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The highlights: What is it?: An eyebrow growth serum that you use once a day before bed to encourage your eyebrow hairs to grow Does it work?: Yes - but only if you hair follicles are lazy - if they have died, for example due to overplucking, then no hair growth serum will ever work. You know your brows so if the hairs grow but they take forever, then give this a go. If the hairs never grow, then this probably won't work either! Would I buy it again?: Yes Other options?: Many different named brands have eyebrow growth serums in their repertoire, so there are other options out there, but I haven't tried any one them yet...if there is one you want to test, let me know and I will order it. Where to buy: I got it from ForChics but I have now seen that this is also on Amazon It would be lovely to have you check in on future posts, please subscribe  if you think this too! This stuff worked for me! One tube of ForChics eyebrow growth serum lasts a little over a month using it once a day every day. You pop it on on a night before bed. It is a sponge applicator, the same as lip gloss type applicators. It goes on smoothly, isn't sticky or smelly, has dried by the time you've finished brushing your teeth and acts overnight to make your eye brows grow more. I did not touch my eyebrows at all for 4 weeks for my before picture...then I used this product for 4 weeks to take my after picture, and there are definitely more hairs there now than there were before. Here's the comparison video of my brows at before and after 30 days of using ForChics ForBrow Eyebrow Enhancing Serum: You do need to be aware that hair growth serums will never bring back to life dead hair follicles, but they do make lazy follicles work a bit harder to increase hair growth. That said, at the time of buying this and writing this post in June 2021, ForChics ForBrow Eyebrow Enhancing Serum comes with a moneyback guarantee. Provided that you take a time stamped picture of your brows on day 1, 15 and 30 you can send those photos off if the growth serum does not work for you in order to get your money back. So, you have nothing to lose in giving it a go! Just make sure you buy it via PayPal so you can use their dispute resolution service if needed. Now I’m not necessarily saying that this is the best eyebrow hair growth serum on the market (I haven’t tried them all) but it does work, and with a money back guarantee it is one of the safer options to give a go. In fact, I was so impressed by this product, that I have decided to add to my list of future reviews their eyelash growth serum too...I have too much to review right now to buy some, but I might get some for when I get to the bottom of the massive pile of products I am testing these days, and when I do I’ll link it here too. I hope you found this review helpful! If you did, please subscribe  to be kept in the future blog posts loop. With love Rebecca xxx P.S. Please note that this blog may contain affiliate links (including those to Amazon). When you click on the link and purchase the product, I receive a small commission.

The highlights: What is it?: A green stick which is solid but you basically draw on your face with it to create a face mask Does it work? Sort of Would I buy it again? Probably not Other options?: lots of face masks are on the market, each claiming to do one thing or another Where to buy: I got it from an online store off the back of a facebook advert, but it looks as though they don't sell it anymore - but, a quick search on Amazon r eveals a few people selling this, or something similar, now! It would be really lovely (if you like this post and want to receive updates on future posts) if you could subscribe  - it's so nice to have you here, and I would be super happy to have you come back in the future! So, the mask stick goes on smoothly enough, although the stick itself is so wide (about half an inch) that trying to get into small gaps such as between your nose and cheek, was quite difficult. Once the green stick face mask is on, it goes a light green colour as it starts to dry. The adverts I had seen on facebook which enticed me to buy this product give the impression that lots of black dots appear on your face due to the mask having pulled the impurities out of your skin. Here's the cotton wool pad after I had wiped the green stick face mask off...no black dots at all! So, the green stick face mask does pull some stuff out of your skin. As you wipe it off, it did leave behind little white bits coming out of my pores, which I can only imagine were tiny whiteheads being dragged out. However, overall, it left my skin feeling very dry so I suspect it works by drying the skin out which results in the whiteheads coming out. It certainly did not create masses of black dots, and nor did it make my skin go from having visible pores in places to being a completely flawless porcelain look, which is what the advert suggests. Again, annoyingly the advert is over exaggerating what this product can do. Although, at least this product does do something like what it is supposed to, even if it is not as dramatic as the advert suggests. Further, when I used this a second time, it did very little. All in all, I would say this is a poor substitute for a solid cleanse, tone, moisturise routine. I hope you found this review helpful! If you did, please subscribe  to be kept in the future blog posts loop. with love Rebecca xxx P.S. Please note that this blog may contain affiliate links (including those to Amazon). When you click on the link and purchase the product, I receive a small commission.

The highlights:   What is it?:  A waterproofing spray for shoes Does it work?:  Yes Would I buy it again?:  Yes Other options?:  Yes, lots of other brands make a spray to make your shoes waterproof like Grangers , Liquiproof , Jason Markk , Renapur , Nikwax , and the list goes on - so there are other options out there - I haven't tested any of these though, so can't say how effective they are - but if you buy or use another brand, feel free to comment below to say if it's any good! Or, to suggest I review it! Always happy to try new products! Where to buy:   I got this Crep Protect Shoes Protector Spray from Amazon here in the UK - if you are reading from beyond the UK, I have set the Amazon link to include matches to similar products if this one is not available for where you are. So, if you want to buy this specific one, it is the Crep Protect brand that you're looking for (see the pic below to check against) - if that's not available, it means that it is not sold in your country. It would be really lovely (if you like this post and want to receive updates on future posts) if you could subscribe  - it's so nice to have you here, and I would be super happy to have you come back in the future! I am pretty impressed by this little spray! It did make my converse waterproof! The can for the Crep Protect Shoe Protector Spray says that it uses Nano Technology (whatever that is! lol!) to make shoes waterproof (although I did have to wear magnifying glasses to read the can!). The can says that it works by creating an 'invisible protective barrier that prevents rain and stains from spoiling your shoes'. I tested this on my converse, which are canvas shoes. Crep Protect Shoe Protector Spray declares itself as being suitable for use on leather, suede, nubuck and canvas shoes. It also claims to help create a barrier for stains, but I didn't have an opportunity to test if that works or not - I am guessing that if the stain is liquid, it would work in the same way as it does for water, but not sure if this would work for all types of stains, like scuff marks and beyond. It is very easy to use this spray. The instructions tell you to clean your shoes first, so if they are going to get wet doing this, then make sure you leave them to dry fully before applying this spray - in fact, you could do that while you wait for the order to arrive through the post if you do decide to order some :) Not gonna lie, I didn't bother cleaning my converse first - I think I was a little impatient to test this! Then, once they are clean and dry, shake the can, hold the can 20cm away, spray it on, wait 10 minutes, spray on another layer, wait 10 minutes then you are good to go! I used gloves when spraying my shoes, because I have skin that can dry out very easily (see the post on my favourite hand creams if this situation is familiar to you). However, the instructions don't say you have to wear gloves, but the safety info does say that the spray can cause skin irritation so gloves or hand washing immediately after use may be needed anyway! Spraying the shoe The yellow push down on the spray bit doesn't have any resistance, so it