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GRUBBY Plant-Based Meal Kits

Family Life, Food & Drink, Home, Subscription Boxes, Summer, Vegan, Vegetarian

Disclaimer – We have received this item for free or on a loan basis for the purpose of this review/feature but all words and opinions are our own.

There are loads of meal box ideas out on the market now, many of which are aggressively advertised. I’ve tried a few of them but I don’t have a subscription myself, so I was happy to try out Grubby. As a plant-based meal box, it is suitable for both vegetarians and vegans and can be used by anyone. We were sent a selection of 3 meals, each for 2 people. The meals were; Risi E Bisi with Crispy Tempeh Lardons & Basil, Fiery Jerk Tempeh Tacos with Pineapple Salsa and Roasted Radish, Tenderstem, Orange and Avocado Poke Bowl with Spicy Mayo.

The hot weather meant it was a perfect time to prepare and cook vegan food!

The box came with each meal wrapped in a different, labelled brown bag, complete with recipe cards for each meal. The meals contain all the main ingredients plus the dressings and wet ingredients like vegetable stock, mayonnaise and paprika. The only items you need are standard staples such as vegetable oil. Unfortunately, one of my portions was damaged in transit, but I had spare in the kitchen cupboard. It explains why the recipe cards aren’t very clean in the photos though!

The recipe cards are easy enough to follow. I did find that their estimation of how long it takes to prepare and then cook each meal was underestimated. There was plenty of food there though for each of the meals, even though they were suppose to be for just 2 people, I actually found I was able to make 3 or even 4 portions out of the ingredients given, and still had spare veggies left over for the rest of the week.

Each of the recipes was yummy though! They may be vegan, but there’s a lot of taste there thanks to the expert addition of tamari, siracha sauce and other flavours. Even if you’re not vegetarian, you can make the meals and add your own protein, they really are that flavoursome though, that they can be a whole meal on their own. I think my favourite was the poke bowl, which was so easy to arrange and contained a whole range of flavours.

https://grubby.co.uk

BabyBjörn Pocket Pouch for Baby Carrier

Baby, Family Life, hiking, travel

Disclaimer: We received this product free of charge for the purpose of this review and all thoughts and opinions are our own.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned since having children, it’s that you can never have too many hands. Unfortunately, I’ve yet to discover where to buy the extra pair, so anything that makes life even a little bit easier gets a very big thumbs up from me.

BabyBjörn has been making life with little ones that bit easier since 1961 and is probably best known for its brilliant baby carriers. The Pocket Pouch for baby carriers was launched in Autumn 2024 and it’s such a simple idea but solves the age old parenting niggle – where do you put your essentials when you’re not going far and don’t want to carry a big baby bag?

The BabyBjörn Pocket Pouch is designed to fit all BabyBjörn baby carriers and is the perfect place to keep those little essentials you need close at hand. It has two handy straps on the back with press-stud fastenings, making it quick and easy to clip onto the baby carrier belt and remove when you need to.

It’s also small enough to pop straight into your baby bag, so you can keep everything together and simply grab the pouch, clip it onto the carrier and off you go. No more transferring all those little essentials from one bag to another every time you head out. One less thing to remember, which when you’ve got a baby, is always a win!

The pouch is surprisingly spacious inside and easily fits a phone, keys, tissues and snacks. The zip is easy to open and close, which is particularly useful when you’re trying to retrieve something one-handed while holding a baby. It’s made to sit nicely on the waist stap of the baby carrier so everything stays neatly tucked away but, importantly, still within easy reach. And when you’re out with a baby, having the thing you need exactly when you need it can feel like a minor parenting miracle.

BabyBjörn has also thought carefully about the fabric. The pouch is made using the safe fabrics developed by BabyBjörn, with the company developing most of its own textiles in-house. This means they can keep a close eye on quality and make sure the fabrics have the properties needed for products designed to be used around little ones.

The pouch is easy to clean too, it can be machine washed at 40°C on a gentle cycle and dries quickly. Just don’t put it in the tumble dryer or iron it.

Small yet incredibly practical, the BabyBjörn Pocket Pouch is one of those accessories that makes you wonder how you ever managed without it.

The Pocket Pouch is available in four neutral colours, Light Beige, Grey, Light Grey and Black and has a RRP of £19.90.

Osprey Daylite Hanging Toiletry Kit

camping, Father's Day, Gifts for Her, Gifts for Him, Mother's Day, National Walking Month, Stocking Fillers, travel

Disclaimer: We received this product free of charge for the purpose of this review and all thoughts and opinions are our own.

I’m a big fan of wash bags with plenty of pockets and compartments because there’s nothing more annoying than rummaging through a dark, messy washbag looking for your toothbrush, when you’re already late for breakfast! The Osprey Daylite Hanging Toiletry Kit is my kind of washbag, offering plenty of storage without turning the whole thing into an unnecessarily complicated piece of luggage.

With a 4-litre capacity, there’s enough room for everything you need for several days away, while the zipped compartments keep your toiletries neatly separated and easy to find. There’s also a washable liner, which is particularly welcome because, sooner or later, something in a wash bag will leak. It’s one of the immutable laws of travel, somewhere between forgetting your phone charger and discovering the hotel hairdryer has the power of a tired mouse.

As soon as I started filling the Osprey Daylite Hanging Toiletry Kit for my holidays, it was obvious that it had been designed by people who actually travel. There are plenty of different sized pockets so that everything has its place, and there’s enough flexibility to accommodate a decent collection of toiletries without having to play Tetris every time you pack.

The hanging loop is one of my favourite features. Bathrooms in hotels, hostels and campsites aren’t always blessed with acres of useful worktop space, so being able to hang the bag from a shower rail, hook or door handle is incredibly handy. It also means you can see everything at a glance rather than balancing your toiletries precariously on the edge of the sink.

There’s a deep zipped pocket at the top, with a smaller zipped mesh pocket in front of it, while the lower section has another large zipped compartment and two open mesh pockets. These are particularly useful for shower gel and shampoo, keeping them easily accessible when the bag is hanging up in a shower cubicle.

This is also a washbag that can take some abuse. I stuffed it to the point where common sense suggested I should probably stop, then subjected it to the sort of aggressive tugging normally reserved for a stubborn tent zip. It coped brilliantly. There was no strain or fraying on the stitching or fabric, while the zips glided smoothly throughout testing.

The Osprey Daylite Hanging Toiletry Kit is a simple piece of kit, but it’s one that gets the important things right. It has plenty of storage, keeps everything organised, takes up relatively little space and can be hung wherever you need it. Whether you’re heading off for a weekend camping, travelling around the country or simply escaping to a hotel for a few days, it’s a very useful addition to your travel kit.

Why we like it

Plenty of pockets and compartments without becoming unnecessarily bulky or complicated
4-litre capacity gives you enough room for toiletries for several days
Hanging design is perfect when bathroom space is limited
Adjustable strap can be looped over hooks, shower rails, doors or drawer handles
Washable liner makes cleaning up inevitable leaks considerably less painful
Robust construction stood up well to being stuffed and tugged during testing
Made using bluesign® APPROVED, 100% recycled materials

Available in Black and Tan Concrete and has a RRP of £30

GNAW Handcrafted Chocolate

Birthday Gifts, Children, chocolate, Christmas, Family Life, Food & Drink, Gifts for children, Gifts for Her, Gifts for Him, Gifts for teachers

Disclaimer – We have received this item for free or on a loan basis for the purpose of this review/feature but all words and opinions are our own.

Chocolate has always been a popular treat, and gift, but nowadays it’s taken on a life of it’s own with the new phenomenon of handcrafted chocolate. Combine that with the new novelty flavours and higher quality ingredients which are available, and you have a completely new genre of food connoisseur, similar to wine or coffee experts. GNAW Handcrafted Chocolate sent us a box of chocolates to review, and by box, I don’t mean your supermarket box for Granny on a Sunday, but a box that can be delivered through your door and contains 6 slabs of chocolates, each of them weighing 80 grams and of all different flavours, we couldn’t resist!

