Thirsties Duo AIO

Normally I wouldn’t come out with a review a day after a new diaper is released. I like to take my time and really test out a diaper with BW to see how it works. It’s easy to quickly get caught up in the excitement of a new diaper in a stash, new color, style, etc., and lose sight of how well it really functions. In this case, I knew Thirsties Duo All-In-One {AIO} was a great diaper before I even put in on BW’s biscuits. It’s exactly like Thirsties Duo Fab Fitteds but with a PUL waterproof cover. {Remember an All In One is a diaper with the soaker sewn in place. No stuffing or folding necessary for use.} I have experience with Thirsties Fitteds, especially nighttime use, and so I knew the fit and absorbency of the Duo AIO would be great. Thirsties Duo AIO is very trim both in the rear and between the legs. And like the Duo Fitted, the Duo AIO has a tunnel opening to allow for extra absorbency to be added if you need it. This makes for a great diaper for naps, nights, and extended trips away from home. All you  need to do is stuff in a Thirsties Fab Doubler or Thirsties Hemp Insert, depending on your baby’s needs, and you have a diaper that can really hold up to a super soaker. The tunnel opening between the soaker and the waterproof layer also helps with washing and drying. More water can get to the microfiber layers as well as more air flow whether you air dry or use a dryer.

AIOs are also well known for being easy for care givers to use. There is no need to fold a prefold or use a snappi, no snapping & unsnapping a soaker pad, or stuffing a pocket. Thirsties Duo AIO is very similar to the use of a disposable diaper, but without the waste and chemicals of a disposable.

Maybe by this point you’re wondering what’s up with the use of the word ‘Duo’ in front of just about every Thirsties product. This is because they make 2 sizes for each diaper and diaper accessory. Size 1 fits from 6 to 18 lbs and Size 2 fits 18-40 lbs. With each size there are 3 rise settings. Thirsties came up with this sizing to help combat the problem of one size diapers never truly fitting the teeny-weeny-newborn stage and the almost-big-kid-potty-learning stage. The Duo line of products are definitely made to fit newborn to potty learning.

I know I always say to keep a stash simple by using as few brands & styles as possible, but with an AIO it’s easy to add it to whatever stash you may have already built up. I highly recommend Thirsties Duo AIO. Give it a shot. At $15.75 a diaper, it’s well worth a place in your stash!  

Hook & Loop Care

It’s no secret that I’m partial to hook & loop/aplix. It’s actually a necessity with my alligator boy. But hook & loop doesn’t hold up to wear and tear like snaps. There are a few things you can do to help keep your hook & loop diapers stay strong. The most important thing you can do is to make sure the hook & loop is firmly put together on the laundry tabs before putting it in your diaper pail. Don’t put it together all wonky-like. Any hook left unattached has the potential to snag on other diapers in the wash, which will then pull apart from the loop. So not only will your hook & loop show wear faster, but they will also “eat” at your other diapers. Making sure the hook is secure on the laundry tab also prevents lint build up. This can be a pain to clean out, and keeps your hook & loop from being very “sticky”.  Another thing you can do to keep your hook & loop from wearing too quickly is to line dry. This keeps it from tumbling and potentially snagging other diapers while in the dryer. Line drying in general will also help in keeping your diapers from wearing too quickly. The lint you clean out from the lint trap is fiber from your clothes. Having a good size stash also keeps your diapers from wearing too quickly. You may only change 8 diapers a day, but constant washing, drying, and wearing is hard on the hook & loop closures and your diapers as well. {Minimum stash size is 24, if you're wondering.} Basic diaper maintenance and care in addition to using the laundry tabs properly will give your hook & loop a longer life. Yay!

Thirsties Duo Wraps, Fitteds, & Diapers have excellent laundry tabs that work well to keep the hook & loop “sticky”. I have Thirsties in rotation that have been used for over a year and still work great. GroVia has laundry tabs plus a loop to tuck the hook part and keep it hooked. This is a major improvement over the older GroBaby shells. I used to use a lingerie bag with my GroBaby shells inside to keep them from attaching to everything else. It made diaper chains obsolete. I highly recommend a lingerie bag if you’re having issues with your hook & loop diapers making diaper chains in the wash. It will help minimize wear and tear on your entire stash. And a lingerie bag is a must when washing your Bummis Swimmi. It’ll keep your suits from catching on the hook & loop. {Learned that lesson the hard way. Bummer.} At this time I don’t have any use for the lingerie bag for my diapers, but I do use it for BW’s bibs. No more snagged shirts & shorts when I do the boys’ laundry. My sister gave me that idea, and I remember she used a bag to wash tiny baby socks to keep the washer from eating them. So many uses for more than your lingerie.



