Cloth Diaper Showdown and GIVEAWAY!

***  Edited to add - If you have any questions or comments regarding cloth diapering, email me at rollingthroughlooneyville@gmail.com and I'd be glad to answer them for you.

Also, here's another comprehensive review that involves several other diapers.  So if you're interested in learning more, this is a great place for more comparisons.

And due to the overwhelming amount of comments from those who are considering cloth diapers but finding the choices and methods unclear or unreliable, I'll be posting a Cloth Diapering 101 post in the next week

One more thing:  If you're interested in purchasing any of these diapers, click on their name in the review and it'll take you to a retailer

Keep commenting and good luck!  ***

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Before I had kids, I chalked cloth diapers up to be complicated, messy, and gross.  Surprisingly, I've come to find that none of the above is true.  We've been cloth diapering C since she was about 3 months old.  Initially, on recommendation from a friend, we bought a few to try and found that they were remarkably easy.  So we decided to get some more to round out our cloth diaper stash.

And woah, there are some serious varieties out there.

Cloth diapers run the gamut from basic prefold diapers with waterproof pants, to one piece numbers that are as easy as disposables.   Most of the ones we tested are pocket diapers.  The outer layer is a waterproof material and the inner layer is most often fleece which wicks away moisture.  The two layers are open on one end to form a pocket where an insert can be placed.  The insert is what holds the liquid.  I also reviewed one cotton diaper with a liner, and two all-in-ones where the insert is sewn into the diaper.


Some diapers are sized and some are one-sized with snaps to fit to your baby's needs.

A lot to consider, no?

So, in order to find out which we liked the best, we acquired about 6 additional brands to test.  Our month long review consisted of repeated wears by our little one as well as many, MANY washings.

I rated each diaper on an A-D scale on the basis of five categories:  performance, ease of use, appearance, ease of care and durability.  (A is obviously the best and D is the worst). 


BumGenius All-In-One - $15.95   

Performance - B+
Ease of Use - A
Appearance - A
Ease of Care - C
Durability - B- 

These diapers are super cute.  They are almost as trim as a disposable, which is a major boon in our book.  The velcro closures are always a hit with my husband, but I don't like them as much.  Despite having wash tabs, where the sticky sides can go during a wash load, I did find that the velcro began to lose its stick a bit.  A fact that I can imagine will get worse with time.  This diaper didn't leak, though I always felt that I had to adjust it to be sure that C was completely comfortable.  Perhaps this had to do with sizing, though the medium was far too big, so I can't assume that.  I hated drying these diapers as they took FOR-EVER.  Even in the dryer, I often had to run the cycle twice to get the dampness out of the diaper.  In the sun, they by far took the longest of all diapers.  Left at all damp, as with any clothing, they would start to give off a musty odor.
Overall Rating :  B- 
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Q Diapers Pocket Diaper - $8.99 (included insert)

Performance - D
Ease of Use - C
Appearance -B
Ease of Care - B+
Durability - D

I can't even find a link for this diaper anymore.  I bought it on Ebay while searching for new, lesser known diaper brands to try.  Well, apparently there's a good reason for that.  Superficially, they're cute.  However, upon closer examination, the stitches appear hastily done and crooked and the workmanship is overall sub par.   This diaper leaked constantly.  I couldn't seem to get a good fit with the small pieces of velcro, and even when I got it snug, it still leaked.  Despite the velcro, I felt that this diaper took a significant amount of wiggling to fit onto the baby. It was relatively easy to wash and dry, though an absence of wash tabs generally made this diaper stick to whatever it ended up next to in the dryer.  I stopped using it altogether.   
Overall rating:  D
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 Fuzzi Bunz Pocket Diaper Sized Medium $17.95 (with insert)

Performance - A
Ease of Use -B+
Appearance -B
Ease of Care - A-
Durability - A

 These were the first cloth diapers I owned and used on both of my kids, so they have a little bit of a soft spot for me.  They're very cute to see the baby wearing, though they do tend to be quite bulky despite being sized.  My daughter was well within the weight range for the diaper but it came up really high which seemed to make sitting uncomfortable. This remedied with time as she grew taller, but it was still a pain while it lasted.  I also had some problems with the insert hanging out of the back of the diaper.  This wasn't necessarily a problem now, but as she grows and wets heavier, I expect that some wicking will occur when this happens.  They're as easy as any other pocket diaper to clean:  remove insert, wash, dry according to instructions.  No velcro means no sticking to other diapers.  The snaps are easy to figure out, though I often found that it was tough to get a good fit when she seemed to be in between snap positions.  They're super durable and one actually survived a dog chewing.  Not too shabby.   
Overall rating:  B+/A-
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Tiny Tush Elite One Size Pocket Diaper - $18.95 (with insert)

Performance - A
Ease of Use -B+
Appearance -B+
Ease of Care - A
Durability - A

This is one of my two favorites from doing this review.  I loved the one size aspect.  The snaps allowed for multiple sizes to wear the diaper, ensuring that it could go from a newborn to a toddler with no trouble. I did find the snaps mildly confusing as there are a ton of them.  However, you can leave the diaper snapped to the size that you use it while washing, cutting down on time spent figuring out the snaps.   There was ample room within the diaper for a thick insert, though a smaller insert stayed put quite nicely.  They're cute, though they can be a bit bulky with a larger insert.  I found that this diaper, when snapped correctly, always gave a snug fit and never leaked.  They have an overlapping piece of microfleece in the back to ensure that the insert remains snugly in the diaper, a feature I found to be valuable considering the FuzziBunz problems with this.   
Overall rating:  A-
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Tiny Tush Trim Organic Cotton One Size Fitted Cloth Diaper $16.95