The GNAW chocolates arrived in a letterbox sized box and contained 6 bars; Dark Chocolate 70%, Dark Chocolate with Raspberry, Milk Chocolate New York Cheesecake, Milk Chocolate Honeycomb & Caramel, Milk Chocolate Popcorn & Peanuts and Milk Chocolate Lemon Drizzle. The bars are wrapped in paper labels with a ‘foil’ inside cover in an old-fashioned style, but all the packaging is actually recyclable. The chocolates don’t contain any palm oil and the packaging tells you if they are single origin ingredients too, which in the case of the Lemon Drizzle, the single origin is Colombia.

You might be thinking that these are unusual flavours for a chocolate? Well, they are! They represent a small selection of all the flavours that are available online in their shop; https://www.gnawchocolate.co.uk/collections/milk-chocolate-bars which has a lot more dessert-inspired flavours as well as everyday milk chocolate and dark chocolate bars. They are especially good if you like something slightly different to just chocolate, or if like me, you skip dessert and instead have a piece of chocolate instead.

How do they taste? Well, of course, I had to taste a piece of every chocolate bar we were sent, purely for research purposes… the dark chocolates are 70% so they are darker in colour and taste but still sweet enough to eat as a snack. The added raspberry is a treat because it sweetens the dark chocolate a little bit. The milk chocolate bars are a little less traditional but all have a theme of being slightly sweeter than the chocolate itself. The Lemon Drizzle has a hint of lemon but the added texture of tiny biscuit pieces. New York Cheesecake also has subtle biscuit pieces but you can taste the cheesecake filling as the flavour develops. Honeycomb & Caramel reminds me of a famous triangular brand of chocolate, so it’s a more familiar taste but I love having the chewy texture in a chocolate bar. Finally, the Popcorn & Peanut is a strange combination which is more about the consistency than the taste, until it evolves after a few moments.

I think my favourite chocolate was the Dark Chocolate Raspberry because of the juxtaposition of sweet raspberry and the dark chocolate. I don’t think there are any that I wouldn’t buy again, but I am very tempted by the other flavours on their website too!

Available online at: https://www.gnawchocolate.co.uk/collections/chocolate-bars

Summer Holiday – Blackpool Grand Theatre

Days Out, Theatre, Uncategorized

Disclaimer: We received free tickets to the show for the purpose of this review but all thoughts and opinions are our own.

Thirty years ago, we were in the audience when Summer Holiday first hit the stage in Blackpool. Last night, we returned to see a fresh new take on the classic Cliff Richard film, this time adapted for the stage by Michael Gyngell and Mark Haddingan.

Based on the 1963 film starring Cliff Richard, Summer Holiday follows a group of bus mechanics who are looking forward to a well earned summer break. With limited funds and no transport, they come up with a plan – convert an old Blackpool double-decker bus into a mobile home and head off to the Continent.

Naturally, things don’t quite go to plan. Along the way they come across a broken-down car carrying Do-Re-Mi, a band desperate to get to a singing competition in Athens. The lads decide to change their route and take them there, picking up a stowaway called Bobby along the way. There’s just one small problem: Bobby is actually a girl, running away from her rather overbearing mother. And, as anyone who has ever watched a musical will know, adding romance, a band and a secret identity to a road trip is never going to make for a quiet journey.

So onto the music and quite frankly, there’s enough 1960s nostalgia here to make anyone who remembers the decade feel 17 again. There are plenty of songs from the original film, including The Young Ones, Living Doll, Bachelor Boy and of course the title song Summer Holiday. Rather than having an orchestra tucked away in a pit, the cast themselves provide much of the music. Almost everyone plays an instrument and, remarkably, they manage to act, sing and dance while doing so and it works brilliantly. The live music adds to the energy of the production and fits perfectly with the whole idea of carefree, hip 1960s teenagers setting off on the adventure of a lifetime.

Picking a favourite performance isn’t easy, but Jane McCarry as Stella, the fame-obsessed mother of stowaway Barbara, is a particular highlight. She is perfectly cast and forms a brilliant comedy double act with Greg Last as Jerry, the spectacularly useless agent. Together, they are comedy gold and every appearance feels like someone has quietly turned the dial marked ‘ridiculous’ up another notch. They’re the sort of characters you could happily watch getting themselves into trouble for considerably longer than the plot requires.

Amanda Stoodley’s set is relatively simple, with a psychedelic 60s-inspired backdrop providing the setting. Considering the entire story revolves around a double-decker bus travelling across Europe, I did find myself expecting something a little grander than a few bus seats and a generous invitation to use my imagination. But this is theatre and by the time the miniature buses appear on stage, you can’t help but smile and go along for the ride.

This is a fantastic show, full of fun, laughter and plenty of 60s nostalgia. And looking around the theatre last night, as practically everyone was up dancing to the final Do You Wanna Dance, it was clear we weren’t the only ones having a brilliant time. When a show gets an entire audience on its feet and dancing in the aisles, you know it has done exactly what a great summer holiday should do: put a huge smile on everyone’s face.

Summer Holiday is at The Grand Theatre until Saturday 8^th August with tickets starting at £18. For more information or to book tickets visit their website here

Photo credits Blackpool Grand

Sunday Roast at The Crown, Blackheath by Shepherd Neame

alcoholic drinks, ARTICLE, Days Out, Family Life, Food & Drink, Restaurant

Disclaimer – We have received this item for free or on a loan basis for the purpose of this review/feature but all words and opinions are our own.

Shepherd Neame, the Kent based brewers owned by a local family, have launched some new dining experiences throughout their establishments in Kent and London. We visited The Crown, in Blackheath to sample their Sunday Roast as part of their new dining experiences.

The Crown is situated on the heath of Blackheath’s triangle, sitting at the top of the hill and overlooking the church. Parking is in the side roads of the triangle or there is parking on the hill itself, with the train station a short walk away and the buses stop nearby. There is frequently a circus or entertainment of some sort on Blackheath too.

The pub is recognisable from the large seating area at the front which is frequently full! Food is served every day, and on this particular sunny Sunday, there was seating outside, downstairs in the large bar area and a very picturesque dining area upstairs. The Sunday menu is presented at the tables but the dessert menu is inscribed on chalk boards above your head, so pudding is never very far from your mind as you eat! We opted for the Stuffed Pork Belly Roast, and the Sirloin Steak Roast. The Crown also does the Shepherd Neame Sunday Roast Sharing Experience, which has enough on a sharing platter for two to be able to enjoy, complete with a table side carving.

You can see from the photos that the Shepherd Neame Sunday Roasts provide ample traditions; generous portions of meat, plenty of roasted vegetables and of course, some smashing roast potatoes! These potatoes were cooked in dripping, with a salt coating to give that extra kick. There is also, of course, lashings of gravy too. We washed down our roasts with a Shepherd Neame Spitfire lager too – they’re most popular lager and one that was being enjoyed throughout the pub.

As for the desserts… there was a selection of locally inspired desserts including Apple, Pear and Pecan Crumble, Morello Cherry Frangipane and there’s a new one on me – Folkestone Pudding. Also known as Kent Tart, it’s a layered tart with a chocolate crust, cream base and chocolate layer on top. It’s similar to a cheesecake but with a rich cream filling that’s similar to custard. It’s the first time I had tried it and it was DELICIOUS! We also had the Warm Chocolate Fondant, which is seen here served with ice cream and crumbles.

I can’t recommend the Shepherd Neame Roasts enough, especially for a lovely Sunday afternoon during the summer. The pork belly was cooked perfectly with a soft, buttery layer of fat and a beautiful stuffing. There was ample beef as well, cooked as requested and tender to the cut. We loved the roast potatoes cooked with a nice thick crust. We did manage to eat all of it, including the desserts but it was all we could manage for the rest of the day!

