Great Christmas wines for a fiver

four quality wines

Very cheap and very good

Anyone wanting to buy good wines this Christmas is in for a treat. There’s a bit of a price war at the cheaper end of the market. Aldi has been selling its very excellent ‘Exquisite Collection’ wines for just over a fiver and recently announced that it would be selling its wines on the internet, for home delivery. All of this has created consternation among the other retailers.

Asda has responded by putting some excellent wines on sale at a fiver and labelled them as ‘Extra Special Selection’. I bought about a dozen bottles yesterday and I can tell you that the ones I opened are excellent.Most of them are well known varieties  such as Chardonnay – slightly floral and citrus – Sauvignon Blanc- flavours of tropical fruits. but there are one or two more unusual varieties such as Viognier and Fiano – which is from Sicily and has undertones of lemon and rosemary. They are superb wines and the sort of thing you might normally expect to pay about £8 or £9 for.

As part of the range there is a pouilly fume, which is a classy sauvignon blanc, which has a slightly flinty flavour. This cost £10.75 and was a decent wine and reasonably priced. It’s a well known wine, so it’s a good thing to impress your friends.

In the middle of the photo is a slightly smaller bottle. This is a bottle of sauternes, which was also a fiver. This is a dessert wine and very reasonably priced. It’s a lovely thing in the house to have over Christmas. It has a lovely, slightly resinous flavour of dried fruit. Serve it in small glasses and offer it to friends who come around. In Italy they drink it with biscotta or a slice of panetonne. But it would be equally nice with a mince pie.

Asda Launch New Little Angels Festive Nappies & Vapour Bath | Review

Asda Launch New Little Angels Festive NappiesAsda’s Little Angelreview

Asda’s Little Angels have launched some brand new ‘Supreme Protection’ festive nappies and they are gorgeous. They have a cute, fun, Elf design. Letting your baby join in the Christmas fun.

They also have a new Vapour Bath product which is perfect for helping to soothe those winter colds. It features a special no tears formula with a comforting menthol aroma and has had rave reviews. We tried both and loved them. The nappies are fun and the vapour bath helps clear up baby’s cold.

These gorgeous festive nappies cost £4 and are available from asda.com and in store now. The Vapour Bath is only £1.

 

Vapour Bath.littleangeasdaVapour Bath

Christmas Gift List For Foodies

At Christmas it is impossible to go wrong with an edible gift. Especially if it sparkles or is chocolate. Here are our favs.

Extra Special Louis Bernard Champagne from ASDA.com

champagne

Silver medal award-winning Premier cru. Fresh and elegant. Rich with biscuity hints. A very good champagne indeed. From Asda.

 

Asda Extra Special Mixology Belgian Chocolate Truffles

asdachoc

These are just amazing. Come in champagne, mojito and strawberry daiquiri. They are scrumptious beyond words. Nothing artificial, they taste like the real thing. Yum. From asda.com

Asda Extra Special Belgian Chocolate Bauble Truffles.

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A medley of chocolate truffles with salted caramel truffle and a rich Christmas Pudding inspired fusion. Unique and yummy. From asda.com

Carluccio’s Clemente in Camicia

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There are almost no words to describe how delicious these candied clementines covered in chocolate are. Just WOW. From http://www.carluccios.com

Carluccio’s Vin Santo e Cantucci

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This gift set from Carluccio’s is superb. Amazing cantucci and vin santo to dip it into. Yum. www.carluccios.com

 

Arabica Spices: Ras El Hanout, Kabsa Spices, Za’atar and Lebanese 7 Spice. 

spice

Great spices to put in soups and stews, on meat or anything else you can think of. Make great stocking fillers. Arabica Food and Spice was born out of a passion for the food of  the Levant — the sun-drenched lands of the Eastern Mediterranean

Its founders, Jordanian Jad and Londoner James have travelled extensively through Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine and Israel to procure the finest Levantine produce. Our range boasts a culinary kaleidoscope of delicacies, epitomising the breadth of flavour, colour and texture of one the world’s finest food cultures. http://www.arabicafoodandspice.com

Carluccio’s Panettone

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It’s not Christmas without panettone and this one is amazing. An Italian slice of heaven. From http://www.carluccios.com

 

 

ASDA Protect Kids Ice-Cream Scented Sun-Care For Kids Review

AsdaprotectkidsreviewAsda has launched a UK 1st for the sun-care market with its own brand ice-cream scented sun lotion for kids. In an effort to help make applying children with suncream fun and easy, the lotions and creams feature a delicious vanilla scent and are priced a just £3.50. All products featured in the range are highly water resistant, 24 hour moisturising and have been dematologicaly tested. You can also get two for £6.
We tested them and…yes, they do smell like ice cream. Not in a sickly way, but in a nice way. Hopefully the smell will make your little ones stay still long enough for you to get the lotion on them. Some of the sun protection even comes in a handy spray container. They are water resistant and protect little ones skin well. Recommended.

