I often get enquiries on my IGS when I post photos/videos of the house, asking for the shopping links to some items, so I thought I’d compile a list here, in time for the 11.11 sale!
First up, the “auntie” things that I’ve been using to organise my kitchen and backyard.
Over-Door Towel Hanger This over-door towel hanger has been really handy, and I also use it in our master bedroom’s bathroom. I didn’t want to put up hooks on the wall/cabinets for the towels, and I wanted a white over-door hanger, so I was quite happy that I found this. It’s made of plastic, and one of the hangers that I ordered was broken when it arrived, but I actually ordered an extra one just in case, so it all worked out quite well. It’s also really cheap, so I’m very happy with it!
Cutlery Drainer Our dish-drying rack is quite high, and I didn’t think it made sense to put all our washed cutlery in it, so I found this plastic drainer that is large enough for all the cutlery that we use on a regular basis. It doesn’t topple over even when I put the bottle brush in it, and the water drains out into this little tray that can be easily emptied, which is quite handy.
MUJI PP Stand File Box I wanted to keep our chopping boards and placemats neatly in our kitchen cabinets, and realised that these MUJI file holders fit perfectly. It’s a bit pricey, but it is very sturdy, and serves our needs well. We also bought a few of them for our study, and they hide all my mismatched files, which is great as it means I don’t have to buy matching files and re-file all my documents.
Cereal Containers If you saw my first post about our house, you would have noticed that we have a two-door larder with pull-out drawers. I usually have at least two types of breakfast cereal in there, as the kids like to have a bit of variety. These Lock n Lock cereal containers were introduced to me by a friend, and I really like that they keep the cereal fresh, and make it easier to pour out.
Greenday Apple Snacks and Okra Snacks I have to pack snacks for the kids daily, and they really love the Greenday snacks! The Kids Apple Snacks are perfect for their lunchboxes, and each pack contains four small bags of crispy apples, so I stock up on them. The twins also like the Okra snack, but it doesn’t come in smaller bags, so I just split a packet between the two of them.
MUJI Dustbins We got two of the MUJI dustbins for our backyard: the largest one for our recyclable materials, and the medium-sized one for regular rubbish. I like that the lids can open all the way (or 270 degrees according to the description), and that the trash bags are held in place properly with the steel bag stopper.
Broom/Mop Holders We didn’t know how to organise our brooms and mops initially, but I found these self-adhesive broom/mop holders, and managed to fit six of them perfectly on a wall in our backyard. They keep these cleaning tools out of sight, and allow them to dry properly too.
Scotch-Brite Multi-Purpose Window Cleaner Now that we have lots of windows/mirrors to clean, I got the Scotch-Brite Multi-Purpose Window Cleaner, and it’s been quite useful! If you look at the photo below, it’s the second one from the right, next to the yellow mop handle, and comes with a detachable squeegee.
Garden Hose We bought two of these garden hoses: one for the front porch and one for the backyard. The kids love using it to water the plants, and to wet our AstroTurf “pitch” when it’s too hot and dry.
Okay, now that all the “auntie” things are done, we can move on to the more “interesting” and decorative items.
Large Whiteboard I’ve gotten quite a few DMs about the large whiteboard in the kids’ study, as I’ve shown the kids doodling on it quite a bit on my IGS. I paid an extra $30 for installation (just indicate in the comments section that installation is required), and two very nice uncles came to mount the whiteboard on our wall.
Before you get all excited and order the largest whiteboard you can find, remember to measure the space on your wall carefully first. Ours is 120cm x 180cm, and it ALMOST didn’t fit, as our light switches were in the way. The whiteboard is slightly lower from where I originally envisioned it to be, but it actually worked out quite well, as it’s at the right height for the kids. I wanted it to be magnetic, so I didn’t get the wall painted with blackboard paint, or use one of those adhesive whiteboard films.
Yamatoya Desk and Chair set I’ve also gotten a few DMs about the desk and chair set which the twins use, and even though we bought ours from Isetan a while ago, I managed to find the exact same set on Shopee. I like that they are well-made, and are just right for the twins. I think they can use these desks and chairs comfortably for a few more years, and I can actually sit on their chairs without any issues too. The twins love having a drawer in the desk, and like keeping all sorts of nonsense in the drawers, even though I’ve told them that the drawers are for their stationery only. Sigh.
