Vegan cheese has become a bit like Marmite: you either love it or hate it.
For those on a plant-based diet, the few options available can be a bit hit or miss.
Thankfully though, Morrisons is here to provide a tasty alternative. They’re launching vegan mozzarella dippers, and thus changing the meaning of ethical party food – so you won’t have to just stick to hummus and carrots.
The move comes after the retailer’s researcg revealed vegans miss cheese the most. To satisfy their appetite, Morrisons created its own line of dippers, called V Taste No-Moozarella Sticks.
The ‘cheese’ in the product is made from a mixture of coconut oil and potato starch, coated in a crispy parsley breadcrumb and cooked until golden.
(Picture: Morrisons)
Sold in packs of eight, the No-Moozarella Sticks are available now in the majority of Morrisons stores, costing £2.50.
‘We know a lot of our vegan customers really miss cheese and that their options are often limited at family buffets,’ said Morrisons Party Food Buyer, Oliver Smith.
‘This is why we’ve taken a classic cheesy party food that everyone knows and loves and made it vegan.’
The ‘cheese’ dippers join a number of vegan products sold at the supermarket as part of their V Taste range.
You can also get meals such as mushroom bolognese, chili ‘non-carne’, curry, sweet potato nut cutlets, katsu curry melts, teriyaki mushroom noodles, plant-based burgers, sausages, and ‘veggies in blankets’.
Never has a dog deserved the name Trooper more than this little guy.
The pup was abandoned at a park in Hamilton, Ohio, and accidentally wandered over train tracks when disaster struck.
Trooper, as he is now named, lost his hind legs and tail – which were amputated by the train. He also riptured one of his eyes, which eventually had to be surgically removed.
He was saved by the Animal Friends Humane Society and, thankfully, survived the horrendous ordeal.
‘The train amputated both of his back legs, as well as his tail. He also had a ruptured eye due to the train’s impact on his tiny body,’ Tara Bowser, executive director of the organisation, told PEOPLE.
‘Trooper was hospitalized immediately at an emergency vet clinic.
‘He required surgery to further amputate both back legs and tail, this way the surgeons could clean up the area and have enough skin to suture. His left eye was also removed since it was damaged beyond repair.’
(Picture: Animal Friends Humane Society)
(Picture: Animal Friends Humane Society)
Despite his extensive injuries and brutal start to life, Trooper bounced back like the, eh, trooper that he is.
During recovery, he remained curious and was still up for ‘kisses and cuddles’ from the team.
Less than a month after his accident, Trooper was fitted for a doggy wheelchair and thanks to his upbeat attitude and can-do spirit, is already getting adjusted to his new set of wheels.
Animal Friends Human Society shared the pup’s progress on Facebook, and soon after he healed, Trooper was adopted and given a forever home – further evidence to that it’s better to adopt, not shop.
The new owners have been properly vetted to ensure Trooper won’t have to suffer any more pain; the post states they have ‘experience with disabled animals and someone will be home with him at all times to give him the care he needs’.
(Picture: Animal Friends Humane Society)
(Picture: Animal Friends Humane Society)
Pleading to budding dog owners, Bowser said: ‘Please be more responsible with pets.
‘If you don’t have the means to properly care for an animal, then don’t get one.
‘If you have an animal and can no longer care for it, do the responsible thing and find it another home or surrender it to a shelter that will take care of it.
‘Turning an animal loose to fend for itself is never the answer.’
(Picture: Michael Gibson/Paramount/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock)
It’s Wednesday so if you know it is the day to wear pink, you might be a Mean Girls fan.
The good news for you is that a whole festival dedicated to Regina, Gretchen, Karen and Cady is coming the London.
The Mean Girls: The Movie and More event has been launched by the same people who brought us Friends Fest to celebrate the film, which was released 15 years ago.
It runs from 12-16 June, from 6.30pm-11pm, but tickets are on sale now. Unfortunately the limit does exist in this case so get your tickets fast.
The event, held at Seymour Leisure Centre in Marylebone, West London, will include food and drink inspired by the film, exclusive Mean Girls-themed photo ops, a screening of the movie on a giant high definition screen and the chance to attend your very own Spring Fling.
As Cady said, there’s going to be a few cool people there and you better be one of them, biatch.
(Picture: Michael Gibson/Paramount/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock)
A post on the Facebook event says: ‘Calling all Freshmen, ROTC Guys, Preps, JV Jocks, Asian Nerds, Cool Asians, Varsity Jocks, Unfriendly Black Hotties, Girls Who Eat Their Feelings, Girls Who Don’t Eat Anything, Desperate Wannabes, Burnouts and Sexually Active Band Geeks!
‘We’re throwing a Mean Girls party in London from 12th – 16th June and you can totally sit with us.
‘It’s going to be SO FETCH!’
Tickets (for over 18s only) costs £25 with a £2.50 booking fee.
Attendees are encouraged to dress up as their favourite character so get in loser, we’re going shopping.
Kelly Marsh, 31, didn’t recognised herself when her face doubled in size seven months ago.
The mum-of-one from Canvey, Essex, has been diagnosed with chronic spontaneous urticaria, a disease that causes her to have an allergic reaction – without a known cause.
It starts as a small rash, but soon develops into larger areas and makes her lips, eyes and face swell up.
Kelly said the condition is so bad, it scares her 10-year-old son, Jack, and makes her look like she’s had ‘dodgy lip fillers’.
