How Smart am I?

I've written before about not giving up on a nappy just because it didn't work out the first time round. I've just been reminded how true this it! When I first tried the Mothercare Smart nappy, I hated it. Major leaks every time, even after only an hour. Good in theory, I thought, but useless in real life.
For those of you who aren't familiar with it, the Smart nappy consists of a wrap with a waterproof 'pouch', into which you can place either reusable or special disposable pads. The idea is that this gives you the flexibility of both washable and disposable nappies. The disposable pads are 'environmentally friendlier' although I'm not sure what's in them. They dont seem plasticy, and certainly dont have any of that awful gel-stuff normal disposables have. The washable pads are made of panels of microfibre and cotton that are folded before being inserted into the pouch. If you like, you can top it all with a paper or fleece liner. You can put the nappies together beforehand, so they're ready and waiting for husbands, grannies etc. Unlike a pocket nappy, however, you dont need to wash the wrap every time. Only if soiled or really wet. So more like a traditional two-part wrap. Basically, its a way of using a prefold system, with the prefold held securely in place.
Anyway, back to my story. Keen to give the Smart nappy a second chance, I decided to see if I could figure out what the problem was. So, I examined what I was doing in great detail. And then it came to me. I found the washable pad ( I hadn't tried the disposable pads at that stage) was too narow and was becoming bunched between the legs. So, all of the pee was bipassing the pad and flowing straight out of the wrap! And the solution? I widened the padded area by using two pads, one wrapped around the other. Or I used muslins or pre-folds which I could fold into a wider pad. Or used the wider inserts that come with many pocket nappies. Problem solved!
I recently went away for a week, and brought a set of Smart nappies with me. I didn't bring many washable inserts, and just threw them in with whatever washing I had on (luckily I was staying somewhere with a washing machine), and I used the disposable pads the rest of the time. These, I found, were the correct fit and really handy. I even used them at night, with no leaks!
In fact, I now love my Smart nappies! I can use the washable pads, muslins, prefolds, inserts, whatever, in them. So versatile! And sometimes I use just one washable insert, making sure to smooth it out well so it doesn't bunch up. And because its from Mothercare, its very easy to get hold of, and I dont have to pay for delivery as I live near a Mothercare store.
So now I'm keen to try the other 'pouch'-style nappies out there. For example, the makers of BumGenius have just launched the 'Flip', which seems really similar to the Smart. I read the composition of their disposable pads somewhere, and not a plastic in sight. Eeenees also do something similar, with a snap-in pouch. And their disposable pads are meant to be compostable.
Once I get my hands on some, I'll add them to The Collection. Until then, try the Smart!