Cloth Diaper Review + Giveaway: Moo Moo Kow & Baby Dash

If you are thinking whether to use cloth diaper, head to this other post first, ‘About Cloth Diaper in Singapore’. Once you have decided to give cloth diaper a try, you will soon realise that there are many brands out there. So let me start you somewhere with this cloth diaper review! 🙂

Among the many brands, there are the “brand-less” ones. You can get them on online shopping sites like Qoo10, Taobao, etc. I tried these and I would say, you get what you pay for. You could consider them if you only want to try out cloth diapers, or use them a couple of times for baby’s severe diaper rash.

In this post, I’ll be reviewing Moo Moo Kow and Baby Dash. Mothers like myself are usually acquainted with them because they have standalone booths at baby fairs, unlike say, Charlie Banana that’s tucked among other products at Motherworks booth. You can find Baby Dash at Raf Raf Baby’s booth.

Raf Raf Cloth Diaper - baby.joogostyle


Cloth Diapers and Inserts


Before I dive into the reviews, here’s a breakdown of a cloth diaper’s components.

  • Cloth diaper (i.e. diaper cover) has
    • Outer waterproof shell and an inner layer that touches baby’s skin.
    • In between these two layers is a pocket opening where you can slide in an insert.
  • Insert is a piece of rectangular cloth that you slide inside the cloth diaper’s pocket. This is to absorb the urine (moisture) away from your baby’s skin.

Cloth diaper goes hand in hand with inserts. Each of them has different materials and designs to fit different needs. Here’s a quick glance of what’s available in the market:

Cloth Diaper*:

  • Aplix Cloth Diaper (Velcro to secure)
  • Snap Cloth Diaper (Snap Buttons to secure)
  • Bamboo Cloth Diaper (Snap Buttons)
  • Training Pants (Fits 3-5 years old)

*For Moo Moo Kow and Baby Dash, each cloth diaper you buy comes with two inserts.

Inserts:

  • Day Inserts (Microfiber)
  • Night Inserts (Microfiber)
  • Stay Dry Inserts (Only Moo Moo Kow)
  • Bamboo Inserts
  • Charcoal Bamboo Inserts (Only Raf Raf Baby)

Moo Moo Kow Cloth Diaper - baby.joogostyle


Moo Moo Kow


About Moo Moo Kow

Moo Moo Kow (“MMK”) is a Singapore brand created by a group of mummies who wanted to make a difference in the environment and their community. They have been in the cloth diapering business since 2007, and is now both a distributor and manufacturer. MMK products are made in their China plant where a quality control supervisor ensure all products are made with top quality.

Other than cloth diapers, MMK has a wide collection of products: Swim Diaper, Changing Pads, Cloth Wipes, Liner & Wipes, Mattress Pad, Apron, Pail Liner, Reusable Bag. It also has related brands: Baa Baa Sheepz selling bedtime accessories and bamboo pyjamas, while Crok Crok Frog and Doo Doo Mooky sell towels and nursing products respectively.

Disclaimer: Moo Moo Moo Kow sent over their products for me to review. However, I did buy their bamboo diapers (1-for-1 at baby fair), nursing pad and hooded towel before this.

General Review of Cloth Diapers

Based on my own opinion, the cloth diapers’ workmanship is good and are made of good quality materials. For one, the buttons on MMK’s cloth diaper felt sturdy, like it’s firm in the buckle and not easy to drop off. But I must say, there are too many buttons on one diaper. It gets frustrating when you are hurrying to buckle up a screaming or wrestling baby. I suggest they dial down the buttons or colour code it like Uniqlo onesies – alternate colours for alternate buttons.

According to MMK, they use high quality PUL fabric for the waterproof cover. This fabric can withstand hot washes. This is quite important because for the cheap ones I had before, the lining of the waterproof shell peeled like “skin” when I accidentally set the wrong wash cycle temperature.

Cloth diaper review

Bamboo Cloth Diaper (S$35)

Bamboo cloth diaper is my first love. I bought it because the material feels soft and comfortable on first touch. Bamboo is supposedly breathable, good in absorbency, of natural anti-bacterial, odor-resistant, and cool in warm climate and warm in cold temperatures. Hence, it’s more expensive than the “normal” cloth diaper.

The bamboo cloth diaper and insert indeed felt good in absorbency. However, after multiple washes, the softness gradually became rough and the surface feels slightly prickly. Moreover, bamboo stains easily and it’s not easy to remove those stubborn poo stains. Hence, MMK also recommends users to replace bamboo diapers frequently for hygiene purposes.

