TrendLife Baby

These brilliant feeding accessories from Boon make mealtimes a simple and funky affair.

Boon’s Catch Bowl is a great way to help first-time eaters control small spills. It features a built-in food catcher which extends toward your little one, funnelling runaway food back into the bowl.

Its made from easy-to-clean soft material and has a suction cup bottom to keep the Catch Bowl firmly in place. This is such a handy piece of kit at an affordable price.

Pair the Catch Bowl with Boon’s Benders utensils. These great sets, designed to help the transition to normal cutlery, are perfect for little learners with the adjustable end feature to accommodate your child’s grip. As your little ones motor skills develop, you can start adjusting the Benders a little bit at a time until they are straightened.

Catch Bowl - £8.99

Benders - £5.99

www.boonuk.co.uk

The new Raspberry Collection from Oxo Tot looks great and is so easy to use. The functionality is fantastic and as always with Oxo products, they utilise great design and this collection is no different. Attractive and sleek, these are aspirational products at high street prices.

We tried the really handy Bowl Set and the easy-to-hold Cutlery. The food scoops easily onto the spoon with the special lip on the bowl. We also tried the handy Dividing Plate which we loved for separating out snacks.

Perfect for little princesses who like to be pretty in pink!

Divided plate: £8.17

Large & small bowl set: £8.17

Fork & spoon set: £6.64

Available in Boots

www.oxouk.com

www.boots.com

The Beaba Regulo Cup is a no spill toddler cup, designed in lovely colours for your baby. It's really easy to hold and we love the system where you can amend the flow with a simple turn of the knob, it means you can have one cup that will last years - from the first stage through to fast flow and then through to cup.

Its BPA, PVC and Phthalate-free, so safe for the little ones, and it's fairly easy to clean with not too many parts. It also comes with a cap and an anti-leak system.

The only minor downside is that there are no measurement lines so you don't know how much your baby has drunk.

Trendlife give this 8.5 out of 10 for its long-life and lovely design.

£9.00

www.vupbaby.co.uk

This gorgeous little dinner set from Hampton Blue is too cute! Its little retro elephant and flower designs are sure to delight the little ones and make dinner times fun.

Included is a compartmented plate, a bowl, cup, fork and spoon, everything a little one needs to make them feel special and encourage eating at dinner time. It would make a great gift for babies or toddlers, or for your own special tyke. An affordable yet stylish set.

£10.95

www.hamptonblue.co.uk

The Philips Avent Steamer and Blender is a handy gadget that will save you some precious time.

It helps you prepare healthy and nutritious homemade baby food for your little ones.  Its so simple to use: first steam your vegetables fruit or meat, then lift and flip the jar over to blend it up into a tasty lunch for baby.

The only downside is the size. It’s quite big, so not ideal for smaller kitchens. 

£81.71

www.philips.co.uk

The Philips Avent new 3-in-1 steriliser is perfect for the smaller kitchen, and for reducing space used as your baby starts weaning and uses less bottles each day.

Its compact size also makes it great for travelling so you can have peace of mind knowing a steriliser is close at hand.

The 3-in-1 functionality gives you:

1) Small size configuration for sterilizing soothers

2) Medium size configuration for sterilizing breast pumps, toddler plates, knives, and forks

3) Large size configuration for sterilizing six bottles

The steriliser has been designed to fit both wide neck and narrow neck bottles as well as different breast pumps and accessories. This gives you the freedom to choose the bottles and accessories that best suit you and your baby.

This is a handy and functional gadget that will soon become a kitchen essential.

£61.27

www.boots.com

The Food Masher and Bowl is a handy gadget for mashing on the move without having to get out a big blender.

The masher combined with the bowl’s ridged inner edge makes it quick and easy to mash avocados, bananas, papayas and other soft fruits or boiled veggies.

It leaves a few little lumps so is perfect for just after the initial stages of weaning.  As with the rest of the range, it is bright and attractive enough to leave on display!

£4.99

www.annabelkarmel.com

Annabel Karmel’s Stackable Weaning Pots by NUK come in three sizes which hold the perfect portions for little ones.  Brightly coloured and stackable, they look great on the shelf, and are also ideal for kitchens with little storage space.

So not only a whizz at recipes – Annabel Karmel is a winner at product design too!

£3.99

www.annabelkarmel.com

We recently tried the brightly coloured Nuby feeding spoon.  They come in use packs of four and six with long handles which make them suitable for good manouvering around babies hands (!) and also good for delving into jars.

The packaging says suitable from four months – however I felt that they are more suitable for babies who are well into feeding as the spoon itself was a little deep and young babies can't lick off the spoons.

Priced at £3.99 for six, they are very affordable and make a good weaning essential.

When your baby is between 6-12 months you might want to offer them a sippy cup so they can practice feeding themselves, which can improve hand-to-mouth co-ordination.  We tried out some of the top brand-leaders to see how they compare.

Philips Avent – Always a favourite at TrendLife, this one was light for babies to hold, easy to clean and had a fun design to keep babies interested.  The only downside was that it was a little complicated to put together. Price: £7.49.

Tippitoes Non Spill Training Cup – Tough construction. This is a great,  basic model which suits most children. Price: £3.05.

Munchkin Might Grip – The Trainer Cup is perfect for little hands. Your baby can grasp the handle or easily grip on to it with this contoured cup. The soft silicone spout lets your baby drink comfortably while the built-in valve prevents any spills or leaks, so there’ll be no panic in the house when this cup hits the floor! Price: £2.95.

Safe Sippy 2 – This is a lovely design, made of stainless steel metal and rubber covering with a hard plastic spout.  It is the heaviest cup on trial and mums were worried younger babys may hit themselves with it.  But it is ideal for an older toddler from two year plus, as it will withstand a bit of rough and tumble.  Older children may also like the handles to be removed. This is particularly good as it is free from BPA, DEHA, and phthalates. Price: £13.25.

Oxo Tot Sippy Cup – Very easy to assemble with a non-slip rubber section on the sides. All pieces are interchangeable with other sizes and versions, handles are removable and leak free. The handles are also angled so baby doesn’t have to move their wrists too much. Price: £7.15.