Christmas goodies...

2015 Christmas goodies. Always … books, organic chocolate (my current favourite is this), a magazine subscription (fashion magazines bore me, but the World of Interiors always has something to inspire me with), ethical wares (from Kuyichi and more yoga vests from Aura Que), something for the kitchen (this year a cast iron pan for flatbreads etc.), something vintage (a ‘hot-air balloon’ 1970s Harrods housecoat to aid my general ‘don’t want to leave the house’ January mood) and the aforementioned bottle of EFA oil.

There is also a ‘later’ presents picture to come…

Birmingham and 100% Vegan

Selfridges by Future Systems, now over a decade old.

Taking full advantage of the Evening Standard’s offer with Chiltern Railways for 50p return fares from London (yes, 25p each way) it was time to visit Birmingham again after two great trips last year.

Credit Crunchers

I love this city. One of the grandest Waterstone’s known to man, the fantastic daily food market, great vintage and super-friendly people. As ever, and it’s true of every city I have ever visited, I quickly bypassed the busy thoroughfares and instead concentrated on the nooks and crannies. When my feet gave way I hopped on a bus to visit Indigo Wholefoods in Moseley (I have a vague determination to visit every independent health store in the country) but in truth I could have stayed close to the city centre because of 100% Vegan. No regrets though as I passed some wondrous decaying and just-alive buildings (I used to be an architectural historian in my past life).

Moseley Road Baths, the oldest of only three Grade II listed swimming pools currently open in Britain.

100% Vegan

The Warehouse Café

Sprocket Cycles

So, 100% Vegan (known as the One Earth Shop on my past visits) nestled between the Warehouse Café/Birmingham Friends of the Earth and Sprocket Cycles. It’s a gem. Somewhat obviously, everything was vegan but old habits die hard or perhaps it’s because so many vegan establishments still offer the odd dairy concession that I blurted out with regard to the bakewell slice, ‘Is it vegan?’ It was, and it was also delicious. 100% Vegan’s owner couldn’t have been friendlier and told me about their locally sourced cakes and pastries and that if you should want something they don’t currently have in stock from further afield, just ask … My kind of independent health store.

I also visited Wolverhampton again but more on that soon …

Minimalistic kick

I am still on my minimalistic kick and keen to rid my wardrobe of leather, wool, suede, silk, etc. If any of the below catch your fancy do leave your email address in the comments and I will send a brief description (inc. measurements) and more pictures should you want them. Paypal only, no returns and all items sent by recorded delivery (uk only I'm afraid) … be quick, or they will find their way onto ebay!

Brown striped wool-mix dress £14 (£4 p&p)

Brown wool and leather dress £15 (£4 p&p) & 'Richard Shops' wool dress £8 (£4 p&p)

Blue striped wool dress £10 (£4 p&p)

Puma Nuala suede and textile trainers £50 (£5 p&p) - RRP £140

Sonja Nuttall leather jacket £50 (£5 p&p) - RRP £300+

Curvy green wool coat £8 (£4 p&p)

Ten things you (perhaps don’t) need to know

1) I mourn the fact that good-quality vintage clothes are becoming harder and harder to find. Ebay has less and less, for more and more. Comparing the quality between, for example, 70s M&S and 00s M&S makes me want to weep.
2) I don’t like shopping but I love beautiful things, especially old buildings. I groan when I read about supposedly ‘improved’ old houses (which generally means that their souls have been ripped out).
3) I don’t wear perfume, but I’m a sucker for good-smelling oils and potions. Unguents make my day, every single day.
4) Scaravelli yoga is my drug of choice and probably one of my most important discoveries of the past decade. The late Vanda Scaravelli’s book on yoga is like no other.
5) Old-fashioned photo booths transform you into a pre-war goddess. I’m a fan.
6) I like to type in the pitch dark. Just my screen and I. It feels cozy.
7) Food. Sometimes I’m good, sometimes I’m bad (and I know it’s daft to refer to food as ‘good’ or ‘bad’ but it’s a habit I’m unlikely to break). Seasonality has proved the most stable way to keep my choices on track. I will write more about this when I sum up what 2009 has meant to me.
8) Gazing at pictures of raw food never fails to lift my mood. I dream of the day when former derelict tea shops all over Britain, turn into establishments offering glistening, gleaming, sparkling raw treats.
9) I love diaries, biographies and autobiographies. Good places to start are here, here and here.
10) I lived in Brighton during the 90s. I’d move back there in a snap if the opportunity arose. It’s a city that makes me feel good about myself, always. You can’t ask for more than that.

This somewhat random list has been generated due to the bestowing of an award by the lovely Neeta. I am, apparently, a piece of ‘honest scrap’. The rules to receiving this award are as follows:

1) Post the award on your blog. Present this award to 7 others whose blogs you find brilliant in content and/or design, or those who have encouraged you.
2) Tell those 7 people they’ve been awarded HONEST SCRAP, inform them of these guidelines, and ask that they link back to you.
3) Share ‘Ten Honest Things’ about yourself.

My nominations include several ‘dormant’ bloggers in the hope that they spring back to life in 2010! Others are newly revived blogs, or just plain new and inspiring:

In Beauty May I Walk
Poppy’s Juice Feast
Otchipotchi
Kurashi Arekore
Raw Mama
Coxeter’s Fayre
Linda in the Raw

Books on Seats

Forget bums on seats, it’s books on seats that count in our house... If pictures speak louder than words then this latest collection (all given to me for Christmas) just about sums up my life: books on raw food, running, Buddhism, vintage clothes/dressmaking, yoga, and a peek into someone else’s life via a journal.

It’s an odd time of year, the days feel muddled to me, and I can’t wait for the clarity of the new year, but in the meantime, feast your eyes (if you haven’t already) on Poppy’s very beautiful raw cacao site!