Ever since Lara was born, 5 months ago, I have been on the lookout for a baby wipe that does four simple things:
- Effectively cleans up nappy mess!
- Naturally cares for baby bottoms, faces and hands
- Bio-degrades and therefore flushes guilt-free down the toilet
- Smells nice (trust me, the number of wipes you get through as a mum, you can't be doing with a baby wipe that smells worse than the stuff it is designed to wipe away!)
I've tried about 10 different types of wipe up until now and (mainly because the hubbie was fed up of me experimenting with different brands... some of them appalling) had recently decided to plump for a brand that only achieved 3 of the 4. Up until now I'd found that most biodegradable baby wipes either smelled of public toilets, or were totally and utterly useless.
I've recently tried Jackson Reece 'Kinder By Nature' flushable wipes and I think I've finally found a brand that ticks all of the boxes.
EFFECTIVENESS:-
The wipes are noticeably softer than any other baby wipes I've tried; they are strong (which is rare, for a degradable wipe), quite stretchy and great for getting in between tiny little mucky fingers and for in between gorgeous plump legs.
KIND TO BABY'S SKIN:-
The blurb states that 99% of the ingredients that go into the wipes are plant or vegetable based, meaning I have no worries about putting shed-loads of unidentifed chemical nonsense on my baby's skin. Perhaps more importantly, it means that there isn't the waft of a chemical cloud every time I open the packet as there is with some of the bigger named brands.
The wipes are hypoallergenic and dermatalogically tested so would be great for babies and little ones with sensitive skin.
BIODEGRADABLE:-
This really is the most important factor to me as a mum... but, weirdly enough, its also the one point on my wish list, which, up until now, I've been willing to sacrifice. The other degradable wipes on the market just aren't good enough – not soft enough, not cheap enough, not fragrant enough etc. etc. As environmentally-minded as I am, I won't use an eco-friendly product just for the sake of it – it has to compete, functionally, with the evil environmentally unfriendly option.
To me, it just makes so much sense for a baby wipe to be biodegradable – even if you can't bring yourself to use an eco-friendly nappy (which, actually, I do... and I find works really well for me and my munchkin) then the least you can do is to prevent the ever-growing baby wipe mountain building up in landfill. A baby wipe seems like a small thing, but when you think about the number you get through in a week... well, need I say more? The great thing about the Jackson Reece wipes is that not only is the wipe biodegradable (in just 8 days), but the packaging is too. Genius.
SWEET-SMELLING:-
Wow, the fragrance of the Jackson Reece wipes is pretty strong and I guess, if it wasn't your thing then it would be mighty overpowering. But the fragrance (mostly) comes from those natural ingredients such as lavender, tea tree and aloe vera so they smell just lovely to me and they leave a fresh waft of loveliness in the nursery every time I change a nappy.
So, that's it, I've found a baby wipe that does all the things I want it to. And, their RRP is cheaper than my existing brand (that's not to say you can actually find anywhere that sells them at that price!). Now I just need to find a local shop that stocks them! Jackson Reece baby wipes are stocked by some Sainsburys, Londis and Budgens stores but they are also available online at a number of websites (for more details, see www.jacksonreece.com ).
