Review: Icepops Bag by Cool-it Caddy

When I travel, I always bring my own snacks. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to keep things like fruit or cheese cold so you can actually take it with you? I know it would be useful when traveling with kids, too. As much as I like chips and crackers and homemade granola bars, fresh foods would be lovely.

I was able to meet up with Cool-it Caddy at the Travel Goods Show in Phoenix and picked up a sample of one of their great Icepops bags. Not only do they come in snappy colors, but the bags have built-in freezable coolants packs in the sides. You pop the bag in the freezer and a few hours later you have a bag that you can take with you on the plane, to the beach, to amusement parks and anywhere else you want to keep things cool.

A small water bottle can fit in the Icepops, which is great when you’re out and about and don’t want to spend money on drinks or have no way to keep a drink cold for longer than 10 minutes. We go to a lot of theme parks. Imagine how much better Disney would be if the water you brought in DIDN’T have to be frozen before you left your hotel and you didn’t have to wait for it to unfreeze to drink it, or you an unfrozen one stayed cool longer than the time it takes to actually get into the park? Cold water is just more refreshing and tastier.

Going to the beach? Many of us don’t just head down to the sand and then go straight home. Use your Icepops bag to store your sunscreen, lip balm, deodorant and anything else that can help you freshen up, so you can toss on a cover-up and go straight to lunch or dinner. Melted beauty products is a bummer, especially when you have paid good money for decent products. And I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to have to replace things when I don’t have to. Things an only stay cool in your beach bag for so long, but if they’re in an Icepops bag, they will stay cool for hours.

In Portland, we have a lot of outdoor festivals and activities where having a bottle of water and a few snacks would be great to have. Icepops would fit in my purse, or with the handy loop handle, I can slip it on my wrist and go. With the nice slip pocket on the back, I could also carry my hotel key, I.D., debit card or some cash with me. (If plain water is not something you love, you can add a few of those flavor packets to your bag to make tea or other yummy drink.)

Run your errands and keep cool, too. Once you’ve gone in a few stops, that bottle of water in your car is going to heat up. Not only is warm bottled water gross, but experts say it’s also unsafe to drink. Icepops keeps it cold through all your errands and keeps other items from warming up, too: your tube of lipstick for touch-ups, that candy bar for a little indulgence, your medications you have to take throughout the day that are supposed to stay at a certain temperature.

Stuck with the wee ones at Little league? Stash a couple of juice boxes and carrot sticks in your Icepops for those that aren’t playing or for celebrating after the game. How exciting to be able to present totally cold drinks and nibbles for your little ones anywhere you go. And if you go anywhere with babies and need to keep milk cold, this is the perfect solution! Slip the bag into your diaper bag and you have milk that is good for hours. If items are cold before they go into the bag, they are able to stay colder even longer.

Icepops can stay frozen for up to 7 hours, which can get you through a lot. Keep it in the freezer to use at a moment’s notice. For maximum space inside, roll up a small towel or stuff some paper inside, so you can easily get your items inside when you’re ready to use it. If you forget this step, don’t worry. You can still stash a water bottle and other goodies inside, it will just be a bit of a tight squeeze.

With summer vacations coming up, you might want to buy a couple of these to take with you anywhere you end up going. If you would like a Cool-it Caddy for just your beauty items or a more manly black, check out the website for more styles and materials.

More information:

How big is it? 8.5” x 5.5” x 3”

Where can you buy it? Cool-it Caddy Website

How much is it? $19.95

Colors it comes in: Tangerine (shown) | Raspberry | Lime | Blueberry

Like the coolness of Cool-it Caddy? Follow them on Facebook | Twitter

Disclosure: I was provided with a Icepops bag by Cool-it Caddy for the purpose of this review, but all opinions are 100% my own.

Why You Should Get to the Airport Early

As you know, I love the airport, so much so that I don't mind getting there two hours early for my flight. I like to browse the shops and eat a meal there. I think it's fun, in the way I no longer enjoy the mall. Each airport is different and they all offer similar, yet totally different souvenirs and gifts in their shops. Of course, getting to the airport early is not just for exploring. You never know what can happen on the way there or once you arrive. There could be an accident or a long, long, long security line. Also, if you haven't chosen a seat because you don't want to pay extra, you get first crack at the good seats.

