Festive Veganicity #8 - some links

Vegansaurus - great vegan gifts for omnis. I especially like the following advice: What I’m getting at is your gifts for the omnis in your life shouldn’t be all about your veganism. Trust me, your fam knows you’re vegan (and if they don’t, they’ll get a clue when you bust out the soy nog), you don’t have to remind them again when it’s present time. But at the same time, you can’t be buying them leather jackets! So what to do? Buy secretly vegan gifts! I tend to agree with this, although would add 'or make' in the last sentence.

Kristen H at Rage Against the Minivan suggests Occupy Christmas. Although she's not vegan, her manifesto on the subject of holiday gifts is pretty similar to mine: don't get into debt, give homemade gifts, support local craftspeople, find gifts that give twice (e.g. to charity) - you get the idea.

Finally, a post at Happy Herbivore with advice on having a frugal (and plant-based) festive season. She and I disagree on many points, not least the fact that one of us loves the term vegan and the other prefers not to use it, but I agree all the way with that post.

Festive Veganicity #6: get baking

Biscuits make great presents if you haven't got a lot of time or can't face the shops.

VegNews give a good vegan gingerbread recipe, as does Isa at PPK. Meanwhile, My Real Food Life has a vegan AND gluten-free version, so friends with gluten intolerance need'nt get left out. For a bit of a change, try this shortbread recipe from the Vegan Society.

Festive Veganicity #5 - getting crafty

Mothering4Money suggests an idea that is quick, cheap, pretty and useful to the recipient. Obviously vegans won't be using silk flowers, but other sorts of fake flower are available.

Festive Veganicity #4 - vegan businesses

I can personally recommend K Scott Crafts and Chocolate Wendy House - both are run by vegans who happen to be my friends. But that's not the only reason ;) Wendy makes obscenely tasty chocolates, including vegan creme eggs. (Yes I know that's more Easter than Christmas, but they're tasty any time of year!) Kris produces adorable fimo animals as well as custom items such as wedding cake toppers.

Festive Veganicity #3 - making smellies

No, I don't mean the effect of brussels sprouts on your digestive system! These are NICE smellies.

Bath melts (recipe for 12 small ones):
Six tablespoons of coconut oil, melted at a low temperature
10-15 drops of your chosen essential oil (can mix more than one)
Allow the mixture to cool a bit but not enough to solidify. Shape using ice cube trays or chocolate moulds. When fully cooled, place in the fridge and leave there for a few hours. Store in the fridge until wrapping, warn recipients not to leave them near heat sources.

Bath salts (recipe for 2-3 jars containing about 3 baths worth)
Mix a large-ish quantity of white rock salt, a slightly smaller quantity of coarse pink salt and an even smaller amount of fine pink salt. (Or of course you could use all rock salt - make sure you get some of the finely ground stuff too though)
Drip in 10-15 drops of essential oil (fine if it's a bit strong at first, it runs the risk of fading)
Divide into the clippy jars. They aren't the most visually appealing packaging but can be repurposed in their new home once the salts have been used. Or you could do your own repurposing and use jam jars.

Festive Veganicity #2: Online vegan shopping

Last year's post still stands! This is not a definitive list, so please post your favourites in comments. ;)

Festive veganicity #1: Edible gifts

Stone Soup* jogged my memory this morning to the effect that I'd planned to share some ideas for a vegan festive season. Her post was about edible gifts, and includes a recipe for chilli-infused olive oil that I hope to try sometime.

In general, food items - especially of the homemade variety - are a pretty good bet for vegan gifts. You might like to check your friends'/family members' allergy situation first though - sometimes people have bad reactions to ingredients you wouldn't have thought of, not to mention that if your kitchen isn't permanently nut-free some more severe allergies might be set off by a small amount of cross-contamination that defies normal washing procedures. Don't let this put you off - just ask if you're not sure.

I'm not doing much by way of food-based gifts this year, due to logistics of when I have time to make stuff vs when gifts will be received. Also, most of what I make will either need to go in the post or be fitted into my already overfull rucksack for a trip home. However, my students are getting mince pies in their last seminars of the term!

Stay tuned for what I have been making...


*Not a vegan blog, but she does give vegan versions of every recipe she posts. Your mileage may vary with how ok you are with that.

Online vegan shopping

I'm doing this one first because clearly mail order takes time, especially at 'busy' times. Many vegetarian, vegan and anti-vivisection organisations have their own online shops, which have the added bonus of raising funds for their work. For a wide range of vegan products (including loads of chocolate!) it is worth a visit to VeganStore. I have to admit that I've never shopped with them online, but I have visited their stalls at events and been impressed by what was probably a fraction of their full range of stock.

Veganicity in December!

Sorry for the lack of food blogging in the second half of November. Guess I'm not so cut out to be a prolific blogger! I still have many food pics to share with you, and hope to do that at various points. However, I'm switching tack a bit this month to look at some of the options out there for vegan holiday gifts. This isn't necessarily my wishlist (I have to say that as my other half reads this blog...), nor a comprehensive list, and the focus is on the specifically vegan rather than the accidentally vegan. It will also not be a daily feature, as I have a massive pile of coursework marking followed by my PhD viva (thesis defence for Stateside readers) on December 13. Nonetheless, I will *try* to drag myself away from these fun things and write some blog posts that are more interesting than this one...

I realise that there has been some buzzing lately about certain prominent 'vegan' bloggers dropping the veganism. I don't want to get into personal insults regarding people I don't know (I didn't even read either person's blog on a regular basis). However, I do find it sad that these people are padding out their personal health reasons for quitting veganism (however convincing or otherwise these may be) with universal condemnation of veganism as a whole and what strikes me as a lot of straw-grasping 'revelations' about how they suddenly realised carnism occupied the moral high ground. Yes, there are problems with seeing veganism as a miracle cure, but most of us (I hope) can see this without needing to hear about ex-vegans' meatgasms as a wake-up call!

On a more cheerful note, I have finally finished the first stripe of my blanket - this is being made as a succession of extra-large scarves which will be sewn together. I'll need to pick up the pace since Stirling is already ankle-deep in snow!

Oh, and I am filled with envy for the friends who have vegan chocolate advent calendars, where do you get these things folks?