Monday 28 October 2013

Ariel 3 in 1 pods Review




I was lucky enough to test the new Ariel 3 in 1 pods for the last couple of weeks.

And i am first to admit I was unsure how well they would work as i normally prefer to use powder and not liquid tabs.

But after being quite skeptical about the claims Ariel are making about the product brightening your clothes,  I was very quickly put in my place and I did find a vast improvement as most known detergents tend to fade your clothes after each wash.

My kids clothes showed no sign of fading and even looked more rejuvenated too!

The Ariel 3 in 1 pods leaves a long lasting smell even after a few days hanging in your wardrobe.

The stain removing power is pretty good too having three kids I tend to get a few items that I normally have to wash a few times but on a few occasions the Ariel pods have got the stain out first time without having to pre-wash first.

Overall I have been very impressed with Ariel 3 in 1 pods and already have bought a few packets since my trial packet ran out, So I can safely say I will be buying them on a regular basis and really enjoyed doing my washing for once too !






Sunday 27 October 2013

Amazing Teksta Robotic Puppy Space Jump 2013!



Mark Sunday the 27th October 2013 on your calendars for today is officially the day when you can witness  the Teksta Puppy becoming the first robotic toy canine in space! From 4pm today visitors to this blog will be able to watch a YouTube video featuring this groundbreaking event.

Some facts you need to know about the Teksta space jump.
  • Teksta went up to an altitude of 97,000ft before jumping and parachuting back to earth.
  • He endured Temperatures as low as -61 Celsius
  • He also encountered Air pressure changes of 0.406lbs/sq ft

Watch below what is surely one small step for robotic puppies and one giant leap for toykind!



TheTeksta robotic puppy represents an eight week old cyber-friend that responds to your childs voice and gestures.Teksta also responds to lights and sounds and  has its own app for tablet devices  that allows its owner to program dance moves coordinated to your own music library as well as other cool features.  
Each robotic puppy is engineered with very clever technology that allows Teksta to communicate by barking, whining and crying and also emote his/her feelings through changes in eye animation depicted through advanced LED lighting. 
Teksta's state of the art sensors allow the puppy to know when he is being pet, fed, spoken to and played with just like a real puppy. He/she even falls asleep when it gets dark and wakes up again when it's light. Perhaps unlike other pets Teksta is always happy to see it's owner and won't leave a mess on your carpet!
Now in its fourth generation of robotic puppies the technology has certainly come a long way and todays Teksta is more loveable and interactive than ever before. 
  • Teksta features over 100 physical and interactive play features.
  • No remote control needed. Now you can play with unique hand gestures that control and train Teksta making him/her do some neat tricks like stop, sit and my personal fav the back flip!
  • With his expressive beaming eye patterns that light up in different colors you can learn how Teksta is feeling, know when he/she is hungry, wants to play or just wants some attention.
  • Teksta comes with his own ball so you can play fetch and a great bone accessory so you can feed him/her when he is hungry.
  • With the new wireless and infrared technology you can now train Teksta to play with his friends and control his/her dance moves by downloading a free app.



Teksta is available in both blue and pink and will no doubt be a hot seller again this Christmas  time. I know it’s already on my kids lists to Santa (so look out for a potential review later).






Sunday 13 October 2013

CandleRings Review






When I saw this posted on my facebook timeline I was like omg I need to get me one of these so I did!

The hardest part was trying to decide what one I wanted I finally decided on Vanilla Cupcake.



Once the candle arrived I could not wait to get burning it’s almost like a grown up kinder egg but without the chocolate.


After a few days I could finally see where my ring was hidden and I was getting eager to see what ring I may find would it be £10 or £1000 ekkk !!!



Finally tonight I was able to get my ring out (cough!) with a little help and a spoon.
Once the foil was out I let it cool down for a moment and then finally unwrapped my ring ... and I think my ring was only worth £10 but to be honest the ring was really pretty ... and much to my disappointed it was not worth a bit more I will be defiantly buying another one very soon maybe next time I will be a little more lucky.







You can buy your CandleRings here for £24.99

Magic Nail Laboratory Review





We were offered a chance to try out the Magic Nail Laboratory from Interplay. My daughter loves playing with nail varnish and painting nails. And for once this was a kit she could play with and maybe give my nail varnish a rest for once.
The kit comes with everything you will need to make your own nail varnish and then to wear it too!
The overall presentation of the nail kit has been put together really well and includes lots of important safety tips, fun facts and professional tips to keep your nails looking good and healthy.

