MiniKiwi Diapers: They Leak!

In my area there is a restocking/overage store. "Off the truck" items, damaged products, overage items are sold here. You can get some name brand stuff for half the price. Needless to say it's a pretty profitable store.

Occasionally, I will find cloth diaper products. Once, there were BumGenius inserts (a package of 8 double inserts) for $4. I bought a lot! Last year there was some MiniKiwi cloth diapers also for $4 each. I looked up the price online and they run between $25 and $30 so I thought it was such a steal! I bought twenty of them. They are Velcro (extremely strong Velcro) and the size is snap adjustable to four different sizes. Plus, the owl print was too cute!

When I had them washed and tried them on my (then) 18 month old they fit great! The inside was a soft wicking fabric with interior gussets so there is less leakage at the legs. The pocket easily fits GreenCheeks inserts or BumGenius inserts (as well as many others I'm sure, but those are the ones I used). So, you've heard the pros but what was the con? For some reason the PUL leaked! It didn't come out the sides or the top but actually the exterior felt damp. I compare it to wool covers that feel damp to the touch after a heavy wetting.

I thought it was due to the large amount my child pees. She was getting to the potty training age and held her urine for hours at a time which made nearly all diapers leak. But I talked to a few others that bought the same brand from the same store and they also had the same problem. I'm not sure if they were defective and that's why they were at that store or all MiniKiwi diapers have this problem.

I ended up putting the diapers aside and rarely using them with my daughter. She was potty trained a few months later and I forgot about them (and all diapers for that matter). When I was getting close to the birth of my son I decided I could not waste 20 diapers that were great in every way except one. (Well, actually I'm not a big fan of pocket openings inside the diaper instead of at the top. I have to reach in and get the insert instead of just shaking the diaper and it falls out. But that's just my opinion and nothing I can't live with.)

I decided to make the diaper water proof. How? Scrap PUL seems to be in excess around my house. I cut rectangle pieces 12x4inches (approximate) and sewed them in from the outside.I didn't want to take the diaper apart to sew in the scrap PUL. That just isn't worth the $4 I paid for them. Downfall to this: inserts don't fit as well. The upside: they don't leak.