doesn't hurt your finger to hold it down as you are spraying the shoe. The spray does have a slight smell, which actually reminded me a little of nail polish. I sprayed these shoes in a well ventilated area, so the smell didn't hang around for long, so I wasn't too worried about that. Once it is dry, I couldn't really smell the spray on the shoe itself - there was a very, very light scent of the smell of the spray, but you would have to be really close to the shoe to smell it - like actually shoving your nose on the shoe sniffing a shoe kind of close! You could always spray them outside or in a garage if you are worried about the smell - the instructions do say that you should spray in a well-ventilated area or outside. Plus there's all the usual safety info about keeping it away from fire, how to dispose and store etc - here's the pic of that info: The instructions advise that you test the spray on an inconspicuous area of the shoe (presumably to check if it changes the colour of the shoe, or otherwise impacts on it) but because I was testing this on an old pair of converse, I skipped that step - I'm not too worried about the red on my converse changing to a different shade of red :) Also, I could only test this on canvas shoes - I don't own any other shoes anymore. Now that I'm a student I don't have much call for fancy leather heels anymore. Plus, I've been a converse-wearing-whenever-I-go-out-dancing kind of girl for over a decade, so beyond when I was going to work (you can't really get away with wearing converse in the court room!), I never really wore heels anyway! So, once the spray had dried after 2 applications, it does form a protective layer - you can tell as the water sits like a little bubble on the outside of the canvas: First testing the waterproof quality of the shoes after the 2 applications required by the instructions It’s hard to tell 100% (because the can is not see-through), but by shaking it beside my ear it sounds as if about a third of the can has gone. That's with 2 applications on 2 shoes - so one pair of shoes gets you through about a third of the can. I also wanted to see what the waterproof barrier was like after a few weeks, so this is 3 weeks after the initial application: Testing the waterproof quality 3 weeks after the initial spray application You can see that the water runs off the material quite easily. However, it is not as effective as three weeks ago. Also, where the sole of the shoe meets the material, water did get through and make the inside of the shoe wet. However, the water did not go through to the inside of the shoe where it was just material on the outside that was getting wet. So, it may be that you would have to do top-up applications where the material of the shoe meets the soles, but all-in-all, this seems to work and work quite well! Definitely worth buying some to have around for particularly wet days, which, let's face it, we get a few of here in the UK! I hope you found this review helpful! If you did, please subscribe  to be kept in the future blog posts loop. with love Rebecca xxx P.S. Please note that this blog may contain affiliate links (including those to Amazon). When you click on the link and purchase the product, I receive a small commission.

The highlights:   What is it?:  AA and AAA batteries that are used in so many household electronics, but these little guys are rechargeable, so I bought the ones that come with a docking station to recharge them. The charging station I bought came with AA batteries, so I also bought some AAA batteries separately . If you do decide to buy these, make sure you either buy the charging station separately, or buy the batteries that come with the charging station for your first purchase. Does it work?:  Yes, yes, yes - and if you buy some and they don't work then the specific ones sent to you are faulty and you need to contact the seller for a replacement (or refund)! Would I buy it again?:  Yes - in fact, I already have bought more of the rechargeable batteries so that I can have some charged and ready to go when I need them! Other options?:  Mine are Energizer, but there are a few different brands that do rechargeable batteries, so yes, some options are out there. Where to buy:  I actually bought mine from Tesco , but they are also available on Amazon , and I have seen them in high street shops (like B&M and Home Bargains). I imagine your local supermarket might sell these too, so maybe check next time you are in store! It would be really lovely (if you like this post and want to receive updates on future posts) if you could subscribe  - it's so nice to have you here, and I would be super happy to have you come back in the future! So on to thew review of these rechargeable batteries by Energizer... Oh rechargeable batteries, where have you been my whole life? Honestly, I don’t know why it has taken me over 40 years to discover these! (hehemmmm showing my age!) I’ve used so many disposable batteries! What a waste of money! Not to mention the impact on the environment! Now, when I go to the supermarket and see the "old batteries drop off recycling unit" it makes me so sad - so many batteries that have had a one use lifetime and could have been replaced with reusable ones! Seriously! These rechargeable batteries are awesome! I highly recommend your buying some! These little guys last just as long as normal batteries (or at least I haven't noticed them running out of juice any quicker than normal batteries), but you don’t throw them away when they are all out of power! Instead, whop them in the charger for the recommended time on the instructions and that’s it! Fully charged and ready to go again! Saving money and reducing the impact of non-reusable batteries on the environment! Just make sure you don't try and charge batteries that are not rechargeable - that would be dangerous! That said, the Energizer ones do say "Recharge" on them, so pay attention to that if you are using up old non-rechargeable batteries before or during the switch to these. Also, there will be extra safety information on the ones that you do buy, so pay attention to that! The Energizer charging station I got has green lights to indicate that the batteries are charging. BUT these lights do not change colour once the batteries are fully charged, so do not wait for this as an indication and make sure you don't have them charging to over the time in the instructions. For example, mine says not to recharge the batteries for longer than 8 hours, so I set a reminder alarm on my phone when it is time to unplug them to remind me. The charger I bought takes 4 or 2 batteries at a time, and you can charge either AA or AAA batteries in it, which is great as it means you don’t need to buy more than one charging station for what are likely the most popular battery sizes. The charging station is in two sides, so you have to put the batteries next to each other with 2 on the left and/or 2 on the right - but not one on the left and one on the right! It connects to the power socket via a USB cable, so you’ll need either a USB output, adapter plug, or plug to charge these up, but it isn't too big and fits in my hand. Safety First - Battery Storage! Always store the charged batteries (and any batteries for the matter) in proper containers. My mum bought my containers for me, and I think she got them from ebay, but they look similar to these . My storage boxes are quite basic, but they do the job of keeping the batteries from touching each other, so reduce the risk of sparks! Who knew that batteries touching could cause fires!! Seriously! Google it - the risk is real! However, if you want a fancier looking case or one with more options beyond space for just AA or AAA batteries, Amazon have quite a few options that you can pick from. I have been using rechargeable batteries for several months now, and they are great! I have them in my wireless mouse for my computer, and have not noticed having to change them any more regularly than with normal batteries, so they seem to last pretty well! Plus, I'm at my desk 7 days a week - Monday to Friday I am working on my PhD from about 7.30am to anything from 3-5pm, and on the weekend I work on this blog, or on my website for my jewellery making business - so the batteries in this little mouse have certainly been put to the test! Not really much else to say about these - they work, and they work well! So head over to Tesco or Amazon , and add them to your basket! I hope you found this review helpful! If you did, please subscribe  to be kept in the future blog posts loop. with love Rebecca xxx P.S. Please note that this blog may contain affiliate links (including those to Amazon). When you click on the link and purchase the product, I receive a small commission.