The Crown Blackheath: https://www.crownblackheath.co.uk/

Shepherd Neame Dining Experiences: https://www.shepherdneame.co.uk/pubs/food/shepherd-neame-dining-experience

JLab JBuds Mini Wireless Ear Buds

Birthday Gifts, Children, Christmas, Family Life, Gifts for children, Gifts for Her, Gifts for Him, Gifts for teachers, secret santa, Stocking Fillers, Tech

Disclaimer – We have received this item for free or on a loan basis for the purpose of this review/feature but all words and opinions are our own.

“The smallest fit ever” is what the packaging on the JLab Mini JBuds claims and we’d have to agree! Even the casing is smaller on these diddy earbuds, which are perfect for children or those with smaller ears. The ear buds are 30% smaller but the case is 50% smaller than other ear buds, which also makes them easier to carry, especially in pockets. They’re so small in fact, that at just 3.3 grams each and a total of 18.5 grams for the case, they make an ideal keyring or can be worn as a charm on your phone.

The JBud ear buds pack a punch though with a 6mm dynamic driver speaker for audio and an output of 103 ± 3dB. The battery life is around 20 hours when fully charged, which is impressive amount of play time with such small headphones. It takes between 1.5 and 2 hours to charge depending on how you charge the case, which is a USB-C port and comes with the C to C cable. The ear buds connect to Bluetooth 5.3 (the most recent version) and have approximately 30 foot range.

These are especially great for children because of their size and they also connect really easily to devices when in ‘find’ mode. There’s not very many settings on them either, and the 4.5cm length case is easy to handle and keep on children in their pockets, rather than having to hand them to someone else or carry a bag with them. They’re a great price too, either as a gift or as a stocking filler and they’re currently on sale at £29.99 on the JLab website below!

JLab JBuds Mini Wireless Ear Buds for £39.99 at: https://www.jlab.com/en-gb/products/jbuds-mini-true-wireless-earbuds-teal

JLab Pop Party Ultra-Portable Bluetooth Speaker

Birthday Gifts, Children, Christmas, Gifts for children, Gifts for Her, Gifts for Him, Gifts for teachers, Home, Summer, Tech

Disclaimer – We have received this item for free or on a loan basis for the purpose of this review/feature but all words and opinions are our own.

Here’s a great gift for the teenagers or when you’re travelling – a portable Bluetooth speaker that lights up and connect to other JLab speakers to create a wall of sound!

Imagine being out on a picnic, or camping, and having a team of these JLab Pop Party Bluetooth speakers all playing the same music at the same time from the same device. Each of the speakers lights up so that not only can you find them easily amongst all your stuff, but as night falls, you can see each other in the glow or red, green and blue lights. They each have 8 hours of power in them; enough for a whole day outside or a night time party. The JLab Pop Party Ultra-Portable Bluetooth speakers are only £24.99, and make excellent birthday gifts, stocking fillers or gifts for children and teenagers.

With 5 watts power and a 2 year warranty, the speaker is only 7.55 inches tall and has a 2 inch driver and 2 inch woofer. It has various mounting options and a detachable magnetic loop, which you can hold in one hand or mount on a bicycle handle or in the backseat of a car. It has IP55 waterproofing so you can take it outside (it’s rain protective, not water protective so you can’t submerge it!) It’s lightweight so you can carry it in hand luggage or just over your wrist.

Charging is with a C to C cable in the USB-C port and takes around 3 hours to fully charge. Syncing is with Bluetooth 5.3. There’s approximately 30 foot range of connectivity. You get the most out of t he RGB lights if you use the JLab App to control the frequency, pattern and create the light show from it.

This is the first time I’ve seen these ‘Pop Party’ speakers and ever got to use them. They’re really useful for just taking out for the day and for children to play with in the garden or for teenagers to take out with them. The sound quality is excellent and connection to my phone was super easy one I turned on the speaker and it was ‘findable’. The JLab Pop Part Ultra-Portable Bluetooth speaker is ultra-easy to get along with and use, making it a perfect gift for anyone!

JLab Pop Party UltraPortable Bluetooth Speaker for £24.99 at: https://www.jlab.com/en-gb/products/pop-party-ultra-portable-bluetooth-speaker-black?srsltid=AfmBOoqK6kuF00xfCjWpXLHOKF0Unr3Tr9WJdnI1K9qK1ksBeALP11zW

9 to 5 The Musical – The Grand Theatre Blackpool

Days Out, Theatre

Dolly Parton’s smash hit 9 to 5 the Musical is currently touring the country and we were there for opening night at Blackpool’s Grand Theatre. Based on the much loved 1980 film which starred Dolly and for which she wrote and composed all of the music and lyrics, this feel good musical is packed full of great songs and laugh out loud moments.

The show opens with Dolly Parton’s famous song, 9 to 5 followed by an introduction from Dolly herself via a ghettoblaster, instantly transporting the audience back to the time of my teenage years – the 1980’s. We hear Dolly’s voice again at the start of the second half and again at the end which is a really nice touch for Dolly’s many fans.

For those not familiar with the story it follows three overworked office employees, Violet, Judy and Doralee, who are pushed to breaking point by their sexist, arrogant boss. Violet, played by Jade Marvin, is an experienced office supervisor who has worked at the company for years and is hoping for a promotion. Judy Bernly (Kayla Carter) is newly single and is entering the workplace for the first time and Doralee Rhodes (Karla Tracey) is PA to the slimy CEO, Franklin Hart Jnr, played by Tim Rogers.

United by their frustrations, the trio form an unlikely friendship and soon begin imagining how much better life could be if someone finally stood up to Hart. What follows is a wonderfully funny adventure filled with some very clever twists and surprises along the way.

Whilst the majority of the employees dislike Hart, his admin assistant Roz Keith (played by Jessica Martin), is besotted with him. She gives a fantastic performance in what for me was a highlight of the night, in the song Heart to Hart, surprising the audience with her hilarious and raunchy performance.

The main cast members all gave brilliant performances. Karla Tracey is perfectly cast as Doralee, her voice was fantastic and perfectly mimics Dolly’s southern country style. Tim Rogers as Franklin Hart Jnr brings the house down, never taking the character seriously, completely playing for laughs and with perfect comic timing he is very, very funny from start to finish.

Amanda Stoodley’s set was simple but effective and worked well as an office with the printers and office equipment cleverly hidden away. It was also very nice to see the band performing on stage rather than being out of sight below the stage.

The show is packed full of catchy songs including 9 to 5, Backwards Barbie, Shine Like the Sun and One of the Boys and I guarantee that you will be humming them all the way home!

You don’t need to be a Dolly fan to go and see this musical, if you want a good fun night out, where you’ll find yourself tapping your toes and laughing your way through then go and see it whilst it is at Blackpool.

9 to 5 The Musical is at The Grand Theatre until Saturday 25th July with tickets starting at £18. For more information or to book tickets visit their website here

Photo credits Andrew Howard.

Pip Organic Fizz

Children, Drinks and Mixers, Family Life, Food & Drink, Lunchbox Fillers, Summer

Disclaimer – We have received this item for free or on a loan basis for the purpose of this review/feature but all words and opinions are our own.

Pip Organic are a London based, organic drink and snack company who have just brought out the Pip Organic Fizz range of drinks for children. Well, not only children as adults will love these drinks to! We were sent some of each of the two flavours; Apple Fizz and Apple Cherry Fizz.

What makes the Pip Organic Fizz drinks different? Pip Organic pride themselves on making drinks and snacks that have minimal ingredients, and produce food which they themselves would give to their own children. Founders Patrick and Karen discovered organic juice bars whilst travelling together, not long after they met, and began juicing in Borough Market, London as they built their business. Nowadays, they are on a mission to make better food and drink accessible to everyone.

