OK, these might seem like both the coolest and most ridiculous trend to hit the baby market in a while. Luxury car manufacturer, Bentley has partnered with 100 year-old British brand, UK Doctor Ian, to scientifically engineer a state-of-the-art diaper. The multi-million dollar iconic car brand intends to diversify into the baby-care industry, classing up the diaper bags of moms all over the world with a durable, soft, and biodegradable absorbent cushion for baby’s tushie!

Vroom Vroom!

When it comes to diapering our little ones the options are endless, from what brands to go with to whether to opt for cloth diapers, the sea of choice around this seemingly simple purchase can drive you crazy. I’m what the retail industry likes to call a ‘brand loyalty’ customer. When I find something I like, it’s almost impossible to get me to switch. I can be a pretty indecisive person at times, so having a solid collection of go-to purchases from familiar and trusted brands means that I don’t have to think too hard!

Before my son was born, I desperately wanted to give cloth diapers a go. When considering the waste and cost, I thought about how this little decision could have a big impact on my family’s personal carbon footprint. However, again, the sea of choice (and not to mention the cycle of cleaning the cotton linings) scared me into submission, and like many other new moms, I chose the most seemingly stress-free option. I have been using one of the leading supermarket brands, after giving its rival a trial during the first month of my baby’s arrival.

Here’s how I chart Pampers quality and durability:

#1 Comfort 6/10

This, for obvious reasons, is a difficult one. My son doesn’t seem to have any problems with comfort when in a Pampers diaper, however I often find them twisted or shifted sideways when he is being super active. Initially thinking this was more to do with the size of the nappy, I started to buy a bigger size, but alas the problem persisted.

 #2 Dryness 6/10

During the day, my son is changed consistently, and so we have never experienced any leaks. However even in Pampers Active Baby-Dry, which is promised to provide 12 hours of dryness during baby’s sleep at night, we have experienced leaks, even when the diaper is not full. This again, may have something to do with how active my son is during the night, but the design of their dry-wear diapers may need some improvement.

#3 Softness 5/10

Pampers don’t feel as soft as one might think a diaper should be for baby’s bottom! In my opinion a diaper should have that soft, cottony, organic feel, and this is just not the case with Pampers. However it’s no surprise, as the standard shop-bought diaper is made using dioxins, sodium polyacrylate, tributyl-tin (TBT), adhesive chemicals, and an array of other plastics. Doesn’t sound very soft, right? Diapers should be made using breathable material, like cotton, hemp, and bamboo.

Bentley Diapers

Poop wasn’t the only thing Lux was rolling around in this week, as my little one was given the privilege of trialing this lavish diaper range from Bentley Motors. The Bonnah family had our reservations, as we’ve spent the best part of this year trying to live more sustainably and turning up our new green noses at anything borderline unnecessary for the home, our son, or the environment. However, I am pleasantly surprised at the quality, price, and social responsibility element of these branded diapers.

The diapers were super soft, and durable, with no leaks! Lux enjoying playing and crawling around in them and the expandable soft waistband on the pull-up version looked as comfy as they come, allowing my little one to be as active as he liked without any chaffing, twisting, or shifting. They felt soft to the touch and were very light – almost cloud-like. That crinkly, plastic-feel that other supermarket diaper brands have was non-existent, and the pull-ups stayed up.

The fold-and-close versions were just as soft and durable, but I found the pull-ups to be snugger. The Bentley Motor branding of course adds some entertainment value with the whole bizarre concept of a leading luxury car brand producing diapers, and was a funny if not cool addition to the look. But what is the overreaching and defining aspect of the diaper range is its quality and biodegradable feature.

These are my scores:

#1 Comfort 9/10

#2 Dryness 10/10

#3 Softness 10/10

Subscriptions

You can get your hands on these luxury diapers for your little one for RMB 78 per pack of 40 when you buy a membership card for RMB 2980 (with a RMB 500 deposit to ensure they’re not sold on the black market!), or RMB 98 per pack when you purchase three with free delivery when you buy a membership card for RMB 298. For more information and to make a purchase contact WeChat: wxid_4q6t33538xjx22.

