Zephyr Hill

A Family Blog

Imagine XLarge Pocket Diaper Review & Giveaway

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This post contains affiliate links.

There aren’t too many diapers on the market specifically for bigger toddlers or children with medical needs. If the Imagine XL pocket diaper is something you’re curious about, today’s review will give you a closer look.

It’s available to purchase for $17.95 at Nicki’s Diapers.

The Imagine XL pocket is noticeably bigger than the one-size version, and is designed to fit children from 35 to 70 pounds. Here’s the XL (green) next to a one-size for comparison.

It comes with a 4-layer microfiber insert measuring 6.25 x 18.25 inches. This is a good deal bigger than a standard pocket diaper insert which is usually no longer than 14 or 15 inches, and certainly not that wide. There are snaps on the XL insert so you can shorten it, if needed.

The pocket diaper is lined with stay-dry, no-pill white fleece and opens at the front and the back.

Performance: Ingrid (2.5 years) has never leaked out of this diaper, even when she overslept or drank more liquid than usual the night before. The extra large microfiber pad is super absorbent. It takes just a little longer to dry than a regular microfiber insert. Katie was also impressed by the absorbency; when Gareth (2 years and 10 months) woke up in the morning, she thought at first that the diaper had not been wetted in! We both like that a pocket style is quicker to get on a toddler at bedtime than a prefold+booster+cover.

Microfiber is not for everyone, I know, but in this case it is ideal because wetness is locked away very quickly. This works well for toddlers and children who may flood a diaper all at once. Besides, it keeps the cost of this diaper low, which is really appreciated if you find yourself in the position of having to buy more diapers beyond the investment of a one-size stash.

Fit: We haven’t used our Imagine XL much in the daytime because it’s very bulky and very wide across the crotch. Katie even noticed that Gareth walked differently with such a big diaper on. I also noticed the wings drooping (and the diaper sagging down) on Ingrid after she walked around for a while. So for both of us, it’s better suited for overnight use.

One thing I didn’t use at all was the front pocket opening, which I think could be eliminated altogether. The fleece flap tends to creep up over the front waistband when you’re putting the diaper on, so you have to be sure to get it tucked back in to avoid wicking.

Here’s Gareth, my nephew. He’s about 30 pounds in this photo:

And Ingrid, our 2-year-old:

And the fit on my 5-year-old, just to show you that it can work past the toddler stage, or for older special-needs children:

Value: At $17.95, the Imagine XL costs significantly less than “overnight” cloth trainers and pockets marketed to toddlers and special needs children. There are currently 14 options when it comes to colors and prints – a perk you don’t usually see for diapers in this niche. For a child with medical issues that’s not very active, I think it could work both day and night. For active toddlers and children who are late trainers, I would recommend nighttime only since it’s so bulky and could hamper movement or comfort.

Giveaway: I’m giving away an Imagine pocket diaper to one lucky reader! You can choose the XL I reviewed today, or the one-size pocket diaper I reviewed previously. Open to US and Canadian residents only.

 

 

 

 

Buttons Super Cover and Bamboo Inserts Review & Giveaway

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This post contains a referral link

We first tried Buttons Diapers four years ago and they’ve been in our rotation ever since. Buttons is a simple AI2 system that consists of waterproof covers and snap-in soaker pads. Buttons is constantly innovating and updating to meet customer needs, and 2017 brought two VERY exciting additions: a newborn cover and a Super cover for older/bigger babies and toddlers. Buttons sent a complimentary Super cover for 2-year-old Ingrid and 17 month old Roderick (my nephew). We also received the new bamboo/cotton inserts to try out. The Super cover is designed to fit babies from 12 to 40+ pounds.

Here’s a photo comparison to show the 3 sizes of covers that Buttons now offers. The newborn and Super covers have double snaps on the wings:

Buttons covers are made of two layers of very soft but sturdy waterproof PUL fabric, and have a wipeable interior, double leg gussets and inside flaps (a new feature not found on the one-size version). There are 3 size settings on the rise, giving older babies and toddlers more than enough room to grow. This cute print is called Bloom:

The new style of inserts are 70% bamboo and 30% organic cotton. Unlike other Buttons inserts, they do not have the stay-dry fleece layer on top. Choose from among small, large and XL sizes. The night inserts are made to snap onto the back of the day inserts, and then snap into the cover as well (i.e. they have snaps on both sides).

