Consumer Editor says...
Reusable nappies are an eco-friendly alternative to disposables and are fast becoming the premium choice of nappy for many parents. The benefits are plentiful - they're kinder to the environment, softer for baby, chemical-free and less expensive than disposables - but the choice is somewhat overwhelming with a huge variety of styles and fabrics on offer. To help you on the road to real nappy know-how, our panel of six mums have been busy road-testing nine different brands of reusables for the past six weeks. Their findings are a must read for both devoted users and real nappy novices - particularly if you're thinking of splashing out on a full set for your baby.
Review highlightsOur panel recommend you 'try before you buy to make sure your baby is the right shape for the nappies' - 'test as many sample kits as possible and certainly don't invest is a full system until you are sure they will work for you'. Interestingly what worked well for one mum was another's disaster. Elizabeth found the Bambino Mio nappies had 'a slim fit and dried quickly' whereas Amanda 'gave up on them after a couple of tries as the leaks were so bad'. Similarly, the Imse Vimse Organic nappy was both liked and loathed by our panel - Emily liked it 'due to its lack of bulk and good containment' whilst Jo described it as 'a disaster zone - there's no fastenings, it's flimsy and after a few hours the fabric was sodden, cold, hard and clingy - yuck!' If longevity and absorbency are at the top of your list, the Bumble certainly won't disappoint: 'this is a fantastic nappy that delivers in all the right areas' - 'you can adjust it to fit from birth right through to potty training' and 'the absorbency is fantastic - lasting 14 hours as a night nappy with a booster pad in!'. Our panel gave the Best Buy award to the Tots Bots Bamboozle: 'a lovely, soft and silky nappy with a choice of two different fastenings' that's 'slimline and robust with good absorbency'. The Best Value award went to the Motherease Sandy's Nappy: 'a hassle-free, simple and cost-effective nappy' that 'allows for a good fit on different shaped babies'. The parent panel reviews will give you further information on each nappy, but if you want to see how the nappies compared under different criteria, make sure you read the Test Overview. There's a whole lot of features about re-usable nappies on babyworld, click here to see them. Meet our panel of parentsThis month's panel are from London and have babies of different ages. The group was put-together by Amanda - a devoted real nappy user and mum to 18 month old Olivia.
The panel hard at work
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Lara
Thomas and Finn, Consumer Editor and Product Tester!
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Out and about in the
Tots Bots |
Jo and Amelie take a break from all that testing
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Olivia gets cosy in the Minki Waffle nappy
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Where to next:
- Read the test overview to find out more about reuseable nappies
- Read our parent panel reviews:
- Become a parent panel member
- Add a review and you could win a prize!
- See all our Big tests - buggies, beach pods, lightweight strollers, safety gates and lots more!
