There are now various types of nappies to choose from which include:-
Pocket nappies
These are basically a waterproof outer with either a suedecloth or fleece liner attached to the cover to keep baby dry, there is then a slot into the fabric, usually in the back in which a absorbant pad is placed into the pocket, once stuffed they go on in one piece like a disposable or all in one cloth nappy. They are very adaptable as you can add more stuffing (inserts) for a heavy wetter, long journey or overnight, or the nappy can be kept trim for during the day, popular inserts are made from microfibre, hemp and bamboo or a combination. As the nappy comes apart for washing they dry quicker then a all in one. You can either buy them as birth to potty nappy or in different sizes
All in ones
These nappies are washed, dried and put on in one piece and the easiest nappy to use, but they can take longer to dry, some also have a pocket in them to allow them to be boosted easily. Some all in ones do come apart for easy washing and quicker drying such as Itti Bittis.
Two part Nappies
The absorbant nappy is shaped like a disposable and is made from various materials including terry, bamboo, hemp, microfibre and velour, they fasten around baby with either aplix, snaps or nippa nappa, they can be sized (usually 2 sizes) or birth to potty. I would recommend the use of either a paper or fleece liner to keep baby dry and as the nappy is not waterproof a wrap needs to go on the top, these fasten with snaps or aplix usually 1 wrap per 4-5 nappies. This type of nappy system has excellent containment as leaks of both types have to get through 2 sets of elastic.
Flat nappies
There are 2 types of flat nappy - the prefold and the flat terry square:-
Prefolds
These are what many nappy laundering companies use, as they are very hard wearing, they often come in 2 or sometimes more sizes but as they can often be passed onto other children they are very economical. They are basiclly a flat nappy that has 3 sections to it with the middle section having more layers of cotton for absorbancy, they can be folded in a variety of ways depending on whether the baby/child is a boy, girl or is a newborn with liquid poo, the folded nappy is then placed into a gusseted wrap. A fleece or paper liner is advisable to keep baby dry.
Terry Squares
These are the traditional nappy the type that my mum used on me! however there are now variations instead of just cotton they can now be organic cotton or bamboo that stays nice and soft and is it is flat dries quite quickly so you can have the benefits of bamboo nappies without the long drying time, these nappies are now available in a newborn size( 40cm X 40cm),baby size (50cm X 50cm) and the toddler (60cm X 60cm),of course there is no need to buy all the sizes as traditionally they were 60cm X 60cm, and were used from birth to potty but folded in different ways. They can be passed onto other children or the small ones can be used as boosters or pocket inserts when the child is older