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Reviews
Successful internet shopping relys on you reading an honest write up as you can not physically 'see' or 'touch' the product you wish to buy. The internet has also become a valuable resource tool to research products before hitting the shops. Here on our Product Review page, you will get the same honesty so you know you are spending those hard earned pennies wisely! All our testers are from the appropriate age ranges with the parents opinion added for good measure where appropriate. If you would like to suggest a product for review or are a manufacturer who would like us to consider your product for this page, don't hesitate to email us at: letstalk@frombumptogrump.co.uk
Please put "Product Review" in the subject header.
bumblebags RRP various Website: www.bumblebags.co.uk
Wow!! If you want ‘to die for’ party bags, step this way! Tired of getting junk in our kids bags, these were a revelation. With outstanding quality, here are toys that will be played with, kept and treasured. Incredibly well thought through and with a range of prices to suit all budgets, you have to admire the effort and love that’s put into these. Themed canvas drawstring bags that will never be binned contain a myriad of treasures, suitable for princesses and pirates, ballerinas and knights and more. We can’t stress enough the word quality – for stand out from the crowd party bags are no longer a fairytale and you don’t need a king’s ransom to afford them.
Zak! Designs RRP various Website: www.zak-designs.co.uk Stockists: 01827 830388 and Tesco, Asda, Mothercare and Matalan
Children need their own dinnerware, and Zak Designs know just how to make it irresistible. Based on famous TV characters, the designs are bright, bold and sure to excite. Top quality follows, leaving a supreme product in every way. We tested a Thomas the Tank Ez-Freeze snack & sip container bottle, with inner gel, that can be frozen. This means super cool drinks for hours! We were also lucky enough to test the High School Musical snack container which can’t fail with HSM remaining mega popular – a great picture on the lid and a bright colour will get friends talking.
Mohdoh RRP £6.49 Website: www.mohdoh.co.uk
When you come across a product that’s a little bit different, it’s good to know there are people out there with the inspiration to think of them. Such a product is mohdoh. The idea is simple but very well executed – all children love to play with dough, making shapes, pulling, getting their fingers stuck into it. So combine that with aromatherapy oils designed to calm, stimulate, help when travelling, breathing through a cold, sleep, concentration, anxiety and travel nerves, add colours to help with the same, and you have a fantastic concept. Each pot contains a generous two handed portion of dough which when manipulated will release the aroma. There’s no heavy smell, and we really liked the consistency of the dough. There’s no crumbling, it holds together and gives them something to really get stuck into.
Halos n Horns RRP various Website: www.halosnhorns.co.uk
Ever since this company were features in ‘Make me a million’, a Channel 4 documentary, we have eyed up this company’s products, without dipping our toe. So when we got the chance to review, we were both excited and intrigued in equal measure. Products free of as many chemicals as possible appealed to our mothering side, and funky packaging appealed to our sense of fun and contemporary style. So how about the ‘stuff’? Marks out of ten? We say ten! When ‘Berry Burst’ shampoo and detangler gave my daughter hair we could only dream of, we were hooked! ‘Mango Melon Mayhem’ shampoo and conditioner, ‘Toothy Fruity’ toothpaste and more have changed our child cleaning routine quite dramatically, leaving us, and the kids, mega impressed. Thank you, Thank you!!
Snazaroo Party Pack Face Painting Kit RRP £12.99 Stockist: Amazon
Here at FromBumptoGrump, we take our reviews very seriously, so when we’re asked to test a party pack, what better place to test it than at a kids party! So with no previous face painting experience and zilch artistic talent, we tackled a room of 5 year olds and under. The kit luckily includes a step by step face painting guide, with lots to choose from, although you will soon be making your own creations. The paints do most of the work for you as they show up so clearly. With brushes and sponges, spectacular results are easily achieved. The kids were happy, and so were we! We can not recommend this highly enough, and should we ever have any spare time, I think we’ll hire ourselves out as face painters!
Growing Vegetables is Fun Emma Cooper RRP £9.99 Publisher: Dennis Publishing Stockist: Wyevale Garden Centres
Wow!! When we write that, expect great things! This ‘bookazine’ (magazine format but crammed with pure information) is all you and your children need to be successful in the garden. In an era of organic preference and healthy eating promotion, this sits in very well with both good family values and educational issues. As a mother just about to start on such a journey with her own children, this bookazine was a life saver. Step by step instructions show you how to plant and care for your vegetables straight from the packet, and even better….the seeds are included too – 10 packs!! The scrapbook pages in which your child can plan and plot their progress, helped retain interest. Our only question is – when is the next one out! Come on, fruit, flowers, plants…we want them all!
