Category Archives: Life & Style

The CoffeeGator Canister works – what bliss for a coffee drinking nut.

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I have a passion for coffee, and I like to use beans…

 

 

 

My current favourite is Lazy Sunday by Taylors of Harrogate but oh lordy… my local supermarket only had ground which I tend not to buy because I find it loses flavour in no time, whereas beans last longer, but then I’m a fussy old duck.

 

Add to that the fact that I tripped when rushing to make myself a coffee recently, caught my foot in the handles of  a bag of books sprawled on the floor, ready for a talk I was to do. I crashed   into the arch between kitchen and dining room, and found myself sprawled alongside the books.

 

One operation later, my shoulder suitably screwed and plated, I was home and  desperate for a coffee, but still the report came back that all that was available was ground Lazy Sunday – arghhhh.

 

In the nick of time Frost Magazine was sent the CoffeeGator Coffee Canister. I confess I was a doubting Thomas because I’ve tried this game before, even putting the canister into the fridge, or the freezer which is supposed to help with freshness and flavour – all to no avail.

 

So, dear readers, in desperation I sent ‘him indoors’ to buy the ground coffee, and tipped it into the very smart looking stainless steel CoffeeGator canister. Two weeks later my Lazy Sunday has just the same fresh flavour – the convalescence has been saved, and it doesn’t ‘alf perk up the physio sessions too.

 

So,  what’s so good about this canister?

 

Apparently coffee beans naturally emit CO2 and this is the enemy when storing coffee. This canister has a one-way valve which allows Co2 to leave but stops air and light from entering and attacking flavour.

 

The canister has a wheel on the lid to track the expiry date of the coffee to guard against staleness. There is an e-book and a  scoop to measure out the coffee, though I like mine strong so it’s a scoop and a bit.

 

A good looking product which does what it’s meant to. I find that as refreshing in  these days of hyperbole  as a good coffee quite frankly.

 

Coffee Gator seems to take its job seriously and has many impressive coffee tools on sale. Have a look:

 

www. coffeegator.com

 

SugarSin Opens New Store In Brighton. We Try Out Their Sweets

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We can have a sweet tooth at Frost so we jumped at the chance to review some SugarSin Sweets. Their packaging is great and the sweets always look delicious. We tried Sicilian Lemon White Chocolate, Handmade Lollies, Sparkling Rosé Gummies and Fizzy Prosecco Gummies. The chocolate is divine, with the perfect amount of lemon, the handmade lollies are both fun and yummy. The gummies are as unique as they are yummy. The Rosé ones are soft and refreshing. The Prosecco ones are hard with just the right amount of tang. All are highly recommended. Delicious and naughty: what more could you ask for?

 

SugarSin co-founders and sisters Anna Nilsson and Josefin Deckel have opened SugarSin Brighton on Duke Street, in the stunning historic quarter of the city.

SugarSin opened the doors to its first sweet shop in London’s Covent Garden in 2011. The concept was born from a lifelong passion for all things sweet and tasty. Disappointed, in particular by the Pick‘n’Mix selection available in the UK, Anna and Josefin worked to create a modern Willy Wonka style store, filled with the world’s most fabulous sweets. The sisters travelled the globe tasting countless varieties, on a mission to create the most distinctive and delicious grown-up, gourmet confectionery collection, as beautiful to look at as it is to taste.

Anna, co-founder of SugarSin comments “We love Brighton – the city is as colourful as our sweets! As soon as we arrived it felt like home and the perfect fit for our second SugarSin store. We are so passionate about sweets that we thought it was time to share that passion with a new city. Since 2011 we have made it our mission to bring current, quality sweets and flavours, with inherent style and plenty of temptation to the people of London, but sweets are made for sharing! For those who doesn’t know us, inspired by our Swedish roots, we produce high quality sweets with intense flavours, great textures and natural ingredients. Josefin and I are extremely excited to open the doors to SugarSin Brighton next weekend!”

 

The beautifully contemporary store on Duke Street will be filled with SugarSin’s own handmade sweets including:

  • Prosecco Gummies
  • Sea Salt Fudge
  • Juicy Strawberry Lollies
  • Cocoa Dusted Chocolate Almonds

A carefully curated Pick’n’Mix featuring hundreds of nostalgic favourites and flavours to surprise, sourced from all over the world will take centre stage.

Mindful of dietary requirements, SugarSin Brighton, like the London store, will stock sweets suitable for vegetarians and vegans.

 

 

Excilor 3 in 1 Protector Spray-protect your feet this summer

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Excilor-3-in-1-family

 

Excilor 3-in-1 Protector Spray – The ideal product for all the family who want to protect their tootsies from any infections

Hands up – how many of you – or your children – are running around barefoot? How many have sweaty feet? How many will admit to a verrucae?

