Coconut oil - the miracle beauty product

You may think 'miracle' is an over-exaggeration, but seriously, this stuff is so good. I've used it for a few years now, but only recently have I found out the full extent of it's powers.

What coconut oil do I use? Superdrug's own brand

Superdrug coconut oil - suitable for vegetarians and vegans - BUAV (leaping bunny) approved.

If you live somewhere cold like me, then the coconut oil is generally going to be in solid form. I either spoon a bit out and warm it between my palms until it melts, or put the tub in a bowl of hot water for a few minutes.

So what can coconut oil be used for?

Plans for 2016

Since I gave my shop job up in November and my elf job has finished with Christmas, I've ended up with lots of spare time. I'd like to put this time to good use by volunteering somewhere locally.

Then in April I'm visiting Bali to do some turtle conservation and to teach kids English. I've wanted to do some conservation work abroad for nearly a decade so it'll be great to finally tick this off my bucket list.

From Bali I'll fly to Amsterdam, where I'll meet my sister in time for Kings day. We had great fun celebrating this Dutch holiday last year at the start of our European adventure. You can find my King's day post here, and Amy's here.

The next two points on my 'to do list' are more general goals. I used to draw a lot when I was younger so I'd like to get back into that. I'd also like to blog more than I have in previous years and learn some more programming languages. My mum recently taught me how to make crochet hearts so I'd like to have a go at trying some other patterns.

2015 round-up

Check out last years round-up.

So much has happened this year! The biggest thing that I did was to go travelling around Europe for six weeks with my sister Amy, where we visited eight different countries. I also went off to Reading festival on my own in the summer. In November I'd been working in my retail job for a year, and ended up handing my notice in two weeks later. I got a temporary job as a grotto elf, where I got to entertain children and talk about Christmas all day. And finally I turned 24.

Here are my highlights in pictures:

Jan: My sister's graduation; Feb: Spent a few days in London; March: girly weekend with my uni friends; April: weekend in Cardiff with my school friends; April-June: Europe; August: Reading festival; Oct: Met Carrie Fletcher at Cheltenham Lit Fest; Nov: Road trip to Salisbury to deliver a Christmas shoe box; Dec: Worked as an elf and spent my 24th birthday ice skating.

J :)

Meet Ivy Snowflake

This is Ivy, a young elf who has always dreamed of leaving Lapland and travelling the world, just like the humans she watches on TV. This year she's finally got her wish of adventuring into the unknown by earning a spot on Santa's pre-Christmas visit team. 

So Ivy, what elf can you tell me about yourself?
My favourite thing to do is ice-skating. There's nothing better than gliding across the frozen lake back home when there's snow falling. I also love a good snowball fight with my younger siblings. I've got 8 sisters, all younger than me. Elves tend to have bigger families than humans.

How did you get picked to be on Santa's team?
I actually applied the previous year and was unsuccessful so I was working in a factory that makes Christmas cards. Back in August I received a phone call from one of Santa's personal assistants asking if I'd come to an interview. Of course it was an offer I couldn't refuse. After the interview and a bit of paper work, I was invited to a training day and got to meet Santa. It was very exciting.




What does the job involve?
I talk to the children whilst they are waiting to see Santa, and then take them through. I also take a picture of the children with Santa, so they can remember their visit. 

Autumn is coming | BEDS 3

The nights are drawing in, the cold is approaching, and summer is coming to a close. But fear not, Autumn is on the way and there's a lot to be excited about.

Big, baggy, woolly jumpers - there's nothing better than curling up in a baggy jumper on a cold evening in front of the TV.

Hot chocolate - it's always a good time for hot chocolate, but Autumn makes it feel that extra bit special.

Vegetarian cosmetics brands | BEDS 2

(Disclaimer: the information provided here is meant as a starting point. It's important you do your own research into these brands and products before deciding if they meet your personal standards and beliefs. Companies regularly change their polices, practices and ingredients so it's important you keep up to date on whether they continue to meet your own ethical standards)

But how are cosmetics vegetarian if you don't eat them?

Many times I've been looked at like I'm an alien when I don't use something with the excuse 'it's not vegetarian'. However for a lot of people, being a vegetarian is more of a lifestyle than a diet. As we grow up we decide for ourselves where our morals and beliefs lie, and where the line between right and wrong is. This is different for everyone and for me I don't eat meat or it's derivatives, I don't wear fur or leather and I also use vegetarian cosmetics.

So what are vegetarian cosmetics?

I accept cosmetics as vegetarian if they say on the packet 'suitable for vegetarians' or if it is stated on the company's website. I also make sure that the company doesn't test on animals. These days there is an increasing availability of vegetarian products, many of which are very affordable, here are some of the brands I've come across.

BEDS 1 (Blog every day in September)

I watch a lot of Youtubers and one thing that's fun to do is VEDA (Vlog every day in August), as well as the other variants for each month. It's a way of putting up a bit of content each day and ends up with random creative videos that would have never otherwise been put up. Dodie Clark has just completed VEDA on her second channel doddlevloggle and you should definitely check it out because she is so lovely and talented.

Today I was looking over my blog, which I haven't posted on in months, and thought about how I wanted to get into writing more posts again. When suddenly it struck me, why don't I try posting every day for a month. Then I realised the abbreviation would be BEDS and thought what a great idea. So here it is, my first installment of BEDS.

Seeing as it's already a day into September, I won't have completed 30 BEDS by the end of the month. My aim is to do at least 20, so stick around and we'll see what I come up with!

J :)