Catherine from Coconut Tree Products, and her divine Coconut Body Butter

One of the perks of my (day) job is that I get the chance to hang out in Noosa, and chat with fabulous women. And pretty soon after starting there, I realised that most of the fabulous women on the Sunshine Coast end up visiting Noosa.

Serendipitous timing was in my favour when I met the incredibly lovely Catherine Reddaway of Coconut Tree Products. I was looking for generous local businesses who wanted to get behind what I was trying to do with the upcoming Active Nation Day event to be hosted in Noosa, and I wanted to work with small businesses who could benefit from exposure to lots of women who are passionate about treating their body better, and living their most positive and healthy life. 

Catherine visited my store, and she spent some time showing me her gorgeous new range of Coconut Tree Products, and then (bless her) offered to provide 30 samples of her delish-smelling  Body Butter for our Active Nation Day participants! I loved this idea, because as a regular promotional event attender, I get real sick of the 'gift bags' full of bits of paper inviting me to spend money to save it. Nope, I wanted to provide proper gift bags, you know, with gifts and all? Catherine's stock went up even further in my book when she gave our staff some testers too (ok, I left one for everyone else to share, and snaffled one all for myself*).

I quickly ran out of this addictive butter, and then I went to Organika and snapped up some more, it was THAT amazing. I've always loved the scent of coconut oil, but have struggled to find a moisturiser that wasn't too heavy and greasy, the Coconut Tree Products butter was perfect. I have had this product for a while now, but I finally finished my second small tub and realised I liked it that much that I wanted to review it for you all. (Because you know, I'm such a professional beauty product reviewer and all. Pffft.)

The Coconut Tree Products Body Butter is so thick and moisturising, really leaving my (often sun-damaged) skin feeling soft and nourished, without leaving a greasy residue. It smells amazing, so amazing that you really can't believe it's not a cocktail, and you're not relaxing on a breezy tropical beach. I love the smell of coconut but sometimes when in a product the scent can be too strong or artificial.

Since I can tend to say amazing quite a few times in a row when I'm talking about something I love (go on, ask me about how awesome The Lion King show was the other night...), I decided that this blog post would be better with some input from Catherine herself, the woman behind my new favourite product line. So I asked Catherine some nosy little questions, let's hear from her on how this brilliant brand began.

What do you do? What do you make? I have developed and am in the process of building a new natural coconut body and hair brand called Coconut Tree Products.

Why and how did you make your first product? Having fair skin that is always dry, especially in winter, I have tried endless products of all kinds seeking a body moisturiser that actually works.. A local naturopath suggested coconut oil and I was hooked. It was the only product that went close. It is such a beautiful natural moisturiser on its own but I believed that it could be improved and boosted with other natural ingredients to provide more protection and hydration, and to make it easier to use. So, with the help of professional formulators I developed our first product, the Coconut Body Butter which was the beginning of our launch range.

Who was your key support during the fledgling stage of Coconut Tree Products?

My father who is my business partner and has great insights from his life as an entrepreneur and successful businessman.

How do you manage your time so well? It’s something I struggle with every day! Like most women, juggling work, home, kids, after school activities and finding time for exercise is a challenge!. I try to organise myself for the day, the night before and just set a few key priorities for the day than a long to do list. I do think stress impacts on productivity so for me it’s important to get the main priorities ticked off and schedule time to exercise.

How did you distinguish yourself from your competitors? Our vision is to offer an alternative to toxic products with simple natural, nurturing, effective body and hair products that are fun and fresh and importantly, affordable. We hope to make them accessible for everybody.

If you could have given yourself a piece of knowledge or advice when you started what would that be? Have a distribution plan even before the products are developed.

Which opportunities should you have followed?

I hope I haven’t missed any yet, it's only early days though!

How do you conquer any moments of doubt that threaten to stop your great ideas? What pushes you through?I remind myself that I started this for the right reasons. I totally believe in the potential of the brand and am passionate about the products and believe that people will love using them and want them as part of their lives. I hope that for some people, this range may inspire them to be more aware of what goes on their bodies and on those of their families and friends.

Righto, time for some fun stuff.

