Linen Loft at Home

I recall the days of the original home selling party...back in the '70s when my mum would set off to a Tupperware or Oriflame party and come home with stuff that would simply take up space in the kitchen or bathroom cabinet.

I personally have always avoided this type of event, on the basis that I am more than likely to be tempted to make spontaneous purchases of items for which I have no need and no previous desire.


But last week I found myself agreeing to attend a Linen Loft at Home party being hosted by a close friend, in her sitting room, with unlimited bottles of Prosecco and home-made chocolate brownies on tap.  What's not to like?

So, off I toddled, 'Slightly Cynical' head firmly screwed on...and I had a thoroughly enjoyable evening!

Linen Loft at Home was set up by Cheshire mum Joanne Napier. Frustrated by the dearth of flexible working opportunities open to similar, highly intelligent and versatile women, she investigated the plethora of opportunities in home selling, only to decide that they all either were far too complicated  or the margins were too tiny to facilitate a decent income.  Not being one to take bad news lying down, she set up her own company, designed the way she wanted it to be.  And it seems to work!

Linen Loft at Home sells luxury towels, bedlinen, kitchen gifts by Emma Bridgewater and quirky stuff from The Bright Side, gorgeous nightwear and bedroom bits for kids, incredible faux fur throws, delicious pure wool wraps, Max Benjamin candles and diffusers...loads in fact. (See their online brochure for a better overview!)

The Home Stylist sets up a display of various samples from their core range, plus seasonal bits and bobs and then does a brief introduction explaining it all, before leaving guests to come over and have a feel and a sniff of everything.

It's a bit like a browse around a lovely shop, but in a far more comfortable environment and with a glass in your hand - which never happens at John Lewis!  The quality of the items for sale was astounding, when you see what the prices are.  No retail shop overheads or fixed staff wages you see; the Home Stylists earn commission on anything they sell and the party host receives 10% of the total value of party sales to put towards her own Linen Loft purchases.

I enjoyed the event so much, I'm actually planning one of my own!

Not only does a Linen Loft party bring your best friends together in one place for an out-of-the-ordinary event, but you're supporting a Cheshire mum in achieving her objectives and helping grow a Cheshire business.  It's a pure win-win!

www.linenloft.co.uk

L'Oreal Nude Magique CC Cream

I think I may be a little bit in love. 

I put my hands up, I'm a lazy so-and-so and the thought of slapping full make-up on every morning leaves me cold.  Luckily I work from home, so thus far it's been a sporadic, 'uh-oh, I'm meeting clients' requirement!  Unfortunately, age is finally showing its hand and I was beginning to think that perhaps an extra session in front of the mirror each morning was going to become a necessity. 

Then along come the clever bods at L'Oréal and invent CC Cream!



CC stands for 'Colour Correcting' and the creams are designed to help create smooth and flawless skin without the heaviness of a full foundation, they also moisturise and have an SPF of 12. L'Oréal says: "The magic Smart Pigment Capsules in a feather-light hydrator transform into foundation on application.  A perfect nude look with buildable light-weight coverage."

 

They have released three formulas, green to 'neutralise redness', apricot to 'revive tired skin' and mauve to 'transform dullness'.  I have quite flushed cheeks so I thought this might work for me and popped to Boots so I could test them all.  I was quite horrified by the green cream however!  It comes out of the tube a soft, pale green and then transforms to a really quite dark shade of tan on the skin!  Not so much a colour corrector for me as a face-paint!  The apricot shade didn't work for me either, but the mauve does wonders!

 

You have to shake the tube well before use, but then a slick of the cream rubbed across your finger tips glides over a lot of skin to give a very light, but very good coverage.  I am impressed by the whole 'moisturiser/tint/SPF' in one approach concpet, but SPF 12 isn't really high enough and I apply my own SPF face cream first, and when this is fully absorbed go for the CC cream.  It adds about 90 seconds to my morning mirror-time and gives a lovely, smooth but not overly made-up finish.

 

It already forms a fixed part of my daily routine and I was told how healthy I was looking the other day! (Not sure if previously I looked ill, but hey, grab the compliments while you can I say!)

 

L'Oréal are offering free testers on their website at the moment, so click here today and grab yourself some, it may transform your mornings!

 

 



Flower of Gold Cheshire Rapeseed Oil

Rapidly becoming the darling of top chefs, rapeseed oil is pushing its way into the public's culinary conscious as the 'British olive oil' - but why?

 

Originally grown as a lubricant for steam engines, fields of rapeseed has been part of the British countryside for generations.  Today however new culinary strains have been developed and the consequent meadows of gold have become a ubiquitous part of the British countryside, and while we may take the acres of golden flowers for granted, or even curse their hayfever inducing pollen, they are proving a considerable draw for visitors to the UK - indeed, Japanese tourists are travelling here on specially arranged holidays to see it in bloom! 

 

Rapeseed oil has considerable health benefits; it contains half the saturated fat of olive oil (7% compared to 14% in oliver oil or 51% in butter) and is high in omega-3 and omega-6.  It is also high in unsaturated fats, which helps reduce cholesterol levels. Knowing this it's no surprise that it's been picked up by the healthy brigade, but why are our top chefs dumping the tasty glories of olive oil in it's favour? I brought a bottle of Cheshire's own Flower of Gold rapeseed oil into my own kitchen and used it to replace my usual light olive oil in everything I cooked for a week - and it's actually not hard to answer that question now!

 

The oil has a high flashpoint, which means it can be used for frying or high temperature roasting where olive oil can't.  The gorgeous golden colour of rapeseed oil also transfers itself to the food - making for gloriously golden roasties and sauté potatoes.  I'm advised that it makes an excellent mayonaise, though I haven't tried this!  I did make up a salad dressing, with some red wine vinegar and mustard and honey, and actually think it doesn't work here, as it's too heavy.  It doesn't work all on its own either, in my opinion, drizzled on tomatoes or goats cheese - I'm afraid nothing will replace my love of extra virgin olive oil for that!

 

The taste is mildly nutty and smooth, and doesn't leave any strong essence of itself on other foods when cooking with it, but it doesn't really work for me 'raw', as it were.  I found that it doesn't soak into fried vegetables the way light olive oil can, perhaps because you can turn up the heat with no fear of burning it.  The only real negative point is that fragrance is not pleasant, to be honest - but as sniffing oil isn't a regular past-time of mine, I can get past that!

 

All in all, when you take the culinary benefits (taste and practical use) and the health benefits, I think a bottle of rapeseed oil should be added to every kitchen, replacing vegetable oils or sunflowers oils which are generally imported...and here's the best bit...pretty much every bottle of rapeseed oil you'll find on a supermarket shelf comes from UK farms! And if you want to really reduce your food miles...our very own Cheshire grown Flower of Gold rapeseed oil is just perfect.

Now being stocked at ASDA and online at Artisan Foods, you too can support the healthy oil revolution while buying better than British...and buying Cheshire!