It is really hard making that decision about where to start - especially as you have all the options right in front of you!!
When I started I got given prefolds (absorbant rectangles of material) which you fold up and place in a wrap (the waterproof bit). I wouldn't recommend these personally as they are fiddly and not always the best for containment. I then bought some totsbots nappies - these are made out of terry and are shaped so you just put these on (I did mine up with a nappy nippa but they can come with poppers, velcro etc as well) and you then put a waterproof wrap over the top so that wee doesn't leak onto clothes. The waterproof wraps are made of PUL and I have found the best ones to be motherease airflow, these are bombproof! (wraps can also be made of fleece and wool and these allow the nappy to breathe moisture more than PUL).
I found totsbots very reliable but when you look at the nappies available they are not that exciting!! I then bought some fuzzi bunz because I wanted to try a pocket nappy - where the waterproof wrap is part of the nappy and you put absorbant material into the pocket absorb wee - the inner of the nappy is fleece so keeps baby's bum dry. The absorbant material is called an insert and I find the bamboo inserts (such as p'tit dessous) and hemp inserts (such as easy peasy) are really good for these nappies. From trying these I started to feel fairly confident about nappies and different varieties but didn't know much about all in ones and all in twos - (AIO's and A12's). All in one are exactly what it says - you just put the nappy on, no need to stuff or put a wrap on and are very easy (but can take longer to dry apparently) and a12's are where you can attach the absorbant material to the inside of the nappy using poppers. I wanted to try the a12's so bought some itti bitti d'lish and these are great.
I heard great things about wee notions night nappies on here so have bought 4 (3 with minky outers) and these are amazing for night-times. I also have one holden's landing bedbug for night-time and that is great as well.
Some people have one main nappy that they use but more frequently on this site people seem to build up a stash of various different nappies. I have noticed that often people prefer one type - such as people with heavy wetters will often use fitted nappies (like a totsbots or a muttaqin) with wool over the top so that the nappy can breathe. I hope some of what I have written makes sense? I can only comment on the nappies I have used so far (which isn't that many really esp compared to other on here) and the way in which I got used to different nappies. I always bought nappies preloved off of the classifieds although did buy my itti's and weenotions new.
Sorry I've rambled on
, must go to bed. Good luck with making a decision. Good idea to buy a few different types off the classifieds section and see how you get on with them. Caroline xx