Detoxing my skin with Sukin Super Greens

19th January 2017

Detox is a bit of a buzz word for January. With people everywhere looking to undo the indulgences of the festive season it’s hard to avoid the mention of super-foods, giving up alcohol/sugar/fun and getting up at the crack of dawn to go to the gym.

None of that’s for me though, I’d sooner eat a bag of kale straight up than down a green juice and telling myself I’m doing “dry January” would only leave me wanting to neck a bottle of gin every night. Nope, the only detoxing I’m doing this month is for my skin thanks to a range of products from natural skin care brand Sukin– hopefully getting rid of the evidence of sleeping in my makeup, not getting enough day light and neglecting to stay hydrated during the month of December.

I was sent a couple of products from the range- the super greens detoxifying clay masque* (£11.95 for 100ml) which contains kale, spirulina, chlorella, parsley and baobab and promises to restore a glowing complexion. I’m not the biggest lover of face masks, generally I find them a bit claustrophobic and time consuming but lured in by the promise of glowing skin I’ve slapped this on a couple of times now and I’ll admit it’s almost enough to convert me to regular mask application. After 15 minutes and removal with warm water (bonus points for being really easy to remove) my skin certainly felt cleaner and dare I say more radiant? I think overall it’s too soon to tell if my radiance is restored as I’ve only used this twice but regardless of whether it is or not this is a lovely product and will feature regularly in my new found enjoyment of self-care and pamper time.

The second product I was sent was the nourishing chia seed oil* (£14.95 for 25ml). Chia seeds are one thing I actively avoid in my diet, the texture sends a shiver down my spine although I wish I did like them as the health benefits are well reputed. As well as the chia seeds this oil contains hemp seed oil and baobab oil which with daily use supplies your skin with a good dose of those essential omega fatty acids that chia seeds are so well known and loved for. This oil does have a slight hemp smell about it which in my eyes isn’t a bad thing as I quite like it. I’ve been using it every day at night after taking my makeup off and whilst I’m still not overly sold on the concept of oil as skincare again I have to admit it works and my skin feels amazingly soft and my fine lines are definitely less noticeable (oh the joys of approaching 30!) I’m not a fan of the feeling of oil on my skin and I never have been but with modest use and application of this product I’ve found a level I can tolerate and it’s now an established part of my daily routine.

You can buy Sukin products from lookfantastic.com, FeelUnique and Holland & Barrett among other retailers and there are several more products in the super greens range including a scrub that I plan on treating myself to soon- if anything is going to get my glow back it’ll be exfoliating with a blend of super green ingredients!

How do you repair the excesses of Christmas? Have you tried any of the Sukin products?

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When Jeans met Dress

16th January 2017

It’s a long time since I last wore jeans and a dress together. The combination reminds me a bit of when trouser skirts were a thing (hello year 9 school uniform) anything similar since. I was browsing on the Monki website the other day- as I frequently do and happened across my last Christmas money purchase styled over a pair of skinny jeans and loved how it looked so I decided to throw caution to the wind and give it a go myself.

Dress: Monki (some sizes still in stock) | Jeans: New Look ((this style)) | Boots: Sarenza | Necklace: Hello Harriet

It’s not often I remember to take a photo of my jewellery, or actually remember to put any on for that matter but this necklace from Hello Harriet is totally worth sharing. I featured Harriet’s shop on the blog in the run up to Christmas and santa must have been reading because on Christmas day I found this necklace hiding in my stocking. It pretty much sums up how I feel about certain things right now but mostly I just love jewellery/clothing/anything with a touch of sarcasm and attitude. I so badly want to get Mae a matching collar tag, but her track record at keeping hold of a collar and it’s tags is poor to say the least and I can’t bear the idea of getting her one of these only for it to turn up squished out of all recognition in a nearby road like the last one did!

Oh, and this dress was a complete bargain by the way- £8! The Monki sale remains my favourite as I picked up so much for so little. New season stock is arriving fast and my wish list is at least as tall as I am…I just loved their oversized pieces and minimal aesthetic. I think it’s probably the one shop that completely sums up my current style and as soon as I’m back at work I’m planning a “well done” spree for getting to my goal.

Which shops sum up your style right now? Did anyone else fall victim to the trouser skirt? (Or am I completely showing my age here?!)