And when the itching and burning pain comes on, she’s unable to work.
‘I don’t even know myself what causes it, but it’s affecting everything, it’s like I’m a prisoner in my own skin,’ said Kelly, who works as a make-up artist business manager.
‘I literally can’t find anything, I changed the washing powder to Fairy Non Bio, went on a diet of bland food but what causes a reaction one day isn’t the same the next.’
(Picture: Kelly Marsh/Caters News)
‘It’s hard to explain without bursting into tears, you just sit here itching and burning, unable to go anywhere, to eat or even sleep – I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy. I take a lot of pride in how I look, especially for my job, I need to look nice and I worry it’s affecting my relationship.
‘I don’t feel like I’m attractive to my other half, even though he tells me it hasn’t affected him at all.
‘To get through it, we try to make jokes when my face swells up, we say it looks like I’ve had a “glorious lip job that’s gone wrong” or “dodgy plastic surgery”.
‘It’s the only thing you can do – you either laugh about it or cry.
‘It’s honestly awful and embarrassing having to call in sick so often, people struggle to understand why doctors can’t just cure it.
‘The antihistamines make me so drowsy that when I take them I sleep for half of the day and then can’t sleep at night – it just takes everything out of you.’
(Picture: Kelly Marsh/Caters News)
(Picture: Kelly Marsh/Caters News)
Since her initial reaction, Kelly has tried to fix it by avoiding shampoos, perfumes and washing powders, as well as change her diet to basic ingredients such as rice, vegetables and plain chicken, but it’s made no difference.
The reaction can last up to two months and every time it happens she has to visit the hospital for steroid treatment and an IV of antihistamines, and gets medicines to take at home.
Kelly said: ‘The first time it happened, I had a couple of blotches on my arms and legs but didn’t think anything of it, the next day I woke up unable to recognise myself.
‘Suddenly my lips, my eyes and whole face had swollen up, I sent a picture to my manager to explain why I couldn’t come into work and she asked: “Who is that?”
‘My lips were huge, I looked like I had dodgy lip fillers, it didn’t look like me at all.
‘After it went down in a couple of days thanks to antihistamines, I didn’t think anything more of it, but then in December it came back with vengeance.’
(Picture: Kelly Marsh/Caters News)
In December, the blotches appeared for the second time, which saw Kelly hospitalised on Boxing Day and given an EpiPen as a prevention, should her throat begin to close.
Unfortunately, she was told that the next appointment to review her condition on the NHS is in June, and so Kelly decided to pay £200 for a private health care session, where she was diagnosed and given medication.
She hopes to soon receive an expensive injection to treat her condition, taken yearly, and is keeping a diary of her symptoms.
Kelly said: ‘I was in a raw state every day from itching, with my skin completely raw, nothing helped other than taking a freezing cold bath.
‘I tried everything I could from not washing my hair with shampoos, avoiding perfumes, scents and altering my diets. I’m worried I’ll run out of sick pay soon and am about not being able to afford our mortgage.
‘I knew others had to be suffering out there too and it shocked me how many there were.
‘Some people have had it for 25 years, I don’t want to deal with it for that long.’
Halal food is in high demand for Muslims around the world.
In case you’re not aware, halal food is meat that has been killed according to Islamic law, and also includes non-alcoholic drinks and grub.
There aren’t many festivals to celebrate the special cuisine so Halal Gems, a food discovery platform, is bringing back its annual event.
The festival, Street Eats, is bringing back some of their favourites from last year plus new traders including everything from the best in Venezuelan cuisine and hot dogs to the best jollof rice in town.
And the best part? Entrance to the three-day event is just £1.
And while you’re chomping down on burgers, wings, and all kinds of delish desserts, you’ll have plenty of entertainment.
A line up of talented spoken word artists will lead poetry night, a screening of Netflix show Chef’s Table will be aired, and a live interview with Darjeeling Express restaurant’s Asma Khan.
Sign us up (Picture: Halal Gems)
What food can you expect?
Vendors include:
Oli Baba’s famous halloumi fries
Double stacked burgers and macaroni lollies by Band of Burgers
Ginger-beer battered fried chicken by Only Jerkin
Afro-Fusion boxes with Bengali and Nigerian spices by Cally Munchy
Beef rendang by Makatcha
Vegan Ethiopian food by Merkamo
Persian ice cream including baklava ice cream
Venezuelan hot dogs and pulled beef arepas
For three days Street Eats will be taking over the iconic Old Spitalfields Market, in east London during Easter weekend.
On the first day, Jummah prayers will be led on Friday with a ‘Soul Session’ after, to talk about current Muslim issues and topics.
(Picture: Halal Gems)
It aims to be an inclusive space for all and organisers are giving away money for folks who may not otherwise be able to afford it (all you have to do is follow the Instagram page)
Attendees can also make charitable donations to the Sufra Food Bank and Kitchen.
Those with the £1 wristband will be charged a premium on each transaction at Street Eats stalls. If you don’t have the wristband you can still enter but will have to pay a premium on each transaction.
(Picture: Halal Gems)
Wristband holders will also benefit from priority access during peak times. Children under 16 years old do not need a ticket.
The festival runs from 12 pm on 19 April to 21 April. You can buy tickets here.
Ana says there’s no other reason for not shaving than she doesn’t want to (Picture: Caters News)
A student who stopped shaving her legs four months ago has been trolled online after showing off her hairy legs.
