The Carry-Ons You Need If You’re Traveling This Summer

If there’s one travel rule I have, it’s to only use a carry-on—yep, even for international travel. Whether I’m going to Colorado or Canada, I’ll reach for a carry-on to avoid checked bag fees, lost time at luggage claim, and lost baggage (which, in cas…

If there’s one travel rule I have, it’s to only use a carry-on—yep, even for international travel. Whether I’m going to Colorado or Canada, I’ll reach for a carry-on to avoid checked bag fees, lost time at luggage claim, and lost baggage (which, in case you were wondering, is at an all-time high) this year).

Now that we’re starting to travel more regularly again, I’m spending every minute that I can anywhere but where I actually live. And just in time too, as testing carry-on luggage comes with the job.

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The Best Ice Makers Because It’s SO Hot Outside

Welcome to Best of the Test, a thoroughly tested, expertly vetted, only semi-serious product recommendation series. Join us as we sleep with a dozen different bed sheets, make gallons of ice, air fry all the wings, and more in pursuit of the very best …

Welcome to Best of the Test, a thoroughly tested, expertly vetted, only semi-serious product recommendation series. Join us as we sleep with a dozen different bed sheets, make gallons of ice, air fry all the wings, and more in pursuit of the very best things to buy.


I am the type of person who reaches for an ice-cold drink even in the middle of winter. No seriously, no matter the weather, I’ve always got something cold in my hands—water, coffee, sweet tea, matcha. Now that temps are rising and outdoor entertaining is hitting its peak, having a full stash of ice ready to chill several drinks at once is more of a must-have than a nice-to-have.

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The Best Insulated Water Bottles To Keep Us From Melting

Welcome to Best of the Test, a thoroughly tested, expertly vetted, only semi-serious product recommendation series. Join us as we sleep with a dozen different bed sheets, make gallons of ice, air fry all the wings, and more in pursuit of the very best …

Welcome to Best of the Test, a thoroughly tested, expertly vetted, only semi-serious product recommendation series. Join us as we sleep with a dozen different bed sheets, make gallons of ice, air fry all the wings, and more in pursuit of the very best things to buy.


Insulated water bottles are a no-brainer—especially when temps are soaring. They keep drinks cold or hot (but please, not in this weather…), depending on your needs; they’re endlessly portable and reusable; and some are even super pretty (I mean, look at this speckled one. The downside to such an everyday essential? There are hundreds with similar names and similar claims.

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There Are a Lot of Bad Garden Hoses—These 5 Are Great

Welcome to Best of the Test, a thoroughly tested, expertly vetted, only semi-serious product recommendation series. Join us as we sleep with a dozen different bed sheets, make gallons of ice, air fry all the wings, and more in pursuit of the very best …

Welcome to Best of the Test, a thoroughly tested, expertly vetted, only semi-serious product recommendation series. Join us as we sleep with a dozen different bed sheets, make gallons of ice, air fry all the wings, and more in pursuit of the very best things to buy.

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The Best Room Fans to Keep You Cool

I never thought much about room fans until my husband and I experienced a weeklong power outage in the middle of summer…right after we moved into our house and before we’d learned that our generator was not powering our air-conditioning. It was unbeara…

I never thought much about room fans until my husband and I experienced a weeklong power outage in the middle of summer…right after we moved into our house and before we’d learned that our generator was not powering our air-conditioning. It was unbearably stuffy, and opening our windows made things even muggier. In a moment of desperation, we went to the nearest Home Depot and grabbed the first fan we saw—or rather, the only one that was left on the shelves, because our neighbors were quicker at the draw than we were.

Cut to a few years later, and I’m surrounded by fans of about every style and budget as I research and test room fans and air circulators for the latest edition of Best of the Test—and just in time for the warm weather that’s heading our way. I’m still no cooling expert after weeks of windburn, but at least I’ll know which fan we should buy if we lose power again.

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We Tested 10 Bathrobes—& Found the 6 Best

Welcome to Best of the Test, a thoroughly tested, expertly vetted, only semi-serious product recommendation series. Join us as we sleep with a dozen different bed sheets, make gallons of ice, air fry all the wings, and more in pursuit of the very best …

Welcome to Best of the Test, a thoroughly tested, expertly vetted, only semi-serious product recommendation series. Join us as we sleep with a dozen different bed sheets, make gallons of ice, air fry all the wings, and more in pursuit of the very best things to buy.


There’s loungewear like sweat suits and hoodies, perfectly suitable for movie marathons and lazy weekends where “meals” consist of whatever you can microwave. And then there’s Loungewear with a capital L that makes you feel like you’re gazing out over the Aegean Sea with an espresso (or a little shot glass of ouzo, depending on the time of day) in hand and not a care in the world. A good bathrobe falls squarely into the latter category, a rite of passage for those who are considering lounging as a profession.

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The 9 Best Bed Sheets We’ve *Ever* Tested

Welcome to Best of the Test, a thoroughly tested, expertly vetted, only semi-serious product recommendation series. Join us as we sleep with a dozen different bed sheets, make gallons of ice, air fry all the wings, and more in pursuit of the very best …

Welcome to Best of the Test, a thoroughly tested, expertly vetted, only semi-serious product recommendation series. Join us as we sleep with a dozen different bed sheets, make gallons of ice, air fry all the wings, and more in pursuit of the very best things to buy.


It’s ironic to think that I’ve lost sleep over testing, and writing about, the best bed sheets, but here we are—one year, a dozen sheet sets, and several thousand words later.

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