The 250ml cans come in packs of 4 and we put them straight in the fridge when they arrived so that we could enjoy them on those very hot heatwave days! The Apple Fizz is apple juice but carbonated to give the fizzy texture of a soft drink. It doesn’t have any added sugar is it has a slight sourness about it that’s akin to a home grown apple that comes straight off the tree. It’s also organic, so there’s the potential for the Apple Fizz drinks to be slightly different in taste from one can to another over time. It’s remarkably refreshing, and doesn’t leave a coating on your teeth (there’s no synthetic sweeteners either) and counts towards your 5-a-day.

The Apple Cherry Fizz is similarly refreshing and is slightly sweeter because of the addition of cherry juice. It’s also organic and counts as one in your 5-a-day quota. These drinks are aimed at children, but adults can enjoy them just as much, and over the summer they can be used in cocktails or as mixers as well, so the whole family can enjoy them and makes them easy to add to the shopping cart. Pip Organic Fizz is available in Marks and Spencer and now Waitrose too!

Pip Organic Apple Cherry Fizz 250ml

Eyeam Daily SPF NoTox Daily Face Cream

beauty, Birthday Gifts, Christmas, Fashion, Gifts for Her, Stocking Fillers, Summer, Women

Disclaimer – We have received this item for free or on a loan basis for the purpose of this review/feature but all words and opinions are our own.

I’d never heard of the company Eyeam before, so when they offered to send us some SPF NoTox face cream, I had a look at their website to see what it’s all about. Turns out, this is a British company with an holistic approach to beauty through using pure products, small batches and using the body’s connections. Their Four Pillar approach bridges the mind, body, spirit and skin to bring out the best in women. Even more interesting, is that Eyeam is run almost completely by women FOR women. Their website is fascinating to find out more about the science and spirit behind their approach to wellness and skin care.

We were sent the Eyeam Daily SPF face cream. Boasting a SPF of 20+, it’s called NoTox because it has pure ingredients and is non-comedogenic, meaning it doesn’t clog your pores. As a daily cream, it can be worn under make-up, is free from fragrances and protects against UVA and UVB rays. It also gives Polyphenol-rich antioxidant peptide protection and actives. As we’ve had a lot of very sunny weather recently, it was easy to try this daily moisturiser in very direct sunlight!

The Eyeam Daily SPF 20 cream is very thin when you dispense it. It’s only slightly less thin in consistency than single cream, but it’s very rich so you don’t need too much. I found that it takes a while for it to blend into the skin. It leaves a slight white gloss over your skin until you rub it in and settle. I believe this is to do with the SFP and creating that barrier between your skin and the sun’s rays. Once it’s blended into your skin, it has a tiny bit of sheen to it, which give a nice glow in the sunshine, with the knowledge that your skin is protected. It can be used as a primer though, where you can apply make-up on top and it acts as a base.

It lasted all day during the summer heat. It left my skin plumper all day, with a slightly waxy texture but not anything that meant my make-up slid off. It felt like a barrier cream that moisturised at the same time, but not like a film, more like a base. It certainly worked as a SFP as well, with no colour getting to my face the whole time I’ve worn it, and I’ve been wearing it daily for a few weeks now.

There are lots of other items available on the Eyeam website, all of which are made in the UK in small batches to ensure quality.

Available online for £59 at: https://eyeamworld.com/products/daily-spf-notox?_pos=1&_psq=Notox&_psid=a47aaa7c1&_ss=e&_v=1.0

Honi Poke Find Your Wave Salad Bowl

Food & Drink, health, Lunchbox Fillers, Summer

Disclaimer – We have received this item for free or on a loan basis for the purpose of this review/feature but all words and opinions are our own.

What do Moana, poke bowls and surfing all have in common? They’re all from Hawai’i, the tropical islands in the middle of the Pacific and the setting for the new Disney film Moana. Honi Poke, the Hawai’ian poke bowl restaurant, have a new poke bowl called Find Your Wave out now to celebrate the movie’s release. We went along to Honi Poke to try a bowl this week.

When you order the Find Your Wave bowl, you are given the choice of white or brown rice as a base and either chicken or tuna as the protein hit. I chose brown rice and chicken, but the rest of the recipe is the same and includes mango, edamame beans, wood ear mushrooms, smashed avocado, coriander, toasted coconut flakes and a wedge of lime. I hadn’t thought of putting mango and chicken together before but it really works! The toasted coconut flakes really makes a difference to the smoothness of the mushrooms and the mango and made the whole meal feel really tropical.

The Find Your Wave poke bowl is made with all fresh ingredients, right in front of you as soon as you order it so you can choose which components you don’t want. Luckily, I liked all the ingredients included which I think makes for a better experience when you can try all the food combinations together. It was delicious too, with a combination of mango and chicken plus the coconut and mushrooms that you don’t normally get in High Street salad bowls. I’ll be visiting Honi Poke again on my days in the office to see what other salad styles I can try!

Available in Honi Poke stores: https://www.honipoke.com/poke

TrueStart Ground Coffee Cafetière & Coffee Gift Set

Birthday Gifts, Christmas, coffee, Family Life, Food & Drink, Gifts for Her, Gifts for Him, Gifts for teachers, Home, secret santa

Disclaimer – We have received this item for free or on a loan basis for the purpose of this review/feature but all words and opinions are our own.

There are some sacred things in this life, and the first cup of coffee in the morning is probably high up on most people’s wish list! What better gift to buy a caffeine lover than a whole set of coffee and a cafetière too, all in this pretty presentation box, ready to wrap and hand over.

TrueStart have a range of coffees available by both strength (strong, smooth, decaf, half cafe) and type (instant, coffee bags, ground, beans etc). They also have a starter packs, gifts packs and accessories, so a natural progression at Christmas time is to have a Coffee Starter Pack. You can create your own starter pack too, which is what we were sent when we received this cafetière (in grey but blue is available too) and two coffees. I chose the TrueStart Super Blend coffee with a strength of 8, and the TrueStart Energising Colombian ground coffee with a strength of 7. I can’t stress how cute it is to have the box arrive with the handle of the cafetière as the handle to the gift box, making it easier to carry!

The glass cafetière has 1 litre capacity, which is enough for 8 cups of coffee and has a stainless steel finish. It needs to be hand washed because the glass is delicate, so not suitable for the dishwasher nor the oven. It’s a lovely, classic design which comes in both grey and dark blue so suits many kitchens. I have a pet peeve with cafetières that they’re either too small and you can’t get enough cups out of them, or they’re too big and therefore just functional and don’t look pretty enough for modern kitchens. This one looks lovely though, and would sit nicely on any worktop.

We tried both coffees (multiple times!) in our house. We chose stronger coffees with more aromatic tastes so the Super Blend and Energising Colombian were perfect for us. They both had a strong, bold taste which lasted throughout the whole cup of coffee, and because you can make up to 8 cups in one cafetière, we were able to drink a second cup quite quickly afterwards and each cup kept it’s integrity. Delicious!

If your’e not used to a cafetière, this is a great starter pack, and they’re really easy to use and keep clean. In fact, I would say it’s the most fun way of making coffee, and you can alter the strength of the coffee easily depending on how much you add to the jug. I loved the coffee, which is carefully selected and curated by the TrueStart coffee company since 2015 who take coffee very seriously. It’s a great size for a gift as well, or for students going off to university and needing the whole kit that’s the right size for their room. The ability to choose which coffee you want also makes it perfect for gifting and I will be looking at these as gifts at Christmas too!

Available from £30.00 at:

https://www.truestartcoffee.com/products/ground-coffee-starter-pack

The Toll House Chelsea Delicatessen, London

ARTICLE, Children, chocolate, coffee, Days Out, Family Life, Food & Drink, snacks, Summer

Disclaimer – We have received this item for free or on a loan basis for the purpose of this review/feature but all words and opinions are our own.

