Cloth Nappy Help: Where do I start?

Starting your cloth nappy adventure can appear very overwhelming!

 

There are many choices out there, plenty of acronyms, different brands, different products names. Where should you start? To help make your experience easier, and to see how our nappies work, check out this useful video. Seeing them in action makes it a lot easier to understand. 

Choosing the right Baby Bare cloth nappy for you:

We get lots of questions about our different modern cloth nappy options at Baby Bare. This is a thorough guide to the differences, similarities, pros and cons of each cloth nappy.

Bare Cub Nappy

  • This style snaps across the front with 3 waist snaps. The rise can be adjusted to make the nappy smaller on younger babies. 
  • It comes in two styles - an All-in-One style (absorbency is sewn in) or All-in-2 (where absorbency/inserts snap in and out).
  • The AI2 can be used as a pocket nappy, or boosting can be placed in the pocket. 
  • This nappy comes in both smooth PUL and soft Minky fabrics. 
You can see the snaps across the front of this nappy and how the wings wrap around to the front to snap the nappy on to your child.

You can see the snaps across the front of this nappy and how the wings wrap around to the front to snap the nappy on to your child.

Why choose the Bare Cub?
 

The All-in-One (AIO)

The easiest nappy to use. Easy to dry as it hangs as one piece and no assembling. The drawback is you cannot remove un-needed absorbency and you cannot re-use the cover with new inserts (many parents have spare insert sets they can pop in the covers to replace a wet set of inserts).

The All-in-2 (AI2) Snap In

The most versatile nappy in the range. It is also the trimmest. 100% bamboo absorbency. This nappy has a pocket making it a great option for night time as you can get more absorbency into it by accessing the lining. You can use just one of the supplier inserts or both. You can remove wet inserts and replace with dry ones reusing the cover multiple times. The drawbacks are this nappy requires assembly and to dry it is 3 pieces to hang out, and snap back together.

 

Teddy Bare

  • The Teddy style nappy has snaps to the sides, with 5 different size settings. Legs and waist can be adjusted to different settings.
  • One long snake insert for absorbency makes this nappy super easy to snap together, but gives less options for removing un-needed layers.
  • Tummy elastic to help reduce any gaping at the tummy

You can see there are no front tabs or visible snaps on the front of the Teddy.

Why Choose the Teddy Bare?

You would choose the Teddy Bare if you get gaps in the front of your front snapping nappies. If you like the look of the snaps on the side (as this can give you a clearer visual of the print on a nappy) and if you want an easy to assemble AI2 nappy as this is a 2 piece system (cover and insert).

What is the same about both nappies?

The actual cut of the nappy is (almost) identical. The Teddy is a reverse of the Bare Cub. The difference in fit comes from the positioning of the snaps to be on the side and the inclusion of tummy elastic

The actual absorbency across nappies is almost identical. They have very similar capacity. All 3 styles allow for extra boosting if it is needed or for sleep times.

 

Below is a table that helps show the differences and features of each nappy.

 

Bare Cub AIO Bare Cub AI2 Teddy Bare Honey Pot 
Sizing 3.5kg-15/16kg 3.5kg-15/16kg 5kg-16kg 4-16kg
Style All one piece All in two (Cover, snap in insert and a booster) All in two (Cover and a single long foldable insert) Fitted nappy. Requires cover for waterproofing.
Absorbency Material Bamboo/Microfibre 100% Bamboo fabrics 100% Bamboo Fabrics
100% Bamboo Fabrics
Stay Dry liner Yes- Microsuede Yes- Microsuede Yes- Microsuede No. Bamboo velour lining.
Easiest to use x
All one piece with no assembly
Trimmest Nappy x
Flexibility in use Least flexible. The absorbency is completely sewn in, so you can not remove it. This can make it bulkier on little babies. Our MOST flexible nappy. You can use just the snap in insert, you can use just the booster (for new babies), You can use both the booster and snap in for larger babies. This nappy has a pocket making it the most suitable for boosting at night times. The absorbency in this nappy is a foldable insert. You can therefore fold the absorbency to be where you need it most. The design of the snaps also allows you to pull the waist in tighter then the legs helping reduce tummy gaping. Fitted can be used with or without a cover (cover needed to make waterproof). On small babies it can be used without the insert. Extra absorbency can easily be added for night use.

 

 

PUL OR MINKY?

We are often asked the difference between our PUL nappies and our Minky.

Both are water resistant and do not require any extra cover.

PUL is a flat/smooth Polyester fabric and Minky is a fluffy fabric with a 2.5mm pile to it. It is softer, much like a velour feel.

Some parents prefer the feel to one over the other. Others prefer the look of one fabric over the other. Essentially, both function the same but look and feel different.

Close look at this minky nappy shows the fluffy pile.

Close look at this minky nappy shows the fluffy pile.

This nappy is PUL. You can see it is smooth and has a slight shine to it.

This nappy is PUL. You can see it is smooth and has a slight shine to it.

PUL is slightly trimmer as the actual fabric is thinner. This difference is not significant, but it is a difference.