You may not be aware of this but certain cloth diapers can fetch hundreds of dollars. One cloth diaper can cost hundreds, not a collection of them or a hundred for $1.00 each. I’m going to let that sink in for a minute.
For some of us we have a hard enough time making our mortgage or rent and chose to use cloth diapers for the money savings. Then there are others who don’t have that worry and have enough fun money to spend on collectible cloth diapers. I will go ahead and say now that this post is not intended to ridicule those who have chosen to spend their money on expensive cloth diapers. Some of us drive a 1995 Dodge Neon and some of us drive brand new BMW’s. What all of us have in common is a passion for cloth diapers. If some choose to reward the artists creating true one of a kind cloth diapers by buying their wares then so be it! And if some of us just like eye candy then we can enjoy this post.
As long as there have been WAHM’s pouring their creativity into their chosen craft of sewing cloth diapers there have been mothers willing to stalk for them. Generally these “Hard to find” prints and special custom creations are sold at retail by the makers and the real money is made my the re-seller who puts it up for auction. In some cases the maker/seller will put up their own diapers for auction knowing the diaper will fetch a very high price but instead of lining their pockets they donate the proceeds to worthwhile charities. In my research most of the very expensive diapers sold throughout recent memory were a case of the latter. The diapers on this list are here because, new or used, at some point they sold for the amount shown, even if their retail value is far less.
The most expensive diapers I found came from a wide variety of brands, styles, and materials. This search wasn’t easy. There is no such list on the Internet (until now) so I spent days and countless hours combing through archived messageboards and inquiring amongst readers, diaper makers, and auction site owners. No one knew of “the most expensive diaper ever” but everyone has heard of at least one diaper fetching over a hundred dollars. I’m sure to be missing something, especially from older auctions where there is no record left, but from what I can tell this is a pretty complete list, in order, of the some of most expensive cloth diapers ever sold.
[box]There is a combined total value here of $2,570.89! This represents 10 cloth diapers. To put that into perspective for the price of these 10 diapers you could buy 143 bumGenius 4.0’s! [/box]
You know you want to know so lets start with the diaper fetching the most money and count down!
1. Twinkie Tush “Ella”
Twinkie Tush has had several diapers break into the over $200 dollar range. For an auction benefiting the family of Ella, a girl with CDH, two of their diapers sold for over $400. The one above sold for $430 while another sold for $490. They’ve also auctioned other diapers for the MS Society for over $200 each.
2. Chelory Swirl WI2
Chelory makes a very sought after brand that at one point was impossible to get your hands on. In 2011 this hard to find Swirl sold for $430.00. I asked Rachel of Chelory about the craze and why so many of her diapers sold for such high prices and she explained that due to her diapers selling out in seconds each stocking she was asked by customers to create auctions like the one you see here, allowing those who could pay more to do so and have a better chance. This came to a stop quickly once others realized they could purchase them at retail and make a tidy profit. This was not a charity auction but Rachel does make donations from her company to worthwhile organizations through her diaper sales. These days she works full time at making diapers and they are easier to come by in case you want your own.
3. Ragababe Original Tie Dye AIO
Ragababe cloth diapers are almost as rare as unicorn sightings when it comes to getting your hands on one during a stocking. Due to their rarity some people will pay big bucks for them even used, especially for the original HTF tie-dye PUL print. This diaper was sold for $340.00, and it isn’t the only one that has sold for that high by this brand.
4. Goodmama Tie Dye OBV Fitted
A Goodmama sold for $296 + Shipping at auction. I cannot find the original listing however this is a long fabled diaper and I’ve seen this to be true. It was dyed by Sweetibums. This list of expensive cloth diapers wouldn’t be complete without a Goodmama. Today they are not nearly as sought after but several years ago they were very hard to come by and collectors went mad for their HTF prints. There are many other very expensive Goodmamas including the Butterfly Glue print (which at one point had a bid of $2,000 but it was later found to be a joke), the Afternoon Outing print (a newborn AO sold for $215 at a charity auction), and more. These days there is a new wave of new hybrid fitted brands with fanatical followings and Goodmama is out.
5. Applecheeks Samoa Envelope Cover
A retired color (samoa) by Applecheeks sold for $235.00. There is a rabid fan-base surrounding this brand and any of their limited edition colors and prints will be collector’s items down the line… There is a nother auction currently running for the same color that is at $235.00 now so it will go for an even higher price than this one! Applecheeks are only one of two Canadian brands on the list.
6. Baa Baa Baby “Yoshi”
A Baa Baa Baby creation featuring a personal favorite of mine- Yoshi! This one was sold for a whopping $210.00 but you can see how much work went into it. I’d love to know how many hours it took to applique this and it would probably make that price tag more than justified, even if it is just a diaper.
7. Binky D Diapers “Piece of a Rainbow”
This work of art was designed and sold by Binky D Diapers on Hyena Cart with the final price of $200.00. Not shown in this photo are the soakers which are equally as beautiful and colorful. Click over the auction page for more photos!
8. Fuzbaby Sun and Moon Fuzbomb Cover
Fuzbaby diapers are crafted with care and passion so it is nice to see the creator make a pretty profit doing something she loves. The Sun and Moon Fuzbomb cover sold through Hyenacart for $150.00. The cover itself is wool. In general wool is more expensive than other styles of diapers and starting prices can be upwards of $100 for new knits.
9. Ella Bella Bum “Al”
The other Canadian diaper to make the list was the Ella Bella Bum “Al,” sold for $150.00, which is a Frankenstein concoction made from a poor Albert Flip that lost his life. The proceeds went to “Cloth for a Cause,” a Canadian cloth diaper lending organization, so Albert didn’t die in vain.
10. gDiaper “Game Day” gPant
In “this was surprising to me” news this gDiaper print, Game Day, sold for $125.00. It is out of print and now considered “hard to find” and therefore it is more valuable than retail. Look to eBay for a few cloth diaper auctions. These are generally resellers who either purposely sought a “hard to find” print to make a profit or happened to learn that a diaper they owned would fetch a far higher price.
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So there you have it. Ten of the most expensive cloth diapers in the world! Have you seen any other million dollar diapers out there? Leave a link or tell me about them in the comments! I’d love to learn more!
Update: Several people have mentioned brands from Australia that fetch very high prices including a brand I’ve seen called Bare Rumps. I wasn’t able to find prices on my search for past items and their stock was out when I checked for the post so I didn’t include them. I only included diapers I had concrete evidence for a past or present price.
