Review: Barnyard Bummz Fitted*
Product Name: Barnyard Bummz Fitted (size large)
Company:Barnyard Bummz
Country of Origin: Handmade in Canada
Materials: Diaper: 100% cotton exterior (print); 90% bamboo/8% cotton/2% poly french terry (absorbent interior); 70% bamboo/28% organic cotton/2% poly velour top. Soakers: 90% bamboo/8% cotton/2% poly french terry (absorbent interior); 70% bamboo/28% organic cotton/2% poly velour top.
Diaper Type: Fitted, size large
Width of Gusset: 15.5cm (6″)
Weight Range: 18lb - 30lb
Height of front rise (approx.): 16.5 cm (6.5")
Snap-in Soaker: 4 layers, contoured; 12.5cm (5") x 35.5cm (14")
Overnight Soaker: 3 layers; 9.5cm (3.75") x 54cm (21.25")
Dry weight: 179g (with snap-in soaker); 230g (with overnight soaker)
Saturated weight**: 511g (with snap-in soaker); 655g (with overnight soaker)
Absorbency: 332ml (with snap-in soaker); 425ml (with overnight soaker)
Retail Price: $32 (diaper & snap-in soaker); $6 (optional overnight soaker)
I've been looking forward to trying one of these WAHM diapers for some time and picked up two in March. Made by a mom in Eastern Ontario, they've become very popular very quickly, and I've been admiring them for awhile. As with all bamboo diapers, maximum absorbency isn't reached until outside the 5-7 wash threshold, so I've been chomping at the bit to do this review for a few weeks now!
Straight off, I have to say I love the variety of cute, fun prints on the exterior of these diapers -- mine have monsters and Dr. Seuss characters. I also appreciate the great absorbency of this diaper, allowing me to use it on my 23mos old without a cover. There's nothing worse in cloth diapering than having fluff with an awesome print you have to hide under a cover.
In absorbency testing, this diaper was able to soak up 425ml of water when using the optional overnight soaker. That's impressive to me and well worth the extra bulk. It can absorb 1.85 times its own weight in water (1.44 times, without the overnight soaker). That works out to an overall cost of $0.09/ml, with the overnight soaker ($0.10/ml, without). To see how that compares to other diapers, please refer to my Absorbency Ranking list. This diaper makes a fantastic overnight diaper, if you don't mind covering it up and using it at a time of day when no one gets to see it!
I must note that when I refer to "bulk" with this diaper, its more in relation to the overall density of the diaper. I don't find it takes up anymore room in a diaper cover than our large Sandys or our Goodmamas. It is a heavy diaper, though, due to the many layers of fabric it contains. The diaper itself is a layer of cotton print, and 2 layers of bamboo. The snap-in insert is 4 layers, and the optional overnight soaker is another 3 layers (and meant to be folded and placed as needed). I fold the overnight soaker in half, giving me a total of 13 layers of fabric in the wet zone for ultimate soaking ability. It's impressively dense.
Other things I like about this diaper:
The gusset and rear rise casings are top-stitched -- no fabric sliding around where it shouldn't. This is a pet peeve of mine -- particularly with all-in-ones -- so I was happy to see how tidy this diaper looks. I also appreciate that the elastic itself isn't top-stitched. We don't like to think of blown elastic, but it happens and it's great to see that the casings are generous enough in size that new elastic can easily be added. The elastic has a juicy, generous stretch, making a snug (but not tight) fit easy to achieve. The tops of the soakers are also top-stitched down the middle -- this helps them wash and dry flat, which is really nice from an esthetic point of view.
The inside of the diaper and the tops of the two soakers are a luscious bamboo velour. Velour always stays soft and it slow to show wear, despite repeated washing -- this prolongs the good condition of the diaper, helping it maintain a decent resale value. When spending this sort of cash on a diaper, resale is always a concern.
This diaper closes with a single row of horizontal snaps (10 on front panel, two on each tab, plus an overlap snap on one tab). I'm not generally a fan of single row snaps, as they've a tendency towards wing droop, but despite being on the 3rd-smallest setting (smallest: overlapped tabs; 2nd: snapped at middle pair) I haven't had any problems. At the largest setting (one tab snap on the outermost front panel snap) the tab snaps are exposed to the skin -- this could be a concern for shorter, rounder babies than mine.
The diaper seems to be sized quite large. The size range is listed as 18lbs - 30lbs, but my ~27lb guy is at one of the smaller settings. On the one hand, this is great as it means he'll gets lots of wear out of it. On the other hand, someone looking to use it with an 18lb baby would find it quite big. Barnyard Bummz is now making a one-size diaper with the same overall size as the size large fitted, but with a snap-down rise. I would recommend the under-24lb crowd consider that option instead.
A few nit-picky things:
Other than the manufacturer label on the front panel of the diaper, there is no labeling with material content or washing instructions. This would be a nice addition. A "Made In Canada" label somewhere would also be a great thing to have.
The optional overnight soaker seems a bit unevenly cut and serged. This doesn't affect the absorbency at all, but it contrasts poorly with the wonderful craftsmanship on the diaper and snap-in soaker. The snap-placement on the front panel is slightly uneven, but this can occur in even factory-made diapers.
Overall, I'm extremely happy with the appearance and performance of this diaper. It functions amazingly well for overnights and is cute enough that I get a kick out of coordinating it with t-shirts and matching leggings. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone looking to diaper on a budget, but wouldn't hesitate to suggest if for people looking for an accent diaper for their stash or to people needing a bulletproof overnight diapering solution.
Boy#3 and I give this diaper 4 thumbs up!
*Disclosure: I purchased this product from Barnyard Bummz for personal use and have not been compensated for this review in any way. I like this diaper so much that I now own three!
** Clean, dry diaper thoroughly soaked in water and then allowed to hang for 15min, until no more water dripped from fabric.