Jessica Fenton's Blog

My New Website!

2009-12-15T15:34:00.003Z

Jessica Fenton's Natural Parenting Site is now live. This is a website dedicated to raising a raw vegan family in the UK, in a child-led way. My aim is to blog about all the things that come up when you raise a natural child in a very unnatural world.

Aspects such as:

Weaning a raw vegan baby

Attachment parenting

Bed sharing / co - sleeping

Washable nappies

Breastfeeding

Calm, mother - led birth

Organic clothing

Natural immunity

Baby carrying

For more information, or to book a consultation with me, visit http://www.jessicafenton.com/

Real Chocolate Training Event - 4th July - 12-4.30pm

2009-06-06T11:49:00.003+01:00

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I am soooo excited as our next event has just been launched! It’s called Real Chocolate Training, and is designed for those who want to learn how to make delicious raw chocolate treats and desserts in the comfort of their own home. It’s a fun and lively workshop where you’ll meet like minded people and get to see for yourself how to make quick and easy raw chocolate recipes without the refined sugar, dairy, cheap filers or E numbers.

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I love the events that Total Raw Food do as they are fun, innovative, user-friendly and exciting. The positive feedback we get from our workshops is so rewarding. All our events that we have done have completely sold out, so book now to avoid any disappointment.

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There’s a special offer running at the moment which entitles you to 15% off the ticket price of £50, meaning you pay just £42.50. Or buy 2 tickets for £80, a collective saving of £20!

Little Update...

2009-06-06T08:45:00.003+01:00

Hi! I know it’s been ages since I posted anything on my blog. I’ve just been ploughing all my time and energy into Leo. He’s now 10 weeks old and absolutly wonderful. He’s so smiley and cooes and giggles nearly all the time hes awake. Infact he even smiles in this sleep. Tom and I have been totally bowled over by how enjoyable being his parent has proven to be.

I’m going to put some more piccies up of him, as hes changed quite a bit since the piccies below. I need to upload them from my camera which is going to take me a while as there are about 600 pics stored...

I'm a mummy!!!

2009-03-31T09:12:00.008+01:00

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Our gorgeous baby son has been born! Little Leo Finley Fenton arrived into the world on 26 March at 1814, weighing 7lb 10oz. It wasn't the home birth that we were expecting, due to complications that occured (will explain more later) but it was the natural drug free birth on gas and air that we wanted. I was contracting for 24hrs in total, 20hrs off my own steam and 4hrs in established labour on gas and air. I'll put the full birth story up when I get a chance, just need to find some time to write it.... :0)

I'm Getting HUGE!!!!!

2009-03-06T21:02:00.003Z

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I didn't really get a proper bump until I was 6mths pregnant, and now the bump seems to be on a constant growth spurt! I'm 38 weeks and currently don't have any stretch marks. I'm just hoping that the high raw vegan diet along with slapping on the Raw Coconut Butter concoction I made, might help things return to normal after the birth. That's the plan, however I will have to let you know about the reality...

I'm totally in love with our little womb baby, and take great delight at tickeling the bubbas heels when they poke through my tummy. The head is well down into my pelvis now, so picking things up off the floor is virtually impossible.

I was invited to attend a homebirth action committee meeting today, as a user of the service, and was over the moon that the board listened to my ideas for improvement. They have actually agreed to make some changes to the way that the homebirth system works in the area. Lets just hope there is no midwife shortage when I go POP!

The Birthing Pool is Up!

2009-03-06T20:31:00.009Z

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I'm getting quite close to my due date now, so we have our heated, filtered birthing pool up in the TV room (nice little room tucked away at the back of our house - quite intimate and cosy, especially when all the lamps are on.) We had to move the furnature around to fit the pool in and keep the space as clear and minimalistic as possible.

I love the pool! I just cant get out of it. Why would you want to get out of 40 degree water when you can float about listening to relaxing music or watching films on a widescreen TV? It's bliss...

Tom assembled the pool last weekend, with the help of our dog Kaiser. Kaiser did everything in his power possible to obstruct the process!

We 'Christened' Our Conference Room!

2009-02-02T16:17:00.013Z

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Yes, that's right... Me, Tom, The Barefoot Doctor and over 50 Total Raw Food customers (we sold out before the event, but a few regular customers really wanted to come, so we let them) were at the first raw food event at our new business complex. We held it in our conference room upstairs that looks out onto beautiful woodland, which is a large, calm and relaxing environment to be in.
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It was a very successful event. The Barefoot Doctor cut the ribbon to officially open our new business complex, and then proceeded to give quite a life changing talk, which totally made my day. We all drank Purple Fruit Punch from champagne glasses and then later in the day I demonstrated a Raw Chocolate Ice Cream Recipe. We all ate samples from biodegradable pots with biodegradable spoons, and then wiped our faces with recycled, biodegradable napkins (you see the theme emerging here?)