The Magic Nail Laboratory includes a studio for keeping the entire ingredients and accessories well looked after and easily accessible when you need to use them.



The set includes a nail file and buffer and gives instructions on how to keep nails manicured and ready for painting.

The main base of the nail varnishes is a white liquid that dries clear and can be easily peeled off so no need for nail varnish remover making it a lot gentler for young kids nails.



Once you have made the base you can then add different colour pigments and even add a shimmer effect to create a really cool nail varnish.

Once your nails have been painted you can add some cool nail Art stickers the set includes two different types my daughters fav’s were the glow in the dark stickers, but the set also includes colour changing stickers that react in direct sunlight



The kit is recommended for children aged 10 or over. My daughter being 10 found the kit easy to use and never really need any help from me, younger children may need help just pouring the nail varnish liquid into the pots but other than that they should be fine to fully enjoy this product.

The only downside was that my daughter had to take it off on Sunday night ready for school she was too pleased but least she has plenty of nail varnish left for next weekend too!


  

The Magic Nails Laboratory is £12.99 RRP.  Find out more here: http://www.interplayuk.com/wild-science-girls/magic-nail-laboratory




Tuesday 1 October 2013

Blingles Glimmer Glam Styler Review




Blingles Glimmer Glam Styler

My daughter loves stickers as the walls and doors of our house will attest so when we were selected to review the Blingles Glimmer Glam Styler she was really excited to get to stuck in (pardon the pun) using this bling-tastic glitter sticker making set!
Blingles Glimmer Glam Styler is an attractive piece of kit that looks like a bight pink mini art studio. Out of the box the set includes 60 stickers affording plenty of variety to create some really snazzy looking designs which can be used to decorate almost anything from books and lunch boxes to phone cases, clothing and furniture – almost anything you can think of with a smooth surface can be jazzed up with just a few stickers.



We were both very surprised at how easy the styler was to set up and use. The four pots of coloured glitter, gemstones and applicators (a pen and a brush) are housed neatly within the styler keeping everything organised and to hand. We were quickly up and running and enjoying blinging up the house!



Creating stickers is easy - simply peel off a colour layer on your chosen sticker then rub the corresponding glitter colour onto the sticky surface using the roller provided in the glitter pot. Next brush off the excess glitter into the tray before moving onto the next section. There are four coloured areas in total to help indicate where you should but each corresponding glitter colour but you can freestyle if you prefer - which my daughter did creating her own unique designs. In addition some of the stickers have space for gemstones which are provided to help really glam up your bling-tastic creations. When using the glitter we found that it adheres really well to the sticker surface so that the individual glitter colours remained well separated making the end results look very professional. The Glitter rollers worked well and the brush was handy allowing us to easily collect the excess glitter and minimise any waste as the glitter could then be stored for use at another time.



So what’s in the box...

The Blingles Glimmer Glam Styler is a premium product with a wealth of content including:

  • Glimmer Studio
  • Gem Tray
  • Glitter Collection Tray
  • Glimmer Pen
  • Glimmer Brush
  • 4 Glitter Colours
  • 4 Glitter Rollers
  • 8 Sticker sheets (will make up to 60 stickers)
  • 10 large Gemstones
  • Instruction Booklet
More sets and refill kits are available at all good toy retailers so the Blingles Glimmer Glam Styler set has plenty of re-play value. The refills would make great stocking filler ideas too (note to Santa, hint hint)!

Overall this product, recommended for ages 6 and above, was exceptionally easy to use and we believe it provides great value for money. My 10 year old daughter really had fun using this and mum got to have a go too! Every girl loves a bit of sparkle in her life and I am sure Blingles products are guaranteed to bring the bling!  




Friday 27 September 2013

No Internet Boo Hoo!!

Well Pc is still not fixed my internet connection has gone should be fixed soon or I may have to buy a new witless hub thing to get it too work once I can get it up and running I will have a few new reviews to upload .....

So sorry again just can't do them from my phone very well .....

But on the plus part I managed to enter one comp on my phone and won £100 live to shop vouchers so there is a small plus point to this situation ....

Was hoping try and get some end of months comps done so fingers crossed I get my  PC working very soon ...

