You guys know I love my oral health (see here and here) and I wanted to share a new tool I’ve found that keeps my mouth healthy and clean. It’s called a tongue cleaner and it works much better than a toothbrush. Before brushing and flossing I guide this handy little tool across my tongue a few times. Then I washed the tool with soap and water and let it dry on my counter for tomorrow. I do this morning and night but you could just do it once a day. It give my mouth the freshest clean feeling especially after sleep when your tongue feels gunky (you know what I mean, right?!). There are videos and tutorials online too if you want to check it out. I was just so impressed with this gadget I wanted to share it with you all!

Sincerely, 

Becky

I’ve been vegan for almost 10 years and I can tell you veganism has gained so much momentum and popularity during that time! I used to not be able to eat out very easily so I would often just stay home or make a full meal and home and then just snack on the one small item that might be vegan on a menu when eating out with friends. There was a lot of cross contamination because restaurant didn’t understand that we needed out food handled differently and separate from the meat dishes. Well those days are long behind us and now there are so many amazing vegan resources everywhere! I eat our way more now but I also love home cooked meals and wanted to share one of my favorite websites for vegan recipes.

The website is https://ohsheglows.com/ and I am obsessed with Angela’s flavorful recipes! She also has a couple books but I always turn to her website when I’m looking for something new to try. Go straight to https://ohsheglows.com/categories/recipes-2/ and search around. There are so many gems there! I was obsessed with this salad this winter and made it a couple weeks ago too: https://ohsheglows.com/2018/02/07/vitamin-glow-warm-squash-salad/

Anyways, check it out and let me know what you think!

Sincerely, 

Becky

 

I have to tell you about the new vegan restaurant I just discovered in London – it’s called Vantra and it’s soooo good! The serve vegan and raw vegan dishes and everything is so fresh and colorful and healthy! Not too much fried foods like some vegan places and I love how fresh it all is! The owners are so lovely and kind and they are going to do so well with this place.

I’m actually not too sure how long it’s been around but I just heard of it for the first time recently and went as soon as I could. It’s also a buffet style which is dangerous sand awesome all at once LOL! I just checked and they don’t have a menu posted online I guess because it’s a buffet but there was this amazing beet salad I highly recommend as well as their homemade kombucha!

Please check it out and let me know what you think!

Sincerely, 

Becky

 

I’ve recently been making my own nutmilk from scratch and I have to say it is so much more delicious than what you can buy in the shops and it has the added benefit of no added ingredients like guar gum, Just nuts and water – how it should be! I’ve always hesitated to make my own thinking it would take a long time or be more expensive (almonds aren’t cheap!), but making it fresh every couple of days is very little work and about the same price as what you find in store. My favorite milks so far are almond milk and cashew milk. I’ve also tried making coconut milk (a fruit not a nut) and it’s really good too! Here is the recipe I used for my fresh almond milk:

Vanilla-Cinnamon Almond Milk

Sincerely, 

Becky

Okay clearly I’ve got oral health on my mind! After making my own toothpaste, I started to do more research on how to keep my teeth clean and healthy. And if you can believe it, swishing a tablespoon of coconut oil around in your mouth for 20 minutes before brushing your teeth leaves your teeth feeling so clean and white it’s almost like you were just at the dentist. That sounds good to me! There are tons of articles out there on the benefits of oil pulling but I’m a sucker for anything by Wellness Mama.

As described above, oil pulling is when you swish coconut oil around in your mouth for about 20 minutes before brushing your teeth. It is said to clean and detoxify your teeth and gums and honestly I can vouch for that! I’ve been using my natural toothpaste for a few months now but adding oil pulling in the morning has made my teeth feel so clean and fresh!

One important thing to note is after you’re done swishing the oil around, you should spit it in the garbage NOT your sink or toilet or they will get clogged. It’s not a ton of oil so I just gently spit it into my bathroom trash bin that has tissues in it that absorb the oil and saliva.

After spitting out the oil, rinse your mouth with warm water. Then be sure to brush your teeth right after to get rid of any remaining bacteria.

Please note that oil pulling should be used in addition to brushing your teeth not in replacement of. Brushing your teeth is still very important, this is just a way to enhance your oral health!

Have you ever tried oil pulling and what did you think?

Sincerely, 

Becky

I recently became inspired to make my very own, all natural, organic toothpaste. I saw a very interesting DIY blog post about it, and thought I would give it a try. After all, we all use toothpaste so often – twice a day, at a minimum. So, given how often we use it, we might as well make sure we are using something completely toxin free and healthy, right?

Well, while you would think that toothpaste would be pretty free of toxins, the truth is that the toothpastes you find at the grocery store aren’t the healthiest things out there. In fact, accidentally swallowing toothpaste can lead to a tummyache or even worse. Sort of scary to think that we’re putting things like that in our mouth on a daily basis!

I figured that making my own toothpaste would be fun, but not really yield a product that I would want to use on a daily basis. Boy was I surprised! The result of my little production run is a delightful toothpaste that not only taste great, but is also fully edible and does a great job of keeping my teeth pearly white and my breath fresh.

