Fancy a half-price beer? (Picture: BrewDog/Metro.co.uk)
If you like both beers and saving money, listen up: there’s an offer you really need to know about.
Monday 15 June is a very special occasion, in that it’s National Beer Day, a celebration of all things beer.
Every year since 2015, beer fans have come together to chat about their love of the brew and joined a nationwide cheers to beer at 7pm – and not even the coronavirus pandemic will put a stop to this great tradition.
To mark the day, BrewDog is putting on a special offer all day on Monday 15 June, giving you 50% off draft beer from all their bar sites across the UK.
Here’s how you get a half-price beer on the day.
To get your beer delivered or pre-order it for collection, you’ll need to go through BrewDog Now. Type in your postcode, check you have a BrewDog bar open and near you for delivery or collection, and begin your order.
Beer, beer, beer (Picture: Sam Brill)
Make sure you order one of the beers the offer applies to: Punk IPA (Crowlers), the Barnard Castle Punk IPA Crowlers, and Punk AF (alcohol free).
Then once you’ve filled your basket, add the code BBD50 for 50% off.
Head’s up, this discount code will only work on Monday 15 June and only when your local bar is actually open for delivery or collection, so don’t go expecting discount pints at all hours of the day from now onwards.
If you’re near a pub that’s offering takeaway pints or has a garden, you can also redeem the offer by walking on up and saying ‘I love beer’ – do this and you’ll get 50% off a pint of Punk IPA or Punk AF.
Again, that’s only on 15 June, so you won’t get that discount every time you proclaim your love for booze. Feel free to speak up anyway, though. It’s a nice conversation starter.
If you want more tips and tricks on saving money, as well as chat about cash and alerts on deals and discounts, join our Facebook Group, Money Pot.
Pritpal shares her simple guide below (Pictures: Pritpal Kaur)
If you’re hoping to make an effective DIY face mask from home, the good news is you probably have the best materials for the job in your cupboards already.
A new study has found that denim and canvas are the best materials for making DIY masks. So, think old jeans and all those tote bags that you never use.
The study, by the Smart Air organization, found that canvas and denim are best for blocking germs, after they tested more than 30 different materials for their effectiveness in filtering coronavirus-sized microparticles, as well as their breathability.
The researchers discovered that denim and canvas are the fabrics best-suited to blocking out the germs while still being breathable enough for consistent wear. So, how can you make your own?
One mum who is a stitching extraordinaire has shared her simple guide for making simple face masks using jeans and canvas bags.
Pritpal Kaur, from Harlington, loves to stitch. She has been experimenting with different household items so that if people in her community were in need of masks she could make some to give back and help others.
Here are Pritpal’s super simple step-by-step guides:
How to make a DIY face mask using a pair of jeans or a tote bag
Cut a rectangle of fabric (denim or canvas) 9 inches long (23cm) x 6 Inches (15cm) wide.
Mark the ties (elastic to put around ears) 0.6 inches (1.5cm) on the rectangle.
The elastic ties should be 17cm /7 inches.
The denim and the elastic ties (Picture: Pritpal Kaur)
Stitch down the sides on the longer side first, then insert the elastic and fold in the edge of fabric and stitch it all the way down the sides.
You’ll see the fold in the fabric – this needs to be stitched.
The next stage is folding, before stitching (Picture: Pritpal Kaur)
You can then put in the pleats on the side through pinning it and stitch these too so it looks like the below.
The pleats mean the mask won’t gape at the sides (Picture: Pritpal Kaur)
The finished products – using denim or canvas (Picture: Pritpal Kaur)
If you don’t have elastic to use for the ear straps, you can use two surplus strips of denim of canvas.
Just make sure they are robust enough that they won’t snap.
Et voila. A simple face mask made out of the most protective material you can find at home.
Masks aren’t your typical wedding favours (Picture: Getty)
During lockdown, many couples had to put their wedding plans on hold or change them up completely, with virtual weddings or those with just the couple attending.
As the world begins to re-open, though, it appears that things won’t go back to business as usual in the world of weddings – just as it’ll be a long transition back to normality everywhere else.
Hitched, a leading UK wedding website, has predicted the new reality of weddings as lockdown is lifted, and there will be all sorts of reminders of the changes we’ve made.
Whether it’s guest list differences or protective measures for those that attend, here’s what weddings could look like over the next year or two, and the trends that should surface.
Creative ways to sanitise hands
When you go to a wedding reception, you’ll often see glasses of fizz being given out on silver trays. In the future, though, it could be bottles of hand sanitiser going around the crowd instead.
Hitched also predict that little bottles of the solution could be personalised and placed on tables or in goody bags.
As long as the price goes down, that’s fine by us. Otherwise it could make weddings even more expensive than they already are.
Could lace masks replace the traditional veil? (Credits: Robin Utrecht/REX)
Masks and gloves as wedding staples
It’s not an attractive prospect that you’ll get your nails and do your makeup for a wedding, only to have to cover everything up. But this is how it might be in the coming months.
Hitched say these might come ‘in colours or patterns that coordinate with their overall wedding day theme’ or that people may ‘even adopt formal gloves as a fashion accessory for their wedding day look.’
On top of this, staff at the wedding may be required to wear PPE, and forget going in unprotected into the post-wedding handshake line.
Goodbye buffets
As if it wasn’t hard enough to say goodbye to the hotel breakfast buffet, wedding buffets might be the next thing we say goodbye to.
‘Most couples will likely opt for plated meals instead of a buffet in the near future, but if a serve-yourself-style meal is preferred, smaller stations will be incorporated rather than a long assembly line for a full buffet,’ comment Hitched.
Guests might need to come to the wedding in shifts (Picture: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
More outdoor weddings
The British weather isn’t known for its predictability, but given how the virus has been shown to be less contagious outdoors, couples might opt to hope for the sun and wed al fresco.
This isn’t just to avoid people potentially spreading coronavirus, but also to help people feel less confined and worried in a small, indoor space.
Goodbye to one big dance floor
In the past, it might have been difficult to get away from the weird uncle or amorous bridesmaid on the dance floor, but that might not be the case anymore.
Smaller dance floors might be places around the venue to avoid pile-ups of crowds, or this might be relocated to a different area to people can have a boogie rather than needing to head into the throng to order a drink or get to their table.
Couples in countries that have eased lockdown have already made changed (Picture: AFP via Getty)
More weekday weddings
According to a Hitched survey, 44% of couples that have postponed their weddings have rescheduled to 2021.
As a result, venues might not have weekend availability, so the couples will switch to weekdays instead.
Although this might mean we all need to carefully plan our annual leave, it’s much more cost-effective for those getting married. So swings and roundabouts, really.
Shift weddings
To try and see everyone they love without having too many people in the room, couples could choose to stagger their guests’ arrivals – essentially having them join the wedding in shifts.
Try not to be too disappointed when you end up on the nightshift – it just means you’re more fun in a late night party than grandma.
Micro weddings
To avoid the shifting issue, it could also come to the point where couples drastically reduce their guest list for a more intimate and small wedding.
Hitched says: ‘With a couple’s reduction in guest count, they can create a truly one-of-a-kind macro experience.
‘Some couples who host micro weddings may also choose to host a larger party in the near future with the rest of their guest list.’
Livestreaming to family during the wedding
By now we’re all pretty used to Zooming and Housepartying our family and friends.
Soon enough this might also seep into wedding receptions, with vulnerable or far away relatives up on a projector or screen so they can join in without attending physically.
Are you planning on changing your wedding after lockdown fully eases?
Sophie went viral after a 10-slide guide on how to be an anti-racist ally (Picture: Sophie Williams)
Two weeks ago, Sophie Williams, a Black author who is currently working on a book about Black women’s intersectional identities, went viral on Instagram.
She shared a post with 10 pink slides that explained how you can be an anti-racist ally.
‘Allyship and anti-racism is active, daily work, but racism and white supremacy is everyone’s problem, and we all need to be part of the solution,’ she captioned her guide.
It has since racked up nearly 70,000 likes, and Sophie’s account blew up with new followers – going from just under 1,000 people to 131,000 within weeks.