Lupilu toilet seat RRP: £36.99 For
more information email:
info@houseofleva.co.uk
Here is something that we truly can't recommend enough. This high quality toilet seat is sheer genius, as well as being an attractive addition to your toilet too! As parents know, getting your small child onto a large toilet seat is not easy, and involves a great deal of holding the child into position. This in turn often worries the child and turns the whole toilet trip into a battle of wills. The Lupilu toilet seat has an inbuilt smaller toilet seat, meaning they can sit without fear of falling in, and enjoy the independence of taking themselves to the toilet. The seat closes slowly by itself meaning no trapped fingers. This is superb for potty training, but also well beyond. Our 5 year old loves it so much that every visitor gets to see it, and ends up loving it too!
Sanex Products
Eczema and generally itchy skin is a common childhood complaint. Also, you want your products to keep their skin soft and healthy. Sanex not only looks the part, but does the job too. We especially liked the fun packaging which didn’t look as ‘medical’ as some other products. The texture was perfect and the skin super soft after using all the products. You can’t go wrong!
Balmy Pyjamas RRP: £34.99 Stockists:www.lifes2good.co.uk 0845 0845 399 0042 Selected pharmacies
For children with eczema, night time itching can be a real problem. However, even if your child isn’t an ongoing sufferer, you can still find them scratching creases and being generally disturbed. Our tester falls into the latter category. Firstly, these are really cute pyjamas – full length, quality, and lovely and clean looking, your child will look ultra snuggly and secure (and they wash like a dream). With the labels and seams on the outside, irritation is minimised further. Balmy Pyjamas can be washed up to 100 times before the GLA lessens, and whilst our tester hasn’t washed them that many times yet, we can say that they are very pleased the product and happy to recommend.
Scooby Doo vampire Rubie's Masquerade Stockists:www.partyguise.co.uk
Scooby never goes out of fashion with kids always loving his funny ways. This Scooby outfit is super soft and built to last and perfect for any fancy dress party, including Halloween! Scooby’s mask and cape are a great addition, but we were especially impressed by the way the hands and feet are made – the well thought through concept means they can walk without fear of falling and fully use their hands for playing.
Eat Natural – lunchies
Lil' Stony Yogurts Website: www.stony.co.uk Stockists:
Wholefoods, Tesco,
We all want to feed our kids the best food we can organic products certainly help us to do so. However, up until now, a lot of Organic products have looked and tasted, well a little dull. Lil’ Stony products are funky from packaging to the taste and our 4 year old taster though they were delicious. The fromage frais pots come in a great range of flavours and are as smooth as it comes. We really love the dinky shaped pots, which means scraping the last bit out of the bottom is easy!
High School Musical Inflatable Chair/Pop Up Tidy/Rockin’ Room Lamp RRP £16.99/£7.99/£19.99 re:creation Stockist: Amazon
High School Musical is HUGE, pretty much on the scale of Grease but for a new generation. One of the things that makes it so massive is it’s wide age range appeal. All the products we tested (and there are lots more too!) have the cast featured and would appeal from tots to teens. Generous in size but small in price, you will be amazed at the value for money here! We especially loved the Pop Up Tidy – there’s enough space in this to hide a couple of children!
Ultrasun Reflex 30
Having fun in the sun with kids is fantastic, but the worry of skin damage means parents are constantly needing to reapply sun lotion. And then there are the days that start dull then end up glorious and you haven’t brought any protection. Ultrasun Reflex 30 needs applying once only and gives very high protection all day long. We tested it in pretty intense sunshine and with swimming pool dips included and both children remained as pale as at the start. The consistency is perfect – thick, non greasy and easy to apply and it comes out of the bottle in an ideal size. We truly loved it and have been converted to using this on our own children too!
Heinz Multigrain Pasta Shapes with Omega 3 Website: www.heinz.co.uk Stockists: All good supermarkets
Pasta Shapes have been a kids favourite for many years and are now even healthier than ever. The benefits oF Omega 3 are now widely known and it is added to a whole range of foods. The benefits of multigrain are equally advertised so having both is a double bonus! New to the range are Fifi and the Flowertots (our testers favourite!), Shrek and Pirates of the Caribbean with cannon ball meatballs – could you get more popular characters than these?
Bratz Zip n Zed RRP £14.99 Manufacturer: HyPro International Stockists: ASDA, Woolworths and Toys R Us
This gorgeous pink Bratz cushion is a master of disguise, as hidden within is the perfect sleepover kit, whether for at home or away. Ideally sized to make it easy to store and a synch to transport, simply zip open to reveal a generous sized sleeping bag that will be the delight of any girl. Our tester adored the colour, comfort and Bratz theme and the parents loved the compact size it folds into. With sleepovers being so popular, it is likely your child will need a sleeping bag, whether for receiving guests or nights away, or even just for midnight feasts at home!
