DryBees Fleece Night Time Pocket Diaper Review

SAP's Story

So you've heard my story about battling leaky night time diapers, and believe me, most parents will go through something similar, whether you use disposables or cloth diapers!

Now so far our solutions were: Indian Unbleached Prefolds with Thirsties cover, and AppleCheeks. Now, although those worked wonderful, we no longer use those solutions for night time with SAP. Over time your baby's night time sleeping and body build will change, and so your night time solution for diapering will also change with him/her. For SAP, she stopped sleeping on her side, and started sleeping on her tummy, she started peeing more and sleeping longer (all night long yay!!!), plus she got herself a little baby booda belly! So cute! But also, made so we had to find something else. It was my thought that it was time to get a diaper that was made specifically for night time use!Since I was on a budget, where better do I look for a night time diaper for cheap than Cloth Diaper Clearance! If you have not heard of Cloth Diaper Clearance before, it is offered to you by Nicki's Diapers, and offers discontinued, seconds, or overstock of great items at discount prices! This was not only where I got my Planet Wise wetbags, but also my DryBees Fleece Night Time Diaper and my Joey Bunz Hemp doublers, which we use in our DryBees!


The DryBeees I got were two size small Navy Blue colored drybees, which were said to fit from 6-16lbs and considered seconds, and then I got two red colored medium drybees, which were said to fit from 14-22lbs and were a discontinued color.I got the small sized drybees since SAP was under 14lbs at the time and I didn't believe, based on the weight range, that she would fit into the medium size...I was wrong! First, for being seconds, I saw NOTHING wrong with them at all! Looked and worked perfectly fine, I saw no flaws at all. But, saying that, the size small did not fit SAP. I tried a few times, and stuffed them different ways, but every time the small was too small for her! It seemed to have a low rise and was quite bulky. Since we were using it as a night diaper we anticipated a bulky diaper, but no matter what I stuffed it with, a hemp babies bigger weeds, a BumGenius microfiber insert with a hemp babies doubler...anything, it just would not fit on her!

So I tried on the mediums. I had to wash the medium red diapers separately from the normal diaper load to start off with since the reason they were discontinued was because the color would bleed onto the rest of the wash...but I had NO issues at all! For anyone considering buying discontinued or second items, go ahead, it's rare that there are any major problems with them at all and you can get some great deals!



Anyway, so I washed the diapers with no problems at all with colors bleeding, so after that point washed them with my regular diaper wash fine. And, even though SAP was under 14lbs, the mediums fit her! Yes they were still quite bulky, but that's the style of the Drybees, and with it being a night time diaper, not like I have to fit that fluffy butt in any pants at all lol. By this point I had given up on her wearing jeans over her fluff anyway! I am quite surprised at the weight ranges, I think they are off quite a bit, or maybe these diapers just fit babies with bellies differently than skinny babies (as most diapers do), but SAP has fit into weight ranges in pretty much every other diaper fine, these are quite off center though with our experience.Since then, I have used DryBees Medium sized red diapers from that point on. SAP is now 17 months old and 26lbs, and still fitting into the medium diaper! She has been in size large of every other diaper for quite some time but DryBees, still in the medium! We do the microfiber insert and hemp doubler for night time, and no leaks!


My favorite feature? Hard to choose, but I'd have to say the inner fabric. The inner fabric, which is what is against baby's bum and creates a stay-dry barrier, is a specially milled suede fabric. Some people don't like how if feels as it is not as soft as other fabric, especially if you are used to soft fleece like Fuzzibunz or other brands of the like, but I love it. Why? It is THE solution to our diaper rash! SAP sleeps through the night, and has since being only a few months old. After starting solids, she starts to get a little pink on the bum by the end of the day. Our solution? Put a DryBees diaper on her for night time! Not only are we completely confident that it will not leak AT ALL, but the suede fabric keeps her but dry! Fleece tends to still hold some moisture to her butt, but having a dry over night diaper ensures she sleeps through the night, and that her rash is gone by morning!

Second favorite feature? The Fleece outer fabric. Not only great for over night, but it is breathable, unlike PUL. Great for summer so she doesn't get heat rash sitting in that diaper all night long! This is our only fleece diaper however. As much as I love it for night time, the bulkiness does warrant problems for use during the day. Got a heavy wetter? Change them into a Drybees for naptime! They'll sleep longer and you won't have to worry about wet sheets! I usually just leave SAP's pants off for nap time if I do this. But hey, I get SO much more done around the house when she sleeps for over an hour!

