The Fun Side of Veganism

VegMoFo FAIL, and MeatFree Wednesdays

2009-10-26T16:04:00.000-07:00

OK, ok. I fail. I fail at VegMoFo. Hands in the air here, admitting that.

Moving on....I just found out that Fifteen, Jamie Oliver's Amsterdam restaurant (and culinary school for disadvantaged youths) is going meat-free on Wednesdays!

This is a growing initiative in certain parts of the world (for instance lots of places in Ghent, Belgium are going meat-free on Wednesdays as well), but I do believe that this is the first restaurant in the Netherlands to do so!

Now, it is yet to be seen if there will be anything on offer for vegans, but surely this is a step in the right direction!

Three cheers for Fifteen!

VegMoFo 09 Time Out!

2009-10-13T11:37:00.000-07:00

I am going to interrupt my regularly scheduled VegMoFo blogging (regular? who am I kidding?) with a special post! I got my very first blog award- the Kreativ Blogger award!

Woooooooot!

1. Thank the person who nominated you for this award.
2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog
3. Link to the person who nominated you for this award.
4. Name 7 things about yourself that people might not know.
5. Nominate other Kreativ Bloggers.
6. Post links to the blogs you nominate.
7. Leave a comment on each of the blogs letting them know that they have been nominated.

This honor was bestowed on me by Lizzy from Lizzy Goes Dutch. Her blog is a fantastic vegetarian food blog (mostly- also about her life here in Holland as an expat with her Dutchie boyfriend) and her food is really, really amazing. Like...the girl can cook. So if she thinks that I deserve this award, well then that tells me I must be doing something right!

I will also be spending Thanksmas (a mix of Thanksgiving and Christmas which falls between the two holidays) with Lizzy and a whole slew of others, so I will get to taste her cooking firsthand! Lucky me!!!

7 things about me that you might not know about me

1. I went through a self-righteous vegan stage, but I think I'm over it. It was really just misplaced anger and emotion that people didn't care what they were doing to themselves, the animals of the world, and the earth. I wanted to help people, show them the way, and mostly cook for them. But in time I learned to take it easy. Everyone has their own personal cause, and for many people it's just not veganism.

2. I used to want to be a bartender as a career, because that's what my dad did when I was growing up. When I finally became of age, I worked in bars and restaurants for ten years before I finally realized that it sucks. Really bad. I like my nights and weekends for myself, thankyouverymuch. I hope the day never comes where I have to work in a bar again, but who knows.

3. I am sometimes lewd and inappropriate (I curse a lot and talk about sex and body parts a lot), and it always turns out that most of my friends are very prim and proper. So I spend a lot of time wondering "Did I overstep the line there?" Luckily most of my friends have awesome senses of humor (I know how to pick 'em!) and aren't bothered by my foulness. ...I hope.

4. The cursing is one thing that I would love to quit. Just....can't!....So....f*ckin....hard!

5. I love, love, love, love, love horror movies. The cheesier the better. They still make me jump and scream, no matter if the killer is a giant tomato or a babysitter slasher, and I don't actually watch the movie so much as listen to it while looking anywhere but at the film during the scary parts. It's all just too real to me.

6. I am an extreme bragger about the fact that I won Halloween costume contests for several years running. Last year's costume was pretty much my crowning glory. There will be no beating it, so I'm not even going to try. By now all my friends are like, "Yeah, we know. YOU WON. GET OVER YOURSELF. It's been a year." They're clearly just jealous.

7. I work from home and this results in insane amounts of time on facebook and wordpress writing my other blog. I sometimes wish that someone would come in and change my passwords so that I could more efficiently work during office hours. Any takers???

Blogs I'm nominating:

1. Bonnie over at Eating With Rabbits. Bonnie is a 19 year old expat in the Netherlands, and a vegan. She cooks the most amazing things, and I am totally learning vegan things from her, such as which brands of licorice are edible for vegans. And here I thought I was a know-it-all vegan! Turns out I still have so much to learn!

