CLOSED-Bum Covered Diapers Build-Your-Own-Fitted Review and Giveaway-CLOSED

Recently, Bum Covered Diapers had a sweet coupon code for $5 off any order that included a diaper. Because I'm a cheapskate, I used that $5 to buy a Build-Your-Own Fitted Diaper that was on sale for only $5. I paid $1.99 for shipping and not a cent for the diaper.  It was a sweet deal and I was happy.

When I got the diaper, I was very pleased.  It was thick, well made, soft, and pretty. I was worried at first that it had velcro closures as the only option, since Bunny loves to undo her velcro, but the closures are so sturdy that even I have a tough time getting them open--which is a very good thing!

So, I contacted Melissa at Bum Covered Diapers and asked if she'd be willing to give one of these sweet little, customizable diapers away to one of my readers, and she gladly agreed. 

Here is what she says about these particular diapers:

"These fitted diapers are made exactly the way you want them! You choose the flannel print for the outside. We put two layers of flannel and a heavy soaker pad on the inside. We can create a custom diaper especially for your little one. You choose outside print, the soaker material, and the inside fabric! (The colors and designs pictured give you an idea of the fabric we have, but we can get almost any color or design you request...your choices are in no way limited to what you see here!)

"These diapers will require a waterproof cover. Plastic pants will do, or PUL covers like Thirsties, or Bummis Wraps will work fine. We do not have covers available at this time but hope to carry Thirsties covers in the very near future!

"Because we are using new patterns to sew these diapers, we're offering them at a LOW price. In return, we hope that you would give us your feedback on the style, fit, absorbency, etc.

"Please allow at least 1 week for us to sew and ship your custom diaper orders. Larger orders may take longer to complete."

Now, let me tell you what I love about them. 

FIT
My daughter seems to be between sizes right now.  She weighs in at just under 21 lbs so to be safe, I ordered a size Large, which should fit babies who weigh between 21 and 26 lbs.  The diaper is slightly large on her--which I should have anticipated, and the leg fit is a bit roomy.  The waist, however fits great.  
 The diaper also seems to be the tiniest bit bulky on her because I ordered the large size.  Based on the cut of the diaper, however, I feel that if I had ordered a medium, the diaper would fit her just fine, and wouldn't be bulky at all. 

ABSORBENCY
The amount and type of absorbency in this diaper is all up to you.  You can choose from among three different types of absorbent fabrics--flannel, microfiber, or terrycloth.  I chose flannel because it was the cheapest option and I'm cheap.  But it's also an extremely absorbent option.  My daughter, who is a frequent wetter, not a heavy one, will pee a couple of times before I notice that she's wet because it just absorbs so much.  As it is washed, flannel gets a little stiff which makes it more absorbent but it's still gentle and soft against your baby's skin. 

PRICE
For me, the price was right.  Even if I hadn't had a coupon, the sale price of $5 was a reasonable price for a diaper, and it came with a microfleece, stay-dry insert as well.  At a new regular starting price of only $6, the diaper is still an amazing steal!  Choosing to add different fabrics will increase your price by small increments.  But still, if you buy a 3XL diaper with the most expensive materials that BCD offers, your diaper will still only be $10.  That is a very good! Since this price is introductory, it won't stay this low for long, so if you want to snatch them while they're inexpensive, I'd suggest stocking up on these diapers very soon!

QUALITY
Since I'm a diaper sewer myself, I know what to look for when it comes to diaper quality.  The pictures on the BCD website don't do this diaper justice. It is beautiful and very well made and I'm extremely pleased with the quality.  

CLOSURES
The diapers come with hook and loop closures.  I wasn't too excited about that prospect at first since my daughter is an expert at taking these off so I was planning on removing them and adding my own snaps, but the closures on this fitted diaper are surprisingly strong and not only does my daughter have difficulty opening them, but I am happy to discover that I do as well. My only complaint about the closures is that the laundry tabs aren't as strong as the applix on the front of the diaper and the tabs seem to come apart in the wash and catch on my other diapers. 

