I had brunch with David Beckham and found out how he spruces up his coffee at home – it’s such a sophisticated hack

by Furnishly | Sep 24, 2025 | Design Inspiration

It turns out David Beckham can add another title onto his (already unwiedly) multi-hypenate title. Yep, it turns out as well as tending to his vegetable patch and keeping bees, he’s also a home barista. I sat down with the football-star-turned-lifestyle-icon and found out all about his go-to coffee orders (yes, there’s more than one) and how he makes them at home.

As part of his partnership showcasing what the best Nespresso machines can deliver at home, the former footballer answered questions on how he stays caffeinated in the mornings and sampled drinks from the Nesprsso Vertuo Creatista (which I think is the best pod coffee machine out there as per my review). Here’s a taste of his go-to drinks and how you can try them out with your own coffee machine at home.

With a schedule as jam-packed as his, it’s little surprise that David gets his caffeine hit in the morning as quickly and efficiently as he can. He told us that he starts every week day with an espresso, sometimes drinking two or three of them in a morning, to get him ready for the day after the school run and his workout.

He then moved onto the coffee that he makes more of an occasion of. It’s still an espresso at its core but this time dressed up with a touch of honey (from bees he keeps himself at home, of course) and topped with flaky sea salt. If you’re looking to level up your drinks from your coffee bar at home, David’s method is definitely a sophisticated way to do it.

On the weekends when he has more time, David shared his love for iced lattes – no matter what the weather is like outside. With a huge uptick in searches for the best iced coffee makers online this summer, it seems he’s in good company.

One of my essential cold coffee buys is Nespresso’s sellout iced latte tumbler, which David fronted the campaign for this summer via Instagram, so we’ve got that in common when it comes to coffee.

That wasn’t the only latte mentioned at the event either, with David also trying out Nespresso’s new autumn-themed pods, including Pumpkin Spiced Cake (£8.50 at Nespresso) in a non-alcoholic espresso martini (it was pre-11 am, after all).

The machine used to showcase David’s favourite drinks, the Creatista, has a built-in automatic milk frother so that you can serve up lattes and cappucinos at the touch of a button. It’s a seriously premium offering from Nespresso for longer milk-based drinks, but you don’t need all of the bells and whistles to replicate David’s spruced up espresso – that can be done with any machine that makes short coffees!

What do you make of David Beckham’s go-to coffee order? Will you be trying out an upgraded espresso any time soon?

I’m among the first to try out Lavazza’s new bean-to-cup coffee machine – here’s how a latte is made with this automatic offering

by Furnishly | Sep 18, 2025 | Design Inspiration

Last week, Lavazza launched its first-ever bean-to-cup coffee machine, the Assoluta. Intrigued by the promise that it could deliver barista-style results with the ease of a pod coffee machine, I was among the first in the UK to try out this new coffee machine.

If you want to learn all about the features of this new machine, you can find out more in our sneak peek preview of the launch. But, as we all know, specs on paper only mean so much, and my first try of the Assoluta, which is vying to be one of the best bean-to-cup coffee machines out there, was eye-opening to say the least.

My current coffee machine that I use every day is the Ninja Luxe Café Pro (which I recently reviewed), it has the same RRP as the Assoluta of £699.99. But when I put the two side by side, they were pretty different. This is what I discovered and how they compared.

My morning routine when making a latte usually (with the Ninja machine) involves pressing a button to grind the beans, tamping and then pulling the espresso shot and then choosing a setting for the automatic milk frother. It’s a semi-automatic machine, so it’s less involved than something like a classic espresso maker but still has some level of input.

With the Assoluta, things are pretty different from any other machine. For a latte, you pour your milk into the included glass mug and plug it into the machine. Then you need to press one button and simply wait for your latte to dispense.

Attached to the glass mug is a ‘frothing cover’ which whisks and heats the milk at the same time before dispensing the espresso. I’ve seen this tech before when testing the Lavazza Desea (which is a pod machine) and on the whole, find it to be very effective. It creates a lovely frothy coffee, with a clear top foam layer.

There are three fill lines on the glass mug, one for a single cappuccino, one for an XL cappuccino and one for a latte macchiato, so the volume of milk you can get is customisable.

I can foresee some potential problems with the glass mug system for a bean-to-cup machine like this, especially if its in use in a busy household. You need this particular vessel with the lid to froth the milk, which creates issues with making multiple frothy drinks in a row. You’ll have to transfer your latte to another mug and then wash the glass one before you use it again.

