Difference between Mon Petit Mardi cloth diapers and Alva Baby cloth diapers?

[HappiestMom]

I see they are $30!! on the Mon Petit Mardi website and then $6 on Alva Baby..the EXACT same style and EXACT same print...what is the difference? or is the Mardi website just buying them cheap and marking them up by like $25 ??

 

[Rachel_C]

Some companies do end up using the same prints for nappies; I suppose there is a limited number of fabrics out there and OS pocket nappies are ten a penny so it's completely possible that they're different nappies. You could email Mon Petit Mardi and ask what brand they are. A good example of prints being the same is Baba&Boo - they use many of the same fabrics as cheapies but they're not cheapies although they are cheap, if that makes sense! Of course some companies do just try to rip people off, which is really sad. It'll be interesting if anybody has tried one! You can normally tell a cheapie by feel and look.

 

[HappiestMom]

found another post on babycenter talking about this from earlier this year and they update it everytime they see these "deals"...saying they are the same and that its sad that people are falling for it and paying boutique prices for something that is just fancy because it has a special brand on it...

 

[staralfur]

I was watching this argument unfold on Mamabargains!

The post that MPM made regarding different higher quality fabrics and whatnot has to be legit, though, I would think? Surely it's completely illegal to say you're using different materials when you're actually just putting your label on the other brand?

 

[HappiestMom]

who knows..I mean I hardly think they would be like..yeah..you caught us lol lol..they would lose soo much business..not only on the cloth diaper front but also with all their products...

 

[staralfur]

Haha no, but I'm not sure they'd be allowed to make specific claims like that if they weren't at least partially true.

Maybe I'll order one and then order an Alva and see if there's any difference!

 

[HappiestMom]

haha if you do please post a comparison on here or link us to your comparison lol..

 

[Rachel_C]

Who's going to challenge them legally though? It would be interesting to compare the shape/size of them; I think that would be the most telling thing. Most nappies have a slightly different shape - rise, width, shape of the wings, placement of poppers/velcro etc. If they're the same, I'd bet on them being the exact same nappies. They're just pockets aren't they? PUL is PUL, some slightly thicker maybe but that's not always desirable (the thinner stuff still works but feels different), fleece or suedecloth are just fleece and suedecloth and microfibre is pretty much the same too, no matter how much you pay, so I find it hard to believe that their materials are that much higher quality!

 

[HappiestMom]

yep..mamabargains has taken that post off their main wall..you have to go through the wall photos album to find it and one of their staff members even told someone that they could re-use pocket/AIO diapers after they shook the poo off or something!! but then someone told her she was wrong and they just deleted the comment and they have been telling their customers pretty much that their vendors reputations are more
important than how their customers feel...pretty insane...I for one wont be using them anymore thats for sure...

 

[Rachel_C]

They aren't even well priced for normal non-cheapy nappies. $30, that's like £20? They're more expensive than other standard nappies (I'm thinking FuzziBunz/Tots Bots/bumGenius etc) and more expensive than many custom nappies too (WeeNotions etc) even though they look just like a bog standard cheapie. So they must be making money off people who don't know better, which is really sad.

 

[HappiestMom]

people were pointing out that the prints were the same and they said that there were only so many PUL print options to choose from..well thats funny because EVERY single one I saw that they offered is also an Alva print...however I can find a lot of other famous diaper brands that dont have the same prints as Alvas... so yeah Im sure every now and then a print gets used over but every single one of yours being part of the alva collection of prints is a bit suspicious...

 

[hanelei]

I saw that post on babycenter as well and looked at the range of diapers in question- I agree that if they are not Alvas they are made in a factory nearby from exactly the same PUL. I've occasionally seen the Alva prints in other ranges of diapers but as above, every single one of those prints can be found on the Alva site! $30 is a terrible rip-off for a cheapie, someone's making a killing somewhere.

 

[HappiestMom]

glad to have you on board hanelei lol lol..I was trying to complain about this to my hubby last night and he just doesnt understand lol lol...he could care less about cloth diapers..maybe I need to come up with some powertool comparison...lol...

 

[lindblum]

I don't know what the difference is in quality but just wanted to say I've got one alvababy pocket and microfibre insert (£3.99) and i've never had any issues with it. Does the job and fits very well.

The inner fleece bit doesn't look very fleecey, it's quite smooth on the one I got but this depends on what design you pick, the label says inner 100% polyester. It still keeps my toddlers' bum dry so I can't complain.

 

[hanelei]

Yep, Alva baby nappies are great, I have about 10 of them myself! The inner is usually suedecloth although some do have fleece. I have no issues with the quality myself, but if they're available for US $5.50 then selling them for more than $30 is a bit off, that's all

 

[HappiestMom]

I should have one in the mail soon..Im thinking of adding Alvas to my covers/insert collection...I can buy like 3 diapers + 2 inserts a month for just $20 a month and will have it built up before baby #2 comes along..which will hopefully be in the near future lol..im just tired of my covers...soo boring...and its so hard to keep the inserts in straight while LO is kicking around and trying to flip over...

 

[hanelei]

Yep, 8-9 months is when they get really wriggly and twisty isn't it! I really started appreciating the simplicity of pockets when he was that age!

 

[HappiestMom]

lol..its like trying to put a diaper on an MMA fighter lol lol lol....she kicks out..just playing and stuff but it doesnt make it easy..lol..and then tries to roll over lol...she was always a kicker..but..now it actually hurts if she catches you in the right place on your arm...

 

[clothdiaperup]

I know this is an old thread, but I just ordered some Alvas after having previously ordered a few Mon Petit Mardi from Momma's Bargains. They are EXACTLY the same, except for that the Mon Petit Mardi only has one row of snaps, which makes it not quite as good as the regular Alvas. You can order the EXACT diaper from Alva that Momma's Bargain's is selling for about $4-5 per diaper (including insert). That said, I love my Alvas. They seem to be pretty much as good of quality as Bum Genius, except for that their inserts are a little lower quality (which is fine by me, for the price difference!). Now most of my diaper supply is Alva brand. I also will say, the Alva brand diapers differ by "style". They have letters to go with different diaper prints and styles. In my experience, the diaper that you can buy without an insert is pretty flimsy and doesn't hold up. The best ones by Alva are the double-gusset ones- which have fewer print options but are the best made and only slightly more expensive. I have a bunch of the regular double-row snap Alvas and they are seriously as good as BG brand.

I am really angry at Momma's Bargains and at the people who are scamming CD mommas trying to get $12 for a $4 Alva diaper, and making a fake website stating that they are usually $31!! I also see that they are posting on Momma's bargains a caveat saying these diapers are so much better than "that other brand" even though the prints are the same. LIES. LIES! You'd think they could get sued for false advertising! Seriously don't buy them! Just get Alvas!! I signed up for an account for several sites just to warn people.

 

[HappiestMom]

yeah it was a huge arguement on the mamabargains facebook when they did that...they were like oh the materials are different or this and that but NO cloth diaper should be $40..I mean that is just ridiculous and you are obviously paying just because its sposta be a boutique diaper... even if there is something cute on there from Mon Petit that I would love to have I find it elsewhere because them ripping off parents just for their name is so skeezy and I refuse to put any money in their pockets.....thanks for the post!