April’s Blog Review

At last spring seems to have arrived, with more sunshine on offer, blossom and blooms making a welcome appearance and temperatures rising sufficiently to ditch the fleecy coats and furry boots.

I hope that my blog has brightened up your days too, with many of this month’s posts sparking some interesting comments.

I spoke up in support of markets this month, taking a nostalgic look back at those I used to love (anyone remember Rochester?) but have disappeared, whilst encouraging you to make use of those that remain. JC recommended some great markets in Marlborough (Wednesday and Saturday), Devizes (Tuesday for antiques, Thursday, Friday and Saturday general) and Salisbury (Tuesday and Saturdays). So get out there and find a market near you!

Talking of support, another much-discussed issue this month was the announcement that French sports scientist, Jean-Denis Rouillon, had conducted a study resulting in the conclusion that we ladies don’t need to wear our bras. Personally I just wouldn’t feel comfortable without one – a sentiment backed up by all those who commented on my post. WR asked, “What would we use to stop us flipping and flopping all over the place?” whilst JS mused, “They can keep their study and I will keep my bra thank you!”

With children enjoying a couple of weeks off of school for the Easter break, I suggested some more great places to visit. My travels took me to Gressenhall Farm and Workhouse (Norfolk), where I had a fun time with my son, as there was so much to see and do. I’m pleased to say that Gressenhall loved what I wrote, tweeting, “You have a great writing style, loved your description of the workhouse.” So, we were all happy then.

I’m hoping for the weather to keep improving during the coming months, so that we can all get out and enjoy the great outdoors. There’ll be lots more happening on my blog too.

Follow me on Twitter @shoppersjoy

Portion Sizes – How Large Will We Go?

Whilst out for a recent family meal, I couldn’t help remarking (once again) on the huge size of some of the platefuls of food that were being served.

It seems that many restaurants (especially pub/restaurants) serve massive portions of food that are far larger than appear in any ‘recommended intake’ guidelines for the average person.

When faced with such a plateful, many people just shrug and say, “It’s a shame to waste it”, before polishing off the whole lot, even if they find themselves rubbing their bellies in discomfort as a result.

Personally these over-large portion sizes have the effect of putting me off of my meal. I’m not a particularly large eater, so a plate that’s piled high just makes me groan. In some places I think I’d fare better with the children’s portions.

Those who do manage to clear their plates often only eat out on rare occasions, so supposedly the odd ‘blow-out’ won’t be a problem. However, if you eat out regularly, or serve portions of this quantity at home, you could be doing yourself more harm than good.

Think we need a bit more than this though

All this got me thinking about the size of the meals that we serve at home, and in some ways more importantly, the size of our plates. I was sure that my current dinner plates were larger than the ones I used some years back, so hunted at the back of the cupboard for the remains of an old (bought over 25 years ago) dinner service. Sure enough the dinner plates, side plates and dessert bowls were all at least 1/3 smaller than the ones I now use.

The thing is we tend to fill whatever plate size we have at our disposal, so to keep our portion sizes under control, perhaps we should downsize our plates. Psychologically, if we’ve eaten a whole plateful of food, we tell ourselves we’ve had a big meal and are full.

So come one, get out those smaller plates. What have you got to lose? Those annoying extra pounds, that’s what!

Follow me on Twitter @shoppersjoy

Mascara – Spoilt For Choice!

I like to play around with make-up and over the years I’ve tried many brands and types of mascara – let’s face it, there are enough of them around.

You can buy lengthening mascara, super extending mascara, volumising mascara, curling effect mascara, lash defining mascara, false lash effect mascara, adjustable mascara …

Mascara can come with a classic wand, slim-line brush, extra large brush, comb applicator, curved brush, spiral brush …

The choices are endless, even before you start on the question of colour – black, nearly black, brown/black, navy, electric blue, violet …

So when I caught sight of yet another variety of mascara in the shops, I just had to give it a whirl.

Max Factor Eye Brightening (Tonal Black Volumising) Mascara stands out with its predominantly white packaging – a change from the more subdued black, dark blue or burgundy of many other brands. The idea is that you choose the mascara aimed at your eye colour, as opposed to just any colour that takes your fancy. This was no mean feat in my case, as my eyes are a sort of grey-blue with little hazel flecks for good measure. Can’t think why there didn’t seem to be this option available! So I chose the variety aimed at blue eyes, aka black sapphire.

The mascara has a thin, classic brush, and seems to glide on as it has a creamy consistency and doesn’t clump. The first coat didn’t really produce much effect, but a second coat made my lashes appear a little more defined. I really loved the fact that this mascara didn’t smudge, clump or look overdone.

But do my eyes appear brighter? I like to think that they have an added ‘shine’ to them, but this may be down to my dewy-eyed optimism.

Follow me on Twitter @shoppersjoy

DS Games – Big Word Puzzle Book

I really love a good word puzzle – in fact I just love playing with words – so as I’m also a fan of DS games, the Big Word Puzzle Book is a firm favourite.

The game features eight puzzle challenges, each of which can be played at four different levels- easy, medium, difficult and expert.

 

Some of the word games are old favourites, such as hangman, word search and codeword (substituting numbers with the correct letters), whilst others are a bit more unusual.

