Every cloth diaper can fail at some point, whether it’s because of age and heavy use or a defect. When that happens, your first thought might be to throw it in the trash if there’s no warranty coverage, especially when it’s the waterproof cover or pocket diaper shell. But that’s a shame when you consider that one of the reasons you may be using cloth is to cut down on household waste.

Here are some truly useful things you can do with old or damaged covers.

#1 Use as a swim diaper.

If you have a shell that’s leaky or delaminated, re-purpose it as a swim diaper. The primary job of a washable swim diaper is to hold in number two, so as long as you can get a good fit around the legs, an old cover or pocket shell can serve this purpose.

#2 Use as a backup cover.

Many mothers who use disposables keep waterproof diaper covers on hand to provide extra protection against blowouts. The gussets on a disposable diaper aren’t the greatest, so adding an old cloth diaper cover on top gives you a little bit of extra insurance should the Pampers fail.

#3 Use as a photo prop.

This is a great way to give a really cute (but not usable) cover new life. Let your baby wear it for a photo shoot; hold onto it if the color/print is one you love, and you can get a picture of your next baby in it, too.

#4 Use it for play time.

Your children will enjoy putting real cloth diapers on their stuffed animals and baby dolls!

#5 Be crafty.

You can make adorable cloth diaper keychains or tree ornaments from old PUL covers, like these from Weensy Baby. Keep or give as gifts or party favors. Old cloth diaper covers can also be used for baby shower decorations or party games.

#6 Donate them.

There are a few cloth diaper charities/lending closets (like Cloth for a Cause and Cloth for Everybum) that accept damaged diapers and are equipped to repair them. Always check first, and if you have a few extra dollars, send those in with your box of damaged diapers to help offset the cost of repairs.

You can also post an ad on Craigslist or a Facebook diaper swap (general or brand specific) and see if there are any takers. Some mothers might be willing to take them off your hands and attempt to repair.

#7 Or repair them yourself.

If you’re up for a small challenge, try fixing the diapers that are salvageable. I’m only a novice, so let me point you to a great post from my friend, Celeste, about repairing elastics, snaps and even PUL.

You can also pay to have minor repairs and snap replacement (or snap conversions from hook and loop) done at Convertmydiapers.com.

#8 Use as teaching aids.

Old diapers make great visuals! Use them in your local cloth diaper support group to illustrate different styles and features for mothers who are curious or just starting out.

Do you have any uses to share for old or damaged diaper covers? Let me know in a comment below so others can benefit from your ideas, too!

BabyKicks are one of the most popular and widely recommended diaper inserts on the market. With hemp as a primary component, they are both highly absorbent and trim. The BabyKicks brand has become synonymous with hemp; here’s why they love this fabric. BabyKicks diapers are manufactured in the Unites States.

I already had some Duz-it-All inserts in my collection; BabyKicks also sent some regular, premium and one-size JoeyBunz at no cost to facilitate my review.

Made from certified organic 55% hemp/45% cotton, JoeyBunz inserts have a contoured shape and serged edges.

• Regular inserts are 6 layers of hemp/cotton and come in size small (13.5 inches), medium (15.25 inches) and large (17.5 inches).
• Premium inserts are two 4 layer pieces of hemp/cotton sewn together at one end come in size small (13.5 inches), medium (15.25 inches) and large (17.5 inches). These are my favorites of the three styles because they dry the quickest.
• One-size inserts are 6 layers of hemp/cotton and have fold-to-fit lines stiched at the narrow end.

At only 1/8 of an inch thick, JoeyBunz are fantastic when it comes to boosting the absorbency of any diaper while adding very little bulk. Two or three JoeyBunz inserts, all by themselves, can even function as a nighttime diaper.

My Duz-it-All insert is a flat rectangle of two layers of the same jersey knit hemp/cotton, and shrinks to 13×17 when washed. It has a lot of great uses:

• Trifold and stuff in a pocket diaper or lay in a cover
• Keep on hand as an emergency diaper
• Burp cloth
• Changing pad for small babies
• Car set pad

JoeyBunz inserts can be stuffed into pocket diapers, wrapped inside a flat or prefold, or just laid on top of a diaper. They are versatile and thirsty, and can be laid right up against your baby’s skin, if you don’t feel like stuffing.

Any drawbacks to hemp? Some claim that it is prone to odors; I’ve never had this happen with our hemp diapers. Maybe that’s the case for 100% hemp (JoeyBunz are hemp/cotton blend)? Hemp is prone to staining, however. While it isn’t as soft as bamboo or organic cotton, the jersey blend used in JoeyBunz is nice and smooth.