2. Faith at Cooking Vegan with Soul. Faith is in New Jersey, so that is automatic home-state points for Faith. She is also kicking vegan ass in the cooking department. I'm jealous in one of those good ways, where you wish you were as cool as someone else, but can only stand there in awe (and drool). Way to go, Faith!

3. I don't know her real name, but I love the Beats, Rhymes, & Cookies blog! She blogs in English and Italian- that can't be easy! But there seem to be less vegan bloggers in Europe, so I like that she's representing the southern countries!

Thanks again, Lizzy!

Oat Couture Bath Melt by Lush

2009-10-12T06:29:00.001-07:00

OK, I am clearly fighting a losing battle with this here VegMoFo 09.

The thing is, I'm not much for cooking these days. So any post to do with food would probably be: "Oh hi. It's fusilli pasta with sauce from a jar again. Because I can eat it for an entire week for less than 2 euros."

Three cheers for the recession!!!

HOWEVER. All is not lost. My contract just ended with Lush but I still have some free samples, including a box of all of the newest products that have been released recently.

Oat Couture Bath Melt, meet my bathtub. Bathtub, this is Oat Couture Bath Melt. For the next 30 minutes the two of you will be best of friends.

This product is so new that it's not even on the Lush website yet. Wowza!

Basically it is a cocoa butter bath melt with lots of oats and herbs like lavendar bundled up in a cheese cloth. So you plop it in your bath and it melts to make the water silky, milky and creamy.

Then! And here's the good part. THEN, my friends, you take the cheesecloth filled with wet oaty oats, and rub it all over you for an even more luxurious luxury! Because there is still some yummy cocoa butter trapped inside, and that ish needs to be all over your body to make it soft and smooth and lovely smelling.

I was in bathtime heaven, folks. No lie. I am a huge Lush fan and have tons of favorites, but this oat-milky bath melt just floored me. Plus, the lavender ensured that I had a great night's sleep, which just adds to the awesomeness.

Give it a go! Absolute decadent heaven, or your money back.*

*Kidding! What company in their right mind would take back a used, soggy lump of oats wrapped in cheesecloth? Lush is good and all, but not that good!

London: Red Veg Vegan Fast Food

2009-10-07T07:51:00.000-07:00

The only other place in London that I had time to seek out for vegan food was Red Veg on Dean Street.

I was running from one place to another so needed something fast, and voila! Fast (vegan) food!

Now, as for the standard fast food restaurants- I stopped eating at those about 6 years ago after reading Fast Food Nation (read the book, AVOID the movie!). But this is vegan fast food- a whole 'nother ballgame really.

I ordered a vegan hot dog with mustard and ketchup, and ate it up in about 3 bites. I had to stop myself from ordering three more and head out to my appointment, but day-um: I was in H-E-A-V-E-N.

Definitely make a stop there! "Vegan fast food" is almost like an oxymoron, so it deserves a peek if you're in London!

Cheater Cheater!

2009-10-06T11:41:00.001-07:00

I totally cheated for today's post and posted over at my regular blog about a benefit night coming up for the organization Sea Shepherd and other animal rights happenings!

Go check it out!

VeganMoFo: London's Inspiral Lounge

2009-10-02T01:08:00.000-07:00

Ack! I just realized that VeganMoFo started yesterday! I was away in London and was flying back yesterday so I guess a good post to start with would be this vegan cafe that I stumbled across on a night out drinking in Camden.

There I was wandering a little drunkenly when I looked up and across the road was a sign that said: VEGAN CAKES.

We scuttled in just before they closed and I got a peanut butter chocolate slice of OH MY LORD GOODNESS with a side of rice whipped cream and a sprinkling of powdered chocolate.

This was a perfect happy little stumble-upon as I had very little time to eek out vegan places in London during the day (except one more which I will post about tomorrow). I gobbled that down and even my carnivore companion was pretty damn well impressed.

By the magical powers of the internet, I just found out that the place is called Inspiral Lounge. I'm so heading back there when I am back in London. The staff were super-friendly, the place was chill with an excellent menu (also a lot of raw foods and desserts), and the view over the water was amazing!

