Thursday 25 February 2021

‘Nurture’ : an original lino print especially for Mother’s Day by Printmaker Hannah Turlington.

 Hannah Turlington launches her original lino print especially for Mother’s day. Living and working in North Yorkshire, Hannah is a printmaker who is driven to create by her love of colour, nature and life’s stories. ‘Nurture’ is the fourth in her 2021 series of word lino prints, inspired by human nature.

According to Hallmark, Mother’s Day is the third biggest sending card event. 113 million cards are typically exchanged every year, with over 80% of adult males and females honouring Mother’s Day.

Mother’s Day is a day that summons up feelings of joy and gratitude for many people, however there are feelings of sadness and perhaps a reminder of the loss of never becoming a mother. Nurture is a strong word and it symbolises an act of love. Nurture is something that we all need, to enable us to become the best person that we can be.

You do not have to be a mother to nurture, you can be a friend, a relative, a work colleague, or a teacher...the list is endless.

Most importantly we need to nurture ourselves...

‘Nurture’ is the fourth in the words lino print collection for 2021, joining ‘Love’, ‘Hope’ and ‘Be Kind’. Every piece of work inspired by human nature and nature.

Hannah invites you to embrace the fragility of human nature and start collecting her Words lino prints. They are perfect for those mothers, fathers, those that make us feel safe, those that have nurtured us ... or as a reminder to nurture yourself.

Hannah Turlington is a printmaker, living and practicing in North Yorkshire, whose work is defined as fine art, designs, workshops,(both online and face to face) and commissions. Hannah specialises in telling stories with her art. She says:

‘I am a story teller and I use my work to tell those stories. Sometimes they belong to me; Sometimes they belong to others but usually they belong to all of us’.

Hannah goes through a multi staged process to make the print; collecting inspiration, illustrating, carving the block and then finally printing before sending through your door.  Hannah’s distinctive style is highly detailed and it is enhanced by her choice of colour.

‘Nurture’ is hand printed to order by Hannah in her North Yorkshire studio. ‘Nurture’ is 20 cm by 15 cm, printed in Payne’s Grey onto A4 sized printmaking paper. Each print is signed by Hannah.

‘Nurture’: an original lino print, the fourth in her Words collection, is available through Hannah’s website www.hannahturlingtondesigns.com , priced £15 including postage in the UK.

Follow Hannah on Instagram: hannahturlingtonart 

Saturday 20 February 2021

EnviroBuild win Green 'Circular Economy' Business of the Year


EnviroBuild are delighted to announce they have won Green 'Circular Economy' Business of the Year at the West London Business Awards 2021.

James Brueton, the co-founder of EnviroBuild alongside Aidan Bell, commented on the honour: "We are absolutely thrilled to have won Green 'Circular Economy' Business of the Year. At EnviroBuild, we've made sustainability the core of our business model and we are so happy to have been recognised for that!

"We have some big plans coming up for EnviroBuild and sustainability is, as I always has been, the key driver towards them, from recent moves such as working with a more sustainable logistics partner, to designing new products and ensuring that all of our composite products are produced using 100% renewable energy."

EnviroBuild can include this accolade on a list that reflects their growing sustainability credentials. Previous honours include a Green Business of the Year Award from the Federation of Small Business London, a Golden Apple Award for Environmental Best Practice, and a People's Champion finalist position at the Startups Awards.

As a company dedicated to sustainability, EnviroBuild's mission is to redress the construction industry's carbon footprint. They look for practical ways to improve both their energy usage and input materials to lessen the need for materials traditionally used in the industry.

Using their knowledge and experience to put together quality, ecologically sound products, most of which come from recycled sources and are themselves recyclable, EnviroBuild strives to make sustainability straightforward for customers.

Sustainable products offered by the company include:

EnviroBuild Manticore Lumber is a substitute for wood made entirely from recycled plastic. Through this, plastic that would never have been usable via standard recycling processes can be repurposed – the kind of circular product in which the company takes pride.

The company's porcelain paving, which is created using renewable sources, contains a significant 40 per cent recycled material.

EnviroBuild's Hyperion decking contains 90 per cent recycled material, uses 100 per cent renewable energy to power the manufacturing process and has a long use life which all gives it a smaller carbon footprint than traditional decking, as shown by a recent Life Cycle Assessment, making it clear that sustainable materials can have a big impact.

