5 Uses for Cloth after Cloth Diapering

After cloth diapering, many moms have no idea what to do with their extra cloth. Donate it? Save it forever? Here are some practical ways to use up your investment.

By Danielle, Contributing writer

We invest hundreds in cloth diapers, mama cloth, and even cloth wipes. I cut, used, and sewed a large number of cloth wipes from those cotton receiving blankets that you get about 28 of at your baby shower. But I didn’t want to just throw them away after my son became potty trained.

So, I kept them in a small box in the basement and found myself using them whenever I ran out of the normal paper products, like facial tissues, paper towels, and even toilet paper. After a while, I realized I still needed these cloths in my life, and switched over to using them all the time in place of normal paper products.

I never purchase paper towels, facial tissues, and rarely toilet paper (for visitors). By doing this, I save probably $200 or more a year by using cloth for my paper/cleaning/hygiene needs. I wash all the cloth in one, small load every week, and keep them in baskets under my sinks. My son knows to grab them and place them after use in a covered, small garbage can that is only for cloth (his dirty clothes may end up in there as well, and I can’t complain). It saves me from cleaning up many spills, and that late night run to the grocery for toilet paper.

Baby washcloths, cotton or flannel baby receiving blankets, even old tee-shirts can quickly be sewn to make small (or large) cloths to use around your home.

Image by Danielle

5 Uses for Cloth after Cloth Diapering

#1 Toilet Paper

Yep, I said it. You used cloth to wipe your babe’s bum, and guess what? It is just as soft and cost-efficient on your own. If the #2 gross factor still hits you, use it only for #1.

#2 Clean Up Rags

Instead of paper towels, save the money and trees and use these small cloths to wipe up any spills. If you have a toddler, you will need roughly 325 a day, anyways. Plus, it won’t hurt if one picks up that way-too-gross mess, and you wish to just toss it. You can even keep a small basket of these on a low shelf, so little hands can grab one after every spill or mess.

#3 Wash Cloths

With the 4 baths per child you may be giving a day, these small cloths are perfect.

#4 Facial Tissues

Remember the lack of diaper rashes your cloth diapering/cloth wiping baby had during infancy? Guess what, they are just as soft on your face. Steer clear of the lovely Kleenex face rash, and just use a cloth wipe when the next cold strikes.

#5 Dish Cloths

Use up your cloth instead of spending $5 for a pack of 3 dishcloths at the store.

So, do not throw those cloth wipes, mama cloth, or even overused cloth diaper inserts away. You don’t have to donate them, and no, crying over them every time you come across them in your basement is not okay. They are extremely useful and can save you loads of money even after you are out of the cloth diapering phase.

How have you used your cloth?

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