Nestled on a corner of Cremorne Road in Chelsea, London, is The Toll House Chelsea Delicatessen. Previous incarnation of the original building include a dry cleaners, a garage and before it’s present incarnation, it was empty for many years. The present owners have taken the charge to create The Toll House Delicatessen under the moniker of the building’s original intention; an office which collected the toll for the properties on the private land of Chelsea.

The Toll House Delicatessen is based on a premise of serving the community everything from coffee and pastries in the mornings, home working using their free Wi-Fi and providing treats on the way home from work. The Toll House speciality is their Basque cheesecake. Although she is a doctor by day, Alimah makes the cheesecakes in her spare time. Alimah’s Basque cheesecake recipes include flavours such as Pistachio Luxe, Chocolate Decadence, Lotus Biscoff Crunch and Berry Compote. Of course, there’s also an original Basque cheesecake too! We visited on a very hot Saturday afternoon to find the air-conditioned building very welcoming and Tariq, Allah’s husband, was on hand to talk us through how they had transformed the building and show us the cakes.

It may be a tiny place to visit but it has a big heart! The very Instagramable building has a mural along the outside wall which features three frogs – one to represent each of the families’s young children. Following in the Chelsea tradition, there are flowers everywhere and the branding has a twist on the Chelsea blue colour. The original Toll House Clock still stands on the roof too. Inside the blue theme continues with marble worktops and a high bench for working. The shop is so petite, it needed bespoke marble worktops, chiller cabinets and cabinetry, which give it a certain Chelsea charm. There’s a very grand coffee machine too, which makes fresh specialty coffee.

As for the cakes and pastries, you’ll find not just Basque cheesecakes but other locally sourced pastries and sandwiches and salads which are made on site daily. Anyone visiting for lunch will be able to also purchase drinks, crisps and other snacks.

We were lucky to be able to try some of the cheesecakes. Sitting outside in the sunshine, we shared the ‘Chocolate Decadence’ cheesecake. If you’re not familiar with Basque cheesecakes, they don’t have a biscuit base, they’re just cheesecake filling and then baked. Each Toll House Basque cheesecake is 4 inches wide which is more than enough for two people to share. Eating even half a Basque cheesecake was quite some task!

At first bite, you realise it is incredibly light and not like the heavy cheesecakes you buy in High Street shops. It’s not so sweet either. I am used to Basque cheesecakes being both heavy and sweet with a richness of cream, but I didn’t feel this with the Toll House Basque cheesecake. It’s light and fluffy and has a texture like whipped cream but without the dairy taste. The flavour is more like a light custard with a slight vanilla taste. You can tell that they are not only home made, but they are made that day because the body of the cheesecake is so fresh. We also took home some of the other flavours; Pistachio Luxe, Lotus Biscoffi Crunch and Berry Compote. I think my favourite was the Berry Compote – the sweet berry flavour works really well with the creamy filling.

The Toll House make cakes and Basque cheesecakes to order and for special occasions. We think they’d be great at weddings or even a tiered Basque as a fabulous wedding cake! The property is so cute and so accessible for great photos that I’m surprised it’s not more well known on the London scene. The picturesque corner of Chelsea, with the Georgian houses and enormous London plane trees is an oasis for afternoon treats as well as working from home. Tariq and his staff are so welcoming too, that you could try a different cheesecake every day of the week and never feel like leaving!

https://www.tollhousedeli.co.uk

https://www.instagram.com/tollhousedeliuk/

@tollHouseDeliUK

The AA Caravan and Camping Guide 2026.

Birthday Gifts, Books, camping, Family Life, Gifts for Her, Gifts for Him, travel

Disclaimer: We received these books for the purpose of this review and all thoughts and opinions are our own.

Summer holiday season is here and the weather is currently glorious and perfect for camping and caravanning. Whether you’re pitching your tent for the very first time or like us, have been enjoying caravan holidays for years, then a guide book is a great way to discover the best sites around the country.

The AA Caravan and Camping guide is the UK’s best selling annual camping guide and covers the United Kingdom as well as the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man and the Scottish Islands. The guide is split into regions with the AA 5 star site recommendations at the start of the book along with sections for adult-only and glamping sites. With over 550 sites it’s a great place to start your holiday planning.

Before you start looking at the sites there’s a useful introduction explaining how to use the guide. A series of symbols make it easy to see at a glance what facilities are available on site from the type of pitch available, eg caravan, motorhome or tent, as well as the facilities on site which could include an indoor/outdoor pool, playground, showers, WiFi, and services available like cafés, electric hook up and bars. The symbols are quite self explanatory but there’s a handy a key at the bottom of each page so it’s easy to see at a glance what they mean.

The sites are split into areas and then into counties and are in alphabetical order making it easy to find a campsite in the area you plan to visit. Every regional section begins with an overview of the area, complete with ideas for places to visit, before moving on to the campsite listings themselves. Each site is given an AA rating, which I found really useful when trying to narrow down the shortlist.

Each campsite entry includes full contact details , basic directions to the site and a paragraph describing the site and facilities. It also tells you when the site is open as well as arrival and departure times. The symbols make it easy to see the types of pitches, on-site amenities and leisure facilities, as well as attractions and activities within three miles of the campsite. Many of the listings also include a colour photograph, giving you a feel for the site before you arrive.

Whether you’re planning a weekend by the sea, a walking holiday in Wales or fancy trying glamping, this guide takes a lot of the guesswork out of choosing a caravan or camping site in the UK.

RRP £14.99

Available from Amazon and all leading bookstores.

Aldi Back to School Uniforms

Autumn, Children, Family Life, Fashion, Gifts for children, Home, Summer

Disclaimer – We have received this item for free or on a loan basis for the purpose of this review/feature but all words and opinions are our own.

I know it seems early to be thinking about it, but it’s never too early to get school uniform in! Aldi’s have a huge selection of school uniforms available now through the summer until the autumn term begins. We were sent some blue Polo shirts, a red sweatshirt and some grey boys’ trousers to try before the summer.

Starting with the grey trousers, these are aged 8 to 9 years and they are a tapered fit for boys with an adjustable waist, name label inside and a permanent crease down the front. Made of Teflon, they have reinforced knees and they’re also easy iron. They are for age 8 to 9 years old which is a height of 128 to 134 cm, a waist of 61 to 63 cm, and hips of 70 to 73 centimetres. They made mainly of polyester (65%) and viscose (35%). They look very good quality and even to touch they are very durable like. I can see that they’re very well stitched and held together with a YKK zip at the front. We haven’t had a chance to test them fully yet, but they look like they would last!

The red sweatshirt is a roundneck and for ages 4 to 5 years. It’s a relaxed fit and made of 80% cotton and 20% recycled polyester. For age 4 to 5 years it is aimed a height of 104 to 110 cm with a chest of 57 to 59 cm. This shirt should be washed at 40°C, tumble dried and can be ironed. It’s a vibrant red colour which will hopefully last, and long sleeved for the autumn and winter months. There is a 12 month satisfaction guarantee and inside there is a name label included. This would be a great sweatshirt for the last year at nursery or the first year at kindergarten.

Finally, the LD Aldi Back to School polo shirts in light blue are for age 9 to 10 years old. This packet contains two polo shirts which are both machine washable are made of cotton, and these are also 12 months satisfaction guaranteed. The shirts are short sleeved with a collar and three buttons down the front. They can be washed at 40°C and can be tumble dried. These shirts are 100% cotton and for the size 9 to 10 years old they are aimed at a height of 134 to 140 cm, a chest of 70 to 73 cm and a waist of 63 to 65 cms. These could be worn out of school as well as in school where I presume they’re either for the summer or as part of the PE kit. They are very tough wearing but you can see the texture is brilliant for summer because they’re very thin yet durable.

