Cloth diaper folds

[Belarin]

I personally don't like prefolds as I feel they are not as versatile as a good old flat, contours are ok for ease of use and speed but I do still prefer a straight up flat, there is something special about folding a diaper up ready to wear and pinning it in place (though I have taken to using snappi's).

As for folds I tend to go with the old Origami as I use 48" drylife flats and can get the origami to fit quite well and it has a lot of layers, there is also a "modified" version where you can get even more layers in front (for a boy) and less bulk in the back which can be good. I also use a variation on the Maria fold sometimes which can get a nice fit.

I have tried playing around with the Pickman fold too but either end up with wings too short or not enough width on the pad, a shame as it's a real easy fold that stores nicely, got it working with a 60" square but only have one of those as it's absolutely humungous.

This site is a nice list of different folds many with video tutorials.

 

[DBabygirl2]

I personally don't like prefolds as I feel they are not as versatile as a good old flat, contours are ok for ease of use and speed but I do still prefer a straight up flat, there is something special about folding a diaper up ready to wear and pinning it in place (though I have taken to using snappi's).

As for folds I tend to go with the old Origami as I use 48" drylife flats and can get the origami to fit quite well and it has a lot of layers, there is also a "modified" version where you can get even more layers in front (for a boy) and less bulk in the back which can be good. I also use a variation on the Maria fold sometimes which can get a nice fit.

I have tried playing around with the Pickman fold too but either end up with wings too short or not enough width on the pad, a shame as it's a real easy fold that stores nicely, got it working with a 60" square but only have one of those as it's absolutely humungous.

This site is a nice list of different folds many with video tutorials.

Thanks for sharing your experience.

 

[paddedplayer]

does anyone know how to get the classic cartoon fold with the pin in the front?

 

[Cottontail]

does anyone know how to get the classic cartoon fold with the pin in the front?

You need a rather oversized and/or stretchy diaper. Try starting with a flannel bed sheet and doing an Origami Fold. With its long wings, that fold is well-suited to the one-pin-in-front thing.

….although I’ve never found a single pin very satisfying in terms of snugness and support. Parents do sometimes pin diapers on very small babies that way, but it’s less common on active, older children because it just doesn’t work all that well.

I also have some stretchy flats from Fruit of the Womb that I really like. They work well on adults despite being sized for babies because of how stretchy they are. Just to prove it could be done, I folded one into a triangle, placed another in the middle for a pad, and fastened it with a single pin in front—quite something, considering they’re baby diapers and I have a 36-inch waist. My favorite way to wear those flats is to layer, fold, and pin them like a prefold though. They’re very comfortable, but also very expensive. (I have the “Caramel” ones.)

 

[ParaRomeo]

It honestly comes down to a few things like absorbency and the anatomy the person has. Certain folds work for different people like some put padding in certain areas. I will say from trying to figure out which works best I will say the easiest is a pad fold stuffed into a cover and if not soiled you can reuse a cover, the second easiest is contoured and fitted (though slightly more expensive) though depending on body type Angel or Jelly Roll works best in my little experience. Newspaper & diaper bag folds work good if you need to adjust rise. The other folds out there work much better with flats like I found the Origami fold to work great but for me I needed to add boosters but it's an easy fold to do.

All of these require some type of fastners I been using the ABZ which is basically a knockoff of Boingo's but in a good way b/c many times with adults even with pins you need 2 per side so for $ ABZ you get 4 for the price of 2 Boingo's if you have a 38" or less waist than you might be able to use a Snappi but with the teeth being smaller I personally like the others but I have used a Snappi to hold the side in place till I can get something else in place. It might be me personally but even when I had a personal care aid though they were great with pins they found pinless devices better.

I will add if your new to cloth diapers make sure you measure your hip and even than I would suggest if close to max get bigger ones. So like I had few companies tell me I would be fine with a certain size but ordered one of each and after washing cycles though we were able to get them on the size I was told would be fine & they were tight. Again everyone is different but me personally though more expensive I think I may get a mix of fitted and prefolds.

Also another thing I have learned every diaper cover fits differently.

I don't mean to go off topic I will add if your looking to get into cloth to shop around & do research. Like I got a great prefold & contoured from a company but found it was like $20 cheaper buying off their Amazon vs their main site. Also for adults there isn't many options like there are 2 fitted diapers that I personally find great but both of those companies don't offer bulk pricing also though not huge difference but also found some differences like I bought flats from 2 companies same size and weight but there was a huge difference in price and how material felt. Lastly the alot of size charts are suggestions which can vary. Lastly like disposables everyone needs to figure out what works for them the best & sometimes it requires a combination of different products.

 

[CheshireCat]

To be honest, after wearing cloth diapers for nearly 30 years, I have constantly changed my preference in material type and folding based on my weight and wetting habits. I was a wringer for the Michelin Man in the beginning, ballooning up from 185 Lbs to 260 Lbs from all the IV steroids. Now I'm back down to 195 Lbs. Like a good disposable diaper, you need to figure out what works best for you.