So, how is your new year’s resolution to “eat clean” going? Probably not so hot around 3 or 4 pm, if like me, your energy level – and attention span – has you wishing the day was over. But noooooo. There’s still a mountain of things to do, errands to run and calls to return. Among other pressing matters.
Clearly, I need a snack, a picker-upper, a little edible energy. The easy fix is to pick up something easy & fast from the pantry or the vending machine. And we all know what hazards that holds. Those carb-filled, sugar-filled, fat-filled and [...]

By Anne-Marie Kovacs, Chief Wife
That last time we complained about the excessive and impenetrable packaging on most product was four years ago, right about this time of year (the story here). All these years later and I’m afraid nothing much has improved on the packaging front. Most toys are still enclosed in fortresses of cardboard, plastic and ties.
But, at least I have found a tool to handle the job of – easily – cracking open seemingly bulletproof packages. It’s called the Open It! and you will wonder how you ever lived without it. This nifty little tool was designed by women who were on [...]

The Christmas gift list… Yep, there’s an app for that. Several really. So, why not make it one less piece of paper that gets lost at the bottom of your bag.
Christmas shopping can be a daunting task. The more generous you are, the larger the family, the more friends and co-workers you have… the list of gifts to buy can be endless. The organized shopper has always kept lists. And rewrote them when the frayed edges of the folded and re-folded paper started to tear. For those of us with a techie bend, those day can be over. Here are [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
The efficient kitchen is all about multifunctional cookware – meaning they can go from oven/microwave to table to fridge or freezer to dishwasher. I am all about efficiency and with a small kitchen, I love when I can use one product for different purposes. I feel that designer Christian Bjorn’s Stackable Oven Dishes has taken this multifunctional concept to a whole new level.
These dishes can be stacked both inside and outside the oven. The openings on the sides allow warmth in the oven to circulate freely and thereby, to heat food in all the dishes [...]

By Anne-Marie Kovacs, Chief Wife
OK, so maybe not 30 seconds, but no more than 5 minutes in all if you absolutely need to accessorize. Still…
Audrey and I were in stitches when we saw these t-shirts at a recent trade show. The Faux Real Shirts use a photorealistic printing process to add oddball costume imagery to otherwise ordinary t-shirts. Take a look:

Granted, the women’s versions of the shirts are all pretty sexist (obviously designed by men!). I’m surprised that the “sexy nurse” is not among the offering. But, I’m ok with it all, given that one can stay comfortably covered up while [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
As summer is officially over, I look over my garden and realize it is time to start preparing for the winter months. My herbs: oregano, thyme, basil and parsley, have grown and flowered in abundance. Not wanting them to go to waste I found some great ways to help preserve and use them:

Fresh Herb Savers - Bring your herbs indoors and keep them as fresh as the moment you picked them in your refrigerator. They last up to three weeks longer in these sturdy herb savers with anti-bacterial glass. Buy directly from ArtandCook for $24.99.

Fresh Mill Herb Grinders - [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
I have found something to collect and I am not a collectible kind of person – unless you count shoes…
Anyway, I have just discovered Nora Fleming’s fun ceramic accents that dress up a simple white platter making it suit any season, event, or special occasion. I love this idea of having one platter for every occasion with interchangeable pieces!
Nora Fleming’s cute, whimsical, keepsake minis have become part of my family’s traditions. With almost 80 minis to choose, I already have my fall, Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas minis picked out. Each hand-painted piece has a stem [...]

Remember when, years ago, OXO reinvented the kitchen peeler? A stylish and much more pleasant to use object that the plain, utilitarian metal peeler of our mothers, it suddenly became the standard for good design in kitchen tools. Except for the garlic press.
I have certainly gone through an impressive number of garlic presses in my adult life, never satisfied by either their crushing or dispensing capabilities, ease-of-cleaning factor or their durability (rust??). It seemed that no company could be bothered with designing a better garlic press.

Until Dreamfarm, that it. Their Garject garlic press has just won the Good Design Australia [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
There is nothing better than an ice cold alcoholic beverage on a hot summer day. As my palate changes over the years, I find myself enjoying my parents go-to summer drink – the gin & tonic. Unlike vodka, which is pretty well odorless, tasteless and colorless,  gin has some, shall we say, attitude. Each brand has its own flavor and makes for a very personal experience on which best suits one’s taste.
To the discernible gin and tonic drinker, there has been many discussions on which brand is best. All are in agreement, however, that the [...]

By Anne-Marie Kovacs, Chief Wife
Open the car trunk of my car and you will find a dizzying assortment of disparate reusable bags floating about. Some more reusable than others. No two are the same size or even texture. For a supposedly stylish and organized person like me, this is just plain embarrassing.
Cue in the Esse Reusable Bags company. Love their motto: “Making a difference just got a little easier”. And I would add “organized”. That’s especially true with their Carryall Tote, this item being the very subject of this post.

The Carryall Tote is more like a shopping supply system that eliminates [...]