The highlights:   What is it?:  A handmade candle - always a lovely gift for someone! This one is very big at 50cls, but they also make smaller ones, which might be better as a gift because they also come in a gift box. Does it work?:  Yes Would I buy it again?:  Yes, and if I had disposable income, I think I would buy these at least every few months, but now, being a student, I probably wouldn't buy this for myself because I don't have that level of disposable income. I would definitely buy one of these as a gift for someone who I know loves candles though! They also make smaller candles, so I think I would buy one of them as a special treat for myself in the future. Other options?:  Loads of people out there are making candles these days - both handmade by small independent businesses, and also the larger companies that mass produce them. Of course, not all candles are created equal, and it can be disappointing when you buy a nice candle that turns out not to be too nice at all! Where to buy:  I got this one from Hamish Candles on Amazon here in the UK. (Who knew that Amazon have a special shop set up just for handmade products?) The candle I got is a fragrance inspired by the aftershave, Creed, but they also do a whole host of other lovely sounding smells. They also appear to offer international shipping, so hopefully if you like this review and want to buy this outside of the UK, you can. It would be really lovely (if you like this post and want to receive updates on future posts) if you could subscribe  - it's so nice to have you here, and I would be super happy to have you come back in the future! I bought this candle for two reasons. Firstly, I like to have a candle burning whilst I am working at my desk - I find it makes studying all day a little bit more enjoyable, plus I have a dog, and if you have a dog sleeping beside you letting off every now and again, you probably go looking for nice smelling candles too! lol! Secondly, I picked this company, Hamish Candles , because it is a small independent business making candles by hand here in the UK. I like to support small businesses as much as possible, especially considering I have a small independent business making and selling jewellery (here's the link to my small business if you want to check those out - shameless self plug going on there!), so I know how hard it can be to build a customer base! The large candle that I bought is 50cl and made from Soy Wax. It is 12cms or 4 and 3/4 inches in diameter, so it is quite a big one. Due to its size (I imagine) it doesn't come in a gift box, which is a shame if thinking of buying a gift for someone. That said, their smaller candles do come in gift boxes - so definitely check those out if thinking of buying a gift for someone. They can also do customisable labels to add little messages like Happy Birthday, or With Sympathy so you can adapt the gift to the circumstances. They can also add company logos, so they could be used as part of promotions, which is pretty cool! They also appear to ship internationally, so that's good for all the non-UK readers out there! As soon as it arrived, and before I even opened the box, I could smell the candle. I thought, wow, that's impressive, but then when I opened it, it was because there was some fragrance oil in the box itself. It must have been a spillage - it didn't impact on the candle at all, and sort of confirms to me that this really is handmade, but I did get the fragrance oil on my hands, which is unfortunate. That said, I used to make soaps...like this one.... So I know that if you do spill fragrance oil it is very hard to clean up - the oily-ness makes it difficult to wipe off. On a side note, if you ever order anything with fragrance oil in it, like candles, or reed diffusers, and you get the oil on your hands, make sure you wash them with soap and water straight away. Fragrance oil can be an irritant, so it's best not to leave it on your fingers! It can also damage surfaces, so make sure the you put down a stand of some sort, like an old coaster, to stop any residual oil from touching any surfaces. Anyway, aside from the fragrance oil in the box, which like I said did not impact at all on the candle itself, I am really impressed by this candle. The candle came well wrapped and had these little cards in them - another sign of something being handmade for sure! One of the cards is a simple "thank you card" with the maker's name on it, and the other is a "caring for your candle" advice card, which is really lovely! The candle also has the safety labels on the candle itself, which is good. The little business card also confirms that this candle is hand poured soy wax. It also says that wholesale is available (if you run a little shop and are looking for a good quality candle maker) and that they do refills, which is something I like from a sustainability perspective. The candle itself is very large and very strong in scent! In fact, it is so strong that I had to move it off my desk and put it at the other end of the room! Having it on my desk was a little overpowering! Within about 10 minutes, if you are near the candle, you can smell it. So if you have a small room, the smaller candles they do might be the better choice! Or if you have a large room, I wouldn't recommend having this candle too close to where you are sitting. It would be really lovely to light it when expecting company though - about an hour before they arrive should be enough to fill the whole room! Once lit, it takes about 30-60 minutes to fill my room (which is quite large) with the lovely smell. I like this fragrance, although I have no idea if it actually smells like Creed aftershave! lol! The scents that make up the candle are: Blackcurrant, Bergamot, Calville Blanc Apples and Pineapple. It says it has mid notes of Louisiana Birch, Moroccan Jasmine and Patchouli with a Base of Oak Moss, Musk, Ambergris and Vanilla. Basically, it smells lovely! The wicks are really easy to relight after they have been lit. I have had handmade candles in the past where I have struggled to relight the wicks or where they sat in too much wax or once lit were not staying alight. I did not have that problem with this candle. Here's a pic of when I first lit it: It also gives a really clean burn - none of those soot marks up the side of the candle (unless, of course, you light it using a short lighter - instead try a long lighter, like these which are apparently rechargeable and don't use gas! I have added this one to my 'to test' category, so if you want to keep updated on a review of this, make sure you subscribe !). Also, the burn on this candle is quite even compared to other candles I have had, both handmade and shop bought. One of the things I really dislike about candles is the wax that stays up the side of the container and feels like a waste. This candle has less of that happening, although there is still some wax up the side of the glass. I think I will try and melt that back into the candle to make this one last for as long as possible. As this is soy wax, it is also very soft when warm, so melts easily back into the pool at the bottom! So far, I have had this candle burning for a total of 17 hours and 30 minutes (added up over a series of days - not all at once), and it's just over halfway through the candle. It does say on Amazon that it is +60 hours burn time, but I am not sure this one will last that long - I will come back and update this post once the candle is finished to confirm how many hours burn I got out of it in total though. The description on Amazon also says that this is an eco-conscious and eco-friendly product, with lead-free cotton wicks. It also says that it is paraben and cruelty free, as well as being vegan friendly. So all in all, I am impressed by this candle - if you are thinking of a gift for someone, this candle or the smaller option , would be really lovely! Plus, it is really nice to have candles that have more masculine smells to them - I really like the smells of aftershaves, so it is nice to fill the room with this! I hope you found this review helpful! If you did, please subscribe  to be kept in the future blog posts loop. with love Rebecca xxx P.S. Please note that this blog may contain affiliate links (including those to Amazon). When you click on the link and purchase the product, I receive a small commission.

