My 12 Favorite Amazon Gadgets!

1. Outlet Nightlight

This SnapPower Guidelight found {here} is an outlet wall plate that has a built-in LED nightlight – it’s awesome! You get all of the benefits of a night light without losing access to any of your outlets, plus it doesn’t require batteries or wiring. The “installation” is ridiculously simple – you simply turn off the breaker to the outlet, remove the old outlet plate, pop this one on (the two prongs on the back fit around the two sides of the outlet),

screw the plate on and then flip the breaker back on. Literally under five minutes from start to finish! They’re perfect for bathrooms or to light up a hallway at night. I have them in two of our bathrooms and in the hallway outside of my girls’ rooms so they can make their way to the bathroom at night without having to leave a light on:

You can find the exact one that I have {here} in either the standard outlet version or one that works with Decora outlets. 

2. Laser Level

If you do a lot of home improvement projects or even if you just have a grouping of art you need to hang, a laser level is a must-have gadget! Without it, there’s no way that I would have been able to get all of the art prints around our TV level and perfectly lined up with each other! My technique for hanging multiple pieces of art like this was to have Jeff hold the laser level while I put down painter’s tape along the line of the laser beam. A single row of lined up art is super quick and simple but even my more complicated wall only took about 15-20 minutes to get everything taped off:

Then centering a hanger at the exact right spot and hanging each piece is a breeze. I knocked it out with no extra holes in the wall and perfectly straight art – yay!  

Room Sources: Rug  |  Rattan chair  |  Ceiling light  |  White tassel pillow  |  Media console (no longer available but {this one} is similar)  | Acrylic coffee table (no longer available but {this one} is similar)  | See {this post} for links to artwork and all other sources

I’ve also used my laser level for wallpapering, installing trim, hanging shelves and all sorts of other projects. The exact laser level I have is no longer available since I’ve had it for years but {this laser level} is a budget-friendly option that gets great reviews. 

There are also several gadgets you can use to hang a single picture or mirror level such as {this Hang-O-Matic Picture Hanging Tool} that gets good reviews – I’ve never tried it, have you?

3. Meat Chopper

This meat chopper (found {here}) is one of my newer kitchen gadgets – it says on the listing that it’s something you always needed but never knew existed and it’s so true! I had a similar one from Pampered Chef for years that finally bit the dust but I actually like this one better and it’s cheaper. It works so much easier and faster than a spatula for breaking up ground beef or turkey, especially if it’s not 100% unthawed when you go to cook it. 

I use it for smashing up my avocados for guacamole too! And it’s dishwasher friendly so super easy to clean.

4. Dog Water Bottle

I got {this dog water bottle} for Cricket a few months ago and wish I had known about it years ago! I bought it for when we travel back and forth from CT to NC but it’s so handy that I’ve started taking it on long walks with her too. You fill it up with water and can throw it in your travel bag without any worry of leaking (or it has a loop you can use to tie it on a backpack) and then when you want to offer water to your dog, you simply toggle a button to unlock it and then press a button to allow water to flow into the little bowl part where your dog drinks it:

5. Smart Garage Door Opener

Jeff bought {this smart garage door opener} for our NC home last year and it’s been so nice to have! You simply plug in the wifi hub, attach the sensor to the back of your garage door, and connect it to the app on your phone. It works with most garage door openers but double check the product listing info for compatibility with yours.   

Once installed, you can use the app to open and close your garage door from anywhere (including when we’re states away in CT). It’s a great way to let someone into your garage without giving them your keypad code or clicker. You can also invite others to be able to use it with their guest feature (for example, if you want someone to check on your home while you’re on vacation). And my favorite part is that if you’re like me and sometimes drive away not remembering if you closed the garage door or not, a quick check in the app will tell you if you did and allow you to shut it if needed. 

6. Electric Can Opener

I shared this new kitchen gadget on Instagram Stories a few months ago but don’t think I ever shared on the blog! It’s a can opener that’s electric (I found it {here}) and does all the work for you but it’s small enough to throw in a drawer: 

Why is it better than a manual can opener? I love that it opens the can under the rim instead of on top of it so you can actually place the lid back on (which is really nice for things like canned dog food that you only use part of and want to throw in the fridge for use later in the day).

And it’s great for those who have trouble using a manual can opener due to issues like arthritis too. 

7. Ember Mug

I bought {this Ember Smart Mug} for Jeff as a Christmas gift since he’s an all-day coffee drinker and he’s told me now about 50 times how much he loves it! It’s different from a regular coffee heating pad/plate because the mug also keeps the coffee piping hot for up to 1.5 hours off the charging coaster (FYI, the charging coaster needs to be plugged in – the cord on ours is lying behind the mug where you can’t see it in the pic):

Other Sources: Desk pad  |  Desk lamp

Using the Ember Mug app you can set the temperature of your coffee to the precise temp that you like best and receive notifications. As of today, the price on Amazon has gone up quite a bit since I bought it – you can also find it {here} for less right now. And if you want to get really fancy, you can get the larger size Ember mug {here} with a personalized monogram on it.

8. Programmable Light Switch

We’ve always been terrible about remembering to turn our outdoor lights on at night and off in the morning so several years ago we bought {this programmable switch} that turns your lights on and off for you! It was simple – we just swapped the switch for our outdoor flood lights with this programmable one… 

and now they automatically go on at sunset and off at sunrise (you can also specify your own on and off times or put it on random mode which is nice for when you’re on vacation). 

Porch sources: Black lantern sconces  |  Planters  |  “oh hello” doormat

It comes with detailed instructions so was a pretty simple DIY but as with anything electrical, hire an electrician if you aren’t 100% comfortable with doing it yourself.

If you want to make multiple lights throughout your home “smart”, my favorite way to do that is with Caséta by Lutron’s smart lighting system. We have it in five rooms of our home and LOVE all of the functionality (especially being able to control the lights remotely when we’re away) – begin with {this starter kit} and build out your smart lighting system from there!

9. TubShroom

If you’ve got girls with long hair, you know that hair clogging the shower drain is issue. This TubShroom found {here} fits any standard sized drain and does an awesome job of catching hair before it can clog up your pipes:

To install, you simply take off the current drain cover (which typically screws off) and insert the TubShroom. I have the stainless steel version but you can also get a plastic version in multiple color options {here}. And if your drain cover is the type that moves up and down depending on whether you want to shower or fill a bathtub, you probably want {this version of the TubShroom} that includes a stopper.

10. Smart Kup Car Cup Holder + 11. Drop Stop Seat Gap Filler

If your car has a cup holder that’s too small for your coffee mug or water bottle, {this Smart Kup} is the simple fix! It fits all of my chunky water bottles (including my Hydroflask) that my regular cup holder doesn’t accommodate:

And I love that it has a cut-out on the side for a handle so it fits my favorite travel mug that doesn’t work in the standard cup holder! (Yikes, I didn’t realize how dusty my car was until I saw this pic 😂)

While we’re talking about car gadgets, I also swear by {this “Drop Stop” seat gap filler} that goes between your seat and the center console on each side:

I used to lose my cell phone and other stuff down in that crevice all the time 🙈 so totally love having it!

12. Robot Vacuum