Magnapins & Brooch converters- a guide to getting more out of brooches

Hello All,

As you may know if you are a regular reader, I am rather a fan of brooches.  In my myriad 5 Brooches posts over the past few years, a few of you have confessed to liking the idea of brooches but not liking the ideas of  making holes in your clothes or finding it hard to wear them.

I agree with this problem. Some clothes, it doesn't seem to affect them, particularly if they have a wide weave, but with certain items, the holes you create as you stab a hole into the garment with a brooch pin seem huge! Also, positioning them right is also very difficult whether you put the brooch onto the garment when you are or are not wearing it.

To this end, I thought I'd share a few solutions I have discovered to this problem.

Magnapin

The first one is a magnetic brooch fastener called Magnapin.  It is made by a US company but over the last year or so, they have been imported to the UK by some online retailers.
It comes in a box and the magnet is extremely powerful. It is about the size of a British 5p piece.

It comes in two pieces- the magnet and the metal part which has a hole through which you post the long pin of your brooch.  The hole has some sort of foam inside it which ensures your brooch doesn't rattle in the hole, it is a snug fit.  You can see below, that you open your brooch back pin and insert it through the hole. You will encounter a little resistance. Push it to the middle and then make sure the flat side is facing outwards- you can then fasten your pin as usual.  Position it where you want to on your garment and then hold the magnet the other side of your garment until they 'snap' together.

For larger,heavier brooches, they suggest you use two magnapins, but I've not actually tried this at all yet though I do have two.

Where to buy:
In the UK, you can purchase Magnapins from Daisy Park - they retail at £13.95 or  from Kitty Kat Uk for £11.95. I got my two on special offer so they were cheaper. They are slightly cheaper if you purchase direct from Magnapin in the US but they didn't used to ship to the UK.

Any problems with them? 
Well, occasionally, the magnet doesn't sit flat, it wants to tip and touch the brooch back that is attached to the brooch, so it sits diagonal. I think this might be because the metal of that type of brooch pin is magnetic and so the magnet is attracted to it. This is occasionally annoying but for the most part is not a problem. On this shiny material below, it slipped a little too when I knocked it around after a day.

Excuse the double chin- but you can see this is quite a substantial sized brooch and it held fairly well at my collar. This one did slip a little when knocked but otherwise, they hold really well.

Brooch Converter

Sometimes though, you just don't want a brooch- perhaps your fabric is delicate or you can't get it in the right position or the material is too patterned for you to notice the brooch.  Instead, the second solution for wearing your brooch is using a brooch converter to make it into a necklace. 

You can see that they are very simply a tiny thin tube with a loop attached. You simply post your brooch pin through the thin tube the way you did with the Magnapin. There is no sponge cushioning it and making it a tight fit which I think causes the problem mentioned below.*

The two types allow for brooches that are fitted to their brooch horizontally, as pictured below, or occasional vertical ones.

Where to buy:
I purchased mine from somewhere I have avoided since I discovered they don't pay their taxes.  If I cannot get it elsewhere, I will buy something from there, otherwise, I will always try to find alternatives which is usually no problem.  Yes, I am talking Amazon- I bought the vertical brooch converter from Beadaholiques here for £2.19 and their horizontal brooch converter for £2.89 here

Any problems?
*Yes- I have found that certain brooches, particularly heavy ones, big ones where the pin is quite far away from the top edge of the brooch or ones with a long pin really tip forward or backwards and just don't sit right and I gave up on wearing them with the brooch converter. Still, one of two of them have worked quite well.

You can see the horizontal converter in use here with this heart balloon brooch. It does rock a little because the tube doesn't have sponging inside but this brooch pin isn't too large so it largely sits straight.

I've not tried the vertical one yet, but I will add to this post when I do.

What do you think?

If you are a brooch wearer- would this revolutionize your brooch-wearing? If you are not, what do you think of the ingenuity in these products?

xxx

P.S. I'll say this anyway, even though you know it. I was not given these products by any company wanting a glowing review- I just purchased them myself in order to protect my clothing and extend my brooch versatility usage.

6 More girl things I am not good at.

Wow, my last post on 5 girl things I cannot be bothered with was rather popular! I adored all the comments you lot left, making me feel SO MUCH BETTER that I am not alone in my ennui regarding such beautifying pursuits! I read this book set in New York and I cannot believe the suffering people go through in the name of 'beauty'/

The comments prompted me to consider other beauty/sartorial rituals and choices that I don't and DO do.

