What Sets Judes Apart from Other Cloth Diapers? A User Experience Report.

 

What makes Judes different from other cloth diapers? I asked myself the same question! Obviously, the startup "Judes Family" seems to be doing something different (and right). I went through the customer feedback: Interestingly, many of the customers apparently previously used disposable diapers. Founders Nele and Leon seem to manage to reach "regular" parents with their product.

Because let’s be honest: Most cloth diapers are intended for cloth diaper enthusiasts, for whom nothing other than cloth diapers will do. This is precisely what has frustrated me about the topic of cloth diapers so far. Many of the existing systems are just too complicated to use! I know people who loathe to put plastic diapers on their children - but who are so desperate with complicated cloth diapers that it's simply no longer an option for them. This truly makes me sad. Because Diapering sustainably is not only much more environmentally friendly, but also healthier for the baby.

I think I can claim to be an expert in the world of cloth diapers. I not only diapered my own children with cloth diapers but have been deeply engaged with them for several years. I have inspected practically every cloth diaper in the world very closely.

All the more reason why I was pleased when Nele and Leon approached me and asked if I would like to compare their Judes with other systems. I did... And to get ahead of myself: I think the startup can justifiably claim to have developed, "The easiest washable diaper in the world."

I am thrilled.

But let's start from the beginning! In this article you will read about:

• Why Judes are comparatively easy to handle
• Why washing Judes is particularly quick
• Why Judes have superior leak protection compared to others
• Why Judes are thinner than other cloth diapers
• Why Judes also work very well as overnight diapers (12 hours!)
• Why Judes are especially healthy and sustainable
• Conclusion: A short summary of my findings

Or to put it another way: You will read about how you can diaper your child in a skin-friendly and plastic-free way so that they develop healthy and happy. Additionally, you'll learn how to do this in a simple manner and without extra effort.

Why Judes are comparatively easy to handle

A Judes diaper consists of two combinable parts, the absorbent material (inner diaper) and a moisture barrier (outer cover). In the development of the diaper, it was particularly important to Nele and Leon to make cloth diapering as easy as possible for parents. Because, let's be honest, the existing cloth diaper market offers a lot, but especially many different diaper systems with cryptic names, numerous accessories, and endless insert and folding options. Confusion when applying them is almost guaranteed. High five to those who can manage to get an overview. For many parents, this is more of a reason to stick to the well-trodden path to the diaper aisle of the nearest drug store.

But here come the good news. Parents standing in the drugstore with sad faces and dreaming of simple cloth diapers will be a thing of the past. Because Leon and Nele have come up with something brilliant for all expectant parents (and those who already are): A cloth diaper that is just as easy to put on as a disposable diaper. It's exactly the same movements. No additional inserts, no folding. Because: The absorbent layers are already sewn in with Judes. You open and close the diaper infinitely with the Velcro at the waist, just like you're used to (with disposable diapers).

So what does Judes have that others don’t?

You might be thinking now that there are already simple cloth diaper systems out there – like the All-In systems, right? I see you’re already well-informed. But let me just explain the differences between an All-In (AIO), Pocket diaper, and Judes. Wait, AIO? Pocket diaper? What are those?

• AIO is a complete diaper where the absorbent material and moisture barrier are permanently sewn together.
• Pocket diapers have a - watch out! Pocket 😉 - a pocket where the absorbent material must be inserted before use.

An AIO has the advantage that you can put it on relatively quickly. However, it also has significant disadvantages, which is why Judes Family decided against this version:

1. They leak easily, as they cannot adjust as individually to the child's body shape. Particularly at the typical leak spots, there is a lack of absorbent material.
2. They are bulky and thick at the bottom, as they contain more layers.
3. They take longer to dry because they have a waterproof outer layer.
4. They are not as sustainable, since polyester and fabric are sewn together.

Pocket diapers have the advantage that their absorbency can be varied more easily by placing a booster insert in their pocket. However, this model also has significant drawbacks:

1. The absorbency advantage is negligible since Judes can also add more absorbency with boosters. And even that faster and more easily.
2. Pocket diapers also leak quickly, as the absorbent material is not close enough at the typical leak spots.
3. Like AIOs, Pocket diapers are bulky and thick at the bottom, as the boosters stack on top of each other in their pocket.
4. Inserting and removing the boosters complicates handling.
5. They are also not as sustainable, since polyester and fabric are sewn together.

