Our waterways need protecting:
TRINKETS tampons are biodegradable, however, help protect our waterways and please do not flush them. Bag It, and Bin It.
I’ve always been a shopper and always will be however I’ve noticed a pattern where my shopping habits and purchases vary from bizarre to plain inexcusable. There’s a cycle in my life when my wardrobe increases in size and my bank balance rapidly decreases. These ‘cycles’ most notably occur at the end of season sales, changing weather patterns, any sighting of my favorite four-letter word and once monthly when my sweet tooth increases and sense of style disappears.
I was horrified when I noticed this pattern and even more distraught when I realized it had lead me to purchase a galaxy print mini dress, green pants that evoke thoughts of Kermit and a polka dot frilled top better suited to a three year old. Admittedly I’ve committed other fashion sins but noticeably these all occurred whilst shopping with Aunt Flo.
A lot in my wardrobe can be described as whimsical, sparkled or boldly coloured, otherwise known as beautiful man deterrents. However I’ve always thought these pieces were stylishly constructed to appeal to the fairer sex. The problem is purchases I’ve bought whilst on a monthly self-destructive style binge don’t appeal to anyone. Except the men I’ve meet that proudly proclaim they owned “divine heels like those when strutting the streets of Kings Cross, daaarrling”.
Apparently I’m not alone in my timely lapses in style. After speaking to friends they’ve also experienced a similar deterioration of style awareness at select periods, excuse the pun. Scarily bad shopping lapses don’t seem to cease with age as one stylish figure admits to experiencing lapses from her teens to her late forties. I’ve got my fingers crossed for menopause then.
I can’t advise how to fix the problem, though I can give you a list of items to avoid, developed from my own and others errors. Mustard doesn’t flatter you this week if it didn’t last, animal printed polyester won’t be your thing in five days, fancied that top on your 12 year old sister then walk away now and finally unless your name’s Alexa Chung drop the corduroy overalls.
Take heed and when Trinkets arrives on your doorstep indulge in a tub of ice cream rather than hitting the stores. Both will leave you feeling guilty but it’s easier to burn off desert than argue a return due to a faulty frame of mind.
Thanks to Alexandra Murphy for being our guest blogger this month. Alex is based in 
Melbourne and is an aspiring fashion writer. She’s also my fabulous niece! Genevieve x
Recently we attended an event that was refreshingly different. It was a breakfast put on by Ruby UK, a networking group for women to exchange ideas, share knowledge and become inspired. Our first stop was Whole Foods Camden where we were given free reign of the store and treated to product stalls with experts serving up their finest foods, juices, coconut yoghurt, body oil and tofu pesto. Our favourite was the discovery of green wheat shots which is sold as a powder and actually tastes ok. We could instantly feel the goodness as it entered our bodies.
We then moved on to the cafe next door to hear from an amazing lady called Polly Noble. Polly’s story was inspiring as she shared her survival story on cancer and turning to a life of complete healthy living. Polly talked about making small changes to our everyday routine to start living a healthier life. Her top tips:
We left feeling inspired, informed and ready to make a small change to our busy lives. Here at Trinkets, what we put into our bodies is close to our hearts as we share similar 
philosophies with Polly and Whole Foods team. It doesn’t take much to be kind to our insides but the rewards are great.
Live well.
Gen and Kate xx
Delicious lamingtons
On January 26th, Australians celebrate Australia Day. It’s a national holiday and a time where communities stop to recognise those young and old who have made a contribution to the town or city they live in. Where Kate and I grew up in Minyip, they have a breakfast in the Main Street cooked by the local Lions Club (our Father’s likely to be cooking) and present awards to worthy winners. I’m really proud that Mum and Dad won citizens of the year two years ago, after 50 years of service to committees and local volunteer work, their accolade was well deserved.
To celebrate Australia day, we are sharing Mum’s lamington recipe. The original recipe was given to my Mum by a local lady that we only knew as Mrs Petering. There’s something endearing when I think back to how women in local communities shared recipes and information, as I’m certain this recipe would have been passed on written on a piece of paper stained with cocoa and not emailed or posted on Pinterest.