1.  Moisturising my body:
Moisturising my face-yes!. I have done this pretty much consistently since I was was a teenager. Don't ask me why, but I have done. I think it is because the face is small and can be moisturised whilst reading/holding a book in the other hand.  Body moisturising, on the other hand, is an entirely different kettle of fish. It takes soooooooooooooooooo long!!! I have terribly dry skin and CBC despairs of me constantly scratching when I get into bed , (the middle bit of back where underwear catches rub is my constant nemesis. CBC came into the bedroom the other night where I was standing looking in the mirror whilst simultaneously attempting to reach the middle of my back with a hairbrush to relieve a particularly vexing itch and just told me I was weird.  The trouble is, I have two lumpy moles on my back which I am scared I will scratch off in my itching frenzy, so I need to be careful! Hmmm, I got right off the subject of Body moisturising didn't I?!  Tangental deviations, be gone! Yes, so I DO occasionally moisturise my body, well, maybe my legs and a bit of arm and feet, but it generally occurs on a lazy Saturday morning every so often.

2.  Skyscraper heels:
My lovely friend Charlene from church was the ultimate fashionista- she worked in fashion and she just, wonderfully, rarely, happened to have the same size 8 feet as me.  She used to wear shoes of such terrifying heights that I wondered how she remained upright.  They looked very elegant and her calves looked like they were made of marble. But the one time I tried to try some on, I physically could not get my foot at the necessary angle to get the foot in the shoe.  Nope, I lost my balance and when I finally grasped a nearby iron radiator for dear life, promptly got cramp in the heel of my foot from the effort of trying to thrust my foot into said shoe.  No, high heels are not for me, I am afraid. I would be likely to topple like a building, post-wrecking ball.

3.  Foundation. 
Confession....I wonder if I look at things properly. I worry that I wouldn't be able to tell if this were streaky or I'd missed any patches. I do look at some of my flawless colleagues (some... most of us can't be bothered!) and the immaculate Essex-ladies on the train in the mornings and think how smooth and lovely they look but I barely manage to haul myself out of bed, shower and put my clothes on and make the train in time, let alone do makeup.  Some of the ladies sit and do makeup on the train but I would rather read my book, drink tea if I am lucky enough to have run to the kitchen and made a quick cup AND picked it up and eat a snack.  Also, invariably, I am a sweating wreck by the time I get to the station. I imagine foundation would slide off my skin, I would wipe my face and be all smeared.  Now, if I am going out somewhere, have got time AND have managed to locate my makeup bits and pieces, I will put on Yves St Laurent Touche Eclat Concealer on the bags of doom under my eyes. I might also put on some really ancient Eye liner or some sparkly Urban Decay eye shadow but that's it.  Sorry Foundation- I am sure you are amazing, but I am scared of you and lacking time!  Plus, I don't want the Joanna Lumley effect where when people see you WITHOUT your makeup, they think you look horrendously ill! I'd much prefer to look better for a special occasion!

4. Mascara
I used to wear this as a teenager for parties.  But I have really weird eye-lashes.  My good-eye, the one I can see out of, when you put mascara on (if I can get it on without blinking and spreading it all over my face), the eye-lashes are all obedient and stick upwards most prettily. But my bad eye, the one which I can't see out of?  Those eye-lashes are bizarre- I do (or rather DID, haven't done it for years!) exactly the same manoeuvre as on my good-eye and then the eye-lashes stick downwards.  I tried curlers to no avail. So, I won't bother.  It ends up falling off under my eyes anyway and it makes my eyes water.

5. Fake tan
I like being pale and interesting. Pale says to me, I care about not getting skin cancer. I don't mind being pale (although I do tan naturally). There are many orange people in the towns around where I live and on the trains into work.  I went to school with orange people. I don't want to be one of them!

6.  Looking smart for a long haul flight.
I get the whole, Try for a free upgrade by looking smart. But inevitably, I want to be comfy, slobbing around in loose clothing that won't make me sweat! Loose trousers and saggy vest top it is!