I concluded that it’s best to buy bamboo cloth diaper during MMK’s 1-for-1 promotion. The original price of S$35 is a good investment if it lasted longer. Because if you average out this higher initial price with a shorter lifespan, it is still more expensive per use than a regular cloth diaper.

Snap and Aplix Cloth Diapers (Regular Diaper) (S$30)

Snap and Aplix cloth diapers uses microfiber for the surface area. The difference between them is having button and velcro system respectively to secure the diapers on the babies. I have highlighted the pros and cons of each system in ‘About Cloth Diaper in Singapore’.

Unlike bamboo, microfiber (as stated on MMK website) is easy to maintain and easy to remove the stains. Moreover, I find that the surface stays relatively dry even when the insert is wet with urine. Original price is S$30, you can get promotional price during baby fairs and occassionally on Pupsik (S$24).

Cloth Diaper Review - baby.joogostyle

General Review of Inserts

MMK has different inserts for different needs: stay-dry, night time, microfibre, heavy wetter, and bamboo stay-dry inserts. If one insert is not enough for heavy wetter or overnight use, slot two inserts into the cloth diaper’s wide pocket.

Having said that, I don’t put two inserts because I don’t use cloth diapers overnight and I change Evangeline quite often. But if your baby does wear overnight, you can use MMK’s night time insert which is made of hemp. It’s supposedly to be anti-bacterial and more durable and absorbent than other fabrics even though it’s thin. It’s like Laurier super slimguard. I need to change my mindset that thick equals good absorbency.

So What Did I Try?

Stay-dry and bamboo insert that came with MMK’s regular and bamboo cloth diapers.

Bamboo Insert

MMK doesn’t sell this bamboo insert separately, but you can still purchase a similar product – stay dry bamboo insert. This is because unlike the stay dry counterpart, it’s difficult to get rid of the stain on bamboo material. Hence, MMK doesn’t encourage baby who has frequent poo to use bamboo material. However, if you still prefer to use the cooling bamboo, you have to replace your bamboo inserts often.

Stay Dry Insert

Moo Moo Kow Insert - baby.joogostyle

Of all the inserts I have used, MMK’s stay-dry insert stood out. The insert has a layer of stay-dry material (suede) on top of the microfiber. I like it that one side of the insert stays dry while you can touch the wetness on the other side to know how much your little one peed. The stay dry surface gives me a peace of mind that my baby’s butt will not be a wet breeding ground for fungi and yeast to grow. We already had two to three of such incidents already.

Another plus point with stay-dry insert is that you can place the insert on top of the cloth diapers instead of slotting into the pocket which a few mothers find it cumbersome. But I still prefer to insert it into the pocket as it is less likely to go out of place.

There is a small stitch that came off for one of my stay-dry inserts after a couple of washes. No worries, because for any defect situation such as this, contact MMK and they will replace it with a new piece.

Review: Other Products

I’ve used MMK’s bamboo nursing pads and bamboo hooded towels when Evangeline was just born. I talked about my use of bamboo nursing pads in my previous post, “The Breastfeeding Experience“.

As for the bamboo hooded towels, it’s soft on newborn skin, absorbent and easy to use for bathing the newborn. Slot the tiny head in and wipe the hair dry. However, the hood becomes a bit small when the baby head grows. Moreover after some time, bamboo mould spots appeared on the towel like most bamboo products. You can wash off the spots with vinegar – google it. 🙂 I would still recommend the towels for the first few months of your newborn.


Baby Dash


Raf Raf 1 - baby.joogostyle

About Baby Dash and Raf Raf Baby

I tried Baby Dash Economy Pocket Cloth Diaper (“Baby Dash”) that is sold at Raf Raf Baby’s website, but is not actually considered a Raf Raf Baby Cloth Diaper.

Raf Raf Baby (“Raf Raf”) was conceived in 2009 by Martin Ho. Raf Raf’s cloth diapers and inserts are designed in Singapore, with its signature material being charcoal bamboo. According to Mr Martin, Raf Raf cloth diapers are made of premium quality and are comparable to Moo Moo Kow. On the other hand, Baby Dash is more for budget conscious mummies, like me! 🙂

Review: Baby Dash Cloth Diapers (“Baby Dash”) (S$19.90)

The surface of Baby Dash cloth diaper that touches the baby skin is made of microseude, which is similar to MMK’s regular snap diaper. The two are comparable, just that the cloth and buttons of Baby Dash felt like a lite version of MMK. Baby Dash’s diaper felt thinner and lighter, and that might explain why it is more affordable than MMK.

