Although I’ve made doublers by topping microfiber inserts with fleece, I recently purchased a 3-pack of Thirsties Fab Doublers in size large from Amazon.com. I wanted something a little narrower and thinner that would work better for daytime use.
Thirsties Fab Doublers
Thirsties Fab Doublers are made with soft velour (85% cotton, 15% polyester). The small is 12″ long and 4″ wide. The large size is 14″ long and 4.5″ wide. Each 3-pack comes in “boy” colors (ocean blue, meadow, white) or “girl” colors (orchid, mango, honeydew).
You can use them for extra absorbency during the day or night.
Here I have the Ocean Blue colored doubler over top a Kiwi Pie fitted diaper and Flip cover. For overnight diapering, I alternate between the doublers I’ve made and these Thirsties doublers. The doubler helps keep my son’s skin dry overnight.
Size Large
I also use it during the daytime if I think he needs extra absorbency without bulk. For example, I like to put GroVia all-in-one diapers on him for church. Since they are slimmer than most of his diapers, they fit well under his church clothes. Once he hit 3-months old, I started putting him in the church nursery, and I wasn’t able to check his diaper every so often to make sure he was dry. The Thirsties Fab Doublers are a great solution.
As you can see, they fit nicely tucked inside the GroVia AI1. They add just the right amount of absorbency and draw moisture away from his skin.
These doublers are easy to prep- just wash once with a detergent safe for cloth diapers. For regular laundering, throw them in with your cloth diapers.
Before I get into this review, I need to give you some context:
My son is almost four months old, and has had one diaper rash. Fortunately, it was a very small area of skin and went away after a few days of applying Desitin regularly. He was still in disposable diapers at the time. I’ve come across plenty of message boards and other sites on the Web where cloth diapering mammas insist their kids get fewer (or no) diaper rashes with cloth diapers than with disposables. However, some research says there really isn’t any difference, and then other research says babies get more rashes with cloth diapers. Either way, most babies will get a diaper rash at some point.
We’re using cloth diapers exclusively now. I’m going to be honest (and vague), by saying that I probably leave my son’s diaper on him too long at night. Now, I know that I’m not alone here. Some parents may be able to perform a middle-of-the-night-change without waking their wee one, but I’m not so lucky. The last time I tried, he was awake for the following two hours.
I use fitted diapers overnight: Kiwi Pie, Bamboozle, or Blueberries. They all are a bamboo mix, and so far have not leaked. Since fitted diapers are not waterproof, I use a Flip cover or Bummis Super Snap Wrap over top.
By morning, the fitted diaper is usually soaked, so I made myself some fleece-topped doublers for my son to wear between the fitted diaper and his skin. The microfiber draws moisture away from his skin, and the fleece over top makes it safe to touch his skin without over drying.
But, he was still getting a little red around the uhm…little man areas…by morning. So what to do?! Well, I still had a tube of Desitin, so I started putting that on in the mornings. Since Desitin is not considered safe to use with cloth diapers, I put a flushable liner in between his bum and the diaper. Well, then something weird happened. Twice, I did this, and he pooped. It seems like his runny EBF (exclusively breastfed) poop soaked through the flushable liner and caused the Desitin to stain a small area of his diaper reddish. Now, I don’t know for a fact that’s what happened, but it happened to two of his diapers, and I had put liners on both of them and put Desitin on him, and he had pooped. That’s the only correlation I could figure out.
This left me with a dilemma. I could use a fleece liner over top his diaper instead, but the Desitin was just treating his problem, anyway, not preventing it, and I really wanted to use something more natural on my baby’s skin. I started searching for other options.
And I found my solution! I bought a GroVia Magic Stick All Natural Diaper Ointment from Diaper Junction. This ointment is cloth diaper safe, but of course you can still use it with disposables.
GroVia Magic Stick All Natural Diaper Ointment
Since it’s made of all-natural ingredients, you can use it as a rash protectant after every diaper change and every night before bed!
After using it on my son regularly for about 24 hours, his redness is gone, and he woke up this morning with absolutely no red on his man parts! Score Magic Stick! Can you tell I’m excited about this? By the way, I just lightly applied it to get these results. There’s no need to cake it on, so I expect this tube will last for many months.
