Silikids Review + $50 Gift Package Giveaway!

I'm ashamed to say it, but we throw away a LOT of trash in our house.  We try hard to recycle and since our toddler has become more picky (is that the right word?- he liked it 2 hours ago) we are starting back up with a compost pile (will he love it tonight?  Will we throw it all away?  Who knows...)  That's why I LOVE products that help us leave a little smaller footprint on our earth.

[Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one or more of the products mentioned in this post for free from the Silikids company to try out.  However, all opinions are my own and I was not required to write a positive review.  Giveaway items are from the Silikids company and are not in exchange for a positive review.]

In comes Silikids- a company that creates products from... (did you guess it by their name?)  SILICONE!  "The Silikids mission is to be the alternative to plastic, bridge the gap between great design and affordability and improve the way we live!" As a sidenote from me, Silicone is also easy to clean and super fun (hello- you can draw on it!)

I tried out 3 different products from this company:

Silimap 
The first time I saw this I was in love. If you've been around this blog for long (or if you came over from our most popular post: DIY Photo Map) you might have guessed that our family likes to travel. What you may not know is that we love to take driving trips. Our favorite vacation ever was following historic Route 66 with (I swear to you...) literal HAND DRAWN maps that were not to scale and wonderfully imperfect. I love maps. I love feeling the paper in my hands as I unfold the roads ahead of me. I also love anything with states on it and am really digging this new trend of state pride apparel (I still need to get an Indiana love shirt!) So you can only guess that I had to have this map for my son.

 It also comes in this awesome container.  Yea, I'm excited about a container because (1) Kids love containers and this has become a favorite play toy for my son and (2) It's awesome for storing things on the go.  You can fit this map plus some spoons plus a bib inside of it, pop on the lid and toss in your bag.  Just FYI in case you want to make life easier.

Usually though I just fold up the map, toss it in my diaper bag and go.  The silimap actually folds up like a real map- so.stinking.cute.

Because it's silicone, your kiddos can draw on it with marker and it (very easily) wipes clean.

 As you may notice, my son is still a little young to understand the whole coloring concept.  Luckily in our home, we believe that making messes is a critical part of learning.

I'll admit, this product is not being used to it's full potential.  I think it would be better geared towards a slightly older child (my son is 1 and a half) but I am still glad that I have it now so we can start integrating it into his routine.

 Plus, if you fold it in half it really mutes the noise when your toddler bangs the salt and pepper on the table.  We use it for this purpose almost every single time we are out and about.  Maybe he will be a musician...

I can't wait until my son really gets into coloring on it, moving around snacks into the different states or (as I saw on the Silikids Instagram page) sticking stickers on it.  Why didn't I think of that?  He loves stickers!

He does seem to love it already though...

Next, I tried out the Siliskin Reusable Snack Bags

My favorite thing about these is that you can write on them. Remember me saying that we throw a lot of food away? It's not just because my toddler changes his mind on what he likes. No... it's also because I forget when I made leftovers and am too scared to try and eat it yet still keep it in the fridge for tomorrow- just in case I decide it isn't old after all (I'll let you in on a secret- I always throw it out). I've considered painting the lids on all our tupperware dry erase so I can put the date on everything.

Silikids did something to help fix this problem. These little bags are great for storing leftovers and you can write on them with marker! I like to write what is inside them as well, but even if you didn't they have a little peek through window so you can see what you put inside.

{I like to write on mine with washable Sharpie marker which comes off in the dishwasher, but regular washable markers work great too!}

 

They stand up on their own once food is inside them, are dishwasher safe (always a win in my book) and are microwave safe so you can heat your food up without switching containers.

They come in a 2-pack and lay flat for easy storage. I am hoping they come out with a "mini" version someday because I rarely every fill mine full. I could have an entire refrigerator filled with these bags. (As you can see from my photo above, I use a lot of mini containers). Even at their current size though, they are skinny so they don't take up much space at all!

The only problem with these is that the top doesn't create a tight seal. That's fine for regular storage but if you happen to put strawberries in them and put it inside your diaper bag, prepare yourself to be cleaning red juice off of everything (go ahead, ask me how I know.) Oh well, lesson learned.

Silispoons 
Lastly, we tried out Silispoons. Have I mentioned that these names are just fun to say?

I'll be honest- I wasn't really in the market for a new spoon. My son has several kinds of spoons that he seems to use just fine (and he mostly uses his hands anyways) but was given these to try out. I will admit that they are very different from the others that we own. For starters, the head of the spoon is shaped like a shovel so it helps little ones to... well, shovel their food. It does seem to do that.

 
What I do like about the shape though is how deep it is.  We have some spoons that are very flat and food falls right off of them.  The handle is kind of big too.  My little guy is small for his age (sorry kid- small parents) but has a little bit of trouble holding onto the spoon where it is widest.  He does like to hold it at the very end and push it forward though.  Hey, whatever works!

Lastly, the handle is made with textured silicone "bumps" to stimulate tactile experience but also to help when those poor little teeth are coming in!  Since we've been teething for eternity for a while now, this seems to be the real winner when it comes to these spoons.

Not convinced? In comparison to plastic, silicone is:
- Always BPA free
- Always DEHP free
- Hypo-Allergenic
- Inert
- Resistant to High Temperature
- Dishwasher safe
- Microwave safe
- Freezer safe
- Does not harbor bacteria

[Overall, I love what this company is doing in terms of reducing waste and coming up with cute, innovative products.  I think some of the products will be used more as my son gets older, but I plan to keep these items in use in our home now and for as long as he uses them.  Just don't be upset when your 1 year old doesn't care about learning his states yet...]


Want to try it for yourself?

Enter to WIN a $50 Gift Package of Silikids products!

*There are FIVE ways to enter, so be sure to open up all your options.  Some can be done daily as well, so come back each day to enter!
 

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Happy Crafting,
Kelsie Ann