One thing that really struck me when unboxing, researching and reviewing the FEND was how passionate the founders are about their product. It showed in everything from their backstory to the adorable thank you note tucked into their packaging. I can honestly say that I have no clue who created most of the products I …
FEND Foldable Bike Helmet
I give the FEND a lot of credit for its unique folding design, and for breaking into the foldable helmets market with a competitive price. I like that it’s so easy to fold, and that it clicks into place when unfolded. However, a big strike against it is the fact that it can’t shrink that much when folded. The company also has a red flag for shipping the product out to its backers at a massive lag and for being practically unreachable. We’ll track how the company is doing over the next year, but for now, I would only cautiously recommend this helmet.
Tikaton (Mumba) Travel Humidifier
Right off the bat, let me get something off my chest. I DID NOT WANT TO BUY A HUMIDIFIER. Let me repeat that just a little louder. I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY DID NOT WANT TO BUY ANOTHER PIECE OF JUNK TO CLUTTER UP MY APARTMENT. They get gross inside, take up space that I don’t …
Ascent Designer Series Slim 3-Step Stool: The Little Ladder That Could
Hello! Friend and neighbor of the Things That Fold team here to contribute a guest post to one of my favorite blogs! I’m a fellow New Yorker and tiny apartment dweller, and I love nothing more than maximizing every inch of storage space I can. While my studio is low on square footage, I’m blessed …
The Cyclo Packable Helmet
The Cyclo One is a folding helmet now in the works by a team based out of London. What makes the Cyclo unique is that it is made from 100% recycled plastic, some of which is pulled from the ocean and landfills. It also packs fairly small and is expected to be relatively affordable. The …
Look What Arrived!
Look what arrived all the way from Spain! Any guesses? Hint: It folds. Stay tuned to find out which product we will be reviewing next! November UPDATE: Here is our video comparing the Loop with the 174HUDSON Stack packable helmet!
Wet Brush Mini Pop and Go Foldable Hair Brush
You might wonder, why review a hairbrush? I mean a hairbrush is a hairbrush, right? Not when you have super thick, long hair that routinely makes hair stylists call for backup. I’m a hairbrush breaker. The bristles don’t pull the knots out of my hair – my hair pulls the bristles out of the brush. …
Anker Powerport Mini
Well I never thought I would care so much about a phone charger. It’s one of those things that is just kind of there, you know, like a doorknob or a fork. It gets the job done. But if you think about how dependent we are on these little devices, how often we use them, …
An Inexpensive Folding Helmet
What Is It There are a number of folding helmets on the market that are all essentially the same thing– a bare-bones, lightweight, simple helmet that folds in on itself like an accordion. In terms of pricing, they are usually significantly cheaper than other folding helmets, which are often in the $100-$200 range. The helmet …
Hedkayse ONE
The Hedkayse is a revolutionary new helmet design– and not just because it folds. What started as a project to produce a soft foldable bike helmet has led to an unprecedentedly tough and durable design that can’t be matched by a standard EPS foam helmet. The fact that it folds is almost just a side …
ABS vs Polycarbonate: Which Helmet Shell Material Is Better?
There are many different materials helmets can be made out of. But the two most common shell materials for folding bike helmets are ABS and polycarbonate. Which one is better? It depends. On a high level, polycarbonate is more expensive, flexible, softer, and lighter. Conversely, ABS is much cheaper, as well as harder, heavier, and …
BioLogic Pango Foldable Bike Helmet
[April 2020 Update: The BioLogic Pango is no longer available for purchase. Check out the other folding helmets instead.] What Is It The BioLogic Pango is a folding helmet that collapses to save space. Its outer shell is made of ABS, the same hard plastic that’s used to make LEGOs, and which makes it much …
Helmet Buckles: Side Release versus Magnetic Clip
When shopping for a new helmet, there is one part of the helmet that is almost always overlooked – the buckle. Nevertheless, it is an important part of the helmet’s effectiveness in a crash. It is also the part that you interact with the most when putting on the helmet. Fortunately, over the past few …
LID Plico Foldable Bike Helmet
[Feb 2020 Update: LID’s website does not seem to be working anymore, although we were able to gather some info from their site before it went down. See below for where to find more information about the LID Plico.] What Is It The LID Plico is a foldable helmet developed in the UK in the …
Coleman Fold N Go Instastart Grill: Bring BBQ Anywhere
So this has been quite an interesting purchase. It’s a highly compact gas grill that folds up like a briefcase. The gas tank, obviously, does not fit in to the neat little package, but when all is said and done it leaves a small footprint as it can be stored standing up. I’ve been pleased …
Behind the Scenes with the NYC Company That Created the Stack Packable Helmet
As a huge fan of Priority Bicycle’s 174HUDSON Stack Packable helmet, I recently had the opportunity to sit down to an interview with Connor Swegle, co-founder of Priority Bicycles. Here is what he had to say about urban biking, the future of helmets and his favorite place to bike. Interview has been lightly edited for …