Because it’s a stick, it’s hands-free (of course, Hubby says, You still have to hold the stick with your hands to apply…how is that hands free?). Regardless, Dear Hubby, I have no messy hands after diaper changes.
Since it’s a stick and goes directly on baby’s bum, if you have more than one kid in diapers, you’ll have to buy additional sticks to be sanitary. Each stick comes with a cool blank spot on the label (see photo above) where you can write your baby’s name to keep track.
Diaper Junction still has their free shipping deal going on, for orders $19 or more (U.S. only), until Sept. 3, 2012. If you’re not interested in using cloth diapers, they have plenty of other natural baby (and mommy) products available.
Do you use a diaper ointment regularly? What do you use? How do you like it?
Note: Post contains affiliate links. I was not compensated for this review. I purchased the item reviewed above. Opinions expressed are my own and may differ from those of others.
I’ve heard so many great things about the BumGenius diapers that I couldn’t wait to try one of the new 4.0s! Many people in the cloth diapering world consider BumGenius to be the “gateway diaper.”
To save a few dollars, I put myself on the waiting list for a certified pre-owned BumGenius 4.0 Pocket Diaper from Diaper Junction. They have a 30-day trial program at their store, so every so often they’ll have pre-owned diapers in excellent condition for sale. After a few weeks on the list, I received an email saying they had several. I ordered one online in the “clementine” color with snaps and picked it up in store.
A single BumGenius 4.0 retails for $17.95 at Diaper Junction, so they’re on the higher end of the pocket price range, but not as much as the Rumparooz One Size Pocket Diaper (my current favorite pocket).
There’s currently a sale on BumGenius 4.0 pocket diapers: Buy 5, get 1 free. I’m not sure how much longer the sale is going on (I’ve heard just a few more days), so if you’re interested in owning several, I wouldn’t wait too long!
This pre-owned diaper looks new. The only part of it that looked like it had some use were the inserts. They weren’t stained; they just looked as if they’d been washed a few times.
The 4.0 is a one-size diaper. This means that by utilizing the three rows of snaps on the front of the diaper, you can adjust the rise. According to the BumGenius Web site, this diaper fits approximately 7-35+ pounds, meaning you can use the same diaper on your newborn all the way to potty training.
The outside of this diaper is made of a waterproof material. It feels like TPU, but I was unable to find any information online stating exactly what it is. I have heard that they use PUL.
The top of the diaper has two rows of snaps to adjust the waist. There are no hip snaps, but my son had no issues with “winging.”
The one-size insert can be adjusted to a medium or small size from large by folding the end over and snapping it down. A separate insert, for newborns, can be added to the adjustable insert as a doubler for increased absorbency.
The pocket opens in the back and is quite wide, allowing larger hands to stuff the insert in the diaper. It has a large flap to cover the opening. There’s also another smaller flap inside to help the insert stay in place. There is elastic at the back and legs, and it’s replaceable, so this diaper can last for multiple children!
This pocket diaper’s soft, sueded inner fabric wicks moisture away from my son’s skin.
Like the BumGenius All-In-One that I own, this diaper is quite wide between the legs. It’s fine for my son (he’s large for his age), but I could see this being extremely bulky on a newborn or a small infant. I can see this diaper fitting him through potty training.
I’ve washed this diaper a few times now, and it’s holding up well. My son has worn it for 3 hours straight with the medium insert and no problems with leaks.
To be honest, I don’t understand why there’s such a hype over these diapers. It does the job, but so do certain cheaper diapers, so I’m glad I got the pre-owned. But it is a good, solid, well-made pocket diaper. Over time, I’ve reconsidered the above statement that I’ve now crossed out. I’ve heard from numerous mothers who’ve used the same BumGenius diapers over and over for several years that they hold up very well with constant washing…better than most diapers. Also, the flaps to hold the insert in place and then cover the pocket opening are just a nice feature that I haven’t found with any other pocket diaper.
By the way, as of today, Diaper Junction still had 2 certified pre-owned BumGenius 4.0 diapers available at $14.37 each, and that’s a good deal!
Note: These opinions are my own and may differ from yours. I was not compensated for this review; I purchased the above item. This post contains affiliate links.
