Creating a #brightFuture for the children

Posted on October 19, 2016 by Fiona Martin

I’ve always inspired my children to look to the future and encourage them that the small things they do now can make a big difference to life as they get older. From what they learn themselves either from school or tv programmes, they are quite aware of recycling and helping to protect the environment.

We have two bins in the kitchen and they are always asking which bin to put their rubbish in, the normal waste bin or the recycling bin. They also like to have a rummage too from time to time and turn our rubbish into a fabulous creation!

Here is Mister B’s wonderful junk model volcano!

We also try to be helpful to the environment in other ways such as turning lights off when we can, keeping heating to a minimum and trying to avoid running taps when unnecessary! (I’m a terrible one for that when cleaning my teeth!)

We recently moved house and now have a large garden which is really lovely and within that we see a lot of wildlife such as birds and squirrels. We also have a large compost bin at the end which we try and fill with scraps with melt down and we can then use to feed the garden with. We also try to grow our own vegetables which has only been on a small scale this year as we’ve just moved in, but we had our own tomatoes and herbs which is really lovely for the children to help water and harvest.

We’d like to be more self sufficient in future years and aim to grow courgettes, beans, potatoes and several other vegetables which not only the children enjoy helping with but leads us to a better future eating home grown produce and relying on pesticide free goods.

Watch this space for our growing adventures over the next year to see what we achieve!

This post is an entry for BritMums #brightFuture Challenge, sponsored by Unilever

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Ozeri Green Earth Wok – Review

Posted on August 21, 2015 by Fiona Martin

The Green Earth 12″ Wok from Ozeri is a stylish piece of kitchen equipment that looks high quality when you see it. If feels well built, strong and has a smooth ceramic non stick coating on the inside. I love the rich lime green colour on the outside, it certainly brightens up the kitchen a bit.

It’s key features are:

Utilizes an ultra-safe ceramic coating derived from nature which is 100% PTFE and PFOA free.
Delivers unprecedented non-stick performance without releasing harmful fumes or toxins at high temperatures.
Features a scratch-resistant 100% ceramic coating as found in nature (no heavy metals or chemicals) that is super easy to clean.
Made out of durable heavy-gauge pure aluminum with no heavy metals or harmful chemicals.
Boasts a comfortable heat resistant Bakelight handle, and a magnetized induction stove safe base for rapid heat transfer.

Although sturdy, I didn’t find this too heavy to use. The non stick interior is the selling point of this wok and it certainly didn’t disappoint. I was actually surprised at how well it worked and absolutely nothing remotely stuck to it at all. I cooked a stir fry which just slid around the base of the wok with complete ease, making it a joy to cook with. The wok holds a lot of heat, so you don’t need to have the temperature too high, you can turn it down a bit with this and it still cooks fast and efficiently.

The wok also comes with a protective layer that you can put inside when storing to ensure the non stick interior doesn’t get damaged when stacking up several pots and pans at once. I can honesly say this is the best quality wok I’ve used, it really does have non stick power and best of all, it requires little effort washing up as everything just slides off.

Happy to say I will using this wok regularly to cook evening dinners with, when something is simple to use and clean, then it makes it something you want to get out and use more often. The Ozeri Green Earth products all have the same high quality, see the Green Earth frying pan that we reviewed a couple of years ago, and it’s still going strong!

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received the wok in order to write the review.

YOU Home Cleaning Products – Review

Posted on August 13, 2015 by Fiona Martin

YOU home cleaning products are naturally powered using 100% plant based products. With products available for the kitchen, bathroom, windows and all purpose cleaner, there really is something to cover the whole house.

I received the kitchen and bathroom cleaners to put to the test and I’m immediately drawn to the bottle. They come in large clear spray bottles, with the liquid inside being clear too. Each product has as different coloured label making them instantly recognisable. I really like the packaging and have to say it’s very eco friendly too. A unique concept with these products is that they are refillable which you don’t usually see with bottles of household cleaning fluids.

These rather cute refills are simply screwed onto the top of the bottles when empty along with water to create a whole new bottle of cleaning fluid. It’s estimated that the high quality trigger will last for at least 10,000 sprays, meaning you should be able to refill each bottle at least 10-15 times. The small size of the refills are ideal for storing at home and means less big bottles to bring home from the supermarket!