We did a deep visualisation exercise to help spread more positive energy through to the planet and beyond, and chattered and laughed through to the end of the day. Customers then took home goody bags with lots of freebies, thanks to all the raw food companies, vegan companies and natural health companies that kindly donated things to make our event extra special. It was fabulous!

The Total Raw Food team were brilliant, as ever, ensuing that there wasn't much for me to do, as I should really be consentrating on giving birth next month....

2009-01-26T09:45:00.003Z

I am really looking forward to Saturday 31st January as we have The Total Raw Food Open Day Launch Event with The Barefoot Doctor, in our new business premises in Brighton. The company has sold 48 tickets to date and our maximum customer capacity is 50 people, so we are very nearly full. I cant wait to meet everyone, and see our regular customers again. I’m going to be demoing one of my favourite recipes during the course of the day, and it’s going to be served out in biodegradable tubs that we’ve sourced, which are made out of corn.

We have quite a lot of media coming down before the event too, so I’m looking forward to some good exposure for raw food. We’ve got some exciting news too that we’ll be exclusively sharing with our customers that are attending the event. Everyone else will have to wait until Feb or March to find out...

The Naked Bump...

2009-01-19T15:52:00.004Z

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Happy New Year

2009-01-07T20:34:00.004Z

Wishing all you beautiful health seekers a wonderfully healthy and happy 2009!

I'm focusing on birthing early this year and giving our newborn the best start in life possible. I've got 2 months to go and I'm feeling great. My iron count is currently at 11.8, which is surprisingly high this late on in pregnancy. I'm putting it down to a balanced raw vegan diet (the best fuel for humans out there by far). It was previously at 12.5 when I was 2 months pregnant, but it's normal to decrease as the birth approaches. The midwife told me that she'd never seen an iron count so high in all her time practicing - and she's been a midwife for nearly 30yrs. Ooh, get me! LOL! Tom took some piccies of my naked bump the other day. I'll get them up as soon as Blogger starts working properly again...

Christmas is coming!

2008-12-09T13:03:00.004Z

I’m really excited that it’s only a few weeks to go until Christmas day. Tom and I don’t have a religious Christmas, we celebrate generosity instead. All our Christmas’ together have been wonderful. There is something deeply special about this time of year. Last Christmas I was on cloud nine as we had just got engaged on our 2nd year anniversary, and this Christmas who’d have thought that I’d be 28 weeks pregnant!? We see lots of friends and family, and my granny comes to stay for a few weeks. Usually we spend Christmas Day with my family and New Year s Day with Tom’s family. This year will be different though because it won’t be good for me to be stuck in a car for 6+hours travelling to New Mills with a kicking baby inside me. So this year, if the Fenton’s want to see us they’ll have to come down to Brighton.

I’ve done pretty much all the Christmas shopping needed (I did it in November, as I hate town when it’s heaving) all I have to do is wrap gifts and prepare food. I’m going to make us a raw vegan banquet – with maybe a few cooked potatoes or something (I’m about 95% raw at the moment). We’ll all have raw chocolate slices, raw mince pies, raw Cranberry Sauce and lots of other healthy, yummy things that I’m going to invent in honour of the day.

We launched a Make Your Own Raw Chocolate Gift Pack to help our customers make affordable, delicious raw chocolate goodies this Christmas, or to give the healthiest yet most exciting gift on the planet to someone special. They are selling like raw cakes (that’s better than hot cakes BTW) so I’m delighted that you’re benefitting from our products and inspiration. The gift packs are available in 2 sizes (one for the interested, and one for the enthusiast) packaged with biodegradable shredded paper, and presented in a beautiful reusable bamboo basket. Now off I must go to get a Christmas tree of some sort, ho, ho, ho...

We're so sorry Olive...

2008-12-09T12:21:00.009Z

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Last Monday Tom’s Gran, Olive, was diagnosed with advanced cancer and secondary cancer. We were very saddened by this as she is only 83 yrs old and is entitled to have many more happy years ahead of her. We went to visit her and John (Tom’s grandad) at the weekend. She has gone downhill loads since Monday and now can’t even get up the stairs, or do any basic tasks for herself. We have been told that she only has a couple of weeks left to go. It’s very upsetting.

Tom and I sat by her side, holding her hands and talking to her. She asked us about the baby. She asked me if I was going to give birth at hospital, and I told her I hoped to do it at home, in a heated birthing pool. She immediately laughed out loud shrieking ‘Jess, trust you!’ I thought that it was lovely that she hadn’t lost her sense of humour, regardless of what she was going through.

