11 – Convincing Others That Cloth is Awesome

Oct 10,2011 / By Maria / 8 Comments

The Mailbox Mondays feature is where I answer a reader submitted question, and ask my readers to help 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.

This week’s is sort of a multi-parter, but both of my askers (that’s probably not a word, is it?) already know that cloth rocks, they just need help convincing someone they love!

Dodie says:

Hello I am writing this to find a way for one of my daughters to know the savings and the reason that cloth is much better than disposables. Can you explain to me the difference in the diapers and what you need to know for a new mother?

Thank you

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Change-Diapers.com is on YouTube

Aug 13,2011 / By Maria / 6 Comments

Did you know there is a Change-Diapers.com YouTube channel?

I don’t have a whole lot there yet, but I’d like to add more. Here are some highlights, I hope you will check them out and/or share them. I try to keep my videos brief and to the point as much as possible, to make them easy to watch. If you have ideas for other videos you’d like to see, let me know!

Demo of the Itti Bitti Tutto:

Dunk & swish a diaper without getting your hands dirty:

Comparison of the Babykicks Bumboo to 3G Pocket Diaper:

How to use the Babykicks 3G’s newborn snaps:

How to fold cloth wipes to pop up:

Putting on the Boba Carrier:

How to tie a Sleepy Wrap (not that great since I was wearing a black shirt with a black wrap!):

I know my videos aren’t very good, my lighting is bad, and the videos were shot with my point & shoot camera! Even so, I’d love to know what else you’d like to see me do!

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Cloth Diapering Without a Washing Machine – Guest Post By Alyssa

Apr 20,2011 / By Maria / 30 Comments

All that’s missing from Alyssa’s life is a washer and dryer. She has access to coin operated machines within her building (certainly better than schlepping them to a laundromat!) but anyone who has paid for laundry knows how expensive it can get. So, she washed her diapers by hand every day, for several months. She agreed to allow me to post this so everyone can see that it can be done! -Maria

My name is Alyssa and I love cloth diapers. Like, really love. So much so that I went against everyone’s “advice” and decided to CD my daughter while living in an apartment with no washer/dryer. Our diaper laundry costs were pretty much the cost of what disposables would have been (I’m a bargain shopper.) But the money wasn’t the point. I wanted my daughter to have what I had. Nice, comfortable, and breathable cloth next to her tush =)

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Babykicks 3G Pocket Diaper Review & Giveaway / Comparison To Bumboo Pocket (CLOSED 3/15)

Mar 8,2011 / By Maria / 25 Comments

I posted my Babykicks Bumboo pocket diaper review about 9 months ago, and I was curious about how they compared to the new Babykicks 3G pocket diaper. I purchased several with a CSN gift card to both compare and review, and to give away and donate!

I like the Bumboo pocket, but the 3G has minor changes that make me like it even more. They still retail for $18.50. One noticeable change is the addition of the newborn snaps.

The newborn snaps are two male snaps on the wing, next to the closure snaps (this is a side snapping diaper.) It took me some hunting to figure out how to use them, so I actually made a video demonstrating how, in addition to photos below.

If you don’t care to watch videos (or if you’re “NAK” like I often am, LOL) here is a photo demo:

First, you fold the pocket into itself:

Then bring the tab with the newborn snaps over the front.

Then, you fold the other tab over to snap it to the newborn snaps.

fold other tab & attach to newborn snaps

This is a side snapping diaper, but when you’re using the diaper on the newborn setting, you snap the tabs to each other. They do not actually attach to the rest of the diaper at all. Since the newborn setting is for new babies (a week or two old) they aren’t exactly mobile, and the pressure will hold the diaper in place.

It really gets very tiny! The inner of the diaper is quite absorbent, and you should be able to use it for a brand new baby without an insert, though you can also fold the insert and stuff the diaper if you wish.

Like the Bumboo pocket, the 3G has 4 size settings via a snap down rise. Above is the smallest setting. Babykicks estimates the diaper will fit 7-40 pounds, but I’m not sure if they consider the sizes XS-L or S-XL. I’m referring to them as XS-L based on the size compared to other diapers I have.

Here’s another video comparing the two diapers, and pointing out the differences between them. I’m also doing the same in photos below.

It’s difficult to show in photos or videos, but the 3G has a slightly wider pocket than the Bumboo. In all the photos below, the Bumboo pocket is in white and the 3G is in blue.

The front panel of the 3G is also a bit wider, and the tabs/wings are slightly narrower.

The 3G is also a little bit narrower through the crotch for a trimmer fit.

The wing and front size changes give a bit more leg room on the largest setting.

I love the wider pocket, and I love the new insert. The Bumboo pocket came with a medium Joey Bunz insert, which is contoured on both ends. The 3G comes with a new one-size Joey Bunz, which is tapered on one end, and also has lines to guide you in folding it down.

My old insert is a funny color because it was accidentally thrown in with a load of microfiber inserts and bleach. Oops!

I think the tapered insert fits much better in the pocket, and the front of the diaper is much smoother on smaller settings. I had a hard time getting the Bumboo insert in there just right, and I had tried putting the folded portion of the insert both in the front and the back without great results. Stuffing the 3G with the contoured portion in the back, then folding the tapered portion in front (this is a front opening pocket) seems to work very well.