I will say that when I do get SAP when she wakes up in the morning and she was wearing this diaper all night long, you can smell the urine. The sheets are still clean, nothing leaked out, her PJ's are fine, but you can smell the urine more, I am guessing this is because of the more breathable material. Also, the pocket opening in the back of the DryBees isn't very wide, or, rather to say, the elastic in it makes it a little more difficult to stuff than other diapers, especially when you're trying to fit a insert and doubler, or prefold or some similar in bulkiness for night time diapering as I do. I can do it fine but hubby has a bit of an issue with it. Not too much of a problem.

Description

• Type of Diaper: Pocket Diaper. Pocket opens in back. Night time diaper.

• Sizes and Age/Weight Recommendation: Small 6-16lbs, Medium 14-22lbs, Large 20-30+lbs

• Insert: The DryBees does not come with an insert because of how diverse over night diapering is from child to child. However, some diaper stores do offer a free insert with drybees diaper purchase, usually it is a microfiber insert. Others offer an overnight combo insert package you can add to the diaper when you put it "in your cart", usually what they suggest as working best. My favorite? Either a microfiber insert with a thin hemp doubler, or a hemp babies little weeds!

• How Diaper Works/Features: This diaper closes with Velcro closure. The tabs are square, and do not overlap. It is a pocket diaper and you can stuff it to the absorbency you need for the time you are using it. It has fleece fabric that works well as a breathable waterproof layer, but also makes the diaper quite bulky. The elastic in the diaper works very well and I have had NO problems with it wearing down or anything! The suede cloth used for the stay-dry-layer of the pocket works wonderful at keeping your baby's bottom dry. This diaper does need to be unstuffed for washing, it will not come out in the wash. I have noticed that the pocket, with the inner and outer elastic that they feature in this diaper, is a little difficult to stuff with big hands, especially when you are trying to fit in a handful of inserts. This is a minor con though for the benefits.
  
  
  

Style and Material

• Material Feel: The outside fleece is quite soft and stays that way wash after wash! The inner, suede stay-dry layer of the pocket however is not as soft as the fleece that many cloth diaper users are accustomed to. It is not scratch at all and for keeping baby "as dry as a bee" I can understand why they wouldn't want any extra fluff for absorbing wetness that may stay in contact with baby's butt otherwise.
  
  
• Materials Used: The outside fabric is Heavy Weight Malden Mills Windpro Fleece. The inner pocket stay-dry layer material is a specially milled suede cloth.
  
  
• Color/Aesthetic: DryBees Fleece Night Diapers come in many colors, many of them the darker range colors that you don't see very often in cloth diapers, but I think work well for bedtime. I like the darker colors because it stands out as a night time diaper, as well as other reasons. Some darker colors include the black, charcoal, cobalt, navy blue, olive, olive marble, and plum. If you're a lover of brighter diaper colors, they offer those too in a baby blue color, brick, bright orange, lemonade, mocha, sage, and steel.Aesthetic wise, I think the fleece night time diaper looks snug and comfy, nice and soft and plush, perfect for night time!
  
  
  
  

Ease of Use

• Closures: The closures on this diaper are a square Velcro. These are very easy to use, and very easy to grab on to. The Velcro is sewn in the middle of the closure tab, and is not the closure tab itself, so you can grab onto the fleece fabric and easily undue the Velcro. Square laundry tabs can also be found on the diaper so that the Velcro does not catch other diapers and fabric and pill them. These tabs, however, do not over lap, and although I have not had a need to overlap them, I like the option.
  
  
• Similarity To Disposables: This diaper is medium in similarity. It closes easily with velcro tabs that are easy to use. However, you do have to stuff it since it is a pocket diaper. Besides this step, there is the point that it is very bulky, unlike disposable diapers, which are very thin. Besides using this diaper at night under sleepers and sleep bags or PJ gowns/pants, I do not think it would fit under day clothes very well.
  