Making it was quite simple, and you can learn about it in this blog post that I found. and which I have linked above. I decided to flavor my toothpaste with pure essential peppermint oil. You can get oil like that quite cheaply at your local health food store. I’m excited to make some more toothpaste in the future and use other essential oils like cinnamon.

Anyway, give it a shot and try to make your own toothpaste – I think you’ll enjoy it!

Sincerely, 

Becky

So, I recently had a few days free from work and decided to try my hand at something I hadn’t taken up in years: painting! 

Back when I was a student, I had an easel, a bunch of random paints, a few old brushes, and several canvases that I had picked up at a garage sale. Every now and then, in those student days, I would pick up my paint set and let inspiration take its course.

I always found that those painting sessions were very therapeutic and almost meditative. I would often find that the activity of painting became automatic and my thoughts would seamlessly float to issues that I was trying to resolve in my life. At the end of those painting sessions I would often feel like I had worked through a lot of my issues.

Anyway, flashing forward years to the present time, I decided to take a stab at it again. I set up my old easel, dusted off the canvases and paint bottles, cleaned up my old brushes, and got to work. Wouldn’t you know it, but it was just as soothing, relaxing, and meditative as I remembered. In fact, it probably had even more of a relaxing effect on me given that I hadn’t done it for years.

I painted mostly images of landscapes, such as farms and forests. I must admit that they weren’t particularly good, which is the key reason why I’m going to pass on posting pictures of them on this blog! Ha ha…

I’m thinking that I might go to the library and take out some books on painting so that I can improve my technique. It might also be fun to join a painting class, where I can meet some like-minded people. Also, perhaps not a bad idea to check out some more art galleries – perhaps my experiences with painting will help me better appreciate some of the lovely artists that are displayed in the galleries!

How about everyone else out there in internet land? Do any of you enjoy painting? I would love to hear about your experiences!

Sincerely,

Becky

I recently started meditating for 10-20 minutes immediately after waking up as well as immediately before going to sleep at night. At the start, it was very difficult to get into a deep meditative state, as my mind would be bombarded and filled with various thoughts of the things I needed to do that day or the next. I couldn’t believe that some people could actually completely quiet their mind during meditation!

I have become much more proficient at meditation ever since I purchased this lovely Tibetan singing bowl from a company that specializes in them (check them out!). Mediation, as I have learned, is much easier if you have something subtle to focus on to the exclusion of the various thoughts that would otherwise bombard your mind. That’s where my singing bowl comes in!

In particular, when I meditate, I slowly and occasionally tap my wooden mallet against my singing bowl and focus on the angelic tones emanating from the bowl. I find that this makes it so much easier for me to fall into a deep meditative state and avoid getting pulled out of the moment with the thoughts bombarding my mind.

Granted, this type of meditation is a bit different from the type of meditation were you lie or sit motionless. In this form of meditation, one of my hands is moving every now and then to create music with my bowl. However, moving meditation is quite commonly practiced and can in fact permit people to achieve a deeper meditative state as it provides the mind with something to focus on to he exclusion of the thoughts that can bombard our minds.

Do any of you like to meditate? I’d love to hear about your experiences as well as your tips and tricks for achieving deeper meditative states!

Sincerely,

Becky

 

 

While I know that it is still only October, and there are many months to go before the next gardening season, I have been thinking about what I’d like to grow this upcoming spring and summer. While unconventional, I love gardening so much that it occupies my thinking even months before start of the season!

When I started gardening several years ago, I gardened almost exclusively flowers, particularly roses. Growing flowers is such a relaxing, beautiful experience, and, while I still grow plenty of flowers, my efforts have definitely shifted to growing vegetables and herbs, which I can use in the kitchen. That sort of thing can be quite invaluable, particularly as a vegan!

Not only am I vegan, but my diet also has various restrictions, which are intended to keep me away from certain foods that cause certain health issues. In particular, I’m supposed to stay away from nightshades, which include tomatoes. That isn’t a terrible sacrifice, however, especially given that summers in London aren’t particularly hot, which means that they are not very supportive of growing vegetables like tomatoes.

I’m currently very much enjoying growing things like lettuce, cabbage, carrots, radishes, onions, garlic, leeks, shallots, peas, kale and an abundance of herbs including mint, chamomile, sage, parsley, rosemary, dill, and oregano. Oh my, just listing these items is starting to make me feel so hungry!

It can be difficult to find a plot of dirt to grow a garden in a big city like London. Fortunately I live in one of the more quiet neighbourhoods with my parents, who have a little plot of land which is perfect for gardening. My parents are gardeners as well, but there is enough space to accommodate a couple raised beds for my gardening needs.

This year I’m thinking of having a winter or early spring garden composed mostly of herbs and vegetables that do fairly well in colder, less sunny conditions. The goal is to have a decent amount of fresh produce from my own garden to use in the kitchen on a daily basis.

Are any of you gardeners? I’d love to hear what you grow and what your plans are for the next growing season!

Sincerely,

Becky