Yeah so this is pretty cool! The highlights: What is it?: A green aloe vera lipstick lip balm that once on your lips changes colour into various shades of pink Where to buy: I got this from an ebay seller, and you can access that shop here . You can also give it a search on Amazon Does it work? Yes. For sure! Would I buy it again? No, but only because I don't wear pink lipsticks, so the colour isn't to my liking, but if it was I would definitely buy this again. The product This is super cool stuff! It comes and it is a freaky looking green colour and, am not going to lie, I was genuinely massively sceptical on this one! But, put it on and within seconds it does change colour.... It does leave a pink stain on tissue when you first put it on (which contradicted some of the adverts I had seen showing that this didn't happen) but not to the same degree as normal lip glosses or balms. Once it has been on for a while, it turns into a stain more than a gloss, so it does not budge at all - and at that stage it hardly marks white tissues at all! It feels pretty moisturising and does not appear to fade away too quickly - I put is on 3 hours ago, and have had lunch and drinks since then, and it still seems ok - am impressed. The Down Side: Once it gets to the stage where it no longer marks the tissue, it also at that stage no longer feels like a gloss. That said, although it then felt dry (no gloss-like feel anymore), it didn’t dry my lips out, so this isn't the end of the world. Also, I have seen other reviews where people have said that it does dry out their lips, so if you are susceptible to dry lips, maybe give this one a miss! Also, you can't pick the colour it is going to be and bright pink isn't really my style, but if you like pink then this is worth a try for you for sure. I am not sure if it changes into different shades of pink. I have seen adverts for this type of product which seem to indicate that it reacts to your body temperature, and that determines the shade, but I haven't been able to test this to the point of knowing one way or another...the colour always looked pretty much the same to me! Please click on the “f“ below to share to Facebook, and subscribe to keep up to date on new posts...you can also like my page on Facebook by clicking here With love Rebecca xxx

What is it?: it's a bottle stopper for champagne or wine Does it work? Yes Would I buy it again? Yes, but I reckon this one will last me a while as it's quite well made! Other options?: there are other sellers of the same product to the one that I got this from, plus other bottle stoppers out there...I have another one that you use a contraption to suck the air out of the bottle, but it's no where near as good as this one! Where to buy: I got mine from Amazon I am really impressed by this little thing! It's easy to use and really keeps the bubbles going in your bottle of fizz! Here's the five days of using it on one bottle of champagne: Day 1 - bottle just opened: Day 2: Day 3: Day 4: Day 5: Honestly, the most difficult thing about reviewing this product was limiting myself to one glass of champagne a night across five days! It does, however, have a pop when you take it off, similar to the champagne cork pop, so be aware of that! It scared the hell out of me the first night! And my dog did a runner!! Also, the champagne fizz dissipates each time you take the stopper off, so I tested it another time in pouring out 5 glasses across 2 days and by the 5th glass it was at the same stage as the day 5 video above. So basically, make sure you drink the last glass pretty quickly after glass number 4! This would be perfect as a gift for the person who has everything, for someone you don't know very well, a secret santa or a stocking filler. Convinced? You can buy it here It comes in a plastic bag, so if you're buying it as a gift you may want to get a little box to put it in to make it look more presentable...other than that, I have no complaints at all! It does what it's supposed to, and it does it better than other options, so bonus all round really! With love Rebecca Xxx P.S. Please note that this blog may contain affiliate links (including those to Amazon). When you click on the link and purchase the product, I receive a small commission. Also, if you want to subscribe to be kept up to date with new blog posts and reviews, click here

The highlights: What is it?: A metal scraper that pulls the dog hairs from other material that it is intertwined with Does it work? Yes - but only on certain materials - they need to be quite hardy or the little metal teeth will pull and damage the material Would I buy it again? Yes Other options?: Yes, but none that I have tried (granted I have only tried 3 other types of dog hair remover) have worked as well as this did! Where to buy: You can pick it up from Amazon but I have also seen it on ebay so you can search for it there too Another doggy product I have reviewed, that you might be interested in: biodegradable poop bags - also it would be lovely to welcome you to my subscription list! If you would like to, you can subscribe here So I share my home with my 11 year old rescue dog, Obi, and don't get me wrong, I love and adore him, but he leaves a mess behind him and his hairs get stuck into everything! They get into my socks that then get into the washing machine, which mean they get into all my clothes, and the little hairs then drop on the floor as the clothes are drying or deposited in the dryer, leaving little balls of hairs blowing across the place like tumbleweed. I have tried various products that claim to remove, pick up, dissolve dog hairs. Some work, some don't! This little fella, however, works! really well! Look it: The place that I have most noticed his hairs clinging like they are little cliff climbers who daren't let go, is in the car - the backs of my car seats are covered, and I mean covered, in dog hairs. Unfortunately, the metal teeth did not agree with the material my car seats are made of, so it didn't really work in the car! Unless I was just being a little heavy handed with it - maybe I was, but I didn't want to risk trying it out on too large an area of the car, just in case it ruined my seats! Well, ruined them more than Obi dog's hairs do already! Also, and I am saddened to say this, it will probably not work on your clothes without running the risk of damaging them! I tried it on a pair of joggers and it ripped a piece of the material up so now there is a black string hanging off, which is likely to catch and pull. So although the adverts I have seen seem to suggest that you can use this on your favourite cashmere jumper, I wouldn't recommend it! I remain on the hunt for a really good dog hair remover for my clothes, and will post on this blog if I find one, or if I see one that looks good and ends up being rubbish too! This little contraption worked perfectly on Obi's bed, and he seemed happy with his clean bed! I don't have carpets in my house but I would imagine it to work pretty well on low shag pile carpets too! In fact, a friend of mine has one of these and said she uses hers on the carpet on her stairs. Careful though, I think longer shag pile may run the risk of the triangular contraption pulling on the threads and pulling them out, but for a couple of quid you could always try it in a little corner, or on an offcut! All in all I was super impressed by this for cleaning Obi's bed, it works on that really well, and for a couple of quid what more can you want! You might also find this review of biodegradable dog poop bags useful :) Also, if you want to subscribe to keep up to date with new posts, it would be lovely to welcome you to my subscription list! :) with love Rebecca xxx P.S. Please note that this blog may contain affiliate links (including those to Amazon). When you click on the link and purchase the product, I receive a small commission.

