The Filter is two years old, and to mark the occasion our contributors have shared their favourite products from the past year, from handbag-sized umbrellas and stylish wellies to reading lights and luxurious duvets.
Beauty and grooming picks
Lise Smith chose the Revamp Straight & Go cordless hot brush (£89.99 at Currys, £90 at Argos), praising its compact size that fits into hand luggage, a work backpack or a decent-size handbag. She called it her hot brush of choice when away from home, noting it is cordless so can be used in the bathroom without trailing cables.
For skincare, Smith also recommended the Illiyoon ceramide ato concentrate cream (£9.99 at Boots and Amazon), which she bought on another writer's recommendation. She said it is rich but gentle and leaves her dry skin soft, smooth and plump.
Jess Cartner-Morley invested in the Saie the Base Brush (£26 at Cult Beauty and Sephora) after reading Sali Hughes' guide to makeup brushes, saying it makes foundation sit more lightly on the skin and makes blending at the neck and hairline foolproof. Sarah Matthews bought a jazzy cashmere bandana from Rise&Fall (£55), inspired by Cartner-Morley.
Home and garden favourites
Jane Hoskyn praised her Panda the Cloud duvet (£129.95 at Panda and Amazon) as a real bedding upgrade, saying there is no going back after switching from a cheap polyester duvet. She now owns two versions: the winter 10.5-tog and the 4.5-tog summer version.
Andy Shaw tested the Stihl SHA 56 garden vacuum (£231.79 at Farol Mowers) for the best leaf blowers and vacuums guide, calling it an absolute hit for collecting leaves and doing work he would normally use a broom for.
Matt Collins found the Town & Country square flexi-tub (£10.95 at Tooled Up, £13.93 at Amazon) indispensable for camping with kids and later for home decluttering, from toys to DIY tools. Kate Jacobs discovered Niwaki's hori hori pro tool (£42 at Niwaki, £42.99 at Crocus), describing it as a sharp trowel that replaced her old butter knife for garden jobs.
Food, drink and kitchen gadgets
Rachel Ogden continued cooking with the Gozney Arc Lite pizza oven (£349.99 at Gozney and John Lewis), noting her hand-stretched bases are improving. Lily Smith chose the Ninja Double Stack XL SL400UK air fryer (£269 at John Lewis, £269.99 at Ninja) for its compact footprint, finding it made mealtimes more convenient and produced the crispest jacket potato skin she has ever had.
Tom Hunt singled out Poon's premium first-extract soy sauce (£13 at Ocado, £18.99 at Selfridges) as the best thing he tried this year, praising its complex, fruity flavour from non-GMO soya beans grown in Kaohsiung, southern Taiwan. Joanne Gould said she is still reaching for Jo Vodka 101 the Purist (£48.95 at Master of Malt, £50 at John Lewis) and Chopin potato vodka (£37.38 at Master of Malt, £39.75 at the Whisky Exchange) for ice-cold martinis.
Danielle Amato became obsessed with the GreenPan Frost ice-cream maker and slushie machine (£399 at Debenhams, £399.90 at Boots), enjoying frozen cocktails as much as ice-cream. Sasha Muller highlighted the KitchenAid KF3 coffee machine (£749 at KitchenAid and John Lewis) as the best value of the brand's new trio, praising the coffee quality and dense, creamy microfoam.
Lifestyle and wellbeing
Alan Martin wrote about Brick (£44.75 at Brick), a device that helps reduce screen time, saying it really improved his wellbeing. Leon Poultney became attached to the Urevo SpaceWalk 5L walking pad (£399.99 at Urevo, £349.99 at Amazon), walking on it most days to rack up at least 10,000 steps and praising its quiet operation and automatic incline.
Caramel Quin picked the Davek mini umbrella (£65 at Davek) for its small size and lifetime guarantee. Sabine Wiesel chose Barbour Bede wellington boots (£55 at John Lewis, £79.95 at Barbour) for their classic look and excellent grip across muddy fields. Kieran Alger recommended the Saucony Endorphin Azura running shoes (from £96.89 at Cotswold Outdoor, from £112 at Saucony) as a standout all-rounder at a competitive price.
Ella Jinadu bought the VonHaus Smart dehumidifier with laundry mode (£144.99 at VonHaus and Argos) after reading Caramel Quin's roundup, finding it satisfying to see water sucked out of the air and a fast way to dry laundry. The Gritin rechargeable book light (£13.95 at Fruugo, £8.59 at Amazon) transformed reading routines for one contributor, and also came in handy on a camping trip.
Zoë Phillimore bought the CeraVe vitamin C serum (£22.50 at Lookfantastic and Boots) on Danielle Wilkins' recommendation, saying people commented on how glowy her face looked after a week. Millie Fender opted for E45 repairing hand cream (£6.60 at Sainsbury's, £5.65 at Amazon) for her pottery hobby, describing it as having a thick, nourishing texture.
Peter Bevan highlighted Merz b Schwanen's 215 classic fit T-shirt (£85 at Stuarts, £95 at Merz b Schwanen) as his testing highlight, the one worn by Carmy in The Bear. Alex Jones bought the ThunderX3 Solo 360 gaming chair (£169.99 at Overclockers) to incentivise his son Iggy to move into a smaller bedroom, and it is now saving his working-from-home slouching. Sarah Matthews found a long cream dress from Nobody's Child (£51 at Nobody's Child) for £15 secondhand, down from a usual £85.
Twinkle Tongue saliva enhancer gel (£34 at Twinkle Tongue) was one of the most original products tested this year, an all-natural, sour cherry-flavoured liquid that provokes salivary glands, helping with dry mouth caused by smoking, menopause or medication side-effects. The Filter continues to offer independent product reviews and recommendations to help readers make smarter, more sustainable choices.
