Monthly Archives: Apr 2012

Cloth Diapering Diaper Sprayers How To/Demo

Cloth Diaper Advice – Mailbox Mondays 4/30/12 – Diaper Sprayers

Cloth Diaper Advice

If you have a cloth diaper question, have it answered in a Mailbox Mondays post, and get other Moms’ opinions too!

Questions don’t have to be cloth diaper related, just email maria at change-diapers.com with “Mailbox Mondays” in the subject, or fill out my contact form for readers, which you will always be able to find on my Contact Page.

Elsie says::

Hi there!
I’ve got a question for you…. I’ve been cloth diapering for 3 years now. My son does not want to give up his diapers any time soon apparently and we have another one on the way, so I’ve got to figure this out! haha We’ve had a diaper sprayer for a long time and I LOVE it. We recently moved and my husband informed me that there is “no way” the diaper sprayer will connect to the the toilet in the new house. I now avoid using my cloth diapers if I think my son is going to poop in it because the poop seriously does not come off by just swishing in the toilet. I am LOST without my diaper sprayer. Is there another option out there? Something with an alternative connection or something that connects to a faucet? Right now I’m looking into flushable liners because I figure that’s better than just not using the diaper. Thanks!

Hi Elsie, congratulations on the baby! My son is almost 3 and I’ve never used a sprayer. I just scrape off what I can and the rest goes in the washer, but I know lots of Mamas love their sprayers!

If the issue is a rigid supply line, you can replace those with flexible supply lines (the Diaper Sprayer brand comes with it’s own, as does the Potty Pail’s sprayer.)

If you want to avoid the toilet’s plumbing entirely, the mini shower can connect to your sink and comes with it’s own hose so you can reach the toilet to spray diapers. Alternately, you can buy a sprayer like this one (designed for doggie baths) that connects to your shower head, then spray into a 5-gallon bucket (or potty pail bucket.)

There’s also a new product called a cloth diaper butler that is designed to allow you to soak the diaper in the toilet, then it holds the diaper while you spray it. Even without a sprayer, soaking in the toilet would help loosen solids, so they would be more easily removed once you swished & flushed. I would love to hear back from you once you find something that works!

How do you handle poopy diapers?

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Friday Giveaway Linky Giveaways Linky

Cloth Diaper Giveaways – Roundup for 4/27/12 (Plus Linky for All Giveaways)

Cloth Diaper Giveaway Roundup

Who wants free cloth diapers? Every Friday, I round up cloth diaper, accessory & baby wearing giveaways that I’ve found. Enter, and hopefully win!

If you’d like me to list your cloth diaper, accessory, baby wearing (etc.) giveaway next week, send a link and description to maria at change-diapers.com, or Fill out my contact form for readers. Giveaways that require the winner to pay anything, including shipping, cannot be added to the roundup. Please do not submit this type of giveaway, and please let me know if I have inadvertently added one.

iplay

My iPlay Ultimate Swim Diaper giveaway ends 5/8 and is open to the U.S. and Canada RC

cloth diaper butler

The Cloth Diaper Butler giveaway on Cloth Diaper News ends 5/11 RC

The Cloth Diaper Whisperer

*$20 Ultimate Green Store GC from The Review Stew Mandatory blog follow (ends 4/27) RC

*Hipster Fluff Wipes from My Cloth Diaper Stash (ends 4/27) Open Worldwide RC

*Couture Fluff GC from My Cloth Diaper Stash (ends 4/27) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Wool Dryer Balls from My Cloth Diaper Stash (ends 4/27) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Jungle Roo Diaper from Two Bears Farm Mandatory GFC follow (ends 4/27) RC

Flip Diaper (ends 4/27) RC

Bottombumpers Diaper from Figgy Fuzz (ends 4/27) RC

CJ’s BUTTer from Mommy of 1 and Counting (ends 4/27) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*Softbums Diapers from Daily Mothering (ends 4/28) RC

*Fuzzibunz Diaper from Changing Diapers and First Time Mom (ends 4/28) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*Rockin’ Green Soap from The Mommy Times Mandatory Google+ follow and Facebook “like” (ends 4/28) RC

*Lalabee Bathworks Bottom Balm from The Bewitchin’ Kitchen (ends 4/28) Open to Canadians only RC

