3 of the best.....ethical fashion sale items

Harriet Tunic now £30 (Frank & Faith)

Stweart + Brown Organic Tee now £24 (Fashion-Conscience)

Short Sleeved Cardi now £25 (Ascension)

Beauty Review: Liz Earle Cleanse, Tone and Moisturise

I had heard about Liz Earle products a number of times in the run-up to me actually purchasing them, and pretty much all the things I heard were good. The products are a favourite of the ‘The Green Beauty Bible’ and have won a raft of awards.

Liz Earle have a broadly ‘natural’ philosophy, although some of our stricter green friends may be critical of the fact that the range does use some synthetic preservatives. Liz Earle do no animal testing and use no animal ingredients, no mineral oils and no genetically engineered ingredients.

I purchased the ‘3 daily essentials’ from the website which are the famous Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser, the Instant Boost Skin Tonic and the Skin Repair Moisturiser (I bought the Normal/combination version).

I have been using all three for about 4 months now and I am incredibly impressed. I am notoriously lazy when it comes to maintaining any sort of routine, especially a ‘skincare’ one. But I noticed the effects of these products from day one (seriously) and that just made me want to keep things up. The Cleanser smells gorgeous and for my occasionally sensitive, dry and flakey cheeks it has been amazing this Winter. I feel it wouldn’t be accurate to review each of these products separately as I have been using all three and would be hard pressed to say whether the improvement in my skin has come from one in particular or a combination of all of them. I went to a beautician I have been to regularly over the years for a facial a few weeks ago and she said my skin had never been so hydrated. I’m sure this is partially down to the fact that I have never before been so disciplined with actually cleansing, toning and moisturising on a regular basis but that is mainly because the products make my skin feel great. So a big thumbs up for Liz Earle and I am definitely going to try some of the other products in the range in the future.

Visit http://www.lizearle.com/ for more information on the range, to read their Environmental Policy Statement and to find out more about Liz Earle’s philosophy on natural and organic ingredients. Ordering products from the website is quick and efficient. The products were packaged beautifully when they arrived and although most of the packaging was bio-degradable there did some to be rather a lot of it, unnecessarily. I also received a free sample with my order, which is always nice.

A new beginning....sort of...

Well it’s been a while….a long while. I have a number of excuses prepared for my long blogging absence (holiday to South Africa, hectic schedule at work etc.) but they are kind of pointless because the point is…I’m just not sure of how I am feeling about this blog at the moment and that is the real reason why I haven't been very inspired. I think I kind of went off in an unintended direction of only wanting to blog about something that ‘fitted in’ with some preconceived idea of what this blog was about….not even my own preconceived idea, just one that somehow arrived and then roosted.

I just want this blog to be about stuff…all sorts of stuff, stuff I like doing and eating and buying and wearing, mainly in London as that is where I live after all. And I want the things I blog about to be stuff I’d like to share, rather than something I have had to think about and then written about for the sake of having something to write about! So I am semi-kind-of starting things over with a slightly wider remit and we’ll just see how things go…that is the beauty of it all, nothing has to be set in stone.

National Ethical Investment Week

National Ethical Investment Week takes place next week (8-14 November). NEIW is a campaign which aims to raise awareness of green and ethical finance and investment choices.

There are a large number of people who are concerned about the green and ethical credentials of the purchases they make and yet they never stop and consider what their money may be financing in terms of where they bank and where they invest there savings. There are a wide and constantly expanding range of options available for people concerned about what their investments are financing.

Visit www.neiw.org for some more information about the campaign and green and ethical investing in general.

3 of the best.....natural cold and flu relievers

In keeping with the general illness theme which I established last week, I thought I would highlight ‘3 of the best’ natural cold and flu relievers (I say relievers because I can’t really vouch for these as remedies….during my own recent germ-struggles I have found the following quite helpful although not cures…the best cure for flu is most often time and rest).

Ginger, honey and lemon tea – ginger is a natural antiviral plant and has long been used to treat asthma, bronchitis and other respiratory problems as well as assisting with digestion and easing nausea. One of the easiest ways to take it is as a tea by steeping shavings of fresh ginger in hot water and adding honey and lemon to taste.

Tomato Soup – ok so this may be more psychosomatic than anything else as a warm bowl of soup is essentially comforting but tomatoes contain high levels of vitamin c and are generally a good source of vitamins. Soup is easily digested which is helpful for someone who is generally worn down. Heavy meals require energy to digest and for someone ill, this energy can be best utilised by the body for getting better.

Steam – steam moisturises and soothes your nasal passages which can be a huge relief when suffering from a cold or flu. The easiest way to get a dose of steam is obviously to have a hot shower. Steam can also help ease congestion and help you expel phlegm.

Ok, I am going to stop going on about being ill now......I promise!

Lurgy, laziness and London Borough Market

I have been a very neglectful blogger of late. The past few weeks have flown by in a haze of fuzzy-headedness and a desire to do as little as possible brought on by an indeterminate illness. So I a) haven’t actually done anything worth sharing and b) have spent any time while not at work sleeping, in the bath or lying on the sofa feeling vaguely sorry for myself.

The one thing I did do before the rot set in was visit London Borough Market. Now is not the best time for a first visit as construction is well under way on one of the market’s main sections….so it is even more crowded than usual and rather difficult to navigate without getting stuck in bottle necks but for anyone who likes food (and I find it hard to imagine how anyone could not) it is still worth a visit.

While there I feasted on raclette, numerous bits of cheese and bread with various olive oils, and fresh cranberry and apple juice. I went home with toffee-pecan cheesecake (oh my word, this is amazing, trust me on this one), Spanish hot sauce (the exact name of which escapes me), chipotle paste, sausages, dry-cure bacon and various herbs and vegetables. Whenever I buy food from Borough I am always amazed at how well dishes turn out and what a difference it makes buying things that are fresh and in season rather than from the supermarket. It’s not possible, unfortunately, for me to do day-to-day shopping at a market but I think it really is worth doing as often as possible.

Psst....

Ok, so I am not sure why either, but online ethical retailer and brand Adili have changed their name to Ascension. Go figure. But what is actually kind of cool is…. they are launching a flagship London store. It will be opening in central London (exact location tbc) in early November. Let’s hope it is the first of many!