Mae Reviews: Purrfect Box

24th October 2015

It’s not just me that benefits from one of the perks of blogging. Much to the postman’s amusement we sometimes get a package addressed to Mae as well and she loves it! This is the third time we’ve been sent a Purrfect Box to review and we still think it’s a brilliant idea. The Purrfect Box is a monthly subscription which costs £19.90 a month, or £15.90 per month if you take out a years subscription. The contents of the box are guaranteed to be worth at least £30 with 4-6 premium products inside so it’s a pretty sweet deal, especially as each box is catered to your feline’s needs and preferences. Let me know if you’d decide to treat your feline friend to a box- I’ll be picking up a few on a one off basis throughout the year, I can’t afford it on a monthly basis but as an every so often treat I think it’s wonderful!

I won’t lie, Mae is not an easy cat to please. She knows what she likes and point blank ignores anything that doesn’t take her fancy. She’s also not prone to showing enthusiasm so when I bought the box upstairs to open up I was really quite surprised that she jumped straight in, literally.

Her favourite item was hands down the laser toy by Ethical. Her last laser toy broke and she has missed it. She actually pulled this out of the box and started pawing at it for me to get it open faster for her before haring around like a maniac after that elusive red dot for a good twenty minutes. Some people really dislike laser toys for cats but I think used sensibly they are really good fun for both cat and owner.

Another firm favourite was the dragonfly toy also by Ethical. Toys are one of those items she either loves or hates and she has her favourites for sure. I’ve watched her root through her toy basket countless times trying to seek out a hidden favourite in favour of nice shiny new toys so it was touch and go whether she’d give this dragonfly the time of day. The two have barely been parted for the last few days so I think it’s fair to say it’s a winner in our eyes (apart from at 3am when it’s been thrown against my bedroom door).

Food wise again I have a fickle beast but the chicken ‘n fish treats from Filous and the sachet of food from Equilibre and Instinct were both wolfed down in moments. Mae has a bit of a weak spot when it comes to treats so these are being closely rationed but I think we’ve found a new favourite here! Less enthusiastically received was the tube of salmon cream by Trixie. Meant as some kind of pudding for cats Mae won’t even get close enough to this to sniff it so I can’t really give this a fair review.

The last couple of products still have the jury out. I think the catnip tray will be a hit once it has grown as Mae loves nothing more than chowing down on plants in the garden. Whether she’ll be as taken with something she’s actually allowed to eat I don’t know but we shall see! I haven’t quite got round to testing out the shampoo from Nilaqua yet although my moggy certainly needs a good wash thanks to her love of rolling around in the mud. This is a no rinse shampoo that can be removed with simple towel drying so it sounds fantastic on paper. In reality the chances of Mae tolerating a good rub down with a towel are slim to none!

Have you given Purrfect Box a try before? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Even though there were a couple of products that are wasted on Mae I know plenty of other felines who will appreciate them so I think any box I purchased in the future certainly wouldn’t go to waste!

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Mae Reviews- Cat Hampurr

01st May 2015

I’m not sure Mae always deserves the treats she gets sent thanks to my blog. Between beheading every flower in sight, leaving dead mice for me to find first thing in the morning and destroying all of the carpet in the house (so thankful we don’t rent!) she is quite a challenge. Regardless, I wouldn’t be without her as she keeps me sane and entertained and is generally just lovely and that’s why I gratefully accepted an offer from Cat Hampurr who offered to send us their 1st anniversary box which included some of their most popular products over the last twelve months.

Cat Hampurr is a monthly subscription box that offers a whole host of options. From the £6 per box bi-monthly delivery to the £21.90 double trouble box for the multi-cat household there is something to cater for all feline fiends. We were sent the £11.95 monthly hampurr option which boasted a great selection of hand (paw?) selected treats and toys, all of which were a hit. What I really love about Cat Hampurr is that the toys are often hand made by small businesses and unlike anything you’ll find in your typical pet shop. This means Mae gets to try something totally new AND we’re supporting the little people in the pet industry.

As you can see from the photos Mae was loving the toys in this box. The flying frenzy has been a great source of entertainment to my little bundle of energy, she is most bemused by the feathers and dives headfirst in to her toy basket to pull this out.
The EcoKitty catnip pillow has become a comfort item to Mae and she sleeps with her head on it the majority of the time. The one in this box was a limited edition but you can pick one up for £3.99 from the website and I know we’ll be re-stocking the second this one loses it’s scent.

On the food front the treats in this box were major winners. The two tuna loins from Applaws looked good enough for human consumption and once open keep for a week in the fridge- although there was no chance they were going to last that long! Equally as well received were the freeze dried treats from Natures Menu. It doesn’t sound appealing to me but Mae loved the chicken and liver flavour snacks she was sent and I liked the fact they were 95% real meat, and free from gluten, artificial colours/flavours/preservatives.

Every bit as popular was the Fish4Cats complete cat food made up of 65% fish with added cranberry, amino acids and minerals to aid with urinary tract health. We give dry food as an day available supplement to wet food pouches, but these barely lasted five minutes. Strict rations have been applied!

