Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category

It’s World Climate Impacts day today which aims to draw attention to the direct connection between climate change and the extreme weather that the world has experienced over recent years. From the hottest March temperature ever recorded in Scotland a few weeks ago to the wettest April for 100 years it is something we can certainly relate to. Visit the Climate Dots website to find out more…

A nice mention of our Artichoke EarthLust bottle on the Food News Page in today’s Telegraph Magazine. The EarthLust water bottles are definitely the most beautiful on the market – the only problem is which of the lovely designs to choose!

We’ve just added a couple of yummy (well if you are a dog anyway!) new packs of dog biscuits to the site and now have a wide range of healthy, organic dog treats that will appeal to even the fussiest of dogs! There are Jumbo Bones for those that need a chunky treat to gnaw on, Bites for a generous treat and Minis for a little treat when out and about.

We also offer a range of flavours to suit all palates! Carrot and apple for those watching their waistline, sundried tomato, spinach and herb for the Mediterranean breeds and cinnamon and honey for those with a sweet tooth!

Take a look at the whole range here…

Over the last few weeks we have added over 40 lovely new bambu products to the website, introducing some great new innovations for 2012. Our favourites include the new ‘Utensils with a hole’ pictured above – especially the lovely Triple Slotted Spoon, the very cute Tiny Tongs, the Naked Coconut Bowl and Naked Coco Mini, and the beautiful Artisan Boards. Take a look at our ‘Bambu Boutique‘ to see the full range…

For two weeks every year Fairtrade Fortnight gives the issues surrounding Fairtrade production to a much higher profile. That’s great of course as the publicity is certainly helpful, however for us it is something that is always on our mind in our hunt for products that give a better life to their producers (and their surrounding communities).

It’s also a good time to clarify how the Fairtrade mark works as you will notice only a few of the products we stock carry the official Fairtrade mark of the Fairtrade Foundation (shown above). This Fairtrade mark is only available to use on certain categories of products eg cotton, fruit and  chocolate. Most of the products we stock don’t fall into these categories so there are no official guidelines published for the suppliers to work to.

The main thing we look for from our fair trade suppliers is a close and direct relationship with the producers of the products. Our suppliers visit the producers regularly themselves (rather than relying on agents) and see for themselves the positive effect their production has on the communities.

We also look for the marrying of contemporary British design with the inherent skills of the producers. And for as much of the product to be developed in the country as possible (rather than just a fair price paid for raw materials). In this way the producers can add value to the raw material turning it into a higher value product rather than just stripping a country of it’s valuable resources.

One of the best examples of this Zulugrass by The Leakey Collection – a collection of unique jewellery made by the Maasai women in Kenya. Katy & Phillip Leakey live among the women in the bush in Kenya and harness the raw materials they have on hand (the grass the jewellery is made from) together with the beading skills the women have as part of their heritage. Finally Katy designs the jewellery to appeal to a western market with vibrant, contemporary colours. Find out more and see the range of jewellery here.

Taking lunch into work is definitely something that more and more people are starting to do. It is a great way of saving money, reducing packaging waste and also using up leftovers. However very few ‘lunch kit’ products are designed for adults or have any sort of style about them.  That is why we were so pleased to find the U-Konserve range of high quality, practical products with a definite fashion edge. My favourite piece is the Saffron Insulated Lunch Tote with its adjustable strap and chunky zip – guaranteed to make any leftovers look a little more glamorous! Also available in Slate grey.

As January draws to a close the mood is (hopefully!) about to get all romantic and to help inspire you we’ve popped a few ideas for valentine’s gifts on our home page. Our favourites? Our beautiful rose heart bath melts are always well received – what better gift than a relaxing soak in the bath! And for the men – our ‘Grow your own Chilli Garden’ makes a fun gift – and is something they can enjoy all year. Just make sure you are not the one who has to do the watering!

Following conversations with our courier company and the Royal Mail we understand that there is currently a lot of pressure on the delivery system. Our courier had it’s biggest day for collections ever on Monday and then again on Tuesday.

As a result we have suspended our Next Day service as although we will continue to send orders out the day after the order is placed (and often the same day) we cannot control what happens after the parcels leave us.

We hope you understand our position and that all your deliveries arrive in plenty of time this year.

Happy Christmas to all our customers…

A nice mention of our Sranrom hand cream set in the Sunday Express ‘S’ Magazine today. It is part of their Gifts for under £10 feature and makes a perfect stocking filler!

We’ve added some lovely new EarthLust bottles to the website over the weekend including the stylish Urban Farm collection. New designs include Rabbit, Artichoke, Squirrel and ‘Rooster‘ (well – they are American!). My favourite is the Rabbit (I love the eau de nil coloured bottle) but I think the Rooster is also going to be very popular as there are a lot of people out there who love their chickens!