*Babee Greens Cloth Diaper from Naturally Thrifty Mom (ends 4/28) RC

$10 Figgy Fuzz GC (ends 4/28) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Jungle Roo Cloth Diaper from Dreams to Do (ends 4/28) RC

Thirsties Duo AIO from Figgy Fuzz (ends 4/28) RC

*Green Tree Wipes from The Eco Chic (ends 4/29) RC

*SmartSnugs Diapers from Trying to Go Green Mandatory GFC follow and Facebook “like” (ends 4/29) RC

*Blissful Booty Wipes & Concentrate from According to Jenny (ends 4/29) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*Charlie Banana Diaper from So Easy Being Green (ends 4/29) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*LuSa Organics Booty Balm from Greenie Beanie Bottoms and Beautifully Bellafaith (ends 4/29) RC

*Smartipants Diaper from Nicki the Eval Gal Mandatory GFC follow (ends 4/29) RC

*Swaddlebees Simplex from Conservamom Mandatory Facebook “like” (ends 4/29) RC

*Boba Baby Carrier from inRandom Mandatory Facebook “like” (ends 4/29) RC

*AMP Diaper from Life With My Littles Mandatory GFC follow (ends 4/29) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*Boba Baby Carrier from Dirty Truth Reviews Mandatory Facebook “like” (ends 4/29) RC

*Water Wrap from Nicki’s Diapers (ends 4/29) RC

*$20 Figgy Fuzz GC from Life with my Littles Mandatory GFC follow (ends 4/29) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*$30 RearZ GC from DiaperDeals.ca Two Mandatory Facebook “likes” (ends 4/29) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*$10 Barnyard Bummz GC from Mommy of 1 and Counting (ends 4/29) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Planet Wise Wet Bag from Changing Diapers & Figgy Fuzz (ends 4/29) RC

WAHMies Pail Liner from Little House Living (ends 4/29) GD

Monkey Toe Diapers Package (ends 4/29) RC

*Diapershops Sweepstakes on Facebook Open to the U.S. and Canada (ends 4/30)

*$10 Peace Love & Diapers GC from Sophie and Momma (ends 4/30) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*Earth Mama Angel Baby Bottom Balm Mandatory Facebook “like” (ends 4/30) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*$25 Cloth Diaper Store GC from Padded Tush Stats (ends 4/30) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*Kissaluvs Marvels Fitted from Modern Muslim Mommy Mandatory email subscription (ends 4/30) Open to the U.S. and Canada

*Diva Cup from The Eco Friendly Family Blog (ends 4/30) RC

*AMP Diaper from One More Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (ends 4/30) RC

*Glow Bug Diaper from Simple City Life Mandatory Facebook “like” (ends 4/30) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*Peanut Shell Sling from Zephyr Hill (ends 4/30) RC

*$75 or $25 Figgy Fuzz GC (ends 4/30) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*Rainbow Waters Wool Shorties from Figgy Fuzz (ends 4/30) RC

*$50 Birdie’s Room GC from Everything Mom & Baby (ends 4/30) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*Bumgenius Freetime from Bouncing Babies & Dibs (ends 4/30) RC

*Sew is Your Baby Diaper from The Bewitchin’ Kitchen (ends 4/30) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*Paisley Baby Wet Bag from The Bewitchin’ Kitchen (ends 4/30) Open Worldwide RC

*Diaper Junction Gift Certificates (ends 4/30) Must submit a photo to enter. Two people will be selected at random to win a $25 GC and the winner w/the most votes receives a $50 GC – entry via Facebook app.

*Rumparooz Diapers from Figgy Fuzz (ends 4/30) RC

*$25 Just Simply Baby GC from Mommy of 1 and Counting (ends 4/30) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Kushies Ultra Lite Diaper from Empowering Ellie (ends 4/30) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Blueberry Diaper from Water Rolls Uphill Mandatory follow and Facebook “like” (ends 4/30) RC

Bummis Beautiful Basics Set (ends 4/30) RC

Diva Cup from Figgy Fuzz (ends 4/30) RC

Eco Sprout Sampler from Figgy Fuzz (ends 4/30) RC

Wolbybug Diaper Cover from I Love Cloth Diapers (ends 4/30) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Babykicks Wipes & Inserts from Figgy Fuzz (ends 4/30) RC

*$25 Ultimate Green Store GC from A Nation of Moms (ends 5/1) RC

*Mini Maestro Diaper from Simple City Life Mandatory Facebook “like” (ends 5/1) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Osocozy Prefolds from The Slacker Mom (ends 5/1) RC

