prefolds | Padded Tush Stats

Geffen Baby Fleece Prefolds Review

Posted on June 5, 2013 by Tara

A few months ago we released the results from our Insert Absorbency Experiment. You know what came out on top as most absorbent? These bad boys. The Geffen Baby Fleece Prefold (in size Extra Large) held a whopping 14 ounces (that’s three ounces more than the beloved Knickernappies SuperDo that is frequently mentioned in other reviews here at PTS!).

In this review, we are going to talk about the features of this prefold, and how it worked on our kids.

Materials

There are 4 layers of ultra soft combed organic hemp/cotton. The blend is 60% Hemp, 40% organic cotton.

Tara: This is VERY soft. I did find that I got some pilling on the fabric that made it softer than I had hoped.

Carolyn: The fleece is like that on the inside of a sweatshirt, though the fabric is thicker. As most prefolds do with our hard water, this diaper seemed to get stiffer over time. I was initially able to fold it around my baby and fasten it with a Snappi, but the more I used it, the more difficult it became for me to fold and for the Snappi to grab hold. I do not know if this diaper would be easier to Snappi in different water conditions or using a different size prefold, but I would encourage people to not let that turn them off from trying it as it works excellently when trifolded (I actually prefer to use it that way!)

Sizing

These prefolds come in 4 sizes (all of which have the same number of layers of fabric): Extra small is for babies approximately 0-3 months old, and measures 12×13.5 inches. Small is for babies aged 1-6 months, and measures 14×16.5 inches. Medium/Large is meant for babies 6-12+ months old, and measures 16×18.5 inches. X-Large is for toddlers from 18 months to potty training, and measures 18×21.5 inches. (All measurements are before washing).

Tara: I used the size extra large. My kids are in the 26-29 pound range and I found it to be very large on them. I think in the future I’d get the Medium/Large.

Carolyn: I started using the size small on Emily when she was 14 weeks and 11.5 pounds. At 23 weeks and 13.5 pounds, the fit and absorbency levels have remained unchanged.

Extra Large prefold in an Imagine One Size Cover:

Extra Large prefold in a Swaddlebees Capri Cover:

Survey Responses

Tara: Here is how I would fill out a Padded Tush Stats Survey for Prefolds based on how it worked on my kids (I have a 2 year old son that is 26 pounds and a 3 year old daughter that is 27 pounds. Both are normal to heavy wetters).

Notes on Responses:

Absorbency: Holy SMOKES this was absorbent. I wasn’t quite ready for night tests yet (I like to finish nap tests first) and my husband grabbed this for night time—he even TRIFOLDED it rather than pinned it and it was totally bulletproof.
Trimness: The only downside of this prefold is that it is VERY thick. I definitely like it for naps and night, but it isn’t a top choice for daytime. In those cases, I like to grab my Geffen Baby Inserts, which are ridiculously trim and incredibly absorbent.

I would have to fold it over like this to get in my largest cover (the Swaddlebees Capri):

Fit: I will say, this would probably get a better score if I had a smaller size. I tried this larger size and I think that my kids are just too little. So the diaper was huge on them.

Carolyn: Here is how I would fill out a Padded Tush Stats Flats, Prefolds, and Contours survey based on how it worked on my daughter, who ranges from being a normal to heavy wetter.

Notes on my responses:

I consider this a nighttime diaper and not something I would put on my child during the day. There’s nothing PROHIBITING someone from building an entire stash out of these prefolds, but there are plenty of other diapering options that are absorbent enough to last 2 hours. Using one instead that can easily last for 14 hours (and 2-3 nursing sessions) just seems like overkill. Score for “worth the price” reflects the fact that I compared it to our other, similarly absorbent nighttime diapering options (which are 2-3 times the cost of this diaper).
The size small diaper, when trifolded, fit perfectly inside a size 1 Swaddlebees Capri or Imagine Newborn diaper cover with the rise fully extended, a small (sized) Thirsties diaper cover, and the Smart Bottoms Too Smart 3.0 cover on the medium rise setting.
This diaper, when trifolded, is not terribly trim, but it’s also not terribly bulky (it’s perhaps slightly thicker than a traditional cotton prefold, and definitely less bulky than most of our other nighttime diapers!) Scores for “trim” and “liked by skeptics” reflect the properties of a prefold in general, and not anything negative about this particular prefold.

