As my readers know, I am a huge fan of the Smart Bottoms all-in-one cloth diaper. Unlike with my daughter, who primarily wore all-in-twos and covers with various inserts, I prefer all-in-ones on my son. Immediately after birth, I put him in an Emerson Smart Bottoms Born Smart Newborn diaper. Once he grew big enough after a few weeks, I started putting him in my one-size Smart Bottoms.
Nighttime has been the greatest cloth diapering challenge with my son. When I first switched to cloth with my daughter, I quickly found a number of overnight cloth diapering solutions that worked. My son, however, is a fairly heavy wetter. My go-to microfiber insert and overnight doubler from Best Bottom Diapers — my current favorite overnight insert combination for my daughter — failed me and my bedding with my son. I thus found myself heading back to the nighttime drawing board when my son was only a few weeks old.
As a Smart Bottoms Diaper Ambassador, I received an organic cotton insert and a four-layer organic cotton and hemp insert to try. Both are available in large and small sizes, although I chose the large size. (When my son wore the Smart One all-in-one on the smallest rise setting, I simply folded one side under to make the large insert fit inside the diaper.) The hourglass shape of the natural fiber inserts provides full coverage and added absorbency without excess bulkiness. The inserts can be used with any diapering system, but I exclusively use mine in my ever-growing stash of one-size Smart Bottoms.
I prefer synthetic fibers on both my children for a number of reasons. First, microfiber absorbs quickly and dries quickly. Unlike my natural fibered diapers, my microfiber air dries on a drying rack in front of a fan in only a few hours. Microfiber is also less expensive than cotton and hemp. My son, in particular, dislikes the feeling of a wet diaper, so Stay Dry material helps keep him comfortable for longer.
At first I was skeptical about using either the organic cotton insert or the four-layer organic cotton and hemp insert inside my Smart Bottoms all-in-ones overnight. If ten layers of microfiber could not contain the overnight wetness from my son, then surely four layers of natural fibers on top of the ten layers of cotton in the Smart Bottoms diaper would fail too. Plus, I was sure that my son would wake up fussy from feeling wetness against his skin.
I am pleased to admit that my disbelief in the organic cotton insert and the four-layer organic cotton and hemp insert from Smart Bottoms was wrong. Of my numerous overnight cloth diapering experiments, my Smart Bottoms combinations consistently leak the least. My son typically goes nine hours overnight without a diaper change. (Let sleeping babies lie, right?) When I put him in a Smart Bottoms one-size all-in-one with either the organic cotton insert or the four-layer organic cotton and hemp insert, I feel confident that he and I will both wake up dry. On the rare occasion that his overnight diaper does leak, I usually find only a small amount of moisture around the legs in the front of the diaper, and any leaking usually happens on days when he sleeps in past his usual nine hours.
At the moment, I own only two additional inserts from Smart Bottoms. Thus, on the weekends, I end up putting a small Stay Dry Buttons Diapers insert inside my Smart Bottoms all-in-one overnight. (I wash diaper laundry on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.) While the four layers of microfiber functions as a fairly effective nighttime cloth diaper, I have noticed that my son leaks a bit more and more frequently with the synthetic-natural combination than with only the natural fibers. In a pinch, however, the microfiber and Stay Dry inserts works pretty well overnight so long as I change my son early enough in the morning.
Despite my initial love of microfiber with my daughter, I have grown to love the natural material of the Smart Bottoms Smart One all-in-one with my son. I frequently put my son in one of my many Smart Ones during the day. I also prefer to put him in a Smart Bottoms with an additional organic cotton insert or four-layer organic cotton and hemp insert overnight. Both my son — and my sheets — wake up dryer in the morning with Smart Bottoms.
Have you tried Smart Bottoms overnight?
Smart Bottoms cloth diapers are available at Nicki’s Diapers and Pink Lemonade Shop via my affiliate links.
Image Credits
Smart Bottoms Organic Cotton Insert and Smart Bottoms Organic Cotton and Hemp Insert 1 © 2015 Heather Johnson
Smart Bottoms Organic Cotton Insert and Smart Bottoms Organic Cotton and Hemp Insert 2 © 2015 Heather Johnson
Large Smart Bottoms Insert in Smart Bottoms Smart One All-in-One Cloth Diaper © 2015 Heather Johnson
Large Smart Bottoms Insert Folded in Smart Bottoms Smart One All-in-One Cloth Diaper © 2015 Heather Johnson
Wet Smart Bottoms Insert in Smart Bottoms Smart One All-in-One Cloth Diaper © 2015 Heather Johnson
Small Buttons Diapers Insert in Smart Bottoms Smart One All-in-One Cloth Diaper © 2015 Heather Johnson