Save yourself the trouble and drop Excilor 3-in-1 Protector Spray into your gym bag before you leave the house.

The spray dries instantly to create an non-greasy invisible barrier to protect against nasty foot infections including, verruacas, warts, athlete’s foot and nail fungus – it even helps fight odour too!

Easy to use: spray over the soles of the feet, on and in-between the toes to form a protective barrier that lasts eight hours. It’s resistant to moisture and forms an ‘invisible sock’ over the foot that protects your feet against contamination from floors and other surfaces –  and from dirty socks and shoes. It washes off quite easily with warm soapy water and does not stain skin or clothes.

It has a soothing, cooling sensation as it hits your feet and smells lovely and fresh. An added bonus is that it dries in seconds, is non-greasy and non-sticky and you can really feel the difference. I tested by spraying on one foot and leaving for a few hours. The protected foot felt cleaner and cooler. It also felt less sweaty so I could definitely experience the benefit.

The 100ml spray is not at all bulky and is easy to drop into your bag before you head for the gym or spa. A must for mums before they set off for the pool with their little ones.

So much nicer than having to cope with irritations of Athlete’s foot, nail fungus or dreaded verrucas.

Excilor 3-in-1

Excilor Protector Spray 3 in 1 is suitable for children over 2 years and the spray delivers over 50 applications.

Currently available in selected pharmacies, RRP £9.99.

 

Champagne Bruno Paillard Premiere Cuvée Rosé M.V. Review

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We are always happy at Frost when we get to review champagne. Call us a lush if you want, but a good glass of champagne really is one of life’s pleasures. We love rosé champagne in particular so Bruno Paillard Premiere Cuvée Rosé M.V. was sure to be a huge hit.

First of all, the colour is a beautiful pale golden copper. It came during a heatwave and is just perfect for the summer weather. It is fresh and fruity. It has just the right hint of red berries and a sophisticated finish. It is a well balanced rosé which is not too sweet. This is a lively wine which is incredibly refined and high-quality. A divine champagne which was a huge hit in the Frost office. We will be drinking this again.

Based in Reims, Champagne Bruno Paillard is a young, dynamic, family-owned, Maison, run by Bruno and his daughter, Alice.

Bruno Paillard founded his Maison back in 1981; he was a passionate 27 years old with no vineyards or money, and resorted to selling his beloved old Jaguar to raise the starting capital of 50,000 Francs. 13 years later he bought his first vineyards – 3 hectares in Oger – and today the House owns 32 hectares, supplying 50% of the total grapes needed for an annual production of around 500,000 bottles.

Stylistically, Bruno Paillard is renowned for Champagnes which are pure, mineral and elegant.

Only the best grapes from the best crus are selected, and from these grapes, only the first pressing “première cuvée” is used. The ageing process is particularly important at Champagne Bruno Paillard; it is three to four times longer than the legal requirement and Bruno Paillard has always been a strong advocate of displaying disgorgement dates on the label: he was the first Maison to pioneer this, back in 1985.

The Multi Vintage Rose is produced mainly from Pinot Noir, with some Chardonnay – the amount of which remains a house secret.

 

Stockists

Selfridges.com ~ £56.99
The Whisky Exchange ~ £47.15

 

Hape Pop-up Monkey Track Review

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This train track with popping monkeys was a huge hit with the Frost toddler. The cute banana train makes the monkeys pop out in a very satisfying way. Smart and fun, it has fast become a favourite toy. You can also buy additional track. Very much recommended: another great hit from brilliant toy brand Hape who focus on high-quality wooden and education focused toys.

Three monkeys hide in the jungle just waiting for their chance at snatching a banana treat. Watch as they hop out just as the banana car passes!

  • Suitable for age 18 months +
  • Dimensions (LWH) 23.4×12.3×11.4cm
  • Includes: 7 Pieces
  • Encourages imaginative play, creativity and helps to develop planning and logic skills.
  • Warning: Not suitable for children under 18 months

 

Available from debenhams.com

All Saints’ David Williams named National Young Writer of the Year

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Kai Williams, Centre Director at Explore Learning Barking, David Williams and Steve Backshall

A 12 year old from Barking has been crowned the winner of the National Young Writers’ Awards!  David Williams’ story about a robot in 3017 triumphed over 10,000 entries from all across the UK. Author, TV presenter and adventurer, Steve Backshall surprised David with his prize at his school to mark the tremendous achievement. The special presentation assembly took place on Tuesday 20th June at All Saints Catholic School in Dagenham.