Thirsties Duo Wrap with Aplix



Thirsties Duo Diaper with Aplix



GroVia OS Shell with Hook & Loop



I have little desire to convert to Team Snaps. Hook & loop is the best choice for me. Even though BW tries to take off his diaper when he’s pantless, he’s mischievous busy like that, it makes diaper changes so much easier for me. A little extra effort to make my diapers stand up to constant wear and tear if definitely worth it. And if I’ve totally turned you off to hook & loop, no worries. I agree with you that snaps are awesome. We don’t do naps & nights without them. I may love the ease that hook & loop gives me when changing a diaper, but I’m not a fool to think that BW would never make a poo masterpiece if given the chance. If you’re a snap lover, Thirsties makes their entire line in snaps {the Duo Diaper in snaps is their newest addition}, GroVia Shells, Newborn, and All-In-Ones come in snaps, BabyKicks 3g & Fitteds are only in snaps, and of course the entire FuzziBunz line is snaps. And if you’re a fan of hook & loop, Thirsties entire line and GroVia Shells come in hook & loop. The choice is yours. Feel free to mix and match to suit your diapering needs.

Cloth Wipes

This week I started to use Thirsties cloth wipes. I never thought that I would be a big fan of them, but I am! I absolutely LOVE them!!! I even made my own wipe solution and have 2 spray bottles full of it. The wipes are so soft, it's amazing! EB's skin seems to be really sensitive and once I made the switch I noticed he didn't cry anymore when I changed his diaper. Two major benefits that I have noticed are the fact that I can just toss them in with the cloth diapers to wash and the other is that the wipes are so large and absorbent that I can spray half of it with the solution and use the other half to dry him off. I normally use 1 wipe per diaper change. This has already been saving us money!  I know that all of this cloth diaper/wipe talk can make a Momma nervous...especially a new Momma, or one that has never considered using cloth until now.  I was a nervous Momma, then I tried it, and I am so glad I did!

~Nina~

One major reason that I made the switch to cloth wipes was that EB and I have had the misfortune of dealing with thrush...yuck! The disposable wipes were seriously irritating to his raw bum, and made his skin super wet. Then I would have to have a towel nearby to dry him off {excess moisture makes yeast grow}. Within 2 diaper changes with using the cloth wipes his bum went from fire red to light pink!!! Such a relief for us both! Also in making my own wipe solution I was able to customize it to his needs. For thrush it is advised to use grapefruit seed extract. So along with Dr. Bonner's soap, grape seed oil and water I added several drops of grapefruit seed extract, as an antifungal. It has worked miracles around here for EB! As for me, not as much, I ended up having to use the medicine prescribed. You win some you lose some. I am just relieved that it has worked for EB. Also, the Dr. advised using disposable diapers for a couple of days during treatment. I now know why I love the cloth. It actually got worse with paper diapers. The day we switched back to cloth it got so much better. For those of you wondering, the cloth diapers did not cause the yeast rash. It is caused by the thrush in the baby's mouth. Apparently during our first week of breastfeeding I got it and passed it onto him, and it got into his poo, causing the rash. Major pain, but we’re getting better every day!

Well, it finally happened, EB has outgrown his adorable little newborn diapers. I was still in denial when I could barely pull the front up far enough and I had to use the last snap. It was only after he peed out of 3 of them that I knew it was time to say goodbye and pass them on to another newborn.  It was a sad day at our house. My son is growing at an incredible rate. He somehow managed to gain 7 ounces in 2 days!!! This is unheard of for most newborns, but mine is apparently the exception. I remember at his 2 week appointment, the Dr. told me that normally it takes 2 weeks for a baby to get back to their birth weight, but somehow EB had gained almost a pound over his birth weight! We call him our chubby lil' duck. : ) Even though we didn't use the newborn diapers for long, I have to say that they were SO worth it!!!! I loved how there was almost no bulk and they fit his tiny little legs so perfectly.

Right now we are anxiously awaiting the arrival of BW's old diapers! Until then I have been using the Thirsties Duo Diapers, and love them! Not only are they easy to use, but I have not had a leak yet! They are bulkier than NB diapers, but that’s to be expected with a OS system. I have also been using Thirsties prefolds, fitteds, and wraps. I love using the Thirsties products. While bulky, it’s a diaper that works without leaks, and EB has plenty of room to grow in them. You can read more of my Thirsties review when diapering newborns here. And even though, EB had outgrown his newborn diapers I will still be reviewing the newborn diapers that I used on him. Those blog posts will be coming soon.