Disclaimer.  This is all about ME. If you do any of the above and enjoy it, good for you! I won't judge anyone and I admire the people who can manage their time and look good whilst getting everything they need to get done. However, I am not that girl. I am chaotic, last-minute, a bit lazy and would rather read my book or snooze for a bit longer than do any of these rituals!

What about you? How are you on these 'girl things?'

xx

In search of the ultimate Veggie sausage

Since CBC turned Veggie/Pescetarian, we've eaten a fair few veggie alternatives.  I bemoaned the veggie sausage situation, wishing there was a nicer sausage than Linda McCartney sausages. Vix advocated Sosmix, which I admit, I still haven't tried.

A while back, I saw some interesting looking sausages in Waitrose:

Image belongs to Goodlife

I admit I was intrigued.  I was still seeking a better veggie sausage.

Cooking them, they actually looked like real sausages. Chunky and packed full of filling

They aren't ultimately meaty, they're not trying to be overly meaty-flavoured, they taste of what is in  them, but the flavour is great! I love the french-bean and Wensleydale and the flavour is pleasing but not overpowering.  The herbs are just applied in the right amount and they cooked very well.
We had two each on both occasions as they come in a pack of four.
The first time, I bought them, I think they cost about £2.20 a pack which is not bad but the second time I bought them was in the COOP for 2 for £3.

You can see what we paired them with:

Here: fried courgettes,Spring greens,tomatoes and peppers and sliced avocado

The other time, we paired them with French beans (with sesame seed oil), asparagus and lemony courgettes.

 If you wanted to give some veggie sausages a go, I recommend these, you can go to the link:
http://goodlife.co.uk/content-filter/our-products/
to look at what they sell aside from these sausages- I fancy trying the tomato and mozzarella ones next!


Over to you: what veggie alternatives do you like, most notably in the sausage family?!
I'd love to know!

xx

Natural deodorants

When I wrote my Beauty blog post last week, I'd actually included another non-Paul Richard natural product I have been using but decided it felt a bit like a tag-along when I read back, so I ruthlessly culled it from the edit and decided I'd save it for another time!
As I said before, I like natural products and I like to try them every once in a while.

Tisserand  Tea Tree + deodorant.

I confess, that I have read articles about the link between deodorants containing aluminium and breast cancer. Whether this is a true connection or not, I am concerned about putting a product so close to mine that might contain something harmful. Therefore, over the years, I have tried a fair few natural deodorants. The trouble is, that they don't always do the trick. They can leave you smelly and sweaty!

I saw this Tisserand deodorant in Waitrose, costing £5.20 (I think), which is  A LOT for a deodorant  when I usually pick up 'Sure' in Poundland but wanted to try it.

One thing, you should note is that it is not an antiperspirant, it is a deodorant, so I did find myself sweating more noticeably than wearing my Sure deodorant. However,the smell is incredible! It is SO natural- tea-tree, coriander and rosemary and it has lemony tones to it I sense.  CBC can smell me coming into the room and says I smell nice and herby.  It felt like a real deodorant (if that makes sense) didn't feel overly sticky and dries well. Some natural deodorants leave you with a horrid sticky, really-hasn't-dried feeling.  

I'm not sure if I could wear this on a very active day, I suspect I might pong a bit, (but not the horrid smell I might smell of after wearing Sure that has run its course, I didn't feel like the world could smell me which is how I oversensitively feel if I think the deodorant has stopped working) but I did end up not feeling so smelly wearing this- it felt more natural.  I might avoid this if I was having a very stressful day, as I don't like the feeling of sweating, maybe but it is a great product I would buy again.  I've still got a lot to use as I don't use this on overactive days or days when I am wearing a tight-fitting top not made out of cotton so it should last a while. The jury's still in my case on natural deodorant. I reallly want to wear them for safety's sake but not sure if my body is able to cope! Hmmm, this feels like a massive 'too-much info' share....

Anyway, what do you think of natural deodorants? Have you tried them? Would you? What do you use!!!! "Information, we want information. Information, information..."*

xxx

* are you as geeky as me- what is that a reference to?

BEDM 25: Trying something new: Beauty blogging: organic products

Tomorrow's brief for BEDM is stepping outside your comfort zone. In fact, I will be doing something for that tomorrow, sort of, as well but since today is about National Barbecue Day and I haven't had a barbecue (vegetable and egg vermicelli FYI), I figured I would promote tomorrow's brief today instead.

