You might have heard of Achica from their adverts featuring Wayne Hemingway of Red or Dead - well, that's how I had heard of them, anyway. They bill themselves as a "Members Only Luxury Lifestyle Store" and they sell designer homewares and accessories in limited-time sales, to registered customers. I was offered a £60 voucher to spend on their site, and I opted to spend it on some kitchenware as that is one of my weaknesses! I thought it was high time I replaced my glassware and went for some lovely glasses to make my drinking experience that bit more elegant. I found that £60 actually went quite far given the discounts, and this is what I bought:
A set of 4 Ella Sabatini "Natalie" old-fashioned glasses - £9.50
I admit, I went for these "Old-Fashioned" glasses as they remind me of the glass on the cover of my Mad Men boxed set! They're a nice size - delicate but sturdy - and just right for drinking this Crown Royal Canadian Whisky that was a gift from Char. To be fair, I am not a whisky drinker and I'm not sure Don Draper would have approved of this - when Char bought this for me her brother said to her "Why not give her a brick to hit herself around the head with, it would do the job faster!"
A set of 4 Ella Sabatini "Natalie" Hi-ball glasses - £9.50
These hi-ball glasses are just right for a gin and tonic. I know some people prefer to drink their gin and tonic from a tumbler but I like lots of ice and lots of tonic. The Rev bought me this Hendrick's for my 30th birthday, and it's best with cucumber - these hi-ball glasses are a good size for this! I like them a lot and so does Nic, but they failed the Eugene test. When my Dad came to visit he said he wouldn't buy these - he thinks the glass is too thin and he didn't enjoy the feel of the glass in his hand. He is a fussy customer, though! I like the curved shape, myself.
A set of 4 Ella Sabatini "Natalie" wine goblets - £9.50
These wine goblets are my favourites! Prior to this my favourite wine glasses had been pinched from various pubs. These have a lovely wide bowl and are so delicate and pretty - perfect for drinking this lovely Australian Cabernet Sauvignon. YUM!
I'm not 100% alcohol motivated, so I also ordered this:
Muurla Enamel Casserole with lid - £21
I admit, I'm not such a domestic goddess, but I know that Nic will enjoy using this to cook us up lots of tasty vegetarian stews and soups and curries over the next few months. I was attracted by the design and the fact that we didn't already own anything that could be used on both the stove and in the oven. But look, if I lived on my own I'd mostly eat toast so I think it will probably be Nic who uses this most often!
As with other, similar websites, an order from Achica can take a while to arrive. This lot arrived in 3 deliveries, all about 2-3 weeks after I placed my initial order. I am still awaiting the final piece of my order - a giant Lindt chocolate bear - but that will be exciting when it finally does arrive. This is the case with all of their sales, so don't order if you need your items in a hurry! That said, I think the significant discounts make it worthwhile and the range of stock they carry is impressive - as well as homewares they sell electronics, accessories and even holidays. I was pleased with the customer service also. My only gripe is that, for my orders at least, Hermes was the courier. Their customer service is terrible, I have had real issues with them in the past and had resolved not to shop with any companies that used them as their courier. However, I should say that this time the deliveries went smoothly. Still, Hermes are notoriously unreliable and I admit that this might make me think twice about ordering from Achica in future. I'll still keep an eye on their sales, though!
Disclosure: I was not paid for this review, Achica provided me with a £60 voucher to use on their site. However, my review is honest and my views are my own.
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