WASHING
I wash this diaper the same as I wash all of my other diapers--a cold rinse, followed by a hot wash, and another cold rinse.  I dry it in the machine twice until it's completely dry and ready for use.  I don't line dry any fitted diapers or AIOs because it takes too long so I can't attest to the exact amount of time that would require. I think it's easy to wash and very durable. 

CHOICES
Besides the different choices in materials, you also have a couple of great choices of prints and colors! I really liked my choice of fashion flower because the print is bold and bright.  My friend bought one of these fitteds in a soft yellow color which is also very nice.

All in all, I'm very pleased with this diaper.  It's soft, pretty, quality, and very absorbent.  It's definitely a diaper I would buy again if I needed more diapers :-D

So, at such a good price and with such great quality, I'm sure you want to go out and get some of your own! And while you're at it, you can try to win one here too :-D  Melissa is generously offering one of these build-your-own-fitteds to any of my readers from the United States or Canada.  What do you need to do to win?

MANDATORY ENTRY (Please include your email in every comment):
1. Go to bumcovereddiapers.com and look at the Make-Your-Own-Fitted-Diapers.  Then come back and tell me which print you would like to have.

ADDITIONAL ENTRIES:
2.  Like Bum Covered Diapers on Facebook. (1 entry)
3. Like Cloth Diaper Mommy on Facebook.  (1 entry)
4. Follow Bum Covered Diapers' blog.(1 entry)  
5. Follow my blog. (1 entry)
6. Subscribe to Bum Covered Diapers newsletter.  (1 entry)
7. Blog about this giveaway and link the post in your comment.  (3 entries)
8. Announce the giveaway on Twitter and link the post in your comment (1 entry per day).
9. Follow me on Twitter @Clothdiapermomm (1 entry)
10.  Buy any product from Bumcovereddiapers.com and include your order number in your comment. (5 entries)


This giveaway is open until Wednesday, March 23 at midnight EST.

Fuzzi Bunz Review and Giveaway from The Diaper Wagon (Closed)

I was so delighted when I found The Diaper Wagon on one of my favorite websites--Diaperpin.com.  I was interested in buying from this website because they offer FREE SHIPPING on all US orders all the time no matter the size of the order.  For this reason, her website was automatically added to my sidebar with all the other cloth diaper/baby retailers who offer free shipping.  I was even more delighted when Anne, the founder of The Diaper Wagon, decided to give me a One Size Fuzzi Bunz diaper to review and giveaway. 

First things first, you need to know a little bit more about this wonderful retailer.

Anne used to be a career woman in the business field until she had her first child and decided to become a stay-at-home-mom.  As her worldview shifted to focus on her precious little family, she became much more conscious about the products she used and how they affected her family and the environment.  From this concern, The Diaper Wagon was born.  She emphasizes that that her focus is not on the quantity of different products her store has, but the quality of the products she offers.   Most of her products are tried, tested, and approved of by her own family.  In addition, she tries to keep the shop stashed with products from work-at-home-moms.  Also, the majority of her products are proudly made in the USA. 

Anne's mission is "To assist families in their commitment to a more natural way of life by promoting and providing eco-friendly products which are primarily manufactured in the U.S.A. by Work-At-Home-Moms (WAHM’s) and small, independently-owned businesses." and she hopes that The Diaper Wagon will be "will be the most trusted, independently-owned provider of information, products and services in the eco-friendly and natural living retail marketplace. "


Now for the Review and Giveaway you're all anxiously waiting for.
 The Fuzzi Bunz One Size Pocket diaper is currently my absolute favorite diaper to put on my little Bunny!

Instructions: The instructions are written clearly with pictures on the packaging of the diaper.  In addition, you can find instructions on how to use, wash, and adjust your Fuzzi Bunz diaper on the Fuzzi Bunz website . Also, you can find a sizing guide on the Fuzzi Bunz website, or on Diaper Wagon's page.  