The highlights: What is it?: A spray on hob-cleaner, designed for ceramic, induction and halogen hobs Does it work? Yes Would I buy it again? Yes Other options?: Where to buy: I managed to find this on Amazon , but my mum probably bought it from the high street - check out places like Home Bargains, the Range or B&M - chances are one of those places have it too! I have also found it on Amazon.com in the USA. Not gonna lie, this review is going to be pretty short - this works, and it works well! Can you tell that I am pretty impressed by this little hob cleaner? It's simple to use, just spray it on, wait a little while, wipe it off, dry it off (if you're concerned about any potential streaks being left behind, and can be bothered to dry it off!), job done! I love products that buy you time, and this one certainly does: no scrubbing, no pressure, just leave it to do its thing, and come back to it. Here's my dirty hob - I waited a long as I could handle before stepping in to clean this for this review! Mine is an induction hob... As opposed to the Kilrock spray that I previously reviewed (and can no longer find anywhere), which sprayed on as a gel, this goes on as a liquid spray. Honestly, I think this is better as it covers more surface area: The spray itself smells like a cleaner, but only if you get up close and personal to where you have sprayed - yes I sniffed my hob! So it doesn't fill the room with an overbearing smell, which is nice! Even up close and personal, the smell isn't too bad - similar to bleach, it smells like a cleaner, but there aren't any added scents like lemon or peach to change the smell. Honestly, I hardly noticed it (except of course when I was sniffing the hob!). My first spray I only waited about 30 seconds - check out me and my impatience! So when I wiped it off, a little bit of food which has cooked onto the hob was still there - think this was veg soup! So I sprayed again, waited about 10 seconds, and wiped it off - all done! No need to scrub or put any pressure on it - effortless wiping is your friend! I would say, spray it on, wait about 60 seconds, wipe it off with a damp cloth. I used a microfibre cloth to wipe this off. The ones I have are really good and I got them from Amazon . I particularly like them because they are quite big (40cmx40cm). Another microfibre cloth brand that is really good is Sorbo, and the ones I have from them are also big. The Sorbo ones I got from Dunelm , but I have found them on Amazon too. Then I dried it with some paper towel and it was all sparkly clean. That seemed to do the trick! Here's the final video of the hob after it was all clean. And here's the safety info and instructions pics to help you decide if this is appropriate for your hob. I hope this helps you make your choice on whether to invest in this or not :) If you do decide to buy this, here's the link to Amazon again for the UK, or click here if you are in the USA. with love Rebecca xxx P.S. Please note that this blog may contain affiliate links (including those to Amazon). When you click on the link and purchase the product, I receive a small commission.

The highlights: What is it?: a limescale remover Does it work? Yes, yes and yes! The most amazing limescale remover I have ever used, ever! Would I buy it again? Ab-so-lutley, without a doubt, in fact….I already did get some for my mum! In addition, I bought a whole host of their other products to test and review, so impressed was I by this one! So subscribe to the blog if you want to be updated on those reviews when they go live Other options?: loads of products that claim to remove limescale, but none that I have ever tried have ever been this impressive Where to buy: On the high street I have seen it in Boyes, and The Range, but you can also get it online by doing a quick google, or check out Amazon Also, if you are looking for a pretty good hob cleaner, Kilrock do that too - check the review out here . Also, did you know you can subscribe to get e-mail notifications winging their way direct into your (probably junk) e-mail box? I would love it if you would! Made in the UK, the bottle has a safety lid so the bambinos of your household can't get their hands on all those chemicals, and comes with a recommendation that you test is on small indiscreet area before using it. It also advises that you only use it in small sections at a time (less than 5 square cm). For uses, here is what the bottle says: This little tub of thick gel comes with a brush attached to the lid, so you just open it, brush it on, take a step back, and watch it work. And I mean literally, watch it work! I managed to hunt down a tap with masses of limescale build-up to give this a proper test, and this limescale is rock solid, like a barnacle on a whale! This limescale remover takes it on with no hesitation at all, in fact, you can even see the bubbles as the product eats away at the limescale…watch… So the above video is speeded up, and the real time was across about 3 minutes, but even taking three minutes this stuff is pretty incredible! You should also be aware that the little bubbles are a chemical reaction, and so release gas, which was a bit stinky and hits the back of your throat if you breathe in near it...I would very much recommend making sure the windows in the room are open, or trying to resist the urge to stand over it as it bubbles because it will make you cough! You should also be aware that limescale can actually damage whatever surface it is attached to, so it is quite possible that once it is removed, it leaves pit marks on the surface itself. All in all though, it is a truly amazing limescale remover! The most amazing limescale remover I have ever encountered in fact! Here is a quick before and after video of the limescale build up on this tap - I did apply this product about 10 times to get this difference, but I have loads of it left in the bottle because it is such a thick gloopy gel, and it was zero effort because you don't do anything once it is on there, other than maybe set a timer to come back in 3 minutes to rinse it away! So, my advice if you live in a hard water area with limescale being the bane of your existence is to go out there and buy this product right now! I have also discovered that Kilrock do a whole host of other cleaning products, so I bought the lot to review! You can subscribe if you want to be notified when those reviews go on this blog. With love Rebecca xxx P.S. Please note that this blog may contain affiliate links (including those to Amazon). When you click on the link and purchase the product, I receive a small commission.

