christmas gift Archives - A Little Lyrical

16Dec 2018

Last Minute Gift Ideas – Christmas 2018

Still looking for Christmas gifts? Check out the choices I made for some of my friends and family!

This week I was gifted a few items by Paladone when they kindly asked if I wanted to receive something as a present for Christmas.

They sell so many wonderful items and there’s always something for everyone.

I picked out three things with certain people in mind which I will wrap and gift them this Christmas.

These are the three items ready for wrapping and sending to the North pole so that Father Christmas can bring them back with him. (Or that’s what we tell the boys!)

Star Wars Gifts

The first item is for a star wars lover! This Tie Fighter desk lamp is perfect for my Star Wars obsessed hubby! I hope he doesn’t read this…..I don’t think he will!

It’s USB powered so when sitting on a desk work area won’t take another plug, just plug it in to a USB outlet. Why am I always running short of plugs? If you are not then you could always use a USB plug adaptor instead if you’re putting it in an area with no computer.

The Smartphone Light Graffiti can is going to be given to my 7 year old. He had an iPad for his birthday this year so this is something he would love to play with.

For this gift you use a long exposure app to write words or draw pictures with the tiny can. The app captures what you are drawing and makes it look like a graffiti art without actually making any mess!

Disney Gift

The fabulous Disney Enchanted Rose Light from Beauty and the Beast by Paladone is a very special choice for a friend of mine. She adores the film and this is going to be perfect for her. It’s USB powered meaning it’ll look amazing on her desk while she’s working away at the computer. I know she’s going to love it.

Some of my other favourite items by Paladone are in the Harry Potter section. There are some beautiful gifts for fans of the books and films. Unfortunately in this house my boys haven’t caught on to Harry Potter yet despite my best efforts so those gifts would be a waste for now. I’ll save buying Harry Potter items for another year. Or maybe I should buy them for myself!

With grateful thanks to Paladone foe helping me to tick some people off my list!

11Oct 2018

Floof – The mouldable dough you can reuse again and again!

by Lyric ⋅ Leave a Comment

Give the gift of Floof It’s October so surely I’m allowed to talk about Christmas now?

Most people who know me well know that I adore the Christmas time. Every year I can’t wait to get started with the planning. I love buying gifts for people. I adore the day itself. Made even more magical now that I have my own children to make magic for.

So in the run up to Christmas time I will be sharing review posts of items I have agreed to test out. The reviews will always be my own work. I will not be paid for the posts. This is my blog so I can write what I like. All the items I review will either be bought by myself or sent to me (with prior agreement) and I will personally try them all and let everyone know what I think of them.

Without further ado I’ll jump right into the first thing I’ve agreed to review…Floof! Yes I know it’s an odd name but to be fair it’s quite catchy. I can tell you are probably sat there now repeating it in your head..Floof..Floof….Floof!

So what is Floof?

The official description is: Floof is a marshmallow-like molding material that has to be felt to be believed. This kinetic toy is as soft as a pillow, as light as a cloud, and as malleable as clay. Use it for fidgeting, building, or as a pure tactile treat. Since Floof never dries out, you can always keep some out and ready to play.

So to get hands on with some Floof I’ve been playing with the Builders set and the Mr and Mrs Snowman set.

It’s recommended for ages 3 and up, but thankfully it’s non-toxic so no need to worry if you have younger ones around that get hold of it. Obviously with any substance I’d advise using it under adult supervision.It’s really hard to describe what floof feels like. It’s similar to a mixture of the kinetic sand stuff and the fake snow at Christmas.

I like it, it feels soft and squeezy.

One of the massive bonuses for me is that it doesn’t dry out. So you can leave it out or leave the lid off and it’s all still fine and ready to use again and again.

Inside the Mr and Mrs Snowman Floof kit you get a packet of Floof, a snowy scene background and some snowman accessories.

In the Floof builders kit you get a packet of Floof,a play tray (which I think is great for younger children over 3). As well as some tools to use with Floof.

Clean Up Carpet Test!

