Disney Princess Ariel Bath Styling Head Review

Holly was delighted to be asked to review the Disney Princess Ariel Bath Styling Head from Just Play as she is very much into princesses, hair styling and anything Disney right now. My interest dwindled soon after the epic 10+ minute struggle to remove her from her packaging - her hair was literally sewn into the packaging and was shaped to look "pretty" using some form of rigid glue-like-substance.

The Disney Princess Ariel Bath Styling Head is intended for use as a bath toy which is handy because the first thing we had to do was to wash her hair! She comes with a hollow sea shell that you can use to gently pour water over her hair and eyes to make them change colour. Ariel can stick to the side of the bath using three suckers but Holly finds it hard to brush or style her hair when she is attached to the side of the bath so in fact we have had more use of Ariel when she has been on dry land.

Ariel comes with a set of styling accessories such as hair combs, a selection of hair clips, a hairbrush and a necklace, all with a seaside theme. Because she is intended as a bath toy, she is a little smaller than many toy styling heads but that doesn't seem to reduce the opportunities for plaits, pony tails and clips! Holy is quite taken with her deep red hair which is instantly recognisable. I've never quite managed to get Ariel's hair to look quite as good as it did when it was plastered into the packaging, in fact she looks a little bald on top unless you give her a serious comb-over.

We weren't awfully impressed by the colour changing features. You can use ice-cold water to turn a sliver of Ariel's hair from light blue to dark blue (the change is noticeable but the effect would be more magical if it were to change from one colour to a significantly different colour). Ariel's eyes and lips also change colour with icy water, intending to give the impression of make-up but once again, the difference in the colour of the lips is so small that its almost instantly forgettable. The eye lids change from brown to pink. When you apply warm water, the colours change back. Given that this is a bath-toy, the use of water to change the colours is a good idea but most people don't have ice water on hand in their bathroom to change the colours too and from.

The Disney Princess Ariel Bath Styling Head costs around £24.99. I think there is play value in it, but we've found it more appealing as a regular styling head, rather than a colour-changing bath styling head. Find her at Argos and Amazon.

Neusu Bath Toy Scoop Review

If your bathroom is anything like ours, it is littered with bath toys.  Over the years we have tried all sorts of ways of storing the toys but everything we had tried to date was either too small, or else it just got in the way, meaning we avoided using it.  That's why I was so pleased to be asked to try out the Neusu bath toy scoop, a self-draining bath toy tidy.

Neusu.com sell high quality storage solutions that are made to last - we tried out their premium bath toy scoop but Neusu also make shoe and clothing storage such as heavy-duty vacuum storage bags.  The bath toy scoop is a rigid, brightly-coloured plastic scoop which, if it didn't have holes in it, has a capacity of about 3 litres (which is just about enough to house our collection of kids bath toys).  You attach it to the bathroom tiles for storage using a sucker which the scoop will hang from; when the kids have finished in the bath, you simply woosh the toy tidy around the bath to scoop up all the toys and then clip it back onto the hanger while you let the water drain away so that your toys stay dry and mildew-free.  Very clever.

I've been really impressed with the level of suction of the toy tidy; even when it is full to the brim with heavy toys, I can relax in my own bath knowing that its not going to topple down on me!  The scoop is designed and shaped such that it encourages optimal suction against the wall.

It is very satisfying to finally have an option for storing the toys out of the way, but even more rewarding is the fact that you don't have to take the toys out of the bath one by one.  However...the very best part of the Neusu toy scoop is the fact that Lara and Holly find it fun to use and so they volunteer to tidy up the toys from the bath before they get out.  Genius.

You can find out more about Neusu household storage solutions on their Facebook and Twitter feeds.

The Neusu Premium Bath Toy Scoop costs around £11.99.

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Disney Minnie Mouse Bath Toys by Fisher Price - A Review

Minnie Mouse is pretty popular in our house. To be very honest, I've never seen the attraction but both of my girls enjoy playing their Minnie Mouse game on the Leappad and will quite often gravitate to their Minnie Mouse aeroplane when they wake up in the morning and start to raid the toy boxes. These days, I guess Minnie gets more of a look-in than she did when I was a child and with her own bow-tique and a group of very girly friends, including Daisy Duck, Minnie is popping up all over the place. Including our bath!

Fisher Price sent the girls some Minnie Mouse bath toys to try out. We always like to try bath toys because the girls definitely need a distraction from hair washing in the bath; I have great memories of bath toys and yet I am still on the lookout for a toy which I think will hold as many memories for Lara and Holly.