Daytime inserts are made of 5 layers of absorbent 70% bamboo & 30% organic cotton. Nighttime doublers are also 5 layers of fabric. They come in packs of 2 starting at $12.50.

– Small inserts fit babies from 7-15 lbs (inserts are 11″ in length)
– Large inserts fit babies from 20-25 lbs (inserts are 13″ in length)
– X-Large inserts fit babies from 25-40 lbs (inserts are 15″ in length)

While there are many options in the Buttons system now (3 sizes of covers, multiple sizes and fabrics for inserts), using them is really easy because you snap an insert (or two) in, and then snap the diaper onto your baby.

In my prior reviews, I mentioned that Buttons one-size covers run small overall. It’s great to see this larger cover for big babies and toddlers!

Here’s 17-month-old Roderick. Katie liked that with just 1 insert in, she can use at the next-to-largest setting, meaning Roderick still has growing room, even with his chunky legs.

And 2.5 old Ingrid, who is a small toddler. She’s wearing the diaper with day+night inserts snapped together:

Fit: With one insert snapped inside, Katie got a good, snug fit on Roderick around the waist and legs. With two inserts, the cover was not as snug but still performed well in terms of absorbency. On Ingrid, it fits equally well and I didn’t have any issues with it not fitting snugly enough when both inserts were used together. When utilizing both, the diaper will obviously be much bulkier, but absorbency is steller! Ingrid goes all night with the 2 insert combo, which is great because she’s potty training in the day time but not staying dry at night. The pads are very thick and I asked if wearing both together bothered her and she had no complaints at all.

Performance:   Neither Katie nor I had any leaks with the new Super cover and bamboo inserts. The inserts are very thick, sturdy and soft. The serged edges do curl up in places and shrink a little after prepping (you can see this in the photo above). They are stiff if you line or flat dry, so Katie and I both preferred drying on low. At that setting, they took about 2 full dryer cycles, so the long time is a drawback. That being said, they are super absorbent and neither Katie nor I had to deal with any leaks while testing on our toddlers.

Value: The new Super cover starts at $13.50, a very affordable price tag for a versatile and reliable cover (that also happens to be available in some adorable prints and colors!). You can shop Buttons at their online store, and at various cloth diaper retailers.

Giveaway: One Zephyr Hill reader will win a $25 store credit to Buttons Diapers! This giveaway is open to US and Canadian residents. Good luck and thanks for reading about our experiences!

 

 

 

Lighthouse AIO Diaper Review and Giveaway

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Are your curious about Lighthouse diapers, just released this year? I happened upon the Lighthouse All-in-One diaper by chance, while browsing GreenPath Baby’s online store. The artistic flair of these coastal-inspired prints grabbed my attention, and I decided to spring for one after reading about the unique features inside. Today’s review post also features a giveaway for one of these beautiful diapers!

First, a brief introduction. This newly released diaper is the creative brainchild of Vanessa Tomchick, owner of GreenPath Baby in Florida. Life in Palm Beach, and the historic Jupiter Lighthouse, inspired the company name and lovely prints.

I reviewed the Flock print, which is covered with pink flamingos. The Lighthouse AIO has 3 sets of snaps on the rise, which gives you 4 different size settings. I would label them as XS, small, medium and large.

Take a look at the inside, which was very purposefully designed. The soaker is sewn to the back of the diaper only, and opens up completely flat. It’s made of several layers of a thick and silky bamboo knit (70% bamboo/30% cotton). The reverse side is topped with white fleece; this means that folded one way you get a “stay dry” feel, and folded the other way (bamboo facing up) your child can feel wetness. The soaker has a line sewn down the middle to make it easy to fold.

Both sides of the soaker have a wonderful feel – the cozy fleece and the soft, squishy bamboo knit.

It also includes an extra (small) insert of the same bamboo/cotton knit fabric.

