FunBites FUNdamentals!

I had hoped to compile more cool lunches before reviewing this product, but since I've managed to weasel out of doing absolutely anything other than school, swim class, and gym, I haven't needed to pack lunches at all lately. Except between gym class and school, which I neatly thwarted by switching to make-up classes on Fridays, which is our one no-school day! I amaze myself with how much work I do just to be lazy!

Behold: the FunBites cutters! The green fellow on the left is the Cube It! The pink one on the right is, of course, the Luv It!

photo credit

After seeing these on another bento blogger's site, I shamelessly begged contacted the company about reviewing their product. Before I knew it, I was the proud owner of both cutters!
I stared at them in their shipping box for days, trying to decide a clever way to use them. Something cool. Something original. Something to spark your imaginations.

Instead I slapped together a quickie lunch and barely remembered to get out my camera. Well. At least I fed my kid, right?

Here's the premise. Put the cutter piece on the food. Press down. Grab handles (or just slap palm across top) and firmly rock cutter back and forth a few times [yes! They rock! Literally!] to cut all the way through your food. Insert push piece (they call it a 'popper top.') Pop out bits! Voila! No more fingernail marks in the little bits of cheese as you try and get them out of your little cutter! No more gooey PB hands as you pop sandwich bits out! No more "ARRRGH my fingers are too darn BIG!"

The Awesome: 

• Super easy to use.
• Super easy to clean. Either hand wash [sheah, right!] or they're top-rack dishwasher safe, but keep the popper inserted into the cutter. Even. Easier!
• It even gets the pieces out of the cutter for you! [Makes my lazy little heart go pitter-patter!]
• Makes a bajillion little pieces without having to hand cut a bajillion little pieces.
• Makes perfect-sized finger-foods for the little nibblers you might have wobbling around at home. I cannot WAIT until my next little Podling is old enough for finger foods! This is gonna be SO AWESOME!
• The Cube It! one is perfect for cutting meats, cheese and fruit for kebabs! Or for fiddly little bento box-sized portions. Or when you have to provide preschool snack for the whole class!
• They have the word "bite" in their name. WIN!

Luv It! heart bits plus some Cube It! squares from a
PBHoney sandwich, mandarin orange slices

The Maybe Not-So-Awesome:

• Kind of small for a sandwich. The Luv It! cutter covered little more than half of her sandwich, so I had to cut again for the other half. On a slice of cheese, which is smaller, this might actually be a plus, however!
• You would have to lay out and arrange a bajillion little pieces (okay, okay. Eight) in an attractive manner - at least with the Luv It! one. I felt like I was failing an IQ test trying to fit the triangles back into a heart shape! But then again, I have a parasite growing in my uterus right now, sucking away all my brain cells.
• My spreads came squirting out of the top of the bread. (Not that Z cared at all.) Now I'm fairly sure that if I had used softer bread, or maybe pressed it flat a bit first, and/or cut off the crusts first (giving the edges less support, and therefore less resistance to being pushed and pulled,) I would have gotten a different outcome. This, however, would not be an issue with cheese, fruit, softish veggies, lunch meat, grilled cheese, pancakes, brownies, etc.

When I presented Little Miss with her beautiful lunch, after her initial "Rawr! I wanted a BIG sandwich! You! Ruined! Everything!" she happily omnomnommed all the little bits and enjoyed using the little pink bow pick to jab all the pieces. She polished off the entire plate (cute bug-shaped plate on end-of-Summer clearance from JoAnn's,) which was kind of amazing, since lately it's been like pulling teeth to get her to finish just half a sandwich!

Overall, I can't see using these for sandwiches a lot, unless I want to lay out the triangles into a heart again. The Cube It! one would be great if I'm making a muffin tin meal for her and her cousins to share, or to try and fit a whole sandwich into a small bento box. Or meat-and-cheese-sandwich-kebabs. I think the Cube It! would also be perfect for cheese and thick-cut ham or lunch meat, especially if I'm making a mini Lunchable (the mini-Saltines are soooo darn cute!) Or for a toothpick-lunch (where she gets to eat it all with a pick!) Also will be perfect for preschool snack, especially at the co-op, where we have to prep the food on the premises. So since I don't want to spend a year and a half cutting up cheese into little nibblets, this will save a TON of time! Even if I just use it for making bigger hunks of string cheese! Heck. It would also be great for chopping up hot dogs for little ones in a flash! Slice 'em in half lengthwise first, then whump! No longer a choking hazard!
The Luv It! one has less overall utility, for me anyway, unless I'm using those triangles to make other things (like my blogger friend at Family Fresh Meals. She makes me weep in shame with her simple, clever ideas!) Or to lay out flat on a plate (not so useful in a bento or muffin tin meal. Again, unless I'm just using specific bits for some neat tangram-shape-thing.) Although it might be fun to have a 'play with your food' themed lunch, where she makes little pictures, like on her Melissa and Doug magnetic pattern blocks board... Hmmm...

If you decide that this is a product you'd like too, there's a couple of great deals right now.
You can use code FunBitesThanks2011 for 30% off your order. (I'm assuming this one expires 12/31/11.)
OR, for the BEST deal, go for their 2 for $19.99 promotion (which gets you $6 off!) and use code FreeShipDec2011 at checkout for free shipping! (Saving another $7.45!) You can buy one of each, or two of the same one. Easy peasy! Free shipping code expires 12/25/11.

Be sure to check them out on Facebook too, and tell 'em I sent you! They may or may not let me do a giveaway for you. The emails were unclear, and I didn't want to push my luck!

Disclaimer: I was given a set of both FunBites to try and review. All opinions are my own and 100% honest. Although I will admit I'm predisposed to like anyone willing to give me free stuff! Hint hint.