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Massive List #4: Diaper Bag Reviews

March 23rd, 2007

Almost every mom I know has been through at least three diaper bags, if not four or five. I thought this was a ridiculous statistic until I allowed myself to buy a second diaper bag after realizing that the first one was deteriorating quickly. The second one was an improvement on the first one in many ways, thus planting an idea in my head: was it possible to achieve diaper bag nirvana? Could I continue to improve on each successive new bag? Would angels sing when at last I opened up that final perfect tote?

Without further ado, here’s the rundown of all the diaper bags I’ve tried. I’ll post my list of diaper bag essentials in another post, so you’ll know what I was trying to fit into all of these bags.

My first diaper bag was an old version of the Petunia Pickle Bottom boxy backpack, which I got as a shower gift from my sister. It was GORGEOUS. I used this for six months or so before tragedy struck: the velcro used to fasten it closed wore out, thus leaving me with a bag that hung open most of the time.

Pros: SO CUTE. Nice size for a newborn. Did I mention CUTE?
Cons: Closed with velcro, which wore out very quickly, at which point the bag refused to stay shut. Backpack and shoulder straps were too slippery to stay adjusted to the right spot. 6′5″ husband could not carry comfortably.

After that we got a Land’s End Diaper Backpack, which we used for a very long time with great success. It was fantastic for a few reasons: first and foremost, it was a backpack. I’ve found that it is so much easier to carry a backpack than a shoulder bag when you are carrying a baby with one arm. Also, for airport travel, a backpack can’t be beat.

Pros: Backpack. Very inexpensive ($40). Came with huge changing pad. Two insulated cupholders on the outside of the bag. (May have changed since our model.) Light blue wipe-off interior which avoids the black hole syndrome (losing everything in a dark bag interior). Stayed upright during a diaper change.
Cons: Too small for major outings or airport travel. Diaper compartment was the wrong size and tended to squash diapers. A little too small for tall husband. Also, not cute at all. Looked like I should be carrying books to junior high.

We then tried out a Skip Hop Canvas Duo. These seemed to be outrageously popular and I liked the attach-to-stroller feature. I used this one for about three minutes before discovering that I just couldn’t fit all of our stuff into it, and I don’t even carry that much. I am not sure how other parents manage with this one, because it was way too small for me, dawg.

Pros: Cute. Attaches to stroller in nifty way. Slim and streamlined.
Cons: How the hell do you fit your stuff in this thing?

When Frances got older and needed slightly fewer supplies, I looked for a diaper bag that could double as my purse. I figured it would save me the trouble of bringing both a purse and a diaper bag with me everywhere. Enter Fleurville’s Sling Tote.

Pros: Looks fantastic. Love the conversion from tote to sling bag. Hooks onto stroller in nifty way. Separate compartment for wallet/keys/glasses, so works nicely as a purse.
Cons: Again, small. Can be used for one child for minor outings, but as soon as you start packing changes of clothes and baby blankets and jackets and bottles of water, it’s not really workable.

Enter Gloria, Baby #2, and suddenly our diaper bag needs changed once more. I wanted a backpack again, but it had to be BIG. I finally discovered DadGear, which manufactures big dad-sized backpacks that are a much more reasonable size for two kids. With two girls, I had to have a pink one. We’ve used this for a while now, and it’s pretty great, although still not perfect.

Pros: BIG backpack! Comfortable for dad. Easily adjustable straps. Diapers are kept separately in a top compartment. Tons of pockets everywhere. Great for airport travel. Light, wipe-off interior.
Cons: Separate compartment for wipes is at the bottom of the backpack. Why, I ask you, why? The compartment is a great idea, but the wipes get squished at the bottom of the bag, and then when you set the backpack upright to change the baby, the weight of the bag compresses the wipes and they’re impossible to pull out. Nice idea, poor execution. Would have been perfect at the top of the bag instead. We nixed the wipes compartment and we squish them in with the diapers.

Currently I am experimenting with a smallish LeSportsac tote that is not a diaper bag at all. I have a Ziploc bag of diapers and wipes in there, and it’s so small that the whole bag scrunches up to nothing. I can then throw this bag into another HUGE canvas L.L.Bean bag for park outings and the like, since we need a picnic blanket and hats and elephants and other large items for the park. I keep the huge bag sort of permanently in the car and then I jettison the LeSportsac like an escape pod. It’s working out pretty well so far, but the LeSportsac is not a backpack, so I need to keep the DadGear bag in rotation for the airport and trips to the zoo and other places we need to carry kids.
For future diaper bag experiments, I am fascinated by DadGear’s Messenger Bag. Also the Sherpani bags. But I must draw the line somewhere, although I am always enticed by that next perfect bag lurking around the corner…

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