Cat backpacks, dog tents, and more

If you follow Mashable Shopping’s coverage, you know that we live to bring you the best product recommendations we can find based on countless hours of online research. But what about the stuff that we buy for ourselves? The stuff that made it into our shopping carts? Well, we’re here to tell you about those things, and we’ll be back every month to do so again.

Here’s what the staff bought in September 2021.

---

“For a cat who loves squeezing his big ‘ol orange haunches into boxes and bags, my pal Kirby hates pet carriers. Hard plastic ones, soft fabric ones: He has hated and destroyed every travel vessel I have ever purchased for him in our more than five years together. That’s why I was so thankful when he actually opted to tolerate — and maybe even started to like? — this Apollo Walker backpack I bought from Amazon. With comfortable straps that make it easy to wear and an inside cozy enough to entice Kirby into it without my prompting (seriously, he’s sleeping in it as I type), this feline ferrying device works exactly as you’d hope. The carrying compartment supports the weight of a larger cat well, while the zippers keep them from making an escape. Plus, it has pockets and comes in pink. It’s so perfect (purrrfect?), I’ve started taking him in it for walks with my dog.” —Ali Foreman, Entertainment Reporter

A great (and affordable) serum

“My face has been no stranger to acne over the years, and has unfortunately left its fair share of dark marks. I picked up this discoloration serum from Good Molecules on a whim to see if it would work, and after using it for a month, I’ve seen really impressive results. I’m so happy with it, and my face has been looking a lot clearer. I’ll definitely be buying more.” —Dylan Haas, Shopping Reporter

“My partner and I go on a lot of camping trips, and my dog seemed anxious while we cooked dinner or sat by the campfire, opting to wander around the campsite instead of settling down. I bought her this adorable little tent so she could have her own space to decompress while we’re in the great outdoors, and she seems way more at-ease now.” —Jae Thomas, Shopping Reporter

“Doomsday prep TikTok got to me. I saw a video talking about how normal water filters don’t quite filter all the bad stuff out, but the LifeStraw filter actually gets rid of things like microplastics in water. This brand makes those straw filters that let you safely drink dirty water from a stream, so I trust that the pitcher is doing a good job filtering my tap water. The only downside is that this baby is tall and my refrigerator shelves are not adjustable, so it’s a very tight squeeze.” —Miller Kern, Shopping Reporter

“I bought a little loveseat for my extremely small apartment. It was so hard to find a couch in stock, but this one came through for me! I hope I do not spill anything on it.” —Chloe Bryan, Deputy Shopping Editor

This month I bought a Wyze outdoor camera and base station so that I could monitor the outside of my home, and to mostly see what animals are poking around at night. Thankfully, these cameras are fully wireless and rechargeable, but I also wanted to experiment with using solar, so I bought a small solar panel to recharge the battery in the camera. Overall my impressions so far are pretty positive! For the price, it’s a great little outdoor camera that was very easy to set up and comes with loads of features. The solar panel is kind of cheap but it gets the job done.” —Brian Koerber, Culture Editor

“I grabbed this cheap little security camera a few weeks ago because I needed to keep an eye on a sick goldfish while I was out of town for a wedding. It’s connected to my condo’s internet, so I was able to view the feed on my phone from hundreds of miles away, even on a boat at one point. I didn’t make much use of the motion detection or two-way audio — Princess the Fantail isn’t much of a talker — but those are both nice-to-haves for the next time I need to check in on home from afar.” —Haley Henschel, Deals Writer

“In my journey to become more eco-friendly, I’ve been looking for more sustainable bathroom products. Those pesky hand soap bottles never last as long as you want, and they’re not super cheap. I’ve seen the Blueland products all over my IG feed and finally decided to take the plunge and place an order. The scents in the garden hand soap starter kit smell so good that I couldn’t decide which one to use first. So far it’s been great!” —Lily Kartiganer, Social Media Editor

“We needed a 12-inch nonstick pan, but most nonstick pans have the tendency to become pretty toxic with time. I don’t need more toxic relationships in my life. GreenPan’s ceramic coated lineup gets great reviews and hopefully won’t make us sick, which is a big criterion I look for in my cookware” —Sascha Segan, Lead Mobile Analyst for PCMag