The Linkables

A feminist podcast I have been getting into this week is Fucking While Feminist.

The Male-Female Orgasm Gap (like the pay gap, but for sexual pleasure - NSFW)

I despise focusing on the killer in these things (and prefer to remember the victims) however in the Elliot Rodgers case there is a wider conversation of male entitlement that needs discussion. Laci Green covers it. This piece also covers it.

Also, one of the best pieces I've ever read on male entitlement, but this time focusing on nerd culture (and, to an extent, Elliot Rodgers).

Annnnnddd still related: the most powerful #yesallwomen tweets.

An infographic on why Menstrual Hygiene Day needs to exist.

Where did the word ghetto come from?

Reason 1026 why I hate PETA.

I avoid the Daily Mail but this got brought to my attention and I'd like to call out it's bullshit. (Animal testing is banned within the EU but a company that sells outside European borders may test in other parts of the world)

Can netball shake its schoolgirl image?

7 iPad apps for continuing 'business as usual' whilst on the road

An introduction to why vegetarians need to be careful with wine.

And we return to cheery stuff: a Tumblr dedicating to what can happen when women refuse sex. (It's not actually cheery, I was being sarcastic)

If you're not a sales/marketing type feel free to skip this but if you are then this is a great Salesforce blog.

Quite recently I gave up almost a decade (I didn't even realise it was that long until I counted it on my fingers) of social smoking. I could write a whole blog post on my reasons but this post does bring up a few of my feelings from a feminist perspective.

Ms. Fit - the blog linked above - is an excellent body-positive fitness blog on the whole too!

A guide to dating yourself.

17 lies we need to stop teaching girls about sex.

Finally, because this hasn't been the most uplifting of Linkables ever I shall make my final link the gift of rappers with puppies. You're welcome.  

Morag x

Marvel and nightclub wristbands

Skirt: Pick'n'Mix

Black top: Primark

Denim jacket: New Look (old)

Shoes: Vans

Ring: Morgan Clare *

Bag: Unsure

Nail Polish: Barry M

Anyone who doesn't like clothes with pop culture references should probably not be subscribed to my blog. We've had Bart Simpson, Clueless, and now it's time for Marvel to make a show (I also received a Dennis the Mennis hat in a goody bag recently, and I'm not going to lie that I'm considering wearing it in public). I'd like to somewhat pretend that I came across this skirt on Etsy by accident, but I didn't. I actually typed 'Marvel dress' into Google and came across several dresses and skirts using this fabric - settling on Pick'n'Mix due to it's UK location (it was made and sent out to me within two days - thumbs up!). 

This is the outfit I wore on a recent trip back to Dundee for a joint coming home from Australia/leaving for Southampton party for two of my friends. And as much as I love the skirt I felt I needed to team it with something simple - so black almost the whole way down (the denim jacket was very much a last minute addition). During the last few weeks both pairs of my beloved Converse finally packed in and despite my long term love affair for the brand I decided to buy a pair of Vans instead (my bank balance didn't approve). I do love Converse but I think Vans are a little bit more understated and dainty. The addition of white sock was for no reason that I cut my ankle and wasn't some extra padding round that area (practical, I am). 

(In truth these photos were taken the morning after - hence the classy Kage Nightclub wristband still on my wrist haha - and I actually wore three quarter leggings which, when I look back at some attempted outfit photos in the dark, I realise looked a bit MySpace)

I also experimented a bit with Bleach London hair dye and tried to do a wash in orange to red ombre, in order to highlight what accidentally happened to my hair a few weekends ago. I already owned the I Saw Red shade, but I purchased the Wash Out Orange to use on my roots. I know that Bleach shades don't show up well if your hair is darker but I read that if you use them on dry hair and leave for longer than recommended you can gain some colour. My hair isn't a proper faux-sunset but when I look back at the photos here (and also from the nightclub photogrpaher) I can see a brighter shade of ginger near the crown of my head. 