Ana Calatayud Perez-Manglano, 24, stopped shaving in November last year because she no longer wanted to – and said she will only start again when she feels like it.
But after uploading a viral video of her legs covered in thick, dark hair to social media, the fine arts student, from Valencia, Spain, was stunned to be hit by a barrage of sexist comments.
Ana claims she received dozens of messages from trolls telling her ‘you haven’t had sex in a long time’ or ‘I would break up with my girlfriend if she looked like this’.
Ana said: ‘I was just lazy and didn’t want to shave – I don’t have any complex, I don’t really care what people say.
‘I am not ashamed of having hairy legs – women are like this, hairy and we choose to shave or not if we don’t want to.
‘It has nothing to do with feminism or trying to make a point – I just didn’t want to.
(Picture: Caters News)
‘I am tired of having to shave because I’m obliged to by society, and I won’t do so until I feel like it.
‘Since stopping in November I haven’t shaved to this day and I don’t know when I will.’
Ana said she was surprised to see a lot of people reacted to her video, which racked up more than 9,000 shares to date.
She said while she is single, it has nothing to do with her body hair.
Other trolls called her ‘horrible and disgusting’ while one said ‘if you don’t want to have sex, just say it’.
Among the hate Ana did receive some positive comments from women who wanted to thank her for making hairy legs less of a taboo.
(Picture: Caters News)
‘I am single right now, but I have never had a problem with my ex-boyfriends,’ she says.
‘No man has ever made me shave my legs because they thought I was dirty or gross.
‘The worst comment I’ve received was from someone who told me I suffered from depression and I had low self-esteem because I stopped shaving.
‘I can’t believe I was diagnosed by a random person on the internet – it’s unbelievable.
‘I told him I suppose it would be the same for him and his beard.
‘I have to say there were a lot of people who messaged me to say ‘thank you’ or just to support me and that’s what I am going to keep from all this.’
We’re always being told to drink more water – but is it possible to overhydrate? How much water is too much? And what happens if you down bottles of the stuff?
No, you still probably aren’t drinking enough water, and no, you definitely shouldn’t ditch that massive carafe on your desk out of fear you could drown your insides.
The general rule is pretty simple: drink water when you feel like it, and if you feel like you’re drinking too much, take a break.
How much water to drink
You’ve likely been told to drink six to eight glasses of water a day. While some have suggested that this is a made up figure plucked out of thin air, the NHS does say this is a good amount to aim for.
‘Our body needs water or other fluids to work properly and to avoid dehydration,’ says the official NHS guidance. ‘That’s why it’s important to drink enough fluids.
‘In climates such as the UK’s, we should drink about 1.2 litres (six to eight glasses) of fluid every day to stop us getting dehydrated. In hotter climates, the body needs more than this. We also get some fluid from the food we eat.’
Here’s a handy thing about the human body: it has a solid system for regulating how much water to drink.
When your body’s water content drops, you’ll feel thirsty. When you feel thirsty, you should drink some water.
Some people find it beneficial to sip throughout the day to preempt feelings of thirst, but whether you do this is a personal choice. Trust your body, aim for six to eight glasses, and you should be golden.
Additional water will need to be consumed if you’re exercising, sweating a lot, or are poorly and at risk of dehydration.
How much water is too much?
It’s tricky to drink too much water without realising, as this would require ignoring your body’s signals to stop downing the stuff.
But it is possible to drink too much – and this is normally to do with drinking water too quickly in a short period of time.
Dr. Imogen Bexfield, Doctor and Medical Director at White Swan Aesthetics, tells Metro.co.uk: ‘It’s not so much about the total amount you would consume throughout an entire day but more about the the amount you drink per hour.
‘Drinking too much water in a short period overwhelms your kidneys so they can’t process and eliminate the water fast enough which drives your blood levels of sodium too low.
(Picture: Getty)
‘If you aren’t sure about how much is “too much” listen to your body – it will tell you if you need to hydrate.
‘It’s also good to keep an eye on the colour of your pee as this can be an indication of over-hydration. Your pee should be a pale yellow colour—if it’s darker than that, drink some water, and if it’s lighter, hold off until you feel thirsty again.
‘Though it’s not as common as dehydration, it is possible to drink too much fluid. Over-hydration can happen when you take in more water than your body can process and get rid of, and it can lead to serious problems.’
Your kidney is able to eliminate around 28 litres of water a day (which is likely more than you’re drinking), but this amount has to be drunk over the course of a full day. Your body isn’t able to get rid of more than a litre of water per hour.
This suggests that as a general rule, drinking more than a litre of water an hour is ‘too much’. It’s far better to spread your water intake throughout the day than chugging down a massive bottle in one go.
What happens if you drink too much water?
Imogen explains: ‘Watering down your blood can make it harder to carry nutrients, send brain signals and control the muscles in your body.’
‘If you consume too much in too short period, over hydration can become a serious issue and you could be at risk of hyponatremia.
‘This is when the sodium in your body becomes weaker and less effective, when this happens, it increases your body’s water levels, as a result your cells to begin to swell.
‘Although very rare, hyponatremia can cause muscle weakness, cramps, and seizures.’
The effects of hyponatremia can be lethal.
Excess water can cause brain cells to swell, increasing the pressure inside the skull. At first this can cause headaches and nausea, then confusion, difficulty breathing, and muscle weakness.
In severe cases, excess fluid can affect the central nervous system, leading to seizures, brain damage, coma, and even death.
