Pocket vs fitted?

Hi girls,

I'd quite like to try cloth nappies once our baby is born but would like some opinions on pockets vs fitted.

With fitted ones, when the baby is wet do you usually just change the liner/insert thing or do you usually need to change the whole lot? I lack any experience with any kind of nappy so have no idea!! If you only change the inner bit does that mean it's more economical to buy fitted as you need less outers?

If you still need to change the whole lot, what's really the difference between pocket vs fitted?

Also... some photos I've seen the nappies look humungous on the baby, is that when they're wearing the wrong size? How do you fit clothes over the top when the nappy is so bulky? Do you generally need to go up a size in clothes if your baby is wearing cloth nappies?

TIA!!

Edited by chelle

There are 4 main types of modern cloth nappies:
Prefolds - where you have a waterproof cover with a cotton pad-style insert laid inside eg. Real Nappies.
Fitted nappies - where the whole nappy is absorbent but it requires a cover over top, eg Tots Bots.
Pocket nappies - where the nappy has an absorbent fabric outer and a pocket inside where you stuff a pad-style insert in for absorbency, eg. Honeychild or Fuzzi Bunz.
All-in-ones (AIOs) where everything is included in the one nappy - it has a waterproof outer and the absorbency already sewn in (closest to a disposable), eg Itti Bittis or MonkeyDoodlez.

All styles have their pros and cons. You could try a newborn hire kit. That way you could try a selection of styles & brands of nappies on your baby before deciding what you like best. Have a look on www.thenappynetwork.org.nz and there will be a list of local & national hire kits. They are really cheap and give you a chance to try different types of nappies and would be good for the first 6-8wks if you want to use cloth from birth. Going cloth is an investment up front, so you don't want to splash out on a a major supply of one brand only to find you don't get on with it. Different styles/brands fit different babies better. The other thing is you could buy a few preloved off Trade Me to try out first. Although the thought of buying 'used' nappies might not appeal at first there's really nothing wrong with them as long as you give him a hot wash & a rinse with Detol or Canestan when you first get them. I've bought heaps of nappies this way and managed to get a really good newborn stash for a fraction of what it would have cost me to buy them new

As for bulk - it varies between brands/styles. A one-size nappy will be bulkier on a small baby. Probably the trimmest cloth nappy on the market is Itti Bitti D'lish - they come as an all-in-one and a snap-in version.

Hope that helps!

Vic xx

Just realised I was getting fitted and AIO's mixed up.

Awesome thanks guys!! I think I might pop into one of those stores closer to my due date and get a couple of samples.