Love and comics and such

Morag x

Ideal Home Show Scotland

Yesterday, I spent most of my morning and early afternoon having a bit of a time at the Ideal Home Show Scotland event at the SECC in Glasgow. I was invited along to their blogger event in the press room and also given a free press pass to the event. If you've been reading a while you'll remember I also attended the Country Living Christmas Fayre back in November and that these kind of events are very much up my street (indie brands, food samples and some shopping) and I love that I've been able to attend them for free with press passes.

The Ideal Home Show is much larger than the Country Living Fair and had several sections made up for it - garden, women, food, home improvement, technology - of which I spent most of my time in the food bit. Prior to heading into the event myself and some other lovely bloggers were having a natter up in press room with some nibbles. I was digging into the olives, some pepper jelly from Trotters and some elderberry wine (out a Dennis the Mennis cup) whilst some of the other were nomming into some Ramsay's of Carluke meat and also some Snowdonia cheese. We were also lucky enough to spot Gregg Wallace and George Clark in the press room (still majorly gutted we didn't get to meet Carole Smilie even though me and Mummy Central did go on a bit of a hunt for her, Changing Rooms was totally my childhood).

Once down in the event itself we were given a tour to what's hot in the interior world this 2014 from Sterling Furniture's interior designer. She also spent quite a bit of time in Aberdeen where she started her career so we had  natter about that and I found interesting how she said each Scottish city has its own interior trends and how it effects her job (apparently Glasgow is the city that likes sparkly interiors the most, I knew I moved here for a reason).

After this we were left to our own devices. Me and Donna were determined to run into Carol Smilie (with little success, unless Donna had success independently) but not until after we had helped ourselves to our complementary glass of champagne. After this I made my way through the crowds to see what was else on offer. It took my ages to get through the whole place but I found myself back at the food stalls after noseying at through everything else - in the end I bought two jars of curry sauce from Punjaban, a bottle of Toffee vodka from Brittains and some garlic infused rapeseed oil from Supernature.

I'd also like to say a big thank you to the PR people at Stirling and Ideal Home Show. They admitted they were nervous as they had never done a blogger event before but I reckon they did brilliantly. We were gifted amazing goody bags and I love so much of what is in it. I'm currently burning the Arran Arromatics candle I received (my living room smells delish) and I have been wearing my Dennis the Mennis hat for a large portion of today (and I normally don't like hats). I also received some beautiful tea towels from Rhubarb & Ginger Textiles and Jill Kirkham Textiles which I'm sure will find a place in my kitchen over the next weeks. And as much as we were all laughing at our period pants from Diary Doll (it wasn't a female only group of bloggers...) it will go along nicely with my goal to switch over my sanitary products to reusable products which I'm planning to blog about (because what's a bit of menstrual blood between friends?).

The Ideal Home Show started on Friday and is going on until Monday and like all these kinds of shows I do recommend them. You need to pay to get in these things but on the other side are usually bucket loads of discounts from companies (many who don't have physical shops and you can't normally 'try before you buy') trying to shift stock.

But if you do get to see Carol Smilie, please keep it yourself (I might get jealous).

Morag x

P.S. As always all my photos from the event were uploaded to my Facebook page.

The Linkables

Dugsnpubs.com is a guide to dog-friendly pubs in Scotland (occasionally the rest of the UK) which I heard of because one of my Dundee haunts carries their sticker.

The Orange Pantry is this week's new favourite food blog.

Bookshelf porn.

I'm not sure if some of these people are any more goth than I am but this week marked World Goth Day and The Guardian ran a piece on some fashion forward goths.

More gothic fashion, but this time for the garden.

19 breakfast to beat a hangover in Glasgow.

Top 10 free things to do in Amsterdam.

I'm someone who uses the term 'ex' to refer to someone I never officially dated and this sums up my feelings quite well.

STA Travel ends unethical animal trips.

London is set to get a cafe serving...cereal.

An uncensored opinion on meal replacement diets.

Love a sandwich for work but don't have time to faff in the morning? Check out these two ingredient sandwiches.

If, like me, your job requires you to be a Salesforce ninja then this CRM blog might be wet dream material.

