review - bitti tutto

I have been wanting to try Bitti Tutto for a long while now - and was lucky enough to have my sister send me/Emersyn one for her birthday this year. 

The first thing that caught my attention with the Tutto was the lush minky outer fabric - all I wanted to do was rub it against my face, I wonder who can even think of using disposables, when cloth diapers can be made out of such gorgeous fabric.

The Tutto is a one size fits most, snap in diaper - the absorbent pads are snapped in, meaning that if the 'shell' [ie the cover of the diaper] doesn't get wet or soiled, it can be used again.  I did find the Tutto was a little fiddly at first - and I had a little bit of confusion with regard to how to actually use the soakers... I knew they snapped in, but I wasn't sure which soaker went on top or bottom, and which snaps to use to make the soakers suit Emersyn the best.  It didn't take that long though, before I worked out the right combination for my little girl - and I really like that they are so adjustable.  I think you could quite easily have two in diapers at the same time, and just stick with this diaper - even a boy and a girl, you just need to adjust the absorbent pads.  It can take some trial and error to get it right though.  I love the internal gusset - which acts as a 'poo fence', I think it's an excellent feature of the diaper, and I wish I had had one to use when Emersyn was a newborn and still in the liquid poop stage of things. 

I must say I'm not a huge fan of the fit for MY daughter... being that I have some [large] Bitti D'Lish diapers, and love them - and their fit, I figured the Tutto would be a similar size on the largest setting, however they seemed to be a lot more fitting [ie not as big] around the crotch area, and around the waist they are a lot smaller too.  I find that with the D'Lish, the two tabs meet up in the middle, but with the Tutto they were done up on the last two snaps.  Admittedly Emersyn does have a chunky build - she is well over the average size for a child her age, so this may have something to do with it.  She is also not walking yet, so I wonder if when she does start walking, and trims down - the Tutto may fit better around the waist.

Emersyn wore the diaper for 3.5 hours, and I was very impressed to see that she had no leaks in that time - that was including a nap, which is when ALL of our leaks happen.  I often find that minky diapers leak quite easily, but I think because of the sturdy leg elastic and also the internal gusset, leaks would probably be hard to come by in a Tutto, worn under normal circumstances [ie changed regularly].

Another thing that has impressed me with the Tutto is that it washes up really well.  Emersyn has put her Tutto to the test with regard to soiling it - there were a few occasions I was sure there would be a stain - but no, we still haven't had even the slightest discolouration after it's been washed.  Drying time is something that I expect to be slow when it comes to air drying in winter, but the Tutto soaker pads seems to dry relatively quickly - and in the drier they dry just as fast as the rest of the diapers in with it.  The fact the soaker pads come away from the shell of the diaper helps a lot with this - and the long soaker pad dries a lot faster than other inserts or soaker pads that would absorb the same amount of liquid - because of the fact you fold it in half when it is in the diaper, meaning it [the pad] doesn't have to be as bulky.     

Sadly the price of the diaper [34.00 USD, 40.00 NZD] means that having a whole stash of these isn't a possibility for me - being on a tight budget my 'allowance' for buying a diaper is more half of that price... but it doesn't mean it isn't a lovely present, or treat every once in a while....  I think the price is worth it though, they're a lovely diaper, made out of beautiful fabric - and they were extremely well made, and they certainly work well... anything that can contain Emersyn's super pee is A grade in my books.

Now for the ratings...
price - 1/5
fit - 3/5
leaks - 5/5 [night time use not tested yet...]
ease of use - 4/5 [once I had the soakers worked out it was easy to use]
washing - 5/5
TOTAL RATING - 18/25

a year of cloth love - part 2

... continued...

a 'wahm' diaper, again from the Nappy Network [tnn]

seven months and showing off her first BabyLand diaper

eight months old and showing off a Fuzzibunz pocket

a couple of weeks after the February earthquake, in her first Itti Bitti D'Lish

nine and a bit months old - showing off her new Bummis SWW

still living away from home because of the earthquake.. this time in a mint D'Lish

almost eleven months old, showing off her standing skills - and her BumGenius pocket

the cheekiest kid in all of Christchurch... eleven months old and in another Bitti D'Lish

ONE YEAR OLD... showing off her purple Bitti D'Lish with baby cousin, Bronte [almost 4 months].. neither was in a great mood...

