|
Biovene Barcelona 's beauty products are fabulous in every way. Besides the important fact they are ethically sourced and never tested on animals, the high quality products come with a very reasonable price tag.  Biovene produce a range of organic, natural skincare, haircare, lipcare and suncare. All products are manufactured using minimal packaging material while bottles are made from 100% recycled material. The company is all too aware of the harm cause by plastic pollution which includes the fact that over 700 different marine species are killed either by plastic ingestion or entanglement, resulting in more than 100 million animal deaths a year. A shocking figure. Two-thirds of all seabird species are also affected. For example 98% of albatrosses have ingested plastic while 40% of their chicks die when fed this by their parents. Unlike humans, wildlife cannot discern plastic from digestible materials so if something resembles food then they assume it is food. Jellyfish-eating species including ocean sunfish and sea turtles, mistake plastic bags and balloon ribbons for jelly medusae, while animals including cows and dogs often eat plastic contaminated with human food.  If you haven't already done so, then do give Biovene products a try. Available from their website the products are suitable for various skin types including sensitive, oily, dry or combination.  Echoing the aromas of designer fragrances at budget-friendly prices, UK based Rebel Aromas focus on ethical beauty, offering vegan-friendly and cruelty-free perfumes. Not only that, THEY SMELL FABULOUS! I am astonished. Totally.   This isn't my first foray into the world of 'dupe' fragrances. I have tried a couple of others because they were touted as being 'just like the real thing'. To me though, they smelled of very little and an hour after spraying them on, there was no fragrance left. Perhaps that's why when I heard about Rebel Aromas, I thought, here we go again. I know, that's what you get for being cynical. Oh, I am running ahead of myself here. Perhaps some of you reading this don't know what a 'dupe' is - it's easy, they are labelled as such because of how similar they smell to iconic brands. Rebel Aromas offer an affordable alternative without compromising quality. So, what are some of the fragrances they offer? I'll start with Millionairess because it is super-gorgeous, magnetic ,alluring yet bold with floral and sensual base notes of patchouli and honey that define its luxurious character. Inspired by Paco Rabanne's 'Lady Million', you're going to feel pretty high-end if you choose this one with no worries about a designer price tag. If you are the kind of girl who wants to make a statement, this one is for you. Dark Opium is, as you may guess, inspired by Yves Saint Laurent's Black Opium, a perfume which I have long loved. Top notes of coffee, pink pepper and orange blossom meld well with middle and base notes - vanilla, cedarwood and musk -to provide an intriguing yet seductive aroma.  Rebel Riviera captures the essence of Tom Ford's Neroli Portofino, fresh, citrusy, floral with more than a hint of rebellion. This is an exotic fragrance, possibly thanks to the addition of cruelty-free white musk. This one is great for daytime wear, it's sure to power you through from start to finish. Forbidden Fruits, an eco-friendly blend of pure botanicals inspired by Jo Malone's English Pear and Freesia, is sweet, fresh and totally captivating. Spritz in the vicinity of others and you will definitely get compliments. This one is elegant and sweet, capturing the essence of spring time whatever time of year you choose to wear it.  Rebellious Beauty is inspired by Lancome's La Vie Est Belle. This crisp, invigorating scent with top notes of pear, blackcurrant and iris is completely captivating, almost defiant. This perfume shouts fun and should be worn by those who know what they want and won't stop until they get it! The last Rebel Aromas perfume that I can tell you about is the feminine fragrance Rogue Whispers which captures the spirit of Carolina Herrera's Good Girl, a perfume I adore. Rogue Whispers is confident, bold with rich base notes which include tonka bean to add sweetness, depth and warmth. To sum up, I think Rebel Aromas has a fab range of perfume dupes, at prices which mean you can splash out and buy several to see which suits you best. Details of pricing and how to order on website www.rebelaromas.co.uk disclaimer: I received samples from Rebel Aromas but views are my own.  