Trutex school uniform RRP various Website: www.trutex.com
When it comes to school uniform, one name is synonymous. Trutex have been manufacturing quality garments for many years. Many of us have bought other makes only to find they don’t last, crease easily or look poorer quality. Our tester has children in the starting school age range and secondary school age so we were able to test a variety of items and sizes. The quality shone through with all and our tester was pleasantly surprised at the competitive pricing. In the younger girls uniform, the styles were modern and refreshingly different than the masses. Comfort and fit were excellent. In the older boys, shirts came out of the wash as crease free and fresh looking as the first use. Again, the quality and fit was evident even by appearance only. Our tester strongly felt that the uniform was reminiscent in standard of her childhood and she liked the fact that her own children would be going out looking their best. Our children wear their school uniform for the majority of the week and your choice of items has to reflect that. Trutex get a huge thumbs up from us.
Zoggs Mollymook Sun Protection Floatsuits RRP £26.99 Website: www.zoggs.com
This is quite obviously an adorable item, ultra cute and of the highest quality. But this is just a small part of why we are giving this a major thumbs up. With a built in sun protection of UPF50+, you can rest assured that they are well protected whilst enjoying the water. The built in buoyancy is genius! Your child is easy to control and they are not trying to take their swimming aid off. It is unbelievably comfortable and our tester was running around as if there was nothing extra there. And it is easy to get on and off. We loved it and you will too!
Zoggs Ballina swimsuit RRP £14.99 Manufacturer: www.zoggs.com
Here is a child’s swimsuit so stylish and utterly adorable, that you will quite simply be jealous. We want one! The quality and stretch is superb and it is obvious this is made by a company who specialise in swimming. The design is as contemporary as it could be and the cut is just out of this world. Never before have we got in such a tizz over a swimsuit but it is worth the fuss – trust us!
Zoggs Seal Search and Rescue RRP £9.99 Manufacturer: www.zoggs.com
Confidence in water is both necessary for your child but also gives them a sense of achievement and the parent a sense of pride. This set contains 4 seals, ideal for gaining their attention. They may all look the same, but the bases tell a different story and give opportunity for them to stretch their ability. They come in a carry bag that makes it easy to take them with you wherever you go – our tester loved them so much they played with them out of the pool too!
'UV Pop up Tent - Junior' RRP £34.95 each Website: www.beachfactory.com
Sunshine brings happier moods, and as if to match or even better that feel good factor, shopping at www.beachfactory.com will do too! Unbelievably pleasant and efficient customer service backed up by top quality, essential summer products. We tested the Junior UV pop up tent. We were already off to a good start by knowing that family acquaintances were already owners. This is a must have for those with children. The fabric has a sun rating of UPF50+ ensuring fun, outdoor play with plenty of fresh air but no sun burn. Our testers just adored the thrill of being in a tent and there was ample room for lots of toys too. It even provided shelter from those familiar UK rain showers. Super easy to erect, you can take it anywhere.
'Lunch Boxes' Jennifer Joyce RRP £7.99 each Publisher: www.penguin.co.uk Stockist: Amazon
As a mother for a good few years now, I amazed that I have not come across such a book before. It is surely a must have for all parents, and truly is a one stop shop for a variety of healthy but tasty lunch ideas. From ‘Cold sausage sandwich’ to ‘Asparagus and Ham Roll-ups’, ‘Little Greek macaroni salad’ to ‘Turkey, Carrot and Apricot pies’, ‘Hedgehog Mango’ to ‘Caramel popcorn balls’, the choices are easy and ingredients obtainable. The book goes further than just recipes, including shopping lists, lunch planners and more. A treat of a book packed with lunchtime treats!
'Yazoo' milk drink Website: www.yazoo.co.uk
If your kids are anything like our testers, they will love Yazoo! Our testers loved it so much that it has made it permanently onto Mum’s shopping list! Available in 200ml handy servings, simply place in the fridge and watch them fly out! Full of calcium that’s essential for growing kids, they’re happy and you’re happy also. It’s a great price too!
Colgate Smiles range Toothpaste / Toothbrush Age 2-6/6+ Website: 'www.Colgate.co.uk'
With your children’s teeth going through development, it’s vital that the foundations of good oral hygiene are laid early on. Colgate has developed toothpastes and toothbrushes specifically to deal with these changes and your child’s steps towards independent cleaning. With a reputation such as theirs, you can be confident that they are getting the very best; and with fun designs and bright colours, they’ll enjoy making cleaning teeth a part of their daily routine.
'Additions Direct' Childrens Wear RRP various Website: 'www.AdditionsDirect.co.uk'
If you need high quality, great value clothes delivered to your door, then we’ve found you the right place. We tested three different items of girlswear and were highly impressed with each. All items were unbelievably priced, superb quality, fitted like a dream and were tops in the looks department also. Even better than that, they washed perfectly, required minimal to no ironing, and our tester has insisted on wearing the items constantly since. If we were to give marks out of ten, the items would command a perfect score throughout. We tested (L-R): Long denim turn up shorts. From £10.00. For further details and to purchase, click here. Denim pinafore dress. From £10.00. For further details and to purchase, click here. Pack of three pyjamas. From £16.00. For further details and to purchase, click here.
Disclaimer: Views expressed are solely those of FromBumptoGrump and their testers and we hold no responsibility for any product malfunction or disappointment! |
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