In the first photo below, this one-size pocket diaper is opened up to it’s largest setting and the JoeyBunz One-Size is folded down in front. In the middle photo, a JoeyBunz Premium (size medium) is tucked into the one-size pocket diaper shell. Size medium fits great with most one-size diapers on their medium/large setting. Size large JoeyBunz are ideal for toddlers.

You can find BabyKicks JoeyBunz inserts with free shipping at retailers like Diaper Safari and Sweetbottoms Baby Boutique. The Duz-it-All inserts are sold at Little Spruce Organics and Nicki’s. Choice of thread color at the edges varies (mine is yellow).

Enter to win TWO JoeyBunz inserts in your choice of in stock style/size! Open to US and Canadian residents. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

At some point during your cloth diapering experience, you might want to sell some. Perhaps a certain brand didn’t work out as expected, or maybe your child has completely potty trained and the possibility of another baby on the horizon is slim to none. Whatever the case may be, you’ll want to get the best price possible. I’ve had lots of experience with buying and selling over the past five years and wanted to share a few tips with you.

Buy and sell gender neutral. It’s much easier to sell a green diaper cover than it is to sell a pink one. This is just a statistical inevitability. Several factors contribute to this. First of all, lots of mothers are buying for a baby whose gender is unknown. Still others may prefer gender neutral because they are using cloth on 2 or more children of different sexes. A third reason is simply that colors like blue and green are most often preferred (and purchased) over pink and purple, regardless of gender.

Overly “girly” or “boyish” colors tend to sit a little longer before selling and the longer a listing sits with no action, the more likely you’ll be getting lowball offers at some point. If you anticipate selling some or all of the diapers in your stash at some point, consider making the bulk of your collection gender-neutral.

Act quickly. Respond promptly to emails, comments and private messages and you’re more likely to score a sale with little to no bargaining. The longer a buyer waits on you, the more time she has to re-think the price or purchase elsewhere. Remember, you’re not the only one out there selling a Flip cover. Jump on someone’s interest right away and be helpful and friendly. Offer to send additional pictures. Ask if you can make them a deal on multiple items. Statements like “I’m making a trip to the post office this afternoon” can help a buyer who is dragging her feet make a quicker decision.

Work on the stains. Many of us just want to make a quick sale. So you often see listings that read like this: “Diaper is excellent condition, with the exception of a few newborn stains I haven’t tried to treat yet.” While stains don’t bother me, personally, they can kill the deal for many. It pays to get the diaper looking its best before putting it on the market. Wash the diaper, but skip the dryer. Instead, hang the wet diaper in the sun for about 2 hours or so. This method works fantastically for most any type of regular poo stain; if it’s a food stain you’re dealing with (i.e. something your baby ate that made it’s way into the diaper) something more drastic will be needed. Try bleach (properly diluted and timed) or lemon juice (treat and then wash).

If you don’t have a clothesline, hang your diaper inside and let the sunlight stream through the window. This is effective, but to a lesser degree than direct sun.

Give a freebie. Everybody likes to get something for nothing, so take a tip from the cloth diaper stores and offer a free item to potential purchasers. Ideally, it would be something small which will add hardly any extra weight to the package. Ideas: coupons, a few diaper liners or cloth wipes, product samples, lip balm or jewelry you’re not wearing anymore. If you have a couple of freebies to give away, list them in the description and have your buyer choose one.

Giving something away creates a good vibe. Buyers are more likely to pay what you’re asking rather than haggle excessively.

Sell to fans. You’ll likely get more money for a Funky Fluff diaper in the official Funky Fluff B/S/T (Buy/Sell/Trade) group than you will at Diaper Swappers. These are mamas that know, love and highly value the brand. That saves you the hassle of having to market the diaper itself; just share a photo and give the price and condition. This tip is especially helpful if you are selling a WAHM diaper; without as much name recognition, homemade used diapers can be tough to sell to the general public. Some WAHM’s have B/S/T groups for their fans; if this isn’t an option, you might ask them to post the sale on their Facebook wall on your behalf so that fans will see it.

Avoid photo fails. Unless you have a light box, take a picture of the diaper in natural light. You want the color and condition to be represented as accurately as possible. Some buyers may erroneously assume the diaper is faded, stained or blemished in some way due to things like glare, shadows, poor lighting or even the flash from your camera. If, for some reason, the picture gives the wrong impression and it’s truly the best you can do, make sure you point out this in your listing.

List (cross-post) on multiple sites. This enables you to entertain different offers and get the highest price. Looking for reputable sites to list your used diapers? There are lots of cloth diaper swap sites on Facebook, and I highly recommend Cloth Diaper Trader and the Diaper Swappers “For Sale or Trade” forum. Ebay is also a popular option and will give your listing more Google juice.

Here are some great suggestions from Cloth Diaper Wrecker about facilitating the selling process.

If you know of ways to get a higher price for diapers, please share them here!