Thirsties Duo AIO from Growing Up Geeky (ends 5/1) RC

*Applecheeks Diaper from Precious Bottoms & inRandom (ends 5/2) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Bummas Wipes from The Bewitchin’ Kitchen (ends 5/2) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Thirsties Duo Diapers (ends 5/2) RC

*AMP Diaper from Simple City Life Mandatory Facebook “like” (ends 5/3) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*Rumparooz Diaper, Pail Liner & Doll Diaper from Abby’s Lane (ends 5/3) RC

*GroVia Essay Contest from Abby’s Lane (ends 5/3) 250+ word “essay” – topics given

Beco Gemini Baby Carrier from Life With My Littles Mandatory GFC follow (ends 5/3) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Rockin’ Green Detergent from The Bewitchin’ Kitchen (ends 5/3) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Softbums Diaper from The Bewitchin’ Kitchen (ends 5/3) Open Worldwide RC

Fuzzibunz Diapers from Kelly Wels (ends 5/3) RC

*Cloth Wipes from Greenie Beanie Bottoms (ends 5/4) RC

*Dinkledooz Diaper from GoGo Natural & Simple City Life Mandatory GFC follow (ends 5/4) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Charlie Banana Swim Diaper from Simple (ends 5/4) RC

Charlie Banana Diaper from The Slacker Mom (ends 5/4) RC

Cloth Diaper Keychain from Mommy of 1 and Counting (ends 5/4) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Mabu Baby Diaper from The Bewitchin’ Kitchen (ends 5/4) Open to Canadians only RC

$50 Nature Bratz GC from The Bewitchin’ Kitchen (ends 5/4) Open to Canadians only RC

Diaper Donks Diaper from Mommy of 1 and Counting (ends 5/4) RC

Baby Tork Swim Diaper from Mommy of 1 and Counting (ends 5/4) RC

Cloth Wipes from The Diaper Addict & Mommy of 1 and Counting (ends 5/4) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Sweet Bobbins Wet Bag from Mommy of 1 and Counting (ends 5/4) RC

*Onya Baby Carrier from Monkey Tales (ends 5/5) RC

*Super Skivvies Training Pants from Natural Parents Network (ends 5/5) Open Worldwide RC

Awesome Blossoms Diaper from Momma T and Baby E (ends 5/5) RC

EcoStore Laundry Liquid from The Slacker Mom (ends 5/5) RC

Sunbaby Diaper from Zephyr Hill (ends 5/5) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Bumgenius Freetime AIO from Ava’s Apple Tree Mandatory Facebook “like” (ends 5/5) Open to Canadians only RC

Booty Buns Diaper from According to Jenny (ends 5/6) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Bummis Diaper from Simple City Life Mandatory Facebook “like” (ends 5/6) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Thirsties Duo AIO from Simple Mandatory Facebook “like” (ends 5/6) RC

Ones & Twos Diaper from Dibs (ends 5/6) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Two Sweet Potatoes Wipes from Manager to Mom (ends 5/6) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Grandma El’s Diaper Rash Cream from Cloth Diaper Geek (ends 5/6) RC

Glow Bug Diaper from The Bewitchin’ Kitchen (ends 5/6) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Glow Bug Diaper from The Bewitchin’ Kitchen (ends 5/7) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Diva Cup from Cars Trucks & Teething Rings (ends 5/7) RC

Fuzzibunz Diaper from Changing Diapers & The Not So Secret Confessions… (ends 5/7) Open to the U.S. and Canada

$15 Earthy Crunchy Mama GC from Life With My Littles Mandatory GFC follow (ends 5/7) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

$20 Snuggy Baby GC from The Bewitchin’ Kitchen (ends 5/7) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

GroVia Bio Liners from Bouncing Babies & Life With My Littles Mandatory GFC follow (ends 5/8) RC

Wooly Rounds Dryer Balls from Life With My Littles Mandatory GFC follow (ends 5/8) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

$25 Happy Green Baby GC from Life With My Littles Two Mandatory blog follows (ends 5/8) RC

Fuzzibunz Diapers & WAHMies Wet Bag from Nature Bumz and Life With My Littles Mandatory GFC follow and Newsletter Subscription (ends 5/8) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Imse Vimse Swim Diaper from Cottontail Baby & Life With My Littles Mandatory GFC follow (ends 5/8) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Rumparooz Diaper from Petite Bottoms and Life With My Littles Mandatory GFC follow (ends 5/8) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