The highlights: What is it?: This is my hand cream combination of Zerobase (for at home), O'Keefe's Working Hands (for my car/desk/school bag) and L'Occitane 20% Shea Butter (for my handbag/coat pocket). I have found that this combination of hand creams work the best for me. Does it (or more accurately they) work?: Yes Would I buy it (or them) again?: Yes...in fact I have, and do! Other options?: There are lots of other hand creams out there, and this post isn't to say that they don't work, but this is just the best three that I have found that work for me Where to buy: Zerobase, O'Keeffe's Working Hands and L'Occitane 20% Shea Butter are all available on Amazon. I haven't seen Zerobase in any other place (UK: Click here ; USA: Click here ). O'Keeffe's Working Hands is on Amazon (UK: Click here ; USA: Click here ) and available online from other stores, and I have also seen it a lot on the high street shops, so if you are out and about, keep an eye out for it. L'Occitane is available on Amazon (UK: Click here ; USA: Click here ) and is also available on lots of online stores and in department stores or L'Occitane stores - I used to get mine from their shop in Leeds near Harvey Nics - I don't know if the shop is still there though as it was about 7 years ago now, but if you live in Leeds you could pop in to try out their testers! Also the airports tend to have L'Occitane so take advantage of that duty free if you see it!. If you are a reader from outside of the UK or USA, click either of the above links - hopefully I have set it up correctly to match on Amazon to the identical product in your local Amazon - if there is no exact match, it is because it is not available to you locally. In which case, give it a google to see if there is a shop with international shipping, or a local shop to you that stocks these. It would be really lovely (if you like this post and want to receive updates on future posts) if you could subscribe  - it's so nice to have you here, and I would be super happy to have you come back in the future! To the review... Oh my life I have tried a lot of different hand creams! I get super dry skin on my hands (and as I have gotten older I have noticed it elsewhere, like on my legs), and it gets much worse in the colder months. The combination of wind, snow and rain has meant that my hands have taken a battering. I find this especially to when my hands are exposed to the elements, like when carrying a coffee on the walk across uni on my way to teach law to the undergrads, or when I am out and about with Obi dog on our walks, or when I have to carry a lot of stuff and can't wear gloves because then I would drop everything! Plus, I have quite short fingers, so gloves always end up having a long bit of material flapping around at the end of my fingers, making things like actually using my hands incredibly difficult! In fact, to help with my easy access to treats to deal with Obi's reactivity to other dogs (which you can read more about on my review of the Halti Head Collar that changed my life) my mum has even knitted me a pair of fingerless gloves for when we are out on our walks - look it! How lovely is she? Anyway, this exposure to the cold weather elements means the skin on my hands gets super dry. At its worse, it cracks and bleeds between my knuckles (poor me right?). So, my skin on my hands is often on a sliding scale from a little dry and tight, to somewhat uncomfortable, to actually painful. Plus, other products can make my skin worse, like when I am cleaning (and struggle with cleaning with gloves on because, as stated above, I have stubby fingers!). I also like to do acrylic paint pouring, so my skin gets a little angry at me if I get the paint on my skin. I have tried all sorts of hand creams, and some certainly did work better than others, but the three that are now my go to option are Zerobase, O'Keeffe's Working hands and L'Occitane 20% Shea Butter. I have 3 options for hand creams to cover all locations: Zerobase is for when I am at home; O'Keefe's Working Hands is for my desk drawer, car or school bag for uni; and L'Occitane 20% Shea Butter is for when I am out and about as it fits in a small handbag or in my coat pocket. For Home: Zerobase I love this stuff - it comes in a massihoosive bottle of 500g, which means that it lasts a super long time! I have had this particular bottle for over 2 years now, and it still has about a quarter left in it - so it does last, for sure. I used to have the bottle sat on my desk at work, but now it tends to live on my bedside table. This is because I am a now hermit who spends most of my time scrunched up before a computer reading academic texts in the quest of writing my PhD, so no longer have a desk at work. Instead I have a desk at home covered in papers and highlighters! The bottle itself has a push down dispenser on the top, but do not do a full push down - it will be way too much for your hands! A quarter push is all I need, so go easy and build it up! Provided you do not use too much at once, this does not leave your hands feeling greasy, and it works so well! In fact, I noticed on my legs two spots of dry skin that began to resemble the skin of a scaly reptilian like creature from a mythical evil lagoon! You know - those little round scales that resemble a honeycomb. Why am I still single? lol! BUT using this cream on those two places across 7 days, and it is almost all gone and my skin now looks like a human's again! Success! Also, because the dispenser is exposed to the air, it can get a little partially dried out gloop of cream on the end of it, but fear not! No need to waste it - as you rub it into your hands, it sort of turns back into a cream like substance and gets absorbed into the skin. Using this just once a day is enough to keep my hands to a decent level of silky smooth, but in the winter months, I do tend to use it twice a day, or whenever I feel I need to add a little more moisture to my dried out scaly looking skin. Zerobase says on the bottle that it 'relieves symptoms of red, inflamed, damaged, dry or chapped skin'. It says this is because it acts as 'an emollient' that 'protects raw areas of skin'. I don't have eczema, so can't comment on this part, but the bottle also says that 'the cream can be applied before a bath to stop the skin drying further'. This stuff also acts as a soap substitute, which I didn't realise until writing this post. Using it as a soap substitute is quite nice, it leaves my hands feeling softer than when I wash with normal soap and water. It doesn't lather up though, like soap does, which sort of makes me feel like I'm not using a soap at all, and I'm not sure I like that feeling? The label on the bottle also says that you should seek medical advice before using if the skin is 'broken, badly cracked, infected or bleeding'. I have never had to seek this sort of medical advice. Sometimes the skin does crack and bleed, but it is only ever a very small area and once it has scabbed over (again, how attractive am I?) I find I can use this cream. If my hands get really bad (because I run out of hand cream when I'm out or use a soap that my skin really doesn't like, or its very windy and cold and icy and I am not wearing any gloves) then I also use a little Sudocrem Antiseptic Healing Cream (yes, the one for baby bum rashes!) for a day or two to help heal the skin before I go to the moisturiser option. If I don't do this first, using Zerobase can sting a little if my skin is really bad (although not cracked and bleeding), but I haven't had that problem for a while (and when using Sudocrem for a day or two first). The Zerobase description does not say if it is fragranced or not, but based on my experience of using it, I don't think it is. It smells like a product, but there isn't any added smells like rose or some other flower like smell or anything, so I don't think this is fragranced. The description on Amazon says that it is vegetarian and fragrance free, so I guess that settles that debate! lol! It also has directions for use on adults, elderly and children (aged 1 and up), so seems to cover all stages of life. The label also comes with the warning that you should not use it if allergic to any of the ingredients. Here's the ingredients list for the bottle that I have, but you should double check the most recent ingredients list in case they have updated it since I bought this over a year ago. It