I don't blog, but if I did…

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALYSSA G, THE WINNER OF THIS GIVEAWAY. SHE HAS BEEN NOTIFIED BY EMAIL AND HAS 24 HOURS TO RESPOND.

Have you heard me rave about the Zoku Quick Pop Maker? I’m sure you have. I talk, tweet and write about it whenever I’m given an opening. It’s probably really annoying that I do that, but it’s legit love, I need to share it with the world. We were given one as a gift (from a family member, not a sponsored thing) years ago, and I’m not kidding when I say we use it weekly.

We’ve had everything from plain juice to veggie/juice combos to yogurt pops and coffee pops around our house. The kids really love the yogurt pops I’ve made (combining plain Balkan-style yogurt and fresh berries and fruit) and I’m (obviously) partial to anything with caffeine (the kids don’t get those).

When Lisa the Toy Whiz at Mastermind Toys asked if I’d do a review and giveaway of the latest Zoku products, I was super excited. I obviously maintained my cool (see what I did there?) about it when I heard that the products we’d be trying out were the new Slush and Shake Maker ($24.95 at Mastermind Toys), and the Social Pops set ($19.95 at Mastermind Toys).

Let’s start with the Social Pops. This is an accessory kit to be used with the Zoku Quick Pop Maker (sold separately). You can use it with the 3-pop maker or the single. The Social Pops kit is such a fun way to make unique, silly pops that are sure to bring big smiles. And c’mon, you already know I’m going to love it, what with my love of all things social media, right?

The kit comes with a placing tool, a tool (the blue thing in the photo) to hold your Zoku pop maker on its side while you’re placing shapes, and all the shape cutters you need.

You just punch out all the cutters and the box is the storage for the whole kit.

To get ready to make your pops, you’ll need a bowl of water handy, and a fruit to slice and cut into shapes. We chose apple, with a dark-coloured juice so the fruit contrasted nicely.

You’ll want to slice the fruit thinly because when you go to place them inside the Zoku unit, there’s not a ton of room in there. Next you’ll cut your shapes that you want to place inside, and put the shapes in water. The water helps them stick to the inside of the Zoku unit.

I don’t know what Zoku calls it, but I call this little pokey tool genius. It’s how you get the teeny shapes out of the cutter. PlayDoh should pay attention, this thing is handy.

Once you’ve cut all your shapes, grab your Zoku unit from the freezer (you always want to leave the unit in the freezer until the time you’re ready to make your pops to ensure the fastest freezing time). Place the unit on its side on the little blue holder provided. Take the placer tool and lay out your design on it, the way you want it  to appear on the pops, then insert the placing tool and press the shape to the side of the Zoku unit. Make sure your surly-looking preschooler is in attendance.

The whole process is super fast and easy. My 6.5 year old daughter really loved making her own, and all I had to help with was slicing the apple for her.

Once the shapes have been placed, put the “sticks” (the pop holder thingamajigs, you know what I mean?) into the pop maker, then pour the juice in. The juice I used was literally just a bunch of mashed-up berries, so it was a little chunkier than I’d like, meaning the pops weren’t as smooth as they could’ve been, but the end results were super cool (I mean, super #cool), and we loved the whole process! Here are a couple of the ones we made:

Awesome new product, Zoku!

Now, onto the Zoku Slush & Shake Maker. Get ready to be amazed, people, this thing is really neat. So neat, in fact, that I made a video all about it because I wasn’t sure you’d really understand just how amazing this thing is via photos alone. I’m tech-challenged, so I’m hoping this video is embedded properly (you may have to refresh the page). If not, click HERE to watch our Zoku Slush & Shake Maker demo on Vimeo.

Within about eight minutes you’ll have your slush or shake. Perfect texture and frozenness every single time. My kids got a kick out of watching the ice crystals form. The first slush we made was using a fruit and veggie juice that I called “some kind of purple juice” in the video because I honestly hadn’t paid much attention to what I’d picked up in the store and was surprised to read that it had beets in it, and since then I’ve made a shake using vanilla almond milk, and my absolute favourite: coffee slush. I’ll be buying another Slush & Shake Maker this weekend so the kids don’t fight over this one anymore. They come in such pretty colours!

What I love about the Zoku products is that they really do live up to their promises. The designs are sleek and appealing with bright colours and they’re easy to store. They’re fast, effective and fun to use. Both of the products we tried get raves from my entire family and I bet you’ll love them, too.

And here’s your chance to win them for yourself! Mastermind Toys is kindly offering up one Zoku Social Pops kit, and one Zoku Slush & Shake Maker to one of my readers (ARV $45).  Giveaway open to Canadians only, exclusive of Quebec residents. Just follow the easy steps below to enter to win! Winner will be drawn on May 17, 2013 at 9am EDT and notified via email. Good luck, everyone!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

DISCLOSURE: We were given one (1) Zoku Slush & Shake Maker and one (1) Zoku Social Pops kit as compensation for this post, courtesy Mastermind Toys. Mastermind Toys is also providing the prize.