The small insert measures 3.75″ x 7.75″ after prepping. The attached insert, when folded in half, is about 12 inches long and 5 inches across.

One of my favorite fabrics lines the inside of this diaper – athletic wicking jersey. It’s soft, pliable and doesn’t hold onto stains. a breathable fabric like this is obviously very ideal for diapering.

There’s also a waterproof strip of PUL fabric along the inside front of the waistband to guard against leakage.

Using the diaper is easy: just fold the insert in half, with either the fleece or the bamboo side facing up (your choice).

If you want to take a quick look inside this diaper, via You Tube, here’s the video:

Care: It’s easy to get started with the Lighthouse AIO because after one wash to prep, you’re good to go. The white fleece side and the athletic jersey lining are both good at releasing stains. The diaper dries in about one cycle, thanks to the fold-out design.

Fit: With double snaps on the wings, you can adjust them separately, if needed, to get a great fit at both the waist and legs. The diaper shell is soft and stretchy and pliable, which I really love. It’s not the trimmest diaper I’ve tried, but neither is it super bulky. It’s kind of in between.

Here’s how it fits on Mary Kate at 3 months and 11 pounds. The diaper can still get smaller than this because there are crossover snaps on the waistband. Using the crossover snaps will in turn tighten up the leg openings, making this a great potential newborn diaper. The flip side is this diaper runs smaller overall than other “one size” AIO’s in our collection. If you’re baby is tall or much bigger than his peers, it will probably not fit until potty training.

The drawback is with the insert being one size and permanently attached, it will be quite bulky when you fold it under to fit a very small baby. Also, with 2 rows of snaps across the rise instead of 3, the fabric tends to pucker out in the middle (see photo below, top right).

UPDATE: Lighthouse has now added a 3rd row of snaps to fix this issue!

Here’s Ingrid at 2 and half years old. She’s small for her age and the rise is already low enough, so this diaper would likely be too small for a taller toddler.

When using the diaper on the largest rise setting, as I did here for Ingrid, I notice that the insert doesn’t fill the front of the diaper. Folded in half, it’s about 12 inches long, whereas a typical large insert or prefold diaper might be 14 or 15 inches long. So this is a drawback that you will always have with an attached insert of a fixed size. One thing you can do to mitigate this somewhat is to stick that little bonus insert up front to cover that empty space and add a bit more absorbency.

Performance: The absorbency of our Lighthouse diaper is great! My toddler can wear it through a nap with the extra insert placed up front, as mentioned above. Mary Kate (3 months) wore it for 6 hours as is, without the extra booster. Neither can wear it overnight, but this is not generally expected with an AIO diaper.

The attached insert shrinks a little bit unevenly around the edges after prepping because it’s made of a blend of synthetic and natural fibers.

This is such a new diaper that it’s only been released in 3 prints so far, but my goodness – they are cute! Besides Flock and Dance of the Manatee (below), there’s also Jupiter Song (below). 

Where to Buy:
Shop Lighthouse Diapers at these affiliates:

Dearest Diapers
GreenPath Baby
Fluff & Familia
Diaper Junction
Nicki’s Diapers
Mom’s Milk Boutique (use this link for 10% off!)
Kelly’s Closet
Lagoon Baby (Canada)
or at Lighthouse Kids Company

Each diaper is $20.99, with prints being a little bit more. Five percent of net profits are given monthly to Hannah’s Home of South Florida, a local ministry providing biblical, loving support to women during and after pregnancy.

There’s also a Lighthouse Facebook group.

Giveaway: One reader (US only) will win the Dance of the Manatee Lighthouse diaper. Enter the giveaway below. Good luck!

Gerber It’s a Snap AIO Diaper Review

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This post contains affiliate links.

Gerber Childrenswear recently released an updated version of their All-in-One diaper. The “It’s a Snap” AIO retails for $13.99 at Gerber Childrenswear or you can find it at Walmart.com for just $8.33. I bought one to see how it compared to the first AIO diaper that Gerber introduced in 2015, which had a few issues.