Beauty blogging. I have read a fair few beauty reviews of products on some of my favourite bloggers' domains but I confess, hoping I am not offending anyone I like, it's not really my thing. I read and comment out of liking and affection for the particular blogger, but it's not something that grabs me or I would ever consider myself any sort of expert at or have any zest for. I am also not a products driven person either. Sure, I love my Yves St Laurent Touche eclat, Urban decay glitter shadows and I love my CK be perfume and numerous other items but I don't have a yearning to try new things that often.

Therefore, I figured reviewing some beauty products might possibly be a brave choice for me to take me outside my comfort zone. I'm really not sure what to talk about but I will give it a try.

What DOES particularly interest me about beauty products is the use of natural ingredients, organic ingredients and those that are lacking elements such as Sodium Laureth sulfates and avoiding certain products which have dodgy connotations. I have tried brands like Green People, Weleda,Jason organics, Neal's Yard remedies and Dr Hauschka amongst others.

I came across a brand called 'Herbfarmacy' when I was on holiday in Hay-on-Wye a few years ago.  Dr Paul Richard 's ran small shop and beauty treatment room selling products using herbs grown around Hay.  We bought some at the time,loving the premise of this brand and CBC bought me some further products for Christmas.  This Christmas, I asked if he could buy me a few more of the products as I liked them so much.


Here is the description of Herbfarmacy in their own words:

Herbfarmacy is the home of organic British skin care. Dr Paul Richards, a member of the Soil Association, has been growing organic herbs on our farm in Herefordshire for 30 years. Using Paul’s expertise we steep the herbs for many weeks to produce oils rich with their benefits. Our skin care products are ideal for people with sensitive skin and, of course, have only been tested on us! We are a dedicated team of local people, passionate about the benefits of organic herbs and proud of the products we produce.

1.  Citrus Handcream
This was sent as a sample along with our order and CBC, who is a confirmed snob when it comes to products, is a firm fan. He has conserved this sample well and says just a small amount is soothing and works well on his rough hands. It is very rich BUT does not leave you with a greasy feeling on your hands which for me, is an ABSOLUTE must when it comes to handcream. I physically cannot sleep if I can feel a hand-cream product on my hands or it has a pungent, non-natural smell.  One well known brand of Citrus handcream really did keep me awake with its artificial smell whereas this product has a delicious, delicate smell.  CBC feels similarly.  You can purchase it from here for £12.95.  The key notes are: Sweet Orange, bergamot, mandarin, sweet grapefruit and it uses 81% organic ingredients. It is also good for Vegans. CBC has said he will definitely buy a larger version of this as he's enjoyed it alot.

2.   Rose and echinacea toner
I have had this bottle for absolutely ages ever since CBC bought me the first gift set of Herbfarmacy products. It lasts a very long time so even if you think the price is a little too high, it really does have longevity and doesn't lose its smell.  This product comes usefully in a pump-action bottle so you can spray it onto your face and blot with a tissue. It has a wonderful rose smell. Considering I don't like the smell of roses themselves, I cannot get enough of rose in the form of rose-tea or facial products. It is the perfect product morning or evening after cleansing and I feel the smell soothes me especially as I go to bed and cools my skin pleasingly. It contains 98% organic ingredients.
You can purchase it here for £17.50 or a small bottle for £5.00, It also comes in the gift and travel packs, both of which I have had.

3.  Wash off cleansing mousse

To use this product, you apply and massage in a thin layer to the skin and then use a warm, damp muslin cloth to remove it.  I like the subtle smell of this. I am still not the hugest fan of using cream-cleansers as opposed to gels or soap (psychological I think), so I don't use this every day,  but this does stop my skin from drying out which it usually does when I use soap (ayuvedic handmade soaps) on other days. It removes make-up well and it does feel like you have actually cleansed your face which I am not always convinced about cream-cleansers.  use a  can be bought here for £15.50 for 95ml or also still in a small jar 20g for £4.00. It contains Chamomile, Marshmallow and oils like Rose Geranium and Ylang Ylang which I know my skin appreciates. I remember a lady asking in the shop if the shopkeeper knew how to make edible marshmallows from marshmallow plant when I first bought this. This product received acclaim in the 2014 NaturalBeauty Magazine awards which I am not surprised about. 80% of the ingredients are organic.

