Here are the most useful inventions we tried (and loved) this month
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When it comes to products, we like to think we’re connoisseurs — we test a lot of them, after all! And when one is particularly clever, we can’t help but share them with you, our dear readers (because there’s nothing worse than spending your money on a total dud of a product). So, without further ado, these are the best inventions we tried recently.
Scrub Daddy Sponge Set
Victoria Kuglin/Daily Hive
Reviewers have been about these cheerful scrubbers for ages, but now we can officially confirm: they live up to the hype. In cold water, they’re firm and ideal for tackling stubborn messes, but submerge them in warm water, and they’ll get nice and soft — perfect for cleaning delicate items. No matter how long we use them, they never get smelly, gunky, or mouldy, and they somehow never scratch up glass or other sensitive surfaces (like non-stick cookware). Plus, those eyeholes are great for keeping your grip when things get really soapy.
Breville InFizz Aqua Sparkling Water Maker
@breville/Instagram
SodaStream may be top-of-mind when it comes to at-home fizzing, but we’re awarding this Breville style extra points for its gorgeous design. It’s whisper-quiet, easy to operate, and looks good enough to leave on your countertops (so you can use your cabinets for more important things, like your grandma’s antique dishware collection). Plus, you can store leftover fizzy water in the fridge for later.
Iris USA Oscillating 4-in-1 Vortex Fan
Amazon Canada
First of all, this thing is QUIET. Despite that, it’s pretty damn powerful, allowing you to effectively circulate the air around your space in moments (with plenty of setting options to customize your experience). If you’re feeling lazy, you’ll love that it comes with a handy remote for making adjustments from bed or the couch. Reviewers love that it’s smaller than most models while still providing powerful airflow throughout their home.
Hoto Cordless 4-in-1 Handheld Vacuum
Victoria Kuglin/Daily Hive
Blast away dust from your keyboard, suck up small debris, seal vacuum-packed containers, deflate mattresses — you can do all of that with this petite gizmo. It’s actually surprisingly powerful, no matter what you’re using it for, so despite its 10-minute runtime, we found ourselves reaching for this option over other handheld vacuum styles. Once you’ve run out of juice, a few hours of recharging gets you back to full power.
Hot Poc Reusable Hand Warmer Set
Amazon Canada
The frigid temperatures that swept across the country this winter gave us the perfect opportunity to put these pouches to the test — and they delivered. A quick snap of their inner disc activates their heating powers (which lasts up to half an hour) so you can prevent your digits from freezing when you’re outside. To reset them, drop them into boiling water, and they’ll be good to go for your next outdoor adventure.
EVMT Brands Liquid Chalk
Victoria Kuglin/Daily Hive
All the gripping power of traditional chalk, none of the mess — we call that a win-win! It’ll keep your hands dry while you’re weight-lifting, rock-climbing, or playing sports, helping minimize the risk of chafing and blistering when you’re getting your sweat on. The bottle might look small, but you’ll only need a few drops to reap the benefits (just make sure you give it the requisite 10 seconds to dry).
Coway Airmega True HEPA Air Purifier
Coway
Living in a major city has plenty of advantages, but a big downside is the pollution. So in an effort to mitigate the amount of city dust and pollutants making their way into our homes, we employed this slim and stylish air purifier to help — and help it did. Perhaps its coolest feature is real-time air quality tracking that allows it to adjust its power automatically depending on conditions (plus a nifty display light lets you check the quality at a glance). The fact that it’s whisper-quiet only adds to its genius.
Philips Sonicare Power Flosser
Victoria Kuglin/Daily Hive
Anyone with braces, permanent retainers, or sensitive gums knows the struggle of trying to squeeze floss between their teeth. Rather than wrestling with endless lengths or making our gums bleed, we turned to this high-powered water flosser that acts like a power washer for your mouth. You can easily adjust the power at the push of a button, and it has a reservoir large enough to clean your whole mouth before it’s empty. The coolest part, though, is its quad-stream feature: four simultaneous streams of water allow you to rinse between teeth and under gums in one go (because we’re all about working smarter, not harder).
Foreo Kiwi Blackhead Remover Pore Vacuum
Foreo
Make no mistake, we were a bit hesitant about trying this one, mainly because it’s pretty easy to overdo it on microdermabrasion at home. Thankfully, the brand was clever (and considerate) enough to build in several intensity settings, so you can start low and slow and build up when you feel ready. A blue light tip kills any bacteria while you’re using it, reducing the risk of future acne, blackheads, and other breakouts, so now our pores are cleaner and our skin clearer than before — and all that without a professional facial!
St. Francis Herb Farm Stop It Cold Throat Spray
St. Francis Herb
Did anyone else feel personally victimized by cold and flu season this year? Because we sure did. And when nothing else helped to quell our relentless coughs and sore throats, this spray did the trick. While it certainly isn’t delicious (you won’t see us tossing it back gleefully), its taste was still far from unpleasant, and after the first couple of sprays, we noticed immediate improvement in all our cold symptoms.