Bumgenius - Freetime Review

I tested the Bumgenius Freetime for the Mother and Baby awards. I already owned a Freetime and loved it so knew we'd get on well with it.

Kellan in a Clementine Freetime

As from previous entries you'll know Kellan is a heavy wetter and most pockets had a hard time coping with him. The Freetimes cope amazingly well, in fact I was surprised they coped as well as they did as other Bumgenius nappies have struggled with him. They even cope with runny breastfed baby poo.

The Freetime is available in aplix/velcro or popper fastenings which is great if you have a toddler who loves undoing velcro you can then just opt for poppers or velcro is great for getting a fab fit on a younger baby. The Freetime is a birth to potty nappy so grows with your baby. I have poppered versions and have gotten on great with them. It's easy to adjust the Freetime to fit your little one with the popper system on the front of the nappy. For a birth to potty nappy the Freetimes aren't too bulky which is great and we could even get jeans over these without any hassle which we get problems with most birth to potty nappies.

The Freetimes aren't like the usual pocket nappy. The inserts are sewn in but fold out to the back and to the front which is brilliant for drying. They are one of my fastest line drying nappies in our large stash. These inserts are also great for changing where you need more absorbancy as they have little sewn in creases you can fold under etc. The fold out inserts also means no fiddly stuffing in a small opening in a pocket and means  once dry these nappies are folded in no time at all, my 6 year old can even do these.

The Freetimes wash well we've found it's very hard to stain them and usually sun light can get out anything that happens to get left behind after washing. They keep their shape and the inserts haven't worn or greyed at all and we've been using these since last summer.

The Freetimes are available in plain colored pul's and two patterned puls

    

    

   

I tend to reach for our Freetimes first in our stash they are just great all rounders. I highly reccommend Freetimes we love ours and I wish we had more in our stash.

Kellan in an Albert Freetime

Bumgenius Freetimes

Made By Amber - Review

In September last year I had a panic. I wanted to get Kellan a custom made nappy for his first birthday and I was close to leaving it too late. Some WAHM's  (work at home mums) have long waiting lists for customs or take a good 3-4 weeks for a custom to be made. I had a design in mind but it wasn't an easy design. I went on a search via Facebook on WAHM nappy pages messaging them asking them if they could help. I had a couple say the design was too difficult or their waiting lists for a custom were full and I started loosing hope. That's when Made By Amber messaged me back and came to the rescue.

I'd sent an image I wanted a rough recreation of this was the image;

Those in the know will know this is a Creeper from the game Minecraft.

Now I'd seen that Amber had made patchwork nappies in the past and she said she'd have a go at it the best she could. So Amber got to work and I waited not knowing how it'd turn out or if it would be possible but Amber surprised me.

The finished Creeper nappy

 Back

Front

Amber had got the design spot on. I was over the moon and couldn't wait for Kellan's birthday so he could wear it.

Getting a custom with Amber was great. Her prices aren't over the top and she slotted me in which I will be forever thankful for as I know how busy custom lists are. She made the nappy in 2 weeks which I wasn't expecting either and that meant all that rushing about and worry that I'd left it too late was not needed and the nappy got here in plenty of time for Kellan's birthday. Amber was always easy to get hold of and easy to talk to. She was lovely to work with.

The nappy is made from minky and is so soft and fluffy. The fit is brilliant on Kellan and he has plenty of growing room left too which is excellent so he gets loads of wear from it.

If you are looking for a custom made nappy then Made By Amber is definitely a place to check out. Here's her Facebook page - Made By Amber and her website - madebyamber.co.uk

Bambino Mio - Mio Solo Review

So here's my first review for the reuseable nappies I tested for the Mother & Baby Awards 2012.

Back in 2008 when Jorja was a toddler we tried out Bambino Mio prefolds. We didn't have such a great time with them sadly. The wrap would fold in on itself at the belly and cause wicking which defeated the point of wearing them so we gave up on them.

The Mio Solo is a relatively new nappy on the market. There are no prefolds and wraps involved this time it's a simple pocket nappy with a fold out insert. It's a one size pocket and claims to be from birth upwards. The colours are based on retro sweets from parma violets, flying saucers to cola cubes. Bambino Mio have very recently released prints too.