I love visiting Kew Gardens and went along to have a look at a new exhibition by contemporary artist Marc Quinn which looks at the relationship between people and plants. Building on his interest in nature and the human experience, Quinn’s Light into Life exhibition showcases sculptures in the gardens as well as in the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art. Click on any image to enlarge Designed to offer moments of thoughtful reflection and interaction throughout the gardens, the exhibition examines our complex relationship with the natural world and represents one of the largest site-specific art projects at Kew to date. Working with specialists from fields including plant diversity, Quinn has created pieces based on significant plants from the Kew collections. Amongst these is a large-scale series of sculptures based on herbarium specimens of plants which have inspired drug discovery, including the opium poppy (Papaver somniferum), a source of drugs used for pain relief. These abstract sculptures not only tell the vital story of our reliance on the natural world for therapeutic treatments, but also emphasise the constructive quality of humanity’s complicated relationship with nature. This theme is further reflected in Held by Desire; a large bronze bonsai sculpture taking centre stage in the Temperate House, the world’s largest Victorian glasshouse. Known the world over as the art of growing dwarf trees and shrubs, bonsai plants are kept at a consistently small size through careful pruning - perhaps the most painstaking manipulation of nature for aesthetic purposes.  all the images here are (c) Gilly Pickup Celebrating the garden's 175-year-old Palm House, Quinn's series of sculptural portraits of palm leaves are based on the Bismarck (Bismarckia nobilis) and Sabal (Sabal palmetto) Palms from within the glasshouse. The artworks are emblematic manifestations of our relationship with trees and their role in the shelter, food and fabric of daily survival for billions of people. Created in polished stainless steel, the mirroring reminds us of the role of light in the creation of plants and all living things. Also in the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art, a new exhibition in Gallery Six features botanical paintings co-curated by Dr Sherwood and Marc Quinn, alongside a selection of Quinn's drawings. These works reflect the plants inspiring the artworks integral to Light into Life, with orchids, lilies, bonsai and coconut palms.  Marc Quinn says: "As humans we are not isolated from our environments; we interact and exist within them as a part of nature. Collaborating with Kew, a world-class centre of botanical research, and its team of scientists and horticulturists, has underlined how integral the natural world is to my practice. The complex science of plants has always-and continues to-inspire my thinking as an artist. ." Accompanying books will be published by Kew Publishing. The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, is dedicated to harnessing the power of plants and fungi to end the extinction crisis and secure a future for all life on Earth. With Kew’s world-leading research, global partnerships and beloved gardens – home to the world’s most diverse collections of plants and fungi – Kew is using its trusted voice to shape policy and practice worldwide. As a charity Kew relies on visitors' support, not only to sustain the gardens, but to protect global plant and fungal biodiversity for the benefit of our planet. Exhibition admission included in a ticket to Kew Gardens. Pre-booking online offers best value visit.  Kurhotel Skodsborg, Denmark’s original spa hotel declares 2024 The Year of the Sauna.
Drawing on its 125 years of traditional Nordic health and wellness - and the current buzz around saunas - Kurhotel Skodsborg launches a new Ultimate Stay package to celebrate its signature experience, SaunaGus. SaunaGus is a sauna experience like no other. This Danish tradition is best described as an aromatherapy sauna set to music in which a Gusmester (mist master) uses a swirling towel to infuse the air with pure essential oils giving a mild scent that - combined with the heat - enhances relaxation. Every session ends with a dip in The Sound (the strait which forms the Danish–Swedish border) to juxtapose the extreme heat, awaken the senses and push guests’ physical and mental limits. What sets SaunaGus apart from other sauna experiences is the Gusmester… Bo Berlin, a seasoned Kurhotel Skodsborg Gusmester with six years’ experience, brings a wealth of aromatherapy knowledge to SaunaGus. Bo uses over 60 essential oils which he expertly blends to unlock healing and calming benefits. Bo recognizes SaunaGus as more than just a standard sauna experience, citing its ability to: aid digestion, the heat enhances blood