Review: GroVia All-In-One Diaper*
Product Name: GroVia All-In-One
Company:GroVia
Country of Origin: China**
Materials: Outer: 100% Polyester TPU (Thermoplastic Polyurethane); Inner: 100% Organic Cotton
Diaper Type: One-Size (OS) All-In-One (AIO)
Width of Gusset: 14cm (5.5")
Weight Range: 10-35+ lbs
Height of front rise at each setting (approx.): Small -- 16.5cm (6.5"); Medium -- 18cm (7"); Large -- 19cm (7.5")
Dry weight: 124g (without soaker); 154g (with soaker)
Saturated weight***: 302g (without soaker); 402g (with soaker)
Absorbency: 178g (without soaker); 248g (with soaker)
Cost: $26.00
The first thing I noticed about this side-snapping diaper was its sleek profile and trim fit. This is a lush diaper -- it is soft and stretchy and fits my 15lb 3mos old like a well-worn glove on the smallest snap-down setting. It is narrower between the legs than any other one-size diaper I've seen and the over-all fit doesn't seem much bulkier (maybe even less!) than a wet disposable.
The side-snap construction cuts down on the bulk a lot of diaper have in front and make it fit much better under clothing. The diaper has a sewn in soaker "tongue", with an extra snap-in booster to add to the absorbent "oomph!" of this diaper. In this picture, Boy#3 is wearing this AIO on the shortest rise, second-smallest side-snap setting, with the extra soaker snapped inside.
The stretchy wings and generous number of snaps make it easy to get a snug fit. The organic cotton interior is as soft as butter -- I love that this diaper doesn't have a stay-dry interior, as I want my Little Dude to feel wet when he pees. I can easily add a piece of fleece to the inside if I feel I need it, however, without impairing the fit or function of the diaper.
The construction of the diaper does mean that it takes longer to dry than a pocket diaper -- it takes about the same amount of time to line-dry as a Kiwi Pie bamboo fitted diaper.
I was dubious about the manufacturer's claim that this diaper wouldn't wick. I have had problems with similarly-designed All-in-Ones in the past, and was nervous the elastic around the leg would "roll out" and result in wet clothing. I was pleasantly surprised to find that their anti-wicking claim is well-founded! I actually found the elastic tended to "roll in", instead. The only time I had an issue with wicking it was clearly "user error" as the baby had fallen asleep in a wet diaper and I didn't want to wake him back up to change him. By the time he awoke and I got to the diaper, it was fully saturated -- wet beyond wet -- and my only surprise was that it hadn't wicked more!
Downsides of this diaper, as far as I can see, are primarily the sewn-in construction -- over time this sort of construction can lead to grit building up between the cotton interior and the waterproofed exterior, possibly creating odor issues -- and the very limited range of colours. At current time, this diaper is only available in Vanilla, Cosmos (pale pink), and Ice (pale blue). I would like to see it out in stronger colours, but the manufacturer has let me know that it will be releasing it in some prints before long.
As most All-In-Ones share this same style of construction, I don't consider it a huge negative. I really like the Vanilla shade -- it's a lovely warm cream colour. I can't comment on how well this diaper might fit an older baby, but the front rise is actually 1.5cm (0.5") taller than the bumGenius 4.0 one-size pocket diaper at each setting. The stretch in the side tabs should help it to accommodate a toddler quite well, but I would really like to see it on a 2yr old before throwing my weight behind the fit on the upper end of the size range.
Something that stood out to me when I was noting the diaper specifications, is that the waterproofing is not the traditional PUL lining. The waterproofing in this diaper is TPU (Thermoplastic Polyurethane). TPU differs from PUL in that the waterproof layer is applied with heat instead of chemicals. I was concerned about the potential for delamination, so I contacted Kim Ormsby at GroVia for clarification and she explained it for me:
TPU is thermoplastic Urethane. This means that the plastic (waterproof) layer is HEAT laminated to the knit outer, not solvent laminated. PUL is polyurethane laminated. We use this heat method as it uses fewer chemicals/solvents and we feel is better both for baby and our environment!! [...]
TPU when done properly is extremely durable. We've not had a single problem with "delamination".
Overall, I am very impressed with this AIO. I love the overall look and the stretchy fit means that Boy#3 can kick and move to his heart's content without any restriction. If it only had a pocket, it might supplant the Tots Bots Easy Fit as my favorite AIO -- as it is, I declare a tie!
Baby and I give this diaper 4 thumbs up!
*Diaper provided free of charge by The Extraordinary Baby Shoppe in exchange for review.
**The label states "Fairly and conscientiously made in China."
*** Clean, dry diaper thoroughly soaked in water and then allowed to hang for 15min, until no more water dripped from fabric.