Wanting to use her new-found fame for good, the author, who is also the co-founder of Culture Heroes, a non-profit organisation dedicated to raising BAME representation at a senior level in the advertising and the creative industries, has now launched an online shop of products to raise money for anti-racism charities.
Millennial Black, as the e-store is known (named after Sophie’s upcoming book with the same title), was launched last week and features items including tote bags, prints and postcards – all with an anti-racism message.
‘I wanted to launch the shop because I suddenly found myself with a platform,’ author Sophie Williams tells Metro.co.uk.
‘I wanted to not only have a chance to talk to and educate people, but also to make a tangible change by giving people a way to raise funds.
‘The first intention of the shop is money. There’s a lot of conversation at the moment, but we need to actually funnel funds to the people who are on the ground doing the work.
‘The second step is visibility. When people get their things they will be walking around with tote bags that say “I will speak out against injustice every single time” and putting prints on their walls that say “all lives won’t matter until Black lives matter” – it’s a really impactful way of keeping these discussions in peoples minds whilst supporting important charities.’
Some of the prints from Sophie’s store (Picture: Millennial Black)
To create her shop, Sophie reached out to Awesome Merchandise, which creates custom products, and within 48 hours, Millennial Black was born.
All proceeds from sales will go to charities ‘working towards racial injustice’.
Speaking about what it’s like to be a Black woman in the UK in 2020, Sophie added: ‘That’s a really hard question. For a long time people have been asking Black people to quantify and justify themselves, and even more so for Black people with intersectional identities, like Black womxn, LGBTQIA+ Black people, disabled Black people, and so on.
‘I think this movement is about actually getting away from that and just saying – Black people are people.
‘It’s as simple as that, and once people really truly take that in, and take it on, maybe they will start to see us as deserving the same lives and liberties as every other group.’
Here’s what the restaurant will look like… except real, not an illustration (Picture: Chris Dove/ Gingerhead Design / SWNS)
The UK’s first purpose-built socially distanced restaurant is coming to save us from the horror of cooking in our own kitchens.
After months of lockdown killing off the dining out experience, The St Moritz Hotel and Spa is offering comfort by unveiling plans for its new restaurant, nicknamed The Anti-Social Club.
This particular spot is designed entirely around allowing for social distancing, with food served to guests through hatches.
The hotel plans to open up the dining option when the government allows venues to reopen next month.
It includes 16 private rooms that can accommodate up to 96 guests, all of whom can enjoy a proper meal while maintaining social distancing guidelines.
There will be 16 private dining rooms, with food served through a hatch (Picture: Chris Dove/ Gingerhead Design / SWNS)
Staff at the hotel, in Wadebridge, Cornwall, have said that they will be able to ensure the two-metre rule is observed so they can operate under the current restrictions.
Co-owner Hugh Ridgway said: ‘Covid-19 has stopped the industry in its tracks.
‘Like all hotels, bars and restaurants across the globe, the virus has hit our business like an unbelievable sledgehammer.
‘However, as ever, we have dusted ourselves off, and risen to this unpredictable challenge in our own creative, St Moritz way.’
The hotel is in Cornwall and plans to open the restaurant in July (Picture: Excess Energy / SWNS.COM)
The hotel describe their new restaurant as a part private member club, part dining room.
The layout has been designed to ensure that each dining room is accessible from the outside, with food and drink served through a series of hatches.
Hugh added: ‘Our purposeful architecture allows us to trade our rooms in a safe and socially distanced manner, however we can only sell those hotel rooms if we can feed our guests – and feed them well.
‘Simply reworking our current restaurants and bars, and operating at 30% capacity doesn’t allow that, so our specially-designed summer ‘pop-up’ restaurant, overcomes this obstacle, adding to, rather than detracting from, our stylish, VIP guest experience.’
If all goes well, the restaurant will start serving up meals on 4 July.
Are you tired of your pasta looking dull and lifeless?
Prepare yourself, because your plate of Italian goodness will never be boring ever again – it’s time to take some advice from the pasta queen, namely Fiona Afshar.
The self-taught programmer-turned-florist-turned-pasta-extraordinaire, regularly shares her cooking skills on Instagram with her 94,300 followers, where she teaches them how to make everything from blue and yellow caramelle pasta stuffed with superfoods, rainbow farfalle and striped paccheri pasta.
‘Pasta-making is very special, magical, and therapeutic,’ the social media influencer, who lives in Malibu, told Insider.
Back in 2019, she started sharing tutorials on how to make pasta on YouTube and she quickly turned into a cooking sensation, and has now even written a book on her favourite ingredient.
Fiona herself first learned how to make pasta by watching videos at home.
Fiona Afshar in her kitchen making pasta (Picture: @cookingwithfiona)
She said: ‘Pasta is a really convenient meal.
‘You can make it ahead of time and it keeps really well in the fridge for over a week, or you could put it in the freezer for up to three months.
‘The magic happens when you’re starting to shape it and see it magically come to life into shapes that we’re really familiar with.
‘Fettuccine, rigatoni, fusilli, pappardelle, ravioli, and the list goes on. You can even create your own shape!’
Too cute to eat? (Picture: @cookingwithfiona)
Who knew pasta could look so fun (Picture: @cookingwithfiona)
To make your own pasta, you need four ingredients to start with, according to the chef: ‘eggs, flour, salt, and oil’.
To add colour to your creation, use vegetables such as spinach, kale and herbs like parsley for green shades or roasted beets or red peppers for red shades.
You can also utilise dried vegetable powders to get a stronger colour.
For purple, you need to mix a red vegetable with a blue item, such as blueberries or blue spirulina, while for pink, Fiona’s go-to is dragon-fruit powder.
Fiona said: ‘I just added the extras to bring the colours out but that’s completely optional.
‘I love my local farmer’s market; I go in and I get ideas.’
Something to serve during Pride perhaps? (Picture: @cookingwithfiona)
We bet it tastes delicious too (Picture: @cookingwithfiona)
To achieve the patterns and shapes, Fiona recommends cookie cutters or household objects including piping tips or bottle caps.
But cut your pasta shapes smaller than you want the finished result, as it will stretch once you get to work and roll it.
And don’t fret if you don’t have a pasta machine – you can simply use a rolling pin and knife to create your shapes.
They look little sweets but it’s indeed stuffed pasta (Picture: @cookingwithfiona)
Pasta that the kids will love (Picture: @cookingwithfiona)
If this isn’t art, we don’t know what is (Picture: @cookingwithfiona)
‘I love making agnolotti,’ Fiona added.
‘Those are so much fun to make because within minutes you can make like 50.
‘The shape that comes to life after five minutes — it’s like “Woah!”.
‘The magic of pasta is that you don’t need anything special.
‘You don’t need to go out there and buy expensive tools.’
A pasta bouquet (Picture: @cookingwithfiona)
Is it just us or do these look like mini pasta fish? (Picture: @cookingwithfiona)
Very funky (Picture: @cookingwithfiona)
‘Be persistent with pasta,’ she added.
‘Have patience. Pasta-making is fun, it’s playful, and it’s delicious! Don’t miss out on it.’
Many women have taken on homeschooling and childcare alongside their jobs (Picture: Ella Byworth for Metro.co.uk)
Parents have a lot of plates to spin – what with their jobs, children, housework and social lives.
But the coronavirus pandemic has left parents juggling work and children at the same time – with mums, in particular, picking up a lot of childcare and homeschooling duties, while they are trying to work themselves.
Naturally, this is having a knock-on effect on women’s careers.
A recent survey found that more than half of working mums believe increased childcare responsibilities during the coronavirus crisis have negatively affected their career.
Caroline Whaley, co-founder of Shine For Woman, says: ‘The reality is more women than men are being asked to go part-time or made redundant and more are being furloughed due to domestic responsibilities.
‘Due to lower salary expectations, women are frequently the ones to give up their jobs. Coronavirus is lasting months, not weeks, with its impact spanning years – some women’s lifetime earnings will never recover.’
Five working mums share their experiences of how childcare and homeschooling in lockdown has taken a toll on their work and careers.
