The Minimalist Mom's Guide to Cloth Diapering Part 2: Putting the Diaper on Baby + Pad-Folding a Flour Sack Towel

Okay, folks, today we are going to learn how to put a diaper on your baby.

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Now that I covered what you need to cloth diaper, lets see these guys in action!

Cloth diapers, especially the way I cloth diaper (pad-folded inserts and covers) comes with a very slight learning curve to make sure you have a snug, comfortable fit. But it quickly becomes second nature.

I'm going to show you how to pad-fold a flour sack towel. This is considered the "boy fold" but, wha-ever, I'd still use it if I had girls because it's a fold I could do in my sleep.

1. Lay the flour sack flat and fold it in half.

2. Fold one edge one-fourth of the way down.
*side note- FST do shrink a little over time, so I do a little less so it's long enough for my boys*

3. Fold in half again, so the part you just folded is now flush with the edge.
*again, I now do just below*

4. Fold into thirds towards the center

5. Ta-Dah! Repeat 65 times for all your flour sacks while catching up on your favorite Netflix show.
Or maybe that's just me.

6. Into the cover it goes.


I know it seems pretty simple to get this on the baby, you just lay in the cover and put it on, right? That's what most people do, but there's a slight variation I do and showed my husband that makes it just that much easier, in my opinion;

1. Lay the padfolded FST down so it is lined up with the back of the diaper. Doesn't matter what the rest is doing.  

2. Holding it in place on the back of the cover, slide it under baby's bum, slightly lower than you'd do a disposable. Fold only the insert up over baby. Hold.

3. Pull the cover up and around the insert.

4. Snap each side.

5. Adjust between legs. Tuck in any insert that might be outside the elastic, make sure diaper is sitting well into the leg creases.

6. Pull up back of diaper, if necessary.

7. Not pictured, but totally necessary: stand back admire your cute lil fluff butt.

Folding the insert up, then forming the cover around makes for a very snug fit that keeps the insert in the perfect position. I do prefer to use more snug covers (Buttons are my favorite), so this is an easier way to me than just lying it in the cover and not have it lay very well where it needs to be in the front.

When it's time to change, I open the diaper, pull the FST out, fold it in half on itself (the back is usually dry so I lay it like this right next to me), put a new one in, then toss the wet FST into the diaper pail.

*If there's poo in the diaper, it needs to be removed prior to being put in the diaper pail, unless your baby is exclusively breastfed. You can use liners, dump it into the toilet, or spray. Read all the poop removable options here. 

NEXT
I will be covering how I wash my cloth diapers. Arguably the most overwhelming part of taking on cloth diapering. Spoiler alert! It's actually very easy! 


Don't forget to follow me on Instagram and Pinterest for more cloth diaper tips and reviews!

For my cloth diapering system, check out my complete Guide to Cloth Diapering

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5 comments:

  1. That is exactly how I put my Buttons on. 🤚🏻 High five, mama!

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  2. Okay. Just starting out so bare with me. Literally all you put in the cover is one flour sack towel?? And that's it? It's absorbent enough? You make it look so easy!

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    1. Sorry, Breanna! My messages were piling up to be moderated and I wasn't being notified about them. All I use is the flour sack towel. This is absorbent enough for us for couple hours. If we need more of a boost, I'll sometimes add a cloth wipe. Cloth diapering can be simple, if you keep it that way!

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  3. Adding another comment just to be sure I'm notified. Thank you!

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    1. I finally responded, in case you didn't set the notification for the first comment. Sorry about that!

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