A Judes, on the other hand, consists of an extremely absorbent inner diaper and an especially tight outer cover. The application and changing work exactly the same for the inner diaper and outer cover - just like with disposable diapers. No additional folding is necessary, as Judes already has its inserts sewn in. Therefore, no preparation is necessary.

 

Conclusion on “Handling”:

With many manufacturers of classic “outer cover + absorbent insert” systems, the absorbent material is placed loosely in the outer cover, and when applying the diaper, special attention must be paid to ensure that nothing shifts and everything stays in place.

This can lead to hectic and less affectionate situations while diapering, especially with very mobile children - or also during phases when the child does not like to be diapered. In addition, it requires a certain amount of skill and dexterity to apply these two-part diaper systems. Something not everyone who diapers can boast.

The advantages of Judes are:

• Time-saving: No need for preparation by folding and stuffing the diaper!
• Stability: No shifting of absorbing material!
• Simple: Easier application, even for mobile children!

Pro tip: Judes diapers are also great for diapering your child while standing. Eventually, every child reaches the moment when it gets too boring to peacefully lie on their back for diaper changes. Running around, crawling, climbing trees, or continuing to paint a picture is simply more exciting! Here are a few tips on how you can playfully change your child's diaperhere.

Why is washing with Judes especially easy and quick?

Especially here, I couldn't imagine that Judes really are better than other cloth diapers. More on that shortly…

But first to clarify (for those new to this area): No, the solid feces does not go into the washing machine! To prevent the diaper from getting dirty with feces, Judes has developed its own Poo Paper. It fits perfectly into the inner diaper sizes 1 and 2 through the specially designed two sizes.

You simply place it between the inner diaper and the baby's bottom. It then catches the feces while the inner diaper absorbs just the pee. Advantage: The feces can be disposed of easily along with the paper, without you (or the inner diaper) coming into contact with it. And this makes washing much easier as well.

But that's not all. Judes Family has really thought this through.

Judes has developed its own diaper bag, in which the diapers can be stored for laundry, and washed at the same time! This has two advantages:

1. You don't have to touch the used Judes again before washing, because you simply put the entire diaper bag in the washing machine.
2. Putting it "into the washing machine" goes incredibly fast since you just put the entire diaper bag in.

In addition, there are no extra inserts, etc., to take care of during laundry with Judes Family. Thus, there are fewer parts to wash and dry overall.

I wanted to know exactly and did a test. I washed Judes, hung them up to dry and took them off again - timing it! The result even surprised me.

It takes...

• 30 seconds to put the diaper bag in the machine and turn it on,
• 30 seconds to take the diaper bag out again and to set up the drying rack,
• 7 minutes to hang up the laundry (21 inner diapers, 6 covers, 5 boosters, 40 washcloths),
• it takes 1 minute to take the laundry down.

So, in total, it takes 9 minutes to wash Judes. Wow!

With 1.5 washes per week, it's about 15 minutes that you're busy with Judes cloth diaper laundry. I would never have thought that! That's probably less time than I would need to take out the daily trash from disposable diapers. I call that a rewarding time investment for a healthy baby bottom.

Here again, how you wash your Judes:

• Store your used diapers in the Judes diaper bag.
• Every 2-3 days, you simply place it open in your washing machine, the diapers will tumble out on their own once the machine gets going.
• 60 degrees, heavy-duty detergent, 1000 revolutions during spinning. This is important as otherwise, the elastics are too strained.
• To dry, you simply hang them on the line, or dry them in the dryer
• Little tip: If the diaper has gotten a little breast milk stool on it, just hang it in the sun after washing and watch the magic – the stain will be gone.

Another advantage of Judes's concept of cover and inner diaper: After use, you only have to wash the inner diaper, the cover can be used again (except, of course, if it's dirty) one more time (Judes Family recommends using it 4-5x and airing it out before washing). Just air it out a bit and it’s ready for the next round.

Nothing gets through - maximum leak protection: Judes have excellent containment

Anyone who looks at customer feedback for Judes will notice not only that their application is very simple, but also that they apparently provide excellent leak protection. Interestingly: Both cloth-diapering veterans and disposable-diaper parents describe Judes as having much better leak protection in comparison!

This is probably mainly due to these three reasons:

1. Judes, according to their statement, uses an innovative fabric that is extremely absorbent and is not used by any other cloth diaper brand in Europe.
2. Another advantage of Judes Family diapers over others is the leg and back elastics. Due to the combination of an inner diaper and outer cover, there are actually two of them! A really helpful thing when there's a complete explosion of breast milk or milk stool into the diaper. What easily finds its way up the back or down the leg with simple elastics is retained by the additional barrier of the outer cover!
3. As already mentioned above: The advantage of the pull-up diaper principle (over AIO and pocket diapers).

