Wednesday, May 18, 2016

2016 Flats & Handwashing Challenge Day 3: Don't Write Off Cheapies!


             Hey folks! For me, one of the main reasons I'm taking part in this challenge is to spread the love for flats. As I've mentioned before, we use the cheap Gerber flatfold diapers from Walmart. I'm always seeing people talk crap about them online, but, considering this is my second go round with them, I don't think they're nearly as bad as everyone makes them out to be. In fact, if you're really hurting for money, but still want to cloth diaper, they are probably one of your best bets.
             I'm sure name brand, quality flats are significantly better than the ones I use, but if you're in a pinch or just don't want to or can't spend more money to try out the “good ones”, these work just fine. They actually absorb a lot more than you might think. With Ripley, who is 4 months old now, I use a flatfold folded into a rectangle and half of a flat also folded into a rectangle (yes, I cut some of my flats in half to form makeshift doublers! Gasp!) inside of that and she is good for at least 3 hours, a lot of times longer.
             I used this same system with Myka up until she was potty trained, with an extra “doubler”. I will admit that near the end we started having quite a few problems with leaking, but by 2 years old, you really need something better or with more absorbency. It got to where she would be soaked after only 2 hours, sometimes less than that!
             Other than that, though, the “Gerber cheapies”, that most people evidently use as burp cloths, have served us well. Other than absorbing more than you would think, they're easy to use, dry really quick, versatile, and, one of my favorite things about them, if they start getting holes in them, you don't feel too bad about throwing them away and you won't go broke buying new ones at $12.34 for a 10 pack.
             Again, in the spirit of saving money, if you don't want to go this route, you can always look for a local buy/sell/trade cloth diaper group on Facebook. This can be a great way to buy diapers at a drastically reduced price to build your stash and/or try some out to find out what you like.
             How about you guys? If you use flats, what is your favorite type/brand?

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