One of the first brands I discovered when cloth diapering was Thirsties. It’s consistently one of the most popular on the market and no wonder. After factoring in the reliable fit, premium features, and huge selection of colors and prints, you’ll still find Thirsties to be quite affordable. Plus, their diapers are manufactured in the USA. I loved the Thirsties Fab Fitteds on newborn Erik, but today my review focuses on the Duo Wraps. Although mine was a bit too bulky when Erik was firstborn, it’s now become one of my favorites.
Thirsties Duo Wraps come in size 1 and size 2, which means the size range is very broad. Instead of the 3 or 4 rows of rise snaps that you generally find on a one-size cover, the Duo Wrap line offers SIX rise snap settings because of the two sizes. I think the two-part system really helps when you’ve got a toddler still in diapers; it’s tough sometimes to find larger diapers and covers.
Opened up, you can see that the Thirsties Duo Wrap is a wipe-clean, waterproof, 100% PUL cover; you can use it a few times before laundering as long as no poo gets on it. Just freshen with a wipe and re-use. There’s a flap on the front which serves as facing to cover the stitching and snap holes; I think it’s perfect for holding a diaper/insert in place. There are also double (inner) gussets on the leg bands for extra leak control. The Duo Wrap in these photos also features the new and improved hook and loop (i.e. “velcro”) closure, but is also available with snaps.
Thirsties Duo Wraps work great with any type of diaper underneath. I use them with padfolded flats, hemp prefolds and fitteds. The Duo Wrap holds everything in place so securely that I never have to fool with pinning my flats or prefolds.
Duo Wraps are very trim-fitting. If you like to “double stuff” your pockets at night, or double up on prefolds, then you might try the sized Thirsties covers instead of the Duo Wraps which are not quite as roomy.
Here’s the Duo Wrap Size 1 on Erik as a newborn….and now at 9 months:
There’s one thing I don’t like about my Thirsties hook and loop covers. When Erik starts crawling or moving around, the waistband curls inward, causing the scratchy “Velcro” to touch his tummy (if you are using the snap wraps then this would obviously be a non-issue). Sometimes the hook and loop scratches enough to cause redness, but it doesn’t happen every time he wears the Duo Wrap. The only reason I have a few hook and loop covers is that they are easy for my daughter to use, and also faster for me to deal with at night. For those reasons, I have been putting up with the waistband problem because it’s only a minor annoyance at this point.
Before I show you some pictures of the Duo Wrap in action, here’s a close-up of the double gussets. You can see how the extra set of gathers helps keep the bad stuff from escaping:
Like all Thirsties products, the Duo Wraps come in LOTS of wonderful colors and prints (find them at Diaper Safari -aff link with free shipping!), and they are manufactured in the USA. The size 1 cover fits (approximately) from 6 to 18 pounds and the size 2 fits (approximately) from 18 to 40 pounds. Erik is 9 months old and only 17 pounds and he still has one more snap setting to go on his size 1 cover, so he’ll get to wear it a bit longer.
If you’ve tried the Duo Wrap, or the sized Thirsties covers, I’d love for you to share your thoughts. Got questions about my review? Post those as well!
I love the new baby bird blue cover!
The owl print is adorable!!
I love the polka dance and hoot
Fabulous prints!
The baby bird prints are SO cute! Glad they’ll be coming in Duo Wrap sizes now!
I have one Duo Wrap and love it. I reach for it first when I need to cover a prefold or fitted. Awesome cover and I would love to have more!
I love the baby bird blue diapers!!
I love the hoot print and I have a couple of covers, but I would LOVE to try a Duo wrap cover. They look like they would fit so nicely and I have heard so many good things about them.
I love the new tabs!
I love the owl print.
i love that the apix is edged now… no more fraying! that drives me nuts!
I was really nervous about trying cloth diapers but I got my first cover (the one with trees) and I love them!! Just got my order in the mail with 6 more. I watched for the mailman and threw open the box just like Christmas. I am so pleased with them! My son is long and very skinny and we have no leaking! I would really like to get a green one and orange one.
