Right, well, it’s been nearly a year since I updated this and had actually finished using the gloves in November of 2015 of last year. The Latex Free gloves only lasted around one month before giving up, which was a real shame as I usually get several months reliable use from the Marigolds that I presently favour. While the other gloves (Elegance gloves) didn’t really get much use because they wouldn’t protect my hands from the heat of hot running tap-water (I don’t wash my dishes in a bath of water).
So, for this second part of the review I will focus on the Latex Free gloves as I just didn’t use the Elegance ones.
To recap I was looking for gloves that would do everything that the Marigold Green Bathroom gloves did, but not leave my hands smelling of latex afterwards.
First off, I use gloves for more than just washing up, I use them when picking up smelly, staining or oily foodstuffs: for example Chorizo Ibérico has a very oily exterior and stains the fingers, whilst also being quite fragrant, so I definitely needed gloves or a utensil when handling it:
Here I am handling oily spiced cold cured meat which can satin plastic easily and is very greasy to the touch, reducing grip. The gloves passed: the oil washed off without staining and the natural grip was once again within reach.
However, carotene (from, you guessed it: carrots) is a natural dye and stained the gloves, but I’ll give them a pass on that one.
I see these gloves not as a stand alone product, but against the incumbent: Marigold gloves and had primary concerns over the length of the cuff as washing up can swoop water about and into a short sleeved pair of gloves (of which there is little worse) in no time at all.
If water did get into the glove then I would be worried for the cotton lining, I don’t know how the soft lining would react when in contact with water and if it would be the same after drying, does it smell for example? Also, how does that lining cope with sweat after prolonged general use anyway?
It turned out that I would not find out as the material had been slashed. I am not quite sure how as I don’t remember washing-up anything remotely sharp at the time, but it looks like a straightforward slit from a blade.
I was sure to be careful with them so I don’t quite know what happened, which also meant that I was careful not to get water into them and so I still don’t know how they would react to washing-up liquid water? But I can tell you that they got quite humid after prolonged use, which I put down to thinner material than in use with the Marigolds as hot running water nearly got the better of them, in which case it would have been good to have a second pair to rotate.
The issue of the thin material in use all uniformly throughout the gloves affected the cuff the most as it allowed for the end to flap about too much (which could catch water), unlike the Elegance gloves that better clasped the forearm. It would have been better to double the thickness of the plastic used throughout the glove and roll the cuff (as with the Marigolds) so that it kept it’s shape and wouldn’t shrug down the forearm.
However, they did protect well enough against continuous running hot tap-water (especially for the thickness of the plastic used) and I really liked the comfort that the cotton gave the wearer, it was really comfortable and luxurious and didn’t leave my fingers smelling of latex (a key requirement). It’s just a shame that they didn’t look like the PR photos on their website, but I should not have been so naïve.
Conclusion
Pros:
- Cute design.
- Cotton (latex free) lining was luxurious and soft, leaving hands without a bad smell.
- Almost on par with the Marigolds protecting against hot running tap-water.
- Don’t stain any more than other plastic gloves, considering the colour.
Cons:
- Length of sleeve is not enough for washing up compared to the 350mm Marigolds.
- Outer plastic needs to be more robust against general utensils prodding and rubbing up against the material.
- The thin material a the cuff flaps about too easily, which can let in water. It would be better to reinforce the edge by rounding it off to keep it’s shape and look more like the PR photos.
- Sizing is odd as both Medium and Large fit me (see pt.1).
- The logo would look better embossed, but that would likely require thicker plastic (see pt.1).
bizzybeeglovesreview 