Vegetarian and Vegan products

This is kind of a difficult post to write without seemingly to plug something - but I find it really useful when someone recommends a good veggie/vegan cosmetics, toiletries, cleaning products company that I thought I might list a few that I use. A lot of the ones listed below are also organic GM free.

If you can't buy direct you can get most of the products (in the UK) from Honesty Cosmetics (who are super) or the Vegan Store (who are also great).

Cosmetics

Barry M - fantastic colours, (some) vegan products, inexpensive. My favourite. Available online from their website (quick delivery reasonable postage costs) and in some shops.

Beauty without cruelty - nice liquid concealer, their translucent pressed powder is a bit pink though (I'm really fair). Not much colour choice - one for the neutral classics.

Lush - a bit more expensive, but nice packaging! Available online - the makeup's not usually available in store.

Toiletries

Shampoo & Conditioner - I have curly hair and LOVE Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose. Super moisturising and smells lush. My local health food shop has just decided to stop stocking the conditioner though, so I'm using their GPB one instead, but this has milk in so it's no good for vegans.

Colour shampoo - Jason do colour enriching shampoo, I tried the red which worked well to bring out the red in my hair dye at the time, but didn't really bring out the red in my natural hair colour. The one is used is discontinued now, but they do some henna ones on their website. It wasn't as moisturising as the Aubrey Organics so I swapped back.

Soap - Co-op's own Oatmeal soap is great - I use it to wash my face. Shock horror! She uses the dreaded soap on her the face!

Shower gel - Jason do massive pump action bottles which are great and smell nice. I'm using Rose at the moment - which is from the health food shop again, but you should be able to get it online.

Serum - Daniel Field Smooth & Shine serum is really nice, non sticky and makes my hair feel soft.

Curl booster - Daniel Field again, their Curl Hold & Shine, pump action spray that I've just started using. Seems good so far, not sticky or heavy. And it doesn't dry out your hair like moose does.

Intensive Conditioner - Daniel Field, again! The Plant Re moisturising Treatment is good, but don't put too much on otherwise it's heavy. I use it on wet hair and leave it on.

Cleaning products

I like Bio-D and use their concentrate for just about everything from kitchen surfaces, to the guinea pig hutch, to the bathroom sink. I'm still using up my bottle of Ecover toilet cleaner, but I don't think I'll get it again since discovering they use rabbit blood in their product testing.

I also use Bio-D washing up liquid.

Eco balls for the laundry. We got a great deal on these from a shop in Manchester and they last for years before needing new balls. Clothes come out smelling nice, you can wash at 30, and they get stains out (we're mucky).

Supplements - some people say take 'em, some say don't. However current training for nutritionists is everyone should be taking multi vitamins, whether veggie, vegan or not since intensive farming methods rob our veg of its nutrients.

I take:

Omega 3 6 9 by Vertese

Glucosamine + MSM and CMO by Deva

and I need to find some new vitamins - I think I'll try Deva.

Do you have any good recommendations?

Word play

Re: incognisant, as used in the previous post.
I don't think I have ever used this word before, I'm not even sure how I knew what it meant (I checked the definition online before I used it)

The brain is a wonderful and surprising thing - 'incognisant' must have been ticked away somewhere, in the folds of flesh and goo that generate my thoughts, clawing is way to the surface of my consciousness at just the right moment for its use to be useful*.

*I am suddenly let down by my amazing brain when I need it to come up with alternate ways of saying this clumsy phrase.

Pregnant pangs

I can't imagine being pregnant, having something wriggle about in your belly Alien style. I do get the feeling like those last few days before you're due must feel like killer period cramps. The terrible rolling pains that make you want to cry from frustration more than anything else. I also imagine you're totally overheated and uncomfortable 100% of the time in your last couple of weeks. It sounds way too much like suffering. I guess the fear of pain, and birth in general, must subside at some point, otherwise why would anyone choose to put themselves through it?

I don't actually know much about the mysterious world of pregnancy - so my thoughts above might be totally incognisant.