Also, I might very well skip Happy Cow for London, and just use Vegan-London instead. Seems a bit more up to date. (Also Vegan Europe is a growing forum for travel-related vegan needs in Europe! Check it out!)

BOOTS!!!!!

2009-09-08T07:55:00.001-07:00

These lovely non-leather boots were picked up on the Kinkerstraat on my birthday! I heart them already!
As for the age-old fashion rule of not wearing white shoes after labor day: Pfffft!

Glasgow Vegan: Mono Cafe

2009-09-03T09:18:00.000-07:00

OK, I admit this isn't in Amsterdam- it's in Glasgow, Scotland- but this was seriously one of the best vegan cafes I have ever been to!

This was the vegan breakfast found at Mono Cafe & Bar. Check it: it's GINORMOUS!!!!

This breakfast contained beans, bread, mushrooms, a tomato, veggie sausages, a tofu scramble, and veggie haggis! I couldn't even finish it but it broke my heart to leave some behind on my plate.

The menu was exactly how a vegan/vegetarian restaurant should be: eclectic, ethnic, and priced reasonably. Also (need I say it again?) the portions were insane.

Amsterdam is SORELY lacking in this department.

Dolmas

2009-09-03T09:11:00.001-07:00

Dolmas.
Otherwise known as Dolmades.
Otherwise known as Stuffed Grape Leaves.
Otherwise known as HEAVEN in a CAN (to me).

Found in my local Turkish shop on the Overtoom (somewhere around number 120).

Note that sometimes these have lamb in them, but this brand in particular, Sera, doesn't! Much to my tummy's delight!

The Risks of Being a Vegan

2009-09-03T08:59:00.000-07:00

Blueberry Pancake Tongue.

But I like to live life on the EDGE.

That's just my style, yo.

Mexican Lasagne

2009-08-05T10:54:00.000-07:00

Sooooo if you know me then you know that the very bestest, most sure-fire way to win my heart over is to cook for me.

Let me be more specific- to cook vegan food for me.

Enter Mexican Lasagne, a recipe that was decidedly un-vegan, but was veganized especially for me.

Someone knows what he's doing. And he's doing it well.

I know full well that from these two photos this just looks like a mash up of hidge-podge ingredients, but what you can't tell from is that this is the best three layers of vegan Mexican goodness (with a side of fries) that I have had the pleasure of eating since......well since ever.

The recipe:

(I'm sorry I know this is a poorly written up recipe but it's pretty much a wing-it type of dish. Do what you feel is right!)

Mexican lasagne.

Make some guacamole however you usually make it. (haha told you it was poor!)

Make some mango salsa by dicing up a mango, two tomatoes, and seasoning with fruit pepper, or garlic salt and coriander.

Make Chili as follows:

- make your chili with fake mince meat (you know like the TVP stuff), fry off some tomato purée and add garlic, chilli, paprika and cumin. Dice an onion, add along with can of chopped tomatoes and kidney beans and a dash of red wine. Grate in some dark chocolate, cayenne pepper and reduce till quite thick.

Take some tortillas and warm in the oven. Starting with a base layer of tortilla, followed by chilli, then a layer of guacamole, then tortilla, then chilli, then crumble some nachos on top.

Whack in the oven for 20 min, serve with a mango salsa and corn on top.

Care Package from Canada

2009-05-14T07:47:00.000-07:00

Thanks to the PPK, Evan from Bjorked Off, joined forces to spread the vegan love by sending eachother vegan goodies from our respective countries (him- Canada, me- the Netherlands). I can barely remember what I sent him now, besides the much-coveted-around-the-world Speculoos Spread.

His package came the other day and OMG! Do you already know about these Maple Leaf Cream Biscuits? Because holy shit they are gooooood. They didn't last long enough for me to take a photo, and that link isn't the same brand that Evan sent me. This brand was Nativa, which I can't find for some reason! But they were vegan and organic and fantastic. ...VORGASTIC?

He also sent some homemade maple-peanut butter cups which are HUGE and extremely delicious. Because my camera battery is dead and I can't wait long enough to charge it before eating the very last one, I doubt they will make it long enough to see the light of day on the Internets, but if you go check out this post of his about his vegan bake sale and scroll down, I think the peanut butter cups are the very same that he sent!

