Cloth Philadelphia: East Passyunk’s Baby & Diaper Store
Curious about cloth diapering? Look no further than Cloth, the new hotspot on East Passyunk in Philadelphia.
Did you know an estimated 18 billion diapers are thrown into landfills every year? They take 500 years to decompose, are expensive… and disposable. Plus, some diapers contain dangerous chemicals dioxins, VOCs and possibly carcinogens. Do you want your precious baby in that?
Angela and Shai Halperin recognized that parents new to cloth diapers often must buy online. As two working parents, they had a lot of online successes (and failures) with cloth diapers. Plus, the closest store was 30-40 minutes outside of Center City Philadelphia. They recognized the need more and more for a Cloth Diaper store. Cloth was born.
I stopped by Cloth to talk with Angela about more about the store.
Cloth Philadelphia: Cloth Diapering 101
Unsure about how Cloth diapers work? (I learned more in 30 minutes than I ever knew possible!) There’s two main components of a diaper: An absorbent layer (inside) and a waterproof layer (outside). Some varieties (like Bum Genius) have the absorbent layer sown in, as a one-size-fits all approach. Other brands sell the absorbent cloths separately (“pocket” style), so the waterproof layer can be re-worn until the baby soils the cover. Nervous about cloth diapering? Many varieties are specifically fitted and ‘fool proof’, complete with snaps and whistles.
Grossed out by cloth diapers? Parents are supposed to empty the poop from disposable diapers into the toilet before throwing them in the trash. If you realize how things are supposed to be, it’s a lot easier to make the transition to cloth.
Think cloth diapering is expensive? Considering a newborn (0-3 months) may go through a diaper every 2 hours, a supply of 24 cloth diapers for every 2 days will save you a lot of bucks fast. Plus, Cloth Philadelphia purposely keeps their prices down to be competitive and affordable.
Too busy to wash all of your cloth diapers, or perhaps have to take your child to daycare? You can be a ‘part time‘ ‘cloth diaperer’, using cloth in the evenings and/or weekends.
Cloth Philadelphia’s Other Selections
Cloth is primarily a cloth diaper store, but also sells every accessory you’d want for cloth diapering including wool covers, organic cloth diaper inserts and more.
Beyond cloth diapers, baby carriers are a big sellers including brands Ergos, Becos, woven wraps and more. For the babywearing parent, customers can choose from more breathable fabrics to sturdier brands – all dependent on the new mom (and dad’s!) preference.
Parent of 3-year-old Elliot, owner Angela Halperin loves the babywearing trend, but only regrets finding it later in her son’s development. As she exclaimed, “I could have gotten SO much more done if I had worn him versus not.” Babywearing isn’t only about convenience, but there’s also a bond between being close and snuggly with your baby. As babies get used to babywearing, you have way more mobility.
Baby wraps save money versus strollers – starting at $47.95, wraps average only around $100 (compare that to some strollers coming in around $1000.)
To help new moms feel comfortable with babywearing, Cloth has a baby wearing expert and educator visit the store on Sundays. You can learn how to use the carrier and try a variety on.
Don’t feel as though this is only a sales tactic: Halperin wants Cloth to be a place for the community and helping other parents. These workshops and experts come in, and parents are allowed to come in without the pressure to buy anything. There’s also a play area where moms can come in and play with their baby to get away from the scorching heat or cold outside.
There’s no denying that it’s hard to be a new parent. Halperin also will host a variety of classes in the play space as well, like local childbirth educator Brittany McCollum, holistic childbirth, breastfeeding, preschool options and cloth diaper workshops.
Why Cloth?
Cloth is a great place to see, shop and learn in the neighborhood. Supporting local businesses is also great for our local economy than big box stores: Your dollar goes three times as far. Plus, there’s such a cute selection of baby accessories like these adorable clothing choices:
Still unsure about cloth diapering? Try buying a couple of different varieties and try it out. Even if you don’t make the switch 100%, you can still do something.
Like Halperin says you don’t have to do something 100% of the time to make an impact. But every little bit helps.
*This is a sponsored post. All opinions are my own.
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