16 weeks / approximately 11.5 pounds

These are made in the USA.

Price: 5.72-8.72

Where to Buy: You can see who carries this diaper by typing in “Geffen Baby” at the Cloth Diaper Retailer Database (www.clothdiaperretailers.com). You can compare retailers based on shipping costs, location, and even specials they have going on. Many of them even post exclusive discounts for Padded Tush Stats followers. If you buy from those with an asterisk (***) next to their name, a portion of your purchase goes towards supporting this site, so thank you in advance!

Have You Tried This Insert?

If you have tried this prefold (or any other prefold, flat, or contour diaper!) please head on over to our Prefolds, Flats and Contours survey page and take a quick, 2-minute survey on how this survey worked for you. Survey responses go towards detailed statistical reviews.

Change-Diapers provided this product for review, but that did not impact the opinions reflected in this post.

Thirsties Duo Hemp Prefold Review

Posted on April 8, 2013 by Tara

For more information on how I try to ensure both fairness to diaper manufacturers and fairness in my reviews, please click here.

When I was looking for the softest prefold out there, everyone seemed to recommend Thirsties prefolds to me. So when Michelle at Green Diaper Demos sent me one, I was THRILLED to test it out. Holy moly guacamole it is soft! So if you are looking for a soft prefold too, then you better read this review. I am going to walk you through the features and tell you how it worked on my two little ones.

Diaper Features

* The prefold is made of hemp jersey, which is so soft (think thick jersey sheets). It is 55% hemp, 45% cotton

* Thirsties claims it is 25% more absorbent than cotton

* The prefold is naturally antimicrobial, which helps with stink issues

*The prefold comes in two sizes. Size one for little babies, size 2 for the larger babies.

* The diaper has a tunnel feature that allows for quick drying time.

Review

My kids are both 26 pounds, although one is 2 and the other is 3 1/2 and skinny. They have been in the normal to heavy wetter phase when reviewing this. Here it is with a GEN-Y Universal Cover over it:

Here is how I would fill out a Padded Tush Stats Inserts Survey based on how it worked on them:

Notes on Ratings:

Fit

I would give it a 5 for fit if I could snappy the prefold, but I was just limited to trifolding it.

Worth the Price

Despite it being super soft and absorbent, it is quite a bit more expensive than a prefold

Soft

This is SO incredibly soft. So soft that it took forever to review because my kids like to go #2 in their softest diapers and so I struggled to get an absorbency rating.

Night Use

I was so happy to get this to work at night. So here are my steps for how to do this.

Open the tunnel and lay whatever insert you want on the far left side. I personally love my Knickernapies SuperDo insert, but always have to stuff it into a pocket diaper because microfiber can’t be up against a baby’s skin.

Then fold the right side to the inside (basically you are trifolding it):

Now instead of folding the left side in, like you might do when trifolding a prefold, instead fold the right side over again:

Now flip everything over. Now you will see that there is only one layer of prefold separating the microfiber from the baby’s bottom. This is important because microfiber absorbs faster than cotton jersey, so it works best the closer it is to the skin (without touching the skin).

Trimness:

This is definitely more trim than my prefolds. There are still trimmer options to put in a cover that are almost just as absorbent, such as the Geffen Baby insert reviewed here.

Price: $8

Where to buy them: You can type in “Thirsties” at the Cloth Diaper Retailer Database and see who carries them, compare shipping, location, and more. If you click on the store link from that site and purchase from the store, a small percentage goes to Padded Tush Stats, so thank you in advance.

Are you a Thirsties Owner? If so, then head on over here to fill out a survey on how you felt about this diaper. You can also fill out surveys for any diaper that you have tried. The more surveys you fill out, the more reviews we get to see. Also, survey responses give you extra entries in giveaways here at Padded Tush Stats

Although GreenDiaper Demos provided this diaper for review, it did not affect the opinions given in this post.

Imagine “SmartFit” Bamboo Prefold Diaper Review

Posted on February 25, 2013 by kenner82

That’s right, this time around you are getting a review from BOTH of us at once! Once we got done rubbing this super-soft prefold against our faces (BEFORE they got used–otherwise that would be gross), we buckled down and did a detailed review of it. So here’s what we have to say about it.

Materials

The diapers are made of 55% bamboo and 45% organic cotton.

