I realize a video review about flats isn’t exciting… but I know plenty of people want to see particular brands in “person” so I’m happy to have a review of the GeffenBaby flats for you today. They are unique and are made with 60% Hemp and 40% Cotton. They have stretch to them which helps get a nice and tight fit. They are also made in the USA.
Ease of Use ✩✩✩ You can pad fold your GeffenBaby flat and call it a day but flats overall are more work than a pocket or even a prefold for that matter. Once you get the hang of it you can very quickly fold your flat into many configurations or stick to the pad fold (tutorial). Then you need to put the cover on. Application wise you need practice, but when it comes to caring for and washing flats they are above and beyond easier than other diapers. They wash and dry better thanks to being only one layer.
Bang for the Buck ✩✩✩✩ The flat from Geffenbaby retails for $6.95, not bad considering it is hemp and cotton and MADE IN THE USA. More expensive that an insert but miles cheaper than a fitted and even some prefolds. They pack a lot of absorbency for that price.
Performance ✩✩✩✩✩ GO FLATS! You can’t go wrong with them… and I can’t even make them not work if I tried. I love using these Geffenbaby flats overnight in an Applecheeks envelope cover. You need to figure out the best fold for you, or just pad fold. You might need a doubler for extra heavy wetters but for regular daytime use you can get a lot of layers where you need them. As with most diapers, the Geffenbaby will become more absorbent the more it is washed, taking about 6-8 washes to hit maximum absorbency. You will want to prep these before use.
Fit ✩✩✩✩✩ It is pretty hard to find a way for a flat not to fit, because even if a baby outgrows the width when folded you might find a fold better suited for their size or you can just pad fold the darn thing. You can’t lose! These are even better than a birdseye or gauze flat in the fit department since they stretch, meaning a nice tight fit around legs and waist as long as you have it on correctly.
Overall: I’ve really enjoyed using these flats so far! I use them mostly at night-pad folded- but to make sure I got the feel of them for the review I also did various folds for daytime and things went well. Like I said in the video, they aren’t perfectly square and that poses a problem for folding so you need to either fold it to be square, then do your folds, or use folds that are more forgiving and work with rectangles or you can overlap parts so that it isn’t an issue. They aren’t the “cheap flats” that I so often speak about in regards to my Flats Challenge and you can’t buy a few dozen for under $50 like a few other examples, however if you use flats because you love them and not because you need to use the cheapest option these are a luxury worth trying. You might want to grab a few before the Flats and Handwashing Challenge coming up May 20-16 2013.
PS- Great information on these also from Change-diapers.com including measurements and lots of photos.
Where to Buy: GeffenBaby.com
