Emily Parker

I grew up playing backyard bowling with my grandfather every summer, and those memories are exactly why I take testing the best lawn bowling sets so seriously. After spending the last 60 days rolling pins, tossing resin balls, and dragging carry bags across real grass, sand, and carpet, I found which sets actually hold up … Read more

If you’ve been bitten by the pickleball bug like we have, you already know that finding the best pickleball nets can transform your driveway, backyard, or garage into a regulation-worthy court in minutes. After three months of testing eight top-rated portable pickleball nets in our suburban neighborhood (with curious neighbors constantly borrowing them), we’ve compiled … Read more

Last summer, my family gathered at my sister’s place for a long-overdue reunion. We had rented a bounce house, fired up the grill, and brought three different yard games. By the end of the day, the badminton net was the only thing still standing, still being used by both kids and grandparents. That single experience … Read more

Last summer our family spent three weekends testing the best volleyball nets for backyards on real lawns, on a sand strip, and even on a packed-dirt court at a relative’s house. We tracked setup time, how straight the net stayed during play, and whether the included stakes actually held when our kids went full throttle. … Read more

Looking for the best portable basketball hoops for your driveway or backyard? I spent six weeks testing 12 popular models, dragging bases across driveways, draining water, hauling sand, and shooting hundreds of jump shots in the process. What follows is what actually held up, what wobbled on contact, and which hoops deserve your money in … Read more

I remember my first sewing machine purchase. I walked into a big-box store, stared at a wall of nearly identical-looking boxes, and walked out with something that jammed every third bobbin. That was 12 years and roughly 40 reviewed machines ago. Today, I help our team test every sewing machine we recommend, and we have … Read more

Picking the best pellet grills in used to feel like guesswork until I spent four weekends side-by-side cooking brisket, ribs, and burgers on a dozen wood pellet cookers. Our team ran low-and-slow smokes at 225°F, cranked the dial up to 500°F for reverse sears, and tracked every pellet we burned. The winners below are the … Read more

I tested eight charcoal grills across weeknight burgers, low-and-slow cookouts, and a family-sized barbecue to find the best charcoal grills worth buying in . The clear winner was the Weber Original Kettle Premium, but a compact Jumbo Joe, a steel kamado, and several barrel grills each solve a different problem. A charcoal grill is an … Read more

I have spent the last three summers grilling on dozens of models to find the best gas grills that real families can rely on. Over the past 90 days, our team fired up 10 popular grills, ran temperature probes across every burner, and cooked more than 140 pounds of burgers, chicken thighs, and steaks. We … Read more

Looking for the best electric smokers to up your backyard cooking game? I have spent the last three months smoking brisket, ribs, salmon, and chicken in every model I could get my hands on, and the difference between a great smoker and a mediocre one is night and day. An electric smoker uses an electric … Read more