What is your 'uniform'? What do you wear more often than anything else?Comfort is key. Anything remotely not comfortable stays in the cupboard and the comfy gear gets all the outings. If I don’t have to meet people I tend to spend the day in jeans, tshirts, shorts or active gear and runners – always on the off chance I’ll get time to squeeze in a walk or gym session.

What is your favourite thing to wear to make you happy?

Anything simple, stylish and comfortable. Not too much pattern,..love my black! No more high heels!

(I'd like to make a small note here. Catherine has purchased some really cute activewear from me, and yes, it was impossible to get this sunny and bubbly blonde to try anything coloured. Sigh. K x)

Thanks so much for taking the time to share a little of your Coconut Tree story with me, Catherine. Nothing is more amazing than watching people take small steps to achieving big things!

If you'd love to try Catherine's beautiful range (there's even a yummy-smelling range for kids) for yourself, head to Coconut Tree Products for a comprehensive list of stockists, or jump over to their Facebook page to go into their monthly draw to win a divine product pack!

*As usual, review is all my own opinions. I purchased product myself after receiving a small sample. I would (and will) continue to purchase this lovely product, and have started trying more of this gorgeous range. 

Giveaway winners - and yes, giving really IS as nice as receiving!

The lucky winners of the two Flamingo Park cushions from gorgeous Melbourne homewares store and interior design gurus Design Art House are...

Elisha R

and

Kim M!

Congratulations to you both, I've emailed you - please reply with your postal address and phone number, and I'll make sure these pretties start winging their way to you ASAP!

Thanks so much to everyone who entered, it's super-fun to get to share and giveaway products that I personally love, and it's lovely to support businesses who support bloggers!

Speaking of... have you checked out Design Art House's Pinterest boards? So much well-curated inspiration, just as Pinterest should be! (Although they seem to be missing the Ryan Gosling board that I tend to favour on so many Pinners sites. Interesting.)

Celebrating International Coffee Day (or every morning)

Such good intentions.

I honestly had such good intentions yesterday of writing a post about International Coffee Day and how this little drink has become such a ritual in my life.

But then I went and sidetracked myself with a few errands and a few coffees at a couple of my favourite Sunshine Coast cafes, and then a four-shot mocha at Bare slayed me.

  

 

Meh, it's a blog. It's one missed blog post about a day that rolls around every year. Let's keep things in perspective.

Don't forget to head back a couple of posts and get your entries in  to go into the draw to win one of two lovely fancy Flamingo Park cushions very kindly gifted from Design Art House - entry numbers are low, so your chances are high!

Head to the giveaway HERE!

Homemade Creamy Chicken Ravioli - it's easier than you'd think!

Pasta is my happy place.

Yes, I know that lots and lots of women say this, but it truly, rooly is. My husband works away often, and when I'm cooking for one, 99 percent of the time, I make myself pasta. It's filling and full of carbohydrates which I need to eat regularly to function. Don't believe me? Keep bread, potatoes and pasta away from me for a week, and I'm a mess.

For convenience, most often I use bought dried pasta, but I occasionally make my own pasta, as it's incredibly easy and quite therapeutic. One of these days I'll actually make enough to freeze and then I'll be super-organised-housewife of the year.

This is a pasta and sauce recipe which I adapted from a whole lot of others, so I can assure you that you can't go wrong with pasta and filling... just throw in whatever you like!

Basic Pasta Dough

serves 3-4 (Or two, if you're hungry people. I won't judge your portion size.)

200g white flour (I prefer to use 00 pasta flour)

pinch of salt

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 tbsp olive oil

Sift together the flour and salt onto a work surface and make a well in the centre with your fingers. Pour the eggs and oil into the well, then using the fingers of one hand, gradually mix the flour into the liquid.

Knead the dough on a lightly floured bench until it is completely smooth. Wrap in clingwrap and leave it to rest for 30 minutes (if it's hot where you are, pop it in the fridge on the top shelf). If you're filling the pasta (ravioli, tortellini, etc), then jump on down to the filling and sauce recipe below. If not, then roll the pasta out through a pasta machine a few times, starting with the widest setting and finishing with a finer setting. How thin you like your pasta rolled out is completely personal preference, the Italians won't chase you down and shake their rolling pins at you.