$20 Baby Belle Bottoms GC from Life With My Littles Mandatory GFC follow and newsletter subscription (ends 5/8) RC

$15 Abby’s Lane GC from Life With My Littles Mandatory GFC follow (ends 5/8) RC

Rockin’ Green Detergent from Life With My Littles Mandatory GFC follow (ends 5/8) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

$25 Tender Tush GC from Life With My Littles Mandatory GFC follow (ends 5/8) Open Worldwide RC

Beco Baby Carrier from So Easy Being Green Mandatory Facebook “like” (ends 5/8) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Cloth Diaper Butler from Simple Mandatory Facebook “like” (ends 5/8) RC

Zookies Diaper Cover from Parent Palace (ends 5/9) RC

Charlie Banana Cloth Diaper Package from Inhabitots Mandatory newsletter subscription and Facebook “like” (ends 5/9) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*Applecheeks Diaper from Double Duty Mommy (ends 5/11) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Awesome Blossom Diaper from One Little Mister (ends 5/11) RC

Sew Excellent Swim Diaper from Daily Mothering (ends 5/11) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Oh Katy Diaper from The Bewitchin’ Kitchen (ends 5/11) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*Applecheeks Little Bundle from One Smiley Monkey (ends 5/12) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

Lunette Cup from The Eco Friendly Family (ends 5/12) RC

Bubbz Diaper from Mama to 4 Blessings (ends 5/13) RC

*Itti Bitti Tutto from Kissed by the Moon & Natural Parents Network (ends 5/14) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

$10 Jack Be Natural GC from Trying to Go Green Mandatory GFC follow and Facebook “like” (ends 5/14) RC

Lunette Cup from The Anti June Cleaver (ends 5/16) Open to the U.S. and Canada RC

*Boba Baby Carrier from Snappy Diapers Mandatory GFC follow (ends 5/31) Open to the U.S. and Canada

*giveaways that have been listed in a prior week’s roundup
RC Entries collected via Rafflecopter
GD Entries collected via Google Docs Form

You may enter any “family friendly” giveaway in the linky below. The form Blog name – Giveaway Item – Ending date works well. Please at least include the item and end date, and link directly to the giveaway.

View my where I list my giveaways post, to find more places to link up your giveaways!

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Giveaway Retailers Review Side Snapping Sized Diapers Snap Closure Swim Diapers

iPlay Ultimate Swim Diaper Review & Giveaway – Pure and Simple Baby (CLOSED 5/8) U.S./Canada

iplay 0

Pure & Simple Baby is a Mom-owned eco-baby boutique that sells cloth diapers and other “green,” non-toxic, organic and fair trade products for baby. Their offerings include toys, organic baby & toddler clothing, baby carriers and more. All orders over $49 receive free shipping.

iplay 1

They have quite a few swim diapers including some adorable prints, ruffle butt styles, and swimsuits with built in swim diapers.

iplay swim diaper iplay swim diaper
iplay swimsuit iplay swimsuit

I received a white iPlay Classics Ultimate swim diaper, which retails for $10.99.

iplay 2 iplay 3

The swim diaper has a snap opening on one side to make it easy for you to take off, but not easy for baby to take off!

iplay 5

I received the size small, which fits 10-18 lbs/6 months. Though Pure & Simple Baby is still replenishing their stock for summer purchases, iPlay swim diapers come in a huge range of sizes from preemie/4 lbs to 4T/38-46 lbs.

iplay 4 iplay 6

What makes iPlay swim diapers really unique is their sewn-in, absorbent layer and moisture wicking interior. The absorbent layer means you won’t get wet carrying baby on the way to the pool, but it’s not so absorbent that it will get soggy & droopy after being in the water.

iplay 7 on 4.5 mo 13 lb baby iplay 8
iplay 9

The snug fit combined with the absorbent layer makes me confident to use this on my 13ish pound, 4 1/2 month old son, without worrying about breastfed baby poop escaping!

imse vimse swim diaper

My favorite swim diaper Pure & Simple Baby sells is this imse vimse turquoise dots with frill. Too bad my daughter is too big for swim diapers!

Shop Pure and Simple Baby, follow the Pure & Simple Baby Blog, follow Pure and Simple Baby on Twitter and “like” Pure and Simple Baby on Facebook.

