There are even 'nappy influencers'...
I'll let that sink in for a moment.
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Generally our child wears clothes over the top of the nappy so it doesnt matter what it looks like, and shes too young to care if her nappy is fashionable! (unless we are interpreting her noises incorrectly)
For our family, there are two reasons for using re-usable nappies
1) to save cost over the nappy-time of child/ren (see cost suggestion here nearly £800 in disposables over 2 years, versus £265 here for a reusable nappy kit which can change size to match your child as they grow) - you can also use the re-usables for a second child, or pass them onto another parent to use.
2) to save the environment - or at least to send less to landfill (the previous link suggested over 5000 nappies in 2 years. Thats alot of landfill.(Obviously this doesnt take into consideration the power/water/cost of washing them, because thats too much to think about right now between nappy changes!)
[we didnt consider this at the time but 3) no chemicals in the re-usables next to babys skin]
Initially we bought a set of second hand nappies from ebay (which claimed to be fairly new, but Im assuming that despite the newness that they were washed wrong and lost a fair amount of waterproofness in the process) (if anyone knows how to make them waterproof again, I'd love to know!)
So then we bought some additional brand new ones which do not leak at all. We use all of them except that particularly leaky ones which are waiting to be fixed.
We currently only use them during the day when at home. We don't use them at night or when out and about yet because they dont have the magic blue line to tell you when to change them, and there are lots of other things to be worrying about already that its one too many things at the moment. (Hopefully at some point soon this will change and we'll use them all the time)
When the poop gets more solid (we're not there yet, its still like korma sauce, or peanut butter [you're welcome]) you can get flushable liners to flush the poop so it doesnt go in the washing machine!
They look quite pretty on the washing line:
We also use re-usable wipes, which go in the wash with the nappies, super easy, and again saves so much money on wipes and less things in the bin. You could even cut up an old towel/flannel and use a tub you already have for this. Or second hand off ebay.
We've found they clean a bum much better than wetwipes so we use fewer of them.
As with the nappies, we dont use the re-usables out and about yet, as I never remember to pack them to take, but eventually this will happen!
When we get onto food, I've found there are re-usable food pouches and things to help reduce waste too, but thats not for another couple of months.
Reasons not to use re-usables -
Effort: theres lots more washing and sorting to do. This is true, but you get into a routine, like with everything else baby related. Even just 1 or 2 nappies a day is a great start!
Cost: Its a large cost to start off with, rather than the cost being spread over several months/years. However there are places that do a nappy library, or trial kits, or they can be found second hand at a cheaper price. Or perhaps you have a kind grandparent or relative who would be willing to buy them as a present for the new baby, or you could ask friends not to buy fancy baby grows but to buy/sponsor a nappy instead? (that said extra clothes are always useful in event of bodily fluid escape)
Any more reasons?
I think there could be something there in 'Sponsor a nappy' like you sponsor goats and giraffes and things...
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