High five to me, I’ve only gone and done it!

Thirty days ago I took up the challenge of writing 30 blogs for 30 consecutive days – easy some of you may say but I come from the world of fashion buying and being a hands on creative, I have had to learn to be a writer.

I had to learn to be a copy writer and blogger for my eccommerce site  Hat Attic, I couldn’t afford to employ anyone so had to learn from scratch how to do everything.

Sarah and Kevan Arrows challenge has been a great learning curve for me and although at times I have found it really hard I have thoroughly enjoyed it and learnt a hell of a lot on the journey.

“You get a good set of data to analyse.When you do a blogging challenge you work a little bit harder on your blogging. This means you start using keywords, an editorial calender and all the things you should be doing but don’t currently do.” Sarah Arrow.

Sarahs daily emails nudge you into new ways of thinking, planning and communicating without imposing on your own creativity. It has made me realise that I have something to say that other people are interested in and that those people appreciate me for being me.

The challenge has made me understand who my ‘Super customer’ is, which is the key to my marketing strategy. I now know I can talk to her without changing anything, by just being me.

“Rewards include being found better in search engines, increased social proof and the ability to network with others building their blog too.”

In conclusion I have found the challenge invaluable to learning my new trade of communication. It has given me another string to my bow.

So instead of just wildly throwing out a few sentences here and there “spraying and praying” Claire Mitchell, Awesome Business school, take some time, 30 days in fact and learn to do it properly.

I have completed my first challenge and will do it again, but for now I am just going to use everything I have learnt to make the blogs on my website even better so please subscribe to Hat Attic for newsletters and continue to read the benefits of my wisdom. You can also find me on Facebook and Twitter.

Help the Nepalese family that made this.

Clothes come in sizes not ages (unless you are under fifteen).

There have been a lot of ‘news’ reports on scandalous body image advertising and ideals recently. The most notorious being the Protein worlds  “Are you beach body ready” which leads my nicely to Janet Street Porters piece about not wearing a bikini after the age of 20.

I do understand Janet’s argument and that is what works for her but I think it’s outrageous to start putting these ideas into women’s heads and start putting age restrictions on clothing. We have enough subliminal confidence thrashing as it is. If you have the confidence in your mind and body and are comfortable with yourself then you shouldn’t be put off from wearing whatever you like – I do however draw the line at a thong, that is a garment that is friend to no one!

Janet claims that ” A bikini simply makes all women over the age of twenty feel exposed, vulnerable and a little bit ridiculous. Put one on head to the pool and there is always going to be a teenager looking 200 per cent better than you.”

I would like to argue that teenagers do not always look better or certainly not sexier than a confident, curvy, real woman, and I am not just talking bikinis either!

I am definitely a bikini girl and I’m nearly forty six. i actually find swimsuits a bit claustrophobic and too hot. I take regular stabs at looking after myself and always look after my skin, so I know I do not look my age, but I have never consciously tried to be bikini ready. Neither have I fallen foul to Janet’s ” Temporary insanity that comes with trying to keep up with a much younger partner.”

My partner is 29 and he loves me the way I am, that is why he is with me. I don’t understand why you would try and change what he was attracted to in the first place. Yes I agree maintenance is required but not actually time turning!

What do you think? Has Janet toughed a raw nerve with you? Do you draw the line anywhere, believing you are too old to wear a particular garment? I am really curious, so let me know.

Walking on air!

I was virtually crying by the time I made it home last night, with the added agony of new shoe blisters!

So I soaked my poor tootsies in a bath of Arbonne Aromassentials Unwind bath salts, to draw out the pain!, then slathered my feet and legs in Renewing Body Gelee (on of my favourite multipurpose products). This gelee is like heaven in a tub, it is refreshing, cooling and hydrating. I use it for aching muscles after exercise or if my arthritis is giving me jip, my Mum uses it for her restless leg syndrome.