Giveaway: One lucky person will receive a white iPlay classic ultimate swim diaper in their choice of size. Entries go in the Rafflecopter form. Please click “view terms and conditions” at the bottom of the Rafflecopter form.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

FTC compliance: I received a product sample for review purposes. I was not otherwise compensated for this post, and all opinions are my own.

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Affiliates Cloth Diapering Flat Diapers Flats Flats Challenge

I Signed Up For the 2nd Annual Flats Challenge!

flats challenge

In case you missed the announcement, May 21-27 is the 2nd annual flats challenge, hosted by Dirty Diaper Laundry.

I did not participate last year. It is the week of my son’s birthday, and I was also pregnant/sick/exhausted. The idea of mastering flats & hand-washing diapers for a week made me feel nauseated (more so than usual, hee-hee.) When Kim announced that she’d be hosting the challenge again this year, I immediately thought I’d support it, but wouldn’t participate. No way, no how! After all, it is again my son’s birthday week, and I have two super-soaker boys in diapers now! My little guy is 4.5 months old right now and still wants to be held/worn all the time. I am honestly struggling with meeting his needs, while also meeting my older son’s needs (mostly constant feeding, LOL!) and getting my daughter to and from school and activities, getting her homework done etc. I am completely overwhelmed with keeping up with junk cleanup, dishes, cleaning and the constant laundry. Washing diapers for 2 is a lot, even with a washing machine. The other day my husband remarked that the laundry room looked empty without diapers hanging, LOL.

I also don’t have enough flats to use, and I assume I’d need to use my tub to wash, which would be an extra hassle to deal with the kids and running up & down the stairs. I don’t know if I even have enough places to hang up that many flats! Excuse after excuse, I know! It sounds crazy, but the idea of using & hand washing flats for a week ramped my anxiety up 10 notches and made me feel physically ill.

Then I started thinking about what it would be like if this was my reality and it made me want to try! I took a deep breath, hit the submit button on the sign up form, and ordered some flour sack towels to use as flats. Eek!

Since then, I found out that we are allowed to use a diaper sprayer this year (it wasn’t allowed last year) and we’re not limited to the # of covers we use (the limit was 5 last year.) I only have a couple of wipeable covers, since I sent what I wasn’t regularly using to my friend. I was concerned about keeping covers clean, and I was also concerned about my older son freaking out that he couldn’t have the diaper he wanted!

I’m going to try to limit the # I use, especially since I don’t need more to hand wash! I have a utility sink in my laundry room that also has a sink sprayer. So I figure I will just be washing flats constantly, all day every day that week. However many I can fit in the sink at a time.

You’re also allowed a night time diaper of your choice, but you’re encouraged to make flats work for you. So, I ordered two hemp babies flats to use inside a pocket diaper at night. Hopefully that will be enough absorbency!

I’ll be writing more about my thought process as I imagined doing this out of necessity, and I’ll also be posting about the hemp babies flats and flour sack towels I bought, as well as comparing them to the Diaper Rite flats I’ve already posted about.

I’ll be tweeting with the hash tag #flatschallenge, and I’ll be blogging daily about my experience! Want to join me? Read about the challenge and sign up!

This post contains affiliate links. If you click and make a purchase, I will receive a small portion of the sale. Thank you!

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Affiliates Apparel & Accessories Review

Bravado Bliss Soft Cup Nursing Bra Review

bravado bliss 1 pkg

I can hardly begin to tell you how much I despise bra shopping. Especially nursing bras. I wear an odd size, so I have no choice but to order online, and they are always expensive. Between pregnancy weight gain, weight loss, initial nursing engorgement, then gradual size change as my kids nursed less and I lost weight, I thought I had just about every size I needed.

bravado bliss 2 pkg back

As my children grew older, I just wore a regular bra where I could pull the cup to the side to nurse, but I stuck with soft cup nursing bras initially. However, I have never found a soft cup bra that gives me decent lift and shape, as well as comfort. Even ones with a wide band underneath tended to just roll up under my bust, and they all looked awful under tops. I had an occasion recently where I had to look presentable, so I grabbed an underwire bra from my “stash” that looked decent, but (since the band was too big) the underwire dug into my underarms. Thus started my latest, desperate, money bleeding search for a decent nursing bra.