She is such a sweet lady, as soon as we heard the news we ordered her a massive bouquet of fair trade roses. On our wedding day, back in May, she cried throughout the day, so virtually all the pictures we have of her she is wiping her eyes. Our thoughts are with her, and if you get a moment, please pass on a positive thought for her and her family that are effected by her illness. Her name is on a waiting list to go into the local hospice.

Pain Releif - Who Needs It!? :0)

2008-12-09T12:01:00.002Z

I hate going to the dentist. So much so that I have managed to avoid the reclining surgery chair for over 13 years. There’s something about a stranger shoving their hands, cotton wool swabs, drills and other mental instruments into your mouth that makes me feel somewhat vulnerable and deeply uncomfortable.

When you are pregnant you get free dental care until your baby is 12 months old, so I have had it on my ‘to-do list’ for the past 6 and a half months to make an appointment. I finally got round to going last week, where I was met by a lovely young lady, not much older than myself, who introduced herself as ‘the dentist.’ She couldn’t believe that I had avoided any dental treatment for so long, and sat there laughing in disbelief. To be honest I have never been in any pain, so I have never really got round to going. She told me that I needed some fillings (my worst nightmare – mercury, one of the substances that I have spent so long trying to rid from my body!) However, she told me that I had got off very lightly only needing a few shallow ones, and that most people what have needed extensive dental work on this basis. The answer really is not to eat refined sugar – isn’t it?

She offered me white (non-mercury) fillings as I was pregnant, which I was pleasantly surprised about. When she started explaining the dental procedure to me I started hearing words such as ‘pain relief injection’ etc, etc. In other words, pharmaceutical drugs, something that I only want in my body if my life, or my baby’s life literally depended on it as a last resort, not for routine dental work, for teeth that don’t even hurt. Now I have a little bubba relying on me to keep healthy and be able to grow big and strong, even more reason not to want unnatural chemicals intravenously injected into me. What would be the point in aiming for a drug free birth, if I go and have drugs for a couple of fillings that I apparently need.

It was on this basis I decided to have the white fillings, but declined the pain relief – good practise in advance for natural birthing, as it was only going to take 30 mins.

So yesterday I had 2 white fillings and lots of loud drilling without a drop of pain relief. The dentist was very supportive of my choice, although I think that she thought it was because I was scared of needles, as opposed being afraid of the content of the syringe! It went really well, and I woke up this morning as right as rain.

Barefoot Doctor Opens Total Raw Food's New Premises....

2008-12-02T14:31:00.010Z

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And you're invited!!
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Those of you who get our FREE monthly newsletter will know that we have our good friend, The Barefoot Doctor, flying into the UK to speak and conduct the opening ceremony for our brand new business premises on 31st January!

We’re making it into a fantastic event not to be missed. Tickets are already selling faster than expected, especially since we’ve got an offer running on them for this month only bringing the full day ticket down to just £14.99!

There are 2 types of tickets; both will entitle you to receive 10% off most Total Raw Food products on the day from our shop:

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The all day pass – Get to hear The Barefoot Doctor speak live, and see and taste my raw food recipe demo! Stay all day, hang out with us and meet likeminded people throughout the open day.

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The part day pass – which does not include The Barefoot Doctor, but does include my raw food recipe demo, and the rest of the open day.

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This event will sell out, as The Barefoot Doctor is big, big, big!!! So please do not delay on being able to purchase tickets on the door, as we cannot guarantee that this will be possible on the day.

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If you want to purchase specific products on the day, please inform us in advance, so that we can ensure that they are available for you to on the day itself.

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Book your ticket here...

Total Raw Food Ltd has moved

2008-12-02T14:06:00.002Z

So Total Raw Food Ltd is now running from new business premises! We are all so happy that we have finally moved to a bigger, better location. It was difficult juggling everything from 3 different locations as we grew out of our old premises virtually the second that we moved in to them, or so it seemed. Now everyone can spread out a bit more which can only be a good thing. We have separate female and male toilets, a staff kitchen, Tom’s separate office, my raw food coaching room, a warehouse, Real Raw Chocolate making facilities, a superfood bagging point and a picking, packing and despatch zone, not to mention a conference room big enough to hold 30 – 40 people. We are also next door to Funplex, a huge soft play centre for children, which will be good for me to take the bubba to next year. I still work from home though, because I like it here, and our dog would be lonely otherwise. When we’ve got the interior at work sorted, I’ll put some piccies up for you, along with our new contact details. In the mean time you can use our previous contact details, as post / phone calls etc will still get through to us ...