Tara: The fabric on this prefold is SO soft compared to other prefolds that I own. I thought it was fantastic.

Bamboo is used because it is soft, absorbent, and has anti-microbial properties. It is also much easier to get clean (and therefore less likely to have problems with “stink”) than synthetic fibers.

The diapers have 8 layers of fabric in the center and 4 layers of fabric on either side of that (the exception is the size XSmall, which has 6 layers in the center and 3 on either side). This means that you get the benefit of having multiple layers in the wetzone while still being able to easily fold and manipulate the diaper because it isn’t overly bulky.

Sizing

These prefolds come in size XSmall (which fits babies from 4-10 pounds), Small (7-17 pounds), Medium (12-25 pounds), and Large (15-30+ pounds).

The diapers are shorter and wider than traditional prefolds, which means that you can choose to use them with a fastener (such as a Boingo, Snappi, or diaper pin), but they are also designed to lay in a diaper cover without needing to be folded down.

Carolyn: I used the size Large on my 27 pound son with a Snappi, trifolded in a diaper cover, and stuffed in a pocket diaper. The diaper worked great with all three methods. While I did need to fold the front down in order to fit in some pocket diapers, it simply provided extra absorbency in the front (where he needed it anyhow!)

Tara: I used the size large on my 26 pound 2-year old son (Carolyn and I have kids that are just weeks apart!) and on my 26 pound 3 1/2 year old for naps/night (yes, my kids weigh the same). I found that the diaper didn’t fit very well in any of my covers when trifolded, so I always had to use a Snappi. You’ll see in the pictures below that it is a tight squeeze when trifolded. I did have the best fit for that in the Swaddlebees Capri, which, as you probably know, is my favorite diaper cover right now. Second best fit was with the Imagine Cover. I didn’t like folding down the trifold like Carolyn did because it created a pretty huge bulge in the front (you can see a sample of this below where I show what it looked like with a Sweet Pea cover). But when I snappied the diaper, I had a fantastic fit with all of my covers.

Survey Responses

Carolyn: Here is how I would fill out a Padded Tush Stats Flats, Prefolds, and Contours survey based on how it worked on my son. He is 23 months old, 27 pounds, and during the time this diaper was in use fluctuated between being a normal to extremely heavy wetter. Scores were averaged across the total time the diaper was in use (see notes below regarding scores).

Notes on my responses:

When this diaper was in use, my son was at either extreme in terms of how much he was drinking (and therefore peeing). When he was at the light to normal wetting levels, this diaper was super absorbent and great for everyday use (it was a 5 for “absorbency” during this time). When he was in a heavy wetting phase, we had problems with leaks (scores for “absorbency” were 2-3 during this time). However, when he is going through a heavy wetting phase, we don’t have ANY daytime diapers that are leak-free, so that should be taken into account when viewing the scores for “absorbency”.
This diaper was a perfect fit on my skinny boy, but might be difficult to use with a fastener with a chunkier child. However, it would still be perfectly functional in a diaper cover or pocket, no matter what size or shape your baby is.
Because bamboo doesn’t quilt up the way cotton prefolds do, it was much trimmer than I expected it to be (without sacrificing absorbency or softness in the process!)
The price of the diapers is on par with sized COTTON prefolds, which means that it is a great deal for a premium fabric in a sized prefold.
For caretakers or people unfamiliar with cloth diapers, prefolds can be more intimidating. Scores for “liked by skeptics” should take this into account (if you have a “skeptic” in your life who is fine with prefolds in general, than this diaper will probably also be fine with them. If you are looking for a daycare friendly diaper, then prefolds in general probably won’t be your first choice. That has nothing to do with this specific diaper, but simply the style of diaper as a whole).
After seeing Tara’s photos of her diaper, I realized that it quilted up significantly more than mine did (hers seems to look like a traditional cotton prefold, whereas mine looked like a normal piece of cloth with perhaps a slight wave in some places). I simply assumed that was how bamboo prefolds were supposed to look, and didn’t notice any effect on their function. Response from Nicki’s Diapers: “In my experience, the bamboo prefolds do not quilt up as much as the cotton prefolds do. They are slightly heavier, floppier, and more trim fitting than cotton prefolds. The difference in quilting could have something to do with the nature of the natural fibers, but it maybe also have to do with the temperature that they are washed and dried at. The warmer the water and dryer, the more they quilt up.”

