Cloth Diapering for Cheaper: BST Groups are Your Friend!

             Hey folks! If you've ever looked into cloth diapering, whether you decided to or not, I think we can all agree that it can be very overwhelming and intimidating at first. Overwhelming because there are so many different types of cloth diapers to choose from nowadays and intimidating because the upfront cost can be expensive.

             As far as choosing which diapers would be best-suited for your family, my best advice is to research, research, research! You can also check out my cloth diapering page for a little insight. Once you decide what kind of diaper(s) you want to try out, I highly recommend looking for cloth diaper B/S/T groups on Facebook. It's something I had heard of quite awhile ago from a cloth diapering blog I used to follow, but never looked into it much because I didn't know that much about different types and brands of cloth diapers and was afraid I would get ripped off somehow. Now, though, they are my new best friend!

             So, what does BST stand for? Buy Sell Trade. It is a great way to get your stash started or sell off some old diapers you no longer want or need. Depending on your location and what shape the diapers are in, you can get some really good deals and not lose much money on the diapers you are selling.

             Speaking of location, you may be able to find a local cloth diaper BST group, which is great because then you can meet people in person and 1) See the diapers you want to purchase in person before committing and 2) Save on shipping costs! I have also seen regional/state-wide groups, national groups, and brand specific groups. There are even cloth diaper auction groups!

             The brand specific groups are nice if you're just really in love with a certain one. While not exactly the same, I recently joined a wool and natural fiber only group and am already eagerly awaiting a Disana wool cover. To give you an idea of what you can expect price-wise, I bought it for $12, postage included, and it normally retails for around $26. How awesome is that?! There are also some nice wahm diapers on there as well, which I think is pretty cool.

             As far as the cloth diaper auction groups, be sure to do your research on a diaper before choosing to bid on it. (That should just go without saying, right?) Keep in mind you will have to pay for shipping as well. It would be silly to end up paying more for a used diaper than it would cost brand new, right? I've not personally bought anything from a group like this, but there seems to be quite a few unique diapers up for grabs instead of the endless stream of GroVia and BumGenius like my local BST group seems to have. (Does this seem to be a “thing” in anyone else's local BST group? Just curious.)

             If you do decide to check out a BST group, be sure you look through ALL of the sales posts, not just the most recent ones on the wall. At least in my group, there are a lot of old posts with diapers that are still up for grabs. Also be sure to use the group “search” option to look for something specific, such as a brand or type of diaper you like. This is how I came across some of my fitted diapers.

             So far I have purchased three fitteds and the wool cover mentioned above from BST groups. (I also sold all of my small Best Bottom inserts too! Yay!) The first was a Sweet Pea bamboo OS fitted that was in very good/excellent condition, in my opinion. I got it for $15. It is normally $25 brand new. My second purchase was two snapless multi-fitted Sustainablebabyish diapers. I bought both for $15. They are normally around $24 each, if I remember right, brand new. That's a total savings of $57! (Including the wool cover.) At the least, you could buy like two or three more diapers with that amount of savings.

             I am still learning the lingo myself, but here are some acronyms to help you out with BST groups.

FTOS-For Trade or Sale

FTO-For Trade Only

ISO-In Search Of

EUC-Excellent Used Condition

VGUC-Very Good Used Condition

GUC-Good Used Condition

OS-One Size

AIO-All In One

PPD-Postage Paid (Included in price.)

             Again, if you're looking to build your stash or add to it for cheaper and don't mind some pre-loved diapers, definitely look into a BST group. They're my new favorite thing, so if you have any questions about them shoot me an email or comment below! I DO check my comments and will get back with you. :)