Lamington’s are traditional small cakes, soaked in cocoa and then rolled in desiccated coconut. As kids, they were a staple after school snack in the Tupperware containers. We are delighted to be sharing a recipe that has been passed down to great women for decades. Enjoy x
Special note: Thanks to Mum and Jenni Miller for organising photos. x
Lamingtons
Mum's recipe book
6 eggs,
2 cups plain flour,
1 ½ cups sugar,
2 teaspoons cream of tartar,
½ teaspoon bi- carbonate soda,
8 tablespoons milk (1/2 cup)
2 tablespoons melted butter
3 cups desiccated coconut
METHOD
Melt butter. Beat egg whites and sugar add yolks and beat well. Add sifted flour and cream of tartar and melted butter. Put soda in boiling milk and add to mixture. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Bake in a moderate oven for about 25 minutes or until sponge springs back when touched lightly in the centre and comes away from side of pan. Turn cake onto a wire rack to cool.
Cut the cake into 20 even pieces
CHOCOLATE ICING
4 2/3 cups (750g) icing sugar mixture
1/2 cup cocoa powder
20g soft butter
3/4 cup milk
Sift the icing sugar and cocoa into a large heatproof bowl; add the butter and milk; stir over a medium saucepan of simmering water until icing is smooth and thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Divide icing mixture into 2 small bowls.
Place coconut in a shallow bowl.
Using a large fork, dip each piece of cake briefly into icing until cake is coated in icing. Hold over bowl to drain off any excess. Dip half the cake pieces in one bowl of icing and the other half in the second bowl of icing. (Separating the icing into two bowls is a good idea, as cake crumbs will thicken the icing and make it difficult to use.) If the icing becomes too thick, stand it over hot water while dipping, or reheat gently with a little more milk. If necessary, strain the icing into a clean bowl.
Toss cake gently in coconut. Transfer cake to a wire rack; stand until set.
6 eggs,
2 cups plain flour,
1 ½ cups sugar,
2 teaspoons cream of tartar,
½ teaspoon bi- carbinate soda,
8 tablespoons milk (1/2 cup)
2 tablespoons melted butter
3 cups desiccated coconut
Method
Melt butter. Beat egg whites and sugar add yolks and beat well. Add flour and cream of tartar and melted butter. Put soda in boiling milk and add to mixture. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Bake in a moderate oven for about 25 minutes or until sponge springs back when touched lightly in the centre and comes away from side of pan. Turn cake onto a wire rack to cool.
Cut the cake into 20 even pieces
CHOCOLATE ICING
4 2/3 cups (750g) icing sugar mixture
1/2 cup cocoa powder
20g soft butter
3/4 cup milk
Sift the icing sugar and cocoa into a large heatproof bowl; add the butter and milk; stir over a medium saucepan of simmering water until icing is smooth and thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Divide icing mixture into 2 small bowls.
Place coconut in a shallow bowl.
Using a large fork, dip each piece of cake briefly into icing until cake is coated in icing. Hold over bowl to drain off any excess. Dip half the cake pieces in one bowl of icing and the other half in the second bowl of icing. (Separating the icing into two bowls is a good idea, as cake crumbs will thicken the icing and make it difficult to use.) If the icing becomes too thick, stand it over hot water while dipping, or reheat gently with a little more milk. If necessary, strain the icing into a clean bowl.
Toss cake gently in coconut. Transfer cake to a wire rack; stand until set.
Refinery29, the cornerstone of fashion, beauty and shopping recently ran an article titled “Harvey Nichols: Now a Purveyor of Luxe Tampons?”. Of course, what they were talking about was the recent launch of Trinkets as part of Beauty Mart concept by Millie Kendall and Anna-Marie Solowij. (see previous blog).
The article then goes on to talk about Beauty Mart’s most recent genius idea, the launch of its vending machine. This machine is not giving you salt n vinegar crisps but is obviously selling beauty products, including the wonderful petite Trinkets box. We stopped by recently to say hello to Millie and the Beauty Mart team and to also check out just how chic a vending machine can be. The answer, very.
What we loved: on screen message that simply reads – curated and convenient. For us, that pretty much says it all.
Trinkets, now available at Harvey Nichols at the counter of Beauty Mart, level 3 and at the Vending Machine, level 4.
We’re delighted to announce our recent launch as part of the beauty and cosmetics concept called, Beauty Mart.
