Giggle Life Ultra Soft Cloth Diaper: Review & Giveaway! (Closed)

Over a year ago, I reviewed the wonderful one size bamboo cloth diaper & inserts from Giggle Life Baby Products (a cloth diapering company based in my hometown of Kitchener, Ontario). This time around, I'll be providing the lowdown on their one size Ultra Soft cloth diaper. This is the first diaper I've had the chance to "officially" review on both my children (including a year and a half's worth of wear on my daughter!), so I'll be providing thoughts on performance, fit, etc. from infant through toddler perspectives.


Company Information:

Here at Giggle Life we are firm believers that cloth diapers are the best way to go for diapering because they are better for the environment, better for the baby's health, and they will save you money! The quality of our cloth diapers are among the best and we are also one of the most affordable brands because we use a direct to consumer approach. Our goal is to build awareness and make cloth diapers affordable enough that they become the primary choice for diapering. 

You can read more background info in my previous review post.


Product Information (abridged):

These reusable diapers are one size fits all (8-33lbs).

The Diaper Consists of 2 Parts: A Waterproof Outer Cover & 2 Large Microfiber Inserts/Liners.

Outer Cover: Soft and durable TPU laminated fabric. Thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) is a composition specifically adapted to produce non-porous membranes which creates a waterproof seal but is still water vapor transmissible. 

Inner Layer: Improved Ultra Soft Micro Fleece. Moisture will be absorbed very quickly by the inserts, keep baby's bottom dry and comfortable.
 
Inserts: Made from 100% unbleached Microfiber, an environmentally friendly material with many tiny strands. It has a 40 times more absorbent surface area over cotton, very absorbent, less bulky, easy to wash and dry.

The intelligent snap buttons allows this diaper to have three different rise options and multiple tummy settings for a custom fit from birth to potty training.

Available in:

My Review:

I received a Giggle Life Ultra Soft cloth diaper in the Safari print and two microfiber inserts to review.

 

I love this print. The animals are super cute and it's gender neutral, so my kiddos can share!:)

Here you can see the diaper on the the smallest and largest settings, as well as fully unbuttoned. Notice there are 12 waist snaps sewn in close together and a crossover option on the smallest setting. This allows for some nice sizing flexibility.

The Ultra Soft includes a single row of waist snaps and two snaps on each wing. This is different than the bamboo which includes a double row and three snaps on each wing. So there's a tradeoff - the bamboo stays in place a bit better but the Ultra Soft is quicker to put on. 

Brand new Ultra Soft diapers are certainly true to their name. The microfleece inner looks and feels very lush, the outer is silky smooth and the inserts are thick and plush.

 

The softness does degrade over time (more on this shortly) but from what I can tell this is inevitable with microfleece & microfiber materials.

The pocket opening is roomy, allowing for easy stuffing.

Finally, the back of the waist and the legs are elasticized. The front of the waist isn't.

OK, let's get our little models to work!

First, our DD S (27 months and 26 pounds). She's a slender gal so currently wears the rise on the largest setting but the waist on a medium setting. The diaper fits snugly and stays put as she does all her fun toddler stuff.

Second, our little man CJ (2 months and 10-11 lbs in these photos). He's certainly happy to be sportin' a Giggle Life!

As you can see above, I secured it first at the tightest "uncrossed" waist setting. I found this a bit too loose though so tried it at the crossover setting. This resulted in a slightly "pinchy" waist fit, but didn't seem to make him uncomfortable.

Ideally I'd choose a tightness for him at this point between these two settings. Obviously this is a challenge with one size snap closure diapers in general!

Our Mr. Man has ridiculously skinny legs, so there's a bit of a gap between the leg elastic and his thighs, even when secured at the crossover setting.

This is an issue with most OS diapers at this point, however, so I can't really knock the Ultra Softs for this.

As I mentioned earlier, S has actually been wearing these diapers for a year and a half as I received some previously via a giveaway win and my earlier review package. So now that CJ has had a go too, we've been able to thoroughly test the 10-26 pound range. All in all, the Ultra Soft diapers have performed very well throughout! For some reason, we had leakage with one of the earlier diapers I received (S was 9-10 months old and about 15 pounds) but Giggle Life was quick to replace it with another which performed just fine. I'm really perplexed by the leakage in the one diaper as it has no visible flaws and looks just like the others, but I guess some mysteries are meant to go unsolved. In any case, good on the company for their great customer service and for standing behind their products 100%. Also, I ended up converting the "offending" diaper into an all-in-two, using it with another brand of insert laid on top, and this has worked quite well!