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Healthier Baking Ideas*

15th January 2017

January is not a good month to be someone who loves to bake for other people- everyone is either on some kind of new year diet or so over-saturated with the rich foods of Christmas that they just can’t face any sweet treats. With that in mind I thought I’d explore a few ideas for healthier baking, mostly simple ingredient swaps to serve (mostly) as inspiration for myself and also to inspire my fellow baking addicts- and nab your ideas for healthier cakes and biscuits too!

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One simple swap you can make is to reduce saturated fats by replacing butter with an ingredient like rapeseed oil. There are a whole host of healthy baking recipes if you click the link- I especially like the look of the date and walnut cake which of course carries the added benefits of the dried fruit and nuts.

Obviously baked goods are notoriously laden with sugar and it’s hard to avoid it completely. What you can do though is look for sweeteners that have more nutritional benefits than refined white sugar- honey, apple puree, banana or sugar alternatives such as the SugaVida I recently featured are all good substitutes. Honey is particularly good as it contains anti-oxidants, which can help the body fight inflammation, and also works as a natural anti-bacterial. You could check out Gold Bee for high-quality raw, natural honey.

You can improve the nutritional content of cakes and bakes by adding in ingredients such as flaxseeds (also a great alternative to egg in vegan baking) to boost fibre content as well as providing a good source of vitamins and minerals. You won’t necessarily taste the difference but the benefits will be there.

Using alternatives to standard white flour will also boost the nutritional content of your bakes- buckwheat or spelt flours will increase fibre whilst almond flour will add a protein and vitamin E boost.

Finally when it comes to topping your bakes try switching regular cream or icing for greek or natural yoghurts. There are plenty of recipes out there for healthier toppings and you’ll gain the calcium, vitamin B12 and probiotics that yoghurts provide.

I’d love to know what smart-swaps you make for healthier baked goods, I’m getting bored of not baking and would love to get experimenting on healthier treats that both myself and those around me can enjoy. I’m notorious for not eating my own creations and it’s about time I started!

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What’s New Pussycat?

13th January 2017

The sales have been pretty kind to me this year- not only did I score some complete bargains but I also managed to snap up a couple of items I’d had on my wish list full price and resigned myself to not being able to afford.

The cat print dress in this post is one of those finds. First bought to my attention by the wonderful (and ever so stylish) Laura a couple of months ago I knew straight away that I wanted this but at £45.99(ish) it was way out of my price range. After a quick online browse of the Zara sale I was excited to see the dress had gone down to £26.99 but still assumed I wouldn’t get it but left it in the hands of the shopping gods and decided that if the Bristol store had it in stock in my size I would buy it- but because I didn’t technically NEED another dress I wouldn’t order online.

Someone was smiling down on me the day I ventured in to the sales (and the Zara sale is one I tend to avoid because it gets so chaotic and often vicious in store!) as there was one cat printed dress left hanging there all alone. A size up from my usual but I tried it on and decided I didn’t care, I like the sloppy look and so I happily trotted off to pay.

Dress: Zara | Boots: Office (similar)

These ankle boots are the third pair that have recently come in to my possession, but as my most worn flat black pair as starting to give up the ghost and I had a gift card from work I figured they were a worthy investment especially as they were reduced from £72 to £32. I’ve been after a pair of lace up ankle boots for a while and whilst the exact pair I got aren’t on the Office Shoes website any more I have linked to a very similar alternative for anyone else on the hunt.

This is probably one of my current favourite outfits. I’m a massive fan of longer length over-sized dresses at the moment and anything with a cat print on it is always going to be a winner in my eyes. I’ve already worn this dress several times so on a cost-per-wear basis it’s probably in the minus figures by now.