Tara: Here is how I would fill out a Padded Tush Stats Flats, Prefolds, and Contours survey based on how it worked on my son. He is 2 years old, 26 pounds and is a normal wetter. Scores were averaged across the total time the diaper was in use (see notes below regarding scores). Also, note that so that Carolyn’s response didn’t affect my ratings, I did not look at hers first.

Notes on my ratings:

I am conflicted on trimness…I think it totally depends on how you plan to use it (trifolded or snappied/pinned/boingoed). Snappied it is fine. In the back it is very trim (see picture below), but no matter how you slice it or dice it, a prefold will be bulky in the front.
My biggest issue when answering questions about worth the price, fit, trimness, etc. is how it doesn’t fit in many covers when trifolded (unless I fold it down–and again, that’s bulky to me). I think this is a FANTASTIC prefold for those who either stuff pockets or snappi/pin/boingo. Actually, to be honest, I put it on my son below and under the cover I didn’t snappi or pin it or anything, but I FOLDED it that way. The cover did a great job of securing it in place. So really, you don’t need to buy Snappis, boingos, or pins to make this work.
So as far as recommending to a friend–if you only snappi/pin/boingo then DEFINITELY. Otherwise, you might benefit from using the size smaller than you think, even if your child is pushing the weight range.

Pictures below are with the prefold under an Imagine Cover. These covers are some of my FAVORITE covers. You can see my review of the cover here.

Price: Ranges from 2.25-3.25 for an individual diaper (depending on the size)

Where To Buy: Imagine brand products are made exclusively for Nicki’s Diapers. If you purchase Imagine Products from this link, then we get a small percentage of that money that we use towards reviews and giveaways.

Although Nicki’s Diapers provided this diaper for review, it did not impact the opinions reflected in this post

Megaroo’s Extended Tab Prefolds Review

Posted on March 8, 2012 by Tara

One of my BIGGEST pet peeves when it comes to prefolds is the fact that my son grows out of the waist SO fast. This applies to even when he was a newborn–I bought several different refolds and had little luck being able to snappy them in place. So when I had heard about the extended tab refolds made by Megaroo’s Designs, I honestly thought two words: FLIPPIN’ GENIUS!

Like seriously.

So here is a little bit of info on the diaper:

It is made out of 2 layers of bamboo fleece, with a third layer right down the middle for an added absorbency where it counts

You can also chose to have an additional KNIT fabric on top of that, to make it extra cute

You can also add a soaker that is made of 3 layers of bamboo fleece.

Here is what is cool. The diaper has extended tabs on each side (kind of like wings). For example, the infant diaper is 10.5 inches wide, but when you add the wings, you get a total of 15 inches in width.

So why not just buy a pre fold that is wider? Well, the problem is that it gets bulky if you do that. It normally requires that you roll the prefold at the legs, which can make it look bulky and spreads your baby’s legs apart as if he/she had been riding a horse for ten hours.

Here is the sizing and pricing taken from the Megaroo’s website:

$8 Infants- fit 8-14lbs -13″ in length and 10.5″ in width, and the tabs are 15″ total in width.

$10 Mid-Range- fit 14-24lbs -15″ in length, 12″ in width, and the tabs are 18″ total in width

$12 Med/Long- fit 24-34lbs- 16.5″ in length, 13″ in width, and the tabs are 18″ total in width.

$12 Premium- fit 34-45lbs -18″ in length, 14″ in width, and the tabs are 20″ total in width.

Snaps can be added for $2 extra per prefold

Review

So let me give you my take on how it worked on my kids. One child is a skinny toddler who is a normal to heavy wetter and the other one is a regular to chunky baby who is a normal to heavy wetter.

Ratings are on a scale of 1 to 5 (1 being low, 5 being high)

Fit: 3 (it was still a little difficult to get it snug around the legs, a little tougher than other prefolds I have, but not bad)

Absorbency: 5 (WOW, so absorbent!)

Trimness: 3

Worth the Price: 3 (if you use prefolds because you LIKE prefolds, and not necessarily because they are inexpensive, then this would be great for you. Otherwise, you could spend the $8 and get a pocket diaper like a Kawaii that doesn’t require that you buy an additional cover on top of it. I will say that this is far more absorbent than any $8 pocket diaper you will probably buy).