Photos: Nicole Bonnah

Our first impressions of Hello Mart in Liangmaqiao is that it’s the apex of massive forces currently reworking Beijing’s consumer landscape. The new sprawling 7,000sqm food court/craft beer bar/grocery store/crafts emporium/English school/ice cream dispensary/art store appears to be a prototype for the type of “mall without walls” shopping experience that (if the government has its way) will pockmark the city as a replacement of the shops, restaurants, and mom and pop grocery stores being forced to close in the name of “beautification” and population control.

All fruit and veg comes individually wrapped – it’s the future!

Speaking as someone who lives in this area, Hello Mart could potentially be very convenient given the dearth of small grocers nearby. Granted, Sanyuanli Market – considered one of the best places to buy niche Western food items in Beijing – is a couple of blocks away and there is a smattering of smaller grocery stores on Maizidian to the south, but the prices you’ll pay at Hello Mart, no matter how fresh the produce, are not going to draw anyone in for a weekly shop. Then there’s the packaging, which is like BHG on steroids – almost everything is individually wrapped (sorry, zero-wasters) – which in a bizarro-land way kind of makes sense, considering how long it’s likely to sit on the shelves.

The dry foods area has both home staples and more niche imported items

There are, however, some upsides to having a pricey dry foods section; namely, that it’s stocked with some hard-to-find products that warrant the hundreds of kuai you’re desperate to blow. If it’s Italian cooking oils, foie gras imported from France, or a 1977 bottle of Maotai you’re after (c’mon, it’s only RMB 100,000!) then you know where you to go. As for everything else, you’re probably able to find it in your closest Jenny Lou’s.

READ: Expat Supermarket Institution Jenny Lou’s Celebrates 25 Years in the Biz

Speaking of which, that foreigner favorite has teamed up with Hello Mart to provide reasonably priced and expansive wine and cheese sections. This may in fact be the most practical part of the store, and a godsend should you be on the hunt for last-minute dinner party provisions.

Fancy a RMB 5,555 bottle of “Snake Venom” AKA the world’s strongest beer? You’ll find it here

Then there’s the neat beer fridge area that wraps around into a Ram Beer-operated 30-plus-tap bar. Again, don’t expect this place to usurp your local bottle bar given the prices (RMB 40-60 for 330ml or plus RMB 20 for 500ml), and the mall atmosphere, but it’s well-equipped and stacks a decent range of limited edition brews in the fridge if you’re looking for a treat.

A simple gaifan or noodle dish will set you back RMB 30-40 (worth it for the tray alone)

Finally, there’s the food court. No doubt that the selection of noodles, Chinese snacks-on-sticks, seafood, and overpriced attempts at Western food will be popular among locals and nearby embassy and hotel staff (it was very busy when we first dropped by for a mid-week lunch) but the options will get old quite quickly. Vegetables are scarce save for one six-option salad station, and the huge seafood tanks are more akin to what you might find at a high-end Chinese restaurant rather than the back of a food court (as such, it boasts “the longest LED screen in Beijing”).

The attached Land of Grain bakery stocks European-style breads with higher-than-average prices

Couple these aspects with the adjoining Land of Grain bakery, an overpriced café, lots of forlorn-looking arts and craft dealers dotted throughout, a space dedicated to modern art, a small playschool, and themed private dining rooms for hire at RMB 500 a pop, and you get a space that sells a lot but doesn’t really know what it wants to be.

Stalls offer any number of services, from tailoring to those blown-sugar animals you used to see on the street

To put it bluntly: If this is what government-mandated shopping utopia looks like in Beijing, we’ll a) need a bigger paycheck and b) be ready to kiss goodbye to the vestiges of charm that the city has to offer. But hey, if those things don’t concern you, Hello Mart is convenient as all hell.