Because of Baby Dash’s price point, this makes good entry level cloth diapers for newbies to try out. It’s also good for parents who are on tight budget. Affordable while having quality that is better than the cheap cloth diapers you find on Qoo10 or Taobao.

A few other points to highlight about this cloth diaper. After a couple of washes, I can see fur ball forming on the microsuede. Nothing serious, just noticeable. On the plus side, this diaper has two buttons fewer than MMK’s to button up and this made it easier to wear on a struggling baby.

Raf Raf- babyjoogostyle

About Charcoal Bamboo Cloth Diapers

I didn’t use Charcoal Bamboo Cloth Diaper as it was out of stock at the time of writing. However, based on their website, I think this diaper has the colour coded button system that I suggested for MMK diaper – alternate button colours to make buttoning easier.

According to Martin, they came up with their own system when designing their bamboo diaper. It is a re-washable 2-part diaper system, which is worn differently from the market norm. This might have to do with their pre-fold anti-leak charcoal bamboo inserts.

Because of this, the customer might not know how to best use this cloth diaper without explanation. Hence, the company organises private demo session with new and potential customers who might be interested to know about their charcoal bamboo diapers. Otherwise, mothers can pop by their baby fair booth to find out more. To make things easier for mummies, I suggest instructional video to be put up on their website to explain how to use the cloth diaper system.

Review: Inserts

Pre-fold anti-leak charcoal bamboo inserts seems to be their featured product, so it was a pity it was unavailable at the time of writing. However, I did try the microfiber insert that came along with Baby Dash’s regular cloth diaper.

This insert is on the slim side, as compared to those I’ve used. It remained slim, albeit a bit rough, after multiple washes. This is unlike their previous version which got thick and fluffy after washes. But it could also be because I have used the previous version for a longer time. Raf Raf also removed the company’s label on their insert in the newer version, wonder why. Regardless, this simple insert absorbs relatively well.

In conclusion, if you want quality, go for MMK. If you want value for money, go for Baby Dash.

Do your baby wear these brands? Let me know what you think about them! Or what other brands do you suggest? Leave your thoughts in the comments box below.


Giveaway


Cloth Diaper Giveaway- babyjoogostyle

JoogoBaby is giving away cloth diapers to TWO WINNERS! Each set is worth about S$60.

  • One set of Moo Moo Kow cloth diapers (2 pieces of snap/aplix cloth diaper)
  • One set of Baby Dash Cloth Diapers (Pack of 3)

You can read about the use of cloth diapers at baby.joogostyle.com/cloth-diaper-in-singapore/.

Simply join the giveaway on Facebook or Instagram (@joogostyle) and fill up this form:

All the best! Giveaway deadline to 1 July 2018, Sunday midnight. I will choose the winners on either Facebook or Instagram. Open to residents of Singapore only.

Terms and Conditions:

  1. Joogostyle reserves the right to select the winners at our sole discretion or to amend the deadline at any time without prior notice. No explanation is required. Winner will be notified via Facebook/email.
  2. Winner will need to email his/her personal particulars to Joogostyle upon confirmation announcement on Facebook. If a winner does not respond within three (3) working days, the prize will be invalid and the winner forfeits all rights to any prize.
  3. Joogostyle may at its discretion replace or substitute any of the prizes with another prize of equal or similar value at any time without prior notice being given.
  4. Joogostyle reserves the right for final decision in the case of disputes.


2 thoughts on “Cloth Diaper Review + Giveaway: Moo Moo Kow & Baby Dash”

  • Hi very informative! any idea do these cloth diapers have ‘shelf life’ like disposable diapers? (e.g. losing elasticity, inserts absorbing water over time, discoloration etc)

    • Hello Izzy! Cloth diaper companies claimed that you can use them for a few years. E.g. Raf Raf said 2 years (www.rafrafbaby.com/why-cloth-diapers/cost-savings.php).

      But the shelf life really depends on various factors, e.g. your usage and how you wash/care for them. I would guesstimate 1.5-2 years for the elasticity to loosen, and less than a year for bamboo cloth diapers to be changed.

      If you are doing cost calculation to compare cloth and disposable, I would be conservative to suggest using 1 year for cloth diapers’ shelf life. 🙂

Let's Hear from You!