Category Archives: What to buy

Green fashion, Green Living, Sustainability, What to buy, Where to shop

Is Cornwall a new hub for ethical fashion?

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I think we’ve all experienced that feeling of excitement, which quickly turns to anxiety, when a special invitation leaves us freaking out about what to wear. It’s one of the oldest and most unavoidable situations, no matter how comfortable and confident you feel within yourself. Whether it’s a party, wedding, conference, or simply meeting someone new for the first time, we all want to make a good impression and visually represent who we think we are inside.

So, when I was recently invited to attend the Observer Ethical Awards, with the scary sounding dress code of “Sustainable style”, I experienced this vain but natural freak out. If I could even claim to have some form of style in the first place, I would feel a little less nervous. But unfortunately, my outfits usually consist of charity shop hauls and friends hand-me downs. Naturally due to my “make do and mend” approach not simply  that I’m a complete fashion-phobe!

However , determined to at least attempt some kind of eco sophistication, I did some digging to see if I could find my own unique sustainable style, without spending more money on one outfit than I would normally spend in a year at the Cats Protection charity shop!

The good news is, my search was easier and closer to home than I thought. It turns out Cornwall is already a bit of a hub for eco fashion, so I don’t have to roam too far to kit myself all green and shiny!

cornwallmap

Like many counties across the UK, Cornwall has always been extremely proud of its own home-grown produce; not least because down here we see ourselves as a county within itself! From clotted cream and pasties, to tin mining and the iconic surf culture; Cornwall naturally and seamlessly balances both its historic and modern identities. So it shouldn’t really be any surprise that 5 of the best ethical fashion brands happen to be Cornish… Continue reading Is Cornwall a new hub for ethical fashion? →

General ramblings, Green food, Green news, Sustainability, Vegan, What to buy

Ben and Jerry’s go Vegan!

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Today is an exciting day. I woke up to learn that Ben and Jerry’s have given in to millions of signed petitions and will be releasing a dairy free range next year. Vegan Ben and Jerry’s on a Friday night sounds like my idea of a lazy night in!

But my excitement isn’t just because I want to stuff my face with buckets of ice-cream (though that is certainly a contributor to my happiness right now…) I am also happy that the company, who pride themselves on caring about such issues as equal marriage, world peace, fairtrade and climate change, are finally putting their money where their mouth is.

Interestingly, Ben and Jerry’s claim they are passionate about climate change issues and have even joined forces with Avaaz to encourage people to sign a petition or action. In their own words they are “…calling on leaders of the developed nations and the United Nations to tackle climate change at the upcoming summit in Paris. Our goal is for international leaders to work towards 100% Clean Energy by 2050.” A heartfelt plea from a company whose very industry of mass exploitation and rearing of dairy cows is at the very core of our climates woes.

The WWF estimates that there are approximately 270 million dairy cows worldwide, all churning out babies they will never raise, simply to meet our growing dairy demands. Dairy cows and their manure produce greenhouse gas emissions which are greatly contributing to climate change. Poor handling of manure, which occurs in a large number of industrialised dairy farms, and their fertilizers degrade local water resources. Unsustainable dairy farming (in which standards are lowers and more land is needed) along with feed production can lead to the loss of ecologically important areas, such as prairies, wetlands, and forests.

vegan ben and jerry

But still, Ben and Jerrys have always maintained their passion for the planet. So their acknowledgement that dairy is not needed to make a successful and profitable business is very exciting indeed. Not just for vegans but literally for the whole planet!

Green Beauty, Green health, Green Living, Green news, Reviews, Vegan, War on waste, What to buy, Where to shop

Natural, Vegan, “designer” Perfumes

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Last weekend I was in vegan heaven, when I popped up to the annual Bristol Vegfest; an extravaganza in all things vegan friendly! I tried the yummiest Pad Thai, stocked up on way too much dairy-free chocolate, and met some awesome like minded people.

But the highlight of my day (aside the vegan ales which got me a little tipsy…) was discovering a perfume company, called Eden Perfumes, who make a huge selection of natural, vegan friendly perfume, which perfectly imitate designer favorites.

For years I have been in a perfume rut. I’ve long, and uncharacteristically for a “hippy”, been a Calvin Klein Euphoria wearer and have never quite found anything else I like. But a huge amount of designer perfumes don’t really hold green credentials, and even fewer are vegan friendly. You may find some perfumes are vegan, but as I’ve found, they are rarely the ones I want!rsz_img_3940-2

So, when I ran out of CK a couple of weeks ago, I vowed that I wouldn’t buy another perfume until I found a greener option. Here ensued 2 weeks of experimenting with essential oil spritzers, all which left me smelling more like a walking pharmacy than a sophisticated lady!

The discovery of Eden Perfumes, then, couldn’t come sooner. Their stall at Vegfest displayed a line of big refill units, and smaller bottle to fill with your chosen scent (of which can be sent back to be refilled!) and each were labelled with the “designer” version it was similar to. Everything from Armani, Marc Jacobs and Burburry, to your favorite Chanel can be found in a botanical and natural form!