Other goodies include some Chick-o-sticks and assorted other little candies, all of which will not last long, let me tell you.

Yum! Thanks Evan!

Vegan Snack Bars on the Go

2009-05-05T08:35:00.001-07:00

On my way into work sometimes I stop into a vitamin shop called De Tuinen for a quick snack so that I don't starve during my shift waiting for my break.

This past time I went in there, I snooped around a bit and found quite a few more things that were all vegan!

Behold:

From the top left we have:

Dark Chocolate Covered Marzipan Bar, which nearly tasted like a Bounty bar, despite the lack of coconut (curious....but delicious!).
Quinoa Bar which was just like a sesame snap bar, probably because of the sesames in it.
Wallaby Bar with Macadamia Nuts and Cashews- good, but not quite as good as the Eat Well bars you can get (if you can find the ones without honey).
Nakd Bar in Berry Cheeky- a raw fruit and oat bar! In berry flavor, which was good but not as good as.....
Nakd Bar in Banana! To die for good, if you like banana flavored things. I see on their website that they also have Apple Pie and Cocoa Loco flavors! Wonder where I can find them...
Date & Fig Bar- like the middle of a fig newton bar without the bready outside layer.
Sesame Snap Bar- good if you like sesames, which I do!

So there you have it. If you are looking for a quick bite to hold you over for a bit, just look for the De Tuinen sign (there are several in town as they are a large vitamin chain) and see what they have.

My recommendation is definitely the Banana Bar!

Just so you know, they also carry an animal-testing free range of cosmetics (I haven't tried them yet) and face care products (which I have tried and do like) but as they carry a wide range of vitamins, I can't be sure about the rest of their products. I see on their website that only their own brand of vitamins and face & body care is not tested on animals, so maybe best stick to that! Another good thing to note is that many of the bottles of vitamins will say 'Good for Vegans' straight out, although usually in teeny tiny writing on the back label! (In Dutch: Geschikt voor vegetariers & veganisten).

Always a nice touch in my opinion!

Come, Eat and Be Merry!

2009-04-28T04:39:00.001-07:00

For any vegans out there passing through Amsterdam this summer, or already here, there is a Post Punk Kitchen Meetup here on the 6th of June.

Take a gander and mark your calendars:

Also going on this same weekend:

The Environmental Film Festival hosted by Strawberry Earth and Greenchoice. This is the first festival of its kind because the organizers proposed this film festival to a few cinemas in town, and then asked them how much of the profit they made during this festival they would contribute to making their own operations more eco-friendly and green.

The winning bidder was Het Ketelhuis, who said that they would pledge 100% of the profits from the film festival. Not only that, but whatever money they save from these changes they will donate to an environmental charity- for TEN YEARS! Now that is something special.

This film festival is going on right where we will meet for the PPK meetup, so this should be a good weekend!

See you in June!

See you, See me

2009-04-22T06:11:00.000-07:00

Another fun side of veganism is spotting other vegans in a crowd!

Case in point:

Supermarket, Monday night

Guy: Hey, I like your shirt! (I was wearing a Roots of Compassion hoodie with the saying 'Until all are free, no one is free'.....like this girl actually! Only I wasn't making that face.)
Me: Oh, Thanks!
Guy: Are you a vegan?
Me: Yeah! Are you?
Guy: Yeah!
(Big cheesey vegan grins all around.)
Me: Do you live in Amsterdam?
Guy: No, I'm just visiting for a few days.
Me: Oh right, because it's kind of a small vegan world and you tend to get to know all of the vegans around here....
Guy: Oh, yeah, no just visiting. ...Do you know Gijs?
Me: Gijs! Yeah I know Gijs! (Gijs is an Amsterdam vegan.)
Guy: That's who I'm staying with. I'm here with his girlfriend.
Me: Santina?!
Guy: Yeah!
Me: No way!

And then around the corner comes Santina, girlfriend of vegan Gijs.

