I'm the type of person who finds it a real chore having to cook and prepare meals, although I do enjoy baking as I see this as more of a fun activity that I can enjoy, rather than something that has to be done out of necessity. I work in an office and I was getting bored of my uninspiring packed lunches, so when I heard about the Japanese art of creating bento lunches I was hooked. The idea is to make a healthy, balanced lunch but also make it look cute! This can be by decorating food, arranging them nicely, or adding food colourings to pale bland items. I've been on the lookout for all sorts of bento / lunchbox accessories that I can use to boost my enthusiasm for the daily chore of making my packed lunch that I take to work. I first saw the Kitchen Craft Crust & Sandwich Cutters on Amazon, and though they looked fun, but when I found them sitting in my local Poundland I decided this would be a worthwhile investment for the measly sum of £1.00.

Product description: "Crust and sandwich cutter. Makes sandwiches more fun! Great for packed lunches, parties and more!"

The product is a shaped plastic cutter that comes in a few different designs including dolphins, hearts, and this dinosaur cutter that I have. It's made of a blue coloured semi-transparent plastic and although it seems quite brittle I have used it many times and it has proved to be firm and steady under use. The cutter is shaped into two diagonally opposing sections that take the shape of a diplodocus type dinosaur with a long neck and tail. The basic idea is that you use the cutter to create two crust-free sandwich pieces from one ordinary pre-prepared sandwich.

Directions for use:
1. Position the Crust Cutter on bread.
2. Apply pressure & twist to side.
3. Pull the crusts away.
4. Remove cutter & separate halves.

This is very easy to use and could be done safely with children if you want to encourage your kids into the kitchen and get them involved in making their own lunches. First of all you have to make a sandwich. There are a few things you should consider to see if the sandwich will be compatible with the cutter. For example, it will be difficult to cut through thick layers of filling. Also, any particularly runny sauce based fillings will be likely to ooze out of the sides and make a huge mess. Thick pieces of bread will be difficult to cut through so I use medium sliced soft bread for the sandwiches I want to use my dinosaur cutter on.

Once you've made your sandwich you then position the cutter over the bread and apply a firm pressure straight down onto it. You will be able to tell which way up the cutter needs to be placed as it has a rounded edge on the top for you to comfortably grip on to, and a straight edge on the bottom for cutting through the sandwich. Once you've reached through to the base of the sandwich give the cutter a very little wiggle just to make sure everything has been sliced through and separated. With the cutter still in place, then pull away the outer edges of the sandwich and then lift the cutter away. There you have it, dinosaur shaped sandwiches!

Once the sandwiches have been cut I then place them into a little plastic lidded tub to keep them fresh while I'm transporting them to work. I have tried wrapping them in cling film but it seems a bit flimsy and the sandwiches can tend to fall apart. The dinosaur shapes look really great and you can see straight away what it is supposed to be. I have had problems sometimes with the tail of the dinosaur breaking away, as this section of the sandwich becomes very thin and delicate and it can easily come apart from the rest of the sandwich. I really love how these dinosaur sandwiches look and they go great with my newfound hobby of making creative bento lunches. They would look awesome made up in big batches for buffets of as party food and they certainly get attention when other people see them!

The plastic cutter creates very little mess as it cuts cleanly through the sandwich and doesn't turn the bread into a crumbly mess. It is also very easy to wash up afterwards but you must wash by hand as it is not safe to be put in the dishwasher.

The only problem I have with this sandwich cutter is that it does create a fair amount of waste. The cutter measures approximately 3" x 3" and so you get quite a bit of excess sandwich left over that you would remove from the outside of the cutter. Instead of throwing the bread crusts away I save them up and use them for making croutons to go with my soups, which helps to reduce the waste and uses the leftover pieces in a tasty way.

Overall I think this dinosaur sandwich cutter is a simple but brilliant idea, it's great fun and makes lunchboxes seem more interesting. A great product and an absolute bargain for £1.00 - I would definitely recommend it.