Saturday 21 September 2013

Have some great new reviews coming soon !!

watch this space will have some great new reviews just having a few issue uploading them at the moment .... from the pc but hopefully will have this resolved in the next day or so so sorry about the delay 

Tuesday 6 August 2013

Shamballa Fire Jewellery Kit Review






Visitors to my blog might already know that myself and my daughter both love arts and crafts, especially making things, so we were very pleased to have an opportunity to have a play with the Shamballa Fire Jewellery Kit by MyStyle.

The product box features some lovely inspiring images of very pretty jewellery that can be made using the kit and inside we found: 
  • 2 Rose Pink shamballa beads
  • 3 Peach shamballa beads
  • 3 Fuchsia Pink shamballa beads
  • 20 Imitation glass pearls
  • Plastic coated jewellery wire
  • 8m of black cord
  • Jump rings
  • Clasp
  • Clamshell clasps
  • Ear hooks
  • Safety pin
  • Colour instruction booklet
The Shamballa Fire Jewellery Kit is recommended for 8 years and up and is definitely not suitable for very young children due to the smaller pieces being potential choking hazards so please keep that mind if there are younger siblings or small animals inside the house as such pieces can easily be lost or misplaced.




To begin with we had a good look at the instructions to get an idea of what to make first and started with a simple bracelet using some of the pink and peach beads with the glass. We carefully laid out the pieces we needed and set to work threading and knotting each bead until it was complete and I must say the finished product looked pretty good!

It took roughly 15 to 20 mins to finish our first attempt at a bracelet and I had to takeover on the odd occasion with the more fiddly work and it took me a while to thread the clasp in place to make the bracelets attach at each end so it can be worn.


We had fun with this kit and felt like professionals as the end products are of a really high standard thanks to the quality components included. This past week my daughter got her ears pierced and in 6 weeks time she will be able to wear other earrings so we are looking forward to having a go at making the earrings using the wire and the fuchsia pink Shamballa beads.





This kit cost £12.99 which is very good value for money and would make a great gift for older girls who love making their own jewellery. Adult supervision is advisable due to the small pieces and the trickiness of putting some of the smaller components together. Also included inside theShamballa Fire Jewellery Kit is a handy little box to safely store any unfinished designs and pieces should you need a break.



Overall we were very impressed with our finished jewellery and we think the price is right given the scope of creative play, quality of the pieces and the finished products you can create. Great for home fashion fun and budding entrepreneurs alike! We’ll update when our earrings are made...



Check out the Advert here .....


Monday 8 July 2013

Hello EVERYONE !!!

So sorry for being so quiet but I got a new job so I have been super busy with that the last two weeks ....

Plus we are getting two kittens this week so trying to get the house sorted for there new arrival ... but I do have a few great reviews on the way to you this week ...


and a few other bits too ......



So watch this space over teh next few weeks for great new reviews and cute kiiten pictures too .....

Friday 14 June 2013

Bin Weevil Bling Tin Collector Pack Review




When I was asked to review the recently released Bin Weevils Bling Tin Collector Pack I knew my son would be over the moon as he had mentioned Bin Weevils several times prior having been impressed by the television adverts. He and his older brother and sister have already enjoyed playing similar games, in particular Moshi Monsters, so once the set arrived it was very important to gauge his reaction and opinion giving this review something of a child's eye view! Well, he was absolutely delighted! His ecstatic ‘review’ was a mixture of him running around the with house with the figures making all sorts of sound effect noises and chatter as he played before finding a ‘base’ for them to live in – hard to sum that up in any other words really but needless to say it’s a bout a positive review as a toy could get from a five year old.


Eventually mummy got a look-in on these odd looking characters that captivated him so much and here's what I can tell you...
In addition to the special Bin Weevils Bling Tin you get eight figures, including special golden representations of the characters Tink and Clott who are slightly larger than other six Bin Bots. The remaining six Bin Bot characters come in a variety of bright colours and are crystallised making them rarer than the normal Bin Bots – certain to impress other Bin Weevil collectors. Also included are a sheet of bling glitter stickers and six clear Bin Bot plinths for your characters to sit on as well as an information sheet. The plinths also link together to form a larger platform or path for your Bin Bots.
The tin has a brushed silver appearance and looks great with colourful logos and embossed character pictures that are visually appealing towards kids.  The tin was larger than I expected and therefore has plenty of storage for your new Bin Weevil characters as well as any others you may already own or collect in the future. The Bin Bots in particular are quite small and potentially easy to misplace so the tin acts as a great way to keep the little guys safe as well as encouraging children to tidy after play.