Come and pick your order up - by prior appointment only

The great part for our customers is that you can come and pick your order up from us if you want. We’ve never been able to offer this service before, mainly because stock used to get shifted between locations, so we could never guarantee in advance which area the customer needed to go to. Now it’s simpler, so if you make an appointment in advance, the team can get things ready for you. Oh, I’m so excited!

2008-11-10T13:31:00.003Z

Here I am with some of my family on holiday in Spain a few weeks ago, enjoying my last relaxing break... I'm trying to push my tummy out as hard as possible so I actually look pregnant! I'm about 20 weeks pregnant.

November Update

2008-11-10T12:05:00.004Z

It feels like an eternity since I have updated my blog, so it’s great to finally be here writing. It doesn’t seem like 5 mins since I was on here announcing my pregnancy!

My stuff

I’m now in my 22nd week of being pregnant and I’m loving every second of it. It’s been a very easy, enjoyable time so far. I feel very different in myself too. I’m much more calm, not as excitable as I enjoyed being before, and really quite focused on growing a healthy little person.

The baby now measures just over 30 cm, but if you didn’t know that I was pregnant, you probably still couldn’t tell, as I just look like a fuller tummied version of my former self. I’ve gained about 6lbs so far, and am trying to stay as active as possible. My tummy has started growing at about 1 cm every week or so, so I’m happily watching it expand – I want to get really, really big... I think that it would look great!

One of my really good primary, secondary school and sixth form friends, who also moved to East Sussex from Bucks just before us is pregnant too, and due only 11 days after me. It’s lovely to have the support, as she’s a first time mum too and we compare notes and measure our bumps together.

The little one is very active, and what were beautiful little butterfly flutters and tumbling movements are now quite firm kicks and pokes. You can actually see my tummy move when it happens! The bubba loves getting Reiki, and it was when Tom was giving my tummy Reiki that the baby’s first movements were felt – both on the inside through me and outside, as Tom’s hand got a noticeable poke.

I’m doing pregnancy and active birth yoga, and aqua natal aerobics, to get as fit as possible for the birth. I walk as much as possible too, but running’s out for me now and I don't feel like visiting the gym at all. I’m about to reserve a heated, filtered birthing pool for March, as I want to have water birth in our living room. We’re hiring it for 5 weeks so that we can make the most of it and we can get in lots before and after the birth. If it turns out that I can’t have my ideal birth for whatever reason, I’ll make sure my friends and family get good use of it and come round for a splash! It uses as much energy as a light bulb to keep warm all the time, and comes with a lid to keep the heat in (and the dog out) when not in use. I’m looking forward to it arriving.

Dog stuff

We’ve had an interesting time settling Kaiser into our home after getting him from Greece. He started out as a gem, and then quickly turned into a little (40KG) devil. It’s taken a lot of time, care, continuity and patience to get him to where we want his behaviour to be. It’s not been easy for him, or us and at times I’ve despaired as I’ve walked into a room and he’s shredding my clothes, and other possessions, like our sofa. He’s a good hearted dog though, who has quite clearly been a victim of abuse in his early days. He adores Tom, and is OK with most men. Women are new to him though, so although once shy around women at first, he is now very confident and happy to be with women, as he’s only ever had positive encounters with them I think. We both take him to dog training every week, Tom has his class and I have mine, and he’s now progressing nicely.

He’s a natural guard dog and that brought about most of our problems with him. If someone comes to the door I have to put him in another room as he is very protective of me at the moment. If Tom is answering the door, Kaiser is usually fine, so he obviously sees Tom as the protector.

Kaiser is a 99.99999% vegan. He eats Buenevo dried food with Yarrah wet food, flax oil and MSM mixed in. I talked it though with our vet and she was very supportive of our choices as we are making sure that he receives all the right levels of nutrients etc. He gained nearly 3KG in his first 7 weeks of being vegan. His coat is shiny and radiant, and if anything his energy levels are too high! I don't usually tell people that he is vegan until they see what great condition he is in, as most people judge and think we’re mad, and that dogs need meat, when the reality is that they need the right nutrients – just like us. His taste buds have completely changed and he now happily eats apple cores and other fruit and veg as a treat, along with barley grass flax crackers and commercial vegan doggie treats that contain mint oil and sea vegetables.

