Boarhunt Recovery

Having your car break down is a frustrating and sometimes dangerous experience anyway, but it's even worse when you have young children with you.  To make a long story short, my family was in a situation where our car broke down while we were driving on the motorway (freeway).  We were stuck on the small area by the side of the road with our young kids.  Having breakdown cover, we called and assumed that we would get rescued quickly.

Unfortunately, it turned out to be an absolute nightmare.  The people at Boarhunt Rescue & Recovery were mean and rude to the point of being abusive.  We were stuck waiting for hours before being dumped in a parking lot somewhere (still not knowing what was wrong with our car and still not having a way to get it to a garage/mechanic to get it checked out).  The experience was so bad that I still shudder and cringe every time that I pass a Boarhunt vehicle.  This was hands down the single worst experience that I have ever had as a customer.

In short: If you live in Southern England, and your car breaks down, do not call Boarhunt for help.  Just about anything else is a better alternative.  Be aware that they are an affiliate of the AA.  If the AA tries to send them out to help you, refuse and politely insist on an actual AA vehicle (their rescue vehicle drivers have--in my experience--always been friendly and helpful).

To find out more about my experience with Boarhunt Rescue & Recovery, click here.
To visit Boarhunt's company website and find out what they have to say for themselves, click here.

Schwarzkopf Live Colour XXL Mystic Violet Hair Dye

I have dyed my hair a lot over the years.  I was blessed with naturally thick and strong hair that can put up with a lot of abuse, and it's been through a lot of hair styles.  One of my favorite hair colors is purple (ranging from bright purple to more subtle darker hues).  Normally I love Schwarzkopf hair products, and I've used almost all of the colors in their Live range.  So I tried out the Schwarzkopf Live Color XXL Mystic Violet Hair Dye (permanent dye to use at home).

To make a long story short, the dye was terrible. (To read the long story about using this dye, click here.)  I was really disappointed in it.  Although I'll keep using Schwarzkopf products, I won't buy the mystic violet hair dye again.

Yellow Dot Nursery in Ampfield, Hants, UK

If you're a parent, then you know how difficult it can be to find good childcare and find the right educational match for your kids. 

Yellow Dot is a small group of nurseries and kindergartens in Hampshire, southern England.  They are known for their very high standards (excellent Ofsted ratings and government awards, and long waiting lists because of good word-of-mouth reviews by parents). 

In Ampfield, a small area nestled between Romsey and Hursley, there is a Yellow Dot Nursery.  They have a baby room, a toddler room, a transition room, and a kindergarten (for preschool aged children).  They have great facilities and a high standard of child care. 

I was impressed from my very first visit there.  To read more about my initial visit to Yellow Dot Nursery, click here.


Both of my children later regularly attended Yellow Dot in Ampfield.  They both loved it there.  My oldest daughter is now in school, but she still talks about how much she loved Yellow Dot.  I have nothing but praise for their work with children.  My only complaints that I've had with them are with the woman in charge of finances (she was unreliable and frequently made mistakes on our bills, etc.).

Click here to visit the official Yellow Dot website (for all Yellow Dot locations, including the nursery in Ampfield).

Nando's in Eastleigh, Hants, UK

My family first went to Nando's about two years ago for the "soft opening" of their Eastleigh location.  We were really impressed by them then, and have continued to enjoy going there since.  They have a good atmosphere, delicious affordable food, and a convenient location.  This is definitely my favorite place to stop for a quick meal in Eastleigh.

Click here to visit the official Nando's website.

Plum Fromage Frais

Plum is a company that makes high-end organic baby food.  Their foods are tasty (I like snacking on them along with my kids) and very nutritious. 

Their fromage frais pots come in great flavors full of natural ingredients that help to aid digestion.  They are delicious, healthy, and perfect for weaning kids.  They do cost about twice what I would normally pay for fromage frais, but they are a very good product.

Click here to find out more about Plum Fromage Frais, or visit the official Plum website.

Ecolibrium Paint

I'll be really straightforward.  I love Ecolibrium's paints.  I used their interior wall paints.  They have a great range of beautiful colors (think nature tones, but a wide variety), and were really easy to use (we did our own redecorating).  They are safer and greener than just about any other paint in the market.  Several months later, I still love the way the paint looks. 

If you're doing some painting inside your home or office, I highly recommend Ecolibrium paints.  I would definitely buy them again.

To find out more about why I like Ecolibrium paints, click here.
To visit the Ecolibrium website and view their full range of products, click here.

No 7 Protect & Perfect Night Cream

I should probably begin by saying that I do not normally use a night cream.  I don't consistently use any face cream.  However, as I'm  prone to dry skin, I was happy to try out No7 Protect & Perfect Night Cream from Boots.

The cream comes in a nice little plastic pot, is a generic white color and creamy texture, and has a cosmeticsy smell (slightly old lady-ish, but not strong).  I tried putting a little on my face at night.  Overall I have to say that I did not notice any significant difference from using it.  The Protect & Perfect Night Cream did not rub particularly well into my skin, and my skin was still dry after using it.  I don't think it absorbed very well.  It also didn't seem to help with wrinkles, bags, skin irritations, etc.  Basically it was the same as not using it, only my skin felt a bit greasier after applying it.

I would not buy this product.

Disclaimer: I was given a sample pot of No7 Protect & Perfect Night Cream with some other cosmetics from Boots.  I do not have any relationship with Boots and this post is based on my opinion. 

Asda Brand Laundry Products

Like most people these days, I've thought about ways to save money on my weekly shopping and household costs.  Having a family we create a lot of laundry, and so use a lot of laundry products.  I usually buy the name-brand products.  In an effort to save some money, I decided to try out Asda brand laundry products and compare.

First off, the Asda brand products were cheaper when both the Asda items and name brand items were at their normal prices.  However, the name brand products like Persil and Comfort often go on offer so that the price difference is not as great.

I tried out the cheap Asda brand stain spray, non-bio laundry detergent, and fabric softener.

The stain spray smelled bad and didn't remove stains.  The loads without any stain spray at all were cleaned equally with the ones using stain spray, so that was a total waste of money.

The non-bio laundry detergent did not get our clothes as clean as the name brand alternatives.  Also, my daughter has eczema and her skin was irritated by the clothes washed with the Asda laundry powder.

The fabric softener didn't soften our clothes nearly as much as name brand softener.  This means that our clothes/towels/etc. were left rough to the touch which, again, irritated my daughter's skin (and didn't feel nice for any of us).

So here's my prognosis: Asda's brand laundry products are not worth the small amount of money I saved using them.  I'll stick to Persil and Comfort in the future.

To find out more about my experiences using Asda brand laundry products, click here.