Prezzo

I don't go out to restaurants very often, mostly just special occasions. If I'm honest, when I have the money and want to treat us all I much prefer to just get a takeaway and enjoy it in the comfort of my own home! With Jasmin pestering me to take her to Prezzo (she loves Italian and Mexican food) and a Tastecard burning a hole in my purse I thought it was about time we had a meal out for a change.

After an afternoon of shopping in Bromley we caught the bus down the road to Beckenham.

On entering the restaurant I was surprised at how large and spacious it was. Split onto two levels, it was very light and airy and modern looking.
The restaurant was quite empty with only a handful of other diners in attendance but I suppose being a weekday afternoon it is not likely to be bustling.

The waitress that served us was lovely and we ordered our food and drink within a few minutes of being seated. The food arrived promptly and looked very appetizing.

For starters Jasmin ordered the king prawns in a pomodoro sauce and I ordered the crab cakes with a garlic mayo. Both starters were delicious and I could of actually ordered another lot of crab cakes to go with my main course...I didn't!

For the main course Jasmin had the Penne Arrabbiata Which tasted lovely and was very filling. I was a bit disappointed with the choice of pizzas as I am quite picky with my toppings and usually go for something with chicken. I was not too keen on their options so chose the classic Margherita. The pizza was really big and covered the whole plate but was nothing to write home about taste wise. After a while it got quite hard to eat as it was so dry but I suppose you cant expect too much when you order the basic Margherita and it didn't stop me eating the whole thing!

We would have loved to of sampled the desserts but was just too full after stuffing our faces so maybe a trip back is in order!

Overall it was a pleasant experience and we left feeling full.

Prezzo offers 2 for 1(excluding drinks) for up to 2 people on the tastecard all week except Friday and Saturday. We did not need to book in advance, I just informed the waitress when I arrived. The total bill for two drinks, starters and mains was just over £20

I quite liked doing a restaurant review, I just felt a bit self conscious taking photos of all the food when it arrived and nobody was even looking, imagine how I would feel if it was full up! Anyway I am hoping to use my Tastecard more often so if you have any recommendations then drop me a comment!

Spring cleaning with OUST

The Easter holidays are the perfect time for a good old clear out, there is nothing like a bit of Spring cleaning to make the house ready for the summer time. Not only have we been having a bit of a makeover in our hallway but wiping away the cobwebs in the rest of the house as well!

A lot of the time we clean areas where we can see dirt but what about all those hidden places where limescale builds up and causes damage without us even knowing? As a calcium compound, limescale creeps onto every surface that comes into regular contact with water and makes it a particular nuisance in the kitchen and bathroom. 

The OUST range of descaling products make it easy to get rid of limescale and are designed to restore good as new shine and performance to your household items

Unfortunately earlier in the year my dishwasher broke down, cleaning dishes in the sink is not so bad but it just made me appreciate my washing machine even more! I know all too well what it is like to have to wash the clothes of a family of six in the bath and it is not something I would like to do again!

Two of the most used appliances in my house are the washing machine and the kettle, for obvious reasons...Coffee!

I loved both the OUST kettle and washing machine descalers as they were just so simple to use. The washing machine powder was just poured into the barrel and put on a 60 degree wash and the kettle just had a drop in bag that was left for ten minutes, making it shiny and new looking again... no more flakes of limescale in the coffee!

Now to tackle the rest of the house!

I haven't had any babies in my house for years but one of my top tips for cleaning is baby wipes! I use them to clean everywhere. What are your top tips for Spring cleaning? #oustyourhouse

* I was sent an OUST descaling set from the lovely people at OUST and Myriad PR for the purpose of this review but had to do all the cleaning myself!

A cake through the letterbox?

Last week we were sent an adorable little cake from Bakerdays If you have never heard of them, they are an online cake company that make personalised cakes for any occasion with any design you could possibly think of!

We were sent a letterbox cake to review, it is a perfect size to fit through your letterbox, meaning you don't have to wait in for the delivery. Problem was my postman didn't realise this and my cake was stuck in the post office depot for nearly a week as I was at work when he delivered it! Luckily the cake is sent a cute tin with a protective film and is fresh for up to two weeks so we were still able to enjoy it when I picked it up.