I haven’t used the Cooling Foot Creme yet (I have ordered it though) I plan to use it throughout the day as it is said to nourish, exfoliate and hydrate without being greasy.

I was able to sleep much easier, like a baby in fact, with soft, tingling limbs!

I’m sure you all have some life saving tips that I need to know about, so get in touch, care and share!

What to do when the dogs are seriously barking!

I think I have the remedy for really sore aching feet!

As you know I have just gone back to full time work, so that means being on my feet for eight hours everyday.This is taking a bit of getting used to. I love walking, for exercise and would ideally like to be doing at least 10,000 steps a day, but this doesn’t happen when you are working in a shop, I average 4,500 a day. Standing actually makes your feet hurt a lot more than a good hike.

I’m sure I will get used to it again after a while but in the meantime I am subjected to extreme night time aching all over, not just my poor tootsies. So tonight I have a cunning plan involving some Arbonne products, I can’t wait to start!

I shall let you know tomorrow how I get on and whether I have found the answer to the age old problem of ‘barking dogs’.

I am keeping it short and simple today and letting the visual do the talking!

Look I’m a pin up! Put me on your fridge or near your desk so you remember you don’t have to run about  searching, I’ve already done it for you, I’m just a click away!

Shake it up baby !

Amazing how a new job can put you off your food! Well as from day one back on the 10-7 treadmill I am determined to kick my sugar habit and be eating clean.
So after my fresh lemon & ginger tea fix this morning I had homemade cereal, of brown rice flakes with nuts and seeds topped with berries and coconut yogurt.
Lunch is a salad of spinach and cucumber with carrot and celery sticks (funny thing celery).
Dinner, a little something I made earlier, a coconut chicken and courgette pasta (brown rice pasta).
I discovered I have Candida Overgrowth about six months ago, I also have a sugar addiction which is really not helpful at all.

I have decided I am going to get healthy in the right way, not by dieting but by eating properly and cleanly.

Another treat I give myself which although it contains a very small amount of sugar is a meal replacement shake by Arbonne.If you blend it up with plenty of ice and water it’s like eating ice cream! I recommended it to my friend Dawn Lowe who is an actress, model and singer plus Ms London Galaxy 2015/16, this is what she has to say :-

My good friend Lecia Finch, who is an Arbonne Distributer and suggested I try Arbonne’s Essentials Chocolate Flavour Meal Replacement Shakes to help with weight loss and to replace any nutrients I’m losing through my thyroid malfunction.

The instructions tell you to replace breakfast and lunch or breakfast and evening meal with the shake and have a proper balanced meal each day.

I have to say the shakes are amazing. Not only did they taste delicious but I was also never hungry on them! I managed to lose the weight I needed to in record time too for my fitting model job and I also felt a lot healthier.

Thank you Lecia for your brilliant recommendation – I will continue to use and recommend them to others.

So you see losing weight and being healthy is not as awful as it sounds, it’s not just about mourning the things you shouldn’t eat it’s about discovering new and yummy things you can.

Now if you will excuse me I have some blending to do!

Holiday, celebrate!

As an international buyer I pretty much lived out of a suitcase for certain months of the year, so I got used to packing light. I learnt to cut down to the practical and the vital and I did the same when I went on holiday.

As long as I have these five things and my toothbrush I know I can just kick back and relax.

1. A hat – a natural fabrication like straw, paper straw or cotton.

You can roll cotton and pack flat. With straw you need to stuff it with your underwear or soft items and lay flat on the bottom of your case, then pack around it.

2. A shawl or pashmina – handy for on the plane (the air con is usually quite fierce), cool evenings and definitely for the return journey, very rarely is it as hot as you have become accustomed to when you land home.

3. Sunscreen – vital for very obvious reasons, read my previous blog  Know your UVB’s from your UVA’s for the science and more in depth information on  this and other sun protection.

4. After sun – just in case you forget to attend to the above properly and end up a bit pink (please try not to do this), but also it is very important to keep your skin well moisturised as the sun dries it out .