4.  Starweed Face Cream
CBC has been using this cream so I thought I'd offer you a male perspective on beauty products. I have a different fragrance which I haven't opened yet and it is a while since I finished my last jar of Herbfarmacy face-cream.  I have been using up all my other sample bottles and travel-sized bottles that I have been accumulating over the years.   CBC assures me it is not at all greasy to apply and it feels natural, not like you have applied cream (which he detests). It has a very subtle fragrance (I've smelt it and it is very gently herby in a way that males would like but also myself), it is hardly noticeable once applied, which he thinks is a good thing. Once you've applied it, you don't feel it on your skin all day, it is well absorbed but does feel moisturised.  At the end of the day, if you wash it off, you still notice it on your skin though.  This product good for combination (me!) and sensitive skin and can be bought for £15.65 here.  It is nourishing but gentle, not too thick and I think I might give this a go next time as I can't stand thick feeling creams and this feels like it will fit the bill. If you have a man you'd like to buy something different for, I recommend this!

So is there anything I don't like about the products? Not really! If I had to say something, my own personal, (very small) objection to the face-creams, is not the product themselves,they are wonderful, but that the packaging has changed. When we bought our first set of Herbfarmacy face moisturising creams, they came in Glass jars that you dipped your fingers into and could easily rescue every last morsel of this delicious product (and I like recycling glass) but now in the pump bottle, I am not sure you can get every last drop and I don't want to waste any of this wonderful cream. I presume the change is for hygiene and preserving reasons.


Fundamentally, what I like about the products is that it started off locally, in Hay, which is a town that really is proud of the area and individual, local products. I bought them from the founder and creator's own shop. They have received acclaim through national beauty awards. Obviously, they are slightly more expensive than high-street generic products but I do think it is important to know pretty much what every ingredient is going onto your skin, not a long stream of miscellaneous, mysterious sounding laboratory creations that you do not know the long-term effects of, which is the case with most of what I come across.  And of course, knowing exactly WHERE the products came from too. This is not some anonymous firm.  I sincerely think they are worth the cost.

There are many more products available.  You can also try samples of the products when you order something else. We received about 5 mini-samples with our order of 2 full-sized moisturisers before Christmas and we'd only ordered 2 to try!

Would you try any of these products?  What's your opinion on natural beauty? Is it worth the price? And how did I do as a beauty blogger?

xxx

This is one of my final week of 'Blog every day in May' posts! 

Beauty be not my name but I'll give it a go.

Hello there!

The link for Elizabeth's BEDN today is 'something different'. I am to blog about something totally different that I don't usually do.

Well, running through the list, that puts: outfits, craft, faith, books, poems, nostalgia and a lot of things out of the window.

Two things I don't usually blog about are Beauty and Technology. I could go and take loads of photo of the contents of my bathroom or my various technologies and that would certainly make this post prettier (and illustrate the point quicker for those of you that skim read.) However, my computer is unbearably slow at the moment so I thought I'd give a little description and one or two piccies.

Beauty:

I am actually fascinated by the beauty posts I read by people. Gem, at Pink haired Princess writes really good reviews of beauty products. I, however, don't really buy loads of beauty products (or so I thought!), mostly because I don't really have the time to do anything about them, I'd prefer to use the time needed to apply makeup and any other products for other activities, plus I don't really know what to say about them, although there are a few things I like and do buy regularly or try lots of things for.

Make-up:

Tis rare that I actually wear make-up so what I have lasts a VERY long time. They talk about shelf lifes on products but I've had no issues!

Concealer:

The one make-up product I wear (when I wear makeup which is usually only for a party or evening out or concert) is Yves St Laurent's Touche Eclat as I find it effective at covering up the dark circles under my eyes which I am not fond of as they make me look haggard. However, I am only willing to do something about them when really dressing up. It's pretty expensive so therefore this makes it last longer!

Black eyeliner:

I will usually combine the concealer with black eyeliner under my eyes. I don't use any one in particular. I think I have a Collection 2000 one and an old Aveda one. Oh and I occasionally use bright turquoise eye-liner too. I have an old stage-makeup one I've had since I was about 8 and a student at the Academy bought me an Egyptian one after I admired hers! I've never had any eye-issues with using old eyeliners so again, these will last me for a good while yet. The only reason I buy new ones is when I can't find them. And then of course, they turn up.

