Before my son was born, I had purchased a variety of different styles of cloth diapers to test out after he arrived. Just like with clothing for adults, what diaper worked well for one baby often didn’t work well for the next. In my little diaper purchasing raid, I knew I wanted to try fitted diapers - diapers that were “pre-formed” but needed a cover to be waterproof. They looked convenient and I hoped they’d work fell for those runny “moments” that seemed to happen every 15 minutes in the first few weeks.

One of the things I was basing my early “diaper opinions” on was something I am not proud of. I’d originally not wanted to purchase any cloth diapers with names that made me cringe. From cutesy spelling I’d seen so often including “bunz” and “bizzy b” to sugary sweet names like “Bummis” and yes, “Kissaluvs”. Being a few credits away from a degree in English and being the type to avoid anything “cutesy” like the plague, I’d almost refused to purchase Kissaluvs fitted diapers until I read several glowing recommendations.

All name issues aside...

I ended up purchasing 5 size 0 Kissaluvs fitted cloth diapers. The size 0 diapers were designed for babies 5-15 pounds, so I hoped that I’d be able to get a lot of use out of them. While a limited range of pastel coloured Kissaluvs were available (including baby blue, yellow, light pink, light orange, and light green), I opted for the natural coloured diapers, which were a light tan colour. Fabric choices included cotton fleece and a fleece/terry combo. Right in line with other name brand fitted diaper prices, the price for a diaper was $9.95 for natural colour or $10.95 for the colours. Unlike other diapers, however, there was no price increase in the larger sizes.

These fitted diapers looked great when they arrived. The cotton fleece fabric was soft and there were two rows of adjustable snaps, as well as a fold down snap for the umbilical cord stump. The construction of the diapers was great - there were no errors in snap placement, the stitching was high quality, and most importantly, there was no size variation among the 5 diapers I’d purchased. There was elastic at the legs and in the back to help prevent accidents, but as it was covered in the fabric, it wouldn’t irritate or grab a babies sensitive skin. There was a sewn in doubler in the middle for extra absorbency, an added plus.

After a few washes to break them in, these Kissaluvs fitted diapers were ready for use. At a few days of age we put the first fitted diaper on my son. Despite the fact that his umbilical cord stump hadn’t yet fallen off, the rise was low enough on these diapers that from the start my 9lb 6oz at birth baby didn’t need to have the diaper folded down. While he was heavy, he wasn’t chubby, and we found that the legs fit well without being tight enough to pinch skin and yet not being too lose that it allowed “things” out of the diaper.

For the first two weeks when a bowel movement happened almost every time he breathed, I enjoyed using the Kissaluvs fitted diapers. The elastic at the legs and the back kept everything in and not only did these diapers seem to have a natural built-in stain repellant, but they also seemed to dry almost quicker than our Chinese prefolds These diapers were also quite trim, fitting well in the assortment of diaper covers and pants I had purchased. Unlike my poorly folded prefolds, the width between his legs was enough to hold things in yet not too much that it would force his legs apart unnaturally. The rise was a bit lower than I’d have liked, coming in at a bit over an inch under his belly button, but the back was high enough so that I didn’t worry about “plumbers butt”. At two weeks, however, things changed. He started holding things in better.

News flash: Boys and girls: Built Differently!

I quickly learned that while these Kissaluvs may have been great if I was changing the diaper literally every 15 minutes, if I went for 30 minutes, I’d have a diaper so saturated it was almost dripping. I found myself placing ill-fitting doublers inside the diaper just to go 45 minutes without changing him, especially important when making the 30 minute drive to visit the grandparents. Yes, I had a super-soaking son, but while even a single Chinese prefold could last for an hour, there was no way the Kissaluvs fitted diaper would last an hour.

Part of my problem was simply design. The Kissaluvs fitted diapers were designed with a girl in mind. Based on anatomy, girls tended to need more absorbency in different areas than boys. While the built in doubler was great, it was at the bottom of the diaper, not even near where a “downward pointing” boy needed it. While the knit fabric was great for stretch and the ability to fit a large range of body shapes and sizes, it was unfortunately just had far too little absorbency to work decently.

To save myself hassle and frustration of dealing with the Kissaluvs fitted diapers, I ended up selling them and then swore off of them until we recently had the opportunity to use a brand new size 2 Kissaluvs fitted cloth diaper for free. Size 2 was to fit from 20 pounds to 40 pounds - our friend had a very skinny toddler, just under 20 pounds, and found that she in fact needed a size 1 (15 to 25 pounds) diaper. For a free diaper, I was willing to put aside my hesitation and see if the larger size worked out better than the smaller size Kissaluvs.

My son was just about 24 pounds when we first put on the size 2 Kissaluvs diaper. Just as with the size 0 diapers purchased a little over a year before, this diaper was well made. The fabric was soft, the stitches were tight, and the snaps were well placed and secure. Unlike other fitted diapers, I really liked that the size 2 diapers allowed for the front wings to overlap for those babies with skinnier tummies. This allowed for a good fit in the legs, yet the front and back were also secure and not gaping open, especially when my son was sitting or standing.

A problem with this larger Kissaluvs, however, once again came with the rise. The diaper was so short in the front that it would have been a very bad situation if I didn’t make sure certain parts were arranged well. Bikini style underwear (or swimwear) on adult men didn’t look good in my mind, and bikini style diapers on young boys looked (and functioned) even worse. The back was slightly better, although after a few minutes of wear we experienced plumbers butt. Like the size 0 diapers, this size 2 diaper was clearly not designed with a boy in mind - the built in doubler, again, was at the bottom of the diaper, nowhere near where it was needed for a boy.

Absorbency (or lack of it) once again became a major issue. While a single pee would result in our Chinese prefolds not feeling even damp on the outside of the diaper, a single pee in the Kissaluvs size 2 soaked through the whole front to the point that a second pee before I got a chance to change him actually left a puddle where he’d been sitting. While I hated to let him sit for any time at all in a damp diaper, like most young toddlers, having him be still for a diaper change was hard enough, without needing a diaper change every 15 minutes to make sure I wasn’t cleaning up a mess.

I really wanted to like the Kissaluvs fitted diaper. Well made and relatively cheap, they could have been a great addition to my diaper stash. Unfortunately, boys were left out of the design picture, those who were taller or didn’t “like” binkini diapers were left out of the design picture, and anyone who wet more than a few drops at a time was left out of the design picture. While parents of girls may find these a good fit, I’d urge extreme caution for anyone else.

Recommended: No