A ‘dupe’, short for ‘duplicate’ was a term I first saw in the beauty world a few years ago – a cheaper or more readily available twin of an exclusive, expensive or hard to get hold of product .
Cool, but I don’t really wear much make up regularly so I didn’t think this term would be one I’d be using.
Until the Hatchling was born.
A friend had given their child a chewing toy that I became obsessed with. It was the Infantino Carrot Chewer shown here:
When asked, she gave that absolutely worst of all responses: “Oh, I got it from the States a few years ago!”
*looks at flight costs to the USA*
Although it’s available for me to buy on eBay, the shipping cost more than the item itself (around £20 for a £5 chewing toy) which was simply a no go. There was one that was closer to home, but it was too suspiciously convenient from a seller with no reviews and no postage options so I just went with my gut and left it well alone.
It suddenly struck me that if this toy was such a good idea, there should be something similar available on this side of the pond.
A dupe, if you will.
So rather than looking for the ‘Infantino Carrot Good Bites Teether’ which now clogged up my search history, I realised I was looking for:
- A silicone-based, plastic-free chewing toy
- It couldn’t be too wide, as Hatchling would struggle to get their maw around it.
- With handles or some things on the side that the Hatchling could grip.
- Ideally sword/cross shaped so it could be gripped at the base too while the Hatchling actually works out how to use handles.
- Different textures for chewing interest would be good too.
- Also, would be nice if it looked like a fruit or vegetable. For… reasons. Encouraging healthy eating? I don’t know. 🤷🏿♀️
So I simply typed in ‘silicone teether’ (‘silicone chewing toy’ gave me too many options on necklaces. Not looking to be throttled right now – next!) scrolled down and found:
It literally took me all of two minutes to find them and it was around £6, so it cost about £3 each. GET IN.
And I do this all the time now because there always seems to be certain brands for baby products that are The Best or All the Rage, which is fine but I don’t prioritise trendiness for something that may only be used for a few months.
Does the Hatchling need it?
Will I use it?
Will it be helpful?
Can I get it second hand?
Or is there a dupe/alternative that does the same job at a price I’m happy with?
It’s done us well for baby carriers, the baby bath, the cot…and of course, the teethers.
Altogether now:
Baaayyyyy-beeeeee dupe doo doo doo doodoodoo…
Image credit – Freestock
A Black Penny 