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The BumGenius Freestyle's pitiful velcro |
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A Tots Bots Easyfit that is both older and used more frequently, for comparison |
I was fortunate that Candace, a WAHM who knows more about cloth diapers than anyone I know; makes adorable cloth diapers; and is the reason for my unpaper towel obsession, had some velcro I could use, and some tips for the process. Seriously, go check out her store, The Sassy Monkey. With my newfound knowledge and velcro, I procrastinated for about 3 months forged ahead.
My cast of characters included a seam ripper, white thread, the replacement velcro, and scissors (which played a very minor role). Yes, I completed this task on my bed. It's autumn. I have flannel sheets. Where else would I do such a thing?!
My cast of characters included a seam ripper, white thread, the replacement velcro, and scissors (which played a very minor role). Yes, I completed this task on my bed. It's autumn. I have flannel sheets. Where else would I do such a thing?!
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I started by carefully ripping the seams around the velcro/aplix. I'd like to take this moment to point out that I had never heard the term "aplix" before researching cloth diapers. From what I've gathered, aplix is to velcro as tissue is to Kleenex. I guess that's why spellcheck and autocorrect always want me to type "Velcro".
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It was really hard for me to get my phone to focus properly for this picture, and many would argue that I still failed |
I removed about every other/every third stitch, and soon the poor FreeTime looked naked.
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I feel like I should blur out part of the diaper |
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I then, per Candace's advice, defied the laws of cloth diapering and put the diaper in the dryer on high to seal the PUL - the waterproof material. Et voila, a diaper that may not look pretty, but at least now it's functional again. I failed miserably trying to get a picture of it on C, and unfortunately, he required a change out of it before I could tell how everything is holding up.
I have a few take homes from this ordeal. When I first set out cloth diapering, I avoided snap diapers. I figured they would be much harder than velcro. They really aren't, although I still primarily send velcro diapers in to daycare. To me, a velcro diaper seemed the closest to a disposable diaper. Velcro, however, seems to have a shorter lifespan than snaps. That being said, there is a major quality difference among diaper manufacturers. I will not buy another velcro BumGenius until they change their velcro. BumGenius is not my favorite brand overall, but their Flip is my favorite cover, and I like the FreeTime. This diaper isn't my only BumGenius diaper that has pitiful velcro - just the one that stopped working altogether first. My Tots Bots Easyfits, however, function as well as they did when I first got them - nearly 2 years ago. If I could go back, I'd only buy snap BumGenius diapers, but now I have experience fixing velcro ones if need be. Cue the "the more you know" jingle.