flow to the digestive organs and modulates the gut microbiome*, improve skin health - stabilise the epidermal barrier function and increase hydration** - and boost the immune system - increase white blood cell counts***. Tania Bill Petersen, another of Kurhotel Skodsborg’s Gusmesters, channels her background in dance when leading a SaunaGus session. With the help of music and light, she creates a unique, almost theatrical experience. With graceful movements of her towel and fan, Tania distributes heat and carefully selected oils throughout the sauna to either enhance relaxation and promote mindfulness or energise and uplift. Kurhotel Skodsborg’s one-night Ultimate Stay package is built on the early 19th century philosophies of Founder, Dr Carl Ottosen and his belief that the fundamental principles for a healthy life boil down to: light, air, water, nutrition, exercise and rest. The package includes:
* Brain-gut peptides in sauna-induced hyperthermia; T G Jenssen, H H Haukland, P G Burhol; Acta Physiologica; 1988 ** Effect of regular sauna on epidermal barrier function and stratum corneum water-holding capacity in vivo in humans: a controlled study; D Kowatzki, C Macholdt, K Krull, D Schmidt, T Deufel, P Elsner, J W Fluhr; Dermatology; 2008 ***Effect of a Single Finnish Sauna Session on White Blood Cell Profile and Cortisol Levels in Athletes and Non-Athletes; Wanda Pilch, Ilona Pokora, Zbigniew Szyguła, Tomasz Pałka, Paweł Pilch, Tomasz Cisoń ; The journal of Human Kinetics 2013  Forget hours spent in the kitchen following complex instructions. In Part-Time Baker, each recipe is clearly labelled with 'hands-on time' and 'total time' to make clear how much effort you need to put in. Many bakes can be prepped in just 10 minutes and there are plenty of cheats and tips for impressive results. No need for loads of obscure baking equipment and all recipes can be scaled up sharing or down. Delicious, speedy baking recipes for every occasion – morning, noon and late-night snack, including: • Cheat's Almond Croissants • 3-Ingredient Chocolate Twists • Speedy Sesame Bagels • Spiced Ginger Traybake • Vegan No-Bake Chocolate and Pistachio Bars • Spring Green, Pesto and Courgette Flower Tart • Mini Pina Colada Loaf Cakes • Sugar Cinnamon Popovers with Warm Honey • Espresso Martini Cake • Molten Caramel Brownie Skillet Part-time Baker is all about reducing hours you spend in the kitchen, giving you more time to enjoy the tasty results. Whether new to baking or managing a busy schedule, you'll find realistic recipes that look and taste fantastic. Florence Stanton started her own online baking social media account @Tasting.Thyme in Aberdeen, Scotland in 2021. Every day she celebrates self-love through good food and good vibes with zero mention of calories. It showcases easy and delicious bakes, sweet and savoury, that show you don't need fancy training, huge kitchen or every tool to create wonderful food. Photography by Majaja Smend    Munch Lunch & Dinner
is just the book to help you gain more confidence in the kitchen. This new cook book is packed with easy-to-follow, delicious recipes. Discover how to turn low-cost. easy to find ingredients into tasty, nutritious dishes. In this world of celebrity chefs, social media and aspirational cooking, it's easy to be overwhelmed by conflicting information. One minute we are told to cook seasonably and shop locally, the next to hunt down unusual ingredients. Munch Lunch & Dinner cuts through all this noise. Every recipe uses ingredients found in your store cupboard or local supermarket. No need for specialist equipment either, most use just one saucepan. There are clear guides on how to shop and how to substitute expensive ingredients without sacrificing taste. Munch CIC is passionate about fighting health inequalities, empowering communities and helping individuals make healthy changes and learn about sustainable nutrition. The book was born out of Munch Community Cooking workshops and courses which they run to help people develop skills and confidence needed to cook from scratch. Munch Lunch and Dinner was designed as a take home tool for the low income and disadvantaged groups they regularly work with. However, they realised many more people would benefit from their back-to-basics approach to home cooking and meal planning. This cookbook is more than just recipes. It guides you through stocking cupboards with versatile ingredients and batch cooking meals for future use. There are tips for reducing waste and making food go further by using leftovers. Throughout the book there is nutritional information and advice about eating sustainably including ways to introduce more