As we mentioned, though, hyponatremia is rare, and it would be difficult to overhydrate without realising.
Listen to your body. When you’re thirsty, drink water, when you’re not, stop, and make sure to keep a bottle with you if you’re planning to sweat. Easy.
I have all my support networks already so why am I feeling this way? (Picture: Ella Byworth for Metro.co.uk)
Welcome to Lean On Me – a weekly agony aunt style column from Metro.co.uk where Kate Leaver answers your friendship woes.
Dear Kate,
There has been a lot of conversation about female friendships, which is amazing, but the flip side is that I feel a bit sad and lonely for not having the can-call-all-hours, intense, wonderful friendships that are often being described.
I’m at an age where people are in the thick of their early career, busy, often in relationships (which I am too) and there just isn’t time for anything else, which means I often feel down about my female friendships.
There isn’t someone I can text on a Friday afternoon for drinks that night, for example.
I guess my problem is that I have friends but still feel lonely. It feels different to moving to a new place, for example, and being forced to make new friends in order to have a social circle.
I have all my support networks already so why am I feeling this way?
Tanya, 26
The grim reality is that loneliness, to a certain extent, is an inevitable human experience (Picture: Ella Byworth/ Metro.co.uk)
Dear Tanya,
Please hear me when I say this: you are not the only person feeling this way.
Perhaps the cruelest trick loneliness has in its arsenal is convincing you that you’re alone. But it’s simply not true: there is a secret solidarity between every person who feels this way.
I’ve spoken to countless people about the very thing you’re describing, so please, if it’s a comfort, know that what you’re feeling is utterly normal.
It doesn’t stop it from hurting, but it might minimise the panic a little, or quieten the voice in your head telling you that somehow it’s your fault.
The grim reality is that loneliness, to a certain extent, is an inevitable human experience.
It’s a nasty, pernicious thing, and it can strike at any time, even in the presence of our loveliest friends and even when we know we have a support network around us.
It’s entirely possible to feel lonely in a crowded room, at a party or inside a relationship.
I cherish my friends with all my heart and I’m lucky to have them, but that doesn’t inoculate me. I feel alone in the world sometimes, too, and I don’t always know what to do about it.
My best advice is as follows. Do not compare yourself to other women and their ‘call-at-all-hours’ friendships, as they appear on social media or in pop culture.
Do not wait for the Rachel to your Monica, because she may not turn up.
It will only make you feel smaller, and less shiny. You know that an infinite stream of Instagram stories showing the perfect friendship group isn’t all that it seems.
Those women you see clinging to each other on nights out, celebrating each other and hosting picture-perfect dinner parties? They go home and feel alone sometimes, too.
They’re flawed, they’re messy, they get sad. They let each other down sometimes, they clash, they misunderstand each other.
They definitely sometimes forget how important they are to one another and put their careers, their partners or their kids first. It’s just how things work, lovely Tanya. We are, none of us, members of the shiny, perfect girl gang you’re imagining.
Don’t wait for your perfect clique to form, because it may not.
The TV show Friends has done us a disservice in that regard, making us think we are all owed the perfect five friends who meet up for coffee before, during and after work days.
Friendship doesn’t operate as seamlessly as that: you have to work at it, you have to cobble together the people you care about, you have to manage different pockets of friends.
Do not wait for the Rachel to your Monica, because she may not turn up. Most of us have a mishmash of friends from different parts of our lives and we do our best to see them when we can; that’s all we can do.
Next, I think you need to do a little friendship audit.
Have a look at the people you choose to spend your time with and ask yourself: do all these people belong in my life?
Sometimes loneliness comes to us when we’re keeping shallow, superficial friendships in our lives. It sneaks in, while we’re doing small talk with someone who doesn’t really matter to us.
If you’re not connecting properly to the friends in your life, then of course you’re going to feel a bit lost and empty.
Try having some meaningful catch ups with people you cherish. Ask good, curious questions – beyond the usual work, holidays, babies chat.
See if you can really revive some of your friendships and get back to what you adored about these people in the first place.
Spend quality time with the friends you do have, even if it’s not a cohesive group, and see if you can’t remind yourself of what you already have.
If that doesn’t help and you’re still feeling lonely in your friendships, it might be time to pretend you’ve just moved to a new city and launch a new friends campaign.
You’re still young; you have so many years ahead of you to make beautiful friendships.
Maybe you could start by getting closer to someone you like at work. Maybe you will meet someone new and click with them deliberately and consciously, in a way that diminishes this loneliness feeling.
Maybe you could join a book club or a netball team and get yourself a ready-made group you can feel like you belong to.
Do what you can to make yourself feel connected to other human beings and see if it helps.
The best available cure for loneliness is proper human connection. But even then, even for the friendliest and luckiest among us, it’s still possible to feel lonely.
Know that, let it make you strong, allow it to exist in your life. Hope you feel better soon, Tanya.
Last week on Lean On Me: All my friends talk about these days is their kids. How can I tell them I feel left out?
About Lean On Me
Kate Leaver is the author of The Friendship Cure and she will be answering your friendship woes in her weekly Metro.co.uk column.
If you’d like to submit a question or problem, email LeanOnMe@metro.co.uk with ‘Lean on me’ in the subject line.
Submissions are anonymous and you can follow the discussion on Twitter #LeanOnMe.
But for some of us dealing with a hangover, a morning cheeseburger sounds far better than any McMuffin.