A nice extra feature was the 12 digit Bin Weevils secret code that you can redeem online using the ‘Mystery Code Machine’. Upon entering the code you unlock a surprise - we got some fab new things to decorate our virtual house in the free to play online Bin Weevil virtual world.
The online side of Bin Weevils is really great fun and having had a go at it myself found it seems very safe for kids to play on without the concerns and worries of other not so like minded individuals making it a potentially unsafe environment for children to play. It is similar in some ways to the Moshi Monster or Club Penguins websites and there is plenty to see and do, from watching cartoons to interacting with games or even growing a virtual garden. The map has many different places to go from food outlets to feed your virtual pet to online fashion stores in which you can personalise your character and house. There are different challenges to complete to help gain Mulch which acts as Bin Weevil currency such as the fore mentioned games and daily challenges, many of which have the added bonus of being somewhat educational so the children can learn whilst having fun – just don’t tell them!  On the website you can interact with other Bin Weevil fans and the quirky characters that inhabit the Bin Weevil world and it remains engaging whilst feeling less pressured and competitive than some similarly themed websites.
With an RRP of just £12.99 the Bin Weevils Bling Tin Collector Pack is good value for money as both a set and a future storage container for a growing collection and it would make a great birthday or Christmas gift or even a present for keeping a room tidy or doing well at school without breaking the piggy bank! 
The Bin Weevils Bling Tin Collector Pack and other Bin Weevils goodies are available from all good toy retailers including Amazon:
You can find the Bin Weevils Virtual World at the following link:

Monday 10 June 2013

At- Bristol Review ....



Having not travelled to Bristol since before the (first) closure of it’s Imax cinema in 2007 I thought a visit to see my recently re-located sister would be a great time to give the At-Bristol Science Centre a long overdue visit.  This past half-term I took the plunge and with three eager children in tow we spent a long weekend exploring what the city’s premium attraction had to offer...



After arriving at At-Bristol we took a chance to scope out the building and Millennium Square and took some great photos of the outside of the planetarium before heading inside. Once inside we were greeted by a staff member who was very helpful in sorting out our tickets and really sold us on the planetarium – as the kids and myself have a keen interest in the stars it was a ‘must visit’ for us so we went ahead and booked straight away. Equipped with tickets we decided to start from the top and work our way down... 
First up was the Curiosity Zone
We were immediately drawn to the walk in tornado – yes a walk in tornado! - which we all thought was incredibly cool.  We learned how tornadoes are able to literally rip the roofs from buildings on a demonstration pad where you could literally feel the suction power of a tornado. It was very surprising how quickly the piece of card we were given to hold onto was whipped from our hands- the force was unbelievable! It certainly gave us pause for thought and we were certainly thankful that we don't have to worry too much about tornadoes here in the UK whilst giving us a respect for those who do have to face them.



The kids really loved the next section, Play TV, where between the three of them they had a go at being camera operators, presenters and directors in a newsroom environment using different backgrounds, sound effects and lighting effects to enhance the scene. We could see what has been created in real-time as it was broadcast live on a television outside the Play TV Studio. We spent quite a while inside this particular area and had lots of fun experimenting coming out with a much better understanding of what goes into producing a news report for television.



It was then on to the planetarium for a really rewarding time.  Here they showcase five different shows and we got to watch the seasonal show and with my own personal interest in astronomy I picked up a many tips to help me with my star-gazing.  We found out about the Zooniverse, an online community of science projects that anyone can help participate in,  and have now registered with them. In the planetarium we had great fun learning about iridium flares and how to spot them and that night in my sister’s garden I saw one for the very first time. I’ll definitely be on the lookout for more.  I highly recommend paying the extra for a visit to the planetarium and going to watch the show there. It was outstanding to watch and great way to relax under the proverbial stars and wind down from the many fun activities inside the At- Bristol Science Centre.

Then it was off to Animate It! to become animators for the day. Here we joined Morph and many of his friends, including Wallace and Gromit, on a journey into imagination. We had great fun spinning the Praxinoscope and watching Morph do cartwheels right in front our eyes it was amazing to see and so clever in how it all worked. At the tracing station the kids had fun tracing and colouring their favorite Wallace and Gromit characters and I couldn't resist joining in on the fun!