Yes, I have a pretty red pasta machine. My husband is awesome like that.

Creamy Chicken Ravioli

1 quantity Basic Pasta Dough

115g cooked chicken breast, coarsely chopped

55g cooked spinach

55g prosciutto, coarsely chopped

handful of basil leaves, torn roughly

1/2 cup grated parmesan (NOT the powder stuff, although that has a special place in my kitchen)

pinch of nutmeg

2 eggs, lightly beaten

flour for dusting

300ml cream (regular, pouring, whatever floats your boat)

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

115g sliced mushrooms (I like Swiss Browns because they look cute)

salt and pepper

Place the chicken, spinach, prosciutto and half the basil  into a food processor and pulse until completely chopped and blended. Transfer to a bowl, stir in 2 tablespoons of the cheese, the nutmeg and half the egg. Season with salt and pepper.

Tasty layered ingredients, then...

... whiz bang - it's all green and mushed!

Divide the pasta dough in half. Roll one piece out using your pasta machine or rolling pin (go muscles!), cover with a damp tea towel and roll out the other piece of dough to approximately the same size. I often use a ravioli press, but today I decided on cookie cutters because I wanted round ravioli. Place small mounds of filling, about 1 teaspoon each, in rows 4 cm apart on a sheet of dough. Brush between the mounds with the remaining egg. Lift the second sheet of dough on top of the first, and press down firmly between the pockets of filling, pushing out as many air bubbles as you can. Use your cookie cutter or a pizza wheel to cut the ravioli into individual pieces.

Your ravioli does not, I repeat, does NOT need to look round and even.

This is not MasterChef, people. This is dinnertime.

Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Add the ravioli in batches, return to the boil and cook for five minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towel, then transfer to a warmed dish.

Meanwhile, pour the cream into a frying pan, add the garlic and bring to the boil. Simmer for 1 minute, then add the mushrooms and half the remaining cheese. Season to taste and simmer for 3 minutes. Stir in the remaining basil, then pour the sauce over the ravioli. Sprinkle with the remaining parmesan, garnish with extra basil if you're fancy - I'm not - and serve to ravenous people.

Serve with wine. Wait, what am I saying? Serve every home-cooked dinner with wine.

Do you make homemade pasta? Or are you of the opinion that it's more hassle than it's worth? Can I change your mind?

Giveaway - welcome Summer with beautiful Flamingo Park cushions!

My goodness, what a response. Yesterday's slightly soapboxy post on how I feel about #comfywomfy really drew a lovely crowd. Thank you. All I wanted was to get you nice people talking about it, and it seemed that I did. So thank you.

To say thank you for your support, and to welcome the nice new folk reading this blog, I'm joining forces* with the very excellent folk at Design Art House to give away two of these super-fancy Flamingo Park cushions.

I mean, talk about body image. Flamingos are tall, gangly, a shade of pink usually only seen on the pouts of  Hollywood starlets, and they have such knobbly knees. So damn knobbly. Those poor birds. Fortunately, they're pretty on-trend right now, and just imagine how Summery you'll feel, mojito in hand, reclining on one of these pretties!

Would you like one these fancy cushions? Yes? 

The very generous folk at Design Art House aren't just an online store for homewares (although they are a very good one of those), they are also passionate Interior Designers with an eye for discovering exactly what their client wants. If you kinda know the look you want, but have no clue on how to actually achieve that in the space you have... these are the people you need.

As I've shared on Instagram recently, I'm always on the lookout for real statement homewares. You know what I'm talking about - that piece that gives you maximum appeal and bang for your buck. Cushions are one of my very favourite ways to change up a room. Either on a sofa or stacked in piles on the floor to entice guests to get really comfortable, cushions are a cheap and cheerful way to mix it up. Design Art House have some excellent cushionage, I can assure you. And wait until you see their Pinterest boards!

So eclectic and fabulous!

If you'd like to win one of two fancy Flamingo Park cushions from Design Art House, then do your Rafflecopter thing below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*Design Art House have given me these cushions to give away, no strings attached. Just enjoy their loveliness!