For a long time, the maths just didn’t add up.
There I was, in a better position financially than I had been in a long time, but finding myself far more skint than I ever was when I was 19, a receptionist who was wet behind the ears and earning £16,000 a year.
How did this happened?
Ten years ago, on a good old chunk less a month than now, I had… Read the full story
When you first make the switch from cow juice to plant-based milk, it can be a little daunting.
These days, there are so many options staring back at you from the supermarket shelves – almond, hazelnut, coconut, rice, oat, and the OG – soy.
Soy may have been the original dairy-free milk, but it’s got itself a reputation as being bad for your health, which is why we were surprised by the reports of this latest study – that soy is the most nutritious plant-based milk in town
The study was… Read the full story
Buying a vibrator for the first time can be an unnerving experience even for the most sex-posi of us.
Even though the sex toy market is valued at over 21 billion dollars, about 47% of women have never used a vibrator.
In a perfect world, every woman would be so brazen with her sexuality that stigma around self-pleasure would be completely eradicated, and although we’re… Read the full story
Is skincare superficial?
Of course it is. It’s literally skin deep. It’s a concern with the outer bit of your body rather than charitable acts and philosophical conversations.
But that doesn’t make it dumb, shame-worthy, or deserving of ridicule.
You would hope that how someone chooses to spend their time and money in a way they enjoy wouldn’t be up for heavy criticism.
And yet here we are, with one writer publishing an entire creed on the ‘con’ of skincare, suggesting that skincare is a ‘waste of our time and money’, a capitalist ‘scam’, and that women are ‘taxed… Read the full story
Mixed race identity is complicated, to say the least.
You’re neither one thing or the other while simultaneously being both. Try speaking about your identity (online at least) and you inevitably met with criticism – whether it’s from ‘colour-blind’ types dismissing the need to talk about race at all, or from people accusing you of choosing a side to identify more with.
According to National Statistics, mixed race people will be the largest minority group in the UK by 2020…and while it might still be in vogue to favour racially ambiguous beauty (literally in the case of Adua Aboa), very little attention is paid to the experience behind the curly hair and tanned skin.
Being mixed race is far more than simply being half black and white. It’s an identity that covers all fractions, and all kinds of mixes.
Which is why Susan Day has set up the Haluhalo Project.
It’s an online photography series born, she says, out of frustration at the lack of public… Read the full story
Attention, M&Ms fans: A Crispy M&Ms chocolate spread is here and it’s the stuff of dreams.
Seriously, put down the Nutella, because it’s basically been revamped.
The M&Ms Choc Spread with Crispy Pieces is a chocolate hazelnut flavoured spread which comes filled with coloured crispy balls.
The jar was first discovered by Instagram’s @ProductsInStore, who found the spread while on a shopping trip to Asda, where it’s currently being sold.
Everyone knows the dread of someone getting out the Monopoly board for hours of ‘fun’.
We use the term ‘fun’ loosely because come on, we all know it ends in fights over who can secure a hotel on Mayfair or Park Lane first.
But now, Hasbro, the company behind the famous board game, is releasing a cheaters edition for anyone who gets bored of losing every time they pass ‘Go’.
So, here’s how it works.
Within the game, there will be 15 cheat cards. During any point in the game, five cheat cards will be placed in the middle of the board… Read the full story
Attention, Jaffa Cake fanatics: Tesco is practically giving your favourite sweet treat away, by selling giant boxes of the cakes (not biscuits) away for £3.50.
The giant boxes contain 100 Jaffa Cakes, and are being sold in store and online.
Just to give you an idea as to how great the deal really is: a 10-pack of the cakes costs £1 in Tesco, which is 10p per Jaffa Cake.
So basically, if you were to buy ten packets of these to get 100 Jaffa Cakes, you’d be paying a tenner. It’s absurd, we know.
However, Tesco’s massive deal works out as it costing… Read the full story
There are domestic cats (sweet, adorable, loyal, clever). There are wild cats (cute but quite fearsome).
Then there are Manul cats – an endangered wild species that tend to be found in the savannas and montane steppes of Central Asia.
And these little furry kitties are possibly the most hilarious creatures in the animal world.
They’ve got massive round eyes, tiny little legs and a plate-like face which is capable of the maddest expressions.
No matter what they’re doing, they’ve got some crazed look to go with it.
Sadly, it’s not all banter and laughs for the Manul cat. They’ve got really poor immune systems thanks to their high-altitude habitats, which… Read the full story
Ever finish a burger and think, ‘I could eat another of those’?
It’s not the ideal feeling is it? But then, neither is feeling so full you think your heart’s about to stop – which is a feeling you’ll definitely experience if you take on this hectic 3kg burger food challenge.