Gerber’s first AIO was a sized diaper; the new version is one-size with an adjustable front rise. The hook and loop closure has given way to double snaps at the waistband. The unbleached cotton inner lining serves two purposes: (1) second gusset and (2) pocket for additional absorbency. More and more I’m seeing All-in-One diapers on the market that also have a pocket opening.

The front and back flaps inside the diaper are elasticized.

The It’s a Snap AIO includes two inserts. The small measures 3.75 inches wide and 11.25 inches wide. Large is 4.75 inches wide and 14 inches long. The inserts have 100% unbleached cotton on top and an inner core of poly/rayon. I would rate the “feel” of the cotton top as fair, in terms of softness.

The suggested fit range is 8 to 30 pounds. It’s an imported diaper, made in El Salvador, and comes in 4 colors right now:

Fit: Many diapers with back elastics that we’ve tried can be uncomfortably snug. Not this diaper. It’s very gentle and not too tight.

Mary Kate is just under 11 pounds and 3 months old. Because there are no crossover snaps on this diaper, I don’t know if the waistband would be small enough for a newborn of 8 pounds or so. The rise would also likely be too high. But on Mary Kate, it’s very cute and trim and there’s lots of stretch in the wings.

Ingrid is 2 years old and 27 pounds, but small for her age. At the largest rise setting, the diaper fits right under her belly button. She still has some room to grow in the waist. Based on our experiences with an average sized infant and a smaller toddler, I would say this diaper has a size range of about 10 pounds to 30 pounds, so very close to Gerber’s estimations. The exception to this would be if you have a toddler within this weight range, but tall and thin.

Performance: For 3 month old Mary Kate, I tested the diaper snapped to the shortest rise setting with just the small insert. It held her for one nap just fine. With both inserts, it has even worked overnight a few times, but not consistently.

For my toddler, Ingrid (2 years old), we first tried the diaper with both inserts stuffed inside. After 3 hours, the inserts and lining were heavily soaked at the front and middle, but not much at all in the back. The diaper leaked from the leg openings. She’s not what I would call a heavy wetter, but she IS a toddler, so I would rate the absorbency fair for her age, and good for infants. I’m not sure why the inserts did not pull the excess wetness away towards the back (thereby preventing the leaks in the leg openings), but because of that I didn’t test overnight.

AIO diapers are designed mainly for convenience and quick changes, not for high absorbency. Right now, I like how it performs on 3-month-old Mary Kate. I know it can get her easily through a long nap.

Gerber’s price is very economical and really hard to beat. However, if the diaper had hemp, or a higher bamboo/rayon ratio, I would bet that it could hold more wetness. I also think it would be more convenient to use if the inserts were attached somehow, like a traditional AIO diaper.

I do like the cute, trim fit of this diaper, and I love that the pocket is wide and easy to stuff things under. You can fit a padfolded flat or a trifold with no problems.

Before using the diaper, we washed it and the inserts 3 times since both have a cotton top. There was no shrinkage that I could see.

Here were the issues we had with Gerber’s first All-in-One diaper, and how the new one compares:

  • Weak hook and loop and scratchy laundry tabs: fixed with snap closure
  • Exposed PUL: new lining and deeper front/back flaps cover the exposed laminate
  • Sizing: new adjustable design saves you from having to buy different sizes

The only drawbacks I see with the new version are the limited absorbency and the possibility of it being too small for taller or heavier toddlers who are still in diapers.

Value: Right now, the new It’s a Snap AIO is available from Walmart.com for just $8.33, which is a really great price (and you get free 2-day shipping over $35). If I wanted to boost the absorbency of this diaper, however, I would probably use bamboo or hemp inserts from my stash rather than purchasing additional Gerber inserts (like the ones that came with the diaper).

I’m happy that Gerber, a nationally-known baby brand, is helping to #makeclothmainstream (a hashtag popularized by Jen at Spray Pal) by selling the AIO diaper in big box stores and retailers nationwide. This will help bring reusable cloth diapers to the attention of a larger audience.

