Sophie le Giraffe has been a teething staple since 1961 and gained extreme popularity in the US around 2008 thanks, in part to Amazon. MILLIONS of new parents buy the Vulli Sophie Giraffe Teether for their baby once those gums start swelling, but is it really worth it? Let’s look at the pros and cons of it, shall we?
Pros:
- Vulli boasts the eco-friendly nature of Sophie many times within the product description. This is a huge plus. It is a natural product which all of us parents feel better giving our babes!
- It is a great texture for baby, a soft but firm rubber that allows for easy play and mouthing for those sore gums.
- Let’s be honest, it’s really cute. Sophie has this awesome vintage charm to it and such a sweet smile, sure to make any momma’s heart melt.
- It is available pretty much anywhere. I’ve seen it in many boutiques as well as box stores and of course online which means if you HAVE TO HAVE IT, you won’t have a problem getting your hands on it.
- It has been given awards from top mom and baby sources such as The Bump, Baby Center and Parents Magazine.
Cons:
- The price. I get that it is all natural and hand crafted but $25 for a teething toy my baby may or may not like is a bit of a stretch for me!
- Recently, thanks to Good Housekeeping magazine, people have discovered that black mold (and I am sure other bacteria, mold, viruses, germs in general) can grow inside of Sophie because of the hole that creates the squeak noise that “stimulates baby’s hearing”. I am not sure why this was not discovered sooner given that something that goes in the mouth is going to get wet and liquid will get inside, never the less it’s a little gross.
- While Sophie’s texture is great, it is all the same. I personally prefer toys that have different textures as your baby’s needs and desires will change. One day they could want soft, one day hard or one side of the mouth could want soft while the other wants hard… who knows!
The Details
I tried Sophie with my first and for him it was a huge flop. A wonderful waste of $25 that I could have spent on, I don’t know, maybe a pack of diapers? But I also know that a lot of babies love it. Sophie is about 10 inches tall and 5 1/2 inches wide so a pretty decent size. The teether is lightweight and the varying shape does make it very easy for baby to hold. It is not recommended to ever submerge Sophie in water and there are very specific cleaning instructions. Vulli also recommends replacing Sophie for each child, so don’t try to save money by hand-me-downing this toy!
Final Recommendation
It’s a no for me. I really just can’t ever rationalize spending that much money on a toy unless it sings, dances, teaches them the alphabet or launches cars into the air (shout out to hot wheels). Plus the mold risk really grosses me out. I avoid squeaky, squirty bath toys for this reason so I don’t think I should make an exception for something meant for my kids mouth. All that being said, if you MUST HAVE Sophie you can find her on Amazon, woot woot two day shipping. I would like to note that Vulli has expanded their product line A LOT and offer smaller versions of Sophie, gift sets and different animal choices.
In my opinion, try this guy instead! This teether features the same soft rubber, varying textures, easy to hold and no hole for liquid to get in and grow stuff. In addition, it is much more cost effective at only $5.99.
