Growing Spaces

Review: Save time on housework with the iRobot Roomba 966

Review: Save time on housework with the iRobot Roomba 966

I won’t be doing much cleaning over the bank holiday weekend *smug face*. Wanna know why? Because I’ve finally found something that’s helped me to keep on top of the endless housework that comes hand-in-hand with a busy family home with two young kids, a mud-loving puppy and a constantly-moulting cat. I’ve got to be honest, when the iRobot Roomba 966 – an all-singing, all-dancing robot vacuum cleaner – first arrived, I was cynical. It comes with a hefty price tag (retails at around £800), so it needed to be something pretty special to convince me it would make a…

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Gardening made easy with Fiskars

Gardening made easy with Fiskars

How confident a gardener are you? When it comes to indoor plants, my confidence has sky-rocketed over the last few years, but as soon as I step out of the back door, it’s a totally different story. And it seems that I’m not alone – recent research by garden tool supplier Fiskars has revealed that 41 is the age Britons offically ‘get into gardening’. And I’m also one of the three in ten adults (according to the research) who still rely on their parents to sort out their outdoor space! Busted. So when Fiskars invited me to join a gang of fellow…

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Detect water leaks instantly with the new Grohe Sense

Detect water leaks instantly with the new Grohe Sense

We are lucky enough not to have experienced any serious flooding in our home (well, there was that one time in our first flat when Ben drilled through the mains water pipe, and I had to hold a towel tightly around the pipe for over half an hour while he tried to locate the stop cock, but let’s not talk about that, ok?). But the damage caused by a leak – whether thanks to a burst or leaking pipe or a faulty appliance like a washing machine – can be extensive and expensive, and I’m definitely keen to find a way to guard against…

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How to add fun colour to a kid’s room

How to add fun colour to a kid’s room

I’m a big fan of decorating with neutrals, but I make an exception when it comes to the kids’ bedrooms, where we’ve taken a more colourful approach. When these were decorated a couple of years ago, we used bright colours that the twins chose themselves (yellow for Ez, and a vivid green for Fonz) – these feel fun, fresh and full of energy. When it comes to kids’ rooms, one super-easy way to add colour that can be changed very easily is with bed linen. The bed tends to be the largest piece of furniture in the room, and so it’s…

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DIY gutter herb planter with Gorilla Glue

DIY gutter herb planter with Gorilla Glue

One thing we’ve been wanting to do since we finished our big modern garden makeover at the end of the summer is to make use of the back of the built-in bench which is right next to our back door. We do have a wall planter on the fencing, but I fancied having a couple of herb planters closer to the door, filled with the herbs I use most often when cooking. I’ve used some offcuts of rain guttering for this DIY project, along with a pot of original Gorilla Glue. This super-strong adhesive will bond a whole host of different materials to each…

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