Both camps can rejoice over this simple hack that allows you to combine the best bit of a McDonald’s breakfast with the comfort of their standard lunch or dinner options.
Behold: A way to get a hash brown nestled inside a burger of your choosing.
It really is a very easy trick.
Just get to McDonald’s at 10.30am on the dot, when the menu is switching from breakfast to lunch, and ask for a hash brown in your burger. It’s that easy.
(Picture: Reddit/iblametheparents86)
If staff at your local McDonald’s are sticklers for the rules and won’t let you order a breakfast item and a regular meal item at the same time, there’s a way to work around the official timings.
Order your hash browns at 10.29am, then get back in the queue for 10.31am to order your burger. You’ll have to assemble your creation yourself, but we reckon it’s worth the effort.
The hack was brought to our attention over on Reddit, where the poster has been called a ‘hero’.
Over in Australia and the US, not everyone will need to play with the system to get a breakfast burger mashup, as some branches offer all-day breakfast. What a dream.
Of course, there’s always an option free of McDonald’s strict restrictions: Make your own hash brown burger. Yes, that does require more effort than ordering in or sending your mum to the drive thru, but you don’t have to wake up before 10.30am to enjoy a delicious treat. You can wake up whenever you want. What a dream.
I can’t remember the first time I was called ‘ginger’, but that might be because, as a kid, I lived in complete denial.
It wasn’t until I got to 18, and the school ground bullying subsided, that I started to feel comfortable in my own skin.
Now, I wish my hair was more ginger.
I choose my clothing in ways to not only complement my hair colour, but to also clash with the red – the louder the better.
I went from blonde to brunette but the names kept coming (Picture: Susannah Ireland/Metro.co.uk)
I spent so long trying to melt into the background. In school I thought hair dye was the answer to all of my problems and I went from blonde to brunette, but the names kept coming.
I’m now making up for lost time. Yes, sunscreen is a large part of my life, but I’ll take the good with the bad.
Eventually I wanted to talk about it all, my company Ginger Parrot was born and now I’m advocating ginger pride on a global scale.
I spent so long as a teen stressing about my hair being ginger but I now wish it was actually more ginger (Picture: Susannah Ireland/Metro.co.uk)
I want redheads of all ages to realise as early as possible how freaking cool their ginger hair is, and to be empowered by their own genetic rarity.
In her youth, my nan had bright red hair and was known as ‘fire bucket.’ She now has a silvery-white shade, but we have bonded over our hair and how proud we are to be redheads.
People sometimes ask whether talking about ginger pride and redhead bullying could actually make the abuse worse, but I wholeheartedly disagree.
Yes, like many redheads, I sometimes feel that ginger hair actually acts a beacon, alerting bullies to vulnerabilities and otherness, but if you own what you have and show everyone that you love it rather than feel ashamed of it, it can no longer be used as a weapon.
Yes, sunscreen is a large part of my life, but I’ll take the good with the bad (Picture: Susannah Ireland/Metro.co.uk)
I truly feel that if I had owned my hair when I was younger, the bullying wouldn’t have got to me so much.
I understand, however, that when someone says to you, ‘Oh well, you’re ginger so you can shut up,’ there’s not much you can say back.
Pointing out someone else’s differences is such a weak and cowardly way to make yourself seem better, but it usually works, and that’s why the behaviour continues to happen.
Ironically, the person who bullied me most was also a ginger girl.
It wasn’t until I went to university that I realised the brilliance of my hair.
Having red hair has given me licence to be whatever I want to be (Picture: Susannah Ireland/Metro.co.uk)
I met so many interesting people who all had fascinating stories of travel and excitement away from school.
Suddenly, being able to stand out from the crowd was incredibly cool. I looked in the mirror and thought, ‘hang on, I’m different without even trying – that’s pretty handy.’
After being told I was ugly as a child, people were now saying it made me a ‘siren’.
Standing out from the crowd isn’t considered a positive thing when you’re younger, following the herd is far more appealing.
But when I did stand out, it was amazing.
I’ve come to realise that having red hair has given me licence to be whatever I want to be: outspoken, kind, friendly, understanding, quirky and more.
Fiery is also on that list, which is a stereotype I get quite a lot.
Mostly I’m passionate about standing up for others, and maybe that does come from my own experiences as a redhead. I don’t believe anyone should ever feel like they’re worth less than anyone else.
Emma Kelly is the founder and editor of Ginger Parrot, a place for redheads to read about fashion, music, beauty, film and celebrity news.
Labels
Labels is an exclusive series that hears from individuals who have been labelled – whether that be by society, a job title, or a diagnosis. Throughout the project, writers will share how having these words ascribed to them shaped their identity — positively or negatively — and what the label means to them.
Our new weekly series, How I Save, takes a look at how people are spending and saving their hard-earned cash.
Why? Because we’re all pretty rubbish when it comes to talking about money. That can get us into some dire situations, from poor pay (it’s tough to know if your salary is fair if no one will share what they get paid) to secret spirals of debt.
We want to take apart our collective awkwardness to talk about money and get everyone feeling a bit more comfortable managing their finances.
Each week we’ll be asking someone to share what they earn, how much they have saved, and how they’re spending their cash. They will be anonymous, because we’ve learned that people can get pretty vicious when finances are shared online, and at the end they’ll get some expert budgeting advice that – hopefully – we can all learn from.
I earn £36,000 a year. In my savings account right now I have £7,292.01 on the dot.