Zara
Zara is the founder of independent skincare brand Delhicious Body and runs the business end-to-end.
But, due to the lack of childcare the pandemic has presented, Zara says she’s been forced to switch to ‘full-time mum mode’ for her two young daughters.
She tells Metro.co.uk: ‘Having the girls at home and with them being very young and so close in age, they are still very needy so I’ve had to find new ways of keeping them entertained and engaged which has pretty much meant a new 8am to 7pm schedule.
‘All of my work has now shifted to post-7pm, which of course means absolutely no downtime.
‘We already lost out on some major opportunities this year. Being an independent brand, if I don’t pound out emails 9am-5pm or work on new marketing, things just don’t progress.’
Zara believes women, in general, have a harder time as they tend to take on the domestic chores and children, as well as work.
She adds: ‘My husband is an incredible father and a great support but as a manager himself, he is super busy in the day with some days being back-to-back calls and meetings.
‘This means that my work is pushed back and just not seen as the priority and I am then with the children from when they wake at 6am till bedtime around 7pm which leaves little to no time for myself or my business.
‘Men tend to get a lot more flexibility with their careers, as well as being less likely to lose their jobs in comparison to women – especially when women become mothers as well.’
A recent survey showed women think their career has been negatively affected by recent childcare duties (Picture: Ella Byworth for Metro.co.uk)
Jennifer
Jennifer usually runs her own business in Manchester – but is now juggling her children full-time, as well as her company.
She says: ‘I’m doing my best but the “distraction” of looking after the children means that I can’t dedicate the time and energy I want to progress and grow the company, like I would if I were doing it full-time.
‘It is impossible to be able to do the kind of work I did before lockdown when I have the additional work of looking after children. That’s not to say I’m not doing my best, or I’m not getting any work done, it’s just that I know that more could be done.
‘I know I’m in the same position as many other women out there and we are all doing our best, but I am certainly at a disadvantage to my husband who leaves the house for 12 hours a day and dedicates that entire time to working, whereas I only realistically I only get about five hours.
‘I’d like to think I’m the type of person who can work late into the evening when my husband gets home, but I find I’m just more tired than I used to be and I’m sure it’s the additional responsibility of home schooling the children and keeping them busy with activities.
‘All this additional strain on women like me and my friends is bound to have its toll on our mental health and ability to perform well each day and is putting us at a disadvantage to our male counterparts.’
Camilla
Camilla, a publishing PR freelancer, says staying on top of homeschooling, cleaning, shopping and cooking in lockdown has had a noticeable effect on her productivity.
She says: ‘I’ve always been a very energetic, motivated worker but have noticed that my energy levels and my attention span have reduced significantly.
‘Because I’m always being required by my kids to help with school work, upload homework or cook a meal, I find my concentration levels are woeful.
‘My husband is in the army so as a key worker, his work has (as always) taken precedence.
‘Before lockdown I prided myself on going above and beyond for clients – I am definitely not doing that now and am bracing myself for a negative outcome, compounded by an inability to network and establish opportunities with new clients.’
Carolyn
Carolyn, who lives in Dalston with her two teenage sons, also says her productivity has been drastically affected by lockdown. This is having an effect on the PR agency she runs.
Carolyn says: ‘It is impossible to teach and work simultaneously so my productivity has been drastically affected. It also means I am working way into the evenings to catch up.
‘I constantly feel guilty that I am not doing enough for my children or my business.
‘Undoubtedly, this lockdown period has had a negative impact on business – PR is often seen as a luxury rather than a necessity. It’s “catch 22” because if I was operating at my usual capacity there would have no time what so ever to homeschool.
‘The nature of my job means there are periods where I am very busy and times when I am waiting more new jobs to come in – the problem right now is that I do not have enough hours in the day to be marketing my services effectively enough to win new business in the current very challenging climate.
‘Only time will tell if it is going to effect my business in the long run, but right now it does feel like a struggle.’
Sonia
Sonia runs Alma Society – a brand that specialises in sun protective swimwear – but says launching a new business has been challenging with childcare and homeschooling.
She tells Metro.co.uk: ‘Being stuck at home and trying to push a new brand forward while doing housework, cooking and homeschooling my child has been too much.
‘My daughter is my number one priority, so I work when she’s having a break or when she can do homework independently. But she’s only eight, so she needs supervision, help and reassurance that she’s doing a good job, so I have to interrupt what I’m doing 100 times a day.
‘I can’t be as productive, and it’s difficult to focus on what I’m doing. Olivia is in Year 3, so not back at school yet. So this is going to carry on until September.
‘By the time she goes back to school, I will have been working from home and taking care of her for five and a half months. How could my productivity not be impacted?
‘My business is a very seasonal one and this has happened right at the beginning of the Spring/Summer 2020, when I should have been rushed off my feet with work, orders, marketing campaigns, etc.
‘Because of the very difficult situation we are enduring, I should have made double the efforts to market our products, but how can I achieve that with half the time?’
As we all know, dogs are angelic creatures that deserve to be worshipped.
If you need more proof on this absolute fact, please let us introduce you to Boomer Woof Brown.
The rescue pooch is a qualified therapy dog at East Anglia University, where we works alongside his human handler, Dave Brown.
The pair have been helping the campus security team by providing emotional support to students and de-escalating stressful situations since 2019.
Boomer, or BWB, if you prefer, even has his own campus ID card and email address so that students and staff can book a session with him.
The dream team have recently been recognised for their fantastic work, having won the award for Security Innovation Initiative of The Year.
There was a ceremony planned in their honour, but due to the pandemic the event was cancelled.
Nevertheless, Dave and Boomer didn’t let this stop them from enjoying their moment in the spotlight.
The pair dressed up in their finest tuxedos for a smaller, socially distanced celebration.
He’s a hero on campus (Picture: No credit)
‘Boomer’s been a fantastic addition to the team,’ said Dawn Daniels, who works as an access and security controller.
‘Using him as an opening for a conversation, I have seen an increase of willingness of students to approach me.
‘This has then started a discussion which has led on to emotive topics such as their mental health and wellbeing, and allowed me to signpost them to the necessary support functions available.’
The pandemic has made a lot of people appreciate their nearest and dearest – not just family members but friends, too.
Throughout our lives, friends help us develop as individuals, offer emotional support and provide us with much-needed entertainment.
‘Friendships are crucial, not only to our mental, emotional and overall health, but also to fulfil a deep evolutionary human need of social connections, feeling safe and supported,’ explains professor Margareta James, a psychologist at The Harley Street Wellbeing Clinic.
But unlike family bonds (which we cannot choose and which will always exist) friendships take work to maintain.
This has been particularly challenging over recent months – what with the traditional ways in which we socialise (be it at the pub or at someone’s house) unavailable to us, alongside limits on the number of friends we can see at a time.
On the flip side, lockdown has given people a taste of a simpler way of living – free from bustling social calendars – and many have welcomed this change.
There’s no doubt that friendships are going to look a little different going forward – which poses some important questions.
Will the lack of physical interaction amongst friends be detrimental to bonds? And will people prefer smaller, simpler circles of friends after a period of intense isolation?
What comes next for friendship?
More physical affection
Often when we think about physical contact, we think about our partners or family, but we share a lot of affection with friends, too.
Let’s not forget about goodbye hugs, huddled group pictures and a simple arm around a shoulder.
Intimate gestures and moments – ones that are often so subconscious that we don’t even think about – have been taken away from us over the past three months.
And while we can now see up to five of our friends at a time, there are strict rules in place for physical contact.
Rebecca Lockwood, a NLP Master Coach and Hypnosis Trainer, believes that we could see a rise in physical affection between friends – once it’s permitted again.
‘I think we are going to see much more of a connection between people when lockdown is over – and more hugs,’ Rebecca tells Metro.co.uk.
‘This could certainly come from a subconscious kickback that we have been told we cannot touch. It’s human nature to have connections and we have gone long periods of time without it.’
So it’s possible that we’ll see a pendulum effect when it comes to physical touch. Having been deprived of it for so long, we might want to indulge in excess amounts – therefore going from one extreme to another.