5. Colloidal silver spray – The ultimate in anti bacterial spray. I always have one of these in stock, even at home for cuts, wounds, spots and bites. It was recommended to me when I was mosquito dinner once on a trip to Florence, it stops the itching, washes away infection and takes down the swelling. It gets to work straight away.

Please read Know your UVB’s from your UVB’s, and be safe.

Have a wonderful holiday.x

Good Morning

One of the perks of working from home for me has to be morning televison or This Morning to be exact.

I love the presenters, Philip & Holly, Eamonn & Ruth and Rylan. They actually cover some very serious and enlightening topics, which I lap up for research purposes obviously. The amazing nutritionist Amelia Freer has been on twice so has Deliciously Ella, the books from both of these ladies are helping me with my Candida Dysbiosis and it’s great to see them promoting what some people still see as a cranks diet! But most of all I love the fact that they make me laugh.

Laughter is a very important thing in life, apart from being one of the most fulfilling emotional releases (which many of us do not get enough of), it’s actually a very good exercise for our core stomach muscles.Imagine how fantastic a washboard stomach just from lots of belly laughter as opposed to crunches! It’s also great for stress and anxiety.

HOT TIP for a flat tummy.

Try standing up straight and blowing up a balloon as much as you can with one big breath, fifteen times, everyday. You use the same muscles as you do for crunches and sit ups, without killing your back!

Mental exercise for your well being is just as important as the physical stuff. For this (apart from my Sudoku addiction) I love The Chase. Bradley Walsh and the chasers apart from being very intelligent and competitive are again very funny. And the fast paced questioning gives your brain a good workout.

I am going to miss this as I am now back in full time employment.

Back to just the balloons and the Sudoku!

Know your UVB’s from your UVA’s.

A minefield of a conversation I know but I’m going to try and get it down to the basics so that I can be assured that you are safe.
Lets begin with the science bit :
UVA -Long wave rays that damage the skin more deeply and cause damage to the cells in the basal (bottom layer or base) of the epidermis, contributing to skin cancer.
It is the predominant tanning ray.
A tan is the result, over time, of injury to the skins DNA.

UVB – Short wave rays that are the chief cause of reddening and burning of the surface.
They damage the more superfical layers of the skin.
They play a key role in the development of skin cancer.

SUNSCREEN

Everyone should be wearing sunscreen daily, whether it appears to be sunny or not.
A moisturiser with added SPF factor is a good idea. You do not need a sunscreen of over SPF 30 as this will block up to 97% of UVB (this is the highest protection a ‘natural’ not chemically populated sunscreen can give), but whatever your SPF you still need to take care of those UVAs.
To combat those you must wear good sunglasses and a sunhat.

A SUNHAT, WHY????

Apart from the fact that I recommend a hat of some sort whatever and where ever!
A good sunhat will help to :
keep those UVAs at bay.
Added protection for your neck,ears and eyes.
Stops your hair from fading (if like me you have coloured hair) or drying out.
Alongside the sunglasses, stop you from squinting, so helps to prevent wrinkles!

When you are choosing your hat please consider that it is fit for purpose, the hat you wear lounging around the pool is not necessarily the same as the one you would wear on an activity holiday! Please make sure it fits, everything swells with the heat and

perspiration and if your hat is too tight you will have headaches which could lead to fainting! The hats I have on Hat Attic are adjustable fit but I would always err on the too big side, you can always pinch it a bit smaller (I will tell you how another time!). And always go for good ventilation ie. natural, breathable fabrics, like straw, paper straw or cotton.

I always wear a sunhat, ever since I burnt my scalp very badly and was left having to wear my hair in pigtails for two weeks, after my holiday, due to it being too painful to move, comb or touch my head! This happened on the last day of my holiday whilst waiting for the airport transfer.

Learn from my mistakes and make sure you are armed with SPF, good sunglasses (if the lenses make everything a colour that it is not, they are no good!) and a great sunhat. Have a safe and happy summer! x