With a Tiny Tush Diaper Cover $11.95  

Performance - A
Ease of Use -B+
Appearance -B+
Ease of Care - A
Durability - A





I was rather shocked to find out how much I really liked this diaper.  It's made of organic cotton which allows for a natural fiber to be next to the baby's skin.  This is a must for many people, though I found that this was one of the main reasons I wouldn't necessarily chose this type as my main diaper.  I change my daughter as often as I feel she is wet, though I don't   always get to her right away.  Thus, she's often with a wet diaper next to her skin as cotton doesn't wick away moisture.  Maybe not such a big deal during the day, but for naps and bedtime, I put the baby in a diaper with a microfleece layer.  The other reason that I would be hesitant to use this diaper is the cost.  Although I imagine that you can reuse a wrap more than once, you would need to purchase a few in addition to your stash of diapers which makes for a rather expensive venture.  However, the diapers are GOOD, and excellent quality, so if it's natural fibers you're looking for, these are the diapers for you.  Each diaper is one-sized to fit from newborn to toddler.  In addition to the diaper, each has a snap in layer for extra absorption.  (And they are massively absorpant to begin with).  The site suggests that you can even use this snap in layer alone inside a liner for small babies and newborns.  This diaper NEVER leaked and always held a ton.  I liked the reinforced side gussets on the cover.  I totally felt like any blowout would be easily contained.   
Overall rating:  B+
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Kushies Ultra All-In-One Medium $11.95 single or $45.00 for a five pack

Performance - B-
Ease of Use -C
Appearance - B-
Ease of Care - A
Durability - B

These diapers are made with a waterproof outer layer, several layers of absorbant cotton, and a cotton flap inside the diaper (which you can double up in certain areas for different genders).  The outside fastens with velcro.  There are laundry tabs which helps with the care factor.  In fact, these are the easiest diapers to take care of as they clean easily and dry quickly.  I am not a huge fan of the cotton inside layer as it allows moisture to sit against my daughter's skin.  These diapers are also extremely awkward in how big they are in some areas.  The velcro allows for a significant amount of adjusting; however, I was never able to adjust well enough to really close the leg holes snugly.  And I have a chunky legged little one.  They've leaked a few times, which I'm chalking up to a bad fit rather than poor absorption.  The outer layer is extremely durable and looks brand new but the inner layer is starting to pill badly.  Not a huge deal, but not as comfortable as the initial wearings.  They're super cheap for all-in-one cloth diapers, so if you're looking for a few to have on hand for baby sitters or for a relative who isn't familiar with cloth diapering, these are a steal.   
Overall rating:  B-
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BumWear One Sized Pocket Diaper $17.95 (insert not included)

Performance - A
Ease of Use -A-
Appearance - A+
Ease of Care - A
Durability - A

Definitely my favorite diaper of the bunch.  First of all, this diaper is CUTE!  There is absolutely no denying that fact.  The gorgeous printed outer layer is accented by a pretty fleece layer in a contrasting color.  I love putting this on my daughter.  In warmer weather, this is a cute bottom all on its own.  But aside from the cute factor, this diaper preforms fabulously.  After many wearings and washings, this diaper has yet to leak or to pill.  The outside looks as new as the day it arrived.  The snaps took a bit of getting used to, but there are less than on other one-sized diapers which lessened the confusion considerably.  I loved the fact that this diaper had elastic on both the back top and the FRONT top.  This is highly unusual, but something I craved in a cloth diaper.  I found that on many diapers, the rise made it slightly difficult to sit upright when the diaper was snugly fastened.  I learned to loosen the tops of most diapers for a more comfortable upright fit, but with these, I didn't have to.  The elastic allows the diaper to stretch against my daughter's baby belly without causing discomfort.  The diaper itself allows for small inserts or large inserts depending on your needs.  This diaper also folds to be the smallest one sized diaper I tried.  If you fold down the top of the diaper, the inner layer of the fleece has an additional row of snaps for the tiny baby.  I thought that these snaps might bother my daughter, but she never complains when wearing this diaper.  I will gladly buy more of these.   
Overall Rating:  A
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Now, for the fun news!  A GIVEAWAY!  Actually, three!  For three lucky readers, BumWear has graciously offered to give away one of their fabulous pocket diapers reviewed above AND an insert!  Woot!


If you're new to cloth diapering or you're looking to change brands, I can't recommend these highly enough, so enter for a chance to win!


In order to enter, please comment on this post with a valid email address.  If your email address is not included, I will have no way of contacting you and will have to move on to another winner. 
Winners will be RANDOMLY chosen using a random number generator. 

Close of the contest will be December 12, 2008 at 11:59pm.
One entry per person.

If you would like additional entries, please do one or both of the following:


Blog about and link to this giveaway and comment with a link back to your blog entry
or
Subscribe to this blog via RSS and comment that you have done so.  


Thanks everyone and good luck!

Cloth diapers!  They work for me!  For more Works for Me Wednesday tips, visit Rocks in My Dryer