also warns to stop using if you experience an allergic reaction, but this is pretty standard as a warning for products that go on your skin. I have also noticed (when searching for the link to add this into this blog post) that they do a whole host of other creams designed for specific skin conditions such as Eczema, Psoriasis & Dry Skin Conditions - I haven't tried these out but if you do, please comment below and let me know if they are any good! All in all I love this hand cream, and have found it to be one of the most effective ones on the market for tackling dry, tight skin. However, as it comes in a huge bottle, it is not the most convenient to take out and about with you. I guess you could decant it into smaller travel size tubs, like these in the UK, or these if you are in the US, but I have found with other creams that this can lead to it drying out in the tub when it is not airtight. Also, that sounds like a bit of a faff to me. However, I have now seen that they also do smaller tubes of this in 50g (which I hadn't seen before now) so I will definitely add one of those to my next order of this! So, moving on to the more portable of the hand creams... Desk drawer, Car or School bag: O'Keeffe's Working Hands This stuff is great for keeping in your desk drawer or school bag. They do it in lots of sizes . I have the tube of 80ml . I have the tube in my school bag for when I am on campus at uni. The description says that it is a 'concentrated hand cream' that 'relieves, hydrates and helps repair extremely dry, cracked hands'. It is unscented, hypoallergenic and non-greasy. You don't need a lot of this - a tiny dot will do the back of my hand - and as always with all hand creams, start with a little and work your way up until you find you've added enough. It absorbs into the skin quickly, and instantly leaves my skin feeling softer. Also, the back of the bottle offers a 100% Money Back Guarantee - I mean, anything that comes with a money back guarantee is usually gonna be pretty darn good! Plus, it means you can give it a go and (if it doesn't work for you) get your money back! Although, to do this you do have to post the bottle/tub back to them with a receipt so it may be more faff than it's worth considering how reasonably priced this stuff is! Also, the shops online selling this product should have the full ingredients list available to see before you buy - so if you are allergic to products, make sure you check that list before buying! The smallest tube they do in the Working Hands range is 80ml, so a little too large to fit in my handbag or coat pocket for a day out and about. So, I also have my go to "on-the-go" hand cream at just 30ml a bottle, which is the subject of the final part of this post... For my Handbag or Coat Pocket: L'Occitane 20% Shea Butter Hand Cream I have been using this L'Occitane hand cream for years! I mean like 10 years! I used to get the big tubes of 150ml to use at home before I discovered Zerobase. Since then, I stick to Zerobase at home (which is a lot cheaper for sure) and use L'Occitane when I am out and about. This is because they do mini tubes of 30ml which fits in my small bag - I hate carrying large bags - and means that I have a really good hand cream that I can use when I am out and about! Again, this tends to be more in the winter months, but sometimes in the summer if I use a soap washing my hands in bars or restaurants, and it is not moisturising then my hands can get very dry. So I pull out my trusty L'Occitane, and I am good to go! It can leave your hands feeling a little greasy if you use too much, so go easy and add more if you feel you need to. It works immediately, removing that tight skin feeling, so you should be able to tell if you need more or not. Again, if you are allergic to products, make sure you check the ingredient list before buying! This one is designed for adults and has a slight fragrance to it, but its not overpowering. I think the smell is actually just the shea butter, rather than any added scents. In fact, it kind of smells a little bit like really good quality sun creams. It is suitable for Vegans, and declares itself as being 98% readily biodegradable (although I am not sure how a hand cream can be biodegradable - I mean, its absorbed by the skin...or is that a type of biodegradation?? Any scientists out there??). Also, when looking for this product on Amazon, I can see that they have an exfoliant now too - I have not tried this yet, but I am soooo gonna be adding that to my Christmas list for this year!!! This particular L'Occitane at 20% shea butter is the one that I first bought from them, and I was super impressed by it, so I did also give some of their other non-shea butter options a go. This was about 8 years ago now, so I don't remember the exact products I used (sorry) but I didn't buy them again, so I can't have been too impressed! Lol! If I remember correctly, I tried the Lavender scented one and was not overly impressed. It seemed to have compromised on its effectiveness of tackling dry skin in order to accommodate lovely smells, so that just didn't work for me. That's not to say that they weren't a good hand cream - if you have dry hands that don't get as bad as mine do, then they might still be an option for you. They just weren't as effective for me as the 20% shea butter was. I also tried their foot gel stuff, but again, I wasn't so impressed by that. I mean, I didn't buy it again in the future - which I take a pretty clear indication of how good something is. Also, I have tried to find the foot gel I used, and can't find it anymore, so it looks like they may have stopped making it! What's more, during this effort, I have discovered that they now do a shea butter collection for feet - I might have to check that out! Another Christmas list addition please if you're reading this mum! lol! Also, their shea butter collection does have different percentages of shea butter - the one I use has 20%, but the other percentages might be nice too! I think I tried the 25% in the shop as a tester once, and it was very luxurious, but I seem to remember it being a little too rich, and leaving an oily substance on my skin, which did go away, but not as quickly as the cream being absorbed. Either way, L'Occitane is a luxury brand, so if you are looking for a present for someone, a nice little gift set would always be welcomed :) The whole range of their shea butter based products - including gift sets - is available on Amazon (or click here if in the USA) so you can always check that out if thinking of nice gifts for people! Also, because L'Occitane is a luxury brand, it is not the cheapest option out there. I have tried to find other hand creams that are in small tubes like this. However, L'Occitane is the only brand that I have found which is lovely, works, and fits nicely in a smaller handbag. Perfect for those days that I venture into London and don't want a massive bag to carry around all day! As mentioned above, you could, of course, buy one hand cream, like Zerobase, and then decant it into smaller tubs to take out and about with you (a bit like these options in the USA or in the UK ) , or you could buy the 50g tube of Zerobase to see if that fits in your handbag or coat pocket too, but I feel like we all deserve a little bit of luxury every now and again. So go! Treat yourself! In case you are convinced :) here are the relevant Amazon links again: Amazon.co.uk links: Zerobase O'Keeffe's Working Hands L'Occitane 20% Shea Butter Amazon.com links: Zerobase O'Keeffe's Working Hands L'Occitane 20% Shea Butter For all my readers outside of the UK and USA, I have set up the Amazon links to take you to exact matches in your country, but this might reveal no results. I can set up closest matches as an alternative option, but didn't want for you, my lovely readers, to not realise that when living busy multi-tasking lives, and buy a product I haven't actually reviewed. Anyway, if it doesn't come up with an exact match on Amazon, give it a quick google - other shops local to you, or those with international shipping, might stock these! with love Rebecca xxx I hope you found this review helpful! If you did, please subscribe  to be kept in the future blog posts loop. P.S. Please note that this blog may contain affiliate links (including those to Amazon). When you click on the link and purchase the product, I receive a small commission.