There’s no denying that this is a fantastically easy machine to use, however. It’s also far sleeker than it looks in photos, taking up less space than my Ninja machine and with a profile that’s probably easier to match to your current interiors. Visitors to my house while I’ve been testing it have mistaken it for a pod machine thanks to its polished profile.

Though I’m yet to fully explore the Perfect Bean Match Technology on the machine, the chance to tweak various settings through the app will also appeal to people who do want to get more hands on.

My full review of this machine will be coming up soon, but it’s hard not to be impressed during my first try with how seamless the experience of using it to get a delicious coffee in the morning.

Do you have any questions you’d like me to dig into more in my upcoming review about this machine?

If you want a cosy café vibe in your kitchen on a budget, you need to see Breville’s new slimline espresso machine

by Furnishly | Sep 17, 2025 | Design Inspiration

Breville has unveiled a new line-up of at-home espresso machines, with three products including a slimline coffee maker and a kitted out bean-to-cup model.

All available from Amazon and Currys, with prices starting from £239.99 for the smallest offering, these machines are perfect to help you save on the cost of a coffee shop run or grabbing a latte on your commute. And if you’re looking for a deal, one is drastically reduced right now on Amazon too, with the Barista Sense dropping from its RRP of £599.99 to £490.83.

Here’s a full look at this new range of coffee machines and how each one can deliver you a barista-style brew at home.

If you’re thinking that prices starting from £239 shouldn’t qualify as affordable then that’s understandable, as it’s a lot to spend. And sure, these machines aren’t as cheap as something like Aldi’s £60 espresso maker, but the quality is arguably better.

The most compact machine, the Barista Slimline, is just 33cm high and 15.5cm wide. Made from metal rather than plastic, it also features a ‘Cool Touch’ steam wand which is designed to help you create the micro foam you need for lattes and cappuccinos.

For a small kitchen, the combination of a clever design and high-features couldn’t be better if you want to create a mini café station.

Going up a machine in the range you arrive at the Barista Classic machine which, according to the brand, has been engineered with 10% more portafilter capacity than ‘market leading manual machines’. It also has a one touch cleaning system and 15-bar pressure for all of your espresso making needs.

We’re not new to Breville espresso machines here at Ideal Home and to my eye, the Barista Classic looks pretty similar to one we’ve reviewed previously, the Breville Signature bean to cup machine. That machine went over a treat with our reviewer Amy, who loved how easy to use it was.

The most expensive pick from Breville’s new range is the Barista Sense. It boasts new tech to make milk frothing easier for beginners and baristas alike, according to the brand, tied up in TempSense technology. There are 4 temperature settings to choose from when making lattes, for example, including ones for non-dairy milks.

With these three different price points, there should be something for everyone looking to invest in a coffee station set up this autumn. Could one of these new machines from Breville take your fancy?

Finally! Ninja just dropped two new colour ways of its sell-out coffee machine – and they’re selling fast

by Furnishly | Sep 12, 2025 | Design Inspiration

Ninja‘s sell-out coffee machine, the Luxe Café, has a new look, with two new colour-ways now available. All available for £549.99 via the Ninja website, the espresso machine is now available in Navy and Black, to go alongside the original stainless steel Silver.

I awarded the Luxe Café five stars last year in my review and think it’s one of the best bean-to-cup coffee machines out there. It’s even suitable for total newbies to at-home coffee machines, with features that make extracting a quality coffee so easy.

For over a year now, you’ve only been able to buy this machine with the stainless steel Silver finish, which I’ve learnt is quite the finger-print magnet. Now, there are two new colours to choose from – here’s how they compare.

Ninja’s expansion into the world of colour has already proved a huge hit this year, just look at the very popular new Slushi and air fryer colours for starters, so it’s no surprise they’ve applied the same treatment to this fan-favourite coffee machine.

While it’s just Navy and Black on the table for now, I’d expect there’s more colours in the pipeline if you’re holding out for a particular shade to match your current kitchen colour scheme.

While the Navy offering only has colour applied to the body of the machine, the all-black machine also has a matte, matching milk jug which I’m betting is a lot easier to keep clean than the stainless steel version that I own.

Tastefully coloured coffee machines are actually more common than you might think if you’re on the market for a home café set-up that will complement your decor. I think the most stylish automatic machine out there is the De’Longhi Rivelia which is available in a stunning Jade Green colour via the De’Longhi wbesite (£749.99) while Sage’s colour range for the Barista Express Impress is quite extensive – my favourite is the Almond Nougat (£729.95).

Investing in a coffee machine that’s this expensive is a huge decision, but added colour options should at least make matching it to your interiors a little easier. Do you prefer these new colours over the original?