Thank you for all of the well wishes for my occupational health appointment, they were very much appreciated. It didn’t go exactly as I’d hoped- I suppose I thought that if I could get myself mentally a lot better I could somewhat overlook the physical side of things (and my first experience with occupational health seemed to confirm this). Alas this wasn’t the case so now I must face my biggest fear and hurdle in recovery and put on some weight before I can resume the job I love so much. I suppose I’m writing this down so I can’t back away from it. It’s so easy to get swept up in the disordered thinking of “well I already look healthy” but using my blog as a perspective I can see that I’m a way off looking like I did when I was last at a healthy weight (in this post for an example) and I’ve just got to man up and get on with it. I always struggle through the process of weight gain and seeing my body change but I know that when I get there I feel so much happier and more confident in myself- and the rest of my life becomes a lot more fun and fulfilling as a result. That has got to be worth toughing it out for. Hopefully it won’t be too long before I’m at a level where I can return to work, it’s so hard to know that the only thing holding you back from the one thing you really want to be able to do is yourself and yet you’re trapped by an illness that does it’s best to stop you achieving anything resembling a happy and healthy life.

Anyway, enough of that… tell me about your top sales purchases this year- or I suppose end of last year really!

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My Top Food & Lifestyle Apps with the Vodafone Smart First 7

11th January 2017

It’s hard to imagine now a life without smartphones, I can still remember getting my first ever mobile phone at the age of 13 and how excited I was thinking I was the height of sophistication and yet it was so very basic that I wonder what purpose it ever served, even text messages were limited in character! These days, as much as I hate to admit it I would struggle to keep everything together without my trust iPhone in hand and it’s true what they say- there really is an “app for that”, even things you never thought you could need an app for!

I was recently contacted by Vodafone about their super affordable smartphone- the Vodafone Smart First 7 which costs a mere £20 on pay as you go (which costs £15 per month so much cheaper than your standard contract). They offered me the loan of the device as a chance to explore the wide range of food and lifestyle apps available on the Google Play Store. Now I’m usually an out and out Apple girl but I was intrigued by the affordability of this model and also I was curious to see how the two rival app stores could compare.

So before I get on to the apps I’m loving a quick word on the phone itself- I’m genuinely amazed at the price of this. Whilst I might not be about to rush out and replace my iPhone with it I was impressed with how sleek it looks and how fast it runs. It doesn’t have a huge amount of memory (4gb internal but you can expand this with a memory card) but it has all of the features you’d expect from a smartphone and is very easy to use, making it perfect for anyone knew to the mobile technology world or if you’re on a budget but still want access to the benefits a smartphone can offer. Hats off to Vodafone for creating something so affordable that actually works!

I had a good play around on the google play app store which itself is user friendly and provides easy downloads. I’ve selected a few of my favourite food and lifestyle apps as despite not making any resolutions I do want to start off 2017 with good intentions!

The Headspace app is actually one I’ve been using for a while having had it recommended by a variety of health care professionals as well as friends. Initially it is free, you get a 30 day trial before needing to subscribe and in my opinion it’s worth it. The app uses proven meditation and mindfulness techniques to help you train your mind and gain some inner peace, all in 10 minutes a day to begin with. Well worth a download if you’re finding yourself feeling frazzled and stressed- I also find it great for managing anxiety.

Smart Recipes is a free app produced by the NHS to encourage smart food choices by providing family friendly easy to follow healthy recipes. It has over 160 calorie counted meal choices and helps you plan, organise and mix up your meals without spending a fortune.

Another free app I’ve been using for a while is Clue- Period Tracker and I find it invaluable. Since coming off of my pill my cycle has been irregular to say the least and I find inputting each period really does help me keep track not only of when my period is likely to arrive but also where I am in my cycle and when I am most likely to experience PMS symptoms (which is handy to warn other people to avoid me as I get majorly grumpy!). If you’re looking to start a family you can also use the app to track your most fertile days. I can’t recommend this app enough!

The Love Food Hate Waste is another easy to follow recipe app that aims to help you reduce the amount of food waste you generate (and thus save you up to £200 per year!) I’m making a huge effort at the moment to reduce how much food I waste and I really like the selection of recipes provided on this app as well as the ability to meal plan, create a shopping list and get help gauging portions which is something I really struggle with. Again this is a free app and one I use regularly.

Finally another mindfulness based app, Calm. Perfect for beginners the app offers guided meditation sessions ranging from 3 minutes long to 25 minutes. It covers a wide range of topics from anxiety through to gratitude with various programmes and exercises available.

All of these apps are also available on the Apple app store and I’ve been using them regularly on my iPhone- having had the chance to properly explore them I now wonder what took me so long!

I’d love to know what your favourite apps are, covering any topics…leave them in the comments below and let me know if you try out any of my suggestions.