Professor Margareta James adds that this will not only make us feel better (after being starved of it for so long), but it could actually strengthen our friendships as well.
She adds: ‘It [physical touch] helps us bond, improves our mood and promotes feelings of wellbeing and happiness.’
We might let go of friends
In times of crisis, our true friends reveal themselves.
But, for a lot of people, the pandemic has exposed the friends who haven’t made an effort.
One potential fallout could be that we see people let go of friends who are not longing serving them positively. This is something psychotherapist Steven Richards thinks will happen among friendship groups, after lockdown.
He tells Metro.co.uk: ‘Humans have a strong social-bonding memory, and friendship network, that if not maintained, can be easily broken and replaced with new ones.
‘This is particularly so where there are perceived failures of support and trust.
‘It’s a strength of the human species that it can adapt so very flexibly to social change and we will see this happening post-COVID-19.’
This is something backed up by chartered counselling psychologist Dr Rachel Allan.
She says: ‘A crisis can make us reassess our lives in all kinds of ways. For some, this could mean realising that some friendships have perhaps run their course.’
But Rebecca Lockwood stresses that it’s important not to jump to conclusions about why friends haven’t been in touch – after all, everyone has been coping with the pandemic differently.
She adds: ‘It can be easy to take things personally when we don’t hear from friends that we would like to hear from and make assumptions about why we haven’t heard from people.’
While we might think friends don’t care or don’t value a friendship, it’s important to consider other factors at play.
Rebecca adds: ‘Remember that the people who you may not speak to under the lockdown will still be there when it is over.
‘To be friends and be there for people it’s not always about speaking to them regularly. It is about being there when you need each other.
‘That could mean you go years without speaking – let’s face it, people have busy lives. The best of friends are the ones who can go long spaces between talking yet still feel as though it was yesterday since they last spoke. These are the strongest relationships.’
Of course, lockdown can make an individual reevaluate which friends they hold closer than others – but making the decision to cut a friend out of your life permanently should be considered very carefully.
Virtual social lives will continue… but to a lesser extent
Will Zoom stick around in our social lives? (Picture: Ella Byworth for Metro.co.uk)
Thanks to the wonders of technology, our social lives have been able to continue in lockdown – albeit in a 2D form.
But now we can see groups of friends agains, will the way we socialise be impacted by our recent technology habits?
Clinical psychologist, Anna Mandeville tells Metro.co.uk: ‘Since the appearance of Covid-19 we have done what humans do. We adapt. It has never been normal for us to gather and communicate with our friends and family over a screen, but we adapted to a new normal.
‘That said, we have to consider that it may be strange meeting people again in person after a period of isolation, but again, we will adapt and get used to it.’
But Anna stresses that while the use of technology might continue to an extent, it doesn’t compare to meeting a friend in person – something that is now permitted.
She adds: ‘There is nothing better than physical presence and sensing someone’s mood seeing an expression in a loved one’s eyes and to simply touch in person. It is a pleasure and a privilege and something in our lifetime we won’t take for granted again.’
Rebecca Lockwood adds that the virtual social lives we’ve experienced in lockdown may rub off on long-distance friendships.
She says: ‘I think we will see virtual meet-ups continue as it’s an easy way to connect with people who may live further away.’
With the rise of Whatsapp and Instagram, video calls have become neglected over recent years for keeping in touch with friends who live further away. So the pandemic, in many ways, has brought these methods of communication back into the foreground.
Shared vulnerability could strengthen bonds
When two people go through a difficult shared experience it often brings them closer together.
Just like how vulnerability can strengthen a bond in a romantic relationship, the same applies for friendship, too.
Dr Rachel Allan explains: ‘The crisis has meant that each one of us has been vulnerable in one way or another.
‘Whether it is illness, working on the front line, facing loss of income, worrying about relatives or dealing with other concerns, most people have faced something difficult and in some cases something life-changing.
‘Having a sense of coming through shared suffering or loss may strengthen bonds between existing friends.’
While we all have our own personal experiences of the pandemic, we can all relate to the same difficulties.
But it’s not just long-standing friendships that might benefit from this universal vulnerability – new friendships which have blossomed during the pandemic could be a whole lot deeper because of it, too.
Close friendship bonds which would usually take years to build are likely to have been established in just a few months – because of the emotional intensity of the pandemic.
There are a number of reasons people drift apart – from no longer living close by to a disagreement – but the mortality surrounding the pandemic could prompt people to re-examine the reasons they are no longer in touch with old friends.
Dr Rebecca Semmens-Wheeler, a senior psychology lecturer at Birmingham City University, says: ‘Some have had more time on their hands and may have begun to reflect on their past relationships – as well as having time to follow up on those that have been neglected.
‘Given how much death there has been during this period, many are likely to be keenly aware of the fragility of life, which can also prompt getting in touch with old friends.’
What comes next for friendship?
It seems months of social distancing could, ironically, bring us closer to our friends.
Not just physically, in terms of a renewed appreciation for friendly affection, but also emotionally in regards to the shared experiences of lockdown.
It’s also likely that this period will shine a light on the friends we hold closest and the ones who are really there for us during our times of need.
What Comes Next?
After months of strict lockdown measures, isolation and anxiety – we’re beginning to look to the future.
What will life look like when we emerge into our new normal?
Can things ever be the same as they were?
Do we even want them to be the same?
What Comes Next is our series of in-depth features unpicking the possibilities for the future.
Every day for two weeks, we will look at the future of work, dating, mental health, friendships, money, travel, and all the other elements that make up our existence.
Our lives have been turned upside down, but change doesn’t always have to be a bad thing.
I had just turned 17 when I saw Linus standing across the road from me. It was an astonishing moment, like recognising someone I’d never met; I’d never seen anyone I considered so handsome.
We were both in the city to meet mutual friends, and though we barely spoke to each other that day, our friends started plotting to get us together.
This was somewhat daunting. I’d never had a partner before – I’d never really dated. I liked libraries and wasn’t too keen on humans. I’m neurodiverse as well as physically disabled and found people much less interesting (and more difficult to understand) than books.
My friends were persistent, though. I had to attend an appointment and with no-one around to help me navigate London, they volunteered Linus. That was our first ‘date’.
From there, we weren’t out of each other’s company. He moved in with me six months later and we married three years after meeting.
I started to use a wheelchair after our first year together, due to multiple auto-immune conditions, which were diagnosed in my late teens. At first, I was so focussed on being with Linus that the microaggressions aimed at us went over my head.
I had endured being stared and pointed at and Linus, who is south Asian, had long been subjected to racist comments.
However, they became impossible to ignore when, two weeks after my wedding, an occupational therapist refused to understand why I’d want to share a bed with my husband.
My health had significantly worsened; I became bed-bound and needed a pressure-relief mattress. I was told they didn’t exist for double beds, the inference being that it was ridiculous for me to be considering love.
People frequently assume that my husband is a paid carer (Picture: Grace Quantock)
‘I’ve never seen someone as ill as you share a bed with anyone,’ my occupational therapist told me, and I felt bereft at the single-beds future she painted for me and my husband.
I’ve had doctors laugh at me when I’ve asked about birth control: ‘You don’t need to worry about that,’ one told me. It wasn’t just the prejudice that hurt but the denial that I’m capable of being in a loving, sexual relationship.
People frequently assume that my husband is a paid carer because, of course, no one would choose a disabled partner. He has been called a ‘saint’ and ‘an angel’, as obviously loving me is a mission he must be praised for.
Once, Linus and I were at the chiropodist where a woman about our age sat opposite and stared at my husband. Her gaze spiralled from his face, to his arm around my shoulders, to his wedding ring, my wedding ring, my wheelchair, and his face again.
Over and over she went with a growing look of disbelief and disgust. ‘Yes, we are married,’ I said. She looked quickly away without acknowledging me.
Expectations about disabled people are honed through tropes and stereotypes: we get to be brave sufferers, inspirational, pitiful, eternal children in need of care, or a burden to some loved one who is portrayed as long-suffering.
Linus thinks the best way to handle it is to talk it through (Picture: Grace Quantock)
The assumptions and ownership over disabled bodies is vast: I get asked constantly, what’s wrong with you? Will you walk again? How soon will you die?