Nap: 5

Night: 5 (I was SHOCKED that this actually worked on my heavy wetter. Now, mind you, my kids are both in between normal and heavy wetter right now, but it worked pretty well. You could buy the booster for added absorbency, or use something you have on hand)

Would Recommend to a Friend: 5 (this is a GREAT idea for someone who likes prefolds)

Pros: Cute, easy to snappy, cute colors/prints, soft against baby’s skin, well made

Cons: takes a long time to dry, can appear bulky

Where to buy:

~~You can buy these from Megaroosdesigns.com. On Hyena Cart you can find in stock items and package sets for discounts up to 15% off retail.~~

Update 6/7/13: Megaroo’s Designs has closed shop. If you are interested in purchasing this diaper, you may be able to find some for sale used.

Comments from Company

If you want to personalize your colors or prints you have to go to my website www.megaroosdesigns.com and checkout through there. I have over 150 prints instock to choose from and 12 different serger thread colors for the au naturel prefolds!

Have you tried out this pre fold?

If you have tried out this prefold, or any cloth diaper, please head on over to the “Surveys” section of this website and fill out some surveys. Responses contribute towards detailed statistical reviews of diapers. Thanks in advance!

Megaroo’s Designs provided this diaper for review, but it did not affect any opinions discussed in this post. For information on how I ensure both fairness to diaper makers and honesty in reviews, please read here.

How to Save Money on Diapers Series – Use Prefolds and Flats

Posted on February 13, 2012 by Tara

This is part of the Saving Money on Diapers series. For more articles on this topic, click here. There’s lots of lingo in here, so if you need a definition, just click here for the Cloth Diaper Dictionary.

I have a confession for you…are you ready for it? Although I have tried over 100 different diaper styles in the 2+ years of diapering my kids, and although I run all kinds of stats on many different diapers, if I were to do it ALL over again, do you know what I would use?

Prefolds

No joke.

When I started cloth diapering, I had two goals: save money and have a trim cloth diaper. So I tried a whole bunch of diapers and didn’t DARE try prefolds–that snappy scared the crud out of me. But when I started to cloth diaper my little newborn, I knew I didn’t have much of a choice since I had a limited budget. So I got a dozen prefolds (and a few pockets, AIOs, AI2s for reviewing). I fell in love with the prefolds. There were days where I took a break from reviewing and just enjoyed putting on prefolds. No leaks. Easy to use. And, surprisingly, I never snappied myself to my kid. And it sounds like I am not alone–when I asked you what your favorite diaper was for a newborn 43% said prefolds.

Also, when I asked you what you did to save money on cloth diapers, most of you said to use prefolds (or flats) and a cover.

So in this article, I want to show you how much you could save by using prefolds and flats.

There are other benefits of using these. Those who use these tend to have fewer issues with the washing–they have to do fewer strips and deal with less stink issues. These diapers clean easier, are less prone to buildup than stay dry ones, and, in the event that you need to strip them, you can just boil them since they don’t have any waterproof materials like PUL.

So let’s break down the cost (now remember, these are ROUGH estimates):

If you were to use prefolds all the way from birth to potty training (getting a little larger size for when baby is bigger, then that would cost you $200 total (excluding washing expenses and wipe expenses). I have only needed two sizes for my kids, so hopefully that applies to you too. My favorite prefolds are the Osocozy Unbleached Prefolds. Add two or three snappys to that stash, and it is just under $210.

Flats are a little less expensive, at $154 (about $160 with the snappy). Folding can take up a bit more time though. I have a table of different flat folds to help you out if you decide to do this. You want to get creative? This AWESOME blogger at 2 Sleeping Babies was able to diaper her baby for FREE with items from around her house! Plus in this post, you also see some suggestions she has for cloth diapering a baby for just $51.55!

There is also great article here with information on how to cloth diaper by doing things like using JUST a t-shirt (no snappy needed!).

You could do both. You can use prefolds for the newborn, then buy the AIOs and Pockets and other goodies for when your baby grows out of them. That costs roughly $500 (that isn’t taking into account what you would save by buying used or doing Swagbucks).

Now, mind you, these estimates are not taking into account savings of buying and selling used, so you could save a little more overall.But this could show you that you could diaper your baby for UNDER $300 (after you take into account washing costs, wipes, etc.). You could make it under $200 if you handwash your diapers.

Do you have any tips for diapering a baby inexpensively? I want to hear them!