As a new stay-at-home dad it became clear to me pretty quickly that as a group, we are still something of a novelty in our society. We are the unseasoned rookies in the locker room of major league parenting and as a result, our specific manly needs are sometimes underserved (I can hear the tiny violins playing a sympathetic tune for us already)…A prime example of this can be seen in diaper bag design. In general, they are not tailored to be something your average guy will feel comfortable slinging over his shoulder before heading into town, looking instead like something you see a guy holding awkwardly outside of a dressing room. But, thankfully for me and my other motherly brothers out there, there are a few companies looking out for us.
There seems to be two schools of thought for diaper bags aimed at dads. The first is understated incognito. These bags tend to be solid colors and classic designs, like OiOi's Crushed Wax Canvas Satchel and Ju Ju Be's Be Hip. They would look right at home at a Nantucket clambake or a Brooklyn bookstore.
The second school of thought is 'I am man, hear me grunt,' a la Diaper Dude's Camo Skull and Dadgear's Razor Flames. There is no hiding these 100% full-contact attention grabbers.
Finally, no conversation about doting daddies seems complete these days without mentioning Brad Pitt. His bag, the Jamie by Storksak, is a cool black leather deal that looks really natural hanging off of his shoulder, but leaves me wondering if I could pull it off.
The good news is that most diaper bags offer similar options and features, no matter what price point, so it should be easy for dads to find a bag that suits their style and their budget.
Shown above:
1. OiOi's Crushed Wax Canvas Satchel ($185 AUD)
2. Ju Ju Be's Be Hip ($80)
3. Original Diaper Dude in Camo Skull ($65)
4. Dad Gear Messenger Bag in Razor Flames ($79)
5. Storksak Jamie Bag ($210)
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My husband and I just registered for this one from Columbia http://www.toysrus.ca/product/index.jsp?productId=3227189&fromRegistryNumber=60262903&product_skn=290211&prodFindSrc=registry
I'm doing the stay at home, but I still don't want a diaper bag that looks like a purse. After all, it's not like my husband will NEVER be going out with the baby. What about weekends, holidays, etc etc? So it seems silly that it's a newer thing for them to be less-than-girly. Either way, there were actually quite a few options when we were picking things out!
i still haven't found a black leather diaper bag with bullet holes in it...
My favorite diaper bag that ended up with the most use was an army green range bag, initially intended for carrying ammo and such. I had a similar smaller purse and specifically sought out a larger version as a diaper bag. They are heavy canvas with lots of pockets, durable, washable, and plenty manly (when carried by a man, I was please to get compliments on it as well though). My husband never looked awkward carrying it around, and would groan if we went out together and I carried something pink.
When my husband was a SAHD he just carried a backpack. It balanced out the baby when he carried her, gave him free hands when she could walk. Once we got two kids it became more important.
His only gripe was that he had it much harder than me, because he couldn't nurse on demand. I just throw a diaper and a wet bag in my purse.
The nuetral Skip Hop we bought never got used.
We just started looking at baby gear for our first and I showed many of these to my husband. Funny enough, his response to most of them was "GEEZ! That's an expensive bag...I'll just use the girly ones and save us a few bucks!" Lol guess that settled it! (But yea, for what these are, the prices for most of these are a little ridiculous)
We just use a backpack for our diaper bag. It holds more and is less annoying than a shoulder bag. Both my husband and I do not like "regular" diaper bags.