This Disney Minnie Bow-Rific Vanity set is a mirror which sticks to the walls of your bathroom beside the bath. It features a squirty perfume bottle and a little comb to encourage a bit of role play in the bath (Holly didn't need much encouragement!) The Mirror has three bows and when you pour water into one of them, the bow rotates and splashes water on the bows below. The bows are easy to swap - one of them can act as a cup, another has holes in the bottom to let water trickle through.  The Minnie Bow-Rific vanity set sticks well to the wall (one of my bugbears with many a bath toy).  This bath toy is currently on offer at Argos for £9.99.

This is the Fisher Price Disney Drizzly Day Daisy which features a Daisy Duck character, a squirter in the shape of her little duckling friend (a pet?) and an umbrella.  I think Daisy is supposed to be able to hold the umbrella while you pour water over it - the brolly has holes in it to let the water drizzle through - but I simply can't get it to stay in Daisy's hand.  Holly doesn't seem to mind though.  Holly quite liked using the umbrella upside down to fish around in the bath for bubbles and for the bath squirters.

Daisy duck's dress changes colour in hot water from a deep pink to a light pink but I'm not sure either of the girls noticed.  I'm a bit underwhelmed by this bath toy, as I suspect are the girls.  I think it is lacking movement of some sort.  Also in the range is a similar Minnie Mouse bath toy featuring Minnie in a swimsuit and fins with her cat Figaro in a rubber ring!

 

Disney Princess Ariel's Vanity Set Bathroom Toy Review

I have been on the lookout for a fun bath toy for Lara for what seems like an age (aka 2 years). I have also been resisting letting Lara anywhere near make-up... but then she raided my own make-up drawer and I think we probably encountered a turning point. The new Disney Princess Ariel's Vanity Set is a harmless bit of make-up fun... I say harmless because, unlike the day when Lara caked herself in my own mascara and lipstick, this make-up set is specifically designed for use in the bath and all the make-up products wash straight off. Phew.

The Little Mermaid vanity set from Jakks includes a display unit which you stick to the side of the bath, or to the bathroom wall. The unit features a little mirror and four spaces for the individual pieces of the vanity set. The set includes a pretend perfume sprayer, a minature lipstick, a seashell-shaped cream blusher and a cream eye shadow. Lara thinks this Disney Princess set is the single most awesome thing on the entire planet!

The first time that Lara used Ariel's vanity set she was reluctant to wash the make-up off afterwards but once she realised that she could do it all again the next time she had a bath, Lara seemed really happy. We had been struggling a lot with Lara at bathtimes (hence why I wanted to buy her a bath toy) and this bath time Disney Princess vanity set has really helped her behaviour in the bath.

My only small gripe with this toy is the fact that the plastic mirror came with a protective coating which I found hard to remove (you can still see small bits of it around the side of the mirror in the photos).  I was really pleased with how easily the pretend make-up came off in the bath... which is handy because I think Lara needs a bit of practice.

Hevea Natural Rubber Bath Toy Review

Holly LOVES bath time but she is at an age where EVERYTHING goes in her mouth so this fish shaped squidy bath toy from Hevea is perfect for her because it is made from 100% natural rubber latex and is free from anything that I wouldn't want her chewing on such as BPA or PVC.

Hevea's range of natural rubber bath toys features Polly the fish, Fred the frog and Alfie the duck. Each toy is made from sustainably produced raw rubber (rubber... in case you didn't know, comes from the sap of a tree). There are no added colours and all of the packaging has been produced responsibly with eco babies in mind.

Hevea's approach to baby products is very appealing from an eco parenting view - their range includes dummies and teethers and Hevea will even recycle old rubber soothers if you return them to Hevea.

When we first tried Polly the fish, I was a little disappointed. I understand and respect the reasons why there are no squeaky noises and no bright colours but I struggled to see the fun element in the bath toy. Holly, however, seems to love it. I think the gentle undulations and textured areas on the surface feel nice to her fingers and to her gyms when she chews it in the bath.

The rubber toy is naturally squidgy and boyant. To me, one of the most fantastic elements of the bath toy is that because it doesn't need to be filled with air, there is no need for a hole at the bottom so nowhere for gunk to build up and nowhere to drip cold water if you forget to empty the toys of water after a bath.

You can buy the complete set of natural rubber bath toys by Hevea for around £20.

