I bought a Dyson DC17 Animal a few years ago after asking for recommendations here on the blog. Recently Dyson contacted me to ask if I was interested in attending their first ever Domestic Engineers event. I’ve been really happy with my vacuum and I thought it would be fun to visit the U.S. headquarters (right here in Chicago), so I decided to go.
Their offices were just as I imagined they would be; very open and lofty with an industrial vibe. The other bloggers in attendance and I geeked out, learning about the science behind Dyson’s motors. We also had fun mocking up inventions out of cardboard, following their method of brainstorming (it was just like being back in my architectural model making class). Afterward, we all had afternoon tea at The Drake which was really lovely.
A funny thing happened that day. As we learned about the company and the thought and innovation behind their products, I had the opposite of buyer’s remorse. Buyer’s contentment? You all always steer me in the right direction when I ask for your opinions, so thanks. Thanks also to the people at Dyson, who have provided me with a handheld DC31 Animal (it is awesome), along with a toy vacuum for Eleanor and an Air Multiplier (their bladeless fan) that is on its way soon. You guys have helped me keep my home a little nicer.
Sarah @ Dream In Domestic
March 26, 2010 at 11:04 amI love Dysons! My parents also have one of the purple Animal vacuums and it is amazing. It picks up like no other and also cleans out so easily. I can’t wait to buy one of my own. They are completely worth the money.
lauren
March 26, 2010 at 11:10 ami have a dc25 dyson ball, and i absolutely LOVE it! the best $400+ dollars i have ever spent! i’m glad you are happy with your dyson products, and that the company was so impressive :)
Jean
March 26, 2010 at 12:33 pmWow! I want to be Dyson’s new best friend. What a cool experience for you (and frankly, is afternoon tea at The Drake not completely divine?!).
jane
March 26, 2010 at 1:07 pmOh,let us know how you like the fan—I saw it for the first time the other day. I love fans because we don’t have very good cross-ventilation in our house otherwise. I am searching for a quieter one than I have, but when our windows are cracked at night I do need a little of the fan’s white noise to help cancel out the street sounds. I’m wondering if the bladeless fan will be completely silent?
Making it Lovely
March 28, 2010 at 9:39 pmThe fan wasn’t completely silent, but it was much quieter than a traditional fan. The cool thing was that it operated on a dimmer switch, so you can control the speed to your liking (rather than just low, medium, and high).
Live a Colorful Life
March 26, 2010 at 2:00 pmI love my Dyson as well. And am very interested in the fan.
Debbie
March 26, 2010 at 2:08 pmI LOVE my Dyson animal and love their customer service even more! I had a couple of issues which they handled really well. I highly recommend buying a Dyson.
Desiree Fawn
March 26, 2010 at 2:12 pmSo cool — we have a little Dyson handheld, got it for hubs for xmas and we love it!!
Ami
March 26, 2010 at 2:53 pmI love my animal. I have had it since 2003. The only issue I had with it was a cracked hose last year. It was still under some kind of warranty through Best Buy. So they shipped it off and it came back all perfect again.
Sounds like you had a great day. It’s always great to find out that your favorite products are made by nice/cool people.
PS I want a Dyson toy vacuum!
Anne
March 26, 2010 at 2:55 pmThat’s so cool. The Air Multiplier is amazing. It’s like their engineers were able to completely forget every fan they’d ever seen and start from scratch without any preconceived notions.
Inspirational.
Did I just say that about a fan?!
Making it Lovely
March 28, 2010 at 9:41 pmThat’s exactly what they did! They talked about their invention process. They don’t start out by thinking “how can we improve a fan”, they think “how can we better control air flow to cool someone off”. And the whole thing came out of another project that they were working on when they realized that it would make a good fan.
Brittney
March 26, 2010 at 2:59 pmSo lucky!! I LOVE my Dyson.
Trishna
March 26, 2010 at 3:19 pmYou’re soooo lucky. I am saving up little by little for a Dyson, since I am still a student and all. But when I finally get one, it will a dream come true.
priscilla
March 26, 2010 at 3:52 pmI’ve seen that fan. It is awesome.
Nicole B.
March 26, 2010 at 4:25 pmOooh! Fun! I also have the DC17 Animal and it was probably the best investment ever. I have two small boys and I usually have to use it at least twice a day.
The only thing? I wish that kid vacuums actually picked some stuff up! Put my two year old to work! ;) Only (half) joking!
julie
March 26, 2010 at 5:01 pmI LOVE my Dyson – I’ve had it for over 5 years and is still going strong. We don’t call ours ‘Animals’ here in Australia but I’m sure they are the same thing just different names – mine is a DC08. How exciting to be given Dyson goodness!
sharon
March 26, 2010 at 5:40 pmoh yes dyson has given me huge buyers contentment over the years – i am so grateful to them… seriously!
CitricSugar
March 26, 2010 at 6:13 pmI couldn’t love mine more! (I’ve also converted several members of my family who thought that they were “expensive”. Worth every single penny!!)
Making it Lovely
March 28, 2010 at 9:43 pmMe too. My dad was looking for a vacuum last year and I told him to get the Dyson Animal (they have a LOT of pets). Well, he didn’t… he bought some cheap vacuum at a warehouse liquidation type of sale.
