Cloth Diaper: Part IV
14 Apr 2011 Leave a Comment
in Children, Infant, Money, Saving, Toddler Tags: cloth diaper, diaper reviews, diapers, Kawaii, one-size diaper, pocket diaper
First of all, I want to apologize for not posting anything for a week, especially since I was in the middle of this series. But it was JBF week, so I was busy shopping and volunteering. And when I wasn’t at JBF, I was trying to catch up on stuff around the house. This week I have played catch-up with the house cleaning and our internet has been sporadic the past couple of days. But now I’m back to the reviews.
Kawaii Diapers
My friend had her first baby last week and she has decided to cloth diaper. She is the one who inspired me to actually start using cloth (I’ve always wanted to, but she gave me the motivation to do it). She has decided to use Kawaii diapers based on the suggestion from another friend that has been using this brand for 10 months. Kawaii diapers are not a well-known brand but they are very inexpensive compared to other pocket diapers.
I read several negative reviews about Kawaii diapers when I was trying to decide which brands were worth trying out, and the low-cost really made me skeptical about the quality. But at $7 a diaper and knowing that they come highly recommended from people I know, I couldn’t NOT give them a try.
Overall Adjustability: The Kawaii has 3 rows of 2 snaps- within average for a pocket diaper.
Adjustable Waist Snaps: The layout of the snaps looks very similar to Fuzzibunz. The only difference is the four snaps on the bottom row on each side are in a straight row as opposed to being contoured around the leg openings.
Absorbency: I have not had any leaks with this diaper, day or night.
Bulkiness: I think the Kawaii diaper is probably the bulkiest of all the diapers I have tried. Take a look for yourself.
I tried to tuck the diaper into her jeans, but it wouldnt go.
Longevity: Kawaii diapers are fairly new and there aren’t any reviews at the diaperpin.com from people who have used them for longer than 6 months. As mentioned above, the friend of a friend has been using them for 10 months without any issues.
Warranty: The warranty on these diapers is only for the first 90 days after purchase and you have to pay for the shipping to return them. In my opinion, this is the worst warranty policy of all the diapers I’m sampling.
Patterns available: There are 9 different patterns and 7 colors to choose from. I also believe that they are constantly getting new patterns and colors (but not restocking the old).
Cleaning: Both the packaging and website have a good amount of information on how to clean the diapers. The directions are basically the same as for most cloth diapers.
Cost: If you order these diapers directly from their website (theluvyourbaby.com) they are $6.99 for solid colors and $7.25 for patterns. This is an excellent price! If you order from another retailer you will probably pay $3-5 more, which is still better than most pocket diapers which run $17-20.
Overall: The diapers seem to be just as good as any of the others I have tried. In fact, they remind me a lot of the Fuzzibunz diapers without the adjustable elastic. Like I said earlier, I found only negative reviews about these diapers when I started my research. Since then, however, I have seen several positive reviews and lots of talk about Kawaii diapers on blogs and other places.
There are a few things that make me weary, though. The warranty policy isn’t good and because Kawaii is a newer product, it’s hard to tell if they will last through Kennedy and any more children in the future.
I should also mention that I’m not sure how honest the company is being about the working conditions where the diapers are made. The owner claims to live in Canada and admits that the diapers are made in China (not being made in the US is one of the biggest complaints from other users). I personally don’t mind buying products made outside the US, but I don’t know how I feel about purchasing products made in poor working conditions.
I am suspicious because of the extremely low-cost and because there are several grammar problems on the packaging and on the website– similar to grammar mistakes made when translating from Chinese to English. Surely, a company based in British Columbia where over 70% of the population speaks English would double-check their English before sending out the product or uploading content that is going to represent their company to the internet. This is taken directly from the website:
The workers are very happy and satisfy from their jobs. The working place where they have to spend all day is neat, clean and well ventilated, that’s why they can produce the best quality diapers.
I can’t prove it, but I’m not sure I believe this. Another problem with Kawaii diapers is that they are difficult to purchase. Because of the low-cost, they are becoming popular very quickly and the company is having trouble keeping their diapers in stock. This is one reason why you might want to pay a little more to order from a different site, but even other retailers run out quickly. I checked the Kawaii Facebook page and it appears that they recently got new stock, but sold out in less than 24 hours. So, while I like these diapers and especially the cost, I’m just not comfortable filling my entire diaper stash with this brand.
Cloth Diapers: Part III
01 Apr 2011 Leave a Comment
in Children, Infant, Money, Saving, Toddler Tags: cloth diaper, diaper reviews, diapers, Happy Heiny, laundry detergent, one-size diaper, pocket diaper
Happy Heiny’s
Happy Heiny’s diapers was one of the first brands of pocket diapers. It is well-known among cloth users and has been around for a while.
Overall Adjustability: There are 3 rows of 3 snaps on the front of the diaper making a total of 9 snaps and 4 different sizes. I’ve never seen a diaper with more snaps for the overall size, which means you can get a pretty good fit.
