A little Grooming...goes a long way

For his birthday Dave visited the barber and we followed up with a selection of great grooming products that he can use at home. He is a sucker for well designed packaging and while he loves his Hunter range these few new items hit the spot.
Vegan, cruelty-free and also free of most nasty ingredients the Hudson Made products are a great natural option for the hairy man your life. It also adds a little bit of NYC to our home.
My fave city in the whole wide world… I used to live there and still have many precious memories.
The products also smell rather amazing. Husband has enjoyed them a lot.

Happy birthday, hubby! And happy grooming.

RAW Vegan Snickers Slice

I have been really enjoying raw slices lately, which they start to sell at more and more cafes.

Inspired and with a few minutes on my hands

I experimented with my vitamix and created these super delicious peanut & choclate slices! 

They are kind of good for you and very nutritious.  

What you need: 

4 Tbsp organic unsweetened Peanut butter, chunky or smooth

1 cup Almond Meal

1 cup Oats

12 Dates (soaked) 

Few tablespoons Water

2 Tbsp raw cacao powder

How to: 

Soak the dates in a little warm water for 30min (you can skip this step it will just be harder to blend) 

Blend the dates with a few tablespoons of water into a thick sticky paste. 

Add all other ingredients, keep blending. 

Use a Tupperware or baking tray (it helps to line with baking paper) and scoop the mixture in. Freeze for a minimum of 1hour to set. Cut in squares and enjoy! You can store them in the freezer. Yummmmmm!!!! 

Eco Sparkle Nail Polish

Glitter looks like harmless fun and who doesn’t love a bit of sparkle?

Sadly most glitter is made up from tiny pieces of plastic, which end up in the oceans endangering marine life and birds. 

Glitter is just part of a bigger problem of so called micro plastics, which can be found in exfolianting beads of face and body washes, for example. 

We all love the beach and the beautiful sea creatures, so it’s time to ditch the polluting cosmetics, girls! 

Sienna Byron Bay, one of my fave non-toxic nail polish brands has just stopped producing all regular glitter polishes and has replaced them with new sparkly colours using crushed crystals instead. So much more luxe, don’t you think? 

They are the first company worldwide to commit to this and I thought this deserves a little shout out.  

Their metallic colours are beyond beautiful and I feel many of the shades are also very suitable for brides! (Think soft rose gold shades, sparkly nudes, golds and more...)

I might have stocked up on a few :) 

Pictured above are Embrace, Honour, Liberty & Trailblazer. 

keep sparkling! Xo

My favourite Vegan Lipsticks

Happy international lipstick day!!!

Out of all my personal makeup, lipstick is possibly my favorite. It's just such a fun product to me. It's less about "faking" or changing the way you look but more about self-expression, color and fun.
A natural lipstick can also be a nice way to hydrate lips and look more polished.
And while I found it fairly easy to find an abundance of cruelty-free & toxin-free lipsticks finding vegan ones is a whole new challenge, as most natural brands add beeswax.
Not that there is anything toxic in beeswax, but as a vegan, I try to avoid all animal ingredients when possible. So while I do allow some sustainable cruelty-free products with beeswax in my kit I like to give an extra shout out to the brands that manage without!

Here are my fave vegan lipsticks which are also non-toxic!
They are all my fave for different reasons, the list in no particular order.
 

Ere Perez just relaunched their line of Olive Oil Lipsticks and the colours, textures and pigments are spot-on! Highly recommended!
(In fact ALL their lip products are amazing so don't hesitate to try the Carrot Colour Pots or tints! All of which are vegan)

Ere Perez also has a wonderful selection of sheer lip colours, perfect for every day.
The Cacao Lip Colour! I always carry "Dash" in my handbag for a quick pop of colour.
For a sheer colour they still deliver lots of pigment and some lasting power.

The Beauty Archive! A selection of fabulous Scandinavian boutique lipsticks.
Read all about them here.

Jane Iredale Lipgloss if you are looking for a classic luxury lipgloss that is vegan and toxin free look no further than Jane Iredale.

Fra Lippo Lippie  this is the hippest, brightest, funnest (I know this doesn't exist, but it fits the product!) lipstick. Super indie and SO pigmented. Read all about it here.

Skinfood Recipe: Raw Chocolate Truffles

In an attempt to use up some pantry leftovers I whipped these delicious bliss balls up on Sunday. They didn’t last long. At all. 

As usual my recipes are sugar free and vegan. This is also oil free and gluten free.  

I promise these are super healthy and good For your skin. Packed with antioxidants and healthy fat these will keep your skin radiant and boost your mood and energy. 

What you need: 

2 cups almond meal

4 tbsp desiccated coconut, plus extra for rolling

1 tbsp maple syrup

4 tbsp cocoa

2 tsp vanilla essence

12 medjool dates, finely chopped

1 Tbsp raw fermented vegan protein powder

4 tbsp water or plant milk of choice

How to:  

Blend everything in a food processor or highspeed blender. It will get a workout.

Use clean damp hands to roll the mixture into small little balls and coat with the extra coconut shreds.  Store in airtight container in the fridge. Don’t eat all at once ;)