It's almost BBQ season and here is a round-up of some mouthwatering veggie burgers.

I'm big on manners when it comes all the life scenarios, including sex.

How the Manhattan neighbourhoods got their names.

Pretty much the best thing to do to guys in Tinder who send you unsolicited naked pics.

If you like calligraphy and Instagram, then here are five accounts you might want to follow.

Compliments that aren't about physical appearance.

I'm really bad for adding "uuhhhh" and "errms" to my speech but I'm better that I used to be and I agree with many of these tips!

And, sometimes you just gotta wind your blog down.

Morag x

Tips for going vegetarian

This week marks the annual National Vegetarian Week (yes, that's a thing). Two years ago (on my first Vegetarian Week as a complete vegetarian) I wrote a bunch of (now cringy) posts each day that week to highlight it. This year I'm keeping it a little bit more low key with a simple guide for anyone who is considering going vegetarian (partially inspired by knowing a few people making the jump).

Nude Purifying Face Wash & Toner

If you watched my recent video you'll know that the Nude Purifying Toner made it into my April favourites, and that I had been so impressed by it I decided to give the Purifying Face Wash a whirl despite the price tag (I would have tried the purify moisturiser as well but my pay check doesn't stretch that far).

Whilst using the toner my pores were noticeably smaller and I really loved that this product was scent-free and my skin didn't tingle at all whilst using it (even whilst using it around it around my eyes to take off simple eye make-up). It's honestly one of the best toners I've ever used and I have no hesitation in recommending it.

I was however a bit disappointed with the face wash. I've been using it each day for about two weeks now and I've seen no difference to my skin - either better or worse. It also has a smell to it - not a terrible scent but after having been so pleased that the toner didn't have any fragrance I was a bit disappointed to discover the face wash had some kind of sweetie smell to it (even though it seems like an accidental scent that couldn't be avoided)

Skincare is something that can be incredibly subjective and I'm always hesitant to piss on products but I really can't say I recommend the face wash. I'm in two minds about whether I'll purchase the purify moisturiser as one hand I love trying new products and the toner is one of the best toners I've tried but after having been disappointed by the face wash I'm not sure I can justify the price of the moisturiser (which was a whopping £40 when I seen it in Space.NK).

Have you tried anything from the Nude range - what did you think of it?

Morag x

The Linkables

Lucky devils from the USA, you get to enter Phyrra's six year giveaway!

Halal meat is good business sense.

Three non-Spanish tapas restaurants in Glasgow.

My new favourite food blog.

On that note...next week is National Vegetarian Week!

I've been having a field day reading every-single-post on this UK based sustainable lifestyle blog which covers everything from fashion, green parenting and...ethical banking. (Clearly, I'm very cool and you want me at your next dinner party)

One of my favourite yearly events in Dundee, the DJCAD degree show, will be a go-go from tonight!

A day in the life of Scotland's GD gal!

Next week will mark the very low-key EU elections but for anyone into animal welfare they should be one of the most important elections.

Also...mind that time UKIP voted against fighting the illegal ivory trade? Yeah...

If you're vegan or a vegan-supporter then help the world convince IKEA to serve vegan meatballs (because they've said they will if we can prove the demand exists).

If any secret admirers are thinking of buying me a gift soon, these temporary tattoos of recipes would go down well.

What designers can do to their files to make developers not hate them.

I'm already hungry, but this is making it worse.

The difference between a typeface and a font.

It's a Batman shaped bookcase, guys.

If, like me, you feel as though Eurovision isn't quite the same without Jedward you might just be in luck!

The best No More Page 3 anecdote I've read so far!

Speaking of No More Page 3, remember to sign the petition. Despite being supportive of this campaign I, erm, forgot to sign it until a few days ago.

And in non-news: your Snapchat photos might not actually be deleted.