plants into your diet. Mary Louise Needham-Carlton, is a Director of Munch CIC and author of Munch Lunch & Dinner. On releasing the cookbook she said: “It’s exciting to potentially be able to help more people access healthy food and learn about sustainable nutrition. Cooking doesn’t have to be complicated! We hope this book will be a useful guide for new cooks as well as a go-to for experienced cooks, for new ideas for quick mid-week meals. All profits help individuals and children at the Cooking Clubs learn valuable life skills, which is what we love more than anything here at Munch!” Buy the book from the Munch website, munchcic.co.uk or online via Amazon. Price £21.99 hardback and £14.99 paperback. Profit from every two books sold buys one space for someone to attend the Munch community cooking groups. These groups help children and individuals build a healthier relationship with food. Production of the book was supported by Winchester City Council. image received from Munch CIC via TravMedia I have not received a copy of this book, just sharing press news Made from the finest responsibly-sourced Madagascan cocoa and crafted by expert Belgian chocolatiers, these dark chocolate chips from Nibble Simply are sweetened with coconut sugar, which the experts say, is better for you! Grown in mineral-rich soil, Madagascan cocoa is one of the very best and one of the most exclusive, cocoas in the world, accounting for less than 1% of chocolate globally. Another thing, cocoa is full of flavonoids with antioxidant qualities which help protect skin against damage from UV rays and pollution that speeds up skin ageing.  Goodies from the Nibble Group are fabulously different! Their lower-in- sugar, vegan snacks and bites are made with the best all-natural ingredients, nothing at all nasty lurks within! And they contain a fraction of the sugar of other snack bars. The two delicious ranges are: NIBBLE SIMPLY: Made with a handful of the finest ingredients, the little keto-friendly bites are super healthy with 55%+ fewer carbs, 60%+ less sugar and 160%+ more protein than their cookie counterparts. NIBBLE PROTEIN: Protein-packed bites are made with antioxidant dried plum purée. No sugar-laden dates or high GI sweeteners here. I was sent a pack of Nibble's yummy Madagascan chocolate chips to try and yes, they are fabulously rich and tasty! Definitely moreish!
All NIBBLE natural bites are vegan, soy and gluten free. The clever people there have avoided the most commonly used proteins: whey (dairy-based) and soy. Instead they opted for pea protein which contains no dairy or soy (common allergens) and it is sustainable - so, goodie! no cows required! It is also alkaline forming to help keep your body in balance and since it is a slow digesting protein, studies show it keeps you fuller for longer than whey protein. What's not to like? Nibble also contains other healthy ingredients including gluten-free oats, toasted sunflower and pumpkin seeds and tasty dried plum purée. Now, dried plums, prunes by another name, are in fact, the original superfood. Well-known for being high in fibre, they're also tops for antioxidant power and contain over 40% less sugar than dates. As well as that, nutrient-rich dried plums are a good source of iron, potassium, boron - necessary for strong bones & muscles, magnesium and vitamins K and A. Wow! They are deliciously low GI too. No wonder dried plum purée is the base of the Nibble Protein range. Kew Gardens orchid festival is back and it's better than ever! Inspired by Cameroon's beauty and bio-diversity, this colourful celebration is sure to brighten up the winter months and it is the first time that this festival, the 27th! has been inspired by an African nation. Cameroon is home to an incredible number of orchid species, some are so rare that their locations are kept secret. From lush rainforests and volcanic mountains to deserts, Cameroon's huge variety of plants and wildlife are supported by varied habitats, reflected across the ten climatic zones within the Princess of Wales Conservatory at Kew. A lot of work went into the displays for the Orchid festival, they took three weeks to create, each one assembled by a team of around 100 volunteers and 12 horticultural staff. The festival runs from 4 February to 5 March, 2023 and also features an array of sculptured animals inspired by the wildlife of Cameroon. There's a larger then life lion, giraffes, hippos and gorillas. When purchasing a ticket to Kew Gardens, entry to Orchids in included. For best value tickets, book in advance at kew.org. Tickets for Orchids After Hours should be booked in advance.
Photos (c) Kew Gardens & Gilly Pickup |