Little Angels Re-launches Range With a Mumsnet Stamp of Approval

littleangelsatasdaFrost has been reviewing the Little Angels range at Asda. It comes with the Mumsnet stamp of approval so we had high expectations. Thankfully we were not let down. The Sensitive Cotton Soft Baby Wipes are fragrance free and suitable to use from day one, even on eczema prone skin. The Head to Toe Wash is just as great and gentle. It has a no tears formula and is paediatrician approved. Little Angels Baby Powder soaks up excess moisture and prevents chapping and the Comfort Dry Nappies are super soft and delicate. The nappies give up to 12 hours of dryness. We were impressed with the entire range. The products are just as good as any leading brand but are not as expensive. Mums and dads, head to Asda.com.

Mums looking for the very best for their little angels need look no further than Asda’s Little Angels own brand baby range, which now comes complete with a seal of approval from the very best judges of all: other real-life mums.

 

That’s right: over 100 products in the Little Angels range have been tested and endorsed by users of Mumsnet – the UK’s largest network for parents.

 

The highly-praised range spans everything needed for a baby’s routine, including nappies, wipes, toiletries and snacks and features exciting new products, formulas and packaging.

 

And now, having partnered with Mumsnet, mums can rest assured that every product they buy with the ‘Quality Approved by Mumsnet’ logo has gone through a vigorous testing process from a panel of mums just like them, before hitting the shelves.

 

The hugely popular Little Angels nappy range, the best selling own-label nappy brand in the UK, has seen a major revamp to become the only baby brand to offer mums a complete nappy journey for their baby from newborn to potty training. The super soft and absorbent Newborn, Comfort Dry and Supreme Protection nappies have all received the Mumsnet seal of approval and now, Little Angels have also added Swim Pants (£3) and Potty Training Pants (£4.50)to its already extensive offering.

 

All economy packs are available in the popular 3 for £12 offer and what’s more, the Comfort Dry, Supreme Protection and Newborn ranges feature a unique size guide on the back of the pack to help mums understand when to move up a size, so you can wave goodbye to leaky nappies! And the colour coded size guide makes it easier for mums to pick out the right size on the shelf.

 

A new innovation for the Little Angels Newborn range is DreamSkin® technology (£4.50) – new to the market and available at Asda. The unique DreamSkin® technology is designed to help soothe and protect even the most delicate skin, making it perfect for those little ones prone to eczema.

 

The extensive range of Little Angels wipes now contain thicker yet softer embossed towels, designed to help mum cleanse baby with ease. The premium Extra CareExtra Protect and Extra Sensitive Wipes (all £1 each or 4 for £3)provide the very best protection against nappy rash by working with the skin naturals defenses, leaving delicate skin silky soft and protected.

 

All of the Little Angels toiletries, from nappy change and bath time right through to bedtime have secured a big thumbs up from Mumsnet users, and new to the range is the Vapour Bath (£1 or 3 for £2.50), featuring a eucalyptus and menthol fragrance to help sooth baby and comfort little noses. As part of the re-design, the popular Baby Powder(£1.35) now features a newly-improved ergonomic bottle design, making it easier to handle whilst still featuring the same great formulation and value for money.

 

When it comes to feeding, the Little Angels nutritious and organic snack food range, from Organic Puffs (67p) to Oaty Bars (£1.99), has also been ‘Quality Approved by Mumsnet’, including a brand new Baby Biscotti (£1.19)product suitable from seven months. Available in three flavours – plain, apple and banana – the biscotti are completely organic, with ‘no nasties’ and added calcium and vitamin B1.

 

Lauren Venters, Category Planner for Baby at Asda comments: “The world of babies can be a daunting place with a variety of brands, hundreds of products to choose from and, quite often, conflicting advice. We know that mums really value the opinions, recommendations and first-hand experiences given to them from other mums and we’re so confident in our Little Angels range that we decided to put it to the test with the harshest critics of all – a panel of Mumsnet mums – and we’re thrilled they passed the test! Having that stamp of approval across the range, should hopefully give mums peace of mind that they’ve made the right choice, leaving more time to enjoy motherhood.”

 

Justine Roberts, Founder & Chief Executive at Mumsnet comments: “Mumsnet users have really put the LittleAngels range through its paces, testing the products in busy, real-life family homes up and down the UK. Our users value each other’s recommendations highly and place a lot of trust in them, so we’re pleased to have the opportunity to extend this special mark of approval to some products in the Little Angels range, and hope that the wisdom of the Mumsnet crowd will benefit other parents”

 

 

NSpa Mum To Be Nourishing Stretchmark Oil Review

NSPA Mum to Be Nourishing Stretch Mark Oil

nspa is an exclusive skincare brand available at Asda.com. They have a Mum To Be range which includes a Nourishing Stretch Mark Oil. It retails at £6 and it’s enriched with sweet almond and jojoba to moisturise and nourish. I have had some stretchmarks for a while now and they really annoy me. I used nspa Nourishing Stretch Mark Oil twice a day. In a few months they do fade. The oil absorbs well and I really like the smell. Overall I am impressed and would continue to use it.