The animation stations were definitely the highlight of the Animate It! section and this is where my two eldest had the most fun - making their own animation using the figures and storyboard backgrounds. The aim here was to create the first part of the animation and then move on to the next section where you can add music and sound effects. Once finished you can save your animation and email it to yourself by using the clever bar-coded wristbands that were issued to you upon entry so you can enjoy your masterpiece again when you get back home. This was a really nice touch.




My 10 year old and 7 year old found Animate It! more fun than my 5 year old and although he still had fun playing within the various sections he was not really engaged as he didn't fully understand what was happening. The other two, perhaps having more patience, were well into creating their own animation and almost giddy with excitement about seeing the results of their work.



Then we headed to All About Our World...
We had a lot of fun playing with giant bubbles in this area as well has having a look at the black sand which you could mould and shape in between two magnets - the kids thought that was incredibly clever and it produced some fascinating results. Next up we visited the amazing ‘bottomless pit’, an illusion created with mirrors and light that made the pit seem to truly go on forever. Here we also had a look at how water freezes and what happens when you drop a piece of frozen carbon dioxide (dry ice) into the water and how as it heats up it turns the solid mass into a gas creating a magical dancing form across the water that was so pretty to see.



Heading downstairs we found the Flight Zone where you can discover more about mankind’s great fascination with flight. Here we learned how hot air balloons work and then got to put our own to the test in the Launch It exhibit -  does it fly or does it fall? My eldest son had a lot fun trying this one out and finally got the hang of it in the end. On the other hand my youngest found the exhibit with the balls the most fun -putting them in one way and watching them getting sucked through the tubes above him and then finally coming out the other end! If you visit here don't forget to have a go at the brilliant Bernoulli Blower - how far can you tip the nozzle before you make the earth fall on the floor..?



Whilst the two eldest explored on with their auntie myself and my five year old continued to have great fun in a special area purely designed for under-eights where they can quite literally run wild as they dress up in fabulous dinosaur costumes (note to At-Bristol - you should absolutely sell these in your gift shops, they are great)! My little dino loved playing dress up in the dig and discovering dinosaur bones. At Bristol also has a Jungle Zone where children can have fun in a creepy-crawly jungle environment, dress up as a cheeky monkey and even discover what it is like to be a bug. Both areas also have storytelling time for children but remember to check the schedule as during term-time they are not always on.

Eventually we all met up at the Move it section and the first thing that caught the kid’s eyes was the giant treadmill which they could not wait to have a go on. After a couple of minutes on this they came away with more appreciation for their hamsters and what they do everyday to keep fit! We then went on to the giant water-wheel where we learned a few of the ways that we can control water - from the Archimedes screw to pumping water around, it was certainly a lot of hard work.

On next to the the Investigate Zone and the Human Brain exhibit. Here we had fun learning about reflecting light with lasers and mirrors to seeing how heat is transferred through different materials. We even got time to take part in some real life experiments with experts on hand to answer any questions you may have. Ours was a taste test experiment. Here my daughter had fun trying out many different tastes from sour to sweet - I bet you can guess which one her taste buds prefered! Here you can also record your height and view it against that of other visitors to the centre. The Human Brain exhibit showcases some really fun facts about the brain you may not know - from how your brain changes weight as you get older to how it is engaged by different areas of the body and different sensations. Here we could check out our reaction times and discover what happens when you feel scared. Between the two exhibits we were also able to find out how the reproductive system works and explore how it feels like to be inside a expectant mother’s tummy by being placed in a chamber that moves from side to side! I would imagine this area would be an essential visit for any budding young doctors and nurses out there!


At-Bristol has so much to offer that we found ourselves wanting to go back again and again and if it was not for living in Plymouth I am sure we would have taken up a year’s membership with a  view to visiting very frequently. I’m told that exhibits and events change regularly so there is always sure to be something new to see and do. Due to other commitments we missed seeing the live shows which I have heard are absolutely amazing to watch but now that we have family in the area we will definitely be visiting again in the near future and I can say without hesitation that given the great day we all had At-Bristol will be top of our to-do list when back in the area.



A big thank you to all at At-Bristol. Myself and my three little ones had a fab family day with you and we will be definitely coming back very soon. We discovered some amazing things and the kids had great stories to tell to their teachers when they went back to school after the half term was over.

At- Bristol Facebook page to keep up to date with what's going on before you make your visit
At-Bristol was voted Visitor Attraction of the Year in 2011 by Bristol Tourism and Hospitality and was also listed as one of The Guardiannewspaper’s Top 20 Family-Friendly Museums in the UK.