I’m saving for a rainy day (read: anything that may require money) and the hope I one day may get to buy a house. The boyfriend is keen to put a deposit down one day and he’s a king saver, so he’s great inspiration to not spend on sh*t.
I now chop my salary into rent/savings/Monzo (which is what I use to spend a monthly budget). I just used to whack my whole paycheque into savings and transfer to my spending account when needed. Weirdly hard to keep track of spending and make any solid savings, who would have thunk it?
I’m really bad at sticking to a plan of not spending. Sounds silly, but things like spending a bunch on food to meal prep and buying my breakfast/lunch anyway; spending on Ubers I don’t need because I’d rather stay in bed 15 minutes longer. The usual.
Also, do you know how expensive the Tube is? London is f***ing pricey.
(Picture: Ella Byworth for Metro.co.uk)
How Emily spends:
Monthly expenses: Rent and bills £800, I’m lucky to be able to tag along on on my boyfriend’s health insurance so I throw £20 towards that, TV license is under my name so that’s £30. Phone bill goes anywhere between £18 and £70 (the £70 was when I had to call home overseas for a few admin things and was put on hold. Now I’m trying really hard to keep it to its monthly £18).
Monthly income: £2,183.00
Weekly spending
Monday: Tesco £82.09: Every few weeks my boyfriend and I order a massive Tesco delivery which keeps us going for dinners and lunches.
Tube £1.50. I’m lucky to live close to work so I can walk part of the way or all of the way sometimes, so tube prices for me are quite up and down, as you’ll see.
Dinner with boyfriend and his sister – we had a discount voucher so that’s cool. My share was £13.52.
Amazon Prime: £7.99.
Overdraft interest: £0.17. This is small but didn’t realise I’d gone into my overdraft so that’s annoying.
Tuesday: Tube to and from work: £7
Scrambled eggs and toast from the work canteen (subsidised so cheaper than the high street): £2.40
Lunch frittata in same work canteen: £2
Coffee because I was too lazy to make instant at my desk: £1.60
Nachos at the movies: £5.50. I didn’t pay for the movie, so I felt like I deserved to spend on something at the candy bar.
Wednesday: Breakfast at work (eggs again): £2
Lunch baguette in canteen: £3.10
Tube to work: £4.80
Thursday: Breakfast (yep, eggs): £2.30
Tube: £7
Marks And Spencer curry for lunch: £6
ATM: £5. I wanted gum and a bottle of water – card minimum was £5 but it was a free ATM…
Friday: Netflix: £8.52 – it’s a really random figure because I made my account while overseas and I haven’t converted it to a UK account yet – and £0.23 international transaction fee.
Tube/Overground: £7
Marks and Spencer: £1.50. I bought beef jerky while I waited for the train.
Wine: £19.50. A frankly disgusting price for a bottle of wine – it wasn’t even a bottle, it was a 500ml carafe – but boyfriend and I had a lot of time to kill before going to a mate’s before dinner. He paid me back half, so technically I only paid £9.75.
Uber home from mate’s house at 3am (so definitely not getting the Tube): £27.65. Again, I got half back, so technically £13.82.
Saturday: Tube: £7
Takeaway dinner from this place that makes fancy ready-made meals (fish pie for 2, if you were wondering): £8.75
Tesco run because I wanted something sweet for dessert: £2.25
Sunday: Uber £7.80
Breakfast (you guessed it, eggs…I did bring eggs from home one of the days I promise): £2.10
Total spend this week: £231.12
How Emily could save:
We spoke to the experts over at money advice app Cleo to find out how Emily could boost her saving (not that she needs to). Here’s their advice:
It’s hard to rip into you when you’re spending most of your salary on sensible life choices and eggs.
Main vice:
Emily, you don’t have one, and you’re basically making everyone else look bad.
Advice to readers: siphoning a portion of your salary off onto another card is a good shout for both diligent and completely haphazard savers.
This, and surrounding yourself with the type of friends who probably use ‘Monzo me’ as a verb and always pay you back in a timely fashion.
In short, you’re ticking all the boxes. Big weekly shop, splitting bills, taking buses. All great stuff.
If pushed, I could apply mild judgement at your Ubers, but it only stacks out at around £20 a week. As guilty spends go, it’s meagre at best.
Here’s your spending plan:
Safe to save: £500 a month. Move this lump sum at the start of every month and lock it down somewhere with a decent interest rate. Leave it alone. You can do it.
Safe to spend: £21 a day / £150 a week / £600 a month. This covers your big shops, transport, pub nights, and the odd takeaway (and as many eggs as you can physically eat).
Safe to burn: £50 a week / £200 a month. I can see a suspicious Amazon Prime subscription that makes me think you’re hiding things from me…
This portion is for the larger online spends, clothes, one off buys etc. I’ve factored in your Ubers here, so if you cut Uber out completely, you can unlock the full £200 a month.
Conclusion:
Stick to this diligently and you can add £6k to your savings in a year. I don’t know who your boyfriend is but I, personally, am feeling competitive.
Good news is that even if you sort of half follow it, you’ll still significantly add to your rainy day fund.
Nice one.
If you’d like to anonymously share how you spend and save – and get some expert advice on how to sort out your finances – get in touch by emailing ellen.scott@metro.co.uk.
Even standing next to a tree can have the desired effect (Picture: Getty)
It’s no secret that walking is good for us.
All the public health advice is geared towards upping our daily step counts, shunning public transport for a few minutes of extra walking, and taking the stairs wherever possible.