Vegan Menu @ Red Onion Glasgow

We all know by now - or those of us who keep up with veggie news - will know that Glasgow has been named the UK's most vegetarian friendly city but when you're friends with a bunch of meat eaters convincing them to try out the all-veggie restaurants isn't the easiest of tasks. But Red Onion on West Campbell Street has introduced their own 2 or 3 course vegan menu alongside their regular menu. Granted, I attended this restaurant as part of my first vegan meet-up with 'people-from-the-internet' but it's definitely a good shout for mixed groups (even though the vegan menu is new, the other people from the group said Red Onion has always been an accommodating restaurant).
 

Even though I was tempted to keep it in the familiar taste bud range by getting a dish of containing my fav superfood the avocado, I decided I should branch out and went for the tempura vegetables. Best part of the meal, this was! Was spicy though.



For mains I was tempted by the crispy bean burger but since I've eaten many a veggie burger I again opted for something a bit different. The Penne an Genovese is definitely an acquired taste - there was so much on my plate but I got through it all however I did have to get used to the taste of the garlic pesto (despite my general love for garlic). Some people ordered something different because the potatoes and pasta sounded like they might be far too much starch when together - but I thought the potatoes worked the best with the flavours!
 

And for dessert we had the sorbet. Not a very original vegan choice but sure is a tasty one!

Morag x

Do you prefer fashion victim or ensembly challenged?

Clueless top: Primark

Skirt: New Look 

Denim shirt: New Look

Bag: Red and Bold

Rings: Accessorize (old)

Shoes: New Look (old)

And next up in pop culture references meet fashion, we have Clueless (I have yet another outfit post to draft that also has pop culture - long live this trend!). I wasn't looking for anything in particular when I spotted this in the pyjama section (my personal trend: wearing pyjama tops as regular t-shirts) but it was one of those pieces I had to buy as soon as my eyes lay onto it. 

I wore this outfit to head to Classic Grand in Glasgow. It was my first time going and when dressing for a new venues there's always the apprehension is you've picked a good outfit. However after going I felt this was a good outfit that choice of venue - the Classic Grand is a bit more low-key than the likes of the Catty so this outfit worked really well there. 

And those Primark tights? Ripped after 10 minutes. But ripped tight are a fashion statement in a rock club ;)

Morag x 

The Linkables

But I'm actually voting Finland...

Later this month with see the world celebrate its first Menstrual Hygiene Day.

Inaccurate as hell but still made me laugh: 38 maps they didn't teach you at school.

One of my favourite reads this weekend: stop saying "I have a boyfriend".

And this is a rebuttal to the above article, which I can understand. (For the record, I only lie about a boyfriend when my safety is seriously at risk - I never lie about it if I'm a public place and with friends as I should ever ever have to!)

Tabloid titles without the sexism.

Morrisons became Leaping Bunny certified this week!

A lesson in camera lenses.

Another recipe for vegan cheese sauce based off of cashews.

Australia picked their Commonwealth netball team this week and some people have had things to say about it.

I don't normally agree with Thought Catalogue but I agree with 8 things an introvert will do if they like you.

Wow. I was racially profiled in my own driveway.

10 things you might like to know about unicorns.

Hilarious park bench memorials.

9 ways to decorate with flowers that don't involve a vase.

I've always known that a lot of fitness magazines are shallow but if you didn't here is your proof.

Ilumi ready meals

More pictures were taken on my Instagram account. 

As you all know, I'm a fan of food and there are very few speedier ways to my heart than feeding me. However I can be a bit snobby and I love cooked dished and rarely eat ready meals, so when Ilumi* offered to send me some packets of their vegetarian/vegan selection I was a bit hesitant.

Ilumi are a company that specialise in allergy free food (specifically nut, gluten and milk) in ready meal format (or in some cases to go along with rice you have cooked yourself). However they pride themselves in using natural ingredients and honest labelling. I'm not allergic to any of their focus ingredients but as someone who has been successfully going vegan for a bit (if I've eaten anything non-vegan in the past month it wasn't intentional) and has a soya intolerance informative labelling is something I can always get behind.