Finding the right size is ridiculous and annoying since they vary so much by brand and style. Plus, only certain cup shapes fit me well, and a 30″ band size with a larger cup is hard to find. In the past, if I’ve found a bra I like, I will buy the same in different sizes as I’ve lost weight. (I have quite a few by Fantasie!) For me, a bra needs to be comfortable; the right band size, the right cup size, with no riding up and no shifting inside the cups. It needs to lift and separate (sounds cheesy but true), be supportive, and be smooth under clothing. A very, very tall order apparently.

bravado bliss 3 conversion kit bravado bliss 4 conversion 2
bravado bliss 5 extender

Reviews for the Bravado Bliss Nursing Soft Cup Bra seemed good, it was actually a bit cheaper ($54 retail) than many others, and it came with an extender and a kit to convert it to a regular bra when you were finished nursing.

bravado bliss 6 center bravado bliss 7 straps

It has kind of a cheesy little thing in the middle, but there isn’t much holding it on, so you can take it off. It’s not as utilitarian looking as many, and has adjustable straps.

bravado bliss 8 cups

I initially ordered this in the next size down and instantly fell in love, but I was spilling out of the sides of the cup a bit. It does not come in a 30 band size, so I had gone up to a 32 and sized the cup down to make up for it.

bravado bliss 9 closure

Be leery of anyone who tells you to add inches to your rib cage measurement to get your band size. This will usually end up getting you too big of a band size and too small of a cup size. For someone who is say, a 30F, the old add 5 inches thing will get you in a 34 or 36 A cup!! Not happening. You want the bra to be snug (but not tight) on the loosest clasp setting when it’s new, so you can tighten it as it stretches with age. If the band is on the tightest setting, you likely need to go down a band size (and up a cup size to make up for it if the bra otherwise fit.)

Anyhoo, what I love about this bra is that it has molded foam cups, with a firm but flexible support channel underneath. The support & shape were as close to an underwire as I’ve ever seen from a soft cup. The band didn’t fold under my bust, even when I slouched. The cups provide modesty, hide nursing pads, and can catch a little “oops I forgot nursing pads” leakage. I happily chopped those tags off and wore it. And then…and then…

You have to remember that when you go up a band size, the whole bra is changed proportionately. It’s not like an inch or two was just added to the back. The cups themselves are designed for someone with a broader rib cage. Therefore, going from a 30 to a 32 band size moves the cups from the front of my chest closer to my underarms. Then what happens is that as I reach, bend, move etc., my nice shape turns into a uni-boob, which quickly turns into a quad-boob. This has happened before with molded cups and a band size that’s too big (especially with companies not known for small band/large cup sizes.) It’s never apparent in the “trying on” stage, only after I’ve cut the tags off and worn it. With a non-nursing bra, I can use fashion tape to keep the cups in place. Otherwise, I have to try to nonchalantly stuff myself back in the cups every 5 minutes. Obviously, taping myself in the bra isn’t an option when I’m nursing.

I can’t return it, and there’s not exactly a market for used nursing bras, so I’m out $50. If this came in a 30 band size, I might love it. For now, I ordered two more sizes of my favorite non-nursing, underwire bra, since I have 1 that’s a little too small and 1 that’s a little too big, but I think the right size will work for just pulling the cup to the side. For the record, out of the zillions of bras I’ve tried, used and/or returned over the past 8ish years, my favorites are the Freya Millie Balcony Underwire Bra, which I believe has been replaced by the Naomi Balcony Underwire Bra, and the Fantasie Smoothing Balcony Underwire Bra.

Finding a bra that works for me stinks. Finding one that also works for nursing double stinks. I’ve come to realize that I can only buy from a handful of brands that specialize in small band/large cup sizes. So how about you? Do you have bra issues, or are you a lucky one that can grab something at the department store for $30? If you have an oddball size, some places I’ve shopped are Her Room, Fig Leaves and Bigger Bras. Not affiliate links, just places I’ve frequented in recent years! Just be aware that a lot of brands are European, so the cup sizes at DD & beyond will be labeled differently! (Ex: Fantasie goes C, D, DD, E, F, FF, G etc. Most American sizes would be C, D, DD/E, DDD/F etc.) So, you could be an I cup in the U.S. but wear a G in a European brand!

FTC compliance: Although I paid normal retail prices for the pictured item, this post contains affiliate links. I was not compensated for this post, and all opinions are my own.

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