Sew is Life is written by E. It is a little space of blogging bliss inspired by art, design, craft, fashion, beauty and wellness. Based in Perth, Western Australia. Read about the daily ramblings of me being a mother of three and wife to an amazing creative man. The second me makes fresh skincare at SELF Organics. These are my stories sewn together with love.
I write this post at 9:30pm at night, as the kids have just been put to bed. This is also the time when I indulge in a little chocolate session and a cuppa. It is my daily ritual…it is one of the things I must do before I retire for the night other wise I’m out of rhythm for the next day. Being a regular chocolate eater, I admit to having an addiction because of its calming effects that give me a good night’s sleep!
Though, I have been looking to cut down the sugar intake in my diet lately and trying to make the rest of the family do the same. We love our treats, such as- chocolate, lollies, cakes and other sweets. But with all this news about sugar being a labelled as a ‘poison’ is scaring the bejeezus out of me! I don’t want see myself having a heart attack, or cancer or growing old fast, because it sounds to me like sugar is the root of all these evils. I am going to do what ever it takes for me and my family to live a longer and healthier lifestyle!
I was so glad when Well Naturally sent me a couple of chocolate bars to try. It meant I didn’t have to give up my favourite vice after all. The bars are labelled ‘No Added Sugar Milk Chocolate’, it comes in two flavours - creamy milk and fruit & nut.
The chocolate bar is wrapped in colourful foil packaging and my first immediate reaction was ‘this belongs in a health food store’. It must be the beige colouring and ‘Stevia’ stamp that gave it away. As a regular chocolate eater, I wouldn’t be drawn to the package because it may be seen as ‘too healthy for me’.
However, the first taste of the chocolate bar changed my thoughts, it was deliciously creamy and smooth! I had completely forgotten about my first impressions of a ‘healthy chocolate’ being bland and resembling cardboard.
I noticed there was no sugar hit but the lovely taste of chocolate. The Well Naturally ‘No Added Sugar Milk Chocolate’ bar is replaced with Stevia a natural, plant-based sweetener that has no calories. It has 80% less sugar than those other regular milk chocolate bars that you buy at the supermarket. The velvety-ness of the chocolate was such decadence! That won me over!
They come in 45g bars and is divided into 6 portions or pips (as described on the back) which helps those overindulgent times, you can just snap two off and leave the rest for later. My 5 year old loves it, she doesn’t notice the difference and keeps coming back for more of the creamy milk. However, I have yet to train the 2 year old as he is too familiar with sweetness and chocolate going hand-in-hand.
Well Naturally ‘No Added Sugar Milk Chocolate’ bars can be bought online at Vitality Brands.com or at your local pharmacy.
This is another small step to help me achieve my ‘summer body challenge’ (you can follow my updates on Twitter)! And this slight change in the diet doesn’t seem like I’m giving up anything at all. It is great that I can still have my nightly treat without added ‘guilt’ :)
Have you tried healthy chocolates before? What did you think of them?
E x
*This product was supplied to me for review. This review has been written in accordance to Sewislife’s disclosure policy.
Dinner tonight #spaghettiandmeatballs #october2012 #foodporn #food #italian #dinner (Taken with Instagram)
Afternoon snack -strawberries and melted raw coconut chocolate butter @lovingearth. #organic #raw #healthy #dessert #strawberries #sweets #food #september2012 #snack (Taken with Instagram)
Treats from @cookiedoughbiscuits #Perth, I can’t wait to try them! :) #biscuits #food #cookies (Taken with Instagram)
I baked a fresh batch of chocolate chip cookies, but look at the difference in the two trays! My personal tasters will be happy with amount of choc chips that are in the first tray :)
Does this happen to you when you bake chocolate chip cookies?
E x
Another reblog from Hubby. Yes it has been 2 years, but nothing much has changed between me and my buddies Cat and John from DIAC. We had a great catch up session last Sunday with the cheeky lil kids running a muck in the background. Food was fresh, healthy and full of flavour! I’m so thankful for being able to keep my friendship with these two amazing people…because when someone touches my life it is so hard to let go of them! :)
E x
“Catch up with friends” Part 1
It’s been awhile since E-von has caught up with her work friends. So what better way to meet-up at one’s place for a BBQ. It was an awesome afternoon. We brought ourselves and the little monsters over, and had a great catch-up sesh.
I have been on a health trip lately, looking to add more good stuff into the ‘engine’ rather than bad stuff. Hey! I am eating for two here, but rather than eating for quantity, I’m eating quality ;)
I recently join Breeze Organic Wholefoods Community, which is a group of Perth people who are enthusiastic about organic produce that come together to buy these ingredients in bulk and save $$$. You can find all types of nuts, spices, oils, sauces, pulses and so on.
You can find out more information on how to join here. It is run by the lovely Briana. You just place an order each fortnight and pay either in cash or via bank transfer. The more members they have, the more savings are passed onto the individuals. A further discount can be applied, if you volunteer to pack everyone’s food.
My first order was a bottle of organic extra virgin coconut oil and organic coconut sugar. The oil smells divine, so GOOD to cook with and I use in my skin care products too. The organic coconut sugar such a treat, I find myself sneeking a teaspoon of it whenever I am in the kitchen. Just substitute it for your normal white sugar in your coffee or tea and it gives it a subtle toffee flavour. YUMMO!
As you can probably guess, I’m going loco for cocos…
Do you substitute with any organic foods in your everyday meals?