Eden only use organic & vegan ingredients (jasmine, vanilla, passionfruit, musk, saffron, oud, sandalwood and many more) and contain no nasty synthetics, parabens or phthalates. The best thing is, by saving on fancy packaging and marketing, all the perfumes are just £15!

eden-perfumes

You can order online, but when I next get the chance I’d love to travel to their store in Brighton and stock up in person! Oh, and after 1 week of testing I can confirm its long lasting and smells just like the real thing 🙂

Green ideas, Green Living, Green news, Reviews, Sustainability, What to buy

Book Review: The Sustainable Design Book

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Ok, I’m just going to go ahead and put it out there. I’m a bit of design geek. Well, specifically an architecture and furniture design geek (and yes, I do include my love of Ikea and Grand Designs in this description…); though I also  have respect for anything that is a little quirky, practical, and more importantly, sustainable. 

But don’t assume this geek love equates to intellectual prowess, no Sir! Not to be confused with someone who actually knows something of substance about a particular subject,  a geek is in fact characterized as someone who is (I quote the Oxford dictionary…) “extremely excited or enthusiastic about a subject, typically one of specialist or minority interest” and that’s me with design. I love it with a creepy, stalker-like passion, but am rarely invited to it’s parties. 

It is because of this interest, but lack of knowledge, that I jumped at the chance to take a look at a brand new book on this very subject: The Sustainable Design Book by Rebecca Proctor.

First impressions suggested that this was a dream book for arty, designer types with a profound knowledge of design. For those who would pretentiously ponder techniques, or simply leave around for friends and acquaintances to admire. A coffee table book if you will. But a curious thing happened. As I begun to flick through its beautifully laid out pages, I realised first impressions can be very deceptive indeed…

Continue reading Book Review: The Sustainable Design Book →

Green fashion, Green Living, Sustainability, Vegan, What to buy, Where to shop

Bourgeois Boheme: From Shoe Apathy to Shoe Passion

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For those of you who have ever met me in person, you’ll know that I am the least fashionable person out there. I take the ethos of reduce, reuse and recycle to heart when it comes to clothes; and prefer a rummage in a charity shop rather than a credit card binge on the highstreet. This serves three main purposes:

Firstly, I don’t contribute to the throwaway fashion economy, in which you can buy a whole outfit for less than the person who made it earns in a year. Secondly, and rather vainly, I don’t have to feel old and frumpy in the latest fashions; choosing instead to stick to my 90s grunge look which has served me well for the majority of my 20s. Lastly, and most lazily of all, I don’t have a clue when it comes to “ethical fashion” and prefer to hide away from having to actively research the rabbit warren which is the clothes and shoe industry.

If only Vivienne Westwood could come shopping around Truro with me, and help me find a bargainous green outfit which makes me feel 3 stone lighter. But alas! The trains getting down here are a bloody nightmare. But even the most clueless of us occasionally fall in love. And when I fall in love, I can become pretty wistful and dreamy. Meet the Amanda Blue – the most beautiful shoe I have seen in my life. Continue reading Bourgeois Boheme: From Shoe Apathy to Shoe Passion →

Green food, Seasonal, Vegan, What to buy, Where to shop

Lazy Local shopping: Cornish Food Market

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Hello my lovely lazies, how are you?!

It’s been a pretty crazy few weeks for me, with one huge event to organise at work, plus the worlds most disorganised house move ever! But I’ve settled in to my brand new little home with more resolutions that the last 5 New Years rolled in to one! Aside from doing daily yoga and meditation, and eating less junk food, I’m also going to be ditching the car and walking the 40 minutes to work everyday day. Watch this space..

Views from my lovely new porch :)
Views from my lovely new porch 🙂

Continue reading Lazy Local shopping: Cornish Food Market →

Green food, Green Living, War on waste, What to buy, Where to shop

Day 5 of Local for Lent: The Natural Store

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I’m now five days into my attempt to avoid supermarkets for lent, and so far so (almost) good. I had a little hick up late on Friday night when I needed to get a few bits and all the shops in my village were shut apart from a large supermarket chain. So I must admit I did cheat a little, but compromised and bought two things that couldn’t wait till the morning when the local shops opened again. Note to self: be better prepared next time!!

So yesterday, whilst enjoying a day out in Falmouth, I popped into my favorite Cornish chain, The Natural Store, to stock up on some bits and bobs (and indulge in a few non essential treats!) Alongside the Falmouth branch there is one in Helston and nearer to me in St Austell, but Falmouth is much bigger and is in fact slit into two stores; one for food stuff and one for home and body.

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Continue reading Day 5 of Local for Lent: The Natural Store →

Green fashion, War on waste, What to buy, Where to shop, Zero Waste Week

Plastic Bottle Fashion

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Along with my purse, phone and keys, I carry my bobble water bottle wherever I go. It’s not necessarily that I’m a big water drinker (in fact, sometimes I can go all day without drinking any at all) but I never want to be caught short and forced to buy bottled water from the shop. Ever since I discovered more about the devastating effects of plastic pollution,  the idea of buying water bottled when its readily available in taps makes no sense to me.

That said, we all get caught out once in a while, and the fact is that billions of plastic bottles continue to be produced worldwide. But what if these bottles could be recycled, and re-appropriated into something useful? Well I recently came across a company who is trying to salvage our plastic bottles, and turn them into things we can wear and use; and a lot of big brands are in on it.

Continue reading Plastic Bottle Fashion →