I would buy nspa Nourishing Stretch Mark Oil. It is only £6 and works well.

Nappy Comparison Site Bumdeal Shows How Kate & Will (And Everyone Else) Can Save Money

baby,nappies, nappy, save, cheap, budget,  working mothers, overwork, stress

The price of nappies can be shocking.

Save money in nappies: Nappy comparison site bumdeal.co.uk shows how Kate & Will (and everyone else) can save up to £500 over the first two years of nappy buying!

Shopping around and comparing the price of nappies can save parents a shed load of cash – even the Royals! Across the first two years of a baby’s life, it is estimated that you will use over 4,000 nappies. As some retailers can charge more than double the cheapest price for nappies it is wise to shop around.

The table below shows a breakdown of the cost of nappies across an average first 24 months:

 

Nappy  Cheapest Price Most Expensive Nappies per Day Months Total nappies Min Cost Max Cost Difference
Size 1Pampers New Baby 9p/nappyAmazon family 17p/nappyOcado 10 2 600 £54 £102 £48
Size 2Pampers New Baby 11p/nappyTesco 19p/nappyBoots 8 2 480 £52.80 £91.20 £38.40
Size 3Pampers Baby Dry 9p/nappyAmazon family 20p/nappyTesco 6 4 720 £64.80 £144 £79.20
Size 4Pampers Baby Dry 10p/nappyAmazon family 24p/nappyOcado 5 16 2,400 £240 £576 £336
    Totals: 4,140 £411.60 £913.20 £501.60

If you bought all of the most expensive nappies, you would spend over £900 across the two years. If you were savvy and bought from the cheapest retailer, you’d spend just shy of £400 – an incredible saving of over £500.

Some of the cheapest prices are via Amazon’s membership programme known as Amazon family. This offers a 20% discount off various nappies when you sign up to its subscribe and save service. A free 30 day trial is available which can be cancelled at any time.

For completeness, excluding the Amazon family programme the total cost of nappies rises by £37.20, but still gives savings of over £460 over the two year period.

 

BumDeal founder Adam Cable, says “Nappies are amongst the largest expenditure young families face. You can save by shopping around, but it’s not easy to take into consideration all the special offers and promotions. Luckily BumDeal takes away the time-consuming task of finding the best deal and provides results in a clear way. Plus, those with a smartphone can access the comparison on the go, which is great for when you’re already inside a supermarket.”

 

Nappy  Cheapest Price Most Expensive Nappies per Day Months Total nappies Min Cost Max Cost Difference
Size 1

Pampers New Baby

10p/nappy

Tesco

17p/nappy

Ocado

10 2 600 £60 £102 £42
Size 2

Pampers New Baby

11p/nappy

Tesco

19p/nappy

Boots

8 2 480 £52.80 £91.20 £38.40
Size 3

Pampers Baby Dry

10p/nappy

Tesco Direct

20p/nappy

Tesco

6 4 720 £72 £144 £72
Size 4

Pampers Baby Dry

11p/nappy

ASDA

24p/nappy

Ocado

5 16 2,400 £264 £576 £312
  Totals: 4,140 £448.80 £913.20 £464.40

 

Frost Mascara Special

We reviewed four inexpensive mascaras, because looking great doesn’t always have to be expensive.

mascara reviewGeorge Volume Lash Mascara

This was a little runny the first time we used it but afterwards was fine. The one we tried wasn’t waterproof and by the end of the day we had panda eyes. It only costs £3.50 and is good for the price. Available from ASDA

2True Pro WOW Mascara

This mascara is not just excellent for the price, but is just excellent full stop. The waterproof version was on Watchdog for being good. We tried the non-waterproof one. It gives supercharged volume and an amazing WOW effect. It doesn’t clump or flake. Good stuff.  Available from Superdrug for only £3.

Pur Big Look Extreme Mascara Waterproof

This mascara is very different. It is made with Argan Oil, a revolutionary ingredient, loaded with lash-loving omega fatty acids, vitamin E and antioxidant. It says it has a clump-resistant wand but when we put it on the first time it was quite clumpy and awkward. It is waterproof but doesn’t seem smudge-proof when you first put it on. It is fine after a while though, so just don’t touch your eyes.

George Volume Lash

This is a brilliant mascara. It only costs about £2.50 and it is as good as very expensive mascara brands. It coats mascara from root to tip and gives great volume. It is clump free and very black. We’re a fan.