Cutting the crap - quitting caffeine

I have been a coffee drinker since I was about 12. For me it was a symbol of adulthood and independence and I've never really moved on from there! While I love a really good coffee, most of what I drink is instant tar usually supplied during work meetings. While I love coffee and a nice cup of tea, I'm not sure they love me.  With a little more time to think about how I feel and how I am affected by difference things it is fairly obvious that after a day drinking tea of coffee I really don't feel that well. It just makes me feel sluggish and upsets my stomach.

Now that I am not working full time in an office the temptation to guzzle down huge amounts of coffee is still there but the fact that I have to make it myself means I have to think about whether a really want a coffee or a tea and whether I should have something else so I have a real opportunity to change my habits. But...............I have tried in the past to give up caffeine and although I have been successful for up to a month, after that I typically get bored and slow slide back into my old habits.

So the challenge is how I am going to make this time different? By having a plan! I found some great guidance on healthyeater.com and the plan below is largely based on that.

1. Have a powerful motivating reason and refer back to it regularly.
Think about why you want to give up. For me I want to feel healthier, to be more specific I want to have more energy, improve my sleep, cut headaches and improve my digestion. I also have a lot of problems with muscle tension and wonder if this is connected.

As an additional motivator here are some known side effect from caffeine.

• Stomach ulcers
• Heartburn
• Insomnia
• Poor digestion
• Decreased bone density
• Increased muscle tension
• Irritable Bowel Syndrome

That makes it sound about as attractive as smoking,...............................

2. Have a substitute 
If there is nothing else available I will reach for the tea or coffee so some restocking and reorganising is required in the kitchen. I have plenty of lovely herbal teas so I have moved them to the front of the cupboard and the real tea and coffee to the back.

3. Address the social side
Having coffee is a social activity in its own right. I don't want to say no to invitations for a good gossip so I need an alternative plan. This means hunting out cafes that serve lovely teas, good quality decaf and hot chocolate if a real treat is required!

4. Address habit and boredom
This is a tricky one. I gulp down coffee in meetings for a couple of reasons, if I am holding a coffee I don't fidget (!) and in a very long meeting, getting up for a coffee is a blessed relief . The answer I think is just to find an alternative, a herbal tea or a water. I have stocked my handbag with nice herbal tea bags.

5. Take stock and celebrate
Go back to the motivators on a daily/ weekly basis and ask honestly whether I feel I've made progress.

I am not planning to try a weaning off process. I have already cut my consumption quite drastically so I think it must be time to go cold turkey :0

Here are some of my favourite alternatives so far:

Pukka herbs three mint tea, refreshing and uplifting

Pukka herbs, Peppermint and Liquorice, delicious

Brewhaha Super Happiness Tea, quirky and fun

Wish me luck!!

Make do and mend - Shortening sleeves on a waterproof jacket

I've had this waterproof jacket for years but it rarely gets worn because the sleeves are so long. If I wear it walking and it rains I end up with soggy wrists as the sleeves start off turned up and then fall down after a while.

In keeping with the Buy Nothing New Challenge I thought I would try to shorten the sleeves so Ic an get more wear from the jacket.

I am the queen of lazy fixes so normally I would just turn the sleeves under and stitch them in place but there is a rubber bit on the cuff that is quite bulky. I have never shortened sleeves properly so this was a bit of an experiment!

Taking off the cuff was a bit tricky because it was secured on both sides and really well made!

 

I should have measured the sleeve length first but I took a guess that I needed to take off the length off the cuff so I took 5 centimetres off the outer sleeve and the lining. 

This turned out to be a bit of a mistake, but I didn't find that out until I finished machine stitching the outer sleeve to the cuff and realised it was still far too long  when I tried it on :( It turns out I needed to take a whopping 10 centimetres off!

I pinned and tacked the sleeve to the cuff and then machine stitched them together. I thought I'd done great until I realised it was still too long and I had to unpick it and chop a bit more off! Turns out the DIY mantra measure twice and cut once applies to sewing too :(

The original sleeve was machine stitched with a running stitch on the inside on both the outer sleeve and the lining, I think this must have been done before the sleeve was attached to the body. I couldn't work out how to do this without taking the whole sleeve off so unsettled for hand stitching. 

Instead of the original finish I tacked a hem into the lining and then tacked the lining to the cuff. 

I then hand stitched the lining onto the cuff with small stitches tacking care only to go through the inner layer of the cuff so as not to damage the waterproofing on the outside with unnecessary needle holes.

The shorter sleeve was quite a bit wider so I put a small single tuck in the fabric and secured it with the hem.

I'm really pleased with the result, the stitching at the lining is visible but  I now have a much more wearable jacket and saved it from the charity shop :)

Ta da, a sleeve that fits

How to stretch too tight shoes

How to stretch your shoes!

An easy way to save on clothes and accessories is to work with what you have. But what about the fabulous shoes that really pinch? If you're like me, you bought them, wore them convinced they would be fine, and spent the day wincing as at least one toe got squashed every time you put a foot down. The beautiful shoes are now worn so they can't go back to the shop. Oops. What a waste. Not very money saving and definitely not green.

So are they destined to live forever in the wardrobe until they are relocated to the charity shop? Not if you try this handy tip! I tested it on two pairs of shoes and it worked a treat.

You will need a small sandwich bag with a seal fastening or a normal sandwich bag with a separate clip that will seal the bag closed. The bag must be water tight. Best test it first so you don't get wet shoes!

Tuck the bag into the front of the shoe and push the plastic right into the toes. Carefully fill the bag with water and seal it leaving a little room for the water to expand. Place your shoe in a carrier bag and put it in the freeze for at least two hours. The water will slowly expand when it freezes and stretch out the shoe! For a full visual instruction see this Youtube clip.

 Remove your shoe and allow the water to thaw a little before removing the bag, this will make it less likely to tear and leak. For an extra stretch I put on a pair of really thick socks, popped on the shoes and wore the around the house for a bit. It's a bit of a faff but very easy and it really does work!