My review of the Dyson Cinetic Big Ball Vacuum Cleaner.

Anybody that knows me knows that I am very particular about how my house looks, and I'm especially fussy about my floors! After redoing our floors last year due to our dishwasher flooding our floorboards (!!!) our white concrete floor is now a standout feature in our home and keeping it looking fresh and white is really important to us.

With our 3 boys and a dog that has the run of the house,  I vacuum every day. So I wanted a vacuum cleaner that was easy to manoeuvre, has strong suction and could transition from hard floor to carpets and rugs easily because the faster I can do the job the better! 

When I got the chance to trial the Dyson Cinetic Big Ball Vacuum Cleaner I jumped at the chance as I am a huge fan of our Cordless Stick Vacuum Cleaner that we use for quick cleanups (toast crumbs after breakfast!) but I wanted something more powerful to do the whole house.

Features I loved......

* The vacuum self rights itself if it topples over. This is great if you bang the vacuum into benches, stools etc when racing to get the job done. 

* The carbon fibre turbine head means that I can move from hard floors to carpet and rugs without having to change vacuum heads.

* It's hygienic and easy to empty out the dust and debris. The bin emptying mechanism means you can tip all the dirt directly into the bin with just a push of a button. Also I love that there are no filters to clean and no vacuum bags needed. 

* No loss of suction. Due to the oscillating power of the 36 Dyson Cinetic tips, they prevent dust from building up and blocking the airflow as the dust separation is so efficient.

*The vacuum is quite compact in size so is easy to store in our laundry cupboard.

The Dyson Cinetic Big Ball also comes with other attachments if you want to change the vacuum head for a specific job. They all slide on easily with a click of a button.

The Animal Pro collects pet hair or (fluffy cushion fur!) so easily. 

The Magic Wand attachment helps you dust high shelves or awkward crevices. I found it great for my window sills and in between the timber shutters.

I would definitely recommend this vacuum if you're in the market for a new one or you need to upgrade your old one. I'm all for appliances that make cleaning your home easier!

You can read more and see some videos of the Dyson in action here

Do you have a Dyson? Who does the vacuuming in your house?

I was gifted this vacuum to review. All opinions are my own. 

I only share products I truly believe in and use myself.

An impromptu night out - 1888 hotel + Mr Wong + Palmer & Co

Simon and I had an impromptu night out in the city on Tuesday. These school holidays have been busy so it was nice to have the break with just us two. 
I'd also been offered a free night at the 1888 hotel due to having over 10k Instagram followers so we decided to take advantage of the opportunity and make it a little mini break.
We headed into the city to check into the hotel, have a wander around and decide on where we wanted to go for dinner.

 We checked in to the 1888, it had a very cool New York hotel vibe going on. It is also in a great location in Pyrmont, so close to Darling Harbour and a 5 min cab ride into the city.
We wandered over to Darling Harbour for a walk around the shops and a bite to eat. Also a couple of cocktails on a Tuesday afternoon felt very decadent!

We headed back to the hotel to hang out for a while before dinner. The bliss of having time to do nothing at all.   We decided to go to Mr Wong for dinner but stopped to have a drink in the bar downstairs before heading out.

Excuse the quality of my pics please! I only had my phone with me and the mood lighting everywhere played havoc with my pics ;)
We jumped in a cab and arrived in the lane way leading to Mr Wong. Terrific atmosphere and the place was jam packed.  Who would have thought on a Tuesday night?

There was a bit of a wait for a table so we decided to wait in the bar downstairs, Palmer and Co.

 It was very cool,  we entered via the lift and walked out to a jazz band and a dark, moody Speakeasy.

The bar staff wore bow ties and suspenders and the waitresses were dressed as flappers. I love that attention to detail!

Exposed brick seemed to be the theme of the night!

Simon had a rum and ginger beer, and I had the Deusenberg cocktail a mix of citrus, vodka and popping rocks!

Once our table was ready we went back upstairs to Mr Wong and salivated over the menu. It all looked so delicious. We shared some dumplings to start and shared the Salt & Pepper Calamari, Char Siu pork, Rice and delicious Asian greens. We are still talking about the food!

 

After dinner we walked down to the Rocks to walk off dinner and to grab a cab. We popped into the Guylian cafe to pick up some chocolates to take home to the boys the next day.
We had the best sleep, the blackout curtains at the hotel worked a treat and it was 9am before we knew it.

