Post contains affiliate links, I purchased this product myself. I finally received the Flip Trainer I ordered the day the new products/colors/prints were announced! My son is 2 1/2 and isn’t terribly interested in the potty. He was doing pretty well before the baby arrived, but backpedaled a little bit. I know that’s normal and I’m not concerned! I was, however, excited that Cottonbabies had created a trainer, because I knew it would be good!
Catherine Bolden is the owner of The Willow Store and creator of Willow Pads reusable feminine products, Willow Sprouts accessories, Everyday Willow natural living & natural laundry products and of course, the Sprout Change cloth diapering system!
In March, I posted my Sprout Change Cloth Diaper Review. If you missed that, I strongly suggest you check it out! My review includes detailed photos of the one-size AI2 insert/reusable and reversible shell system, detailing how the size adjusts, how the reversible shell works, and I also have measurements of each size! The winner of this giveaway not only receives their own copy of the DVD set I’m reviewing today, but also a Sprout Change shell & insert!
Catherine’s latest project is the Diapering Today DVD set. The set is a comprehensive “how-to” with everything you want to know about cloth diapering, from the “why” to the “how.” Some people are fortunate enough to have cloth diaper stores near by that offer cloth 101 classes, or have cloth diaper groups near them. Some of us don’t! I know when I wanted to start cloth diapering, I spent a ton of time trying to gather the information from all over the place online, and make sense of it all.
The Willow Store is selling the Diapering Today DVD set for $17.95, and 1% of the profits will be donated to providing cloth and education to low-income families. When you buy the DVD bundled with an Organic Super Saver Starter Kit (1 shell & 3 organic inserts), it costs you just $11.20 more than buying the starter kit alone. I think that would make an awesome gift for an expectant Mama, but I do wish they had an option to purchase the DVD by itself perhaps with a coupon for $10 off your first Willow Store order to offset the cost.
The set consists of two DVDs. I watched this on my laptop, so I don’t have an exact running time, but the DVDs are each about an hour long. The really nice thing is that they are broken up into bite sized chapters. You can watch it all, a little at a time, or only watch what interests you. Pertinent information is repeated (such as in types of cloth diapers, and the terminology section) so you won’t miss anything if you don’t watch the whole thing. That said, it was not monotonous and didn’t seem repetitive!
Throughout the DVD, you will hear genuiune, unscripted responses from actual cloth diapering parents on various subjects. This is broken up by photo and video demonstrations, information from Catherine herself, and awesome cloth diaper facts from the RDIA’s Heather McNamara.
I watched the trailer (below) before receiving the DVD for review, and I saw some familiar faces!! Do you see anyone you know?
I saw Calley of The Eco Chic, and I saw Baby Makin’ Machine’s daughter, Lil’ J! By the time I finished watching both DVDs, I felt like I knew every Mom in the film. I’m not sure if some of them genuinely looked familiar, or if it was just because I’d heard them chat about cloth diapers for 2 hours, LOL!
So here’s what you’ll find on the DVDs and approximately how long each section is:
Disc 1:
I’m not going to go into great detail as far as what you’ll find in each chapter; I think you can gather that from their titles! This isn’t a big budget, Hollywood produced film with fancy effects and actors with scripts. It feels to me like what you’d find out if you went to a few cloth 101 type classes, a few meetings at a cloth diaper group, and chatted with a lot of moms who used cloth diapers.
There are a lot of things that I love about the DVDs. First, it’s not an ad for Sprout Change. I believe the Sprout Change diaper was pictured as one all-in-two option, and was also pictured on a baby. The DVD gave very unbiased information on all types and brands of cloth diapers. I love that all of the types of diapers were demonstrated on a baby doll, so a potential cloth diaper user could see how easy it really is.
Although I felt the DVD series was quite long (about 2 hours total) it is absolutely not necessary to watch the whole thing. If someone already knows they want to cloth diaper, but they don’t know what to buy and are afraid of washing, they can just watch the types, terms and washing sections.
I also love that it gives a lot of information, without getting so detailed that your head would spin. For example, they showed an “all-in-one” style diaper, but didn’t go on to say that they can have a sewn in soaker, a flap soaker, a snap in soaker, a tongue soaker etc. etc. Just tell ’em what they need to know!
I felt like this DVD covered everything I’d want to tell a friend who was interested in cloth, and it was done in a very similar way. All of the parents were genuine, loved cloth diapers, but at no point were “holier than thou” about diapers. Several stated that it doesn’t have to be all or nothing, that you could do part cloth/part disposables, build your stash slowly, or just buy or borrow a couple to see what you think!
The DVD also seemed to advocate the K.I.S.S. (keep it simple, sweetie!) method of washing. They recommended the simple wash routine that I found works for us (and so many others) and did mention that you don’t want a detergent with fabric softeners, whiteners, brighteners etc. However, they didn’t whip out the “detergent police” badges and say that you had to stick to a certain list of pricey detergents. Basically, choose the detergent with the simplest ingredients.
They also didn’t try to make cloth all sunshine & roses. They addressed the fact that sometimes people do have smell issues with cloth, that such a problem isn’t normal, but that the resolution is usually quite simple!
I also loved that they addressed the “what about the poop” issues in the same way I do. I swear I touch less poop (and do less poopy laundry!) now, since what’s supposed to stay in the diaper, stays in the diaper! With disposables, I was changing entire outfits (including socks, and sometimes my own clothing!!) instead of just a diaper.
I am going to lend my DVD to a friend who wants to cloth diaper the twins she’s expecting. Until now I’ve totally overwhelmed her with huge chunks of information. This will be awesome for her to sit down with her hubby and watch a little at a time!