 Ease of Use: When you first use this diaper, it will seem more difficult than many of the diapers that you have because of the set-up process with the internal adjustments.  It may take a couple of tries to find the correct inner elastic adjustments for your little Precious.  However, once those adjustments are made, you don't have to touch them again until your baby has another growth spurt, and for this reason I'd say that the diaper is tolerably easy to use.  Because Fuzzi Bunz strives to be durable (using snaps) and have a great fit, there are lots of snaps for you to navigate when putting this diaper on your baby.  It can seem complicated at first, but with practice, it is pretty easy.  However, I wouldn't give this diaper to a babysitter or cloth diaper novice unless they are comfortable with your cloth diapering routine already.
One Size Adjustments:  This diaper does not use rise snaps as most One-Size diapers do.  It uses internal adjustments with button-hole elastics.  Check it out:

The diaper will come to you set on the 2nd button hole (there are four on each side, I believe)

Adjust each side of the legs and waist to the buttonhole that suits your child.  I used the size chart for reference, but then tried the diaper on Bunny and adjusted it accordingly.

Then, you just have to tuck the end of the elastic into the flap and you're done!


Fit--Amazing!  With three snaps on each closure tab, in addition to internal elastic adjustments in both legs and back, you can truly customize this diaper to fit your baby's body type exactly and prevent leaks.  My daughter has skinny little thighs and a skinny waist, but needs a higher rise in a diaper, so this is perfect for us! No more leaking through leg holes more suitable for chubby baby legs!  Finally, this is a diaper that can fit many baby body types!!! In fact, I don't know that this diaper has ever leaked for us in the 4 or 5 months we've been using it (we have three of them--I'd like to own MUCH more!) 

Closure--Durable snaps, a set of three on each closure tab.

Insert--  The diaper comes with two, a small and regular size.  They are both rectangular with four layers of thick microfiber for absorbency.  The width is thin, however, so it's not bulky between your baby's legs.
Pocket-- Fuzzi Bunz is the original pocket diaper.  In fact, they own the patent on pockets!  The pocket is in the back of the diaper.  There is no flap over the pocket so that you can easily take the insert out of the diaper without having to touch it.  

Nighttime--absolutely.  The fit and the layers of microfiber make this diaper ideal for us when it comes to diapering at night.  
Daytime--yep!  The lack of bulk between the legs makes this perfect for playtime.

Poop Bombs--contains them nicely--even if she's on her back or side!
Wash-- Washing instructions are pretty much the same as other diapers. Separate the insert from the diaper, knock solids into the toilet, rinse in cold water, wash (with detergent) in hot water, rinse on cold, tumble dry or hang dry, and no fabric softeners. Pretty simple.

 Materials  Very, durable 2 mil PUL, soft fleece that doesn't pill very much at all despite many washings, a thick microfiber insert, snaps, and easily replaceable, button-hole elastics.

Price  $18.95, and if you add shipping at The Diaper Wagon that will come to a total of... $18.95!

What I would change  I can't think of anything I would change about this diaper.  The things that make it slightly more difficult to use than other diapers are the very things that make this diaper durable and have such a great fit.  

Anne at The Diaper Wagon was gracious enough to offer a Red, One Size Fuzzi Bunz Diaper to one of the "Makin' It" readers.  Sweet, huh???

How do you enter to get one?  Just do a few things for us.

(Please make sure you leave your email in each comment you leave)

Mandatory Entry: First, follow my blog and then go over to The Diaper Wagon and tell me one thing that Anne sells that you hadn't heard of before or that you've never tried before.   

Additional Entries: 

* 2 entries: Follow Anne's blog. Her store and her blog are relatively new and she needs some cyberspace love!!!

* 5 entries: blog about this giveaway and leave the url to your post in your comment. Please leave five separate comments letting me know you did so.

* 1 entry: Tweet about this giveaway and leave the url to your tweet in your comment. 

