Not a pig's ear of a cup!! (Pig Snout Beaker)

Member Name: mummy2harry

Product:	Pig Snout Beaker
Date:	14/06/09 (80 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Funky looking, funny, bright coloured, durable, good value

Disadvantages: None

In this weather, children love to make the of being outdoors in the garden. Out comes the plastic picnicware for when they are out there eating and of course, drinking plenty especially when they are running around a lot. I have some small Ikea plastic cups which are good for dinner time, but are too small to keep Harry happy in the drinks department for long. I had a look around the shops to find a suitable alternative, and a little jaunt into Kitchenmonger in my local town found me exactly what I needed, although there was something a little special about them that I didn't notice until I'd got them home!

These little beakers are called Pig Snout beakers because of the appearance of the underside of them when they are being drunk out of! The base of the cup forms the look of a pig snout with 2 "nostrils" and the wrinking near the base of the plastic. They are quite comical when they are being used but Harry hasn't got a clue what I mean when I use them to show him, so its perhaps aimed at older children or adults who will understand the concept!

The beakers are made from solid plastic, and because of the wide base are very sturdy when stood upright. This makes them ideal for use by young children because it will help them not to spill their drink when putting it down, and will sit nicely on any flat surface. They come in 6 different colours; red, orange (as pictured), yellow, green, blue and pink, which is of couse the most realistic! I got Harry the yellow, orange and blue ones (all his favourite colours!) and they are all such bright, vivid colours that toddlers are happy to use them and they look great on the table or out in the garden as well.

The dimensions of the cup are good for little hands. They are 11cm tall which allows for a good amount of liquid to be placed inside them, and around 7cm in diameter at the rim. I usually fill Harry's cup 3/4 full and this is plenty for a good drink by him with a little bit left to spare as well. Because of the bright colour of the plastic, drinks can appear a bit discoloured which bothered Harry for the first few times, but after I convinced him that it was
indeed orange and not a purpley colour drink he was happy enough!

Despite the wider base of the cup, they do stack nicely inside one another without any trouble, so they are ideal for popping in a picnic basket to take out with you. This also allows for easy storage in your kitchen cupboard as well because they don't take up too much space. The cups wash well and I haven't noticed any marks or scuffs on them even though they've been thrown down the garden steps a few times already! They can be a pain to dry because of the holes on the bottom, but I tend to just leave them on the draining board for a while and they seem to dry okay on their own.

They retail at around £1.50-£1.99 per cup in shops or online. As I mentioned I got Harry's cups in Kitchenmonger for £1.50 each, but I have also seen them in Cargo too. They are available online from http://www.shinyshack.com/ for £1.99 each which I think is good value considering that they should last you a long time and that you should be able to bring them out every summer to cheer up your picnic a little bit! They look like a normal cup until you tip it up to drink, so you can surprise your friends by laughing at them everytime they drink because they won't get it until they see someone do it! They're great little cups, and come recommended by Harry and I!

Thank you for reading.

Summary: A great little child's cup