Reinvent your wardrobe this spring

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If you already have a well-stocked wardrobe and want to be more conscious of what you are buying, we have had a look at how you can rework what you have rather than always flashing the cash or hitting click to buy to get that hit.

Be inspired
Before you do anything, look at what’s hot on the fashion front at the moment as this can really inspire you to take a closer look at your clothes and see how they could work harder for you. Social media feeds and magazines are a great way to asses which looks are in, and the ones that are out as this can spark ideas, and before you know it, you are dressing in a whole new way.

Sort it out
If your wardrobes are bursting at the seams, it could mean that you can’t actually see what you do have to wear so end up in the same jeans and tee day after day. Take everything out of the wardrobes, put it all on your bed and re-hang everything you want to keep on wire hangers as these save space and prevent items from bunching and creasing. You can make it easy to navigate your clothes if you sort by style, colour and season and when you have done this you will have a better idea of what goes with what, and new looks can be created.

Mend it
If you have well-loved items that you still adore but are broken – mend them, don’t chuck them! A damaged strap, missing button or drooping hem can stop you from wearing something, so get it fixed and the problem is solved. If you can’t do it yourself, many dry cleaners offer basic repairs and if it’s heels that need a helping hand, head to the cobbler.

Sell or swap
Before you throw away the clothes that didn’t make the cut, think about selling or swapping them so someone else can love them. This a great time to call on friends to give you some feedback on your clothes and style and they may want to take what isn’t working for you, off your hands, and you could be in for a haul of goodies from them in return. Also remember that online sites, social media, vintage stores and charity shops are perfect homes for pre-loved bargains and it is so much better to keep a garment alive, than sending it to the landfill.

Breath in new life
We all know that accessories can give a favourite look a new lease of life, so this is the time to get out those bags, belts, jewellery and shoes and have a play around. Alice bands, scrunchies and scarves can give a special lift, caps come into play with sportswear and an animal print tote or neon slider will automatically give you style kudos.

Just wear it
Once you have done all the hard work, make sure you wear the items you have kept. Don’t keep things for best, wear dresses that make you feel special, jeans that elongate your legs, and if you have polished those shoes, put them on your feet and shine, baby!

What we would say, is don’t try to reinvent your entire wardrobe in one go. If you can breathe life into three pieces, that’s a great start, and the rest will follow.

Team Pure Beauty

Clean eating recipes

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apple, avocado, bay leaves, bean salad, blender, breakfast, can, carrot, cheese, chicken, chickpeas, chunky, coconut water, cucumber, cumin, dates, dinner, dressing, drizzle, garlic, heart, ice, ice cubes, joints, kale, kidney beans, lunch, mint, new potatoes, oven, pepper, pitta, pumpkin seeds, recipe, salad, sandwich, season, sesame seeds, slump, smoothie, spinach, strawberry, wholemeal

Last week we looked at getting to grips with the concept of clean eating. Today we are following on with some easy to make, delicious recipes so you can put theory into practice.

As we said, clean eating doesn’t have to be a radical departure from the way you eat today but a shift towards enjoying more the good stuff and dropping the less healthy, processed foods that can be so tempting.

Clean eating meals tend to be lower in salt, sugar and calories and because they don’t contain processed ingredients you know exactly what’s in the food you’re cooking.

So here we go with a breakfast, lunch and dinner option.

If you start the day the clean way, you’re more likely to carry on the same. This clean strawberry, avocado and mint smoothie is the perfect way to kick start your system.

You will need:

1 organic banana
2 cups fresh strawberries
3 teaspoons of fresh mint
1 avocado
2 pitted dates
1 cup of coconut water (mineral water if you prefer)
A few ice cubes

Put all the ingredients in your blender, whizz until smooth and enjoy. You can add a handful of organic oats to keep your fuller for longer and of course if you want to go green, blast some spinach or kale into the mix too.

A chunky, bean salad loaded with goodness and nutrients will not only protect your joints and heart but also stop that mid-afternoon slump a cheese and mayo packed sandwich can cause.

This is really simple but really filling and can be made the night before and taken to work.

You will need:

Small can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
Small can of kidney beans, rinsed and drained
Salad leaves of your choice
A large handful of fresh shredded carrot
One chopped apple
½ a red pepper, sliced
¼ cucumber chopped
1 tablespoon of pumpkin and sesame seeds

Mix these ingredients together then create a dressing from half the juice of a lemon, two teaspoons olive oil, a small teaspoon of ground cumin and a pinch of salt. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and enjoy with a wholemeal pitta.

A chicken and potato tray bake is a super-easy, totally tasty dinner that the whole family can enjoy together ad it is perfect when entertaining friends.

You will need:

4 large organic chicken thighs
3 tablespoons of olive oil
500g of organic new potatoes (halved)
1 organic, unwaxed lemon
140g green olives
8 bay leaves – preferably fresh rather than dried
6 cloves of garlic
Watercress and spinach salad to serve

Set your over to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Pour the oil into a roasting tin and add the potatoes, olives, lemon, bay leaves and garlic. Mix everything together and insure all ingredients are equally coated in the oil. Next add the chicken, skin-side up, season and put in the over for an hour. Check the potatoes are softening after one hour, then cook for another twenty minutes to ensure the meat is perfectly cooked. Serve with a salad and iced water with lemon and cucumber.

During the day enjoy healthy clean snacks, drink plenty of water and keep caffeine and alcohol to a minimum.

If you have a clean eating recipe, let us know about it.