The Mio Solo

When we tested the Mio Solo Kellan was 8 months old and he's not big for his age, his waist is quite wide but his thighs aren't that chunky which has caused problems for us with nappies before. I had to set the Mio Solo on the medium setting for Kellan as they are quite generous in sizing. Kellan had just started moving on to the large setting on one size nappies around then and he still had plenty of room for growth at that medium setting.

So Kellan had an ok fit with the Mio Solo. The waist was great for him especially the velcro which allowed for more range of fit but there was one very big draw back with having velcro as a fastener for us........ yes Kellan loves undoing velcro and laughing as I run to go do it up before we have a puddle on the floor, don't you just love babies lol. Now this wouldn't really be much of a problem if your baby wears clothes a lot but Kellan doesn't really wear much except a t shirt or if we go out then I dress him. So yes it was annoying for us. The fit around the legs was another problem. As I said before his thighs aren't that big and we had gape at the legs, aka I could easily put my finger between the nappy edge and the inside without having to stretch the elastic. This posed a big problem 1. he's a heavy wetter and he'd leak quickly from the leg and 2. he is breastfed and his poo's, sorry you can't escape the poo talk when it comes to nappies can you, were runny and so we had escaping poo, booo!

But............ I also used the Mio Solo on Gwen who at the time had just turned 3. She seems to have had a sudden growth in the hip area which has meant a lot of her stash, collection of nappies for those who aren't there with the lingo yet, has become useless until Kellan grows in to them. The Mio Solo fit Gwen with room, not a lot of nappies are like that with Gwen so I was impressed. Gwen can undo velcro but with her being older she knows to leave it alone so she gets on well with them. Gwen used to be a heavy wetter but seems to be less so as she's gotten older and she can go overnight in a Mio Solo which Kellan stood no chance of unless we wanted him soaked with wee in the night. She is in the large setting and the rise, measurement from the top of the front of the nappy down between the legs and up to the top of the back of the nappy, still had plenty of room.

Now when it came to washing the Mio Solo it was simple. Fold the velcro tabs on to the washing tab and put in the machine along with the other dirty nappies. The fold out insert makes it easier and quicker to dry. We don't have a tumble drier so it takes a while for our clean nappies to dry and when compared to other brands the Mio Solo is one of the fastest to dry. It's also easy to get the insert back in the pocket. You just put your hand in the little pocket at the end of the insert and push the insert in to the bottom and then tuck the flap over at the back of the nappy. Then just velcro the Mio Solo up and put it with the rest of your stash until it's next use.

So in conclusion the Mio Solo worked better on our older child mostly due to it's sizing. If there were a popper version of the Mio Solo then I'd be willing to try them again with Kellan now that he's grown a little.

It's definately worth giving them a shot especially if you see them on offer or on pre-loved nappy groups. Don't invest all out as you may not get on with them but that can be said for every nappy as each baby gets on with each brand differently.

Kellan in the Mio Solo

Bebesnuggles Fleece Soaker Review

I've used cloth nappies now since Jorja was 5 weeks old back in 2006. I've always used pul wraps when using two part nappy systems.


Recently my other nappy using friends have been raving about fleece soakers instead of pul wraps. I was intrigued and also a little sceptic and wanted to try them but put it off.


I finally got around to buying a Bebesnuggles soaker for Gwen and kicked myself for not having done so sooner.


I ordered an XL size for Gwen and when it arrived it looked huge. I tried it on her over a fitted nappy (a nappy that requires a wrap) and it looked baggy in the crotch area. She wore it during the day just to see how it lasted on her and it managed 5 hours easily without any leaks.


It was washed and it then shrank a little and it fits better now. The fleece is still soft and looks great. To wash you simply throw it in the machine either with dirty nappies or with normal clothing and because it's fleece it dries super fast.


Gwen is a heavy wetter and most pul wraps can't handle her. The Bebesnuggles soaker goes over night without any problems or leaks. It's fantastic and she loves the little sheep on it.


I cannot recommend these soakers enough. They do exactly what they claim to do and regret not having bought these before. I've even bought Bubs a small and medium sized soaker for when they arrive and hoping to get more.

Gwen in her Bebesnuggles fleece soaker

Bebesnuggles are available from;


Bebesnuggles.co.uk

Babybots.co.uk

Etsy