GREEN CHIC. That is how I would describe myself. There are so many stereotypes that come along with the crunchy.granola.earthy label & I really don’t fit into any of them…except that I care about chemicals & where they go. I care about what chemicals go in and on my body (and my baby’s) and where they go when I am done with them. Chemicals are why I chose to cloth diaper my girl. & 17 months later, I can still say she has never had a diaper rash. I haven’t met another mother who can say that…& I owe it to my cloth diapers. I love them.
But sometimes, cloth diapers really overwhelm me. There are so many different kinds and the lingo is not something that makes it easy for everyone to understand. To keep it simple I stuck to using just one brand, FuzziBunz. However, two of my friends introduced me to a different kind of diaper that quickly became part of my stash because they met a need that my FuzziBunz just couldn’t: they allowed me to travel without ever washing a cloth diaper or resorting to sposies…which is code for disposable diapers for the rest of the non CDing world. ;) If you happened to miss my FuzziBunz post that went viral, you can catch up here: An Accidental Passion | Cloth Diapering for the Modern Mom.
I love my cloth diapers. I really do. But I am not one to seek out a laundry machine in a hotel or at a campground just to wash my FuzziBunz. Vacation is vacation. Add on the extra baggage fees that airlines charge for bringing more stuff and it is just not realistic for me to travel with my fluff. So then what?
Enter the FLIP DIAPER!
WHAT ARE FLIP DIAPERS?
Flip Diapers are designed to act as a diaper with options. They consist of two parts (1) the shell and (2) the part that catches the waste. Part two is what makes these diapers unique, as there are three different options: (1) a stay-dry microfiber pad (washable), (2) a hemp organic pad (washable) OR (3) a disposable pad (dye free, fragrance free & Oeko-Tex certified). Score one for versatility, Flip!
HOW DO THEY WORK?
Flips are one size diapers. You adjust them with a snap system for length and tightness. The shorter you want them, the more vertical snaps you pop together. There are two rows that fold up, for three different length adjustments. The waist can be adjusted very easily. Here is a great visual.
below you can see three sizing options:
smallest, medium & largest.
Unlike FuzziBunz, Flips are NOT pocket diapers. There is no stuffing. If you use the cloth part of the diaper (that I have no experience using) you would lay it in the shell and the pad itself touches your baby. The microfiber pad is two sided, one side is covered with fleece. So, much like the FuzziBunz fleece pocket, it is fleece that is touching your baby, not just the microfiber pad. The hemp pad does not have a fleece covered side, and I have heard not so great things about it, but I have no first hand experience because I do not use this as a cloth diaper. I use it because of the third option…
A DISPOSABLE CLOTH DIAPER??
The reason I use the Flip is because you can purchase disposable pads (kind of like giant maxi pads) to use in the shell. Your baby will go potty on this pad and you can either flush it or throw it away, depending on the brand you use. The pad sits loosely in the shell, with no fasteners. You can add as many pads as you wish for more leakage protection.
I bought gDiaper inserts (gDiapers are like the Flip, but velcro & I am anti-velcro diapers) because the Flip inserts were totally sold out when I first needed them. I have yet to run out so I have not tried the Flip brand inserts. gDiaper disposable inserts, pictured, are supposed to dissolve in the toilet before you flush. Because I do not always have the time to wait, I typically throw it away. It is biodegradable & compostable. To satisfy all you chic hippies. ;)
gDiaper pad…pad + Flip shell
the pad tucks in the little pockets on the ends of the Flip
SO WHAT DO I BUY?
The Flip shell: I purchased three shells (you can buy them without any cloth inserts) and I have never needed any more than that. They come in seven colors. The other five are not girly. ;)
The pad: I have only used the gDiaper disposable pads, as explained above. I can find the gDiaper disposable pads at Babies R Us & some WalMarts, which means you should be able to arrange to buy them at your destination, so you don’t have to use valuable suitcase space. You can also buy the Flip disposable pads, which were designed for this diaper, but they are NOT flushable.
I bought everything at the fab Baby Earth, which is located near IKEA in Austin. It happened to be on our way on the road trip…
HOW DO I CARE FOR THE SHELL?
I found myself needing to change the shell every four changes or so, depending on how wet or messy the diapers were. Because it was laminated, I could rinse it and even hand wash it in the sink if I wanted to. I just threw it in the wash with the regular laundry. Since there was no cloth to acquire buildup, I figured regular detergent would be fine & I didn’t have a problem using dreft.
THE DIRT
I am a lover of my FuzziBunz and they are my gold standard. These will never replace them, but they will stand in for traveling. Here’s why I won’t switch:
- The snaps. I really missed having a second row of hip snaps like the FuzziBunz do. I had difficulty getting the Flip tight enough around the thigh, as the extra waist ends would slip down.
- The pads. The pads are not fastened anywhere, so they have a tendency to slide around. This is not so great if you have a #2 diaper. I found that often the surface area of the shell was not totally covered by the pad, but the pad did absorb enough that we did not have leaks. We did have a couple pretty messy #2 dipes, but everything still stayed inside the diaper.
- My FuzziBunz double stuffed nighttime diapers were more absorptive. I still doubled up the disposable pads at night and we didn’t have leaks, but they were completely saturated.
Overall, I prefer using these to using disposable diapers and they are definitely much cheaper. I would recommend them for traveling, but not for daily use with the disposable liner.
OTHER GREAT USES FOR THE FLIP
- when a friend or babysitter is watching your CD’d baby–this way they can throw the mess away!
- for a daycare that will not take CD kiddos
- for when you (oopsie) run out of CDs because you forgot to do laundry :x
- for moms or dads who are not yet ready to make the full plunge to CDing, but are looking for something inbetween CDs & disposables
- for moms who cannot convince dad that CDing is the way to go…& needs something to break him in ;)
These are the snaps of the Flip vs. the FuzziBunz. The second row hip snap makes a HUGE difference.
I know many of you are familiar with FuzziBunz, so here are the supplies side by side. That is the large FB pad.
The pad is bigger, but it is still not as absorptive as the FuzziBunz micofiber.
The Flip diapers are wider & longer. (FuzziBunz pictured is set at 2 & 3 on the elastics)
Whew…you still with me?!
How do you CD on the go? Have you tried the Flips with the microfiber pads? Are there other products that you find superior to the Flips? I would love to hear thoughts from all you fab CDing mamas!