If you’re not familiar with the Aldi school uniforms have a look online and you’ll see that there are tons available this year for all school uniform needs including in PE kits and after school.

Back to School products cane be found here:

https://www.aldi.co.uk/products

Benecos Natural Tinted Lip Balm and Lavera Travel Size All-Round Cream

beauty, Birthday Gifts, Gifts for Her, secret santa, Stocking Fillers, Summer, Vegan, Vegetarian, Women

Disclaimer – We have received this item for free or on a loan basis for the purpose of this review/feature but all words and opinions are our own.

As summer approaches, let’s look at some of the products out there to make your life easier. We’ve been sent the Benecos natural tinted lip balm and the Lavera Travel Size All-Round Cream for sensitive skin. Each of them are in small packaging which is easily kept in a handbag or flight luggage and both are vegan, and under 100 mL in volume.

The Benecos natural tinted lip balm has UVA and UVB protection. This sample in the ‘Coral Breeze’ colour is SPF 15 and glides on just like a lipstick. The texture of this lip balm is also very much like a lipstick and leaves a subtle tinted colour which can either be applied and blotted like a lipstick, or blended in like a lip balm. It has a lovely natural colour to it, making it easy to wear weather without make-up. When the weather is particularly good in the summer, you can wear it instead of lipstick.

The Lavera Basis Sensitive Cream is 100% vegan and contains bio aloe vera oil. It comes in this handy 25 ml tin which is small enough to fit into a handbag or an overnight toiletries bag. The cream is foil wrapped for freshness and when you open it, you can see how rich the Lavera cream is. You can see that it’s oil based because of the texture of the cream which is quite thick. It is suitable for anything from a face cream to body cream and the richness of this cream means that it can be used before applying make-up or in the evening as a night mask. It’s incredibly silky and very very moisturising when it is applied. It also has a really lovely sent to it.

I was quite surprised by both of these products in how handy they are as well as how luxurious they feel when being worn. These are great for summer because everybody needs a bit of extra help with either SPF or highly moisturised products at this time of year. These will be staying in my handbag for months to come!

Benecos Natural Tinted Lip Balm £5.95:

https://benecos.uk/shop-1/p/natural-concealer-j8ma7

Lavera Travel Size Basis Sensitive All-Round Cream £2.00: https://www.lavera.co.uk/shop/p/travel-size-basis-sensitive-all-round-cream

Aldi Lacura Make Up

beauty, Birthday Gifts, Gifts for Her, Summer, Women

Disclaimer: We received these products free of charge for the purpose of this review and all thoughts and opinions are our own.

Aldi’s Summer Beauty Collection arrived in the middle aisle this week and is packed with glow-boosting skincare, sun-kissed essentials and trend-led treats. Aldi’s popular purse-friendly line proves you don’t need a supermodel’s budget to look the part this summer.

We had a sneak peak of some of the products and it’s fair to say the Review Studio team were really impressed with the new collection which includes the iconic La cura Cashmere Glow Luminous Foundation (£5.99, 30ml) and Concealer (£3.99, 10ml) which offer price savings of over 80% compared to luxury brand Giorgio Armani. There’s also a fantastic selection of blushers, highlighters and serums so you can have a go at the viral ‘pilates glow’ trend that has been taking social media by storm.

The Lacura Watermelon Serum (RRP £4.99) is going to be one of the hardest working products in your summer make up bag. Available in two versions – Brightening and Bronzing, the serums are designed to give your skin a natural glow. The Brightening Serum leaves skin looking fresh and radiant while the Bronzing Serum adds a touch of sun-kissed warmth that’s perfect for holiday skin.

The Lacura Cashmere Glow Luminous concealer (RRP £3.99) proves that good make up doesn’t have to come with a luxury price tag. The concealer is available in six different shades and the lightweight, formula blends nicely and gives long-lasting coverage. It is great at hiding the dark circles under my eye whilst leaving the under eye area looking fresher and brighter.

The Lacura Sweet Blusher (£3.49 ) is available in two different shades – Pink Lace and Peachy Pink and it looks great layered with the Radiant Rose or Champagne Lacura Stay Illuminated Highlighter (£3.49). The blushers and highlighters have a silky, lightweight texture which makes them easy to apply and blend on your skin, giving a fresh, healthy glow, just like you’ve spent a weekend in the sun.

Mascara is the one item in my make up bag that I can’t live without and the Lacura Dramatic Lash Mascara (£4.99) is proof that you don’t need to spend a fortune to get great lashes. After applying a couple of coats, I could see an instant boost in both length and volume while the brush did a fantastic job of separating my lashes without clumping.

I was very impressed with the staying power of this mascara – it stayed on all day without smudging and even survived a sweaty aerobics class! It was easy to remove too with my usual eye make-up remover.

We often think about protecting our skin during the summer months, but our lips need just as much attention. The Lacura Collagen Lip Oil (£2.99) is a real beach bag essential, enriched with Vitamin E, Shea Butter and Collagen to help keep lips feeling soft, smooth and hydrated throughout the day. The rollerball applicator makes it easy to apply and the handy sized 8ml tube is perfect for keeping in your handbag so you can reapply during the day. The colourless formula leaves my lips with a subtle shine and can be worn alone or layered over lipstick.

To finish, a quick mist of Lacura Illuminate Setting Spray (£4.49) helps keep your makeup exactly where you put it. The lightweight formula feels refreshing on the skin and helps everything stay looking fresh, polished and put together, even when the summer weather decides to turn up the heat.

Aldi’s Summer Beauty Collection proves that achieving a fresh, glowing summer look doesn’t have to come with a hefty price tag. With affordable products you can easily pick up as part of your weekly shop, it’s well worth taking a detour down the middle aisle before they’re gone.

Hozo NeoSander

Birthday Gifts, Christmas, Father's Day, Gifts for Him, Tech

Disclaimer: we received this product free of charge for the purpose of this review and all thoughts and opinions are our own.

HOZO was founded in 2021 and they are an innovative technology company that designs and develops smart measuring and creative tools for professionals and DIY enthusiasts. Their product range included digital measuring devices, modular rulers, laser measurement tools and creative workshop equipment. With users in more than 65 countries, HOZO continues to redefine precision, creativity and efficiency in modern tool design. We recently tried out both the HOZO NeoBlade Wireless Ultrasonic Cutter – Creator Combo Set and the NeoRuler Go – 41 Piece Premium Gift Combo and now we’ve had the opportunity to try out another of their smart tools – the NeoSander.

My husband is a keen model maker and often need to use sandpaper or a rotary tool to smooth off plastic or wooden parts so he was more than happy to take a look at The NeoSander.

The small reciprocating detail sander is a small handheld device that vibrates a sanding head at up to 13000 strokes per minute. The controls are simple, just a power switch and then a sliding control to vary the stroke length. It is charged using a USB-C cable and is not too heavy so fits easily into your hand. It’s difficult to say how long the battery lasts as I haven’t used it enough yet but if it was to run out when you’re in the middle of sanding you can simply plug it in and carry on using it rather than having to wait for it to re-charge.

The base model NeoSander (RRP £53) comes with a set of 8 different heads and 8 sheets of pre-cut self-adhesive sandpaper in a range of grits from 180 to 1500. To use, simply peel off a piece of sandpaper to suit the head and fit the head to the sander. The heads come in different shapes and sizes so there is always one to suit the job.

My husband has found it really useful for sanding down wooden parts and plastic, it’s particularly good at removing the plastic mould marks that you get when you pop out the plastic from the sprue. We also think this would be brilliant if you do a lot of 3D printing as it would be invaluable for cleaning up the 3D prints.

There are other accessories available, my husband now has his eye on the set of 64 colour coded heads which would mean he could have every head available in every grit and would save him a lot of peeling and swapping paper between different jobs.