The company also strives to give back, supporting initiatives which benefit local communities, the environment and eco-systems at large. EnviroBuild are committed to improving the world of today and have helped conserve almost 250,000 acres of rainforest so far, donating 10 per cent of their profits to sustainable causes, and helping them become a carbon negative business.

Learn more about EnviroBuild and their sustainability here:

https://www.envirobuild.com/pages/sustainability-what-we-give

Saturday 13 February 2021

Black Insomnia brings Dark Roast Grounds to Coffee Drinkers


The caffeine alchemists at Black Insomnia Coffee have come up with another body-jolting offering. Dark Roast Grounds are richer and darker, promising the same notorious super-high caffeine kick.

The CEO of Black Insomnia, Jim Walker, said: "It’s for the workaholics, the early-starters, the grafters, and the ones who go the extra mile.”

“When you need a super-high caffeine kick, Black Insomnia delivers that and more just when you need it most. With a range of products to suit your lifestyle, we are ready and waiting for your next challenge."

This robust coffee is deeper tasting than ever before and has 1105mg of caffeine in every 12oz standard sized mug, which is a whopping four times the strength of most high street brands.

This energy-enhancing delight is made from Arabica and Robusta beans in the traditional Italian way by barrel-roasting them in small batches.

This carefully tended blend is perfect for the coffee connoisseur who loves a heavier, more intense brew with a nutty aroma and dark chocolatey aftertaste.

The caffeine content in beans can vary, so Black Insomnia sources from producers of the tastiest, highest-content beans. Only the right kind of high-caffeine beans are selected for roasting, which is what gives Black Insomnia coffee its unique flavour and potent kick.

Jim Walker added "Black Insomnia is all about supporting the hardest working people around. Nobody is more deserving of support than our fantastic NHS workers, who are putting themselves in harm's way for our safety every single day. Early starts and night shifts are second nature to our NHS. That's why we at Black Insomnia offer a permanent 15% off discount to all NHS workers to keep them alert and fuelled through the longest days and toughest nights. It's the least we can do!"

Black Insomnia Grounds (DARK) retails at £14.99 and is available here:

https://blackinsomnia.co.uk/products/black-insomnia-dark

 

Connoisseur information

Roast level: Dark

 

Further information on Black Insomnia Coffee is available at https://blackinsomnia.co.uk/

Follow Black Insomnia on their social media channels: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter #sleepingischeating and LinkedIn.


Nearly 50% of people are overeating during lockdown

 

Mutli award-winning nutrition coach and author Nikola Howard is urging people to give carb-loaded lockdown comfort eating the boot.

After surveying members of her 12,000-strong Facebook community Nikola found many were overeating due to boredom and lack of structure.

Of the 161 respondents who answered: “I am comfort eating due to . . .”

• 43% said it was due to not having many things to look forward to, so they are eating food as a treat

• 29% were comfort eating due to being locked down with little to do and felt bored

• 28% said they did not have a plan they could keep to for eating healthily, and were returning to old patterns

Nikola was awarded Nutritional Coach Mentor of the Year this week by Corporate LiveWire Innovation & Excellence Awards 2021

According to Nikola, people comfort-eat for a variety of reasons including anxiety, depression, stress, trauma, and boredom.

While this is sometimes seen as a harmless way to de-stress there can also be a more shameful stigma attached.

Nikola said: “These mixed messages set people up for feelings of needless guilt and shame as well as embedding that food is a ‘treat’ that a person either has to earn with ‘good behaviour’ or use as a comfort if they are feeling bad.”

Humans are hard-wired to enjoy the physical sensation of eating from birth at the safety of a mother’s breast, drinking the combination of sugars and fats contained in breast milk.

Beyond this, children and adults are often rewarded with sweet things for being ‘good’ and something comforting, usually carb-based, when feeling low.

It is this relationship with food that often causes people to falter when trying diets.

Nikola believes a great deal of comfort can come from community support and this led her to create her low carb group.

“We can change the ways we react to certain situations and feelings with the proper support and not eating carb-rich foods.,” she said.  “I still have comfort eating episodes, and now they are filled with steak, broccoli and Mushroom and a red wine sauce.  “So called comfort food is essentially a learned behaviour and this behaviour can be changed. “I have developed unique methods over the past 20 for my clients and the community. They have been expertly tested and validated and shown excellent results over and over again.”


Nikola’s Facebook group, Low Carb in the UK, is a community offering advice, support and recipes helping people in their lifestyle journey on a low carb diet.

The website https://lowcarbinthe.uk offers a whole range of courses, webinars and articles information and details of her books.