Fels Naptha Review and Giveaway

Purex Fels-Naptha has been around since 1894 treating your tough laundry stains. I had never heard of it until just recently, but when discussing the product with my mom and grandma, they told me how it has been around for over 100 years! My mom doesn't recall ever having used it, but my grandma said she used to use it. Well, Fels-Naptha is making a comeback!

I was able to try Fels-Naptha thanks to Purex and I have to say, I love it! This laundry soap bar pretreats your stains (dirt, grease, rings around the collar, and more) and works more effectively than spray stain removers. It's safe on colors too! Just wet your stain, rub it on, let it set a few minutes then throw it in the wash! I tried this product on a few different types of stains. The older stains (most of which have been on there longer than months and have been through several washes) didn't really show any change, but the newer stains were pretty much erased! The most recent stain that I worked on was a chocolate stain from a week ago (note to self: it doesn't matter how tired you are, do NOT let your toddler have things with tiny chocolate pieces in your bed!) I could tell where the stain was before because you could see a faint stain still, but it was almost completely taken out of my sheets! While this is no miracle product, it sure works wonders!

Before

After

Since Purex Fels-Naptha worked well for my laundry stains, I figured why not try it on some other surfaces!
I tried it on a countertop stain (the stain from a wooden plate stand got on the counter and nothing had worked to clean it up):

Before

After

I tried it on some carpet stains on the living room floor and stairs, both of which we had tried cleaning up with a steamer and a carpet cleaner:

Stairs before

Stairs after

Floor before

Floor after

I even tried it on a skid mark that was on our linoleum flooring when we moved in, but I guess that stain was a bit too old. There are so many surfaces that you could use Fels-Naptha on though! This is a very versatile product! You can even use Fels-Naptha to make your own laundry soap. Check out the recipe below that I found online!

With babies, toddlers, husbands and pets, stains are inevitable. Treat them with Purex Fels-Naptha!

Homemade Laundry Soap Recipe (from thefamilyhomestead.com)

• 1/3 bar Fels-Naptha laundry soap, grated
• 1/2 cup washing soda (not baking soda...this can be found usually in the laundry aisle)
• 1/2 cup 20 Mule Team Borax powder
• 2 gallon bucket

Directions: Place grated soap in a sauce pan, add 6 cups of water and heat until the soap melts. Add the washing soda and borax and stir until dissolved then remove from heat. Pour 4 cups of hot water then add the soap mix and stir. Add another 1 gallon + 6 cups of water and stir. Let sit for 24 hours to gel. You will use 1/2 cup of the finished mixture per load of laundry.

Enter below for your chance to win a free bar of Fels-Naptha (coupon) PLUS I will include a coupon for a free box of 20 Mule Team Borax for the first prize winner! Giveaway opened to US residents only.

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Disclaimer: I am a Purex Insider and received a free product for my review! These views are my own and were not at all influenced by the party who gave me this opportunity. 

Purex Fabric Softener Sheets Review and Giveaway

Have you seen Purex Fabric Softener Sheets on she shelves in the store? You can find these at your local Walmart in Mountain Breeze and Sweet Lavender scents. They add a fresh scent to your clothing while reducing static and repelling pet hair and lint.

Purex has added 3X the fragrance to leave the scent lasting longer. These sheets should have a warning label that says "WARNING: May cause random strangers to smell your outfit." This has happened to my husband several times with Purex's great scents. Try sticking Purex Fabric Softener Sheets in your stinky shoes, trash cans, drawers, diaper pails to freshen them up...or rub them on your pantyhose to reduce the static or on a love letter before you put it in the envelope for a special touch!

Purex Fabric Softener Sheets smell amazing, but unfortunately amazing smells kick in my allergies really bad so I was unable to personally try these. Instead, I sent them on over to a friend to get her opinion on them! She uses fabric softener sheets all the time but had never tried these Purex ones before. I sent her the Sweet Lavender scent which she simply loved. She tried them in her dryer load immediately once she received them and said there are no cons, only pros for this product. They smell even better than the ones she usually uses and the scent really lasts while really helping cut down on that static cling issue that dryers can cause. She also loves that there are so many different uses for these fabric softener sheets other than just sticking them in the dryer.

FABRIC SOFTENER SHEET FLOWERS

Another fun way to use Purex Fabric Softener Sheets is to make scented flowers with them! You can do this before they are used for extra scent or with used sheets for a lighter scent. Check out my DIY instructions from my Arts & Crackers blog here.