Annette, I’m so glad you had such good success, esp. on the first try! ~Anne
I like that they come in two sizes. Better fit for little one yet not too many sizes to buy. Very cute pattern and colors, too!
I still love the Blackbird print.
I like some of the prints that were on the covers and are now on the wraps. The larger H&L looks nice for the larger sizes. I have my doubts about how that will work for babies on the smaller end of the size 1 range, though.
Love the polka print! so cute.
Love the scotish storm. So sad they got rid of the stripe prints!
I absolutely love the Hoot print. Fun and gender neutral!
Weird, I thought I had a Thirsties Duo Wrap but I guess I have a Thirsties somethingelse….Now I have to go and check their website to find out what mine is. I kind of liked the thinner velcro because it never bugs my baby’s leg like the aplix on the other diaper (swaddle bees, I think) does. And she seems to pull the 2 aplix diapers I have off equally as easily! I like aplix for the ease of putting on but I I think snaps are better for me now that my baby can take the velcro ones off
I am new to cloth diapers but once I started, I got hooked. I love the black bird, baby bird lavender and Scottish rose (too bad it says discontinued).
I love the hoot print for my baby boy!
I love the Aqua color.
I really want to try these covers! I love the colors!
I’m a huge fan of all the solids. Especially the boy colors
I have never had a Thirsties, and I love the owls print!
Love the owls print!
I love thirsties double gussets, and have had a few issues with the velcro not holding up as well as other diapers! I am so glad they improved this aspect! The Family Tree print is so adorable!! Thanks for the review!!
Love warm stripes!
The orchid colour is my favorite
Baby Bird!
I have been using Thirsties on my little guy since he was born. My favorite color is mud. I don’t know if something changed with the updated aplix but I am pretty sure you aren’t supposed to put the insert under the flap. I always see this in blogs but the website says not to.
Hi Andrea. Good observation! You know, it’s a funny thing about that little flap. A lot of different brands include this in their covers, and you may or may not find instructions as to how the flap should be used. Some include an extra piece of fabric underneath for extra theoretical protection, like Flips. As far as practice goes, the majority of cloth diapering mothers seem to interpret the flap as something to tuck a diaper under, so it’s not just bloggers. And although, as you pointed out, Thirsties advises against this practice in the FAQ on their site, I’ve never in 4 years of diapering had anything wick or leak out after using the flap to hold something in place.
I’ve had diaper makers tell me to “seal” the PUL (i.e. close up any potential tiny holes) by putting a new cover in the dryer; other manufacturers make no mention of this at all. So I don’t know if that’s a myth or what! Thanks for entering and commenting!
~Anne
I really love the new aqua color! I really would like to try the new hook and loop but it looks almost too big and stiff. I am not sure. I really want to get my hands on it and see for myself. It definitely looks stronger!
I love the polka dance duo wrap! I have two all in ones, one fitted, three duo wraps and thirsties wipes And I seriously love them all! But when I’m using my fitteds or inserts I always go for my polka dance wrap. My daughter is 21 lbs and on the smallest size setting. I really really love thirsties and woykd love poetry their new aplix. I also love the mud color. So gender neutral. Anyway thirsties rock and I love polka dance.
I love love love the baby blue mainly because its unisex and it’s my favorite color!
I like the family tree print
Thirsties Duo Wraps were my first covers and they are still my favorite. Love the double gussets. I’m really excited to try out the new hook and loop.
i love the polka dance
I really like the owls and the trees
owl print is too cute!
The owl print is so adorable! I’ve been CD ing for 8 years now, it’s amazing to see how they have changed!
I’ve heard a lot of people are happy with thirsties, we just got our first one in our stash. I can’t wait to try it out when baby gets here in Dec!
So cute…we use and love our flips, so I’d love to try these too!!
The owl print is so cute! I’m a sucker for cute diaper prints.