So, what did we learn?:

A) it's fun to spot and connect with other vegans in the crowd! And easy too- just look for the black hoodies with a message!

and

B) it's a small world when you're a vegan! Especially in Amsterdam!

More vegans need to come here please thanks!

I got a Twitter from Bryant Terry!

2009-04-17T05:09:00.000-07:00

Hey vegans! Not meaning to brag here, but a few weeks ago I sent this photo of my meal from Vegan Soul Kitchen to Bryant Terry via Twitter.

See?Just a little shout-out to say, 'Hey. Nice book, great recipes, You're fantastic, Will you have my babies' etc.

I didn't expect anything out of it (you know....sort of famous people and how busy they might be and all). But then....Dude twitted back!

I can't even tell you how much this made my day.

All day I was like 'BRYANT TERRY TWITTED ME!'

And then of course all day I had to explain to everyone 'See I'm a vegan, right? And this guy Bryant Terry wrote this book, right? About vegan soul food....'

But I know that you all will understand better. You all GET me. <3

If this were 2 decades ago, I would totally be cutting Bryant Terry's centerfold poster out of the middle of Teen Beat to hang on my wall to kiss each night before bed.

But the times, they have a-changed.

Now I'll just post his tweet on my blog and project it out into the blogosphere.

Wow how far we have come.

The Tropical Vegan Kitchen

2009-04-11T06:24:00.000-07:00

Hello, my name is Amanda, and I have an addiction.

I am addicted to vegan cookbooks. I have 17 of them*. And I just got one as a present the other week, yet I couldn't stop myself the other day when I saw The Tropical Vegan Cookbook by Donna Klein in my local bookstore. I tried to resist, I really did.

But you see, I absolutely love the addition of fruit in savory meals. (For example, the soup in my previous post. Or the toppings in my previous tempeh post.) It really tickles my toes, and when I flipped through this book I saw a load of recipes of that kind- lots of oranges, coconut milks, bananas and mangoes.

In my language these ingredients are all a recipe for H-E-A-V-E-N.

So I got it and now I am having a hard time deciding which recipe to try first. They all look so delicious, so watch this space for yummy meals soon!

(* And? Yet another cookbook on the way in the mail! Definitely have a problem....)

Pomegranate, Raspberry and Carrot Soup

2009-04-11T05:34:00.000-07:00

The large supermarket chain in the Netherlands, Albert Heijn, puts out limited edition specialty food products for Christmas and Easter and other large holidays. I normally shy away from these things because they are just that much more expensive (and usually not vegan anyway), but this soup in particular caught my eye.

It is a pomegranate, raspberry and carrot soup for Easter. I checked the ingredients list and it sounded so different and delicious and happily vegan so I just had to try it.

And oh my stars.

This stuff is fantastic. I first tried a cup of it warmed up- lovely. Then I had the rest of it cold, as is, right out of the bottle- just as lovely! It has the consistency and tomato base of normal tomato soup, with the sweetness of raspberries, and the seeds of pomegranates still intact. There is also a hint of spiciness, which I see from the ingredients is probably ginger.

I looked online and can't find any similar recipes, but if anyone is good at that sort of thing, please make this and send me the recipe! Maybe I'll give it a go one day too.

Here are the ingredients from the label (as best as I can translate them):
Water, 10% pomegranate puree, 8% carrot juice concentrate, 6.5% raspberry puree, white wine, 2% pomegranate juice concentrate, sugar, tomato puree, modified maiszetmeel (crap what is that in English? a binder, corn something...corn starch? corn syrup? oh no!!!), candied (?) ginger (ginger, sugar, water), sunflower oil, modified potato starch (gemodificeerd aardappelzetmeel?), salt, yeast extract, sprices, lemon juice, spice extract, and onion powder.

The only bad part is that this won't be offered in stores after this Easter weekend.

Creole, Indian, Caribbean, Chinese- All In One Meal!

2009-04-03T12:17:00.000-07:00

I already posted something similar on my other blog, but it is even more appropriate for this one.