Be sure to follow the giveaway directions completely or your entries will not count. US residents only.
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Disclaimer: I am a Purex Insider and received a free product for my review! These views are my own and were not at all influenced by the party who gave me this opportunity. 

Ameda Purely Yours Ultra Breast Pump Review

As a mom who plans to solely breastfeed, I understand the importance of having a pump. With my first child, the pump that I had did not work properly so I was unable to pump and let other people feed him a bottle so I could take a break. I also could not relieve any pressure when he wasn't ready to eat or have a bottle ready when we were out and about. I had a manual pump as well, but with my carpal tunnel and tendonitis pumping this way was far too painful. This time I am trying the Ameda Purely Yours Ultra Double Electric Breast Pump!

The Purely Yours Ultra breast pump is a single-user pump with professional performance and hospital trusted. This pump will work great for every day pumping and is for working moms and moms on the go. As a military spouse with a husband who will be deployed after the baby is born, this pump will work wonders for me when I am out-and-about, especially when I travel back home for Christmas. The device is very lightweight and comes in a stylish faux leather carry bag making it easy to tote the pump around with you. Inside there are pockets and compartments as well as another pocket on the outside making it easy to organize your tote. You even have the option of three different power sources on the pump: AC adapter, car adapter or 6 AA batteries. My kit came with both the AC adapter and the car adapter but not all models include the car adapter.

With this particular kit, you will get three sizes of CustomFit Flanges (the cup part of the pump) in sizes 25.0mm, 28.5mm and 30.5mm so you can find the size that fits properly for you. Finding the correctly-sized flange for you can make all the difference in pumping comfort and success. If the cup is too small or too big, you may not get out as much milk as you should or it could cause you a lot of pain. The pump comes with instructions to help you find the correct size for you.

Every mom is different. Some prefer quick pumping while others prefer slow. Some need more suction than others. Ameda's Purely Yours Ultra pump is perfect for this because you can adjust the speed and suction to what is comfortable for you. Although I cannot physically pump yet (since I am still pregnant so that would not be wise,) I tested out the suction and speed options against my leg. Comparing to my last pump, I can tell this one will be far more comfortable. The pumping is smooth and gentle thanks to the silicone diaphragm inside the upper chamber of the HygieniKit milk collection system.

As I mentioned, this is a double pump (however, you can adjust to a single pump if you choose.) Double pumping may increase your milk supply as well according to studies (as mentioned on the Ameda site.) I know that with my first baby I would notice a lot better results when I double-pumped. The Purely Yours Ultra kit also provides the necessary parts for a manual pump if you choose to use that!

Ameda aims to provide purity, comfort and ease. For purity, the HygieniKit Proven Airlock Protection to prevent air flow between the pump and the milk (bacteria and other issues can arise when the milk gets into the pump through the tubes so preventing this is very important.) The entire pump kit is also BPA free! For comfort, Ameda provides you with three flange sizes right off the bat. If you still do not fit any of these, you are able to purchase other sizes that will fit into these. Finally, for ease is the CustomControl knobs which allow you to adjust your pumping experience for the best milk flow and comfort as mentioned earlier.

This kit includes:
(1) Purely Yours Breast Pump
(1) Dual HygieniKit Milk Collection System (without BPA and DEHP)
(1) Ultra Suede/Faux Leather Stylish Tote
(2) 30.5mm CustomFit Flanges
(2) 28.5mm BreastFlange inserts
(6) 4 oz./120mL milk collection bottles with lock-tight sealing lids
(1) Cool ‘N Carry™ Milk Storage Tote with 3 cooling element, for milk storage
(1) One-Hand Breast Pump adapter, for manual pumping
(1) Milk storage guidelines card
(1) AC power adapter
(1) Car adapter
(1) Instructions for use

Comfortable, easy, flexible, safe...I LOVE this pump! I am so excited to use this when our baby boy arrives in a few months. Ameda is a brand I really trust; WIC and the hospital/insurance often provide the Ameda manual set to new moms. Ameda even has multi-user hospital-grade pumps that are available!

Find where to buy here.

Want more information? Check out the Ameda Facebook page.






Disclaimer: I received a free product for my review! These views are my own and were not at all influenced by the party who gave me this opportunity..