READ: Groupe Flo Caters to the Masses With New Upscale Food Court in Sanyuanqiao

Hello Mart
Daily 9am-10pm. 48 Liangmaqiao Road, Chaoyang District (5382 2114)
城市市集：朝阳区亮马桥路48号

Photos courtesy of Hello Mart, Anna Pellegrin Hartley, Tautvile Daugelaite

Last year before the nights got too cool, my husband, Bobby, planned a surprise staycation for me. I was only expecting a date night: he started the date with really sweet letters and then took me to a tourist spot for dinner since tourists on a travel site said, “If you haven’t gone there, you haven’t visited Beijing.” After dinner, we hopped in a taxi to head to a mystery location. As we pulled up, I saw that it was Nuo Hotel. I was already familiar with the hotel as a brand and as a favorite of friends in the Lido area, but hadn’t gotten to actually have lunch or dinner at one of their restaurants.

The beautiful restaurant where we ate

When I stepped into the lobby I was impressed. The artwork inside is beautiful and the smell of their signature pu’er soaps and shampoo waft all around you. As I approached the concierge, I was still thinking Bobby was taking me to the O’Bar lounge for an after dinner drink. The O’Bar has a DJ every night, and hosts a variety of events. On clear nights, the location is nice because it’s open air on a terrace. I’m a fan of terraces.

But when the concierge asked for our reservation number, and Bobby responded not with, “Oh we’re looking for the O’Bar,” but instead pulling out the printed reservation, my jaw dropped. My husband is famous for what we call his “Bobby surprises.”

They’re grand surprises that started with our engagement, when he set up a picnic on an island and needed to come pick me up by rowboat with his shirt off. After that, and before our wedding day, he wrote a sidewalk chalk letter from my campus door all the way to his. He worked on it the whole night one night and finished it just an hour before I woke up and walked the letter trail. Another time he orchestrated a huge scavenger hunt across a city, involving three other couples coordinating it.

One time he told me he had a surprise for me and when he arrived it turned out to be a chocolate milkshake from Chic-fil-a. We agreed from that day on he was not allowed to say surprises unless it’s a “Bobby surprise.”

But Nuo Hotel staycation was a “Bobby surprise” for me. He had gotten all of my toiletries and clothes ready and hidden in his bookbag, which he takes to places often anyway, so I never suspected anything. He had arranged for a trusted friend to watch our children that night, (when we arrived the next day my daughter asked us to go on a date again so they could spend more time with this friend).

Cuddled up at the O’Bar

I swooned all over for him. We did indeed go down to the O’Bar to enjoy the rest of the evening. In the morning I slept in, enjoying the luxury of the room without children around, but it accidentally caused us to miss breakfast. When we arrived at the Western bar for the last moments of breakfast, conference guests were spilling in and we knew we wouldn’t have a table. The concierge was gracious and let us go to the VIP lounge for a light breakfast with the snacks provided there.

After we spent time together, we decided to eat lunch at their traditional Chinese cuisine restaurant, Jia. I enjoyed a light soup lunch and found the prices quite reasonable.

Then, he treated me to a couples massage. We picked the aromatherapy massage and headed to the ginormous private spa room with a nice long-cushion couch. If you’re wondering, we thoroughly enjoyed every relaxing moment, and his masseur was careful not to apply pressure to his knee where he had surgery.

I wanted to stay another night of course, but reality required us to start back home.

I’ll admit I’m totally spoiled now and ruined for hotels. We spent around RMB 5,000 for the whole of the staycation, from the first taxi ride to the taxi ride home. Every jiao was worth it since we needed to focus on our marriage and this Bobby surprise was totally unexpected.

Nuo Hotel has quite a few deals right now, which I would encourage you to check out.

Pictures: Nuo Hotel, Vanessa Jencks