Sassy Baby Toys Review

How did I not know about Sassy baby products before now??? They are bright, high-contrast yet colourful, easy to grasp, full of textures and exploration points and totally perfect for babies like Holly who are starting to explore the world around them.

Sassy baby products are distributed by East Coast Nursery. Sassy make quite a phenomenal number of different baby toys and accessories for babies from birth upwards.

All of Sassy's toys are designed to try and encourage your baby to use their sense and explore touch, sound, smell and taste. Techniques that they use to do this are high contrast patterns, bright colors, symmetry, multiple textures, specific color language and sounds. Holly has been trying out a few of their products. All of their products use plastics that are safe for baby and they are incredibly durable - they FEEL good in your hands.

Sassy Flutterby Teether

I Love: The mixture of different textures on the teether and lots of bright colours that make it look as lively as a butterfly can be.
Holly Loves: The bumpy textured wing to chew on and the soft and squidgy water-filled area.

Sassy Ring Rattle

I Love: The fact that it is easy to grip and it combines colours with high contrast so is suitable for small babies whose eyesight is still developing.
Holly Loves: Shaking it about (A LOT) and bashing it against things, she likes the noise of the rings rattling against other toys.

Sassy Click Clack Keys

I Love: Watching Holly's face when she realises that SHE made the toy make a noise by pressing the buttons.
Holly Loves: Shaking it like nothing else on earth. This is holly's No. 1 favourite toy right now.

Sassy Rescue Vehicles Bath Toy Set

I Love: The little lighthouse whose light glows red when it is floating in the water - it fascinates me!
Holly Loves: Watching her big sister play aeroplanes in the bath, delivering Holly's bottle of shampoo on the hammock it carries!
Lara Loves: Squirting her baby sister with water from the little tug boat!

I am really impressed with the Sassy baby range and will be hunting out some more pieces for Holly for Christmas.

  

Bathtime Fun with BabyDan and Fisher Price

Both Lara and Holly have been having great fun in the bath recently, due to a number of new additions and special treats for the girl's bathroom.

Lara was sent this Dive & Swim Mermaid Dora as a special treat from Fisher Price to celebrate the arrival of her little sister. It worked a treat as a way of easing Lara into big sister-hood. Dora and the Mermaid Kingdom is one of Lara's favourite bedtime stories so Lara was over the moon when she met her new bath toy. Mermaid Dora has an ingenious switch which causes her to jump spectaularly into the water and then she starts swimming backstroke through the bath water. You wind Dora's arms up to help her swim and Lara loves it because she has just started learning backstroke herself at swimming lessons so she and Dora can practice in the bath together. Dive & Swim Mermaid Dora also comes with a hairbrush but Lara show as little interest in brushing Dora's tangled hair as she does in brushing her own!

Holly's new gadget is the Fisher Price Happy Bath Hippo Tub. This is an ideal product for myself and Mr. B (and Holly of course). One of my first ever blog posts detailed why I found traditional baby baths a total waste of time... we've tried several other styles and just kept going back to our own normal bath tub. For Holly, we never even bought a baby bath. The Happy Bath Hippo is a mesh sling which sits inside a sink or bath and allows you to place your baby on it for support, leaving your hands free to actually bath your baby, rather than you having to hold them delicately in the tub to keep their head above water. It is great for a newborn.

Holly absolutely loves her baths (Lara used to hate them) - she sits quite contentedly on her bath stand and seems really relaxed on it. I don't know whether this is to do with her being born in water, a natural love of bathtime or because I have more confidence when using the Happy Bath Hippo Tub and so no stress passes on to her. This Fisher Price bath stand costs £19.99 and I think it is much better value than a baby bath. One of the fab things for us is that we can fill the bath with a small amount of water for Holly and then when she is finished, just top up the water for Lara... this saves water and saves us money because we are on a meter.

Our final addition to the bathroom may appear to be the most mundane but actually it is a lifesaver and something I really should have got my hands on a long time ago.  We were sent the BabyDan Bath Storage Basket for review.

The BabyDan Bath Storage Basket is available from the Hello Baby . Hello Baby also sells a wide range of other baby and nursery stuff including Baby Toys, nursery furniture, baby travel and baby safety products.

The storage basket was easy to put together and makes it a lot easier to tidy up all the girl's toys after a bath. Since we got it, I've felt like I can reclaim the bath as my own because when I want a long relaxing soak, all I need to do is lift the BabyDan storage basket off the bath and I am no longer surrounded by toys!