They sent me three different packets to try: Geng Gari Curry, Vegetable Biryani, and the Vegetable & Chickpea Jalfrezi. They did also offer to send me the Harira Bean Soup if my taste-buds were up for something spicier, which I declined as I'm very firmly a korma gal and take guacamole over salsa any day. I ate them over the past weekend and took the final packet into work to see how it would work out and about.

First up was the Geng Gari Curry which I had Saturday and picked first because I love me some butternut squash and coconut milk. I cooked some rice which I patiently waited to cook so I could get the main part cooked (all the food I was sent was cooked with in two minutes in a microwave, in the packet itself). The taste itself was quite simple, as I was expecting, but I still gobbled it down.

Sunday we had the Vegetable & Chickpea Jalfrezi, which was my favourite as it was absolutely delicious. Not much more to report here. I had it with rice, if you must know.

On Monday I took in the Vegetable Biryani to work as this is the one that was marked as a 'full meal' and didn't recommend that rice was added to it. Because the preparation is only two minutes in a microwave it made it the perfect bitty to take to work. However I like a big lunch so I did nip to Tesco's to purchase some bits and bobs to go along with it. This was actually a bit spicy and makes me wonder how hot their hot meals must be...

I certainly don't have the budget to be eating ready-meals on the regular but if your budget is high enough or you require gluten free meals then these's are definitely worth looking at. Personally I'd buy these if I was going on holiday in a self-catering hotel and wanted to throw a few things in my suitcase. I read in the reviews on their website that some people like to take these packets camping with them (obviously they've improvised on the preparation, unless fancy camping microwaves are a thing?).

Can we also take a moment to appreciate the beautiful branding!?!

Morag x

* Ilumi sent me these for my consideration, but all opinions are my own. 

Superdrug Colour Vibrance Hair Dye

As much as I have raved about The Lush Caca Rouge hair dye before I decided it was definitely time to try something else as 1) henna hair dye is messy and 2) I'm a cruelty-free blogger so I should probably blog about some alternatives once in a full moon.

I originally purchased the Mango Burst shade which I used on Christmas Day (full review on that particular shade will be further down this post) and about two months ago I moved onto the Passionate Red shade. Both products were easy to use, and I was done quickly with not much mess. My main complaint however is that it wasn't the easiest mixture to 'spread' evenly throughout my hair and in the end my hair colour did end up a bit patchy. Thankfully neither shade was shockingly different to what colour my hair was pre-dye so the difference in tone wasn't obvious but I could see it and that was enough for me.

As for longevity I did find this hair dye faded quicker than most others I have tried in the past. It became obvious after one month that my natural hair colour is brunette.



Mango Burst was the dye I used on Christmas Day and I just wanted to add a foot note that this really didn't show up well on my hair. The box did warn that it was suited for light hair, but I insisted I knew better and it only subtly highlighted my medium brunette hair. I took my Christmas Day selfie outside as I artificial light couldn't pick up the colour!

Morag x

The Linkables

The best thing I've read this week: man poses as a Cupcake on Tinder.

The 11 most honest things a politician has ever said.

Another brand gains Leaping bunny status - well done A Girl's Gotta Spa.

8 things you didn't know about Glen Coco.

The 50 worst album titles.

An introduction to the Glasgow music scene introduced me to venues I hadn't even heard of!

I'm not one for screenshotting Facebook comments and putting them in articles, but when the target is misogynistic FHM readers who rank women in terms of hottest I'm all for it.

The #3dates3mths campaign is now over and a fantastic spit-out-funny blog by one of the other bloggers is 30 Something London.

Mean Girls turned 10 this week and here's an article on it becoming an internet phenomenon.

A round-up of the best PR during April.

A Reddit thread on what designs tattoo artists have refused to do!

Remaining members of Lostprophets to form new band.

Scotland U19 netball team took bronze at the Europe Championships this week.

This is the recipe for the faux-tuna I shared on Instagram this week.

How to make your own seed bombs.

The best illustrations I've seen ages (and it includes Eurovision)

50 ideas of what to share on social media.

A sizing guide for images on each social media site.

Tools and tips for planning your next trip.

Morag x