It’s good for the body, great for the environment and it’s a gentle way to build some light cardio into your daily activities.
But new research suggests that daily walking could actually be incredibly beneficial for your mind – particularly if you can do it in a nice, leafy location.
Scientists have discovered that spending between 20-30 minutes amongst nature could cut levels of the stress hormone, cortisol, by about 10%.
Spending more time in nature will continue to have benefits to your wellbeing, but at a much slower rate – so that first 20 minutes is the most effective.
But if you live in a city, daily excursions to the countryside aren’t really feasible. And concrete jungles definitely don’t count as nature. But the study authors say there is a simple solution.
They claim that you don’t need to be fully immersed in nature to feel the effects. Leaving your office and finding a patch of grass, or even just a tree, will do the trick.
Stress can be incredibly damaging on the body (Picture: Getty)
‘Our study shows that for the greatest payoff, in terms of efficiently lowering levels of the stress hormone, cortisol, you should spend 20 to 30 minutes sitting or walking in a place that provides you with a sense of nature,’ explains study leader Dr. Mary Carol Hunter.
She believes that the study should lead to an increase in the prescription of ‘nature-pills’ – where doctors advise patients suffering with anxiety and depression to spend more time in the natural world.
It’s really important to keep an eye on your stress levels.
Persistently elevated levels of cortisol in the body can cause increased blood pressure, headaches, stomach pain and plenty of other niggly symptoms. Evidence suggests that stress can even contribute to long-term chronic conditions such as heart problems and diabetes.
It’s good to know that simply spending a bit of time with some trees could help to reduce your risks.
The latest man to be guilty of the grave sin explained a woman’s own height to her.
After a Twitter user said he disliked shaking women’s hands, he was met with lots of sarcastic responses.
When Amy Brown from Berkley, California, said she was just going to slap the man’s face instead of shaking his hand, another man jumped in to argue with her.
He thought she couldn’t take him on, to which she replied she was seven and a half feet tall and definitely could.
So of course, the mansplainer being a mansplainer decided to take it upon himself to’debunk’ her comment.
And he did that by digging up an old wedding photo of her and doing some questionable maths to ‘prove’ she’s 5’6″.
ive had a lot of good things happen to me on this website but a man digging up my wedding picture to prove i'm not seven and a half feet tall is by far the best pic.twitter.com/SlD6TIg7Px
The commenter’s frame of reference included the posters, which he called ‘standard sized’, and the table.
Amy wasn’t having any of it, writing: ‘How does he know that’s a standard poster on the wall?? Seems like a pretty big assumption to make.’
Another commenter chimed in to say: ‘If you guys were seven feet, you’d probably hang posters higher than standard height anyway, so they’d be eye level. His logic is deeply flawed.’
‘The officiant is clearly standing on a box! The whole room is calibrated to make the very tall couple feel comfortable on their most special day,’ said another user.
Whenever we see an insane deep fried meal, we probably think ‘Murica. Because, let’s be honest, our friends over the side of the pond like to fry a lot of things.
But this time it’s our pals Down Under having a go at creating mega calorie treats.
Food bloggers Cory and Leon uploaded a video on Instagram of the Cheese Burger Bomb, available at a restaurant in Australia.
The 1,000 calorie burger weighs a whopping kilogram and is made with two beef patties, four slices of cheese, a pinch of lettuce, onions and pickles.
It’s coated it with a thick layer of breadcrumbs, deep-fried until golden brown and then it’s drizzled all over with a pot of melted cheese.
It is the work of Chef Ian at restaurant Greenhorns, Perth, Australia, who showed the bloggers how the meal is put together.
Do you reckon you could handle it? (We probably could).
(Picture: Cheat Meats)
Though at first it looks like an average cheeseburger, layers are added to it until it becomes a ‘bomb’.
Once the layer of breadcrumbs has been added and deep-fried, it looks much bigger than your average snack.
But that thick layer of melted cheese will mean you’ll need to eat the bomb using a knife and fork – no one wants to have a cheesy smell on their hands for the rest of day, after all.
(Picture: Cheat Meats)
Followers of the Instagram account couldn’t decided if they loved it or hated it. Some called it ‘a heart attack’ while others admitted it looked pretty tasty.
One person wrote: ‘Don’t know what it was coated in but it still made my mouth water,’ while another said: ‘Get in my belly’.
Others weren’t feeling it: ‘I have to knock it. It would make me sick. Burgers, steak, roast beef, no red for me, please.’
Another user said: ‘Gross! I’m a huge burger fan, but no.’
As a guide, the NHS says men need around 2,500kcal (10,500kJ) a day to maintain a healthy body weight, and women need around 2,000kcal a day (8,400kJ). So for women, this burger takes up half of the required amount.
One woman found this out in the most devastating of ways after her little one attacked her cream sofa with a bright red lipstick.
Describing the aftermath as a ‘crime scene’, Jessica, who lives in Australia, shared pictures of her destroyed sofa after leaving her three-year-old in a room on his own for five minutes while she did household chores.
But there is a silver-lining to this awful situation – in attempting to remove the stains, Jessica discovered that simple dishwashing liquid was an incredibly effective tool – and she was able to get all of the lipstick of the couch.
She took to Facebook to describe the unfortunate sequence of events and share her useful cleaning hack with her friends.
