# cloth wipes pros/ cons



## selena_ski (Jun 16, 2006)

i am having a hard time deciding whether to do cloth wipe or just do disposable.

can anyone help with pros and cons,

and how easy are they when out and about.


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## MCR (Nov 20, 2001)

I have both.
I have left over disposable wipes from when we did sposies and about twenty washcloth wipes for now.I use an old huggies wipes box and keep the cloths wet in there, then throw them in the wash with the diapers. No fuss.
In the diaper bag, I have a wet washcloth or two in a ziplock bag and if I use one when out I put it inside the dirty diaper and in a gallon size ziplock bag to go home.


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## Drummer's Wife (Jun 5, 2005)

I definitely prefer cloth wipes







When you're washing diapers anyways a few wipes thrown in isn't a big deal. I made some out of cotton flannel receiving blankets but there are tons of different fabrics that make nice wipes. IME cloth wipes are much more effective then disposable ones. I'd say I would have to use 5 sposie wipes for every cloth one.

When we are out, I usually bring a ziplock of a few dry wipes and wet them wherever there is water, if we are going somewhere without running water I just wet them before putting them in the bag.


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## BCmamaof6 (Sep 7, 2004)

I love cloth wipes.








I use old Huggies containers (but any plastic container that opens easily will work)
I add water, lavender & tea tree essential oils & a few drops of olive oil. It smells wonderful, helps with rashes, & IMO does a better job cleaning than disposable wipes. When out and about you can toss some from your container into a travel wipes container or even a ziplock bag. Or fill a small spray bottle with the wipe solution & spray the wipes as you need them.
Disposable wipes are expensive...when we used them- we easily went through 4-5 packages a month (at about $7 a pkg)
We also found the smell to be strong & the chemicals used in them to be too harsh for our baby's sensitive skin. I still buy them occassionally for household cleaning- they are so strong.
And they are _disposable_ you are throwing them into the landfill...KWIM?


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## selena_ski (Jun 16, 2006)

so i can just cut up some flannel i have lying around, and surge edges.

how big should i make them?


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## ibusymomto5 (Jan 29, 2003)

I like cloth wipes much more than disposables. They are no extra work whatsoever when you're already washing diapers anyway. Also, disposable wipes don't have near the cleaning power that cloth ones do. One good cloth wipe will do the job that 3 disposable ones will. My favorite material for wipes is velour or sherpa, but flannel will work fine too. 8x8 is a good size. I keep dry wipes in a basket and either wet them at the sink when I know dd is dirty, or I wet them with a squirt bottle(peri bottle) that I keep at the changing table. Works great!

I do use disposables for when we go out, because I forgot one too many times to remove the wet cloth wipes from the diaper bag after we got home. Then the next time we would go somewhere I would find mildewy wipes. I guess I'm too scatter brained to remember, so it's disposable wipes for the diaper bag. I just wrap them up with the diaper and toss them in the trash when we get home. It's okay if they accidentally go through the wash, they don't fall apart.


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## selena_ski (Jun 16, 2006)

what is velour and sherpa. what does it feel like, fabric content?

isn't velour that stuff that they make those silly sweat suits out of?


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## ibusymomto5 (Jan 29, 2003)

Velour is smooth and buttery soft and very easy on tender baby skin. Sherpa is a fluffy knit terry that is also soft and is really good at grabbing messes without being rough like a regular washcloth. Both fabrics are about 80% cotton, 20% polyester... I think. Maybe someone can correct me if I'm wrong there. I just know I really love the velour ones I have. I plan on getting a few more plain velour ones for my new baby coming this winter.

You know, you can also use cheap Gerber baby washcloths too. I used those exclusively for years, and they also work great.


