Dex Products Dura Bib Dbs01

I was at the grocery store when the cell phone rang.

"You know that DuraBib you've been planning to write an epinion about?", asked my husband in that falsely cheerful, "this is not going to be good news" tone of voice.

"Uh, yeah?", I replied cautiously.

"Well, it's got another feature we didn't know about!", he said brightly.

Now, you have to understand. My husband and I both work in the software field, where "feature" is a well-known euphemism for "bug".

This was not looking good.

Aside from my concern that whatever untoward event had just happened at home clearly involved my 14 month old son (who is the primary user of the aforementioned bib), my mind was now racing with the further ramifications of the news I was about to hear. You see, I had been planning on writing an unqualified rave review of the best baby product I had come across recently. If the DuraBib (a Dex product) had suddenly developed a "feature", I would have to put the review on hold until I had analyzed this new information.

I couldn't imagine what criticism my husband could possibly have of the bib that had supplanted all others in our home. Ever since we picked up four of these bibs a few months ago, at the surprisingly enthusiastic recommendation of a trusted friend, we'd been hooked on these amazing inventions.

I can see you rolling your eyes. "Oh please. It's a bib! What could possibly be so amazing about it?"

Where to start?

No more fights!

Unlike cloth bibs, which can leak through and require laundering, or typical plastic bibs, which are uncomfortable (or so I conclude from my son?s apparent fury when we try to put one on him), the DuraBib is made of a heavy-duty, yet remarkably pliant rubber-like material with a soft fabric underside. (Vinyl? Despite my degree in Chemical Engineering and a semester of Materials Science, I?m not really sure what this bib is made of ? but I?m impressed).

Our son has not once complained when we have fastened this bib around his neck.

That bears repeating. My son, who screamed with fury at nearly every other bib we tried to use to make mealtimes less messy, has no objections whatsoever to the DuraBib. That one fact alone makes this bib worth the (admittedly somewhat high) price.

But wait: there?s more!

Introducing: the Perfect Pouch

Like many plastic bibs, the DuraBib has a handy "pouch" at the front bottom to collect any food that might not make it into baby?s mouth ? or that might unexpectedly come back out. But unlike most of those flexible plastic bibs, the DuraBib pocket stays open!

You may have seen hard plastic bibs that also make this claim. And it?s true, those body-armor-like bibs do indeed have pockets that stay firmly open. They stay open when the bib is on the baby ? and they stay open when the bib is off the baby. They?re completely inflexible, which makes for a bib that?s difficult to carry with you and uncomfortable for baby to wear.

The DuraBib, on the other hand, is soft, flexible and flat.

Flat? How can a flat bib have a pouch that stays open? It?s a brilliantly simple innovation. Two sets of snaps on each side quickly and easily convert the flat bib into one with a deep, protruding pouch that maintains its shape and holds even liquid spills. In a nice touch, the snaps are color coded: snap the white into the white and the black into the black and in just a couple of seconds, you?re ready to go.

When mealtime is over, unsnap the pouch, do a quick wipe up and you?re ready to fold up the bib and go.

Clean up?s a snap, too!

While we?re on the topic of clean up, when was the last time you saw a plastic bib that was both washing machine and dishwasher safe? Yes, it?s true! The DuraBib can be tossed in either the washing machine or dishwasher and it comes out perfectly clean and entirely intact. Or just run a wet sponge over it. The heavy-duty material holds up to a lot of abuse and still looks brand-new.

Sizing it up

The DuraBib comes in two sizes: one for babies and one for toddlers. We went through nearly a year without knowing about this wonderful product, so we jumped right to the larger size, which works perfectly. The baby version is exactly the same, just scaled down.

To all appearances

Given the remarkable utility of this bib, Dex Products could have made them in puke-green plaid and I?d still be thrilled with them. In fact, they make them in a wide variety of eye-catching patterns, including plenty of gender-neutral offerings along with the pink frills and sports themes.

The clincher

So what, you ask, was the previously unsuspected feature that prompted my husband?s phone call? If you?ve got a weak stomach, you may not want to know. You?re excused now. Head on over to Dex?s web site and take a look at the picture of the DuraBib while I tell everyone else:

http://www.dexproducts.com/Pages/DuraBib.html

Still with me? Don?t say I didn?t warn you.

"It?s quite a remarkable feature.", my husband continued. "I had just finished feeding him, when his entire dinner came gushing back out ? and except for a couple of spots on the high chair tray, the DuraBib pouch caught all of it!"

By the time I got home, the perfectly contained mess had been long gone. I don?t want to think about what the high chair and kitchen would have looked like if our son had been wearing one of his old plastic bibs with the "for looks only" non-protruding pouch.

DuraBibs are not cheap. We paid about $7 for each of ours, though you may well be able to find a better price (I picked them up near my office without comparison shopping). But even at $7, they are well worth the price.


-- TheEye, who was surprised to find herself writing about spoons and now finds herself writing about bibs. Seriously, yet.

P.S. My son is just fine. Spitup happens.



Update: My now 21 month old son is still using these bibs -- and they still look as good as new.