Men touch my legs on public transport ‘to see if you’re paralysed’ and at a party, a woman put her head up my maxi dress ‘to see if you have legs’.
But love and attraction are deemed beyond us. As for sexuality – sexuality is power and independence. There’s no story in which we’re afforded these traits – the princess is supposed to get the prince, not the witch leaning on her stick.
There’s a hierarchy of who gets to be considered ‘desirable’ in our society, starting with thin, white, non-disabled people at the top. My disability downgrades me to somewhere near the bottom.
My happy, disabled love life breaks conventions, and people struggle to cope with that.
I push back against discrimination and work hard to stop hateful thoughts playing out in my head. If I don’t, there’s a risk I might start to believe them.
On that first day I met Linus, I remember thinking, why would someone like him want to talk to someone like me? Even at 17, I had already internalised a lot of the prejudice heaped upon the disabled community.
We become closer in response to a world that wants to deny our love (Picture: Grace Quantock)
Linus thinks the best way to handle it is to talk it through, even as it is happening. In response to people’s whispers and pointing, he’ll make a quiet, reassuring comment, or ask gently if I want to stay and battle it out or leave.
In these moments, my feelings for him are cemented and only made stronger. We become closer in response to a world that wants to deny our love.
Our relationship has grown up with us and encompasses the things all couples struggle with – money, communication, family.
We both face our own challenges – I may struggle to walk but Linus has to put up with bigoted questions like, ‘Where are you from then? No, where are you really from?’
It’s how we navigate people’s ignorance that matters to us.
I’ve learned that love is far bigger than can be envisioned by mainstream narratives, those that tell us the only relationships worth celebrating happen between bodies deemed perfect by current conventions.
That seems so boring to me, and I hope we reach a time when we aren’t policed or used as mannequins for people to hang their prejudices on.
But I find constantly having to defend my relationship even more dull. Imagine what we could create and share if our energy and focus wasn’t distracted by such nonsense?
In a world that doesn’t believe disabled people can tell a love story, my husband and I will continue to write our own.
Love, Or Something Like It is a regular series for Metro.co.uk, covering everything from mating and dating to lust and loss, to find out what love is and how to find it in the present day. If you have a love story to share, email rosy.edwards@metro.co.uk
Barbie’s had an activist makeover and now she’s out challenging our ideas of female representation (Picture: @BarbieReports/Instagram)
The art world, for all its beauty and thought-provoking ideas, tends to be stale, pale and male.
Despite women outnumbering men studying at art schools, a 2017 report found that just 28% of artists represented by major commercial galleries in London were women, only 22% of solo shows were by female artists and just 41% of the best-paid art academics in the UK were women. Clearly, women are still more valued when stripped for the male gaze on canvas than they are in person.
To highlight these discrepancies, an unlikely activist has been photobombing her way into galleries with thought-provoking placards.
ArtActivistBarbie is the brainchild of Sarah Williamson, senior lecturer at the University of Huddersfield. An ‘iconic instrument of female oppression’, Sarah has chosen Barbie in her various forms to challenge the status quo.
‘Barbie is instantly recognised, she’s a cultural icon with the persona of an international celebrity, and I’ve recreated her as a fearless feminist activist,’ Sarah tells Metro.co.uk.
Is art ‘soft porn’ for the elites? (Picture: @BarbieReports/Instagram)
‘I’ve deployed her in a subversive way – the work of ArtActivistBarbie is playful and creatively disruptive. Controversy surrounds Barbie with her impossible figure, but she is now a political force who is a positive influence rather than a symbol of female oppression! She makes comments and questions cultural institutions about their visibly obvious and not-so-visibly-obvious patriarchal history, visuals and narratives.’
Sexism in the art world is still rife. You’re more likely to see a nude woman than a work by a female artist. In London’s National Gallery, there are 2,300 works by men and just 21 by women. The Pompidou Centre in Paris has fewer than 10 per cent of the works by women and even fewer by non-white artists. Sarah points to a large-scale study in the United States last year that found that 87 per cent of artists in major art museums were men.
‘The male bias, sexism and discrimination of the art world is reflected in wider society,’ she says – a fact echoed by ArtActivistBarbie, who recently tweeted about male-centrism and male bias in medicine, saying ‘there’s such a lot of work to be done. Everywhere you turn. Not just art, it’s the whole of society’.
Sarah goes on: ‘With regard to art galleries, women are highly visible in the collections – as the subject matter, but their representation can be problematic. In many historical collections, women are portrayed as silently beautiful muses with no name, languorously sleeping or posing in various stages of undress.
Only 21 female artists reside in the National Gallery, compared to 2,300 male artists (Picture: @BarbieReports/Instagram)
‘They can be found endlessly bathing or charmingly engaged in the joys of domesticity, reading and sewing. They also drift dreamily through gardens – an acceptable extension of the home for women – or dutifully kneel in prayer and contemplation.
‘Women are portrayed as the fashionable and beautiful trophies of society and marriage and examples of tender motherhood, whether rich or poor. Women are portrayed as dedicated wives and daughters, or maids and servants, delicately preparing fruit or pouring water, or assisting other women with toilette.’
Other women (including ‘fallen women’) romantically await or grieve for male lovers, with heroines eternally being rescued by men or being portrayed as dangerous seductresses, luring men into ‘danger, dangerous waters, temptation, and death’.
It’s no wonder, given the number of boobs and bums on show, that historians like Mary Beard have called fine art ‘soft porn for the elite’.
Galleries are overly white, with Black female artists taking a double whammy when it comes to representation (Picture: @BarbieReports/Instagram)
‘When you look at some art, particularly some historical works, you should ask yourself who it has been painted for, and why,’ says Sarah.
‘There are so many naked females in our art galleries who have obviously been painted for the male gaze. Such works, commissioned by wealthy male patrons and painted on the pretext of a great scholarly interest in antiquity and myth, are really just the sexual objectification of women.’
Because of that, female muses tend to have less control than the all-powerful male artist…even if female muses have been brilliant artists and thinkers themselves.
ArtActivistBarbie is all about inspiring conversations about how women are portrayed and represented in art and how their invisibility as artists is reflected in wider society.
ArtActivistBarbie began life as an experiment for Sarah’s students (Picture: @BarbieReports/Instagram)
She began life as an experiment for Sarah’s students.
‘I’d been working in galleries and museums to engage my students with social justice issues in society and one day had the idea of using Barbie dolls,’ Sarah explains.
‘So, I raided my daughter’s toy box, collected some more Barbies from charity shops, and gave each student a doll and miniature placard made with a lollipop stick. I took my students into our local art gallery in Huddersfield and I asked them to intervene and comment with their Barbies about gender stereotyping, exclusion and representation. Of course, this intersects with race and class too.’
The experiment was a great success – and not only in regards to the impact it had on Sarah’s students.
‘One visitor said to me that looking at the Barbies’ placard commentaries made her “realise just how much women are judged by what’s on the outside and not on the inside”.’
She took photos of the experiment and found that everyone in her office – from the cleaners to the professors – were interested in what Barbie was doing in an art gallery. Today, ArtActivistBarbie is still going, challenging people to think about gender, exlusion and representation.
She’s now a global icon, challenging the notion that women are helpless or dangerous (Picture: @BarbieReports/Instagram)
So what needs to change in order for gallery spaces to present a more equal world to visitors, and what role can our Barbie play in that?
‘Some galleries are starting to address the gender gap and the lack of female artists in their collections, but there’s a lot of work to be done. Promising steps are being taken – for example, the National Portrait Gallery in London has recently advertised for a curator whose role will be specifically to address the gender gap in their collection, the missing women.
‘Obviously galleries can’t just buy a lot of historical artworks by women as they simply don’t exist, but they can visibly explain the societal and cultural reasons for this absence to their visitors. Not many do…’
They look pretty – but how do you actually use them? (Pictures: Getty)
By now, most of our skincare regimes have gone beyond cleanse-tone-moisturise.
Maybe you use exfoliators, acids, retinol, sheet masks… but have you started using facial tools?