Now if you are a mum reading this you’re probably thinking that’s all well and good but does it get stuck in the carpet? I can report that I did a test and no it doesn’t! Hip hip hurrah! I even managed to vacuum it up very successfully when I’d finished the carpet test!

Now you see it (my best effort to actually rub it in too!)

Now you don’t!

Would I recommend it? As an alternative to any other kind of moldable dough yes absolutely. The downside I’d say is that it only comes in one colour. However for the fact that it never dries out and it can be cleaned up very very easily (this part is the winner!) then it’s a hit with me! It also feels lovely too, I can imagine little ones who like to feel new textures will love Floof! There are various sets of Floof available at different price points which would make a great stocking filler and give little ones something to do.

06Nov 2017

Despicable Me 3 – Radio Controlled Minions Toy Review

by Lyric ⋅ Leave a Comment

Radio Controlled Minion – Mel

This week we are celebrating all things minion. With the release of Despicable Me 3 on DVD and Blu-ray it’s time to rekindle the minion love in time for Christmas.

Bladez toyz kindly sent us our very own radio controlled Mel Minion to test out. If you like me have minion mad people in your house this little guy makes a fantastic gift.

Aimed at ages 3+ he comes with a simple remote control. The remote control features just one large button with just two options.

Even little hands are able to grasp the concept of moving Mel around the room. The two controls are forward and spin. So you have to spin Mel to the direction you want then move him forwards.

All the inflatable r/c toys in the Bladez range do need inflating once you get them out of the box. But don’t worry you won’t need a pump. I managed to do this in just a few breathes without feeling dizzy! Far easier than inflating some party balloons that’s for sure!

Look out in the box too for a small repair patch incase any minor accidents happen with the inflatable you’ll be able to repair him. I did have to stop my youngest from trying to ride the minion!

We loved playing with the radio controlled minion, he is a great first introduction for little people to remote control toys as he’s just so easy to control. He worked well on both carpet and hard wood floors. So whatever you have he’s fun to control.

The Workings

You will need 6 AA batteries to power him, 4 for the minion and two for the remote control.

So be prepared on Christmas day with the batteries if it’s a gift as they are not included. He comes with a switch on his base with a choice of “Off”, “On with sounds” or “On without sounds”. The sounds on Mel are minion noises which do repeat after a while so if you get fed up of hearing it (which my boys didn’t!) then you can always run him without them!

Available to buy at The Entertainer and other toy shops.

With thanks to Bladez for sending Mel. I was not paid for this review, as always opinions are my own.

12Oct 2017

Yeti in my Spaghetti – Board Game Review

by Lyric ⋅ Leave a Comment

This week we’ve been playing ‘Yeti in my Spaghetti’ board game so that we can write a little review.

Yeti in my Spaghetti is a board games aged at ages 4 and up however my 3 and half year old did enjoy joining in and understood how to play.

You’ll need two or more players for the game and by gaming standards it’s pretty easy to understand how to play.

Theres only 3 main components to the game, the yeti (now he’s pretty cute!).

The bowl and the spaghetti. The aim of the game is simple. Don’t let the Yeti fall all the way into the bowl if you want to be the winner! The rules are simple to, just take it in turns to remove single pieces of spaghetti. Easy you might be thinking. Well yes easy to understand, difficult to be the one to not topple that cute yeti!

Pros:

We loved how simple it was
We also loved how even little people can join in
Game play is relatively short so it keeps small peoples attention span
Easy to set up, even for small people
Theres only one thing to focus on and thats the Yeti
No potential choking hazards like similar games with smaller marble sizer pieces
Easy to put away
If you just want to fill a few short minutes its quick and easy to play!

Cons:

The spaghetti needs keeping together when you remove it or you’ll end up loosing it
Other players will endure the grumps if the loser doesn’t like the fact they’ve lost!

My 6 year old desperately wanted to make a video review of the game so here it is (it’s only short but it gives you a good idea of the game!)

Thanks to University Games for sending us the game to review. I was not paid for the review and as always we are free to write are own honest opinion.