The Bumboo pocket only came in white with multicolored snaps. The 3G comes in Azure (blue), Poppy (red), Meadow (green) and also the white with multicolored snaps. They both still have the 4 rise and snap settings, natural fiber inner with fleece around the edges (to prevent wicking) and the fleece gussets.

As always, my measurements are not an exact science, but just to give you an idea.

Extra small folded and stretched:

Small:

Medium:

Large:

I had been putting my son in the Bumboo on the large setting, since the insert fit better that way, but he really needs the medium. Here he is in the 3G on the medium setting. He is 21 months old and weighs about 21 pounds.

Here he is in the Bumboo pocket (medium setting) on the same day:

babykicks bumboo pocket medium 21 lb baby

See this on my newborn.

Giveaway: One entrant will receive one Babykicks 3G Pocket diaper in his/her choice of color (ARV $18.50.) The rest of the diapers will be sent to The Cloth Diaper Foundation!

Here’s how to enter: All entries go in the form below. I love comments (great way to remind yourself you entered) but comments do not count as entries.

Mandatory entries include your name and email address.

I will accept entries until Tuesday, March 15th, 2011 at 9:00 P.M. Eastern. I will select a winner using random.org’s true random number generator and notify him/her by email. Winner has 48 hours to respond before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is chosen. View my giveaway rules page for complete details. This giveaway is open to residents of the U.S.

# of entries received as of giveaway close: 174

https://spreadsheets.google.com/embeddedform?formkey=dG5rV1JXMkF3U2Vra3RYR2REcFVyQVE6MQ

FTC compliance: I purchased these diapers with a gift card provided by CSN stores. I was not otherwise compensated for this post, and all opinions are my own.

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Replacing Bumgenius 3.0 Aplix or Velcro & Laundry Tabs Without a Sewing Machine (Bumgenius Refresher Tutorial)

Feb 22,2011 / By Maria / 19 Comments

bumgenius aplix replacement without a sewing machine

Yes, it can be done; I did it. I have lots of pictures for you!

My cloth diaper stash started with 6 Bumgenius 3.0 pocket diapers. I bought three in October 2009 to try, followed by 3 more about a week later. Those 6 got a ton of use as I slowly built up my stash. As I expected, after nearly constant use, the aplix started to curl, and the laundry tabs started to shrink. Three of the six were replaced under the Bumgenius warranty, (Cottonbabies’ warranty and customer service are superb by the way) however, the other three really weren’t bad enough to be replaced before the 1-year warranty ended.

I have quite a stash of diapers in rotation now; I wash every other day, and diapers are used just a few times a week. However, two of my Bumgenius 3.0s are still my primary night time diapers (I rotate 4, including a fitted/wool, but the BG are my favorites) so they are still used a lot. You can see above that the laundry tabs are shrunken and the closure tabs are starting to curl. They still stick fine to the front of the diaper, but they don’t stick to the laundry tabs anymore.

On the other hand, one 3.0 that has been in my regular rotation still looks fine after 16 months.

Cottonbabies sells Bumgenius refresher kits for $1.00 each. They include 3 pieces of elastic, two closure tabs, two laundry tabs, and ship for free.

The kits also include instructions for doing the repairs with a sewing machine. I’ve adapted them to do it by hand! Luckily, I didn’t need to replace any elastic, so I’ve just done the closure and laundry tabs. I decided to try this on a Bumgenius 3.0 AIO I got for free with a coupon code. That way if I really screwed it up, I wouldn’t be heartbroken!

First, I very carefully cut the ends of the closure tabs. The instructions say to remove them with a seam ripper, but I found it much easier to cut the tabs first. Of course, you want to be very careful not to cut the diaper!

After cutting the ends of the tabs off, it was easy to use a seam ripper to loosen the tabs and remove them.

The refresher kit included instructions on how to attach the new tabs of course.

Once I had placed the new tabs, I decided to put a couple stitches to hold the tabs together. This way it was a little bit easier to keep the tabs in the right place against the diaper, and against each other.

As instructed, I started on the flat side and went around the tab twice.

When I finished, I realized the tab had slipped a bit as I was sewing, and ended up a little crooked. It really doesn’t matter, since the laundry tabs and front strip are quite large and forgiving!

The awesome thing about these refresher kits, is that they include the new, “4.0 style” laundry tabs, which (so far) seem to function and hold up far better than the 3.0 style. Of course, if you are buying these kits from your favorite retailer, check with them first to see which style kit they have.

The instructions say to sew right over the old laundry tabs, but I decided to remove them.

It took a little longer to remove these than the closure tabs, but it was still pretty quick work.

I sewed around the edge of each laundry tab, then in an x through the middle, like the original tabs.

I didn’t really worry too much about making my stitching perfectly even and straight, and I don’t think it was noticeable on the finished tabs.

I am pretty happy that $1.00 and some time gave my diapers new life!

I’m not going to lie, this was definitely a little time consuming and tedious to do by hand!

The hardest part was going through the thickest portion of the tab where the diaper’s stretchy tab was seamed. I probably wouldn’t sit down and try to refresh a whole stack of diapers by hand in one sitting, but I will do the others one at a time eventually!

I’m not sure exactly how long it took me; it definitely took me a bit longer since I was taking pictures as I went. I’m sure the next diapers will go more quickly since I know what I’m doing now! I want to order an extra kit to replace the horrid laundry tabs on my Blueberry diaper too!

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