Zipadee-Zip Review

In this Zipadee-Zip Review I compare the Zipadee-Zip to the Baby Merlin’s Magic Sleepsuit.  Both products are designed to transition a baby out of a swaddle blanket.  Here’s my story.

After Mercy was born I swaddled her using my old standby, The Miracle Blanket.  Girlfriend started rolling over around 4 months old which forced us to find a nighttime solution that wasn’t a death trap.  Le sigh.

After the Miracle Blanket we transitioned out of the swaddle using the Magic Sleepsuit.  After I wrote our review of the Magic Sleepsuit many readers contacted me saying, “you MUST try the Zipadee-Zip!!”.  At first I was disinclined… another magical blanket promising better sleep??

But Mercy wasn’t sleeping that great which meant I had nothing to lose.

And so I tried the Zipadee-Zip on Mercy at 7 months old… and here’s what I thought.

Cute Patterns

One of the biggest issues I had with the Baby Merlin’s Magic Sleepsuit was it was so fugly.  The colors.  The pattern.  The logo.  But you know, if it helps us to sleep better, I’ll let it go.

However, the patterns for the Zipadee-Zip are actually cute.  Every time someone saw Mercy wearing the Sleepsuit I felt like I needed to explain and make excuses.  With the Zipadee-Zip, there were no explanations necessary.

It does help if you have a cute ginger-baby.  She makes stuff look good.  And no, she’s not wearing lipstick.  It’s elderberry syrup for babies.

Allows for Stomach Sleeping

One of the things Mercy did the first night in the Zipadee-Zip was flip over and sleep on her stomach.  She slept so good that night.  It was amazing.  I had no idea she wanted to sleep on her stomach!

As parents we’re trained that “back is best” so I was afraid to try stomach sleeping prior to the Zipadee-Zip.  I even read that the risk of SIDS goes way up if you put a baby to sleep on its stomach that typicaly sleeps on the back.  So I definitely wasn’t willing to try stomach sleeping if Mercy didn’t initiate it. (After a baby learns to roll over it is safe to let them sleep on their stomachs.  We are still supposed to place them to sleep on their backs, but it’s not necessary to flip them back to the back sleeping position if they flip to their stomach.  Clear as mud?)

Except in the Magic Sleepsuit Mercy couldn’t roll over.  Not easily, at least.  With the Zipadee-Zip Mercy was able to sleep in the position she chose, while still in a cozy blanket reminiscent of her swaddling days.

This is a picture of Mercy not sleeping and me wishing I was.

Lightweight

The Zipadee-Zip is thinner and therefore better suited for warmer climates like Florida where I live.  When I first tried the Magic Sleepsuit it was starting to get cold (yep, it gets cold in Florida) so the thick, heavy fleece actually worked out well, but there would be no way that I could use the sleepsuit in the spring, summer and fall.

The Zipadee-Zip is thin cotton and perfect for my North Florida climate.  I could see us using this product into the summer.  I imagine we would likely just wear it and a diaper and it would work great.

Access to Hands

Another great aspect of the Zipadee-Zip is that baby can access their hands.  Kinda.

After putting Mercy in the blanket I noticed that she immediately was putting her hands via the blanket in her mouth.  So much so that the blanket was damp when I took her out.

It’s such a natural thing for a baby to do – everything goes in the mouth.  It makes sense that giving baby access to their hands (kinda) is helpful because it allows them to self-soothe.

Use in Carseat

The final thing I’ll mention in this Zipadee-Zip Review is that you can use this product while baby is in the carseat.  Now, before I get yelled at that it’s not safe, let me tell you that this fabric is pretty thin and I did not need to adjust the straps to put Mercy in her seat with the Zipadee-Zip on.  Therefore, I am thrilled that this is an option.

The other night I had to go pick up a placenta (I encapsulate placentas for a living) and needed to take Mercy.  I put her in the seat with the Zipadee-Zip on and she slept the entire trip – even when I took her in to the grocery store to get some produce (she never does this).  There’s no way this could be done with the Sleepsuit.

 

Another Zipadee-Zip Review

Zipadee-Zip Review Conclusion

All in all, I think the Zipadee-Zip is a great product that is helpful for swaddle transition.  It allows for considerably more movement than a swaddle, but still keeps baby more confined than no blanket.  Stomach sleeping is now an option!

However, if your baby needs to be more contained than the freedom a Zipadee-Zip allows, and the above downsides aren’t a problem, a Magic Sleepsuit might be a better option as it is very thick and it will keep baby still.

At 7 months old, I think Mercy prefers the Zipadee-Zip over the Magic Sleepsuit. However, just to be clear, she still doesn’t “sleep through the night”.  None of my kids slept through the night before 1 year old and I don’t expect a blanket to make that happen for us.

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