The annual competition is organised by tuition provider, Explore Learning and this year’s theme was ‘The Future’. Children were tasked with writing a 500 word story set in 3017!  Entries were judged by Steve Backshall and the team at Explore Learning who selected David’s futuristic tale as the overall winning story and awarded him a trophy, a trip to Disneyland Paris for his family and £500 worth of books for his school.

Robots were overwhelmingly the most popular characters in this year’s entries, whilst teleportation, rockets and jets were the common modes of transport. Meanwhile, planet earth was the most popular location, followed by the Moon and Mars.

It was David’s story though that came out on top – a tale of a robot who wants to be accepted by the world and explore.

Steve Backshall says: “The quality of the stories was beyond belief! If I didn’t know this was a competition for young writers, I’d believe I was reading the scribblings of Isaac Asimov or Philip K Dick, every story was original and had its own sense of individuality. What astounded me more than anything was that these young people had not only imagined future worlds, but imbued them with the conundrums of our modern planet; pollution, greed, climate-change, the disturbing dark potential of Ai and genetic modification. It gives me great hope that our young people are aware and concerned about these critical issues, and writing with such extraordinary maturity.

“I had to choose the piece that stood out as the most publishable. David’s tale of the awakening of consciousness in a sentient robot was the most complete of all…”

Winner, David Williams says: “I feel so happy. Winning the National Young Writers’ Awards is one of the things that’ll help me prepare to be an author. I can’t believe I have accomplished it, I’ve written something worth reading!”

Every child that entered the National Young Writers’ Award received a certificate to celebrate their story, along with personalised feedback from Explore Learning.  The top ten runners up also won an engraved pen from National Stationery Week sponsors, Sheaffer, whilst all regional winners received prize bundles with goodies from National Stationery Week partners, Nu notebooks, Mustard, edding, Maped Helix, Write Size, Manuscript and Stabilo.

Carey Ann Dodah, Head of Curriculum Development at Explore Learning says: “This year’s National Young Writers’ Awards attracted so many entries and all were thoughtful and inventive…”

Clare Cantle, Head Teacher at All Saints Catholic School says: “We are all incredibly proud of David’s outstanding achievement. To win a competition with 10,000 entries is such a fantastic recognition of his talents in writing. I am sure we will be reading much more of his work in the future.”

Explore Learning has 126 centres located across the country providing English and maths tuition to children aged five to 14.

For more information on Explore Learning and the National Young Writers’ Awards please visit www.explorelearning.co.uk/youngwriters

 

Fun for little ones with Hape Bug About

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After a fraught Christmas and numerous birthdays we now approach new toys with some trepidation. What will we need to get the toy out of the box while the impatient child stands at our side, desperate to play with their new gift? We arm ourselves with screwdrivers, scissors and knives to tackle the job. Will we need one or the other – or all of them?

No need for that with Hape Bug About. I opened the box quite easily, and took out the toy. I had expected to need at least a screwdriver and Allen key or two but what joy to be able to take it straight from the box and have it ready for play.

 

The Hape Bug About is mostly made from wood with a bright red removable fabric seat.

Little ones hold on to the antennae and push along with steady feet. Great fun for budding adventurers and there is space in the buggy belly for a child’s precious treasures, those teddies and books that must be taken everywhere.

The Bug About is easy to wipe down and clean, easy to store.

As will all Hape products it is made with a commitment to sustainability and  compliant with international safety and quality standards.

Recommended for ages 12 months and up.

Hape Bug About £44.99 available from Argos.

Hape Maple Building Blocks

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Hape_maple_building_blocks

Are you looking for the perfect gift for a young child? Then look no further. The classics are still the best and Hape is the master, providing traditional and innovative toys that are perfect for learning and stretching the imagination.

Is there anyone who didn’t have a set of bricks when they were kids? What’s the first toy you go looking for when you have a child of your own, or your first grandchild? A bag of bricks.

Hape’s Maple Building Blocks are painted bright primary colours and are perfect for building towers, garages, palaces and kingdoms. My four grandchildren had great fun building their empires and the littlest member of the tribe (6 months) loved sucking and biting on them  – and there was no need to panic because all Hape’s products are designed and made with quality and safety in mind.

It really is a must for every grandparent’s toy box and the set of 50 bricks comes in a neat drawstring bag, so they are easy to tidy away until the next time they come to play.

Hape Toys is one of the world’s largest producers of toys made from sustainable materials. Thier range is creatively designed and eco-friendly.

All of the products meet, and often exceed, the strictest international standards for quality and safety.

The Hape Maple Blocks are available to buy online from John Lewis for £14.40