Monthly Archives: March 2008

dirty vegan.

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When I heard about Dirt Candles I had to share. Firstly, the name is awesome – come on, Dirt…love it! But the cool philosophy behind the name makes it all the better.

The makers of Dirt describe themselves as ‘Raw. Pure. Real.’ They believe in all things natural, cruelty-free, charitable, and biodegradeable. Their soot-less, vegan candles are made using local organically grown soybeans and essential oils and are quite elegantly packaged using recycled glass and paper. Plus, in the spirit of giving back, a portion of their profits goes towards a list of charities that includes Peta, The Humane Society, and The Nature’s Conservancy among others.

You can buy Dirt in a multitude of U.S. stores, including online at Wildlife Works (they ship to Canada) and Room 6 in Vancouver, British Columbia (also check out the Sigg reusuable water bottles).

Smell good and feel good too.

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chickpea cutlets.

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Today I made Veganomicon‘s Chickpea Cutlets for the second yummiful time. The first time I followed the recipe to the letter and used the pan fry option. Very yum. This time around I substituted chili pepper for paprika, because I was out of the red stuff, and I added green onions. This time I used the oven bake method. Well they turned out awesome. They were a little on the spicy side but I really like the extra heat from the chili pepper – it gives it a little extra somethin somethin. I’ll just cut back a bit next time round. The green onions were also a huge hit with both hubby and myself. They added a delicious flavour and a lovely shot of colour to the mix. I served them up with broccoli and mushrooms. Mucho bene.

I also really preferred the baking method over frying. It takes a little longer but you don’t have to spend that time standing in front of the stove which actually works out to be more convenient. There’s also the added bonus of using much less oil and thus less fat. I am a huge fan of these cutlets. I see many flavour variations in their culinary future. They are undoubtedly awesome unadulterated yet they also lend themselves quite well to being added too. Red peppers? Mushrooms? Leeks? My ravenous imagination is in overdrive.

Behold, today’s lunch.

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girly vegan.

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I was flipping through the pages of a fashion mag today when I happened upon a small blurb about celebrity vegan Alicia Silverstone and a comment she made about a new line of makeup brushes made by EcoTools. If you know anything about makeup brushes you know that most of them are made with animal hair. What caught my eye about this particular line of brushes was the phrase ‘cruelty-free’. This merited some investigation I thought. A small bit of surfing later and after having read up on this delightful new product I’ve decided I must have them.

Not only are EcoTools made with cruelty free hair (they are made of taklon, a synthetic material), but they are also made using natural and recycled materials. The handles are made from the notoriously sustainable bamboo and the the metal cuffs are made from recycled aluminum cans. Even the reusable pouch is biodegradeable. Plus, the brushes are soft, the importance of which cannot be understated, and they were designed by a makeup professional who knows how these things are supposed to work. We want our brushes to be as comfortable to use as they are effective. They’re also really attractive and chances are, if you’re applying makeup, looks probably matter to you.

As if they didn’t already sound amazing enough, EcoTools has also joined up with 1% For The Planet, an organization made up of businesses that contribute 1% of their sales to environmental groups around the globe. Cruelty-free? Check. Environmentally conscious? Check. Sustainable? Check. Recyclable? Check. Girly? Check. Sounds like a winner to me.