I love playing Guessword, where you literally have to guess a random word through the process of elimination. With careful thought it\s amazing how few guesses it sometimes takes to be right.

I also enjoy Combinates, a kind of scaled down Scrabble board where you aim to get the highest score possible using all the given letters.

Other games include DIY Crossword (place words in the grid provided), Spellitaire (a quick-fire word making game) and Pop-Up Garden (an anagram game).

This game allows you to save four profiles at a time and you can play in single or multiplayer mode.

Highly recommended for all word puzzle fans.

Follow me on Twitter @shoppersjoy

Tasty Chocolate Treats

I love a bit (OK a lot) of chocolate  – then so many of us do – so I’m always on the lookout for new products to give me my ‘chocolate fix’.

One of my latest discoveries is Cadburys Wispa Instant Hot Chocolate, which is available in 264g jars or individual one-cup sachets. Just mix with hot water for a gorgeous, frothy cup of hot chocolate, not too sweet or sickly, but very tasty. I much prefer this to Galaxy hot chocolate, which can be a little too rich.

I just couldn’t resist picking up a Nestle Yorkie Vanilla Split Pot Yogurt Dessert when I saw one (takes longer to say than to eat). This is a two-compartment dessert, one side containing a lovely, smooth vanilla yogurt, and the other little pieces of Yorkie chocolate. I loved the flavour, but was very disappointed when I opened the pot, as there seemed to be rather a shortage of chocolate pieces in my opinion. Give us more chocolate, I say.

Some of you may remember my disdain at the launch of Cadbury’s Crispello, the chocolate bar that’s designed to be resealed rather than eaten all at once. There’s something about a chocolate bar – once started it’s just crying out to be eaten. However, I find it much easier to limit individual chocolates to a few at a time, which is why I really like new Cadbury’s Dairy Milk Chocos, individual solid chocolate pieces (look a bit like Rolos without the filling). A pack of these provides a handy chocolate fix.

Stop Press! I’ve spotted Magnum and Cornetto chocolate treats (as opposed to the ice cream versions) in the shops, but not tried them as yet. If you have sampled them, let me know!

Follow me on Twitter @shoppersjoy

April’s Random Thoughts

My thoughts may be random at times, but not as random as the assortment of emails that fill my spam box on a daily basis. I’m currently being offered fat-busting pills, youth serum, collagen injections, electronic cigarettes, laser eye surgery, Viagra, debt advice, accident compensation, PPI advice and the chance to become a plumber or electrician! How strange my life would be if I needed all of those!

How much chocolate qualifies as triple choc?

With the British weather becoming increasingly erratic, and not strictly sticking to what we would consider the appropriate seasons, perhaps it’s time that clothes retailers became a bit more flexible with their stock. Strappy T-shirts and thermal gloves side-by-side, why not?

I find it really annoying when I’m out shopping, browsing the shelves and I suddenly hear someone behind me sighing loudly or ‘huffing and puffing’. For goodness sake, if I’m in the way just say, “Excuse me please” and I will move!

I may be a fan of recycling, but not when it comes to TV programmes. I’m fed up with shows that dedicate whole episodes (or even a spin-off series) to showing clips of past programmes, with just a hint of original dialogue thrown in!

If McVities Double Chocolate Digestives contain chocolate digestive biscuit and chocolate chips and chocolate coating, then shouldn’t they be called Triple Chocolate Digestives?

Follow me on Twitter @shoppersjoy

Have Clothing Sizes Gone Mad?

When buying clothes, finding your size isn’t necessarily as easy as identifying a number on a label and discovering the perfect fit.

I’m sure many of you have ventured into a changing room armed with garments that you believe to be your size, only to find they all fit differently. I know I have. My wardrobe currently contains clothing that spans three different sizes – all of which fit!

It wouldn’t be as bad if each retailer was at least consistent within their own lines – for example I know to buy a size larger in tops in Matalan if I don’t want too tight a fit – but sizing inconsistencies within a single range or store can be maddening.

How many garments do I need to take into a changing room to ensure I’ll find a size to fit? On one ‘trying on’ session during a shopping trip in Tesco I took three different tops in to the changing room, in three different sizes, then ended up buying different sizes in the different styles!

But my most annoying sizing scenario to date has been in my attempt to buy some new jeans. Last year I ordered two lovely pairs from K&Co, both of which were (and still are) a lovely, comfy, flattering fit. So I thought I would order some more the same – oh how disillusioned I was!

The first pair, from their South range, which I ordered in the same size as before, but a different colour, were far too tight – I couldn’t quite do them up. I thought this was merely a blip and hoped that when the other pair arrived they would be better.

The second pair was from the Confident Curves range, which I’d found very comfy. This time however, despite ordering the same size as my first purchase of these jeans, I couldn’t even get them over my thighs! I’m sure that even if I’d ordered the next size up they would still not have fitted properly.

The whole issue of clothing sizes has become absolutely ridiculous. If you can’t even guarantee that two identical items in the same size will give the same fit, then how can we believe the labels at all?

It’s high time clothing manufacturers and retailers aimed for more standardisation of sizes.

What do you think? comments@shoppersjoy.co.uk