TP: On blogs

I don't read many blogs anymore, which seems weird, since about 2 1/2 years ago I must have read at least 10 a day. I think I got a bit tired. There was so much fighting in feminist blogs and it was a lot of hard work. Photo blogs, blogs about pretty things, they were a nice refuge.

Today I visited an 'old friend', someone who was one of my first commentors back when I started this blog years ago. From the looks of his page he's given up blogging in the main now, kind of like I did for a while I guess, there was a lull.

I've been reading a few blogs again - kind of oddly a lot of them are 'fashion' blogs - a whole new realm I got into when I started my college course (which is now finished! I have free time again!). I need to get a new blog roll going - old faves, new faces etc. If there's anyone still out there let me know and I'll put your blog on the roll.

I'll leave you with this photo, rich in comedy value: so religious they need to spell out Jesus in multi cloured card in the windows of the Christian Centre. Just in case you didn't figure it out. Sutton-on-Sea, religious fervor on the east coast.

A little bit of film

This pigeon waddled into view, across the top of the garage, as I was cooking tea.
Apparently he wasn't ready for his close-up.


In other news, I'm blogging here again/now too weather-station.blogpsot.com - with an invited guest who will make her appearance any time soon...

Generic angsty teenager

It's nice to think we're all unique, complex and individual. I look back on my teenage years and remember my unique experiences, the ones that shaped me to become the person I am today. They're special to me, right?

Turns out my teenage years weren't quite a rebellious, individualistic or unusual as I had given them credit for. I may have been a generic angsty teen.

I came across Past Notes today, where the author posts class notes, love letters and general ephemera from her teens online. Her description of the memories stirred up on hearing 1979 by the Smashing Pumpkins (that song gives me palpitations), and reintroducing me to the long forgotten song Popular by Nada Surf (which was on a compilation tape my then boyfriend gave me when I was 14 ) has kind of freaked me out. It's like reading my diary from back then, only without all the pornographic doodles.

Song links to Songza, online music directory, which contains the Tundra Rap and is now my hero.

Money saving expert

me, in my Lincoln backgarden in summer 2003, taken with an ActionSampler by Gem

I just tried to buy some new kit off Lomography online; a 35mm adapter for my Holga (which I never use because I don't know anywhere that devlops medium format, and yes I know you can DIY a 35mm Holga but my 'make' failed miserably) and an ActionSampler that takes 4 shots one after the other all on one frame (see above). After two unsuccessful attempts at paying I decided to check my bank account.

Turns out my bank won't let me pay online now unless I have a little doodad that does something like read your card and generate a random number for you to enter. Bad luck then that I don't have a card reader. Seems mine must have been lost in the post.

Unless I carry the doodad around with me all the time this is going to serverly restrict my impluse purchasing of stuff online. To save me from myself this is probably only going to be a good thing.

Guys don't make passes as girls who wear glasses

Bloom Zoom
Originally uploaded by siouxsiette

A statement that's regularly proved untrue. My uber sexy friend C is always having guys make passes at her and she rocks some specs.

I've recently splashed out and bought myself a couple of new pairs of spectaculars (one retro tortoise shell type and one red with polka dots on the inside), having decided a few months ago to actually wear my glasses all the time, as the optician recommended.

Surfing flickr for hot chicas with glasses today (as you do to pass the time at work) I found this group for photos of Blythe wearing glasses.

I love the crazy souls who spend ages styling and setting up these shots. My fave after a bit of rooting around has got to be the group icon though, Blythe putting her specs on.

But Blythe's a bit creepy though isn't she?

That's just not cricket

I walked to the shops this lunchtime listening to Rage Against the Machine, feeling angsty and dissatisfied (this is all part of the mid 20s life-crisis I'm having). I returned from the avenue, having forgotten to buy toothpaste again - damn it, head full of plans to dye my hair pillar box read and wear a lot of heavy eye liner. I think listening to Rage connected me with past teenage rebellions.


When I got back into the office I had a look out of the window over the cricket pitch (we overlook Trent Bridge, where the England vs NZ test match is being played at the mo') which was full of primary school girls in Asda caps and t shirts playing really bad cricket.


Amazing.


Unfortunately the adults were back on the pitch by the time I thought to take a photo. Also, our windows need cleaning.