Folding Helmet Reviews – The Best and All the Rest
We’ve put together this list of all of the best folding helmets on the market. Keep checking back, as we’ll be updating this page often! [Sept 2020 Update: The CPSC advises consumers to stop using and dispose of the Morpher helmet due to risk of head injury. You can check out the other folding helmets …
Closca Fuga Foldable Bike Helmet
What Is It The Closca Fuga is one of the best folding helmets on the market. It’s a collapsible helmet that shrinks down to only 2.5″ wide– just about the narrowest among all folding helmets. It’s also one of the lightest. And did we mention one of the easiest to fold? As a high-end model …
Overade Plixi Foldable Bike Helmet
[Coming Soon: Overade BLINXI, the snap-on helmet light + turn signal for the PLIXI] What Is It The Plixi FIT is a folding helmet that uses hinges to collapse in on itself and drop in volume by two-thirds. It’s fairly customizable in terms of color and add-ons, and is meant to be a personalized accessory …
Folding Helmet Reviews
We’ve put together this list of all of the best folding helmets on the market. Keep checking back, as we’ll be updating this page often! Folding Helmet Recommendation Engine (Quiz) Buyer’s Guide It’s pretty overwhelming trying to navigate the dozen or so folding helmets that are on the market or coming onto the market, or …
174HUDSON Stack: A Folding Helmet Without the Big Price Tag
[tl;dr] I was pretty excited to try this folding helmet. I’ve been using a different folding helmet for about two years now and wanted to know if the Stack could do any better, especially in terms of foldability and comfort. I realize there are a lot of tradeoffs you have to make when you make …
Ideas to Save Space on Kids’ Things
When our son was born I was determined to not let our house become a chaotic jumble of brightly-colored plastic crap. And, so far, I’m winning that war thanks in part to my unshakable dedication to finding things that fold. Every baby item must be, in this order, safe, small/foldable, and cleanable. His bouncer stays …
Homz Over-the-Door Towel Rack: A Simple Solution to Laundry Clutter
This drying rack has proven to be essential in our tiny apartment. It folds up unobtrusively when not in use but expands to hold quite a few items. So far it hasn’t sagged or bent under the weight of heavy blankets or wet jeans. The over the door hooks make it easy to set up …
Brooks England Carrera Foldable Helmet
The Brooks England Carrera is a “stylish” and comfortable helmet that squashes down to about 67% of its width. It’s not hugely compact, and even then, requires some work to keep it shut. However, it is a fairly lightweight and natural-feeling helmet, due to its elastic springy design. Overall, I would only recommend the Carrera if you either really want a helmet that hugs your head, or if you happened to find a Carrera design that totally speaks to you.
Save Space in the Kitchen with Products That Fold
One of the joys of living in Manhattan is having the entire culinary world at your doorstep. Macrobiotic vegan food for breakfast, authentic Ethiopian food for lunch and old-school Jewish deli for dinner? Sign me up. On the other hand, this vibrant dining scene comes at a steep price. And that price is tiny, terrible …
Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play Portable Bassinet
So let me tell you a little about my love/hate relationship with this bassinet. Let’s start with the good stuff. It is super lightweight – moving it around is comparable to moving a folding chair. And with an aching back this is something I deeply appreciated. Also being able to quickly and easily move the …
Skip Hop Pronto Signature Changing Station
So if you have read anything at all on this website you know how much I hate the idea of baby clutter taking over my life. I can’t stand having to schlep an overloaded diaper bag just for a quick trip to the park down the street. Babies are hard enough, dealing with all of …
HotMat 2DISH Connect Hot Plate: When You Thought You’ve Seen It All, a New Folding Innovation
If you are like most people, you probably don’t use a warming tray all that often. I know I use mine once a week, and even that is more than the average holiday/special occasion hosting these things are commonly used for. This means that for a good part of the time this appliance needs to …
Folding Travel Clip & Drip Laundry Hanger Drying Rack
When I first bought this product I had grand visions of folding it up and stashing it in a cabinet between uses. HAHAHAHAHA. Yup, what a joke. This thing is literally always in use. As any parent of a toddler can tell you – laundry is never ending! [Jan 2020 Update: The hanger is available …
Intimina Lily Cup™ Compact Menstrual Cup: An Innovative New Take on the Menstrual Cup
For those of you not yet in on the menstrual cup trend, I’ll spare you the evangelizing (Better for the environment! Saves money!) found in nearly every publication marketed towards women. I admit I was a holdout as seemingly everyone ditched tampons and pads in favor of the the newest cool-girl must-have. I don’t …
Delta Children Portable Mini Crib
This mini crib was great for my son’s first two and a half years. It feels sturdy and actually furniture-like, if such a term exists. I appreciated that it had a decent amount of space underneath so I could store things. It comes with wheels that you can choose to put on or leave off, …
prepworks® Collapsible Produce Keeper: Is It Worth the Money?