Giveaway: (CLOSED) I am giving away 2 of the new Gerber Childrenswear It’s a Snap AIO diapers – one orange and one sage green. This promotion is open to readers in the USA. It ends on April 22nd and there are entries you can come back and claim each day. Good luck!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Imagine One-Size Diaper Cover Review & Giveaway

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This post contains affiliate links

Today’s review features the Imagine one-size diaper cover. Besides carrying most of the popular cloth brands on the market, my affiliate, Nicki’s Diapers, also carries the complete line of Imagine Baby products. The Imagine cover is a budget-friendly choice with a proven track record, and I’ll share all about our experience over the years in just a minute.

Before going into the review, I want to thank you again for doing your cloth diaper shopping using my affiliate link at Nicki’s Diapers. I purchase many of my review diapers (and prizes!) with your help, so it’s a win-win for all!

Here’s a quick look at the Imagine diaper cover, which has 3 size settings and is adjustable via the waist and the rise. This print is called Which Way:

Here are the basic features of the Imagine diaper cover:

  • It can be purchased at Nicki’s Diapers for $10.95 with FREE shipping, and at other select Imagine Baby retailers like Kelly’s Closet and Diaper Junction.
  • One layer of waterproof PUL with coordinating trim and snap colors
  • Designed to be worn over flats, prefolds, fitteds, or any style that needs a waterproof outer layer
  • Wipe and reuse on the inside (if the cover isn’t soiled)
  • Double leg gussets
  • Designed to fit from 8 to 35+ pounds
  • Available in 18+ prints and solid colors
  • Covered by a 60 day warranty on workmanship and defects
  • Made ethically in China

Here’s the cover opened up. The picture at bottom left shows it at the largest setting with a large trifolded bamboo prefold.

Fit: Overall, the Imagine cover runs a little larger than other brands that we’ve tried. The only fit issue I’ve run into is the same one we have sometime with our Imagine pockets – wings drooping after the diaper inside starts to get wet and heavy. A hip snap would fix this.

Here’s the Imagine cover on my nephew, Roderick (who just got a haircut and is looking so grown up!). He’s about 26 pounds and 16 months old and is still a little chunky right now, especially in the legs. This print is called Cozy Critters; Roderick is wearing the cover with two large Best Bottom bamboo inserts inside, and the diaper is opened up to the largest rise setting. Katie told me he can actually fit into it on size medium, so that tells me Roderick should be able to wear this cover until age 2, and perhaps longer.

My daughter, Ingrid, is 27 pounds. So she’s just a bit heavier than Roderick but is much older at 2.5 years old. She is thinner and has a smaller frame overall. The cover fits equally well on both because of the roomy style and stretchy wings. Ingrid wears the rise at medium during the day (photo below, with one bamboo prefold) and large at night (when I’ve stuffed more inside the cover). Just like Roderick, she will be able to wear this cover for many more months.

The Imagine cover fit easily over our flats, prefolds and plush fitteds, making it a very versatile cover.

I tried it on Mary Kate, who is 7 weeks old and 10 pounds but couldn’t get the waist small enough, so she will still keep wearing her Imagine newborn cover for a while.

Performance: Both Katie and I prefer a cover with a flap (or two) on the inside to help hold inserts in place, especially if you aren’t pinning your prefolds or flats in place. A front flap also provides some extra insurance against leaks for tummy sleepers. The Imagine cover does not have this feature (the Nicki’s cover does, though). In our testing of the Imagine cover, neither of us had any issues with fit or function without the inside flaps, so it’s definitely not a deal breaker. I would suggest leaving a little bit of room at the top front of the cover vs. letting your diaper go right up to the edge where it might cause wicking.

The double leg gussets are great at helping with mess containment, and also make it easier to get a good snug fit around the thighs.

Value: A diaper cover for $10.95 with free shipping is a really great value, especially when you consider the quality. With the exception of a few newly released prints, my Imagine covers are all 1-2 years old and we’ve haven’t had any issues with performance or durability.

Giveaway: Two of my readers will win an Imagine diaper set (one is an Overboard cover with matching leggings and the other is a Ring-a-Ding cover with matching leggings. This giveaway is open to US and Canadian residents. Good luck!

 

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