Thirsties Newborn Review

My favorite diaper to use at nighttime so far is the thirsties duo diaper. Since EB is less than two weeks we are still on a very loose schedule and I usually put him in one of these around 11pm. He will typically wear these for anywhere from about 3-4 hours during the night. I started using the Duo Diaper size 1 when EB was around 1 week old and I noticed he was eating more and therefore "going" more. He weighed about 8lbs 8oz when we began using them.  I make sure that I have them stuffed and ready to go before bedtime each evening.  So far, I only have two of them, and am in the process of acquiring more of them ASAP! I have to say, I love them and I haven't had to worry about leakage, yet (hopefully not ever). The Duo Diaper insert consists of a thin microfiber insert and a hemp insert. It is a breeze to stuff! By far the easiest pocket diaper to stuff! Especially if you do not have tiny hands that some of them seem to require I like that the inserts snap together because it makes my life a little easier when stuffing the diaper. I don't have to make sure that one of the liners isn't bunched up on the other. I have the diaper snapped on the smallest setting, and it seems perfect size for right now. Once his umbilical cord finally falls out I will probably move it to the first snap. I find it to be bulky on him which is why for now it is a nighttime diaper only. I think that if you have a small newborn you may want to wait until they are at least 8lbs. to use it. Also, it does rub on his little umbilical cord a little.  He doesn't seem bothered. However, if you are squeamish you may want to wait until it falls out to begin using these diapers. I think that so far the only con would be how much more bulky it is than a newborn diaper, and that is because it is more of a OS diaper instead of a true newborn diaper. It is nice that this diaper will grow with EB, as it has 3 rise settings.

Now on to the pros of the thirsties duo.: )  The fact that it has openings on both sides makes it easy to push the insert in one side and pull it through the other side and really easy to make sure that it is even and not twisted anywhere. I also really like the hook and loop. It is easy for my husband to use and best resembles a disposable for the caretakers that are new to cloth. The biggest bonus of the hook and loop is its ease of use in the middle of the night when sleep deprived and without ample lighting. I have not paid attention to the noise it makes, and it hasn't seemed to affect EB so it must be quiet enough.
I really like the leg gussets and it makes me feel good knowing that there is that extra layer of protection. I don't have to worry about him getting wet in the middle of the night. Newborns legs are so skinny that the gussets really help to prevent leakage! I don't know about you, but I want to avoid having to change a baby's clothes in the middle of the night and risk waking them up too much!

Last night I used the hemp prefold for the first time, and it held a lot and his skin was still pretty dry. I haven’t had any poo go to the wrap, and was then able to use the wrap a few more times. The wrap also fits nicely over the fitteds. And I love the fitteds. They are so soft, and never a leak!!

As for washing the Duo Diaper and the rest of the Thirsties products, it is easy. I do pull the liner out of the Duo Diaper even though the directions specifically state that it is unnecessary.  I am just in the habit of it and don't mind doing it. But know that it is not required before you throw it in the washing machine. I am currently using the Rockin Green detergent and have a top loading HE machine with no agitator. This is a great combination for my diapers.  The diaper and wrap both dry in no time at all and the microfiber insert dries in a flash as well.  The hemp insert, stay-dry insert, fitteds, and prefolds take a little bit longer. The prefolds and hemp inserts do not get very stiff with only air drying. A few good shakes takes out the little bit of stiffness. It is like having a t-shirt air dry. While soft, it will be a little crunchy, but not rough.  I have been drying everything on my drying rack outside, thanks to the awesome weather! I have also used the dryer and that works great too.  However, I love to save money and it makes me happy to dry them outside naturally and FREE of cost!!
Also, I feel that this is worth repeating over and over again...The sun is a miracle stain remover!!!!! I can honestly say that my serious fear of yucky stained diapers is so over and done with! It is amazing! After less than an hour in full sun, my diapers look brand spankin' new! Since I don't get out much lately this has become the highlight of my day. Putting stained dipes in the sun and watching the stains literally disappear before my eyes with no extra effort or expense on my part is so exciting to a sleep deprived new momma, like myself!
I truly hope that my cloth diapering adventures help convert some of you curious mommas or mommas- to-be out there. Let me assure you that I can be a nervous nelly about lots of things and using cloth diapers from day 1 with my 2nd baby was a major decision while I was pregnant.  I am SO happy that I put my nerves on the back burner and allowed myself to have a different experience. I have been all about trying new things with this baby. I have more confidence in myself and my ability to be a great Momma this time around and am so much more relaxed.
So far I really love using cloth diapers and I have to say my husband is way more supportive than I thought he would be. He does complain that I have to wash them every day....so I recommend having a bigger stash than I currently do. I have 12 newborn Grovia AIO, 2 x-small Fuzzibunz, 2 Thirsties fitted size 1, 1 Thirsties Duo Wrap size 1, 2 Thirsties prefolds and 2 Thirsties Duo Diapers size 1. If your baby is like mine, then nearly every diaper you change will have a "skid mark", and you will be changing frequently. I don’t feel as if I am changing more often than if I were using disposables. It is just the poo that keeps me changing diapers very often!
I know that I have not answered all of your questions, I still have some myself.  So, I will continue to be the guinea pig Momma and EB the guinea pig baby.  We are still experimenting and learning about all that cloth has to offer.  At least I can honestly say that I am not nervous and anxious about laundering cloth diapers anymore.
So, more to come on different diapers and tricks and tips learned by trial and error.

~Nina~