Last week, a friend of mine announced her desire to cloth diaper her soon-to-be-born baby, as well as her son (13 months).  She asked what I thought she might need, and I was more than happy to give her my opinion (I seem to have a lot of them).  She’s never cloth diapered before, and looked a little overwhelmed as I sat there and folded my diaper stash (I have diaper ADD, very few of the same brands/styles/etc.).  I told her that her stash won’t have to look nearly as confusing as mine, and to cloth diaper her two children as easily as possible, she should start with a list that looks like this:

1. 20 BumGenius diapers (she could start with less, but for one newborn and one toddler, it’s probably best to have a few more than a few less).  I picked these because they’re easy to put on a squirmy toddler, and you don’t have to have two different diaper stashes - just snap to the rise, and you’re off to the races.  I also find that pockets are the easiest for newbies to try… and they wash & dry fastest.
2. 18 Wipes (baby face cloths will be fine, but my preference is cotton - you can often find cloths $1 for 3 at your local dollar store)
3. 1 medium sized garbage trash can with a foot lever to use as a diaper pail.  Don’t get it too big, because with 2 kids in diapers, you will want to do diapers every day to 2 days - any longer and it will stink too much (plus you’d have to buy a lot more diapers!).
4. 1 large drawstring wet bag that will fit your trash can.  This is so you can just grab the bag and head to do laundry - no carrying the garbage can around, and you don’t have to worry about cleaning out the can every time you do laundry.
5. A laundry detergent that is optical brightener, enzyme, and fabric softener free.  Good choices are Nellie’s Washing Soda, Norwex Laundry Detergent, and Allen’s Naturally (people have had differing experiences with each of these - it depends on you water, your washing machine, and how many times you rinse).

I think that there are a bunch of “nice to haves”, and those go on a separate list - you don’t “need” them to start up, but they will help things be a lot easier.

1. A diaper sprayer.  I am still wishing for one of these.  I would love to never have to dunk another diaper!  So yucky.  This way, you can just spray them off and they can go straight into the diaper pail.  No muss, no fuss.
2. A medium zippered wetbag for outings, to hold 4-6 diapers (especially for 2 kids).  You throw the used diapers in this bag.  I find the zippered bags are more secure in regards to leaking liquids and smells.  If you can’t afford one of these right away, you can use (and reuse - just label it DIAPERS) a large ziploc freezer bag.
3. A small zippered wetbag for wipes.  I never leave home without mine - I use wipes to clean off high chairs and tables, bums, hands and faces, whatever you need.  If you don’t have the extra funds for one of these, again - use a ziploc baggie, whatever size you need for the number of wipes you may need (always take extra!).
4. A set of dryer balls.  You won’t be using fabric softener in any of your diaper loads, and these keep your diapers soft and they help them dry faster.  Who could ask for more?
5. An empty diaper wipes tub to keep your cloth wipes and a wipe solution in.  I make my own solution with a bunch of water, a small amount of baby soap, a splash of witch hazel, and a nice sized squeeze of 98% organic aloe vera gel.  It isn’t as nice smelling as a lot of the different premade solutions (concentrated, or in solid form), but it seems to get the work done.

I’m not sure what my friend will chose to get.  I strongly believe that the BumGenius is the easiest cloth diaper to use for first time users - and it’s the ones that my husband/mom/mother-in-law reach for first.

One Final Tip: When your pocket diapers come out of the dryer, adjust the rise (if necessary) then stuff the diaper.  That way, you’re not fiddling with the diaper when you’re going to change the baby.  It’s also easier to encourage a reluctant spouse/baby sitter to use cloth when they’re waiting for them, ready to go.