Live Well :)
E x
I have been going on and on about eating healthier for the past 7 months but for some reason this pregnancy is not agreeing with me! All my body wants to do is go towards the lollies, the biscuits, the chocolate, the white bread, the cake…obviously the complex sugars. *smack my hand* This usually means the body is crying out for nutrients that it is currently lacking! To stop the sugar addiction I had to eat more protein and green veg such as broccoli, nuts and fresh fruit.
So I decided to make some home made protein bars, packed with all the good stuff to curb my cravings. I don’t like the thought of buying supermarket ones, because they could be packed with preservatives. Fresh is best in my book :) Plus Hubz is working out now and without a doubt, he will come home looking for something to eat…even if it is a piece of white bread.
I found a recipe for home made protein bars at Money Saving Mom but I decided to change the recipe up a little. It is such a simple recipe, even the kids can help out! No cooking or baking involved! There isn’t a lot of sugar either, so this will keep you feeling fuller for longer. Click ‘Read more’ for recipe and photos.
Last weekend, we held a bridal shower for my very close friend, Melissa. Her wedding is on this coming Saturday, so a week prior we thought we would show her a good time by celebrating her bachelorette-hood ‘High Tea’ styling at The Peninsula Tea Gardens in Maylands, Perth. It is located just next door to the historical Tranby Farm House that is one of the first colonial farms still intact within the metropolitan area. It offers the unique opportunity to learn about the early years of European settlement in Western Australia.
The High Tea was set beautifully with polished silver and fine china boneware. The chairs were made of white ratten with white coloured cushions matched together with the ratten glass table. There were bronzed candelabras that were mounted on the wall with interesting warped candles. It was very ‘garden’ themed.
An afternoon of High Tea decadence, with fine bone china and silverware. I felt kinda ‘Queen-ish’!
Parisian tea - Perth style
The service was on time when all the guests arrived, the food came out on tiered cake stands filled with a choice of savoury and sweet morsels. It was so enticing to the hungry eye! One of my friends described the occasion as ‘relaxing and peaceful’, you could say it invoked the same feeling as being pampered at a day spa. We sat down to eat the ‘Parisian Afternoon Tea’ ($38 pp) which included:
Tea sandwiches – Smoked salmon and salmon mousse, Roast beef and horseradish, Ham and Dijon mustard, Cucumber and cream cheese.
Tasty finger-sized sandwiches and they had mini puff pastry shells with curry or mushroom filling too (great for the pregnant ladies-holla!)
Freshly baked scones served with whipped cream and gourmet strawberry preserve together with a selection of French style Petit Fours and cakes, served with a pot of tea of your choice.
Huge scones (half the size of my palm) with generous servings of freshly whipped cream and jam
Selections for the sweet tooth - mini lemon meringue pies, petite fours and cupcakes with butter cream icing.
After a hours of eating, we played some fun games questioning the bride (Celebrity husbands) and the group of ladies (How well do you know the bride?). It was a great way for everyone to know a little bit about each other. Then we took it outside and sat under the big shady tree alongside the riverbank, where we could look out to the Swan River and played Pictionary (wedding-themed of course). Here is where I found the bridal shower games.
Non-bridal shower related pic - This is my close friend Heidi and I with our pregnant tummies kissing. Awww! Not too long ago we had our joint baby shower, you can read about it here.
Mel looked so relaxed and happy, she seems to be taking this whole wedding business in her stride. I can’t wait to see her on her BIG day…and no doubt, I will have to bring a box of tissues!
But if you are planning a bridal shower in Perth, or just want a nice afternoon out with the girls, The Peninsula Tea Gardens is the place to go! The customer service is warm, friendly and very helpful. Plus the food is fresh and delicious too! Definitely found its way to the top of my ‘Best Places to Chill’ in Perth.
What is your favourite place to chill out with friends?
E x
*’Sew is Life’ has been shortlisted in the ‘Best Women’s Lifestyle Blog Post’ category of the Beauty Heaven BlogStar Awards 2012. Please vote for me and be in the running to win a Rimmel prize!! Thanks guys xo
A few weeks ago, my friend and I decided that because we were going for the BIG push fairly soon that we should combine our super hormonal powers and host a joint baby shower! This is her first baby and I’m on my third! So I know too well what to expect at a baby shower…but was only too happy to share the festivities.
Is it that obvious? You can tell one of us is having a boy and the other is having a girl just from the theme.
It is becoming more common now a days, it’s great the singled out pregnant lady isn’t left to sit alone in a circle of friends where they admire how ‘large’ she has grown. It is nice to share the limelight, so everyone can bounce pregnancy jokes off the both of us. Maybe some women out there love the individual attention and being queen bee of the day. But not me.. *looks for the escape route and bounds towards it*
The spread of food on the day
I believe it was when I was carrying my second child that I had hosted a ‘kitchen tea’ baby shower at my house and the beverages on offer were tea, water and champagne! I knew I couldn’t drink…so I thought someone should. But of course they didn’t…they probably felt sorry for leaving the poor pregnant girl out.
Design a bib’ game (I sewed all the bibs by myself with terry towelling and ripstock), you might be able to pick out Sofia’s creations from the pack ;)
Party favours in green (suits the boy/girl theme)
Overall it was a great day with friends, fun and food. I was honoured to have shared it with my close friend.
Here are some benefits of holding a joint baby shower:
Joint baby showers and bridal showers…do you think it’s a good idea?
E x
Shopping for the perfect baby shower gift? Check out Best Baby for some great ideas for Mum and bub.