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Giveaway: One winner will receive a Diapering Today DVD Set (ARV $17.95) and a Sprout Change Cloth Diaper Cover & Insert (ARV $21.70.) The combined retail value of this prize is $39.65. Entries go in the Rafflecopter form.
Ecobubs are wool blend diapers from New Zealand that mom & daughter run company Grin Unlimited, has brought to the U.S.! Grin Unlimited gives back with 1% For the Planet, uses 100% recycled paper products, LED lighting and even recycled office furniture! They work with local vendors whenever possible, and the inserts for the diapers they sell are sewn at a local factory.
I was intrigued by the idea of a wool blend pocket since I love pocket diapers and I love wool! I wondered how it would work in a pocket diaper, since you don’t typically machine wash wool, but can reuse wool covers. The Ecobubs wool pocket is a little bit different. Think of the wool blend outer replacing the outer most layer of any pocket diaper. The wool blend outer is durable, doesn’t need to be lanolized, and can be washed like any other diaper. There is a thin layer of PUL in between the wool blend outer and the soft microfleece inner. The big benefit of wool is that it is natural, breathable and keeps skin cool in summer and warm in winter. Since there is still a layer of PUL in the diaper (and a microfleece inner) this isn’t the diaper for someone looking for a 100% natural diaper.
Ecobubs are sized diapers. I received a large, which is estimated to fit 24+ pounds. Small fits 7-16 pounds and medium fits 11-26 pounds.
The diaper is side snapping and has a front pocket opening.
I received a microfiber insert for daytime use, as well as 2-layer inserts for nap/night time. The 2-layer inserts snap together rather than being sewn together, which makes them easier to clean and dry. I haven’t used the inserts at night since I know from experience that only a microfiber/hemp combo works for my son at night. Even when the inserts were pretty soaked, I didn’t experience any leaks.
Edit: The single insert I received is exactly the same size, shape and thickness as a typical pocket diaper’s full size insert. However, I’ve been advised that this is in fact EcoBubs’ booster, and is not intended to be used by itself. The snap together insert is the standard insert.
2 years of cloth diapering and nearly 100 diapers used, and I have never seen a booster/doubler this size. They are typically considerably narrower, shorter and/or thinner. So, when EcoBubs said they were sending me two inserts (one for daytime & one for night time) as well as a booster, I assumed they made an error & sent me 1 daytime insert and two night time inserts. I do apologize for my error.
Even though the booster is not intended to be used alone, if you typically do not have trouble with leaks when you change pockets diapers every 2-3 hours and use just one insert, the booster alone would likely work just fine.
Here is the size large measured folded and stretched:
Here’s my son in the size large, I think he is somewhere in the neighborhood of 27 pounds (?) at almost 2 1/2 years old.
He still has plenty of snap settings to go!
Naturally, the diaper is quite a bit fluffier with the 2-layer insert, but not unreasonably so.
The Ecobubs Wool pockets come in the navy/cream stripe I received, plus chocolate/petal pink, ruby/cream, red/chocolate and chocolate/sky blue. Each diaper comes with one microfiber insert, retails for $32.95 and comes with a 12 month workmanship warranty. Though a bit pricey, they perform well and are adorable. I want to see a small pink/chocolate on someone’s newborn baby girl! I think these would make great “special occasion” diapers for photos too. How cute would the ruby/cream diaper be in holiday photos?
Right now you can only buy directly from Ecobubsdiapers.com. If you use coupon code “Change” you will receive free shipping on your order. (Offer ends 11/15/11.)
Be sure to “like” Ecobubs on Facebook so you don’t miss promotions and chances to win diapers! “Like” the page to be entered to win a wool pocket (EcoBubs will draw a winner on 12/1.)
FTC compliance: While I did receive a product at no charge for review purposes, I was not compensated for this post and all opinions are my own. Although a shopping link is available on my affiliates page, links within this post are not affiliate links.
I reviewed my Babykicks Bumboo pocket diaper about 16 months ago, then compared the Bumboo pocket to the new 3G pocket about 7 months ago. I love the Babykicks Joey Bunz one size inserts, especially with the improved tapered end and sizing guidelines. Please view my full Babykicks 3G Pocket Diaper review for all the details and photos!
I also made a video demonstrating how to use the newborn snap. This is one of only a handful of one-size diapers that I think would really work on a newborn!
The 3G pocket is available in 4 great colors, plus the white with multicolored snaps. It’s a trim one-size pocket with a front pocket opening and side snaps, and the snap down rise allows it to fit babies from 7-40 pounds. The waterproof PUL outer has fleece gussets that allow air flow, but not leaks. The lining of the diaper is 30% Certified Organic Cotton and 70% Rayon made from Bamboo, a great choice if you prefer natural materials over microfleece or suedecloth.
The Babykicks 3G pocket diaper retails for $20.50 and is available at lots of online and “brick and mortar” retailers! Be sure to follow Babykicks on Twitter and “like” Babykicks on Facebook.
Giveaway: Babykicks is offering one of my readers a 3G pocket diaper in his/her choice of color (ARV $20.50.) Entries go in the Rafflecopter form.
Do you have a question for me? Every week (on Monday!) I answer questions readers have asked, and ask my other readers to weigh in too.
Maria wants to live in a world where cloth diapers are the norm and moms can make parenting choices without judgement. When she’s not chasing her 18, 14 and 11-year old kids around, you might find her checking out the latest gadgets, organizing something (again) or exercising in the fresh air. Read More »