Showing off a Monkey Doodlez minky pocket, and rocking some cow print BabyLegs

today... a few minutes ago to be precise.. in my favourite pocket, as seen in part one of this little blog entry

and that really brings you up to date... from itti bitti baby - to Itti Bitti diaper lover... I am looking forward to the next year in cloth, and will see you same place, same time in one year :)

we are family.... [an itti bitti family]

My sister [as I believe I have mentioned] has started using Bitti Tutto diapers on my niece, Bronte - and I finally got to have a proper play with them, last week when I had the honour of babysitting Bronny for the first time.  She - of course, was a total dream and if anything my own children were tougher... there was a rocky moment or two when Emersyn and Bronte both decided to reach fever-pitch with their crying, at the same time.

OF COURSE, being the clothaholic - and ittibittiaholic that I am, I couldn't resist putting the girls in their matching coloured Itti Bitti's [I have to confess that I had packed all of Emersyn's Itti Bittis, that I knew Bronte had the same colour of] in order to take their first matching-diaper photo.

It happened to be during the rocky moments I mentioned above - neither girl was in a great mood, but nevertheless here is the photo of the Itti Bitti cousins....

Emersyn in her D'Lish and Bronte in her Tutto

Rockin' her yellow Tutto

and just because I can, here is a photo of Bronte in her beautiful yellow Tutto [of which Emersyn has one in the same colour].  It was lovely to see both girls rocking the minky - but also doing their part for the environment, at such young ages.  Of course neither of them realise the impact they are having - but all the same, I think it's sweet.  I look at these luscious, soft, vibrant, utterly beautiful diapers, and feel so so happy that I made the decision to start using cloth... and that my darling baby sister eventually came to the 'dark but fluffy side' too

A fluffy day in the life of Emersyn

Here's a chance to see Emmy's fluffy wardrobe for a whole day!  Enjoy!

Good morning everyone!  Time for my first diaper change

"buh-bye" FuzziBunz

& hello pink (dyed) prefold!

... no prefold is complete without a cover (Bummis Super Whisper Wrap, Froggy print) - and on those cold days, a pair of babylegs!

Up from my nap - and it's time for an Itti Bitti (Bitti D'Lish) in Turqouise... Mummy didn't plan on the turquoise diaper matching the Turquoise in my babylegs!

now I'm up to no good.. but a least I look cute!

now my mean Mummy is making me have another nap...  I"m in my PeaPods this time - and funnily enough, my red diaper matches the red in my babylegs!

up from my nap & now I'm all nekkid - bar my diaper, ready for my bath!

nice & sparkly clean, showing off my BumGenius diaper - and showing Mummy how clever I am getting at standing up!

saying "buh-bye" to the people on TV... Mummy says it is time for bed...

having my bottle while Mummy changes my diaper... first step is a TotsBots Bamboozle

followed by a[nother] Bummis SWW - Jungle print this time!

and now I'm in bed... I don't want to but *yawn* I'm a bit tired... Non-night everyone!

Fluffy Wardrobe - 13 April 2011

Today so far, Emersyn has worn.....

Snazzipants prefold & Bummis 'bloom' SWW
Mint green Itti Bitti - Bitti D'Lish AIO
Snazzipants fitted & Bummis 'ladybug' SWW
Bluberry bamboo fitted & Bummis 'flowers' SWW

to be continued!
(you can tell it was insert stripping day today!)

Fluffy Wardrobe - 2nd April 2011

Just for fun...
today Emersyn has been wearing:
- Ecobubs woolen pocket, in baby pink & brown
- Ecobubs woolen pocket, in baby blue & brown
- Itti Bitti Bitti D'Lish AIO in pink
- Snazzipants prefold with blue Bummis Super Brite cover
- MyBaby pocket, in blue - with a Bummis Super Brite cover (for overnight)

Cloth diapers are more expensive than disposables, right?

I came across an article online - High Cost of Diapers Forces Some Parents Into Risky Practices - the basic premise being that a lot of low income parents are unable to meet the costs of buying disposables for their children, so are doing certain things to 'extend' the life of the disposable - including washing the diaper out & reusing it.

It's a very sad truth - the statistics in the article say that 1/3 parents are doing this, and I would believe it.  Here in New Zealand for a regular sized packet of disposable diapers you are looking at paying $5.10NZD/3.86USD for the cheapest packet, and for the more expensive brands you're paying around $16NZD/$12USD - and that is for a pack of 15-20.  If I was to buy disposables for a week, I would need basically 2 packs for a week - so at the most approximately $64.00 a month - that doesn't sound like a lot really, but when you are barely making enough money to make ends meet each week, that is a lot. 