Then one month later he bought a Dyson. ;)
Gimlet Eye
March 26, 2010 at 6:19 pmYou are not alone! I called my Dyson a game changer in my life in a recent blog post. If you have pets, they are an essential. Definitely a product that is worth every dime of the heavier price tag!
Jenni
March 26, 2010 at 8:02 pmmy heart melted a little at the thought of them sending a toy vacuum for Eleanor.
tiny twig
March 26, 2010 at 8:30 pmi LOVE, LOVE, LOVE my dyson.
Amanda
March 26, 2010 at 11:05 pmWe’ve owned our Animal for just over 4 years now and we couldn’t be happier with it. I may have to check out that air multiplier!
Melanie
March 26, 2010 at 11:33 pmHow fun! What a joy to be able to do something like this :)
Alana
March 27, 2010 at 12:06 amI have been lusting after the air multiplier. Oh I hope it is as wonderful as it seems.
Anne
March 27, 2010 at 7:30 amI’ve had the Animal for a number of years, too and I love it. It holds a lot of dirt and I love not having to buy extinct filters/bags/etc. The other great thing is that the hand tool hose reaches the whole length of a set of stairs. I have recommended it to many friends.
DawnMarie
March 27, 2010 at 9:05 amWhat a nice experience. Since Dyson was recommended from your readers there is clearly a following and loyalty there. They should do a give away to one of your readers. As a thank you from both you and them for the loyalty. And maybe a little somethin’ somethin’ for the genius who suggested the give away ;)
Adventures In Babywearing
March 27, 2010 at 9:55 amI’m feeling the same way! Definitely proud of my choice to own a Dyson before even meeting with the company as a blogger. And I found so much of their business model and mission to be applicable to life, not just creating a useful product.
It was wonderful meeting you, too.
Steph
lori
March 27, 2010 at 11:58 amMy nephew has a toy Dyson, and he LOVES it. My brother can’t wait until his kid is old enough to really do the housework. :)
Katie Stephenson
March 27, 2010 at 3:09 pmI have the same one and I was so so happy with their warranty. I noticed it wasn’t working as well as when I purchased it and I took it in to sears where I purchased it to find out it had a 13 year warranty. They sent it off and repaired it and charged me nothing. I’m always so skeptical of warranties so it was such a nice surprise.
Helen
March 27, 2010 at 3:36 pmI love my Dyson, but it’s not designed with women in mind (because, let’s be honest…women vacuum more). I find it works amazingly on pet hair, but it is a total pain-in-the-ass to lug around because it just simply isn’t made to be dragged along as you vacuum. Definitely designed by men!
ClistyB
March 27, 2010 at 5:33 pmDoes the handheld hold a decent charge???
Making it Lovely
March 28, 2010 at 9:46 pmIt’s been pretty good. I’ve only had to recharge once so far, and I’ve been using it a lot.
b.a.
March 27, 2010 at 9:19 pmvacuum, shmacuum.
can we talk about how much we love your red hair?!
love. love. love.
red is perfect for a pink girl like yourself!
(since pink hair is, well… not.)
Tarsila Krüse
March 28, 2010 at 2:42 pmJust because I am a huge fan and I think you deserve it cuz your blog is so inspirational I nominated you to the Beautiful Blogger Awards.
http://yescute.blogspot.com/2010/03/beautiful-blogger-award.html
XoXo Tarsila
thiliblooms
March 29, 2010 at 6:55 amI love Dyson.. it makes my life so easy :) I have the yellow one though.. but it`s awesome! The only thing is, I know they have lots of engineers and smart people working there and I was wondering if they could make a cordless one.. It`d be heaven!!! Have a wonderful day :)
Claire
March 29, 2010 at 8:52 amThe Dyson makes vacuuming fun! It is one of the best birthday gifts I have even gotten from my husband!!!!!!! What a great field trip!
Becca
March 30, 2010 at 9:44 amYay! So pleased to read this as we have put one on our wedding list! I’m an accountant in the UK and did some work on Dyson’s charity a few years back. They are such a positive brand to work with :)
Rachel
March 30, 2010 at 9:48 amI feel secretly weird every time I vacuum and I think adoring thoughts of Richard Dyson. Seriously. Every time I vacuum, I thank God for him. :)
Rowena
March 31, 2010 at 12:34 amI feel a little jealous that everyone’s Dyson works so well. Mine is under 4 years old and the tube that is used for all the attachments doesn’t suck up stuff anymore, so I have to sweep stuff out of the corner and then run the vacuum over it. The main part still works, so I don’t want to get a new vacuum yet.
Erika Edith
March 31, 2010 at 1:30 pmI will buy any cleaning product you recommend – your house always looks immaculately clean in your blog! I don’t know how you do it. I want to go out and get a new vacuum immediately :)
joolz
July 24, 2010 at 9:02 pm@rowena – you should get that looked into. i’ve got a six year old dyson (just the basic yellow one), and it still works great, and for five+ years it was vacuuming an 1800 sq ft house 3x/week.
nicole? i wanted to pick your brain about the air multiplier. my hubs and i just ordered one (for free! well, we’ll pay income taxes on its value. dh redeemed his “cisco rewards points” on it) and i was just wanting to know if you’re still stoked to use it. :)