My husband is really impressed with the performance especially compared to a rotary tool. As the sander uses a linear motion rather than rotary it is much easier to keep control and sanding marks are reduced. The detail heads make getting into the smallest parts simple and the other heads are good for curved parts or corners. The stroke length can be reduced to less than a mm so there is little danger of overunning onto the wrong part.

The NeoSander may be small enough to disappear into a drawer, but don’t let its size fool you. This little powerhouse makes the tedious business of sanding remarkably satisfying, tackling fiddly corners, awkward curves and tiny details with the sort of precision that would have most rotary tools waving a white flag. Whether it’s model making, 3D printing projects, crafting or general workshop tinkering, it takes much of the effort out of achieving a professional-looking finish. And with Father’s Day fast approaching, it’s the kind of gift that will delight any dad who loves building, fixing or creating things. Practical, clever and genuinely useful, it’s a tool that’s far more exciting than another pair of novelty socks!!

French Soaps – La Corvette Home Cleaning Heroes

eco friendly, Family Life, Home, Home & Garden, Spring

Disclaimer – We received this item for the purpose of this review but all words and opinions are our own.

Cleaning is one of those jobs that you either love or hate! I like my home to be clean, but I don’t have a strict cleaning regime and if there’s something more interesting to do then it’s more than likely that the cleaning will get pushed down my job list! I like my cleaning products to have a pleasant scent and I don’t really like using products that contain harmful chemicals, so I was really pleased when a parcel containing La Corvette Home Cleaning Heroes arrived from French Soaps. Made with up to 99.5% naturally derived ingredients, these traditional cleaning products gave me the motivation I needed to finally make a belated start on my spring cleaning!

If like me you haven’t heard of French Soaps before, they are a UK company who were established in 2012. Based in North Yorkshire they specialise in traditional soap products such as Savon de Marseille, Aleppo soap and Provençal vegetable-oil soaps produced using established soapmaking methods. These soaps belong to long traditions of practical soapmaking where plant oils are transformed into durable soaps used for washing, laundry and household cleaning. Their appeal lies in their simplicity: reliable soap made from straightforward ingredients which are designed for everyday use. The company aims to make these traditional soaps more widely available in the United Kingdom while preserving the heritage behind them.

La Corvette Home Cleaning Heroes bundle is a great introduction to La Corvette’s home cleaning range. Made using 99% natural ingredients with herb extracts these products deliver impressive results with little effort – now that’s my sort of cleaning!!

The set contains

Lavender Vinegar Spray – as the name suggests this natural spray is enriched with organic lavender and smells wonderful. The vinegar spray is a real multi purpose product that will descale, clean and shine everything from kettles, shower cubicles and bathroom fittings. All you need to do is spray straight on to surfaces and wipe – no need to rinse making cleaning a quick and easy job.

Sage Glass Cleaning Spray – enriched with organic sage this glass cleaner is so easy to use. A quick spray on windows, mirrors and glass tables, wipe it off and a quick polish with a dry cloth is all I need for sparkling clean mirrors and windows. I normally hate cleaning the shower doors but this spray cuts through the grime and my shower doors have never looked cleaner.

Thyme Degreasing Spray – The Thyme Degreasing spray is a another multipurpose product that dissolves grease and adds shine to all washable surfaces. It’s perfect for cleaning worksurfaces and sinks in the kitchen and bathroom. I was really impressed at how easily it removed the build of soap and grime in the bathroom, leaving everything fresh and sparkly clean.

Olive Black Liquid Soap Spray – this is my favourite of all the products as it can be used in so many different ways. Indoors, it cleans, degreases and shines all types of surfaces: worktops, sinks, cookers etc and it’s also a great product for gardeners as it can be used for protecting and cleaning plants. To clean plants and tackle common garden pests simply mix 5 large spoons with 1 litre of hot water, leave for a few minutes and then spray or wipe the leaves with it. It’s a much better way of getting rid of insects, spiders and aphids. It’s also good at cleaning garden furniture and garden tools too. The real test of it’s cleaning ability came when I used it on the cooker after one of my sons had been frying chicken – and like all teenagers didn’t think to wipe the cooker clean afterwards! A couple of sprays and a quick wipe later, the greasy marks were gone, leaving my cooker looking clean again.

Traditional Mop cloth – made from recycled textile material the traditional fibre mop cloth is perfect for cleaning floors.

Overall I have been really impressed with the La Corvette Home Cleaning Heroes bundle. The products effectively remove dirt and grime from everything from bathroom taps, kitchen worksurfaces, shower screens and more. While slightly more expensive than the everyday supermarket cleaning products they are much kinder to both the environment and skin making them well worth considering for anyone looking for a more natural approach to household cleaning.

RRP £35

Trapiche Pure Malbec

alcoholic drinks, Birthday Gifts, Christmas, Drinks and Mixers, Father's Day, Food & Drink, Gifts for Her, Gifts for Him, Gifts for teachers, Mother's Day, secret santa, Stocking Fillers, Summer, Valentine's Day Gifts, Vegan, Women

Disclaimer: we received this product free of charge for the purpose of this review and all thoughts and opinions are our own.

If your dad enjoys a glass of red wine, a good bottle is guaranteed to go down well on Father’s Day. Better still, for those last minute shoppers, Trapiche Pure Malbec is readily available from the Co-op so you can pick a bottle up on your way to see him!!

Produced by Argentina’s most awarded winery, this Fairtrade-certified Malbec is packed with juicy fruit flavours and is wonderfully smooth and easy to drink. At just £10 a bottle, it’s also excellent value for money, proving that you don’t have to spend a fortune to give a special gift.

The Trapiche vineyards are in Mendoza, one of Argentina’s most famous wine regions which are nestled at the foothills of the Andes Mountains. The winery was founded by Argentine politician and businessman Tiburcio Benega back in 1883 and over the years the business has grown to be one of Argentina’s leading wine producers. The vineyards are planted higher up in the mountains, where the cooler air helps keep the grapes fresh and balanced, despite the intense Argentinian sunshine.

The “Pure” in the name refers to the fact that this is an unoaked Malbec. Rather than being aged in oak barrels, the wine is made in stainless steel and concrete tanks. While I’m no wine expert, I find this style lets the fruit do the talking, bringing out the cassis, blueberry and plum flavours without the vanilla or smoky notes that oak can sometimes add.

The rich purple wine is smooth and easy to drink and it goes really well with both steak and cheese.

By choosing Fairtrade wine, you are supporting farmers and ensuring that they have access to fairer working conditions. Fairtrade also makes sure that producers receive a fairer price for their grapes and provides extra funding that can be invested back into workers and local communities. It also supports growers in adopting more sustainable farming methods and promotes fair treatment and opportunities for everyone working in the vineyards.

Available from the Co op

Dad’s Dram Selection Whisky Tasting Set

alcoholic drinks, Birthday Gifts, Christmas, Drinks and Mixers, Father's Day, Gifts for Him, Stocking Fillers

Disclaimer – We have received this item for free or on a loan basis for the purpose of this review/feature but all words and opinions are our own.

For any Dad or Grandad who loves whisky, a dram selection is always a good idea on Father’s Day! For anyone who likes whisky and wants to try a selection without having to buy a whole bottle at a time, the Dad’s Dram Selection from Drinks By The Dram is an excellent choice to try yourself. The six drams included in the set are:

Singleton of Dufftown 12 Year Old
Teeling Small Batch
Islay Whisky 8 Year Old (That Boutique-y Whisky Company)
Tobermory 12 Year Old
Talisker Skye
Darkness 8 Year Old

Each of the drams are 3cl and although they come in identical bottles, the logos on their labels is faithful to the companies’ brandings. There’s a mixture of different whiskies too, which all come from Scotland. They arrive in this smart presentation box which can be posted or handed over without even any gift wrap!

