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The past year or so has been hard with isolation but it’s finally being fully lifted. Some of you are probably fed up at looking at the same things for months on end, or even eating the same products. So, why not try something new or even redecorate? So, we at Madia & Matilda have decided to show off some of the new products we now have in our Home Section. 

Homeware

Candle Holder?

It’s nearing the chilly seasons, where the pretty coloured leaves fall and the days become shorter. Candles happen to appear the most during this time of year. Perfect for sustainable homes. 

Candle Holder

Barleycup Coffee?

This coffee brand is a natural choice for those who like tea and coffee but are trying to cut down on their caffeine intake. Made from roasted cereal grains such as barley, rye and chicory. Barleycup drinks are free from caffeine and contain no artificial additives. It’s also a part of our sustainable and organic food choices. Feel free to take a look at the options we have in store. 

Barleycup Caramel

Chocolate?

Here at Madia & Matilda, we do a wide range of foods, including sweet treats.

For example our range of Booja Booja Chocolate Truffles! This delicious vegan and organic treat is a must have! Personally I’d recommend the Almond Salted Caramel one. Chocolate Truffles with chewy, gooey, sea salted caramel and roasted Italian almond swoons, sounds good, no? 

Salted Caramel

Fitted Bed Sheets?

Buying new bedding is always a good feeling, especially when it’s put onto your bed and you sleep in it. The feeling is euphoric in a way, wouldn’t you say so? So, how about taking a look at our luxurious, Egyptian cotton bed sheets, in 4 different sizes and multiple vibrant colours! 

Fitted Sheets

Wooden Dinnerware?

Every household has some form of dinnerware, and it’s mostly made of ceramic materials such as glass, porcelain, bone china and many other options. Ever felt like changing it up, besides the patterns or colours? 

We have a great fit for those sustainable homes. Why not take a look at our Wooden Dinnerware? Perfect for your dining table! Available in 5 different sizes and shapes. 

Wooden Dinnerware

Above is only a small selection of a big, wide range of home appliances and goodies that we have within our store. If you’re interested in anything or would like to take a look at what else we have to offer then please feel free to follow the link below! 

https://www.madiamatilda.co.uk/allclothing-madiamatilda/search%3Fkeyword%3Dhome

Sincerely Madia & Matilda

Living More Sustainably in Autumn

During Autumn the daylight becomes shorter and the temperatures are lower. Due to this you may find yourself turning on more lights within your home and keeping the heaters on for longer. It’s typical for us to do that but let’s keep in mind that being sustainable is relevant all year round.

So, here are some tips on exactly that! 

Sustainable Matters

Unplugging
Saving energy is the most common way of staying sustainable. During this time of the year the energy price will go up due to the amount of sources you will end up using to keep warm. Just unplug the things you aren't using, especially the electronic devices. Chargers could be plugged in and still draw power, even if the device isn’t on charge. Bringing up the electric bill and wasting energy. So, we suggest unplugging chargers and all electronics when not in use.

Keeping Cosy

We all want to keep cosy. This can also link into your energy bills, as we tend to gravitate towards putting the heating on as mentioned previously. So, maybe it’s time to start looking into something that would be of use and would also avoid rising bills but also keep you nice and comfortable. Below are just a few examples:

• Insulation - This isn’t something you usually think about during the warmer weather but can be a big help any time, especially during the colder seasons. Adding insulation to rooms, behind wall heaters and in the ceilings will help with both cold and hot weather. It lowers your energy bill as the temperature within your home will remain the same. So, no need for heaters being constantly on.

• Thermal Curtains - Thermal curtains, or thicker ones, can help insulate your windows by preventing the cold air from looming in and keeping the warmth inside. Having them drawn closed during the night will provide extra insulation.

• Door Draft Stoppers - Ever notice how most doors tend to have gaps, especially near the bottom? Well those little areas tend to let out the warm air you want to keep and let in the cold breeze. A door draft stopper is made specifically to be laid at the bottom of the doors to cover up those locations and to keep the chilly air out. I’d highly suggest investing in one. However, if you don’t have the money you could also just use a thick blanket, one you preferably don’t use, and put that near the bottom of the door. It works just as efficiently!  Door Draft Stoppers are Uber sustainable, you could make one like we do with off cuts of old materials, if you're up for the sewing challenge

Garden Work

We know it’s colder out and it seems cosier to sit at home curled up in blankets, with a nice warm drink and watching a movie or two but taking the time to move around daily and getting fresh air will help you during the cooler months. 