The incredibly heavy burger consists of six patties, each injected with a different cheese.
Some of the cheeses that have been syringed into the patties include Stilton, Monterey Jack, Red Leicester and jalapeno cheddar.
Layered between the patties, you’ll find even more meat – there’s a hot dog sausage,… Read the full story
Well, this is a black day for the self-pleasuring community.
This morning we learned that, from April 2018, every time UK citizens fancy a sly tug they’ll need a note from Theresa May.
Alright, I’m exaggerating somewhat.
But still, the firm behind such wildly popular online jizz-receptacles as Pornhub, YouPorn and RedTube will require you to surrender personal details like your name, address and passport number.
This is in response to new government legislation, aimed at tightening age-restrictions for online… Read the full story
You have sorted out your CV, chosen what you’re going to wear – and are probably overthinking all the questions that might be asked.
Job interviews are a necessary evil to help you land that dream job (or at least set you on the career path towards it).
It can be a nerve wracking time so here are a few hacks which should make the whole day go a little easier.
Business leaders have given their advice on simple things you can do which will hopefully help you to relax and perhaps help you get the job.
Benedicta Banga, Career coach
‘Bring some evidence… Read the full story
I’ve been vegetarian for 11 years and first gave veganism a go four years ago.
It wasn’t even about the ethics – I was blissfully ignorant of how unfair the dairy industry is – I was at the end of my tether with adult acne, and I’d heard that cutting out dairy products could help, as it eliminates unnecessary extra hormones from your diet.
So, I gave it a go. I had a vegan pal at work who helped me along, and was given books to read which enlightened me to… Read the full story
Imbolc is all about hoping for success in the farming season – and wishing for a fertile year ahead.
It is one of the four key festivals in the Celtic calendar – the others being Beltane, Lughnasadh and Samhain – and traditionally falls when winter stores of food were beginning to get low mid-winter and halfway between the shortest day and the spring equinox.
It’s commonly held on February 1.
The festival has its origins in paganism but it is… Read the full story
Today is Imbolc, the festival celebrating spring and new life.
The festival is in both the Pagan and Christian calendar (known as Candlemas for Christians) and is all about looking to the future and new beginnings.
Those marking the festival typically do so by having a spring clean, decorating their altar or mantlepiece with snowdrops, swan feathers and candles as well as making a traditional Brigid’s cross or Bridey doll.
The Brigid’s cross is typically made from reeds with four arms… Read the full story
It’s Time To Talk Day, and we’re thinking about conversations we could be having about mental health.
The event – now in its fifth year – is spearheaded by Time To Change, a social movement run by charities Mind and Rethink Mental Illness.
Talking about mental health is a good idea at just about any time of the year – so Time To Talk Day isn’t a one-off. Instead, it’s supposed to kickstart a whole new wave of discussions we… Read the full story
For many people, just the idea of talking about mental health can make us feel out of our depth.
Do we know enough about it? What if we say the wrong thing? What if we cause upset?
Of course, in reality, having an open conversation about mental health is much more straightforward. You don’t need a PhD in Psychology to support a friend or loved one.
Listening is the key skill needed,… Read the full story
Many of us know that the hardest part of attending the gym is actually signing up for it. Seriously, it takes a lot to muster the strength to commit yourself to working out on the regular.
The not so hard part? Deciding not to go.
Well, except if you’re this one guy, who actually wrote a break up letter to his gym after moving away.
Reddit user MastrrBasser was a member of Planet Fitness gym. However, after moving to a different state he was forced to cancel the membership.
Unfortunately, contracts with Planet Fitness are pretty hard to get out of.… Read the full story
Nickelodeon fans, rejoice: Your favourite kids channel has just released its very own eye shadow palette – and it looks amazing.
Yes, the TV channel, aka the home of all of our favourite 90s shows, has launched an eye shadow palette which comes in the shape of a VHS cassette tape, just for extra nostalgia.
The palette also comes decorated with all of your favourite 90s TV characters, including Rugrats, Rocko’s Modern Life, Ren & Stimpy, CatDog and Hey Arnold!’s Helga.
When Queenie Sweet was 16, she suffered a skin reaction that left her broken out in painful spots.
It took doctors a year to finally diagnose her with chronic spontaneous urticaria, also known as hives, a skin condition that causes red or white itchy welts that appear and fade repeatedly over the course of a reaction.
When Queenie is suffering with a flare up, it feels like her skin is on fire, or being bitten by hundreds of mosquitos.
She has to avoid hot showers and alcohol so she doesn’t spark another burning, itching reaction.
‘The first time I had a reaction it was terrifying,’ says the 19-year-old from Exeter, Devon.