Breakfast in bed was the finishing touch and we went home feeling rested. It's amazing how less than 24 hours away can make a huge difference.

How have your school holidays been? Did you get the chance for a break?

My week with the Sharp Slow Juicer - also a GIVEAWAY. You could win your own!!

When I was approached by Sharp to trial their Slow Juicer I jumped at the chance. I was also excited to hear that I have 1 x Sharp Slow Juicer to giveaway to a Honey and Fizz reader!

Juice is something that our whole family loves and I knew we would have fun trying out different juice combinations and it would also save us a whole lot of money as we wouldn't have to buy any juice. Juice for 5 people really adds up!

We popped down to the local market and stocked up on fruits and vegetables we could juice.

We stuck to familiar combinations but as the weeks go on I'm sure we will become more adventurous with our flavours.

The boys loved the novelty of requesting their favourite juices and of course they loved feeding the fruit into the juicer. I was really impressed with how roughly we could get away with chopping up the produce, as the strong motor easily squeezed and juiced large chunks. 
Here are some of our favourite juice combinations

Green juice - mint, cucumber, apple and celery

Carrot, apple + ginger

Beetroot, carrot, apple + mint

Pineapple, ginger + orange

Good old, simple OJ

We got in the habit of making up a few juices at one time and kept them in the fridge. They lasted really well and didn't go watery or separate. It was so easy to have them made up to grab on the go. 

Putting the juice into our mason jars with the lids meant Simon could grab one on his way out the door and drink it on his way to work. It also looked cute ;)

We probably drank a juice a day as the juicer was really easy to use and to clean.

I think what had put us off making juice at home was what a hassle it was to pull apart a juicer and clean it. But with the Sharp Slow Juicer there were just two main parts that simply got rinsed under a hot tap and returned to the base ready to be used again. The 2 plastic jugs that came with the juicer, (1 to catch the juice and the other the pulp) were popped in the dishwasher.

If I didn't have a juice with breakfast I would make up a jug for afternoon tea.

You really can't beat fresh juice!

I also found it handy to create fresh, fruity iceblocks for the boys.

And the juicer was perfect when I needed some fresh grapefruit juice for Margaritas on the weekend.

We used this recipe
Grapefruit Margarita 2 oz. Tequila 2 oz. Grapefruit 1 oz. lime juice 1/2 oz. triple sec 1/2 oz. agave Kosher salt for rim lime wedge garnish- grapefruit slice/lime slice Add tequila, grapefruit juice, lime juice, triple sec and agave into a shaker with ice. Shake. Take lime wedge and run around lip of glass. Place salt on plate and swirl the cup lip in the salt. Add ice to glass. Strain cocktail shaker into glass. Garnish with grapefruit.

The Technical stuff! Sharp's Slow Juicer uses the slow squeezing method to achieve high extraction of nutritional juice from fruit + vegetables. This method not only provides freshly squeezed juice but also pulp that can be used in a variety of recipes.
It also has: Low Speed Pressing System Output Power: 150W Eco Friendly Ultem Screw, with Mesh Screen and Rotating Brush Easy to use and Assemble Quieter Operation Less Cleaning Time Automatic Safety Lock On, Off and Reverse Power Options Accessories: Juice Pitcher, Pulp Pitcher, Cleaning Brush and Recipe Booklet This little video explains how the Slow juicer works
The Sharp website has lots of helpful information on juice combinations, recipes for the pulp and they are offering a 14 day money back guarantee if you are not satisfied.

Simon and I really loved the Slow Juicer and found it so easy and efficient to use. The fact that it was so simple to clean really made it a winner. It is one of the few appliances on our kitchen bench that is getting used daily. Also we loved how the boys fruit + veg intake went up this week. 
If you would like the chance to win a Sharp Slow Juicer for yourself, leave me a comment below and tell me your favourite juice combination x

The winner will be drawn on Monday 7th July by Random Number Generator.

The competition will be run between here, Honey and Fizz Facebook page and on the @honeyandfizz Instagram page. 

Do you have a juicer? How often do you use it?
Disclosure - I was given the Sharp Slow Juicer to trial. I wasn't paid to write a review. I just loved it so much I wanted to share it with you. Actually I loved it so much I got Sharp to give one lucky Honey and Fizz reader their own Sharp Slow Juicer!

****UPDATED TO CONFIRM GIVEAWAY CLOSED AND THE WINNER WAS AMANDA FROM HOMELY ONE ****