*1 entry: add my "Makin It" button to your blog

* 10 entries: buy something from The Diaper Wagon and include your order # in the comment.  Please leave 10 separate comments letting me know you did so

This Giveaway will run for two weeks, from today, March 18th, until Thursday, April 1st--and don't worry, this doesn't mean it's an April Fools joke!    Good luck! 

Free Shipping Giveaways Coming Soon!

I love free shipping. 

LOVE IT!

I love it so much I keep a list of cloth diaper (and other) sites who offer free shipping.

...and I rarely buy from anyone but the vendors on that list unless there's something specific I want that none of them have, or I manage to find an item at another vendor that is cheaper INCLUDING the cost of shipping!

Why?  Because to me, paying shipping costs is like raising the price on the things I thought I found a good deal on which makes it so they are not worth my while.

I'm on a tight budget.  This is why I've chosen to cloth diaper in the first place! Usually, I cannot afford to spend the lump sum that most stores require for you to qualify for free shipping.  Usually, I can only buy a diaper here and there. 

And so I have chosen to bend over backwards to avoid paying shipping by always stopping by the stores listed in my sidebar first.  You should try it too.  I've bought stuff from most of them and they're all so GREAT!!!

So, I wanted to celebrate my love of vendors who offer free shipping with a series of GIVEAWAYS.  I'm still very new to this public blogging thing, so I'm going to be doing a very small giveaway event featuring  3 or 4 shops who offer free shipping. In fact, if you're a vendor stopping by and you'd like to be included, just drop me an email or comment and I'll be more than happy to include you. 

So, be on the lookout.  In April you will see a series of giveaways coming your way featuring some of the amazing stores in my FREE SHIPPING list to the right.  It's gonna be great!!!

Knickernappies

I've been contemplating for awhile whether or not I like knickernappies diapers. There are things about them that are definitely positive, but overall I find them awkward. When you buy knickernappies you have a choice of two inserts--regular mircofiber, or for $6 extra, the loopy do inserts which are a mixture of hemp and microfiber. I opted for the loopy dos, and they are favorite part of the knicernappies as they are extremely absorbent. However, since you can buy loopy dos separately, I won't be buying KN again in the near future.

My daughter currently weighs 12 1/2 pounds and for her size, the diaper is bulky and has an awkward fit. The snaps on the rise pull when I put the diaper on her, but she isn't big enough yet for the next size up. The snaps at the waist pull the leg elastics painfully tight around her legs while the waist is not nearly tight enough. I finally decided to snap the bottom snap near the legs further in so that the leg holes are looser while the stomach remains tolerably fitted. In addition, since the knickernappies snap to the side, it leaves lots of fabric to gather by her belly button.

Knickernappies is not a bad diaper, it's just my least favorite mostly for the poor and bulky fit. Some women say that it's a great diaper for toddlers, and I can imagine that it might be. However, since a one size diaper needs to be functional from 10-35 lbs, this diaper is not doing its job if it is not comfortably functional for my daughter.

bumGenius--will it really last three years?

So, my introduction to cloth diapering was a bumGenius diaper. With the little research I'd done I kind of liked the idea of using this particular brand of diaper, and then, when it was given to me as a gift, I fell in love with it and proceeded to slowly buy all the colors. As mentioned in one of my other posts, I also bought a few Happy Heinys, a few Smartipants, and just the other day a Fuzzi Bunz and a Knickernappies. So here's the thing. My stash (now 19 diapers) is made up of a majority of bumGenius... and I'm starting to see that it's not really my favorite diaper. I mean, the fit is great, it doesn't leak... but I don't think it's going to stand the test of time. It's only been 8 weeks and the hook and loop closures are already starting to fray slightly. I mean, they're still going strong, but I really wish I hadn't invested all that money in 13 bumGenius--well, five of them were gifts but still. So, I don't plan on buying any more diapers with aplix closures. I want to stock the rest of my stash with snaps (which aren't as convenient for quick changes but should last long) and Happy Heinys--which has a hook and loop closure, but it's reinforced nicely for longevity.