Green Mermaid Cottage

Visual artists are often expected to have a really quirky, if not outrageous, appearance. While my art is colourful and often challenging, my wardrobe is all about understatement and elegance rather than shock value. Living by the sea has had a big influence on the clothes I choose. I am comfortable and confident wearing a relaxed, bohemian, arty look and I like mixing bright colours and vintage clothes with interesting patterns with classics such as ballet pumps, black blazers, cardigans and chunky knits. In my choices I prioritise lasting style over disposable fashion. Below are my favourite items, a combination of high street and charity shops buys.  Adding glamour: big sunglasses and big floppy hat Big sunglasses and a big, floppy straw hat give an instant sprinkle of glamour and a bit of mystery to the simplest of outfits. They are also essentials if you live by the sea and/or do a lot of outdoor activities like I do.  Audrey Hepburn style ballet pumps and other fla...

For the first twelve years of my life I had beautiful, long hair. Strangers in the street often randomly   complimented me on my healthy-looking hair and I was told that I had 'the most beautiful hair in the school' by the mother of one of my classmates. But from the age of 13 everything changed. I went within a few months from Rapunzel to G.I. Jane. My hair was thinning quickly and alarmingly and strands of white hair appeared in my light chestnut hair. My eyebrows also grew thinner and thinner. My hair sings the blues I had to cut my hair short to try to disguise some of the loss, even though every trip to the hairdresser was traumatic as they invariably commented on my thinning locks. The family GP did not offer much help and simply suggested I look into using 'a good hair colour product'. A dermatologist  had a look at my scalp but also seemed puzzled. Stress and genetics were mentioned as possible causes and I was dismissed with the general advice...

When I packed my bags to move into my new home I was amazed at how many cleaning products and air fresheners I was taking with me.  Bathroom cleaner, kitchen cleaner, floor cleaner, window cleaner, bleach, drain cleaner... This would also create a lot of empty plastic bottles to dispose of once used. I was concerned as well that using air fresheners were really good for my health or the environment.  Manufacturers' clever marketing has convinced us that unless with buy multiple products for each room and purpose we must be slobs with unsanitary houses... Thankfully I learned that there are recipes I can use to make my own products with simple ingredients and that many of these products can be used all over the house.  GENERAL CLEANERS I have have several recipes for all purpose cleaners: 1- Castile soap-based cleaner : Ingredients: Castile soap, essential oil (I use tea tree or lemon) and water.  - Mix two cups of water with 2 tbsp or Castile soap and 10 drops o...

 This body recipe works well for my dry and sensitive skin.  INGREDIENTS - Castile soap  - Pure organic honey - Organic sweet almond oil (you can also use jojoba oil, avocado oil or olive oil - Essential oil (I chose Lavender oil).  MAKING THE PRODUCT Mix in a bowl: - 1/3 cup of Castile soap - 1/3 cup of honey  - 1/3 cup of almond oil  - 30 drops of your chosen essential oil. Once mixed pour the content of your bowl into a pump bottle.  That's it! your DIY body wash is ready to enjoy.  Remember to always do a test for any product you create on a small area of your skin to make sure that it won't cause you any irritation/allergy. 

I have had some issues with dry and sensitive skin, so one of the product I was really keen to make myself was a body butter that would help soothe and moisturise my skin.  This is the simple recipe I use: INGREDIENTS - 500g Organic coconut oil - 500g Organic shea butter  - Essential oil (I chose Lavender oil) - 350ml Organic almond oil.  MAKING THE PRODUCT - Mix the shea butter, coconut oil and almond oil together in a bowl - Heat the mixture using a Bain Marie technique: this means placing the bowl in a saucepan of  warm water, which surrounds its content with gentle heat - Once the mixture has melted remove the bowl from the heat and add 30 drops of your chosen essential oil  - Allow the mixture to cool down and to start to solidify. To speed the solidifying process I usually put the bowl into the fridge and regularly check its consistence. You don't want it to get too hard as it will make it difficult to whip in the next step of this...

THE 'GREEN TAX'  I decided to start making my own beauty and cleaning products because I simply could not afford to buy the type of products that I wanted in shops.  As an animal lover I only want to use plant-based products that are not tested on animals and preferably organic. I noticed that those type of products are always more expensive and therefore out of my reach.  DROWNING IN PLASTIC In addition I was increasingly bothered by the amount of packaging I was left to dispose of every time I used shop-bought products. I liked the idea of recycling these plastic bottles and glass jars as containers for my own products.  BAD HAIR AND SKIN DAY: ITCHY AND SCRATCHY... I hoped that making my own products would also help me calm my sensitive skin and scalp, made worse by the high levels of stress and anxiety I was experiencing. I even had to see my GP when I woke up covered with red, inflamed, incredibly itchy spots all over my belly, chest and parts of my back. After...