You will have seen them online, in magazines and on social media – because these facial rollers tend to be incredibly Instagram-friendly.
They usually come in pastel green or pink, depending on whether they’re made of jade or rose quartz, and they are said to improve circulation in the face, which can make your skin look brighter and feel firmer.
Face rollers are designed to gently massage the face and stimulate the lymphatic system to get rid of toxins, ease muscle tension, decrease puffiness.
They come in all different shapes and sizes, with different ends designed to be used for different parts of the face – to help make sure you can effectively massage every nook and cranny.
Keep your facial roller in the fridge
This is a top tip recommended by experts.
While most rollers made from crystal tend to stay pretty cold naturally, using an extra-chilled roller helps to tighten pores and makes a tired face look more refreshed at the end of a long day – or for early morning starts.
What is gua sha?
Gua sha is part of traditional Chinese medicine where you use a tool to scrape the skin on the face.
Like with facial rollers, gua sha is all about massage and circulation. There is also a school of thought that scraping the skin causes light tissue damage so stimulates the skin to start repairing itself.
Gua sha facial tools are flat-edged and smooth, and usually come in crystal materials – similar to the facial rollers. They have a wave along one side to allow you to apply pressure to the specific contours of your face.
How to use these facial tools
Jennifer Sullivan – elite skincare specialist for Secret Spa – spends her time performing luxurious facials and has an extensive knowledge of the latest brands and techniques to create a healthy, balanced and radiant complexion.
‘Using a roller or gua sha as part of your morning and/or evening skin care regime, can help enhance absorption of your serum, oil or moisturiser, reduce puffiness, drain the lymphatic system, increase blood flow, give a natural face lift effect and to help prevent fine lines and wrinkles,’ says Jennifer.
Here is her step-by-step guide for using these tools at home:
Hold the gua sha tool with the curved side to your face and glide it gently up and out, starting with the neck, jawline, chin, around the mouth, cheekbones and forehead, between three and five times per area.
Both the gua sha and roller should be used to firmly stroke the skin from the centre of the face, working out.
The tools should always be used with sweeping motions in just one direction, not back and forth.
Use a medium to firm pressure on the neck and face and a light pressure over the delicate eye area.
Starting at the chin, stroke down the neck for lymphatic drainage.
Use small horizontal strokes over the brow bone to lift, or hold and press upwards between the brows to release tension.
Working from the forehead back through the hair is said to help hair growth and is a great relaxation technique before bed.
You can also place your tool in the fridge to add a cooling effect which helps reduce puffiness and is wonderful when using it on your eyes.
Do you have a story to share? We want to hear from you.
The deep blue is a hit with interior design fans (Picture: Farrow and Ball)
A study by Drench.co.uk has revealed that we’re a nation with expensive taste when it comes to decorating our homes, and the most popular paint colour for every room except the bathroom is Farrow and Ball’s Hague Blue.
They looked at searches for paint colours for each room, with the deep, greenish blue coming out on top.
8,760 people searched for this colour – accounting for 37% of the top five searches.
And it seems Farrow and Ball as a brand were overwhelmingly popular, making up four out of five of the top paint colours.
With prices upwards of £100 for a five litre tub, it might seem surprising that the status-symbol brand are so popular. But, we’re banking that some people search for Farrow and Ball then go to a paint mixing station to replicate it for a cheaper price – and we have to respect that hustle.
The only room where Farrow and Ball didn’t reign supreme was the bathroom, with the most popular paint colour being Dulux’s Sapphire Salute.
Blue evokes feelings of stability and calm (Picture: Farrow and Ball)
And Farrow and Ball’s Inchyra Blue and Stiffkey Blue also had high search levels. Do we all have the blues?
Regardless of brand, grey was the most popular colour overall, suggested Mrs Hinch’s recommendations might stretch to more than just cleaning products.
The only real standout in the study was Farrow and Ball’s Sulking Room Pink, which is a subtle, dusky, and feminine colour that accounted for 21% of the top five searches relating to paint colours for the bedroom.
The psychology of blue in decoration is to evoke feelings of calm and serenity. It’s also thought to create a feeling of loyalty, reliability, and stability.
For grey, it’s considered a colour that’s neutral and conservative, but can evoke a feeling of boredom or coldness.
It might just be a lick of paint, but these results say a lot about who we are and how we like our living spaces to make us feel.
We want to hear about your brilliant DIY transformations.
Rebecca Jeffrey has put her time in lockdown to good use by creating an incredible moon and forest mural on her unborn son’s bedroom wall (Picture: SWNS)
Please send all virtual DIY points to Rebecca Jeffrey, 28.
Rebecca has just unveiled the end result of a three-day project: a stunning hand-painted mural on her unborn son’s bedroom wall.
The mum wanted to put her time in lockdown to good use, so spend hours carefully painting a moon and forest scene ahead of her son’s arrival in September.
Rebecca, of Folkestone, Kent, said: ‘This is our rainbow baby. We had a miscarriage a couple of years ago so I just wanted to do something really special for when he arrives.
‘We already have a five-year-old daughter, Orla, so we got her involved with it as well.
Rebecca just getting started on the painting (Picture: Rebecca Jeffrey / SWNS.COM)
Adding in the tops of the trees (Picture: Rebecca Jeffrey / SWNS.COM)
‘Orla, my husband and me painted the other walls in his room and then I did the feature wall freehand.
‘I really liked the idea of a night sky theme, and I decided to paint a snowy forest and mountains to add a bit more of a story.
‘I thought it would be quite a calming design for him, and something that will interest him for years to come.’
Rebecca’s daughter Orla lent a helping hand (Picture: Rebecca Jeffrey / SWNS.COM)
Stunning (Picture: Rebecca Jeffrey / SWNS.COM)
Rebecca, who works as a support worker for adults with challenging behaviour, studied art in school and then went on to do a foundation diploma in art and design at college – so she knows her stuff.
When she shared photos of the mural online, she received more than 33,000 likes and comments from people blown away by her work.
Wow (Picture: Rebecca Jeffrey / SWNS.COM)
The mum added: ‘It was so lovely seeing everyone’s comments, because I’ve always known I’ve been okay at art but sometimes you don’t believe that your quite good enough.
‘Hearing people say that they’d pay for that in they’re own rooms was amazing.’
Rebecca is now considering creating art pages specifically for her work, with a view to doing some paid work for people in the future.
Have you completed a DIY project that needs to be shared? Get in touch to tell us more by emailing MetroLifestyleTeam@Metro.co.uk.
People don’t need to be given more reasons not to believe trans people (Picture: Aiden Wynn)
I’ll admit that it took me a few attempts to read JK Rowling’s recent essay on gender in full. Each time I tried, I would be hit with feelings of frustration, anger, sadness – and a horrible sense of déjà vu.
The arguments in Rowling’s essay are sinister. They paint transgender women as a threat, and depict transgender men as confused, naïve victims of a harmful ideology.
And within all of this calmly delivered misinformation and fear-mongering, there is the central thread that many trans men should be dissuaded from transitioning. Some of the reasons she gives are all too familiar to me.
When I first came out as transgender at age 18, I did not receive the level of support I am lucky enough to enjoy today. In fact, I’ve lost track of the amount of times I was told that I would change my mind and that it was just a phase. I am far from the only trans person to have had that experience.
People tend to speak for you when you come out as trans, to try and explain your experiences in a way that they can understand, without the inconvenient truth that maybe, just maybe, you might actually be transgender.
That’s hard enough when you’re first coming to terms with who you are. To then see that sort of thinking legitimised by someone with as large a platform as Rowling’s is genuinely concerning.
Some of the reasons Rowling gives for thinking that transgender men – or as she frequently refers to us, ‘girls’ – should be deterred from undergoing medical transition has to do with mental ill-health.
She talks about how ‘anxiety, dissociation, eating disorders, self-harm and self-hatred’ are common issues that trans men face before coming out. But somehow, she manages to use this against us as well.
Most people in my family were confused at my coming out, but I could have given them the answers to a lot of their questions, if only they had asked
Throughout my teenage years, I struggled with depression, anxiety, and a number of related issues, many of which were body-focused. I battled eating disorders; I developed trichotillomania when I started to pull out my long hair; and I went through phases of over-exercising in the secret pursuit of abs and slimmer hips.
