Aaah, Home Brew! It’s always had a bit of a bad rep, hasn’t it? I remember my own kit, a birthday present from Argos, many years ago. It was bad, really bad.
I was asked to trial the ibrew home beer brewing kit, and I thought “well, why not? Nothing to lose”. Although I am sure I lost a micron’s worth of stomach and throat tissue from my last home brew attempt nearly twenty years ago, but I will do anything in the name of research!
Cheap beer making kits that produce great tasting beer. Available for just £64.99, the ibrew starter kit offers a complete re-usable home brewery with everything you need to begin brewing – including ingredients to make 40 pints in two batches. Re-fills cost £9.99 for 20 pints, which means home brewing costs from just 50p a pint.
So, cheap beer. Never normally bodes well. You get what you pay for.
Not so with ibrew! There are three varieties – a refreshing lager, a hoppy bitter and a rich stout, all of which are ready to drink within a mere 21 days.
I was sent sample bottles of the lager and a bitter brew kit. In the name of testing, I tried to reconstruct an optimum time for drinking lager. With the lager nicely chilled, I cut the grass in the back garden on a scorching day. With me tired, hot and sweating, I had reached that optimum point…I tried the ibrew lager.
This is as good as homebrew is ever going to get. Clear, sharp, crisp lager that you would think had been professionally brewed. It was so nice and I was so hot, I had another. Just to be sure (research) I had one more after that.
There are many commercially brewed lagers that I would leave on the supermarket shelves and go for the ibrew lager instead. It really is that good.
The ibrew pack includes a fermenter, which also doubles as the outer packaging, and a clever dispenser tap unit that fits onto the storage bottles. These bottles are designed to sit neatly on the fridge shelf making it simple for you to pour your draught beer ready chilled. The ibrew kits include the finest UK-grown malt and hops and require the addition of yeast (which is supplied) and water. All ingredients are 100% natural.
As far as ease of use goes, I had no issues setting up the bitter beer making kit. Very simple and concise products and instructions – and I normally have trouble making the bed. It’s brewing away as I write. My little baby.
ibrew kits and refills are available to buy online at http://www.ibrew.co.uk and in numerous retailers nationwide (visit website to find nearest stockist).
The ultimate gift for beer lovers.
I love hand knitted things! They look so sweet and you just know that a lot of care and attention has gone into making whatever it may be. So if you are looking to buy a gift for somebody which looks fantastic, visit the Fine Cotton Company where you will find a collection of knitted, hand stitched accessories. The Fine Cotton Company is a stylish environmentally friendly company, who offers some of the best gorgeous accessories for your home.
Making an ideal gift for the home is the warm and cosy Hot Water Bottle Covers. They come in a selection of colours and designs, and some come in two sizes. I know a lot of people who would use one of these. It is the perfect gift to give someone for the cold, winter evenings. The Knitted Hot Water Bottle covers collections start at £30.00.
What I also love in the knitted range is the selection of Knitted hearts. These really are delightful, all tightly packed with wheat and soothing lavender. Now these you could put anywhere within your home, out on display somewhere, or in your wardrobe to help keep your clothes smelling fresh. I actually have mine on my bedside table. I find that the lavender helps me drift off to sleep easier, aiding a good night’s sleep.
Another fine product coming to The Fine Cotton Company in September 2010 is the White Porcelain Tea light. These are really sweet looking, with each one comprising of a different design. They just ooze quality and will add a touch of luxury to the room you have it displayed in. Made of magical porcelain, it is clear glazed making it become almost translucent when lit.
All the mentioned plus much more are available at http://www.thefinecottoncompany.com.
Homedics, the market leader in home massage therapy has released some really innovative and useful new massagers.
First up is the HoMedics Hot & Cold Mini Vibration Massager (£19.99)
This homedics compact massager would sit well in any sports bag, ready for use immediately after a hard, punishing session. Incorporating a stylish design, this massager is designed for use with shoulders, legs or back.
Other features include -
• 3 massage settings including: massage, massage with heat and cold massage
• 3 massage heads: acunode, cold (refrigeration required) and heat
• Battery operated
• Available in purple, orange and green
• Available at Boots.com and MenKind
This heat massager is highly recommended.
The HoMedics Shiatsu Neck Massager £49.99
This is where Homedics excel. This neck massager performs at the highest level, offering immediate relief. A State-of-the-art moving massage mechanism is used that feels like the hands of a massage therapist, a very good one!
The Shiatsu massage and soothing heat gently kneads away neck tension and daily stress. The heat also really helps to ease muscle stiffness.
A very impressive addition to the range, Available at Argos, Amazon, Next.
This Homedics Shiatsu massager is as good as the real thing!
Being a mother, I know all too well how annoying it is to put coats on and off babies in the colder months. Most of the winter months are spent putting coats on babies and taking them off again, whist going from indoors to outdoors. This is not only time consuming if your in a hurry (which most mums are!), but it is mostly disturbing for a baby, especially if they are asleep in the process of it all. So, with thanks to Morrck, the ingeniously designed baby Hoodie has come to the rescue.
Morrck state:-
“The Baby Hoodie is a unique, hooded travel wrap, shaped to fit into a car seat or pushchair. Slits allow safety harnesses to feed through the soft fleece, allowing you to strap your baby in and wrap the Hoodie around them when going into the cold, or fold back the layers when you’re somewhere warmer. The Hoodie can also stay fitted to a car seat or pushchair and placed in the hold of a plane.”
Sounds good, doesn’t it! Just think, your little precious baby can be as snug as a bug in a rug, move from place to place and all this with no interrupted sleep – a dream for all parents (and not forgetting the babies themselves).
Morrck have a range of Baby Hoodies available, in fact they have one for each season of the year! These Baby Hoodies really will make great baby snuggle blankets for all babies. They include:-
The Classic Baby Hoodie (£32.95) – This is the warmest one, offering a double layer of thick, cosy fleece.
The All Season Baby Hoodie (from £32.95) – This hosts one layer of fleece and another of 100% cotton jersey. It is incredibly warm for the winter months. In the summer months, the cool cotton layer means it is ideal for spring and autumn. This particular one is an ideal choice for a new baby, making a fantastic newborn blanket.
Morrck also provide lightweight and ultra lightweight Hoodies for the summer months. And, also the Morrganic Hoodie for all of us eco friendly people. Check out http://www.morrck.com for their full range.
It is amazing the amount of things you need to get for your new baby. You’re once clutter free, minimalistic home will now be filled with beds, toys, changing stations, and whatever else your baby requires. So if you had the chance to purchase something that would allow you to free up a little space, I am sure you would jump at the chance. I know I would!
I therefore would like to introduce the Flexibath, an amazing baby folding bath tub! Wow, talk about space saving! This is an unbelievable baby bath that will allow you to store it literally anywhere once you have finished using it, unlike traditional infant bathtub, which are big and bulky! You can easily store it against a wall or even in your wardrobe, simplicity at its best.
The flexibath is made of hard plastic, with the folding lines made of rubber. This makes the bathtub stable whilst also flexible. It also hosts a nonslip surface which will only help when it does come to bath time. It may look slightly smaller than a traditional baby bath, but 2 babies can easily fit into it. It also has a drain plug to make emptying the bath so much easier.
The Flexibath retails at £29.95 and without a doubt will make a fantastic gift for new mums and dads. I know I will be using one if I ever get around to baby number 3! It is available to purchase from http://www.flexibath.co.uk.