Last night we had a friend over, so I finally got a chance to try out a recipe from Vegan Soul Kitchen. I chose the Cajun-Creole Spiced Tempeh (page 10), topped it with Indian Coconut Chutney and a simple tomato salsa, with a side of Chinese Broccoli in asian sauce, and African Bean soup.

A meal that spanned 4 continents, and it was so good! But, we were in the heat of watching Lost so I didn't think to take a photo.

Tonight I had some leftover tempeh, so I recreated the Spiced Tempeh part of the meal with the same coconut chutney topping, only the salsa this time was Mango and Tomato Salsa, and the side was chinese pumpkin dumplings.

This time I did get a photo, so feast your eyes folks:

The tempeh came out with a slightly better texture tonight, and I really loved the addition of the mango to the salsa. Combined with the coconut in the chutney, it felt like something that we would be eating if we were in the islands of the Caribbean.

Definitely going into my 'eat often' rotation!

Watchy Watchy

2009-04-02T07:05:00.000-07:00

I met my (non-vegan) friend* for coffee the other day and she flashed this in my face! A sparkly pretty new watch from Six!

"AND!" she said, "It's VEGAN!"

2 thumbs up!

* this is also the friend who introduced me to Speculoos spread! She'll be a full-fledged card-carrying vegan before she knows it!

Lush's Solid Shampoo

2009-03-31T15:27:00.000-07:00

After several people have ooh'd and aah'd over Lush's solid bars of shampoo, I finally gave in and gave it a go today in the shower. I chose the Jumping Juniper because I have oily hair and that was the one recommended.

The concept behind the shampoo is that all of the liquid is taken out of the shampoo, because you can easily add the water in the shower. So the little shampoo pellets are mixed with essential oils and condensed into a little round cake, and all you do is rub that cake on your hair (only a few times) and then scrub and the bubbles just EXPLODE on your head.

I know, I didn't believe it either and was always scared to try it, but it works! It definitely took a leap of faith, but my hair is wonderfully clean today, still has a nice smell after 10 hours, and doesn't have any traces of buildup or residue (normally a problem with my hair).

Even more satisfying is that condensed solid shampoo is in line with Lush's policy for little to no packaging, as you don't need a plastic bottle that will eventually make it's way to a landfill (especially if you live in a city that DOESN'T RECYCLE PLASTIC coughcough*AMSTERDAM*cough*).

AND (as if that wasn't enough!) you can easily travel with this little shampoo cake, which lasts for about 80 showers. So no more worrying about tiny bottles that you have to fill with shampoo to get through customs!

Win-Win-Win Situation!

Bagels and (More) Coffee

2009-03-30T03:37:00.000-07:00

One of the easiest vegan things to eat while out and about in Amsterdam is bagels. There are a number of bagel chains, and then some smaller bagel cafes dotted here and there. Nearby the Leidseplein is a tiny little corner cafe called Bagels & Wraps, so this weekend we stopped in for a light lunch.

I had a sundried tomato bagel with hummus, cucumber and lettuce. Whatever hummus they use is excellent and gets my 5-starred, 2-thumbs-up approval. The bagels always come with a few tortilla chips on the side, and that warm foamy drink in the back is another vegan cappuccino made with soy milk!

They said they sometimes have soy milk, so I guess I was lucky this time because I never had it here before. Either that or I simply never knew it was an option.

Bagels & Wraps is on Kleine Gartmonplatsoen, but it would be easier to find by knowing that it is between Paradiso and Wagamama on the Weteringschans.

Cookbook: Vegan Soul Kitchen

2009-03-30T03:00:00.000-07:00

What's that? You haven't yet heard about 'Vegan Soul Kitchen : Fresh Healthy and Creative African-American Cuisine'?

And just where have you been hiding? Obviously not the vegan food blogosphere, as this little number has been taking the vegan world by STORM.

Luckily for us vegans, Bryant Terry had the smarts, foresight, and most importantly- talent- to see that the vegan cookbook world was lacking a massive hole where soul food was concerned, so he set out to correct this.

