Cloth Diaper Shells (2-part system)

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Cloth diaper shells are my absolute favorite way to cloth diaper my little guy!

When I tell people that we cloth diaper our baby, I am certain they are imagining a big white cloth and large safety pins… cringing at the thought of safety pinning anything to a baby.

Don’t worry, there are no sharp objects involved!

If you didn’t catch my last diaper post where I covered all of the details about all-in-one cloth diapers, go check that out when you are finished here!

Without further ado, here we go…

How do cloth diaper shells work?

Cloth diaper shells are a 2-part system. The first part is the waterproof shell, like a swim diaper which wraps around the absorbent piece that collects the yucky stuff. The second part is the absorbent piece of material, also called a prefold.

Got it?

Shell = waterproof. Prefold = absorbent piece of material.

Okay, listen. There are big-time benefits of using shells! Let me tell you why they are my favorite way to cloth diaper…

1. If your baby only pees in the diaper, you can just toss the prefold into the diaper pail and REUSE the waterproof shell. This will help cut down on some of the laundry.
2. I actually think they do a better job of absorbing BIG pees. Like, naptime-style pees. Occasionally, he will pee out of an all-in-one diaper, but he practically never leaks if he is wearing a shell + prefold.
3. Shells + prefolds are more cost-effective than all-in-one diapers! Depending on which brand of diapers you buy (and you want to make sure you are buying from a good, reliable company), all-in-ones may set you back close to $20/diaper. Shells cost more around $12-15 on average, and you can buy the prefolds in bulk for a decent price! Check out my Amazon links on this page for your own cost comparisons.

How do you put cloth diaper shells on?

Easy! You will take the prefold (absorbent piece) and fold it into thirds. Lay your folded material inside the waterproof shell. Buckle onto baby like a regular diaper!

Are there sizes for cloth diaper shells?

Yes, each brand of cloth diapers has their own sizing chart. Make sure and check which size your baby needs based on their weight!

Here are the sizing charts for the Thirsties brand cloth diaper shells to we use (and love!). Thirsties calls the shells Duo Wraps FYI.

• Size 1: 6-18 pounds
• Size 2: 18-40 pounds
• Size 3: 40-60+ pounds
• Size 4: 60-80+ pounds

If you choose to use this shells method, you will also buy prefolds! We bought ours from the baby store, but you can find them on Amazon here:

Options for prefolds (the absorbent piece that goes inside the shells):

1. Humble Bebe Prefolds 12-pack
2. Gerber Organic 10-pack

How do you clean cloth diaper shells?

You will wash and dry these diapers (the shells and prefolds) the same as any other cloth diaper!

Peed on prefolds will just go straight into the diaper pail!

Crappy Diapers

Our favorite way to deal with poop situations is to make sure we have a diaper liner in his diaper each time we change him! When he poops, peel the liner off (the poop will be on top of it) into the toilet, and flush everything!

Pro Tip: Lay a diaper liner ON TOP of the diaper (like inside it obviously). It feels like a dryer sheet. After they poop, just peel the liner off into the toilet with the poop, and flush all of it! We just now used one entire roll after a whole year of using them! They last a long time.

Washing Machine Instructions

When your diaper pail is full, simply buckle the diapers inside out and toss them into your washer. You will wash them on the heaviest duty cycle your washer offers! Turn the heat all the way up. And utilize your pre-soak or pre-wash feature on your washer.

This is also when I wash our reusable diaper pail liner. Just toss it in with the all-in-one cloth diapers, and everything gets washed together!

Dryer Instructions

You can choose to line dry your all-in-one cloth diapers, which we do regularly to bleach out any stains on our retractable clothesline in the backyard.

You can also dry them in your dryer, which I do most times. I use ‘timed dry’ for 1 hour and only 1 segment of heat.

Fun Fact: He is 13-months-old while I’m writing this post, and he has never had a poop blowout in a cloth diaper! He HAS had poop blowouts in disposables when he was very little. There was a time that we were waiting on his circumcision to heal, so we had to wait to put him in cloth diapers so the Aquaphor didn’t ruin the absorbency of the cloth material. He consistently had poop blowouts in disposables. Again, never has he had one in a cloth diaper.

What do you do with diapers if you aren’t home?

If you are out and about on the town, I use a reusable wet bag to keep them in. When you get home, simply transfers the diapers to your diaper pail.

Where can you buy cloth diaper shells?

Check your local baby stores first! We bought most of ours at our local place, Colorado Baby, and then picked up a few more over time from Amazon.

Amazon is a wonderful resources, because you can choose your diapers and add them to your Amazon baby registry. From there, people can buy them for you. You can also set up a diaper fund, just like you would with disposable diapers, and have your friends and family contribute to the balance of the diapers that you want.

Here are links to some examples of our favorites:

1. Bundle of 6, gender neutral , size 1, Thirsties
2. Woodland animals, size 1, Thirsties
3. Aqua, size 1, Thirsties
4. Black, size 1, Thirsties
5. Bundle of 6, gender neutral, size 2, Thirsties
6. Rainbow, size 2, Thirsties
7. Aqua, size 2, Thirsties
8. Grovia — Their shell covers are amazing! The elastic around their chunky legs works perfectly to contain any diaper messes.

How long do cloth diapers last?

Cloth diapers will survive many children! So while there is an initial investment of buying all of your diapers up front, you will be able to pack them away and then use them again with the next baby where you will see an even greater return on the investment!

Here’s a video to accompany this post where I show you what an all-in-one cloth diaper looks like in person! Go check it out!

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