When choosing a cake with Bakerdays there is a selection of fillings including this very delicious chocolate chip filling, plain sponge, fruit or even gluten or dairy free making them a suitable gift for anyone. The sizes range from this letterbox size at £14.99 up to a large cake with 40-55 portions for £56.99 so a range for any budget.

The cake can be personalised with any name or message you choose but I didn't want to give mine away so I stuck with the original message!

Christmas may be over but with Valentine's day and Mothering Sunday just around the corner I think a cake would make the perfect gift!

Salt Of The Earth - review

When I was asked by Crystal Spring if I wanted to review a new deodorant aimed at young girls the first thing I thought about was the smell of sweat that wafts through my house of an evening (way too many hormones in my house) and I emailed straight back to accept. 

Not only did I receive a 'rock chick' deodorant for my daughter but also the classic stick and spray version, as well as a set to giveaway on the blog... oh you lucky readers!

The first thing I did when opening the package was to take the top off the deodorant and have a sniff (well that's what you do with toiletries isn't it) after reading the label and realising there was nothing wrong with my sense of smell I thought I would look at the ingredients and see what was actually used in the product. Basically there is only 1 ingredient; Potassium Alum - a natural mineral salt.

The product actually reminded me of a block of ice, it is dry and needs to be run under water to use or used on damp skin when you get out of the shower or bath.

Ive never really looked into products and what makes them smell nice, I know I always buy things because of the nice scents they have but does this have an effect on our health?. Here is some information provided by the Women's Environmental Network

"The amount of fragrance chemicals used each year is enormous – nearly 1 million kilograms of benzyl acetate, a synthetic ‘floral’ fragrance ingredient, are used in the US each year. Ingredients in fragrances are the most frequent cause of allergies from cosmetics, and have been found to cause one third of all cosmetic allergies. Children in particular tend to be more sensitive to fragrances, and can develop allergic reactions easily. Data from Sweden shows that perfume is the most common contact allergen in men, possibly caused by shaving, and damaging the skin, increasing the chances of absorbing the fragrance chemicals and thus developing an allergy. Might a similar response occur for women shaving their legs or underarms and then applying cosmetics such as lotions or antiperspirants/deodorants?"

 "Current legislation does not restrict the quantities or combinations of fragrance chemicals that may be used in cosmetics. This is due to change; the European scientific committee (SCCNFP) has recently introduced restrictions concerning certain fragrance chemicals, many of which are known allergens, either restricting or banning their use completely, or insisting on their labelling in the ingredients list. Currently the law requires only that the label includes the word ‘parfum’ in the EU or ‘fragrance’ in the USA. According to the cosmetics industry this is because a typical cosmetic often contains between 50 and 100 fragrances, which is too many to be easily labelled. This creates a problem for people who are sensitive or allergic to a particular fragrance chemical as they cannot determine what compounds are present in the fragrance."

I like the idea of using natural products but I'm not so sure that many people worry about what chemicals are used in everyday toiletries, I mean we see everyone buying them in their local supermarkets and drugstores so we assume that they are safe, unless we know that we suffer from a certain allergy ourselves we don't look out for ingredients that may have an adverse reaction.

When it comes to our children on the other hand I'm sure the majority of people tend to buy things that are seen as 'environmentally friendly' or 'gentle on the skin' because we wouldn't want to cause any unnecessary harm to them.

The Rock chick deodorant is described as suitable for children ages 6 years or over, is suitable for vegetarians and vegans and is not tested on animals.

My daughter was very happy with the deodorant and didn't mind that it was unscented as she uses it straight out of the bath and tends to use her own scented products ( body spray, perfume) on top of her clothes afterwards anyway.  She did say that the fact that you have to use when you are already damp or you have to run it under the tap meant she couldn't use it on the go, however there are the spray versions that contain aloe vera and are unisex. A travel size version of this will be included in the giveaway.

I think this product is perfect for girls (or even boys) that are just hitting puberty and want to start using toiletries that are natural and safe for their young skin.

To have a look at all the products that are on offer from Crystal Spring including their Salt of the earth range visit their Website