On my worst weeks by the time I have got groceries, gas & paid all the bills - I might have $40.00 left over, to buy things for myself & the girls & cover any unexpected costs that come up.  If I was buying disposable diapers, that would mean I'd have around $100 to live on each month, by the time the diapers had been purchased.  THEN you can take into consideration the fact there are women out there who DON'T breastfeed for whatever reason - and they have to purchase formula too - it all adds up VERY quickly.

It's fairly obvious that for me my main motivation to use cloth diapers was for financial reasons.  My initial stash was 20 OSFA pockets which cost $11.00 each - so $220.00, I also purchased extra inserts which came to $30.00 - so all up I spent $250.00 on my initial stash... which I paid for by layby - paying $10.00 a week over 25 weeks.  Yes, it was a long way to go about it, but I paid for the diapers at a rate that I could comfortably afford, and it wasn't as if I needed them straight away - they were paid off in May & Emersyn was born in mid June. 

When I look at the actual numbers, my total cost of $250.00 is the equivalent of
15 packs of 20 diapers - or 300 disposable diapers all up,
which I would have gone through in basically 7 weeks, if I was using an average of 7 diapers a day. 
7 weeks & the cloth diapers had paid for themselves.


Lets pretend I go through an average of about 25 diapers a week across the 3-ish years that Emersyn is in diapers, that'd be a total of  3900 diapers, and if those were disposables purchased at $16 for a pack of 20, that would be a total cost of $3120 for diapers alone (if my math is right!)... not taking into consideration the fact she could be in diapers for longer than 3 years - the total cost could easily be more like $4000.00.

Now lets pretend I didn't buy any extra cloth diapers & stuck with my original $250.00 worth - that would mean I would be saving $2870.00!

Obviously my cloth diapering addiction kicked in at some point & I've now spent a LOT more money on cloth diapers than I had originally, BUT each of those cloth diapers - which can be used hundreds (probably thousands) of times cost less (in most cases) than the price of one packet of disposables, and then when I am done with the cloth diapers I can sell them & make a little money back.  That isn't to mention that if I had another child I could reuse those same cloth diapers - potentially saving myself close to $6000 by the time that child was potty trained.  The average number of diapers is just an estimate - but I think that whether or not it's accurate it is easy to see that cloth diapering is by far the more financially viable option.

What's the whole point of this blog post?  I'm basically saying that there needs to be more of an awareness of cloth diapering, of the costs associated - and the comparison with the cost of disposables.  It's very true that you can spend upward of $40.00 PER diaper for some brands, however it is also true that you can be very thrifty with your diaper buying - and like me if you purchase pre-loved diapers you can pay well under half the normal retail price.  Here are a few examples of the bargains I've had...

3x barely used Snazzipants fitted diapers.. RRP - $84.00 / I paid:  $17.00
3x used, but in great condition Bummis Super Brites - RRP - $72.00 / I paid:  $17.00
5x used, but in great condition Bitti D'Lish - RRP $135.60 / I paid:  $76.00
8x used, still in good condition FuzziBunz pockets - RRP $263.60 / I paid: $40.00
3x used, still in good condition Ecobubs woolen pockets - RRP $119.85 / I paid: $30.00

GRAND RRP TOTAL:  $675.05 (average of $30.68 per diaper)
I PAID:  $180 (average of $8.20 per diaper)

I COULD of course sum this whole long winded post by saying:
NO, cloth diapers are NOT more expensive than disposables!

Favourite Brands... part 1!

While Emersyn has her bottle, I thought I'd share some photos of Emersyn in some of my favourite brands of cloth diaper - I'll also go into more detail about these brands in the not too distant future!

BUMMIS

This is one of Bummis new 'Super Whisper Wrap' prints - Ladybug

Another of their new prints - this one is called 'Bloom' & is my favourite print!

I just really like the colours they use in this print, particularly the pink & brown combo

ITTI BITTI

This is a pink Itti D'Lish AIO - the first AIO's that I've really purchased & loved

The back of a lilac Itti D'Lish SIO (snap in one, which I believe is essentially an AI2)

The Fuschia AIO

And the yellow AIO

SNAZZIPANTS

Wearing a size 1 Snazzipants fitted.. these were the first fitteds I tried & I love them (they are also a NZ brand)