For my own part, I have had limited access to what is considered the good old southern soul food (Hello White Girl from New Jersey), but everyone has their own personal soul food (for instance I read that the Japanese version of soul food is miso soup!), so I understand the connotations loud and clear. And flipping through the recipes, there is a sheer ton of recipes that jump out and call to me.

Now the problem is where to start! Oh...and where to find okra in Amsterdam? I wouldn't know an okra if it jumped out and bit me on the shins.

I was lucky enough to be the recipient of this cookbook as a gift just yesterday when my parents were in town! (Thanks guys!) So I officially owe them a vegan soul food feast the next time I see them. And as my Dad is from Tennessee, I'll have a lot of living up to do!

Coffee at de Koffie Salon

2009-03-30T02:43:00.000-07:00

I know there's nothing so fabulously vegan about a coffee with soy milk, but I have a mental catalogue of all of the coffee places in town that serve soy milk as an option for cappuccinos and lattes, and it wasn't until this past weekend that I realized that there was one closer to home than all of those that I knew.

This cappuccino made with soy milk can be found just a block from my home, at de Koffie Salon. There are 2 in Amsterdam- one on the Utrechtsestraat and the other on Eerste Constantijn Huygenstraat.

Ta-da! The closer (to me at least) vegan cappuccino! (cue heavenly angels singing)

Lush Soaps

2009-03-25T03:43:00.000-07:00

I thought that Lush was already world-wide and well-known, but apparently that isn't the case in some places. Amsterdam has 2 Lush stores- one on the Leidsestraat and one on the Kalverstraat. One year ago they opened their first Belgian store in Antwerp.
If you are a vegan and an animal rights activist who ecshews all animal-related products in clothes, food, and toiletries, then you know Lush, you love Lush, you are Lush's PRIME target market. Because Lush is more than a soap store- it is a company that cares about animal rights (as well as human rights). It doesn't test it's soaps on animals nor does it buy ingredients from suppliers who do, and it cares about the environment, using organic and fair trade supplies when possible, using as little packaging as possible, and staying away from the harsh chemicals that ruin our beautiful world. And it aligns itself with important huma n and animal rights causes in the form of support through products, sponsorships, and donations or perc entages of sales. (In fact, here is a list of charities that the UK Lush supports.)

There is a lot to be said about Lush's continued contribution to make the world a better place. In short, it is a great company with great ethics- and it SMELLS FANTASTIC in the stores.

On the recommendation of one friend who just discovered the wonderful world of Lush (Hi Rachel!), and another who works for Lush's new in-store salon in the UK (doing massages and things- Hi Mo!), I applied for a job at Lush and last night had my interview there (I have no idea why I didn't think to do this before). It was a group interview with 9 other women, and it was actually more fun than your average interview, even though we covered some of the normal interview questions. And then we each did a little pretend scenario where we tried to sell an item from Lush to one of the 2 people interviewing us.

7 of out of the 10 of us there survived the first cut and now we each have an in-store trial day to see if we are suitable for the job. My day is tomorrow, and I'm really excited to go in and prove myself. This would be a fantastic job, right in line with my ideals and principles, so keep your fingers crossed for me please!ANYWAY! On to the whole point of this blog! MANY (70% actually) of Lush's soaps/shampoos/bubble baths/etc are vegan (and you can easily spot them by the vegan flower symbol on the placard in the store, see below)- so no animal ingredients involved. The company is vegetarian, so the other 30% of the products are vegetarian, with ethically sourced animal-derived ingredients.

After we left the interview for the night, we got a goody-bag with 2 different Lush soaps. What a sweet gesture! I certainly have never been to any job interview where, even if you don't win the job, you walk away with something!

The 2 soaps inside were a Spice Curls soap and a Keep It Fluffy soap.

You can't tell from these pictures (obviously), but these two soaps smell divine! The one on the left is spicier (think cinnamon, chai, mulled wine), the one on the right more flowery (definite hints of rose). I can't wait to try these two out and add them to my ever-growing list of Lush products that I love (the bath bombs and bubble bars are OUT OF THIS WORLD!).
And I'll keep you posted if I get the job, so again, fingers crossed please!!!