If you have a garden, spend some time getting it ready for the upcoming seasons. Autumn is the perfect time to plant many trees. Doing it around this time will give them enough time to develop a root system, deep within the ground, over the winter months, reducing their water needs during spring. 

Composting

If you didn’t know, there are a lot of things that you could use to create compost, especially during Autumn. Those pumpkins you use during Halloween? Instead of just throwing them away, you could roast the seeds and make a delicious snack! Pumpkin seeds are highly nutritious, containing fibre and essential nutrients such as magnesium and zinc. The rest of the pumpkin will compost down quite quickly, however if the pumpkin is on the thick side, then it will take a little longer to break down. So, it’s suggested you cut it into pieces if you want it to rot down quicker or disappear into the bulk of the compost. 

Now, Autumn is known for it’s falling leaves. Most people will add the fallen leaves to their garden chores by raking, bagging and throwing the leaves away. Adding to the waste piles. What most don’t know is that fallen leaves are good for your lawn. Dead leaves are part of the life cycle for plants and soil. Leaves are basically free compost from mother nature! Leaving leaf piles can cause the grass below to die, so it’s recommended to gather the leaves and then distribute them evenly throughout your garden. Leaves help a lot more than you think and can insulate the soil throughout the winter, protecting the life that thrives within the dirt below. 

Gardening

Long-Term Clothing

This is an overall good idea when purchasing clothing. You want to make sure it lasts and can be suitable for other weather types, or just to keep aside for Autumn without having to buy new clothing each year. You could even go through your current clothes that fit the season and upcycle them. Repair them in other words or if you don’t have the experience to do it yourself, you could always bring it into the Madia & Matilda store. We upcycle clothing too, and if you have a specific idea for how you want your clothes to look then we’d be glad to listen. 

Upcycle

Sincerely Madia & Matilda

New in Autumn

Autumn is approaching faster than any of us anticipated. This means your summer wear won’t be appropriate for the upcoming weather. Which is why you’re here! Looking for something new and suitable for Autumn’s breeze.

If this is your first time discovering Madia & Matilda, we are a brand dedicated to producing sustainable garments. We are focused on zero waste, hand crafted, ethical women's wear. With that in mind you are just in time for their new product arrivals.

New In Store

The Lounge Suit

Lounge wear has become a popular outfit choice over the Covid years. It’s cosy inside and outside the house. Perfect for running those daily duties! So, why not try it out? This lounge suit is comfortable, breathable and ideal for the upcoming weather change.

Lounge Suit 

Slim Cut Trousers

Shorts are just not enough to keep you warm. So, it’s time to ditch them and bring out some trousers. How about checking out these essential ankle length slim fit trousers. Designed to fit your body type! It’s also a great essential.

Slim Cut Trousers

Polo Neck Polo neck tops and sweaters have always been in fashion during this time of the year. So, how about you check out our simple jersey top, with long sleeves and a ruched polo neck. A choice for day-to-day wear.

Polo Neck Top

Cotton Coats

During this season, the first thing people tend to gravitate towards are coats. We now have a new range of up-cycled wool coals

In recent years the coat in fashion seems to be Puffer Coats or Jackets. The coats and jackets are usually padded, filled with down feathers. The outer layer is usually synthetic fiber such as nylon or polyester. Now, that’s not very Eco-friendly. You can come across ethical coats; therefore we would suggest researching and considering the best option; why not try out coats that are made with organic cotton, lyocell or soy fabric.

Organic Cotton Jacket

Jumpers/Sweaters

Jumpers are traditionally made out of wool but can also now be made up of cotton, synthetic fibres, or any combinations of what has been mentioned. Ignore the synthetic fibre and you’ve got yourself some non polluting jumpers!

Wool is one of the oldest high-performing, sustainable materials around. It has several reliable attributes, such as: rapidly renewable, biodegradable, recyclable and can be produced organically. So, a good old woolly jumper doesn’t seem to go out of fashion during this time of the year.