I’m really impressed with the trigger on these bottles, you can see they are sturdy and well made. What I like is the lift up flap which when open allows for a standard spray to come out, and when the flap is closed it produces a foam, great when more product is needed for heavy duty cleaning.

I’ve enjoyed using the YOU cleaning sprays. They are simple to use and I have found both to be effective. The kitchen spray really does work and is more powerful than I expected from a clear looking spray. I loved the foam action which worked well on my hob and the spray was great for round the sink and worktops.

The window spray was also brilliant and comes with claims that it is smear free. I can assure that it most definitely is and one wipe of a cloth and it the window was left immediately shiny, not a hint of a smear. This is great and something that we get used regularly having young children and lots of sticky fingers touching the windows all the time!

Overall I’ve loved using the YOU naturally powered products and they have been a great addition to to my cleaning cupboard. I’d definitely recommend giving them a try and don’t forget about those handy refills!

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received some cleaning products in order to write the review.

Trolley bags – Reusable shopping bags – Review

Posted on January 12, 2015 by Fiona Martin

With us all trying to have a greener outlook to reusing shopping bags, Trolley Bags are are a great invention made specifically for use in a large supermarket shopping trolley. I was sent a set to try out and couldn’t wait to give them a go. As I tend to use shop & scan when I do my larger shop, I thought these would be ideal to for packing the shopping as I go around the store.

The set of Trolley Bags consists of four differently coloured bags that are velcroed together and can be rolled up for storage in the car boot. The bags range in size to fit with the slope of the trolley. The smallest bag fits either just before the separate section at the end of the trolley or if you prefer to have the seat down as I do, it will sit in the end section allowing you to use the seat area for your handbag and other items or a small child.

It is best to put bulkier, larger items such as cereal boxes, crisps etc in the larger bags otherwise they will be quite heavy to lift, and keep the smaller two bags for heavier items such as tins, jars and heavier vegetables. I have found these really good for packing my trolley as I go around the shop using self scan leaving me with just four bags to put into the car. The bags hang open making packing simple, it really does result in no hassle shopping.

I do have one concern though, the bars that hang off the sides of the trolley are at a similar height to my four year old’s head. I found when shopping with him in tow, he hovered all around the sides of the trolley eager to help and I found I had to be a little cautious to ensure I didn’t poke him in the face. I therefore now save these trolley bags for when I do child free shopping, or they’d also be ideal if you have a little one that still sits in the trolley seat.

Overall, I think they are a great concept and definitely the way forward in shopping bags. I also like the way they velcro together making carrying them easier rather than a stash of smaller carrier bags. I’d keep your eye out for these, especially with the carrier bag charges due in England later this year!

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received the shopping bags in order to write the review.

Ozeri Green Earth Frying Pan – Review

Posted on October 29, 2013 by Fiona Martin

The Green Earth Pan by Ozeri has been a revelation to my kitchen. I only use a pan like this once or twice a week but I have been so impressed by this, that I try to cook with it as much as I can.

My old pan definitely had seen better day’s but I could never have imagined the difference I got with Ozeri. It’s a sturdy, heavy based pan with an elevated texture on the bottom that creates air pockets to distribute the heat through. An immediate thing I noticed is that this pan is such a good heat conductor that you need it on a much lower heat than you first think, which is great for energy usage. The bright, funky design is a winner and gives it a modern look. The other incredible bonus with this frying pan is the non stick surface. Using a Greblon ceramic coating which is also scratch resistant, I found this to be amazing.

I cooked myself a courgette omelette in my Ozeri pan. It was recommended to just give the pan a light brush of oil which I did. The omelette was easy to manoeuvre in the pan, gliding from side to side without no signs of sticking. This is a revelation to me – the non stick ability is amazing.

I have been really impressed with the qualities of this Ozeri pan. It does currently retail at £24.95 but I see this as an investment kitchen piece, one that will last and you will use over and over again. I highly recommend it after trying it for the last week or two. It is a high performing pan, that requires a medium heat and cooks quickly and evenly and best of all won’t stick, which for me equals less effort washing up – which can only be a bonus!

This is a 20cm pan but it is available in two larger sizes should you require a bigger pan.

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions. We are not paid for reviews although we do receive the product to try out and enable us to write the review.