Yellow Satin Ballerina Flats by London Rebel

2009-03-19T09:07:00.000-07:00

These yellow satin ballerina flats are made by London Rebel. Not all of their shoes are vegan (I just glanced through their site), but I'd say a good lot of them are. I picked up this pair on an insane Ebay spree that I had last summer. Seriously, my husband had to stage an intervention with me and Ebay last summer. But oh the finds I found!!!

I loved sporting them around town last summer. When you wear such a bright color on your feet, people's eyes are always drawn down to them.

And it is such a pretty color, no?

T.U.K. Tattoo Kitten Heeled Shoes

2009-03-11T09:34:00.000-07:00

Just because I'm poor folk right now doesn't mean that I have to stop window shopping. It's therapeutic touching all the pretty things. So when I was out today that's what I did: touch touch touch touch touch.

And then I found these shoes at Sacha on the Leidsestraat (who have an annoying website by the way).

WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT! The lady in the shop wouldn't let me take a photo, so I scurried home and found them online at the T.U.K. online shop.

So suck a fat one, Sacha. That's what you get for not letting me take a photo. I'll just not buy them from somewhere else!

Also in these colors, but I'm partial to the nude above:

They had quite a few more man-made options, as well, so despite our little tiff regarding taking photos in the shop (which actually I quite understand), I was proud of Sacha, and really wish I had the money for some new kicks right now!

Mexican Tooled 'Leather' Bag

2009-03-10T07:44:00.000-07:00

This is probably one of my most favorite Ebay finds. There are loads of tooled leather bags from Mexico on Ebay, but I seem to have found the one and only tooled faux-leather bag on the entire site. The leather look is pretty convincing, if you're into that kind of thing. And it has the most gorgeous design on each side.

See for yourself...

What's that you say? You need to see a closeup?

Only too happy to oblige...

I totally know what you're thinking. You wish YOU had found that bag on Ebay and snatched it up. Well not this time, my pretties! It's mine! All mine! muahahahahaahah!

Speculoos Spread for Bread

2009-03-04T07:59:00.000-08:00

"mmmmmmm, lekker*!" as the Dutch would say.

This spread has the consistency of smooth peanut butter, but the taste of Speculoos cookies. Speculoos cookies (also called speculaas in the Netherlands, spekulatius in Germany and spéculoos in France) have an almost gingerbread taste- a bit caramel-like and spicey- and are pure heaven. The main spices are: pepper, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, cardamom and nutmeg. Normally they are either given with your coffee or tea at a cafe, or sold in the stores primarily around the Christmas holidays.

Apparently this spread comes from Belgium, and that makes total sense because the Belgians are known for decadence (think: beer, chocolates, waffles, etc). Of course they would have thought to turn the cookies into a sandwich spread. Who else would have thought to do it but the Belgians!

Luckily I didn't know about this spread during the 5 years that I lived in Brussels (is it new perhaps?) otherwise it would be showing in my thighs today. That it is vegan is mind-blowing and completely awesome.

This brand, Lotus, is also sold somewhere here in Amsterdam, but for now I think I'd be best not to find out where exactly, otherwise I'd be there every other day, replenishing my supply. My friend bought this one for me, which makes me think she is both wonderful and evil.

* 'yum!'

Suedette Boots

2008-10-10T06:48:00.000-07:00

Well, I created this blog over a month ago and have yet to post, so I'd better get cracking.

I'll start with my favorite pair of boots, made from faux suede and ruched down the side. Now that the weather has turned crisp, I can't seem to take these boots off. They are flat, so no need for pretentiousness, and so comfy! I'm also already tall so when I wear these I'm not taller than my husband- he hates that! And they keep the tootsies nice and warm.

I got them off of an eBay shoe store in Australia (My Fashion Room), along with a few dresses that also kick ass. When the package came, I tore it open and tried everything on, and haven't taken these boots off since.

I always wear my pants tucked into them (as shown), which I'm sure one day I will look back on and cringe about, but for now it's just how it's done. Oh, fashion you fickle fickle fool!

And, of course- the best part! No animals were harmed in the making of these boots!

(PS- Check the pups in the background, wondering what's up!)