We gave our intrepid reviewer Keris the fragrant and enviable task of the Cheeky Wipes review, seeing as she has a small boy with a lovely appetite (and we all know what THAT means in the nappy department).
Now Keris’ reviews are always worth a read, but this one has to be my favourite all time review…
“I was a bit apprehensive about these wipes. Who could be bothered with reusable wipes? Seriously? Have you seen the state wipes get into? Have you seen what you, you know, wipe? And you want me to leave that hanging around the house? It took me a little while even to open the boxes since I decided it was going to be fiddly, smelly and pointless. Shows what I know.
You get two Tupperware-style boxes with click-fix lids. One box is for dirty wipes and one for clean wipes. You half-fill the boxes with water and put a few drops of essential oil in each (two different oils: one for dirty, one for clean). You also get a mesh bag for washing the dirty wipes and I put this inside the dirty box so I could put the dirty wipes straight in the bag and then take the bag out and put it straight into the washing machine.
The wipes themselves are small, white, towelling squares. They’re wet (cos of the water they’ve been soaking in in the box) so you just give them a squeeze and then wipe. No problems at all for number ones, obviously. And with wipes used for number ones, I didn’t even bother putting them in the dirty box, I just threw them straight in the washing machine – it’s on every day anyway.
Now this is going to be a bit indelicate, but it’s with number twos that Cheeky Wipes really shine. Because they are towelling and so a bit textured, they clean a dirty bottom much quicker and more easily than a wet wipe. There’ve been some of Joe’s nappies that I know would have taken four or five wet wipes and the job’s been done with just one Cheeky Wipe. Yes, you have to wipe the excess off with the nappy before you start wiping, but you should probably do that with a wet wipe anyway.
So then you’re left with a slightly poo-soiled piece of towelling. Put it in the dirty box (and bag), shut the lid and forget about it. Easy. Except for one thing… I found transferring the wet bag – which was, let’s not forget, dripping, um, number two juice – into the washing machine to be a bit of a sickener. But I’ve just had the idea of putting the whole box inside the empty washing machine and quickly yanking the bag out and dropping it, so that will almost certainly help. Now wash your hands.
They also come with a couple of waterproof bags for using Cheeky Wipes when out and about. I haven’t done this. Partly because I don’t get out much, but mainly because I really don’t want to be carrying a bag of poo-juice around with me, however waterproof. So I still use disposable wipes when I’m on the go.
I also must admit to something a bit shameful. Part of the reason I wasn’t that keen on trying Cheeky Wipes was that I use wet wipes for all sorts of non bottom-related stuff. I’ve used them to take off my make-up. To clean the highchair, furniture, the hob. I use them to polish the kettle (they’re excellent on stainless steel), the TV and computer screens, even shoes. So I didn’t want to give that up. But the great thing is, you can do the same thing with Cheeky Wipes! (Apart from removing make-up, but again, I shouldn’t really be using them for that anyway. I’m 38.).
The one thing I’ve been disappointed with is how grotty the Cheeky Wipes that have been washed look. (No, not all of them have been washed yet!) They started off white and pristine and they’ve come out of the washing machine a bit grey and sad-looking. But that might be my non-existent washing “skills”. And that’s a purely aesthetic thing anyway. It doesn’t really matter what they look like where they’re going, does it?
Finally! Headphones actually designed with children in mind! I won’t let mine wear the in-ear buds that came with their MP3 players, but I still worry that without constant monitoring (and often with it) they’ll have them up too loud and damage their ears.