N’s Study Table and Chair Since I don’t need my old study table anymore, we put it into the kids’ study room for N to use. We got it from Taobao previously, but I found the same one on Shopee, and it has good reviews too. N used to use the same highchair as the twins when we were in Jakarta, but we didn’t want to clutter up our dining area with another highchair, so we moved it to the study room instead. It is adjustable, and meant to “grow” with the child, so he now uses this chair when he’s in the study room.
Desk Pad and Screen Cleaner Now that C is working from home, he asked me to get him a few things that would make his workstation more comfortable. This PU leather desk pad didn’t make sense to me at first, but it’s so pretty that I’m tempted to get one for myself too!
The screen cleaner also seemed a bit frivolous to me, but he insisted that his screens look a lot better after using it, and he cleans my laptop screen for me too, so okay la, not bad. Heh.
Cable Organiser and UGREEN Charging Cable He also asked me to get these cable organisers for our desks, and I have to admit that it does look neater when the wires are held nicely there. The UGREEN charging cables seem more durable than the other brands that I’ve gotten previously, so we’ve replaced all our charging cables with them.
Xiaomi Sensor Night Light Our ID Francis’ wife recommended this Xiaomi Sensor Night Light to us, and I like it so much that I’m planning to buy more. I’ve got one in our bathroom, and two on the staircase landings, but I think we might need another one or two more. It’s really useful when you don’t want to switch the light on, but still need a bit of light to see.
Hooga Reed Diffuser and Soap Dispenser I went shopping at Hooga for the Hooga items, but I realised that they’re also available on Shopee! We like the look of the reed diffuser, and the smell is also quite pleasant. We’re also using this soap dispenser in our powder room as it matches our countertop, wall and floor tiles. (Please note that the original diffuser and soap dispenser are no longer in stock, but I’ve included links to similar items.)
Hooga Khind Tent and Cushion To make the playroom more cosy, we got a teepee and cushion for the kids. I had a bit of trouble fitting the teepee into the car, so I wish I knew it was available on Shopee instead! The twins like to hide in it, and I think it will look even nicer after we decorate it. The round cushion is very comfortable, though the cover isn’t removable, so I’m probably going to add a mat on top of it to protect it a little.
Hooga Family Dew Cushions I couldn’t resist getting the dew cushions when I saw them, because they’re really soft and cute, plus they’re quite affordable! I initially got only the Papa Dew cushion and the Sis Dew cushion (because I like pink more than purple), but ended up going back to get the Bro Dew cushion and two of the Bebe Dew cushions, so that our family would be accurately represented. The cushions look absolutely adorable in our home library, and the kids like hugging them when they sit there to read.
Beanbag refill (70l / 1kg) and Muji Beanbag We got one of our beanbags in Jakarta, and it was becoming a tad too flat, so I got the beanbag refill to fatten it up again. It’s now back to its usual size, and complements the Muji beanbag quite well. We absolutely LOVE the Muji beanbag, because it’s so soft and comfortable! Quite a few people told me that they have it too, and that it’s quite durable, so if you’re looking for a beanbag, I think the Muji one is a good investment.
Inflatable Pool and Pump The kids love playing in the pool, and keep asking if we can go swimming, so we thought it would be fun for them to have an inflatable pool of their own. They were so excited when it arrived, and couldn’t wait to jump in after we finally set it up. The pump that I ordered from this seller didn’t work, but the refund was processed very quickly.
I found another local seller for the electric pump, and since it had pretty good reviews, I ordered this pump instead and it works well for us. There’s no way I’m going to manually inflate the pool again, because it was really exhausting!
The kids have been playing almost daily in the inflatable pool, and I’m glad we got the largest one I could find (ours is 210x150x72cm), as it can fit all three of them comfortably inside.
Okay, that’s about all I can think of at the moment! Don’t forget to take advantage of the upcoming 11.11 sale to do all your shopping on Shopee!
PS. If you click on these links and make a purchase, I get a tiny bit of commission, but at no cost to you at all, so please use my links k? Thank you!