How can I find time to make these super-arty lunches

pavlovs_dog

i must confess i am quite a fan of lakeland and their ingenious products. they also seem quite ethical and principled as a company - something to be admired in todays commercial world :cool:

dont know if any of you ever pick up their magazines/catalogues in store, but these certainly seem to suggest that they take their customers very seriously, bringing back discontinued products due to customer demand for example, or even sourcing items to sell.


herein lies my idea... if they are aware of the growing demand for these products, they will be more inclined to stock them. perhaps if those of you who are serious about this venture contact them, they will consider introducing a bento/ bento inspired range :j nothing ventured, nothing gained....

astep70uk

Heres another couple i've made up for him.
It really is easy once you get going, and his fruit and veg intake has gone up. I think he used to be quite bewildered by a whole apple or orange in his lunchbox and never ate it - now I just put in little pieces and he eats the lot :j







Oh, and by the way, the little hearts on top of the sandwich in the last photo are made from sushi nori. I buy the sheets and use a craft punch to punch shapes out. He really has started trying different foods and flavours since I started this and now loves nori (which personally I cant' stand - yuk!), teriyaki sauce, soy sauce and sushi rice

astep70uk

aurora borealis - it is quite a pain getting everything off ebay, but so exciting waiting for it all to arrive :j

I bought a nice organiser box from ikea to keep everything in, and the paper punches I got from Asda - set of 3 for £2.50

Some of my bits and bobs

aurora_borealis_2

Sell me yours astep

... only joking - but you know, you could have a nice little ebay empire selling kits.

Any takers?

astep70uk

Hey! Thats not such a bad idea

Actually, there was one seller in Japan who sold egg moulds and I think it was dividers together, but not the whole lot. That would be a good idea!

If you pm me your address aurora I'll send you a few picks and some of the reusable grass dividers (i have 200 :eek: ). I have some pink picks that he won't use as they're too 'girly' for him!!

seraphina

Aurora - there are a couple of Ebay sellers who do starter kits. You may need to expand your search to include worldwide sellers.

Given that the exchange rate is so good at the moment, it's not quite as extravagant as it might first seem - I've bought before from Japan with no problems, and am currently awaiting a shipment so touch wood that will go through fine!

Once you start looking at the world through Bento eyes you suddenly start getting ideas for containers etc everywhere:T

astep70u - My DH doesn't get it either - he thinks I'm loosing the plot:rolleyes:

astep70uk

Seraphina - thats exactly what my DH thought - in fact he said i must have 'too much time on my hands'!! Bloomin cheek - I'm on maternity leave with a 5 month old and we're currently undergoing a house renovation, so I hardly think so!!! I find it enjoyable though, and my son loves taking lunch to school.

Here's a useful tip though - I learned to make these after he DS went to bed, as the first couple I made, he saw what I'd done and just HAD to have them for his tea, so I ended up making them twice :rotfl:

astep70uk

Talking about having 'bento eyes', Mothercare sell a handy little 8 pack of 33ml weaning pots. I got some of these and they make fab containers for dipping sauce or salad dressing. They have a hinged plastic lid so are ideal for younger children as they won't lose the lid!

See Here

seraphina

Glad to hear they're going down well with your son - I think that's the great thing about bento, they encourage everyone to eat!

I wasn't sure of the reaction I would get at first when I bought my bento into work - it's turned into a big talking point!

On the plus side, I seem to have lost a few lbs since I've started taking bentos for lunch - they are excellent for portion control!

Gingernutmeg

Astep70uk, those little sausage 'ghosts' (or octopi?) are quite possibly the coolest things I've ever seen