Overall both Mae and myself thought this box was brilliant and we’ll certainly be signing up for the odd monthly box when behaviour dictates one is deserved! £11.95 gets you a high quality box crammed full of “not on the high street” products that I feel is worth every penny. The little fiend curled up next to me, gently snoring and leaving a puddle of drool on her cat nip pillow agrees.

Have you ever tried pet subscription boxes? What was your experience if so? We are yet to be let down by one!

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Just Purrfect

19th January 2015

Back in September I reviewed the first edition of the Purrfect Box. It’s been going for a few months now, and after such a brilliant first experience with it I was delighted when I was contacted again about reviewing the Christmas edition. Now, I know Christmas has long been and gone but due to a hiccup with delivery the box arrived later than planned- it didn’t matter one bit to Mae though, she still got stuck in with great enthusiasm!

The box was filled full of festive treats, and although Mae looks quite nonchalant in the photos she really was quite excited- she’s just the queen of playing it cool. This is also the reason why we had our photo session on the stairs, it’s currently Mae’s playground of choice and despite my best efforts nowhere else would do!

Highlights from the Christmas box were the Chick’n Snack Sandwiches from Karlie Flamingo which she is just besotted with. The bag isn’t going to last us very long at all and these will be a definite repurchase. Toy wise it had to be the gingerbread man on a stick, when she isn’t busy batting the stuffing out of it she is carrying it around the house in her mouth- bashing it in to doors and furniture. Actually, and unusually for Mae all of the toys in this months box were a hit- the little merry mice and the play ‘n fill toys have had their fair share of time spent stuck in fierce feline jaws too!

The treats in the Good Girl multi pack weren’t quite to Mae’s taste, she’s not a fan of milky or cat nip treats, but Tobias (Ben’s cat) has benefitted from these- he’s never one to turn down a special snack, or indeed any snack!

The one product we haven’t really tried yet is the grooming mitt, the second I get anywhere near Mae with it she runs a mile. She’s only one for being groomed when it’s on her terms, and lately it hasn’t been top of her agenda. I’ll report back though, if I get anywhere with her as I think it’s a brilliant idea- and if she continues to ignore it I’ll send it Tobias’ way as well, he loves a good brush.

As I said in my September post, I really do think Purrfect Box is a marvellous idea. The Purrfect Box is a monthly subscription which costs £19.90 a month, or £15.90 per month if you take out a years subscription. The contents of the box are guaranteed to be worth at least £30 with 4-6 premium products inside so it’s a pretty sweet deal, especially as each box is catered to your feline’s needs and preferences. Let me know if you’d decide to treat your feline friend to a box- I’ll be picked up a few on a one off basis throughout the year, I can’t afford it on a monthly basis but as an every so often treat I think it’s wonderful!

Not a cat owner but have a pooch you want to pamper? There’s also the Pawsome Box too!

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In the Morning Light

05th November 2014

Last week gave us one of those rare mornings, where thanks to the change in the clocks the garden was bathed in golden sunshine at just 7:15 in the morning. Never one to waste an opportunity (and running early for work for once in my life) I set up my tripod and grabbed some photos of a dress I’ve been itching to share.

Clearly I hadn’t had quite enough coffee yet as upon reviewing the photos I was a little disappointed that things had come out a little blurry and I’d failed to get the settings quite right, live and learn eh?

Dress: Marks and Spencer | Boots: New Look | Bracelet: New Look

I first saw this dress in a preview e-mail of the A/W collection from M&S and fell in love with it, everything from the dusky blue colour to the delicately embellish collar screamed “buy me”. A trip in to town a few weeks later saw me fall further in love as the dress looked even more perfect in real life. I didn’t buy it that day though, for whatever reason and buyers remorse kicked in. A couple of weeks later I was back in town and saw the dress again, this time in the sale reduced from £35 to £22…looks like shopping karma strikes again! It might look super simple, and really it is, but this is such a lovely dress for this time of year and the collar means accessories can be kept to a minimum. I’m a big fan of a pretty collar and they don’t come much prettier than this!

I wasn’t really sure what shoes to pair with the colour of the dress if I’m honest, black seemed to harsh and my grey Zara ankle boots didn’t really work either. In the end I settled for these brown boots from New Look which I just can’t bring myself to get rid of, they are so very comfortable even if they aren’t the most attractive shoe in the world. The outfit still didn’t feel quite right though so if you have any shoe suggestions then do send them my way!

It’s bonfire night tonight and I am so tired after an event last night and an early start at work that any plans to go for a walk to watch other people’s displays have long since vanished- last year resulted in Ben and I playing with sparklers in the park, this year will be more of a cup of tea and glance out of the window type affair! I’m not massive fan of fireworks anyway, unless they are part of an organised display. I live in a really residential area where people insist on setting off industrial sized rockets- Mae is a cowering wreck for the days leading up to and days after the 5th of November and that makes me all kind of mad.

Are you off to any displays over the next few days? I can’t wait to see some photos…

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Instaspam

30th October 2014

A new month can mean only one thing…it’s time for the latest dump of instagram photos and it seems lately I’ve been snapping more bits of my life than ever…October was the month where I finally joined the real world and got myself an iPhone, which means I’ve been taking full advantage of having a decent camera on my phone and an internet connection that works!