Got any old jumpers lying about? Here's a suggestion! How about fixing them up? Repairing old jumpers, or even combining two into one. Recycling is becoming apart of everyone's daily life, so why not give it a go with worn out clothes.

Over-sized Sweater

If you liked what you read and found it interesting why not check out our site. We have many more choices in our store. Along with some new items coming soon!

https://www.madiamatilda.co.uk/

Sincerely Madia & Matilda

Why shopping is a powerful mode of activism:

 At Madia & Matilda, we recognize that a sustainable lifestyle is not restricted to the clothing that you wear. Therefore, we are actively expanding our product range to include ethically-sourced, zero-waste home wear, cosmetics and food. By doing so, we are providing a single platform to support your personal Eco-conscious journey.

About Curated Brands?

To fulfill your needs without comprising those of future generations, you must adopt a zero-waste mindset which will inform your everyday choices. Vegan, organic, recyclable and refillable options will enable you to live with a reduced environmental impact. As such products become more accessible and easily purchased through the Madia & Matilda website, we look forward to growing our community of conscious consumers.

Vegan Products

All products sold by Madia & Matilda are sourced from cruelty-free, sustainable brands, including small independent and local retailers. We only partner with retailers which meet our strict environmental and social criteria. Investing money into ethical businesses funds and supports the development of the ethical practices which are necessary to prevent further social and environmental damage. As consumption is the underlying cause of land, air and water pollution, changing the way you shop is a powerful mode of activism. 

Accessories

In order to minimize our supply chains carbon footprint, we look to partner with brands which offer drop-shipping services. Instead of receiving and holding stock from organisations, we ask retailers to send products direct to our customers to avoid unnecessary travel-induced carbon emissions. Drop-shipping also allows the price of products to remain a true reflection of their value, without incorporating additional transportation charges.

 

Madia & Matilda Sale

Why not take a look at our range of curated beauty, food and home wear brands here:
https://www.madiamatilda.co.uk/brands

And stay updated with our new product launches by subscribing to Madia & Matilda’s newsletter: https://madiamatilda.us10.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=dd3a3c37b58f95a068260ca98&id=2da065a778

Sincerely Madia & Matilda

Spring Seasons Top Picks

Wide leg trousers, ditsy print skirts, ribbed tops and strappy dresses.. Even though more of us now face staying in, Madia & Matilda still has plenty of new fashion to browse.

 Get ready for events later in the year with statement eveningwear, or look to oversized sweatshirts and fun accessories for an instant pick me up. Plus, our Easter SALE is Extended.

 

Lisa May - Top

Victoria Jacket

Laverna - Blouse

S  A  L  E

Alissa - Upcycled Skirt

Sara - Jersey Dress

Lori - Blouse

Sincerely Madia & Matilda

#Foodie - Summer Salad

Nothing says summer like a fresh salad

shake up your greens with seasonal veggies like cucumber, chickpeas, avocado and tomato with rice and so much more!

For the recipe above you will need:
couscous
vegetable stock, boiling
can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
Sliced on the slant radish

Spinach
pinnuts

1 Pomegranate

Add the couscous into a bowl, pour the boiling stock over and mix well with a fork. Cover with a plate and leave for 4 minutes. Meanwhile, tip all the dressing ingredients into a bowl and mix well. Fluff up the couscous with a fork, stir in pomegranate with balsamic vinegar or a dressing of your choice, add some radishes and pinenuts. Mix well and pile on to a large serving dish.

To find similar recipe's check out this link to find out more, if you like us and looking to go plastic free why not check out the veggies from the organic delivery company

If your not one for sauces, we've got another dish you 

You will need:

Long grain Rice
Chickpeas
Cucumber
Tomato
Avocado

juice 1 lemon

With this dish all you will need to do is prepare the dish cook the rice and chop up the ingredients. Add in a some lemon Juice or dressing of your choice and its ready to go. A great quick meal for when you are busy. 

Anya - Jersey Blouse

Or if you are a connoisseur of salads, why not try this dish above

You will need:

Spinach 

Cabbage

Pomegranate

Butternut Squash

Walnuts

Halloumi cheese

Artichoke 

This dish will take a bit more preparation time and cooking skill.

Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large frying pan and fry the courgette slices over a high heat for 2-3 minutes until dark golden brown. Lift out on to kitchen paper. Now chop the artichoke  and put the cut-side down into the pan, and cook for another couple of minutes until tinged brown on the underside . Then add the butternut squash to the pan.


If the pan is dry, pour in a little more oil and heat it up, then add the halloumi strips and fry for 2-3 minutes, turning them over from time to time, until crisp and sizzled brown. Pile on top of the cabbage and pomegranate, and drizzle with the remaining dressing. Serve as soon as possible.



Find out more on BBC good food

Or for a light bite

An avocado filled bite with feta cheese, tomato, courgette 

• Just before serving, cut the avocados in half lengthwise, remove the pit and discard then fill with your filling. Just add feta, red pepper, green onion, olives, oregano, olive oil and vinegar, stir well, and set aside. A tasty light bite.

For more information select this link 

Sincerely Madia

& Matilda

National Gingerbread House Day #Foodie

Happy National Gingerbread House Day!

To celebrate national gingerbread house day, we're sharing with you a festive recipe for building your very own gingerbread house.

We love this easy Mary Berry gingerbread recipe:
If you want to read the original more in depth recipe click here.


Ingredients:

For the Gingerbread:
375g unsalted butter
300g dark muscovado sugar
150g golden syrup
900g plain flour
1 tbsp bicarbonate of soda
2 tbsp ground ginger

For the icing:

3 free-range egg whites

675g icing sugar, sifted

3 tsp lemon juice

For the decoration:

Boiled sweets

Chocolate buttons

Jelly sweets

Chocolates

Powder icing sugar

Cake board

Method:

Preheat your oven to 200°C or 180°C for a fan assisted oven.

In a large pan, melt together the butter sugar and syrup.

In a separate bowl, sieve the flour, bicarbonate of soda and ground ginger together.

Make a well in the centre and pour in the liquid butter mixture. Stir it in and, when cool enough to handle, knead into a stiff dough.

Next divide the dough into five equal pieces, then divide one of those into two - so you have six pieces of dough in total.

Roll out each piece of dough out on to a sheet of parchment paper to ¾cm thickness.

Using a template, cut the pieces to make the sides and roof of the house.

Using a sharp knife, cut out the windows, doors and star shape on the back.

Place the doors on a separate tray and re-roll the offcuts to make a chimney.

Slide onto baking trays and bake for 8 minutes or until even in colour.

To make glass windows in your gingerbread house, crush up some boiled sweets (any colour you desire) and place them in the windows. Place these pieces back in the oven until the sweets have melted.

Leave the gingerbread to cool completely before decorating.

Time to decorate!

You can be as creative as you want with the decoration of your gingerbread house. It can be covered in colourful sweets or iced and decorated in a more traditional style - it's completely up to you!

To make the icing, whisk the egg whites until frothy. Using a wooden spoon or a hand-held electric mixer on slow speed, add the icing sugar a tablespoonful at a time. Stir in the lemon juice and beat the icing until it is very stiff and white.

Next, to create roof tiles, spoon the icing into a piping bag and pipe small dots on the back of the chocolate buttons and stick onto the roof of the ginger bread house.

Spoon six tablespoons of the icing over the cake board and, using a palette knife, spread the icing to cover the board with a snow effect and to create a base to stick the house on to.

Pipe some icing along the wall edges and join the house together on an iced cake board. Leave the icing to dry for a minimum of four hours, but preferably overnight.

Once dry, stick the roof onto the walls of the house. If you want your gingerbread house to look especially Christmassy, place a couple of fake tealights or nightlights inside before adding the roof. The light will shine through the boiled sweet windows and make it look like a real home.

Pipe some icing along the apex and edges of the roof to look like snow and icicles. Stick the front door in place with icing. Once you have finished decorating, dust the house with icing sugar for the final snowy touch.

The rest is up to you! Go crazy with colourful jelly sweets or make some gingerbread characters or trees to accompany the house.

This gingerbread house makes the perfect Christmas decoration, you could even give this to someone as an amazing gift!

If you decide to follow this recipe make sure to let us know by tagging #MadiaMatilda and #GingerBreadHouseDay

Sincerely Madia & Matilda