Adjustable Waist Snaps: 2 rows of snaps on the front with 4 snaps coming from each side on the back. Again, I have never seen more snaps on a diaper, which is a good thing.
Absorbency: The only time I have experienced leaks with this diaper is at night (even with 2 inserts), but it hasn’t happened every night. I would say the absorbency is good but not excellent.
Bulkiness: These are a little more on the bulky size. Take a look for yourself and notice how the diaper peeks out the top of her jeans.
Longevity: There are more reviews from people who have used this brand for a year or longer than any of the other diapers I’ve reviewed so far. And many of those people have used them for 2 or more years and on more than one baby. Out of these users, the only negative reviews received are for the aplix (Velcro) version. Since I’m using the snap version this doesn’t apply.
Warranty: From their website:
Snaps: lifetime
Elastic: 6 month guarantee. After 6 months we will gladly send to you any elastics needed so that you may easily repair the elastic in your diapers
Sewing: 3 months
All diapers must arrive clean, unstained, lint free, and dry. All diapers with excessive wear will not be replaced or repaired under our warranty. Any products sent to us that do not follow the above conditions will be returned without repair.
What will void the Happy Heinys warranty:
- Washing instructions are not followed
- Use of Sanitizing cycle while washing or water temperature above 150F or 60C
- Use of detergents containing natural oils or any natural soaps or any detergents not approved by Happy Heinys.
- Use of any fabric softeners or dryer sheets.
- Use of any non-approved diaper rash creams
- Use of bleach, oxyclean, or any other caustic substances that may harm the fabric of the diapers.
At first the warranty policy sounds pretty good, but then when you start to read all the stipulations, it makes me wonder if anyone is actually able to take advantage of it if they need to. Read more about my issues with this warranty in the cleaning section of this review.
Patterns available: There are 28 solid colors to choose from and 17 fun patterns (including a few glow-in-the-dark diapers). This is an amazing selection! We like to put on some leg warmers, a t-shirt and a Retro Swirl Happy Heiny. It’s so cute, and we’ve had several compliments! (I’ve never been complimented on how cute our diaper is before.)
Customer Service: From the research I have done, it’s about 50/50. Some people have said that they have had 0 response after 4 months of trying to contact the company through various methods and other people have said that they had a response in less than 12 hours. As I read their website, I really get a negative vibe. I can’t really put my finger on it, but I feel it. Especially anytime laundry detergent is mentioned (read below). This negativity may not have any impact on their customer service, but then again maybe it does.
Cleaning: The directions on the packaging are easy to follow and straightforward. When you read the care instructions on the website, you find that the company is very opinionated on this issue. From their website:
The very first and MOST IMPORTANT factor when it comes to washing your cloth diapers is that you MUST use the proper amount of detergent. Some customers are opting to use as little as 1-2 teaspoons of detergent when the recommended amount is actually 1 cup. When asked if they would use this little detergent on their clothes they would say absolutely NOT.
Well they didn’t ask me, because I would say, “ABSOLUTELY YES!” (If you are new to my blog read why here.) Also, there are only 3 brands of detergent on their “approved list” and as stated above, if you use any other detergents you risk voiding the warranty. The 3 approved detergents are Tide, Country Save, and Rockin Green. The latter 2 are no big surprise, they are highly recommended by most cloth diaper users and manufacturers. However, Tide is one of the least recommended to use, especially regular tide that has enzymes, brighteners, dyes, and fragrances. I won’t go into detail why these additives are bad for cloth diapers but you can go here to read about it and see a rating chart that includes most detergents. This website also has a lot of good information on the topic.
The Happy Heiny’s website says,
As the inventor/manufacturer of Tide this is the main detergent we used while cloth diapering & we have recommended this since the beginning.We have had no reported issues with repelling from Tide when it has been used correctly, that is using the FULL recommended amount. Tide will NOT harm any of your diapers.
Does it sound to you like this person is claiming to be the inventor of Tide or am I reading that wrong? In the little research I did, I can’t seem to find any connection between Happy Heiny’s and Tide/ Procter & Gamble. However, if this is true, then there is obviously another motive in suggesting the use of Tide and to use the full amount.
Another concern that I have with this diaper in regards to care, is the use of bleach. The packaging and the website emphasize that you should never use bleach. This is okay with me, most cloth diaper manufacturers agree or say to only use bleach once a month or less often. My concern however is that the Happy Heiny’s diaper is supposed to double as a swim diaper by removing the insert. I’m not sure, but I think the chlorine in the pools could be just as damaging as bleach in the wash. But if not, then I really like that I don’t have to buy special diapers for the pool.
Cost: The average cost paid from reviewers at the diaperpin is $17.23.
Overall: This isn’t my favorite diaper, but it isn’t my least favorite either. I really like that several people have used it on more than one child (we don’t want more right now, but maybe someday), and I absolutely love the choices in colors and prints. If I was able to use this diaper at night, it would probably rank a little higher on my list. I suppose I can pick a few of my favorite patterns to add to my stash for daytime use. We’ll see.
