Cloth Diapering 101 in Brazil

November 20, 2009 3 Comments

Skipping Food Friday today but will be back next week with some great new food stuff… soo stay tuned !  

This post is for all my natural mamas out there, living in Brazil or here on vacation.  Since before giving birth I always knew I wanted to do cloth diapers.  One, and most important, they are the BEST thing for our planet.  Two, disposable diapers are sooo darn expensive, and I just can’t swallow the cost of them in Brazil to boot.  Three, cloth-diaper-butt is sooo friggin’ cute!!  

When I was 7 months pregnant, my sister came for a visit from the States and brought a bunch of gifts from my family.  I was lucky enough to be given 6  one-size Bum Genius dipes, along with a dozen extra inserts.  Thanks, mom!  I do love them. I love the quality, the colors, and the fact that they are so easy to put on, even my non-diaper-friendly-husband can use them with ease.  But on the down side of things there are a few things I don’t like about them.  Here, I must line dry everything.  Easy enough, love it.  But one, these all-in-one dipes take a bit long to dry and after one use you have to wash everything, cover, insert, etc.  Two, with my daughter now 11 months, she doesn’t enjoy diapers anymore {who would?} and has learned with ease how to take them off, due to the easy velcro on the front.  SO now I spend my days chasing naked baby around the house trying to get shorts on her, or picking up “accidents” !  Not pleasant.

With that said, I have done a ton of trail and error with cloth diapers here.  And I would love to share what worked for us.  Of course no two babes are alike so the best thing to do is buy a few different ones, try them out, see what one works best, and then stockpile.  First I must say cloth diapering here is *SUPER* cheap.  I’m talking the covers {basic pul covers with a thin net lining, happen to be my favorite}  start at R$2,50 and go upwards to R$ 8-9,00.  {that’s about 1.25-4.50 in dollars a dipe cover}  Can we say cheap, again!  In the US cloth diapers, especially the *cute* ones can be very pricey, and I really hate to spend a ton of money on dipes.   With that said, the diaper covers here aren’t super durable and tend to get a little grungy after a few months wear, but still saves a bunch of money.  I try to hand wash the covers as much as possible in order to preserve them longer.  And when the inner layer of net does get grungy on the inside of the cover, I still use them with the insert on top .. still does the trick with no leakage.

**COVERS**

Below are a few pics of the covers I have found here.  While they range in prices from R$2,50 to R$9,00 {the most expensive ones being cloth fabric on the outside and with velcro closures instead of buttons}  I tend to like the cheaper ones for R$2,50 because the material on the outside {very cute as well}  is a thin, almost nylon but not really, material.  They dry in seconds outside {so if baby just does pee and a little gets on the dipe you can easily rinse out with water, stick it on the line and dry in 10 mins for use again in the same day.  That is, if you put the pre-fold on top instead of inside the netting on the inside {which is what I ALWAYS do, and never have leakage problems} 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While the velcro diaper cover above is ohh sooo cute, and a bit more expensive, I don’t care for them as much.  I hardly ever use them.  One, they are easier to put on, but my daughter has now discovered how to take them off.   Two, for some reason they pucker out on the top, by the stomach, which always created leakage.  EVERY-TIME-SHE-WORE -THEM!!   I feel like the ones with buttons {pictured above} get a snugger fit around the tummy, not too tight, and hold all the pee in.  

**INSERTS**

There are various pre-folds here.  Ok, they aren’t as good as the chinese pre-folds or as thick, but they work wonderful and dry sooo quick.  The brand that is best, also tends to be the most expensive {I think R$10,00 for 5}  is Cremer.  It’s my favorite, I wouldn’t buy any other brand.  I usually get the Cremer luxo {thicker ones} in plain white, although I do have the print ones as well.  When you first take them out of the package they tend to be a bit crisp, but after a few washes they get very soft.  

Here is how I fold my prefolds and it works like a charm every time.  I never have leakage.  Although, you want to be sure none of the pre-fold is sticking out of the side of the cover {especially in the inside of the legs} otherwise you will have leakage. 

 

 

 

 

As far as inserting the pre-folds inside, that is a personal choice.  There is a netting that you can do that with {it’s the proper way}  But I always place it on top of the netting to get more uses out of the cover in a day.  I am also a bit lazy to put it inside, easier just to lay it on top and put on baby.  

 

 

 

 I have bought all my covers and pre-folds at various stores.  But for the most part you can find these at any Atacadão do Bebê, baby store, this is where they are the cheapest.  You can also buy them online through this website, but beware they are a little more pricey {more than I like to spend} and I have never tried them.  So I can’t tell you the quality, although they look very nice.  This site is also only in Portuguese, and is based here in Brasil.  So if you don’t read Portuguese, you may need some help.   Covers are called tangas or calça. Or you can also ask for fraldas de pano, cloth diapers.

I hope this helps all the cloth diapering mamas out there!  And if you have any questions, please feel free to email me.  

Good Luck and Happy Diapering !! 

Tags: cloth diapering, malu, motherhoodParenting