Diaper Bags ... GO! « Back to Group Discussions

[katt]

I'm looking for a new go-to bag.

I actually have 3 bags atm, 2 from Craigslist and 1 was a gift from my Gramma.

I think I want to resell the KECCI bag and keep the Petunia toddler tote and the generic baby one from Gramma.

The Toddler tote is really too small for baby, so that is being saved for later.

The generic one is going to be the emergency car stash.

I want a new one (or used, i'm not picky like that) to carry around. I'm also NOT going to spend a small fortune on a bag.  I can think of better things to spend 100$ on, believe me!

I like the convertible ones that have the back-pack straps and shoulder straps.  I figure if I want hands free, then that means the constantly slipping shoulder strap as well, yeah?  Although Fluerville bags are grabbing my attention atm.

I'm going to keep my eye out on Craigslist.  

How about the rest of you ladies?  Anything on your registries in regards to bags?  what would you like?

[MissE]

I found one on amazon but still have to wait for my paycheck and more swagbucks lol. I never had one so far, i always used just regular bags but with this being the last..it's different. I gotta find a link to the bag. It's yellow with a blue and brown argoyle-ish pattern.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B004W3B6RM?m=A1EUMLOMFO8BV

[ArtificialRed]

We're getting the Skip Hop Duo bag (probably in "man-friendly" black lol). I think we'll end up buying it from Buy Buy Baby, but you can get it from Target, Amazon, and BRU as well. They run about $58. I know some people may consider that a lot, but I'm a bag girl. I love pretty bags, and I'd much rather have one nice bag than two or three lower quality bags. My favorite part about the bag is that it hooks onto stroller handles so the basket is still free, and everything you need is right there. It's also the same bag my sister has, and she's really loved it for the past seven months. She's very picky, so I take that as a good sign!

[hyde]

Is it okay if I add a slightly OT question to this? I'm looking around now too and just curious about how plans to BF and/or CD figure into people's choices, if anyone feels like sharing. :) Hoping to get away with something relatively streamlined between no bottles (*fingers crossed*) and just the one kid.

[Carlin]

With DD, I found cloth diapering definitely required a larger bag than I would have been able to get away with if we were using disposables. On the other hand, she was a spitter too, so maybe not, as carrying around multiple changes of clothes is going to add up no matter what diapers you use.

I also found it really depends on what you are planning on using a bag for. Out for a couple hours and out all day require very different quantities of stuff of course.

What I ended up using most of the time was a backback that wasn't really meant specifically as a diaper bag, but has enough pockets and divisions that it worked. I still use it as a toddler bag. Most of the diaper bags I tried were either too small, gigantic, or wouldn't stay on my shoulder - that might be me rather than the bag though! The one disadvantage of the backpack style as DD got older is that it was hard to wear her on my back and carry it at the same time.

I'd sort of like something fun and a bit stylish to supplement the utilitarian bags I have right now. I think I'll just keep looking around until something catches my eye. I don't mind spending a little bit extra to get something really good quality that I know works, but I have no interest in paying $$ just for a brand name and haven't seen anything I absolutely love yet.

[mamalovex3]

Hyde - cloth definitely takes up more room than disposables, so you may want to consider that.

We started out with a pretty standard bag someone gave us at the shower, but it wasn't big enough or sturdy enough to hold up for everything we need with two babies.  I ended up repurposing a Lands End bag I already had and it works well for us, although it is big and bulky, then again, I think we have the largest size.  I like that it zips shut so I can keep little hands from taking everything out when we are out and about, it has inside pockets to keep things easily accessible and an outside pocket that I often use for keys/phone. 

http://www.landsend.com/pp/extra-large-zip-top-colored-canvas-tote-bag~232461_-1.html?bcc=y&action=order_more&sku_0=::YGW&CM_MERCH=IDX_luggage-_-totes

[katt]

Dadgear    This is for the messenger bags, there are other styles.  BUT, i REALLY like some of their graphics.  I WISH there were these graphics on a larger 'mom' bag the a Fluerville Mothership or something.