Beauty Mart is the brainchild of Anna-Marie Solowij, former beauty director of British Vogue, and Millie Kendall, who not only introduced Shu Uemura products to the UK but also co-founded her own brand Ruby & Millie in 1998, BeautyMart brings together brands from across the world and the price spectrum to offer shoppers a coherent edit of tried and tested personal favourites.
Prior to the launch of Trinkets, the category of feminine care in the UK was wrapped up a blue & yellow box, hidden away in the bathroom cabinet. Seen as a nuisance product, medicinal and generally a purchase without thought, we’d like to think our recent inclusion by the experts at BeautyMart has changed all of that. We’ve always believed the elegance of the Trinkets branding combined with the 100% natural cotton product has made it category worthy to sit alongside the other brands of skincare, make-up and hair care. We’re just glad that Millie & Anna-Marie thought the same too.
On sale now at Beauty Mart, level 3 of Harvey Nichols, Knightsbridge London.
Olympic rings on the river Thames before the opening ceremony
Some of you will know that Kate and I are both Australian. However we’ve been here for some time now and after last night’s opening ceremony, we feel immensely proud to be part of the Olympic Games.
Our base camp is close to Tower Bridge, so the atmosphere and energy around us has been electrifying. There is a genuine feeling of friendship amongst the thousands of tourists that are walking the streets and stopping to snap pictures of the bridge. Even the 9-5 Londoners who normally race to the station with their heads down have managed to look happier this week.
We’re not hiding the fact that we are Team Australia all the way, but being situated in the heart of London during this world event means that we’re also cheering for Team GB.
Wherever you are in the world, we hope you enjoy the games. With tickets to the athletics, we know we’re about to have the time of our lives.
Let the games begin London and all very the best from this spectacular city! xx
Tower Bridge, London. Opening Olympic week.
Enough said.
Social Media Explained...
We’re over the moon here at TW Towers to be featured in this week’s edition of Stylist Magazine. We’re huge supporters of Stylist and it’s terrific to have their support. To celebrate, we’re offering a one month free trial. Simply click here to get our trial offer.
Trinket Women feature in Stylist - 25/04/12
A few weeks back we set off to the swanky May Fair hotel to attend the most recent Stylist Network event. This time the capable team focused on ‘How to be a Wellness Entrepreneur’. We heard the insights from Liz Earle (17 years in the making and what an inspiring lady), Clare Neill from Radiance Cleanse (great energy gal whom we already knew from B.Hive), Nahid de Belgeonne, founder of Good Vibes and Glow Yoga and Emma Barnett, founder of Essential Escapes.
The event was pitched as an opportunity to listen from women who are not only experts in their fields, but shining examples of the benefits that can be reaped from redressing the balance of the rat race and working 9-5. They certainly ticked all these boxes as the businesses they have started all have a focus around ‘looking after ourselves’ and getting back a bit of ‘me’ time.
It’s hard to do though, isn’t it? Some days it seems near impossible, the idea of setting aside time for yourself becomes a luxury, something you have to plan for and then try really hard to not allow someone or something hijack the allocated time you’ve set aside. Kate and I call it ‘personal admin’, we’ve always believed that planned timed out for ourselves is a vital part to preserving our health and wellbeing.
Last year we ran a competition to win a year’s supply of Trinkets. We simply asked our entrants to tell us that if they magically got an extra two hours back in their day, how would they spend it. We were overwhelmed with the results, as most women told us they wanted a bath and some time out. Nothing complicated, no big requests for expensive diamonds, trips to New York or complicated house extensions, all they wanted was to simply run the bath and a chance to shut the door.
Often we stretch ourselves to the limit, we make promises to do a hundred things and get disappointed with ourselves when either we cannot complete the to-do list or worse, do an average job and mess it up. Stylists are right when they say we need to re-address the balance of the rat race.
The message from our competition responses was loud and clear, we need to make time for ourselves. Just as we do for our careers, our kids, husbands, partners, pets, parents, in-laws, friends, community groups and colleagues (see how long that list is). There’s a wealth of ways to achieve this, of course we firmly believe Trinket Women is part of this formula to help with the ‘to-do list’, but we also know there are many avenues to turn your attention to help create some space in your day.
Start today, make a list and choose one or a few that work for you, you’ll be amazed how you feel and the difference it can make.
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