasn’t soiled, you can use it again over another fitted diaper and save yourself some laundry. Pretty cool, huh?

How To Use Prefold Diapers

Here is where some people get intimidated, but once you know how to fold a prefold, you will probably fall in love with their versatility:

1) Fold the prefold lengthwise in thirds and place it in the center of a diaper cover. This is called a Tri-Fold. Lay the folded prefold in a diaper cover.

2) Bring the corners of the prefold up around baby’s hips tug them out a little so they overlap at the hips. Fold down any extra length in the front of baby’s waist.

3) Snappi the sucker! Or not! You can fasten a prefold with a Snappi if it makes your life easier, or you can just wrap the prefold around baby’s tushy and then hold it in place by velcroing or snapping the diaper cover over it. Easy peasy! It may take you a few tries to get the hang of the best fit, but it’s easy enough to do in your sleep multiple times a night, so it can’t be that bad, right? *thousands of sleep-deprived parents nod their heads groggily in agreement*

4) There are several alternative ways to fold a prefold, the other main one being The Twist. Take your prefold and lay it flat. Grab the front left corner with your left hand and the front right corner with your right hand. Now cross your arms. That’s a twist–just a single twist in the center of the diaper to give the middle of the diaper extra absorbency. Follow the same steps above to fasten the corners or hold in place with a wrap cover.

5) When the cover is on, make sure the prefold is completely tucked into the cover. If it peeks out anywhere, it could wick moisture onto baby’s clothes.

6) When the diaper is soiled, remove the cover and toss the prefold in your diaper pail. If the cover isn’t soiled, you can use it again. Yay! The best part about prefolds is that you don’t have to touch anything when you toss them in the pail!