Coming to terms with my transness meant finally understanding why I had gone through so much mental and emotional turmoil at such a young age. It was not, as JK Rowling seems to think, an easy escape from the difficulties I had experienced.
But again, while her position is uninformed, it is not unusual. I remember having a particularly raw conversation with my dad about my plans to transition. He told me that I wasn’t transgender, that I wasn’t dysphoric.
Instead, I was struggling with body dysmorphia, and I didn’t need a ‘man’s body’ – I needed help.
People thought that I was trying to distance myself from all things feminine, to redefine who I was as a way of detaching myself from the pain I had been through. They did not want to see that I had been through so much because I really was trans, and that transitioning was the solution.
What people tend to forget is that they can – and should – talk to the person who says they’re trans, and listen to what they have to say.
Most people in my family were confused at my coming out, but I could have given them the answers to a lot of their questions, if only they had asked. It would have been a far less isolating time for me if I had been believed and those around me had sought to understand.
Those arguments did not stop me from transitioning though, because I knew it was the right thing for me. More than five years on, and I am happy, self-assured, and undeniably male. My family can see that now, and I am fortunate enough to say that they are very loving and supportive.
Still, seeing those arguments peddled by JK Rowling to her millions of followers was not easy.
It brought back the feelings of fear and hurt and loneliness that coloured my coming out, and it makes me sad to think of the people going through that process right now who will have seen her words and felt invalidated by them.
People don’t need to be given more reasons not to believe trans people. Coming out is hard enough as it is, living as we do in a society that is downright hostile towards us. JK Rowling’s essay just adds fuel to the fire.
The type of protein you eat matters (Picture: Getty)
Last year, Men’s Health did a feature on steak versus seitan, asking ‘which is better?’.
It found that seitan – a plant-based meat substitute made from gluten – had three times the protein of steak and 10% of the fat content. Per 100g, seitan boasted 28% ‘brain sharpening iron’ compared to steak’s 13%, slightly more magnesium but none of the B12 content meat naturally has.
Oh, and swapping to a meat substitute was found to potentially add four years to your life, compared to eating red meat every day which increases your odds of early death by 12%.
Guess which food item won the battle of the proteins? Steak. Despite evidence pointing towards seitan being nutritious and less dangerous, Men’s Health still voted steak… bizarrely enough.
Well, new data confirms – again – than you’re better off getting your protein requirements from beans rather than beef.
Researchers in Greece looked at the diets of 3,349 women and men over the age of 50. They calculated a successful ageing score (SAI) and related what they ate to that index.
They found that those who ate a high plant protein diet had a higher SAI score than those who had a low plant protein intake – leading them to conclude that protein-rich plant-based diet was potentially more beneficial for health and ‘successful aging’ than the alternatives.
When it comes to living longer, another study examined the impact of protein intake on the lifespan of 6,381 over-50s in the USA.
Those who reported that they had a high protein intake were found to have an 75 per cent increase in overall mortality and a four-fold increase in cancer-related death risk over the following 18 years. But guess what? That was only the case for those who got their protein from meat sources. Plant proteins were actually associated with a lower mortality risk.
Not convinced yet? The study sizes still too small? How about this 2019 70,696 participant-strong study by Japanese researchers? Again, researchers found that intake of plant protein was associated with lower death risk and deaths from cardiovascular disease.
Good sources of plant protein
Firstly, don’t believe the propaganda – you can get sufficient amounts of protein on a plant-based diet with a little planning. It’s dead easy to shove a steak and veg on a plate and continue with your day, but vegan eating requires you to be a little more inventive and strategic.
Prioritise real foods and if you feel like you need more protein (if you do a lot of exercise, for example), then think about supplementing with a protein shake or bar. One very delicious and simple way to do that is to get yourself a box of MisFits Plant-Based High Protein chocolate bars. They taste ridiculously good, have under 1g of sugar per bar and 15g of protein.
Otherwise, look at getting protein into every meal.
All nut butters are great sources of protein, containing 3.4g per tablespoon, while half a cup of lentils provides about 12g of protein. Baked beans are dead nutritious, containing about 4g of protein per 100g and 0g of saturated fat.
And then, of course, you’ve got your tofu and tempeh which contain all nine essential amino acids you need, as well as iron, calcium, manganese and phosporous.
Meat substitutes like Oumph! chunks are made from soy protein and contain 17g of protein per 100g but only 82kcls (which is super low). Seitan, as mentioned above, is very high protein and low in saturated fat too.
So there are plenty of options and while no one is saying that you’ve got to go 100 per cent vegan to live longer or be healthier, it is worth experimenting with plant-based alternatives.
This is Cat. You love her now. (Picture: miaow_maew)
We’ve had a tough week/month/year/general existence, and sometimes we just need to look at a ridiculously cute animal to get us through it.
Today, that ridiculously cute animal is Cat (yes, that’s her name in English. It’s แมว in Thai), a kitty living in Thailand with her owner, a 27-year-old business owner named Eve.
Cat has caught our attention thanks to her beautiful face markings, which see half of her visage a pale blonde and the other in grey tabby tones.
Eve adopted Cat when she was three months old, back in November 2018, after falling in love with her ‘cute pink nose and tongue’.
Now one year and nine months old, Cat has quite a few quirks.
Cat lives in Thailand with her owner, Eve (Picture: miaow_maew)
She loves to hunt cockroaches and play hide and seek with toilet paper – which also happens to be her favourite snack (although Eve won’t let her have too much of it).
Eve says Cat’s best friend is a live cockroach named Peter, who she loves to chase around the house. Yes, it freaks Eve out, but all cat-owners will know that you can’t stop a cat from doing something they love.
Cat loves to play with cockroaches (Picture: miaow_maew)
‘She loves to play with cockroaches the most cuz they’re bigger than normal insects and can move fast,’ Eve tells Metro.co.uk. ‘Sometime they can fly. I’m scared when they play together.’
Cat is a little nervous around strangers, but she’s confident on Instagram, where she already has thousands of followers.
Band-Aid has announced that it’ll resume selling more diverse plasters (Picture: Band-Aid/Instagram)
It’s incredible to think that it’s 2020 and non-white people are still having to walk around with beige plasters covering their cuts and grazes. It’s just another example of how people of colour are routinely failed by companies.
Fortunately, the biggest provider of plasters – Band-Aid – is about to institute some long-overdue changes. The company has just announced that it’s bringing out plasters in a wider range of colours to cater for more skin tones.
Other brands have created more inclusive plasters for a while and Band-Aid actually used to have a wider range of skin tones, but apparently abandoned the diversity drive citing lack of demand.
This week, however, it announced on Instagram that it was going to resume selling multi-tonal plasters.
‘We are dedicated to inclusivity and providing the best healing solutions, better representing you,’ the post read, going on to mention that Band-Aid would be donating to the Black Lives Matter movement.
Understandably, lots of people felt that this was long, long overdue and questioned why Band-Aid was committing to inclusivity now. Is it because they genuinely want to see change (and if so, why discontinue the line back in 2005?), or is it cottoning onto the fact that diversity is in now and they want to be seen as being part of this grand racial awakening?
Tesco, for example, launched its first set of plasters in different skin tones back in February. After seeing a Black man’s tweet about finally being seen after finding a matching plaster, Tesco chatted to its ‘BAME at Tesco’ internal colleague network and found that the UK was also desperately in need of better everyday representation.
Ultimately, every brand should be committed to being accessible to a diverse range of people, and it’s really important that the mainstream offers options for every skin colour. However, it is embarrassing when that commitment to anti-racism only seems to happen after brands wake up to the commercial possibilities.
It’s no wonder if people decide that they want to continue buying Black when it comes to products like this, but at least when you accidentally nick yourself in a station, you’re going to have more of a chance of getting a last-minute plaster in your skin tone in the future.
It’s World Gin Day – it’d be rude not to (Picture: Getty)
There are plenty of reasons to keep your gin up because today, 13 June, is officially World Gin Day.
