Best Diaper: Function, Cost, Convenience and SMELL

As I start the planning and dreaming of a new baby, I am reminded of all the things I have learned over the last 17 months with Mercy. There were many things I kind of knew about from having many nieces and nephews, but some I had to find out on my own. One of the funnier, and yet more important things I learned was which diapers I preferred ... Huggies.

Here's Mercy about 7 months ago, sporting Luvs during my testing phase. As you can see, we really put Luvs to the test.

My decision to use Huggies was based on four factors: 1) Function, 2) Cost, 3) Convenience, and 4) Smell. Yes, smell was a very important factor and maybe the most important issue to me. But, we'll get back to that in a moment.

First, function. I really wanted to make sure that not only were these diapers going to hold in fluid and other substances, but that they were not going to cause Mercy any grief. Did they keep her little bottom dry? One of the first things I noticed about function is most are made with a dry core that pulls the liquid away from the surface of the diaper. However the cheaper, generic or store brands didn't do this as well. Pampers did win in this category with it's netted weave, but Huggies and Luvs tied for second.

Another part of function turned out to be how the securing tabs worked. Again, Pampers won on this level as well. Their tabs are skinny with longer, stretchier fabric waist extensions that were soft on Mercy's little legs. Luvs are similar in this way. Huggies, like most store brands, have wider and harder tabs with shorter fabric waist extensions. I found that this would cause a little scratching on Mercy's legs and that didn't bode well with me.

Second, cost. The winner on cost was, of course, the store brands; but as far as bigger name brands go, Luvs was not far behind. Cost includes how many diapers you end up using per day based on how well they hold fluid and other bodily functions. So, Luvs won in this category. They held up better and were more inexpensive in general than other brand name diapers. Still, the only place I could find them was Wal-Mart and I did not go there often enough. Since using Luvs would be out of my way, therefore adding to the total cost (driving to a different place just for diapers), Huggies won again because they are more widely available at the stores I generally go to, and in some cases, cheaper per unit (diaper).

Third, convenience. Convenience has to do with how easy is it to get these for a good price and doesn't require me to make a special trip just to get them. Huggies won on this account. Costco has an excellent price for Huggies (they have the wipes too which I also prefer, but that's another post another day) and I go there pretty often for several staples in our home. So, for convenience there was no second when you take into consideration the other two factors above. PLUS, Huggies was now promoting their longer waist extenders that made them more comfortable for crawlers and walkers (when I finally figured out which ones I preferred, she was crawling).

Finally, fourth, SMELL! This factor I took into consideration almost immediately. For my baby shower I was given several different brands of diapers for newborns, with Pampers and Huggies being the majority. I had heard that my friends preferred Pampers and they did feel softer to the touch. I used them for about 2 weeks, always noting how odd they smelled, even when she had just gone number one. In fact, the smell bothered me so much that I refused to buy more and gave the rest to a friend who loved them and was expecting. Huggies never smelled bad to me, nor did many of the others, but I had more Huggies than others at the time. My friend said she didn't like the smell of Luvs. I didn't necessarily think they smelled bad, but to each their own. Huggies may smell bad to someone else, but they don't bother me in the slightest.

SO ... When I weighed all these factors I settled on Huggies. If there was no need to be thrifty or if Pampers smelled better, I might have chosen them, but in the end, I can confidently say, Huggies is the way for me.

Lesson Learned: It's okay to experiment a little when you're a new mom with consumer items such as food, clothing, and diapers. Just be sure to evaluate them on your own standards and not what other people tell you to do. Everyone has to figure out what works for them and what is most affordable.