  
• How Size and Fit Are Adjusted: Size is adjusted by going to the next sized diaper. So you have to buy more than one diaper, size is not adjustable. Fit is well adjusted through the Velcro closure tabs, you can get a custom fit each time. Also, the leg closures have some great elastic, as well as the back of this diaper, so that it gently hugs your baby's thigh/back, I have had no reason to need to adjust the legs because of how well the elastic is holding up.
  
  

Fit

• Trimness: This is probably the one of the more bulky diapers I own. The fleece is thick and heavy so works well for night time, but makes diaper thicker as well. Over all, as with all pocket diapers, it depends on how you stuff them. To get less bulk between the legs use contoured inserts, or thin hemp material instead of thicker microfiber etc.. This is intended to be a night time diaper, so trimness is not a priority for me, instead, leak proof and absorbency is number one in my book, and this diaper holds up in those areas.
  
  
• How Adjustable Diaper is For Absorbency: The pocket for this diaper is quite large and not contoured, so you can use pretty much any insert, you want or need. Very adjustable for absorbency.
  
  
  

Performance and Functionality

• Leaks: We have gotten NO leaks from this diaper! The elastic at the leg gussets and back of the diaper do a wonderful job of staying snug to prevent leaks. I was iffy at first with this being my first fleece diaper, did not think it would work well keeping everything in, but it works great!
  
  
• Absorbency: Pretty much anything I stuff into this pocket diaper does great at absorbing, whether it be a thin hemp doubler or a big hemp babies bigger weeds or a prefold! Top notch absorbency for our sleep-all-nighters!
  
  
• Leg Guessets: I have been very impressed with the leg gussets. The elastic is great and hold snug after many washes still, but doesn't make marks on SAP's legs at all. No leaks!
  
  
• Nap/Bedtime Use: I would only use this as a nap or bedtime use diaper. It is what it is designed for, and although wouldn't leak for a day time diaper, would be quite bulky. Send these to daycare for nap time use to ensure your baby is in the same clothes as they were when you dropped them off in the morning and did not need a change from a leaky diaper!
  
  
• If Fit Is True: It kind of depends how full you stuff the diaper, but my findings are...kind of odd. The size small I found was too small even with SAP under 14lbs (recommendation says up to 16lbs), but the size medium fit her perfectly at that weight, and still fits her perfectly NOW, and she is at 26lbs now! That is 4 whole pounds above the weight recommendation , and she is showing no signs of it being too small! It's not tight on her, the velcro fit is fitting wonderful, the elastic isn't over stretched or tight, there is no leaking...fits perfectly!
  
  So small didn't fit the whole recommended weight, but medium fit pretty much all of Samara's cloth diapering years so far! Interesting huh? If anyone has different results let me know!
  
  
• How Insert is Removed: Insert/ inserts must be removed before being placed in wash. It is difficult to "shake" insert out as the elastic that does such a wonderful job also makes it so the opening stays a bit smaller and does not allow insert to wiggle out.
  
  
• Wear and Tear: For using these diapers for over a year, and whenever they were clean they were my first choice night time diaper, I have seen NO wear and tear at the elastic either! Very satisfied with how well this diaper has held up! I have seen wear of the velcro, and the laundry tab closures do not hold up very long, but the velcro still works great.
  
  

Quality/Cash Analysis

• These quality night time diapers cost about $19.50 each, usually without insert, but some diaper shops include a free insert with it's purchase. Not too expensive, but also, not really cheap either.
  
  
• This diaper has held up wonderfully and is sometimes the only solution for some babies that are heavy wetters for over night diapering. I am very happy that this diaper exists, and is available, as it has been discontinued in the past! Keep this diaper around, us mamas need it! :)
  
  
  

SAPsDaDA's Two-Cents

This particular diaper has withstood the most abuse. It's been our primary, long lasting diaper for night time use since we have acquired them. The fleece outer, with the microfiber insert and a hemp doubler has not failed us for the whole 14 months we have had them! They are go to diapers on nights that we want to sleep without the disturbance from her being irritated from the wet diaper. Samara cries out the least when she is wearing these diapers at night, where as she is more wake-ful with other diapers. I highly recommend using them as night diapers, I don't know if I would use them for daily use only because of how they are constructed, they may make it hard to potty train down the road since baby does not feel any moisture due to the special suede lining of the pocket. Good Night Diaper!