Exit row seats normally don't get assigned until travelers arrive at the airport and request them. The airport employees like to see that you are qualified to operate the emergency door if needed (and how often does that even happen?). Exit row seats always have more space than regular economy seating. This can be anywhere from a few inches to a few feet. it all depends on the plane you're on. 

Other seats that are available for those that arrive early are those priority seats like Economy Plus and some First Class if they haven't been reserved yet. this can be your chance to snag one for free. Sometimes the airline will claim that the flight is overbooked if only priority seats are left, so you can't even choose a seat online if you aren't willing to pay extra. Once you get to the gate or the check-in desk, you may be able to snag whatever seats are left, which can totally work out in your favor. 

Getting to the airport early and not choosing my seat ahead of time has worked for me plenty of times in the past and each flight I took to and from Phoenix last week ended up with me getting a pretty awesome seat. On the way out of Portland, I was able to grab an exit row seat to Denver, From Denver to Phoenix, I was put in Economy Plus, because the flight was "overbooked". Basically, I saved $29 by not choosing my seat ahead of time and paying money for one of those fancy seats. 

On the way home, I got to the airport a few hours early, because I wanted to miss rush hour traffic and again was able to request an exit row. not only did I not have a seatmate next to me, but I was also a few steps away from the bathroom and had more legroom than I've ever had on a flight. My feet didn't even though the wall! I didn't have an underseat in front of me, so I had to put almost all my baggage in the overhead, but that's okay. If you get a choice, ask to sit on the right side of the plane, where you will have a place to put your carry-on and also have a window (usually). 

What's the best travel experience you've ever had?

Review: Clipa Handbag Hanger

Do you ever go into a public restroom or a bar and have no place to put your purse? You could put it on the floor, but A) there are disgusting germs that you don’t want to end up taking with you and B) someone could easily snatch it up and run away with it. It would sure make you sad if you either lost all your money and other important stuff or you ended up with some yuck disease.

I found myself in three public restrooms in two days last week that that didn’t have a purse hanger on the door and one that had the fold-down shelf that worked badly. I’m sure you’ve tried to hold it on your lap or keep it on your shoulder. How awkward was that? Really awkward, right? If you never want to have that issue again, then you’ll want to get a Clipa. 

This heavy duty hanger hangs your purse on any table, counter and most doors. Hang it on purse until you need to use it and you’re set. It’s particularly great when traveling and your only choices are to hang your bag on the back of your chair (easy for thieves to steal out of and outright), in your lap (super awkward when you’re trying to eat) or on the floor by your feet (tripping hazard and also easy for thieves to access). Know exactly where your bag is, but keep it out of the way by using Clipa.

The great thing about this purse hanger is that it can hold up an average of 45 lbs, though it has been tested at over double that, so if you have a heavy non-rolling carry-on bag with you when you travel, or a diaper bag, it will hold that, too. In fact, I used it on my table with my small roller bag just to show you how well it works.

The Clipa has padding on both ends, so it won’t mar any surface you use it on. It also comes in a bunch of fun colors, including this year’s it color Radiant Orchid, so you can match it to your bag if you want. It’s pretty, too. It would look great as a bangle, meaning it doubles as an accessory and that’s one less thing you need to pack!

Okay, so now you want one of those awesome Clipas, but while you’re on their site, you can pick up something just as cool and useful. I’m not sure why nobody else ever thought of it. The No Chip Clip is a key ring – that comes in a set of 3 – that has a starter tang that allows you to put your key on and slide it right onto the ring without having to snap your nail off or use a pen or a coin or a paperclip to try to get it open.

They are so easy to use and work just as well as normal key rings – your keys won’t figure out how to fall off – and your won’t ever need to put your nails near the ring. I mean, I have just left keys on my rings before, just because they were so hard to get off again and hurt my fingers. Am I the only one? No? Well then, like me, you are probably going to buy a bunch of packs of these to replace all your key rings…and then tell all your friends about them.

More information on Clipa:

How big is it? Clipa: 3” diameter | No Chip Clip: 1” diameter

Where can you buy it? Clipa website

How much is it? Clipa: $14.99+ | No Chip Clip: $1.99 for 3-pack

Colors it comes in: Black, Silver and a rainbow of other colors

Like the coolness of Clipa? Follow them on Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | YouTube

Disclosure: I was provided with a Clipa Bag Hanger and key rings for the purpose of this review, but all opinions are 100% my own.