The perfect tonic to the difficult times of late, gin has always had a place in British society.
Without any further delay, let’s be-gin looking at some gin cocktails to try out if you want to celebrate World Gin Day today, and subscriptions and deliveries if you want to celebrate 365 days of the year.
If you’re serious about your gin, this premium subscription lets you pick from either monthly, bi-monthly or quarterly deliveries of new and exciting gins, tonics and more.
With free delivery across the UK, a subscription box includes:
Full-size bottle of craft gin
Tonics and garnish for the Perfect G&T
Cocktail of the Month ingredients
Sweet and savoury treats
56-Page glossy club magazine
Better than receiving a bill in the post… (Picture: BoroughBox)
This box contains four classic craft gins (5cl), four premium tonics, a gin and tonic chocolate bar, snacking olives and a portion of dried fruit to re-hydrate in the glass to create the perfect G&T.
BoroughBox ship items on a Next Working Day service, with the order cut off being 2pm.
Saturday & Sunday delivery are available at an extra charge.
Go global with your gin exploration (Picture: Master of Malt)
This sophisticated set includes gin from Bulgaria, Macedonia, Italy, Serbia and Croatia for a diverse and interesting sampling.
Different delivery options are available at checkout.
Gin cocktails and recipes to try
If you have some gin already kicking about the house – or you’ve made some of your own flavoured gin – why not experiment with something a bit different?
English Garden Cocktail
Ingredients:
Gin 50ml
St Germain elderflower liqueur 25ml
Apple juice 75ml
Lime juice 10ml
Cucumber ribbons to garnish
To make, simply shake all ingredients and strain over ice. Add the cucumber at the end for extra flavour and flair.
Bramble Gin Cocktail
Ingredients:
Dry gin 50ml
Lemon juice 25ml
Sugar syrup 12.5ml
Crème de mure 12.5ml
Blackberries for garnish
To make this classic cocktail, shake the gin, lemon and sugar syrup together with ice. Strain into a glass filled with ice (crushed if possible). Then drizzle the crème de mure in, followed by adding the blackberries for presentation (and a post-drink snack).
Japanese Gin Martini
Ingredients:
Gin 50ml
Sake 50ml
To make this simple martini-with-a-difference, shake the ingredients over ice and strain into a glass, no ice. If you want, garnish with a lemon peel or stick an olive in.
A classic Gin martini can be given a makeover by swapping out vermouth for Sake (Picture: Getty)
Fruit Gin Fizz
Ingredients:
Gin 50ml
Lemon juice 25ml
Agave nectar (or simple syrup) 20ml
Fruit of your choice – strawberries, raspberries or passion fruit go best with the juniper of the gin
Soda Water
This is a fresh take on a classic Tom Collins, and lets you use whatever fruit you prefer.
To make, muddle (fancy word for squish) your fruit of choice in the bottom of your cocktail shaker. Then add 25ml of lemon juice, your agave nectar, gin and shake over ice.
Strain into a glass with ice and add soda and garnish with any leftover fruit you have.
At age 33, Scott called a helpline to discuss the eating disorder he has struggled with since he was a child (Picture: Scott Antcliffe)
Just days after my 33rd birthday, with trembling hands and eyes blurred by tears, I picked up the phone.
Content warning: This article contains frank discussion on eating disorders.
Embarrassment, shame and guilt flooded my body as I spoke to an adviser called Laura* from the eating disorder charity BEAT. I’ve never been quiet or shy, as my family and friends can attest to, but when it comes to personal matters, I’ve always been a closed book. Now, however, the words just spilled out.
As a qualified PT with a degree in nutrition, it felt surreal to admit that I have an eating disorder.
Encouraged by Laura, I spoke about the lengths I go to to hide my behaviour around food. While telling her my secret, I could feel the pressure being lifted off my shoulders. I had learned to ignore my feelings for such a long time, but lockdown forced me to face them.
For me, it all started when I was around seven years old. Money was tight growing up and mum worked tirelessly to provide for me and my three older sisters. Shopping was done once a week; when the food was in the cupboard, that was the time to grab it as just a few days later provisions would, yet again, be scarce.
My fear of missing out was acute. I’d sneak downstairs, take food from the cupboard and hide it in the drawer under my bed, and devour it alone.
As a child, Scott used to decide which friends to play with with based on if they would feed him at their house (Picture: Scott Antcliffe)
I had a group of local friends, who unwittingly aided and abetted me in my eating habits. Most days after school ended, I’d be invited for tea at someone’s house – from this, I developed an order of friends with whom to play, based on the likelihood of being fed at their place.
My tendencies heightened when I reached secondary school. I was bullied by boys in my class for being clever, and stopped going out after school to play football, for fear of seeing them.
I felt lonely and scared, and found solace in food – binging on chocolate and snacks – using money given to me by grandparents. My rocketing weight added ammunition to the bullies’ arsenal: jibes of ‘fat bas**rd’ by day, and the comfort of empty calories at night became my routine.
I developed deep insecurities about my appearance and worried that no girl would ever be interested in me. I felt I’d only embarrass them.
I didn’t even care what the treats tasted like – it was just the action of eating, followed by intense feelings of disgust and guilt (Picture: Scott Antcliffe)
Given my experience growing up, it may seem strange that I applied to study Nutrition, Health and Lifestyles at university back in 2007. But my mum had recently been diagnosed with bowel cancer – a disease with strong links to poor dietary habits – so it made sense to go down that route.
However, it didn’t change my eating habits. If anything, I consumed more takeaways and alcohol by using money from student grants and loans, as I still lived at home. It is only recently that I’ve learned that many people with eating disorders often study nutrition, with a large percentage of these entering the industry.
In 2013, I took my obsession with health a step further and became a qualified personal trainer.
At the time, I wasn’t fully aware that my relationship with food was damaging – or perhaps I was in denial.
Becoming a PT didn’t change how I felt about myself, it only made it worse. I worried about what I looked like and my body dysmorphia led me to feel that I would be judged for being overweight in an industry where people determine how good you are at your job based on your appearance.
After three years, I gave up on persevering with training or nutrition as a career, but stuck around working part time at a gym in Sheffield long enough to complete a PGCE, which enabled me to become a qualified primary school teacher.
I didn’t even care what the treats tasted like – it was just the action of eating, followed by intense feeling of disgust and guilt
While it’s a truly rewarding job, it’s not one short of its challenges. Inevitably, my old friend – food – became my dependable ally to dull any stress I encountered – and when I lost my mum to leukaemia in 2016, my reliance on food and alcohol to soothe the pain grew even greater.
I would often devour a full box of chocolates in one sitting, hiding the wrappers from my wife. I didn’t even care what they tasted like, it was just the action of eating, followed by intense feelings of disgust and guilt.
This cycle continued, and still persists today: at meal times, when plates of food are placed on the kitchen worktop, I instinctively go for the bigger portion – the one that might have a slightly larger jacket potato or a few more beans.
Despite the fact that 25 per cent of all eating disorder cases affect men, there remains a huge stigma attached to talking about it, with studies showing that we are far less likely to seek help for mental health problems than women.
It’s only in the last year or so that I have begun to understand that I had an issue – it’s hard to explain why, as not much has changed, but I’ve just become more aware of the situation.
In lockdown, stuck with nothing but my own thoughts, I also opened up to my wife and sisters. I decided that now is the time to tackle my relationship with food.
They were all very supportive and encouraging. I am worried about speaking to my friends about this once lockdown is over. Our get-togethers often revolves around meals or trips to the pub, and I am worried that my eating disorder will make them treat me differently.
I thought my disordered eating was something I would be able to ‘shrug off’ without any support – but I was wrong.
The call I made to Beat was the first step to get help – I felt relieved after having up the phone. Knowing that I have this support is a comfort.
The next step will involve speaking to specialists from First Steps ED in Derby and implementing strategies to help me recognise and stop the cycle.
I know there is a long way to go and, although I’m anxious, I’m also excited about the path ahead.
If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article, you can get in touch with the national eating disorder charity Beat by calling 0808 0801 0677 or look for more information on the website.