I think I was overly optimistic when purchasing this. It fails on three fronts: extending the life of produce, overall function, and being compact. While it did keep my lettuce perfectly crisp it grew large amounts of mold. In terms of overall function the bottom water reservoir frequently leaks or falls off. And to add …
BetterBack: It’s Better, but Is It the Best?
One of the annoying things about back pain is the clutter of braces, supports, cushions, heat packs, etc. that come with it. I was increasingly frustrated with finding a place to store all of the things that no longer helped, and wished I could bring the ones I loved when I would go away for …
The Morpher Folding Helmet: Does It Live up to the Hype?
The Morpher folding helmet folds extremely flat, while otherwise looking like a regular helmet. It’s great if you’re new to folding helmets and want something inconspicuous and functional. Other helmets may be better in terms of fit, style, portability, or price, but overall the Morpher does not have any major weaknesses, and is a great helmet that you will probably be very satisfied with.
Hunter Packable Rain Boots
As a super type-A person I always need to be prepared for everything. That means taking my rainboots with me more often than I really need to. Thankfully Hunter has made this a bit easier with rainboots that actually fold down to fit in a bag. Another bonus is that the flexible material is more …
Joseph Joseph Twist™ Whisk: Two in One- Is It Too Good to Be True?
I really, really wanted to love this whisk. As an avid chef I dream of having a well-stocked kitchen, but alas my small Manhattan apartment has its limits. So when I thought I could have a balloon whisk that folds down to a flat whisk I was delighted. Unfortunately the folding function never seemed to …
Razor Jr Folding Kiddie Kick Scooter: A Sturdy Choice for a First Scooter
Impressively durable and sturdy, this scooter makes me wonder why anyone would buy one that doesn’t fold. Thankfully the folding mechanism is a bit tricky for kids to use themselves so there are no worries about pinched fingers. It’s a little heavy to carry around but that weight provides serious stability. It’s a great first …
Ikea Sundvik Changing Table
[UPDATE: Looks like this changing table might not be such a good idea] I am really starting to have second thoughts about this changing table. It is fairly difficult to open or close the fold out panel, especially when holding a squirmy baby. I only fold it up to make room for overnight guests. It …
Stokke Flexi Bath
The Stokke Flexi Bath is a lightweight, foldable, and durable bath tub that you can easily store without taking up much space. It folds narrow enough to fit in a suitcase for traveling. It works well until about age 4. This bath doesn’t leak, drains quickly, and is easy to wash. And it comes in six different colors (including two transparent ones), and has a heat-indicating drain plug. Although this $64 bathtub isn’t cheap, you definitely get a lot of use out of it.
BabyBjörn Bouncer Bliss
I have two rules for all baby things that I buy: They must be foldable and washable. This bouncer is the only one I have found that folds up completely flat, and the entire cover removes for washing! It was a lifesaver when my son was born and we lived in a Manhattan apartment smaller …
Babyletto Maki Full Size Folding Crib
This is the only (that I could find) crib on the market that folds AND converts into a toddler bed. As we convert the baby’s room into a guest room as needed we were delighted to find a toddler bed that would fold. The crib itself is sturdy and stylish. It has removable wheels, which …
Tip Pee Toe Step Stool
The good news: You will never, and I mean never, find a step stool that is more compact than this. Most stools just fold flat, this folds flat and then in half. The not so good news: Save this one for the road because it isn’t sturdy enough to use regularly. I doubt it would …
Diono Radian 3R
Ok, so this isn’t the cheapest. Or the easiest to install. It takes some time to acclimate to the various straps and buckles for each position that this versatile car seat can do. But it’s worth it for the size and versatility. Rear facing, forward facing and booster seat are all covered in one piece …
MiFold
Be prepared to find out who your real friends are – when you have your kid buckled into this tiny seat, plan on getting plenty of judgmental stares from busybodies who think your kid isn’t in a car seat at all! This game-changing car seat folds up to the size of small laptop. It’s super-portable, …