Why Judes are thinner than other cloth diapers - much thinner!

Of course, Judes didn’t invent the inner diaper with outer cover concept. So-called pull-up diapers have been around for decades. Just like Judes, they are made entirely of fabric and are complemented by external moisture protection that keeps the liquid inside.

However, what is often criticized about these pull-up diapers is their bulkiness. Because of the many layers of fabric, they are extremely bulging and thus create the "bumblebee bottom" which always draws astonished looks from other parents. This is neither nice for the child nor particularly comfortable, as the outer cover and pull-up diaper create a very thick cloth diaper package.

We can do it better, the cloth diaper startup thought, and developed an inner diaper with the absorbency of a traditional pull-up diaper and the comfort of a slimmer diaper package. This also makes it the perfect cloth diaper for overnight use.

Slim diaper package with the same absorbency? Yes, it’s possible. Once again, the innovative fabric from Judes plays a role. With a very special, specially designed weave made of organic cotton fabric. This way, the Judes diaper creates a slim diaper package and thus maximum wearing comfort for your baby! Customer feedback indicates that for some, the children's clothes continued to fit in normal sizes!

With Judes, you automatically also get a nighttime diaper

That other cloth diaper providers offer a separate nighttime diaper alongside the standard one has been the norm until now. Once you're familiar with Judes, it seems more like a design flaw. Judes are so absorbent that they can wonderfully be used as a nighttime diaper.

This is what many customers report in the form of feedback on the Judes website. And I can well imagine it - my own absorption test showed that they are indeed super absorbent. All you need to do is add a booster for the night into the Judes. Done!

Additional note: Some Judes parents even report that Judes provide better leak protection at night than disposable diapers - even for children who pee a lot at night. I wanted to specifically mention this because, in my experience, many parents still revert to disposable diapers at night, thinking they offer better leak protection.

Photo by Minnie Zhou on Unsplash

Why Judes are particularly healthy and sustainable

I hadn't considered this point before, but it should be mentioned, especially in combination with the above-mentioned benefits of Judes: Judes are also particularly healthy and sustainable.

Unfortunately, it's not a given that only organic cotton (for the inner diaper) and recycled polyester (for the outer cover) is used. It's also not a given that the absorbent diaper contains only natural materials, ensuring no plastics come into contact with the skin.

In my opinion, this is extremely important. Anyone who looks into the issue and understands what it can mean for a child's health when a plastic diaper cannot breathe will know what I mean. Because Judes uses natural, breathable organic cotton against the baby's skin, the skin can regulate itself. There's no need for moisturizing cream, as diaper rash (or diaper dermatitis) doesn't occur from the start.

Instead, the baby's bottom is healthy and happy, just as it normally is. And not least, the child can also develop naturally (and get a sense of wetness when they wet their Judes).

Stylish and simple

But it's not just in terms of simplicity that Judes diapers stand out; they also completely convince with their design. Gender-neutral colors combined with minimalist patterns provide a welcome contrast to the otherwise chaotically colorful, infantile-themed cloth diapers from other manufacturers. But of course, that's a matter of taste.

Conclusion

All of us want nothing more than a healthy, happy child who can grow up in a peaceful, unspoiled world. The climate crisis, along with the pollution of the planet, stands in the way of this wish, which is why I have always tried to consume as sustainably as possible. Naturally, I’ve also diapered my children with cloth diapers - but if I'm honest, it wasn't always easy.

It is all the more wonderful that with Judes Family, a startup has entered the market that makes Diapering sustainably so much easier. I have never held a cloth diaper in my hand that was so easy to use. I am certain that Judes' solution will result in a lot more children being diapered with cloth diapers instead of plastic diapers in the future. This makes me really happy!

And to conclude, my Top 5 aspects of why Judes is the best cloth diaper on the market:

• A slim diaper package and yet super absorbency
• Beautiful designs and gender-neutral colors
• Mega easy and intuitive, even for on the go
• Organic cotton and outer cover made of recycled polyester
• The self-developed Poo Paper that catches feces

PS: I was really impressed when I held Judes for the first time (as you may have noticed while reading). As the startup is committed to continuous development, it may be that my version is not the most up-to-date. However, only minor improvements have been made so far that have not significantly changed Judes' system.

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