Eye Shadows:

Urban Decay do some really pretty glittery/metallicy colours and I have a lovely palette of colours which I've had yonks (and will probably use for several years more) and I wear for very special occasions. I also have an Urban decay turquoise glitter liquid eye-liner which I bought some years ago which I find really pretty. The colours stay on throughout the night, they have a really lovely strong colour to them and really lovely metallic shades and glitter to them which are great for an evening out. However, tis a rare occurence that I wear it.

Lipstick:

I own 3 lipsticks. One bright-red Primark red lippie I wear if dressing up vintage style and an Agnes B subtle pink colour. I've had this since I was a teenager so tis very old! It was a freebie with an order from Agnes B! I think I also have a Lancome one kicking around but not seen it for a long while! I'll probably wear these maybe once a year!

I'm happy with the makeup I wear and I won't be looking to add to my small collection in the near future!

Face and Body products:

Cleanser:

One thing I DO like spending money on is Cleanser. I've cleansed since I was about 14 after getting a free-sample of Johnson's 'Clean and Clear' in Just Seventeen magazine! Nowadays, I use Dermalogica's 'Special Cleansing Gel' for cleansing and have used this for 2 years or so now. It lasts a long time. I like the fact it is quite gentle, very subtle smell and doesn't make my skin react. I tend to prefer more natural brands with natural ingredients. I've used Lush's natural skin scrubs and cleansers in the past, I've used 'Weleda', Jason organics and I've used a Dr Organics 'Manuka Honey' facescrub in the recent past as well as a Dermalogica scrub too.

Face moisturiser

I use a variety of different moisturisers and I don't mind spending a bit of money on it. At the moment, I am using Dermalogica's 'Skin Smoothing cream', Neal's Yard 'Daily Berry moisture surge (got several over the years free with a magazine and CBC and I discovered a great company in Hay on Wye called Herbfarmacy . We talked to the owner, grower of herbs and maker of the products, Paul Richards, and were impressed with his approach to products. He's also won lots of accolades. I like the natural ingredients in the products. I bought the 'Replenishing Face Cream' and then CBC, the darling, bought me a washbag with another fullsize jar of the cream, plus a cleanser, toner and eye-cream which I am yet to use. I've also got two tubes of Simple 'Daily Moisturiser' which I bought on holiday I(the simplest items I could get in the supermarket, forgive the pun), having forgotten to take cleanser. I really like Lush's 'Imperialis' cream but haven't bought any for a long while.

Bath products:

It is actually rare that I buy any hair or bath products or body moisturiser (which rarely use). The reason being, that I seem to get given vast quantities of the stuff for Christmas, birthday and end of year presents from children, family and friends. The supplies never seem to run out and this is even with passing on products to family/friends. I am really grateful for the gesture and the money I save, as I am quite sure it is a lot, but it WOULD be nice to buy my own products, particularly as I prefer natural products and would prefer things without parabens or Sodium Laureth Sulfates! This probably sounds like I am complaining but it's not. Hair products: I've been using John Frieda's 'Briliant Brunette' for ages as I've been bought LOTS as presents. I really like L'Oreal Elvive - my hair seems to like it. The one natural product that I find difficult is the shampoo- it doesn't seem to always feel clean after using it!

Perfume:

I have a fair few perfumes kicking around that were given to me by a friend who has been given them but she only likes one perfume so she gave them to me. Great as I like Clinique perfumes and 'Dolce' by Dolce and Gabbana! I've given a fair few away. However, the one I love and that smells nice on me is CK Be by Calvin Klein. I was bought this big bottle as a Christmas present some years ago by my sister (thanks C!) and I love it! The smell doesn't seem to diminish! I actually lost the pump top for some months so I haven't used it for a while but I found it recently JUST as I'd bought an atomiser bottle! Typical! I tend to get make-up gifts as presents but tend not to wear them so either they sit in a drawer or I give them to friends! Well, that's the lot really!! It's longer than I thought it was going to be which proves that perhaps I'm not as Beauty-product-shy as I thought I was! Go on, shame me! Tell me that in fact I am incredibly vain compared to you or ask me incredulously how I cope without x, y or z. I'm intrigued what you think or what you like! x