All the other Ultra Soft diapers we own have performed very well as designed, both during the day and at night with both inserts on our medium-wetter. The only other (very few) leakage incidents occurred with S either when the diaper was saturated or not secured very well. Despite the leg gap I noted on CJ, the diaper didn't leak either time he wore it. Note that we haven't had a chance to test EBF poop (yet) - will update if/when we do!

Overall, I consider the Ultra Soft a workorse diaper - it's not fancy but it has performed very well overall. It is also quite durable. The stitching, snaps, elastics and TPU outer all remain in excellent condition on the oldest ones. The microfleece inner and the microfibre inserts do lose their plush quality over time, but this seems to be unavoidable with these types of fibres. (All other microfleece/fiber items in my stash have done the same.)

Time for the official eval!

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Appearance/Style:
+ Simple but attractive design
+ Available in a nice variety of colours and patterns
+ Despite the single row of waist snaps, no notable wing droop or sagging
+/- The diaper is pretty trim with a single insert, but gets quite bulky with both
Score: 4.5/5

Performance:
+ Great performance overall (tested 10-26 lb range), including at night (on medium wetter; both inserts used)
+/- Leg gap present on our 2 month old / 10 pound little man with skinny legs, though no leakage so far
- Experienced leakage with one of the four US diapers we own, but company quick to replace with another. Now use "problem" diaper successfully as an AI2.
? Haven't been able to test yet on EBF poop.
Score: 4/5

Comfort & Health:
+ Does not leave notable marks on baby's skin
+ Does not appear to cause/exacerbate diaper rash
+/- In the middle weight range (15-25+ pounds), achieves snug fit without pinching. Numerous waist snaps present to achieve comfy waist fit. Noted leg gap and difficulty finding the perfect setting on our 2 month old, however (currently between the crossover and first non-crossed setting).
+/- Microfleece inner starts out super-soft but loses plushness over time
- Fabrics are synthetic, so not the most breathable of all options out there. (This hasn't been an issue for our little ones but may be for certain babies.) Also prone to getting stinky so need to strip them more often than diapers and inserts made from natural materials.
- Would be nice if the waist material was a little stretchy for ultimate comfort
Score: 3/5

Ease of Use:
+ Easy to stuff via large pocket
+ Easy to launder; no special instructions
+ Pocket diaper + not-too-tight waist snaps = quick & easy changes
- Inserts not designed to come out in the wash on their own 
Score: 4.5/5 

Quality & Durability:
+ Well-made; no loose seams, flawed stitching, etc. on any of the US diapers we own
+ Stitching, snaps, elastics and TPU outer remain in excellent condition after 1.5 years of use
- Microfleece inner and microfibre inserts lose their plushness over time (unavoidable with these types of fibres)
Score: 4.5/5

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Total "Diaper Awesomeness" Score: 20.5/25 (Great diaper. Highly recommended.)

Overall Comments: A solid "workhorse" diaper - basic but attractive design, performs well, easy to use and durable. Biggest gripe is that the microfleece and microfibre materials lose plushness over time, are prone to getting funky and aren't as breathable as natural fibres - but this is an issue with all diapers containing these fibres.

Estimated Stash Cost: $334.99
Calculation details: 24 Ultra Soft diapers (bought in bulk) cost 159.99. Diapers fit from 8-33 lbs so the OS premium is $175.00 for a total estimated "stash cost" of $334.99.

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Buy It:

Visit Giggle Life Baby Products to purchase your own stash of Ultra Soft diapers! Individual diapers sell for $16.99 CAD, however you save a HUGE amount by ordering in bulk so this is definitely the way to go if you think these diapers are right for your babe(s). Free ground shipping is available to Canada and continental USA via UPS and Canada Post.

Bonus: When you purchase 10 or more diapers, include the promo code "BLPRM" in the comment box during checkout with your child's age and gender for a free mystery gift valued $7.99 to $34.99! This cannot be combined with any other promo codes or offers


Win It:

Giggle Life has offered to give away a one size Ultra Soft cloth diaper + two inserts to one lucky Manager to Mom reader! Winner chooses colour from among available colours/patterns. Open to CAN/US.

To enter, fill out the Rafflecopter form below. Please follow all instructions within each entry option to ensure your entries are valid.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure:  The prize is being provided and shipped to the winner by Giggle Life Baby Products.  I received no financial compensation for writing my review or offering this giveaway, although I did receive a sample item free of charge.  This is my completely honest opinion above and may be different from yours.