25+ Tips and Products to Travel Light and Compact

It’s hard to imagine what people (oops, I almost said ladies) take with them on a short business trip. Their luggage looks like they plan to travel around a continent for the next six months. A real vacation luggage assembly, in its turn, makes you consider calling the movers instead of the taxi company.

A golden tip that I read long ago goes as follows: Place everything that you want to pack on the floor next to your luggage. Then pack half of it and take twice as much money as you’d originally planned to. Traveling too heavy is no fun, and can be expensive if you exceed the luggage allowance. Worse, airport fluid restrictions can force you to leave your stuff at the security check, so you end up flying to your destination without your contact lens fluid or shaving foam.

CompoSphere Composting Tumbler Makes Composting Easier

Last year I was enthusiastic about the EarthMaker rapid no-turn composter because you don’t need to turn the compost on a regular basis in order to aerate it. This CompoSphere compost bin is another alternative that not only makes turning easier, it can even be rolled to anywhere you need it. Read on to make up your own mind on which one you like best.

Your Travel Stroller is Your Luggage Too – The Ride-on Carry-on

Plane or train travel with little children is tough. Carrying one bag on your back, pulling a suitcase behind you and trying to steer a stroller with your one free hand takes more coordination than most people can handle. Not to mention the dreaded moment when you actually want to step on board and there’s no helping hand around.

Swimming Computer from Swimovate

Brands such as Polar have been focusing on heart rate monitors and sports computers for a long time. And those things are quite useful, even for the average jogger. This is the first computer I’ve encountered that’s targeted toward swimmers. Not only does this Swimovate Pool-Mate swimming computer keep track of time, it also has several additional useful functions built in, such as a lap count and speed measurement.

Retrofit Adjustable Bed – Mattress Genie

Many people like to read or watch TV in bed, while others might suffer from acid reflux. These are all valid reasons to treat yourself to an adjustable bed frame, but they don’t come cheap. And they may not even be compatible with your current bed. This Mattress Genie bed lift system from Contour looks like a great alternative. It can be placed under the mattress and is inflated by the supplied compressor.

Easy-threading Needle – Spiral Eye Needle

Cancel that order for your new prescription glasses! Here’s a needle that you can thread with your eyes closed. Even a mild manifestation of Parkinson’s disease won’t stop you from threading this within seconds – and I’m not kidding. Now you know what to buy for Mother’s Day.

Portable Foldable Kitchen Scale from Newline

Several foldable kitchen scales can be found, though many models force you to hang them on the wall. This original design isn’t just compact, it looks good too. And when folded, you can hang it on a towel or utensil rack. Seems a great Mother’s Day gift to me.

Replace Your Fluorescent Lights with LED Lights

With a combined target of a reduction in energy bills, a reduction in carbon emissions and other “green” considerations, many people have gone through the process of replacing their incandescent light bulbs with more efficient compact fluorescent lights/lamps (CFLs). A new kid on the block – still in the same form factor – are LED lights, which are even more energy-efficient than CFLs. Until recently, however, there were no decent replacement options for standard fluorescent lighting. But now new products such as posilight and ReLED fill that gap in the market.

Overview of Rechargeable Battery Technologies

Lately there’s been a lot of buzz in the rechargeable battery world, after a number of promising new technologies have been hyped on the market. Now is probably the right time to get an overview of the advantages and drawbacks of the different types of rechargeable batteries, before we get too bogged down in all the hype.

Smush Can Self-powered Compacting Trashcan

Boxes, bags and other empty packaging fill your trashcan quickly and force you to take out more air than trash, almost on a daily basis. This new trashcan lets you compact the trash inside your home, and it doesn’t need electricity to work. Now you don’t have to get your hands or feet dirty to compact your garbage.