Amy Michelle  I'm tempted because of the name of the bag.  I also like the two prints they have available.  They are also on Overstock.com

[Carlin]

Oh, my SIL has one of the Dadgear bags! It's the Razor Flames one, I think. She really likes it, although I'd say it's just a wee bit small for all day outings with cloth diapers. It works great when they are just out for a few hours though!

[beans]

I bought the skip hop duo bag with #3 and ended up selling it on ebay after about a month. I found it to be too narrow. But it was really cute and I liked that it hooked on strollers -- just didn't work for us. I also hadn't seen it in person- I'd ordered online- but it sounds like you've checked it out ARed and know it will work...

[ArtificialRed]

The Duo is fairly narrow, like Beans said. It's the one complaint my sister has about it-that sometimes you have to dig to get to the bottom. But that's something I'm willing to deal with, other shapes seem so bulky and uncomfortable to carry to me. I also wanted something cross-body, not a strictly shoulder bag or back pack.

[crystal_buffaloe]

With DD, I found cloth diapering definitely required a larger bag than I would have been able to get away with if we were using disposables. On the other hand, she was a spitter too, so maybe not, as carrying around multiple changes of clothes is going to add up no matter what diapers you use.

This - I had a spitter, too, at first and bulky cloth diapers. We needed more space even without bottles, etc. I actually carried a change of shirt for me, too.

We used a black cross-body backpack and it worked out really well for us, but I did need to take a different bag in the first few months if we were going to be out for a long time. Here's a similar one. (I am def. not a bag person, though, so I guess you can take it with a grain of salt -- sometimes I'll even just throw junk in a tote and then dig around for ages )

[mole]

I don't really understand the mechanics of carrying a diaper bag, wearing a baby, and carrying the groceries. Is this possible? Now, if I do my grocery shopping on foot (as opposed to on my bike) I bring a back pack with several extra canvas bags in case the back pack isn't big enough. After the birth, if I wear the baby in front (I'm going to start out with a ring sling and then switch to a SSC when the baby is a little bigger) do I first put on the baby, then put on the backpack, then put on the diaper bag as a shoulder bag over the same shoulder the ring sling is on? Or will shopping necessitate both me and my sweetheart going every time now? We aren't buying a trailer for the bikes just yet, so we won't be able to bike with the baby until we do that. This is the diaper bag I bought: http://www.etsy.com/transaction/76118179?utm_source=transaction&utm_medium=trans_email&utm_campaign=purchase_buyer and it is beautiful, but really it's just like a large waterproof purse that has strap options so it can attach to the stroller.

[katt]

I would put baby in first, then back-pack, then the shoulder bag over the OTHER shoulder then where the rings are.

Personally I like the diaper bags that have back-pack capability: think Petunia Picklebottom Boxy Backpack.  

[Carlin]

Mole, I agree with what Katt said. Or if you are just going to the store and back, put your bare necessities in the backpack and skip the diaper bag altogether.

[mole]

Thanks Katt and Carlin. I'm sure I'll figure out the carrying everything problem with time and practice :). Good to know that ring sling + back pack is feasible. Front-carry SSC + backpack looks easier than ring sling + backpack, I wasn't sure it was possible with ring sling and I couldn't find any pictures of people wearing both with a simple image search. Now my sweetheart and I tend to spend one of our weekend days walking downtown to do as much shopping as we can carry back home (much cheaper to shop downtown than in our neighborhood, and we tend to buy huge heavy things like 5 liter cans of olive oil) and probably we will just have to adapt and carry fewer things home with us once the baby joins us or we will have to take public transportation more. We do have an old backpack of my sweetheart's that he isn't using anymore, and maybe that would make a good diaper bag; we could use the pretty one for when we use the stroller and the backpack for when we are out wearing the baby.  

[Carlin]

Mole, the other thing I've done when shopping for bigger things is to bring the stroller and use it to carry groceries while I wear the baby.

[foxsmama]

We are using two Timbuk2 Bags. The one that will probably live in the stroller is their size small Tote bag in blue stripes, and our carry bag is a small messenger bag in blue. I love these bags cuz they are waterproof, lined in a rubbery substance, can pretty much be hosed off, and last forever.  I figure with twins and a toddler still in dipes, we are going to need the bag space!