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Saturday, June 9, 2012

WAHM Wares: Bunzuke Cloth Convertabunz 2.0 review

Picture from Bunzuke Hyena Shop
Bunzuke is a home based business that makes mostly cloth diapers. The specialty is all-in-two (AI2) diapers and an inventive, multi-use diaper called a Convertabunz. This WAHM business stocks on Hyena Cart the first of the month and is usually sold out within minutes. I had been wanting to try the convertabunz for a few months and could never get my hands on one during a stocking until this last one. Even being a diaper maker myself, I was so excited to get these diapers in the mail. The elephant print is so cute and soft.

Picture from Bunzuke Hyena Shop
Let's review the features:
-uses; insert for pocket diaper, stay dry soaker, snapping prefold, elasticized lay in soaker, and "fitted" elasticized prefold
-one layer of cotton interlock, one layer of bamboo fleece, zorb in the wet zone, stay dry fleece in wet zone
- snap closure for prefold form
-snaps in the pocket to connect to AI2 shells
-encased elastic with multiple settings for adjustable leg elastic

When I took the diapers out of the package, I will admit that I was intimidated. Even as an experienced cloth diaper user, I couldn't figure out how to use it. I had quickly watched the instructional video on the listing before purchasing, but thank goodness I could go back and watch it again more closely once I had the diaper in my hands. I mimicked what she did in the video and got the hang of all the different uses. This diaper is very versatile. I tried using it all its forms to give a thorough review.

I love that the materials are so soft and stretchy. I did the trifold with angel wing to put it on my daughter as a snapping prefold and an elasticized snapping prefold. Even with a size large, I had a hard time snapping both the wing snaps. She's on the last setting in front without having the second one rub her belly, which I didn't want to let happen. I was surprised at the snugness considering that my daughter has an average waist measurement for her age and this diaper is listed as a large. I would have liked an extended tab prefold shape for this use or a wider measurement overall. It got a snugger fit with the elastic, which I like. Overall, both the snapping prefold and the "fitted" forms were both absorbent, soft, and trim. I can't use it overnight on my heavy wetter, but for how trim it is, you can't beat the absorbency.

I tried it as an insert in a pocket and a soaker for an AI2. She describes pulling it inside out to get this insert shape. When I did that, I found that the pocket made the wings of the prefold pucker a bit and not lay completely flat, but it did fit nicely into my pocket diaper, made by Norries Nappies. It was slightly less absorbent than the prefold forms and I'm not sure exactly why. Because I didn't have a shell from Bunzuke, I used the shell from AdriannaKnits. I do like the fleece top liner for the stay dry effect. I did have to add a bamboo booster for extra absorbency in this form. I also tried this form with the elastic tightened which created the double gusset effect. While my daughter doesn't particularly need this feature in her diapers, I can imagine how it would be great to contain newborn messes or for older babies that have more frequent stools.

As for washing, I think this was the only *real* problem area. It washed and dried easily in the prefold form, but when the elastic was tightened, it took much longer to dry. I had a hard time relaxing the elastic on a wet diaper and would NOT do this if it was dirty before washing it. In the inserts and soaker forms, it took a super long time to dry and I had to pull it inside out to get it to dry more quickly. Again, I would NEVER do this before putting it in the wash. I'd have to stick my hand through a pee and possibly poop cover diaper to turn it inside out.

Despite the washing issues, I really like this diaper and reach for it often. It is very affordable, soft, and absorbent. It is creative and unique. This diaper plays many roles, which I think is a positive as well as a negative attribute. When something does too many things, it may not be excellent at any one particular thing. I believe that's the same with this diaper. It does a lot of things well, but doesn't do any one thing extremely well. After trying all forms, I use it mostly as a snapping prefold or elastic prefold, just for ease of laundering. I do love it though and would recommend it to anyone that needs a few extra changes in their stash, even if I don't recommend a full stash of this one type of diaper.

1 comment:

  1. I know you wrote this a little while ago. Some things I did want to mention is she does point out wash it in insert form then flip it out to dry it. I understand you are a cloth diaper expert but my first time using bamboo made me realize they have a much longer prepping period than micro. Also zorb has a lengthy prep time as well so I'm told. It may be possible they just arent prepped enough yet. Hot wash and hot drys could help? Did things improve since this post? I have been very curious about the convertabunz.

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