The glass-sized samples of whisky are all of excellent quality. Depending on how Dad drinks whisky, they can be kept for special occasions or tried every night for a week. I especially like the idea of this being a birthday present for Dad, so that his birthday can last longer than a week and be able to sample the different whiskies in isolation on different days.

Available from £24.95 at:

https://www.masterofmalt.com/tasting-set/master-of-malt/dads-dram-selection-whisky-black-tasting-set/?sku=143113

NeoRuler Go – 41 Piece Premium Gift Combo

Birthday Gifts, Father's Day, Gifts for Her, Tech

HOZO was founded in 2021 and they are an innovative technology company that designs and develops smart measuring and creative tools for professionals and DIY enthusiasts. They have been a leader in the smart tools market and do everything in-house from design, development, manufacturing and sales. Their product range includes digital measuring devices, modular rulers, laser measurement tools, and creative workshop equipment. With users in more than 65 countries, HOZO continues to redefine precision, creativity, and efficiency in modern tool design.

I was recently sent the NeoRuler Go 41 Premium Gift Combo set to try out. Inside the box is a NeoRulerGO Main Unit, a Black Leather Case, NeoPencil Pro Kit (NeoPencil Mini, NeoPencil Case, 2 Standard Black Nibs),NeoStand Colourful (12 colored tips), NeoStand Classic (12 black tips), NeoPencil Classic, Additional Measuring Rubber Tire (4 pcs) and Standard Black Nib (6 pcs)

The NeoRuler Go offers a modern approach to measuring and brings smart technology to what is normally a very basic process. The device is compact and has two buttons, an OLED screen and a rubber coated measuring wheel. Measurements are made by rolling the wheel along the surface or object that you need to measure and the measurement or distance is displayed instantly on the screen.

The units of measurement can be metric or imperial and to keep the measurement accurate a pair of laser crosshairs is projected onto the object allowing a line to be followed. The interface is simple enough to use and the mode can be switched between ruler, scale rule and custom scale rule.

There are 93 scales available including scales common on building plans and those found on maps. As a keen hiker I regularly measure routes on maps and this seems a really good way to do it. I also regularly work on building plans at work, so having this will avoid the need for the old fashioned scale rule.

If your scale is not included in the ones built in, it is possible to create your own by measuring a known length off the plans and then telling the ruler what the real world length is.

As you might expect in 2026, there is an app available and whilst you could definitely use it without the app, it does allow measurements to be saved as a list or even as a floor plan. It isn’t something I have a need for but it could prove useful to some.

Whilst I have found it it really useful for measuring hiking routes, I haven’t found many other uses as I find myself reaching for a simple tape measure when I have anything straight to measure but I can see it being very useful if I wanted to measure something that isn’t straight such as a curved piece of wood or stone. We are just about to start some work on the garden so I am sure it would become invaluable in the coming months.

Whilst not the main device, I have found that I have been using the NeoPencil a lot. I didn’t think the pencil needed to be re-invented but I found it quite a nice tool to use and it sits well in my hand. I make many notes in pencil at work and liked using the NeoPencil with its base. The line it makes is thin and quite light (think 2H normal pencil lead) but that’s fine for me and it also works very well marking up timber when I’m doing joinery work.

RRP £169 and is available from Amazon

HOZO NeoBlade Wireless Ultrasonic Cutter – Creator Combo Set

Birthday Gifts, Father's Day, Gifts for Him

HOZO was founded in 2021 and are an innovative technology company that designs and develops smart measuring and creative tools for professionals and DIY enthusiasts. They are a leader in the smart tools market and do everything in-house from design, development, manufacturing and sales. Their product range includes digital measuring devices, modular rulers, laser measurement tools, and creative workshop equipment. With users in more than 65 countries, HOZO continues to redefine precision, creativity, and efficiency in modern tool design.

I’m new to the smart tools market but as one of my hobbies is building a model railway I thought I would see how the HOZO Neoblade compares to my normal tools. When I’m building parts for my model railway of all the tools in my railway room, a simple craft knife is the one I use most. It is used for cutting plastic sleepers between the rails, parts from their sprues in plastic kits and most often cutting parts for model buildings out of card. I have been trying the ultrasonic cutter from Hozo for a little while now and I’m quite impressed with what it can do. The cutter feels quite large in my hand but is well balanced with a removable battery. It comes with everything you need including a blade selection, charging dock, battery pack and charging cable and I also received a pack of 20 extra blades.

When using the tool I found it best to let it go at its own pace, the power is automatically adjusted and I found no real pressure was needed to make a cut in any of the materials I tried.

I was particularly impressed when cutting card. I would normally start with an initial scoring cut and then make several more cuts until I got through, guiding my knife with a steel rule. With the Neoblade I found I could make just a single cut right through the card without the surface ripping and I could easily keep the cut straight without needing a guide.

When cutting plastic parts, I found it very easy to cut the part very close to the sprue meaning much less time cleaning up the part before assembly. One thing I didn’t expect (although it makes sense) is that the blade heats up whilst in use, so I found it best to let the blade cool a little between cuts when cutting plastic.

One issue I did notice fairly quickly was that the blade cuts through my standard cutting mat. To avoid damaging it further, I switched to using a cheap wooden board instead. While the board does pick up plenty of cut marks, it is much more durable and can be replaced cheaply once it becomes too worn.

The charging base is very clever and charges either the tool or the spare battery when I pop it back in between cuts. The base also gives a 30 minute charging time compared to the 60 minute charge with the supplied USB-C cable.

Changing the blades is easy and a special screwdriver is included and stored inside the protective cover along with a spare retaining screw – just in case!

This tool is definitely going to be an asset in my modelling room and will make some jobs (especially card kits) much quicker.

RRP £166 but at the time of writing is currently available for £141.10 on the HOZO website

Faith In Nature Seaweed & Citrus Range

beauty, Birthday Gifts, Christmas, Father's Day, Gifts for Him, Vegan

Disclaimer: We received these products free of charge for the purpose of this review and all thoughts and opinions are our own.

If you’re struggling to come up with the perfect gift for Dad, this year why not skip the predictable beer or chocolate and go for something he’ll use and enjoy every day like these Seaweed & Citrus products from Faith In Nature. These are a great practical gift, especially for Dad’s who take pride in their appearance.

Faith In Nature has been around since 1974, long before natural, cruelty free and vegan products were a thing. Founded by Rivka Rose, the brand has stuck to its guns for more than 50 years, making straightforward products with as few ingredients as possible and none of the unnecessary stuff like silicones, parabens or SLS. These days it’s sold in more than 40 countries, which is quite an achievement.

If your dad’s got hair that soon gets greasy, the Seaweed & Citrus range is well worth a look. The shampoo and conditioner (£13.99 for the set or £7.99 individually) are made with rock wrack seaweed that’s hand-harvested off the coast of northern Scotland. Seaweed is packed with nutrients that help keep hair and scalps in good condition and with the addition of citrus oils these products will leave your hair feeling clean and fresh.

The vegan shampoo and conditioner are 99.5% natural origin and are cruelty-free. The ingredients include rosemary oil, nettle which helps add shine and chamomile, which is known for it’s calming properties.

Faith In Nature are passionate about using only the best quality natural ingredients and the rock wrack seaweed in these products is sustainably harvested in Scotland by trained specialists who follow strict environmental practices, ensuring the surrounding ecosystem remains healthy and allowing the seaweed to regenerate naturally for future harvests.

The coastal inspired theme continues with the Seaweed & Citrus Body Wash (£6.49). With the same fragrance as the hair products this body wash creates a creamy lather which leaves your skin feeling clean, refreshed and invigorated.

The formula is enriched with oat extract which gently soothes and soften the skin along with limeflower extract which has calming and antioxidant properties. It also contains Elderberry extract which brings a wealth of naturally occurring bioflavonoids that help support healthy-looking skin and contribute to an overall feeling of wellbeing.