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## sqoya (Feb 13, 2004)

We love cloth wipes since they work so much better than disposable ones, and they are easy to use if you're already doing cloth diapers. Most are 8" x 8", which fit into a wipes warmer when they're folded in half. You can get some Baby Bits (little pieces of soap with essential oils that dissolve in water) to make a wipes solution, or make your own solution. Northern Essence also makes a great foaming wipes solution. Water by itself is a great option, too, especially if you have a baby with sensitive skin. Our baby's skin was always irritated by disposable wipes.

Velour feels like those funny jumpsuits, and can be 80% cotton and 20% polyester, but can also be 100% cotton - which is really, really nice (Swaddlebees and Wahmies make great wipes). Velour is great at "grabbing" messes when it gets wet. Sherpa is like "fluffed" cotton, it's soft and thick combed cotton. Kissaluvs makes some nice terry cotton wipes - they're like a soft one sided washcloth. Flannel is nice, but it didn't clean up messes for the newborn stage for us. You can always try a wipes sampler pack to see which ones you like best.

They are so easy when you're out and about. You can keep them in a ziplock bag (or Wahmies mini zippered wet bag, or some other washable, waterproof bag) prewetted, so they're ready to go. Then just throw them in with the dirty diaper. But, you can always do cloth wipes at home, disposable wipes when out and about. HTH! Good luck!


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## andisunshine (May 2, 2006)

Yes, velour is what those silly sweatsuits are made of. If you use flannel you might want to do double layer because otherwise the edges curl after washing and one layer might leak the mess through while you are cleaning. I used old knit terry baby towels (with the hood, yk?) that I cut up into 8x8 squares and serged two layers together. I also have terry/flannel that are nice. I can't think of any cons to using cloth wipes except you have to wet them first. I hated finding disposable wipes in the dryer with my cloth diapers so that is what really pushed me to switch to cloth wipes. Now I wish I had always used cloth ones! I still have two packs of sposie wipes that I'll probably never use...
Andi


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## studentmama (Jan 30, 2004)

I love, love, love cloth wipes. Hands down over disposables, that's for sure. Personally I don't feel there is any downside to using cloth wipes, super soft on baby, clean better, can throw them in the wash with the diapers, cheap! I use both some cheap washcloths from kmart and some fleece I cut up. Both work really great.


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## WickidaWitch (Feb 16, 2002)

i used disposable ones in the begining. I thought it was a big pain to have to pick them out of the cloth dipes.
I always use cloth ones now if I'm using a cloth dipe!! So much easier


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## hillymum (May 15, 2003)

We used disposable wipes for about 4 days before I bought a load of gerber clothes. It was a real pain chucking them in the trash then going to the diaper pail for the CD's. I then made a bunch of T&T flannel wipes (which I still love for messy diapers) and many many OV WAHM made wipes. I store them dry and wet them under warm water. Easy peasy, even when out, and they are almost guaranteed to be a conversation starter, especially the brightly dyed ones!


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## Wavery (Jul 9, 2006)

Happily following this thread.

I don't have a serger, but would love to make my own, can I seam them on my traditional machine?

And what is T&T wipes?


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## Juliacat (May 8, 2002)

I use disposable wipes on the go, since it isn't always easy to wash baby off in public. One pack lasts several months. I use cloth wipes the rest of the time.


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## Benji'sMom (Sep 14, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Juliacat*
I use disposable wipes on the go, since it isn't always easy to wash baby off in public. One pack lasts several months. I use cloth wipes the rest of the time.

Us too. Cloth is easier at home, disposables are easier in the diaper bag.


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## hillymum (May 15, 2003)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Wavery*
Happily following this thread.

I don't have a serger, but would love to make my own, can I seam them on my traditional machine?

And what is T&T wipes?

I don't have a serger so I turned and top stitched my wipes. Two squares of fabric sewn together the wrong sides together, leaving an unsewn gap, then turned the right ay by pushing everything through the hole and sewn neatly. This was very time consuming, but as I am a learner sewer was worth the practice of corners and straight lines. If a WAHM made them she would have to charge about $3 to $4 a wipe if they were done like that. I imagine you can just use the zigzag setting and seam to save time!


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