The highlights: What is it?: Doggy poop bags - biodegradable and made from a lot of recycled plastic, in either scented or unscented options! Does it work? Yes Would I buy it again? Yes Other options?: There are lots of doggy poop bags out there that are biodegradable, and I have tried some, but none of them were as good as this brand. Where to buy: I get mine from UK Amazon : you can get a small pack to try them of 270 bags; or if you trust me, you can get a better value large pack of 900 bags. If you are in the USA, here's the link to the same product. If you are new to this blog (hi and welcome!) you might not know that I always try to make more environmentally friendly choices. If you are not new to this site, you probably already know that from the reviews I have done on reusuable tassimo pods , Naked Sprout toilet roll made from bamboo, and the Ecoegg washing powder option. So, when I first adopted Obi dog from the Dogs Trust, I wanted to find doggy poop bags that were also environmentally friendly. I didn't want to be adding even more ever-existing plastic to landfill that the world sends there already! I have tried lots of different poop bags along the way, but I have been using Earth Rated poop bags for a long time now, because I am super impressed by them. Earth Rated , as a company is environmentally conscious and are B Corp certified to reflect the ways in which they integrate environmental choices across the company as a whole. They also say on the FAQs section of their website, that they regularly support animal rescue centres, and shelters, by making donations. Love that! Giving back is super important (and also one of the reasons, by the way, that I use PetPlan pet insurance as when I adopted Obi dog they gave me 4 weeks free insurance, and I have stayed with them since, but I digress!). The bags themselves are biodegradable and made from 65% recycled plastic. So, again, according to the FAQs section of their website , they stop 5 million pounds, or 2.2 million kilograms, of plastic going to landfill every year, and then use that plastic to turn into the doggy poo bags. Doggy poo bags which are then also biodegradable - the science baffles my mind - not only have they stopped plastic going to landfill, but they have then turned it into a biodegradable substance! I'm impressed! (On a side note, soft plastics are now widely recycled at supermarkets - where you used to put the supermarket bags, they now accept all types of soft plastics, so do bag it up and drop it off) Also, the boxes they come in and inner rolls are made from cardboard, so are recyclable too. The bags can be either scented, or unscented. I haven't tried the unscented ones, so if you try them, do let me know what they are like! The scented ones are lavender scented, and they do smell like lavender, but let's face it, no scented anything will totally mask the smell of our beloved pets bowel movements! So, with doggy poo in them, these poop bags smell like lavender scented poop! lol! The bags are also pretty thick - according to the description, 15 microns thick, but who knows what that means? All I can say is that other bags I have used have split or ripped when picking up poop - especially where the dog decides to poop on the pavement, or on a load of twigs! So far (and I have been using Earth Rated bags for years) I have never had one of these Earth Rated bags rip on me - like never! I cannot tell you how wonderful that is - I once tried another brand that I also got from Amazon, called Greener Walker , but I was not impressed, so would not recommend those at all! They didn't rip all the time, like when Obi had pooped on grass, they were fine, but they often ripped when Obi had pooped on the pavement and I tried to scrape it up, or when he had pooped on the grass on twigs, and the twigs poked through the bag and I got dog poop all over my hand! Considering I couldn't force the dog to poop, or not poop, in certain places, this uncertainty isn't good - I mean, when they gotta go, they gotta go, right? Walking around with dog poop on your hands is not good - in fact with the Greener Walker bags, I even started taking biodegradable baby wipes out with me as standard on all our walks! Luckily with Earth Rated poop bags, the baby wipes are not required! What's more, the Earth Rated poop bags have never leaked on me either. In fact, Earth rated pride themselves on this and, in their FAQs , actively encourage anyone who has had a leak to contact them! Love that! Businesses which want their customers to love their product and to address any issues just shows a mentality which can be so lacking in some modern corporations! The bags also come in two types - refill rolls and tie-handle. I have only ever tried the refill rolls, because honestly, they are big enough for my dog (who is a lurcher, so quite tall, but not terribly broad). In fact, when I go out at the end of the day to pick up Obi's poops in the garden, I can often pick up 2-3 poops with one bag! The refill bags are 9 inches x 13 inches. According to their website , the single bags are 8 inches x 13 inches and appear to come in a dispenser, a bit like a tissue box so you can get one bag at a time; and the easy tie handle bags are wider, as opposed to taller, at 7 inches x 13.5 inches. I use the refill bags, and to give you an idea (because let's face it all poop is different sizes!), I can put a 400g tin of chopped tomatoes, or baked beans, inside the bag and still have room to tie off the end. Another point to note is that there is a little sticker on the bag that is 3rd from the end of the roll, to let you know you only have 3 bags left, so you can get a new roll ready for the next walk. No being caught out with the last bag on the roll and then having a meltdown trying to find a carrier bag in your pocket, or figure out a way for you to pick up the poop with no bag, or how you are going to get home, get more bags, and then find the poop to pick it up! Yes, this is how my mind works! lol! All in all these are good poop bags - they do the job, they are environmentally friendly, and they are produced by a company that seems to care! So, if you want to try a small box, here's the link , or if you are keen to go for the bigger 900 bags box, here's that link too. I also found the tie-handle ones on Amazon . If you want to search for these yourself, just be aware that 'earth rated' is also a general term, so other companies may use this phrase to describe the bags themselves - make sure you go for the ones which match the pictures in this post, otherwise it might be another company. Also, if you are in the USA, click here to go to Amazon to find these. Happy poop picking!! with love Rebecca xxx P.S. Please note that this blog may contain affiliate links (including those to Amazon). When you click on the link and purchase the product, I receive a small commission.