Elimination Communication
Elimination communication - EC for short - is a way of communicating with your baby about his or her elimination needs.
You know how you tell when your baby is hungry or tired - they wriggle or cry or act in a certain way to alert you. They also have ways of telling you that they need to do a wee or a poo since it is innate in babies to not want to soil their "nest". When my baby acted that way, I held her over the potty and made a sound that she soon associated with going.
How to make your own VPPS - very portable potty system
A sample of my EC conversations with a baby
How to start
In terms of how do you begin with EC - remember when you were nursing a new baby and she would fuss and squirm and pop on and off the breast? It was likely because she needed to do a wee or a poo and she hadn't yet learnt that she was expected to go in her nappy. You know when people say - oh, I know that 2 or 3 yo toddler needs to do a poo so I won't change that nappy until she does... or when they say - oh, he's doing a poo, look at that stance or face or whatever... When doing natural infant hygiene or IPT or EC, you would give the baby the opportunity to do their business on a potty or bowl or toilet along with giving a cue sound (many people use "sssss"). Babies soon learn to release upon being held in a toileting position and being given the cue sound.
What do you need
One of the beauties of elimination communication is that you don't need much "stuff". At a minimalist level, all you need is a baby and a fair modicum of willingness to learn with your baby!
Slings, potties, training pants, split crotch pants and other items are nice to have but not essential.
Slings
When you carry your baby in a sling or wrap, you are very close to each other and it is much easier to pick up on fussing or small wriggles by your baby which indicate that a potty opportunity may be required. This also takes advantage of a tiny baby's innate disinclination to "soil the nest".
The best carriers for EC are those that make it easy to pop the baby out and then pop back in again with no fuss or contortions. For these reasons, I used an unpadded ring-sling and a tube sling (or pouch). I couldn't live without my slings!
Potties
I used a couple of simple small
potties that
forever seemed to change their position around the house. Do not 
obtain
a throne-like potty for using for EC with a baby - the baby might
disappear
down the hole!
Potty bowls are fantastic for use with a newborn and, for girls up to about 9 months old (although my niece was still using one at 18 months). Little boys tend to outgrow the diameter of the bowl earlier. You can hold the bowl between your knees and support the baby over the bowl.
Training pants
Training Pants are very useful for active babies - they make pottying quick and easy. There is no need to lay the baby down to remove and replace a nappy. They are absorbent enough to hold an accident, easy to wash and quick to dry.
I highly recommend moving from cloth nappies or diapers as early as possible, particularly when at home. Most people who make the change say that they should have done it earlier!
Baby leg warmers, split pants etc
Many people find leg warmers a great way for keeping little legs warm during colder weather. Another great use for them is to cover the gap between socks or shoes and riding up pants legs when baby is in a sling.