‘Just as I thought to myself, “he’s gone quiet”, he walks into the kitchen looking like a vampire that’s had a great feast,’ wrote Jessica.
‘At first I couldn’t process what he was covered in? It’s not blood. It’s not a texta, not crayon, maybe it’s my daughter’s play make up… as I followed this trail of red, I was met with the horrific scene. A complete massacre.
(Picture:Facebook/Mums Who Clean)
‘Frantically trying to keep the crime scene contained, I start taking photos for evidence, googling “three year old military school”, wait I mean “help my toddler is trying to give me a heart attack”, aka “how do I bloody get red lip stick off furniture”.’
She used Morning Fresh dishwashing liquid – rubbing it directly into the couch – and astonishingly, the lipstick stains lifted.
‘I’ll have you know it’s actually quite simple and I’m sure if I was a cheating spouse that had to cover up a wayward red lipstick pash mark on the couch I would be feeling super thrilled,’ she continued.
‘I on the other hand had an entire Sephora aisle of mess to deal with. But I did deal with, I rubbed in that dishwashing liquid like a good little off the grid cleaner.
‘I fought through the cramping, soldiered on through the muscle spasms and listened to beautiful sound of my children playing with their father off into the distance. Surely he’s got bigger finger tips than me I ponder?
‘It now looks like nothing ever happened. All evidence has been destroyed and everything back to the way it was. I guess I’ll be rocking a nude lip until my son moves out.’
(Picture:Facebook/Mums Who Clean)
In an extra bid to prevent a repeat occurrence, Jessica says that she has moved the contents of her makeup bag to make it harder for her son to find.
Lets hope he doesn’t get his hands on her foundation next.
(Picture: Udit Kulshrestha/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
If you want to make a house feel like a home but don’t have a magical unlimited budget, Ikea’s probably your first port of call.
But for many, even a comparatively cheap sofa can be too large an expense.
Plus, there’s the transient nature of our living arrangements. Do we really want to commit to a sofa for a flat we’re only going to stay in for a year?
What’s ideal now might not work for the future, and moving costs, size constraints, and changes in finances are all important factors when it comes to our furniture.
Ikea is considering an option that could make furnishing rented properties a whole lot easier.
The Swedish furniture brant is trying out a rental service that lets customers lease out desks, beds, and sofas rather than buying them.
This is partly for customer convenience, sure, but also for the sake of the environment. Buying cheap, temporary furniture then chucking it away is pretty wasteful. What if Ikea could get those customers to rent furniture for as long as they need it, then pass it on?
(Picture: GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images)
The current trial allows students in the Netherlands to rent out a bed, desk, table, and chairs for a monthly fee of up to €30 (£25.60).
Reuters reports that the concept will be ideal for people who can’t afford new furniture each time they move, or aren’t able to make a large investment all in one go.
If the trial goes well, Ikea will test out the same offer for offices in need of furniture and equipment. If that goes well, the scheme could be rolled out around the world.
Ikea is introducing some other initiatives to make their offering more convenient and environmentally friendly.
The brand has committed to making all products using renewable and recycled materials, and to design all their products to be reused, repaired, and recycled, by 2030.
Ikea is also keen to expand their partnership with TaskRabbit, which allows you to hire people to put together your furniture, and to make furniture easier to dismantle, move, and rebuild.
Is your relationship soaring? Do you feel like you’re flying?
If you feel like there’s not a place in heaven that you and your beau can’t reach then clearly you’ve been watching a lot of High School Musical.
Who could blame you? The Disney Channel gold has been a hit since it released 13 years ago (yes, we’re all old).
But some people are huge, huge fans of the film. So much so, that they have the lyrics memorised.
To confuse their partners, some women are having a laugh and ‘breaking up’ with them using lines from the film.
One woman inadvertently started the thread when she posted screenshots of a conversation ‘breaking up’ with her boyfriend. Sadly for her though, her other half was pretty chilled.
Other girls then chimed in with their experiences, with some showing their partners really knew them well, clocking on to the prank straight away.
We might not have the summer weather just yet, but it’s in the post – that’s for sure.
When those days hit, there will cravings galore for park picnics and underdone barbecue sausages. And, of course, Prosecco.
Iceland has got a deal in the works that will leave you more money in your purse for the ice cream man, in what they’re claiming is the cheapest bottle of the Italian plonk in UK supermarkets.
Their La Gioiosa Prosecco (75cl) on sale for just £5 down from £10, which is already a pretty big bargain, and already less expensive than Lidl’s alternative (Allini Prosecco Frizzante at £5.25 for 75cl).
However, you can get it even cheaper if you buy anything in the store before 7 April, as you’ll get a special voucher on your receipt with no minimum spend.
The voucher will give you 10% off when you spend £25 between between 12 and 23 April, effectively making the bottles £4.50 each as long as you buy in bulk or along with the rest of your weekly/monthly shop.
The exact same Prosecco is up to £11.99 in other supermarkets, and similar versions were also measured up at Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Ocadao, Waitrose and Majestic Wine.
Just in time for the Easter Bank Holiday, it’s a perfect deal if you’re having people round (or just yourself).
Now it seems they are so on trend, even homeware stores are looking at their baked goods for inspiration.
Yes, that’s right. There is a pillow that looks like a Greggs pastry.
The official Twitter account for the bakery pointed out the similarity by tweeting a picture from the Next website, photoshopped with the words ‘steak bake’ in the search bar.
They joked: ‘*googles if it’s okay to eat a cushion*.’