Total Raw Food stuff

The company is growing and expanding rapidly by the month. Tom’s dong a grand job at overseeing everything including staff, whilst I work on other projects and take more time out relaxing. I’m still as in love with the company as I was on the day I set it up. I definitely don't have as much to do with it these days, and the tremendous growth that has occurred, is largely a result of Tom’s skills and dedication. I’m still here on a directing and creative level, and am overflowing with ideas and enthusiasm for the companies future. I am not really taking on any new coaching clients until late next year now, as my books are currently full, and I will stop coaching at the end of this year for a while to focus on our new baby.

My DVD Delectable Desserts is selling even better than I imagined, and we are predicting another huge batch of stock needed by the end of the year to fulfil the levels of orders. This is my offering to those that want to enjoy my recipes whilst I'm temporarily out of action (i.e giving birth!) Thanks to all those who have supported my work so far.

All being well, we will have a nice little announcement coming up soon. But I’ll get myself into trouble if I blurt it out now, so I’ll behave.... !

My Delectable Desserts DVD - Available Now to Pre-order

2008-09-17T10:43:00.004+01:00

My Delectable Desserts DVD is now available to pre-order from Total Raw Food. It’s a collection of 12 of my favourite sweet raw food recipes, shot in the grounds of a unique and stunning £2 million eco barn conversion in Sussex. The DVD is produced by Bright One Productions, the other company that Tom and I own, and I’m so excited that it’s finally here for all to enjoy!

What’s on the menu?

Sit back in the comfort of your own home and enjoy a private screening of the following recipes:

1. Raw Chocolate Goddess Cake
2. Raw Ginger and Apple Pie
3. Raw Cashew Cream Sauce
4. Raw Chocolate Truffles
5. Raw Vanilla Mousse
6. Raw Chocolate and Goji Cake
7. Raw Chocolate Treats
8. Raw Strawberry Cheesecake Tart
9. Raw Chocolate Brownies
10. Raw Chocolate Sauce
11. Raw Banana and Orange Ice Cream
12. Raw Chocolate Ice Cream

The official DVD launch date is Thursday 25th September, but Total Raw Food customers can pre order their copy now to receive a special limited time offer.

Special limited time offer

Pre-order your copy today and receive a £5 discount and FREE postage until September 25th. Pre orders will be shipped the week commencing Monday 29th September.

The usual DVD RRP is £14.99, special offer price including postage is £9.99 while stocks last.

We're expecting a BABY!

2008-09-08T13:12:00.005+01:00

Yes, it’s true – I’m PREGNANT! We are so excited that we’re going to have a brand new, pooping, sweet smelling, gurgling, sparkling, raw, vegan baby. Our bubba is due in March, which I’m sure will go by quickly. We're very, very happy x x x
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This is the ultra sound piccie that we had done last week, when they told us that the baby was BIG and on the top percentile for size - it must be all the superfoods I've been eating! I think that the bubba's profile looks just like Tom!

Raw Food Charity Event

2008-08-18T08:27:00.003+01:00

I got this lovely email from Kaiser's handler, who is the owner of the kennels where he has been staying since we rescued him in October. We are going to do an event of some sort in the future to raise money for the charity that Tom and I worked with to bring Kaiser into the UK. People like John, Julie, Diane and Michael do a fantastic job of rehoming cats and dogs that would otherwise starve to death! Tom and I want to show our support to this fantastic organisation that runs pretty much on donations alone. Watch out for our charity event coming sometime soon....

"Hi Jess,

Thanks so much for the e-mail and the pics of kaiser. All i can say is that you and tom have done a wonderful act of compassion and kindness by saving kaiser, and i have no doubt that you will be greatly rewarded in the months and years to come, because you now have an exceptional animal as your companion and friend. Please take things slowly and always have lots of patience with kaiser and in a short time he will show his wonderful true character, as soon as he has settled in completely with you. I'm always available to you for any problems or queries you may have, so please dont hesitate to contact me if the need arises.

Best wishes, and a hug for kaiser,

John"

Settling into his new home

2008-08-17T09:34:00.008+01:00

Kaiser’s trip over to the UK went smoothly, despite there being a massive problem getting dogs out of Greece at the moment, due to a new law that has just come into play. A nice man from a charity brought him over to us along with another dog that was being re-homed in East Sussex. I was so excited when we went to get him, I had to try and calm myself down!

Kaiser was a little quiet for about a day, but instantly lovable and showing some very promising signs. Tom and I just showered him with praise and affection, as he is the sort of dog that thrives on being ‘a good boy’. He’s just turned 1yr old and already weighs in excess of 35KG, with another 6 months to go until he is fully grown. With him being a German Shepard Cross, it's hard to say how big he will get to - I think maybe another 5 - 10 KG max. His paws are still far too big for his body, which look so cute and chunky. We couldn’t have been more fortunate with his temperament. He’s calm, deeply affectionate (loves to be cuddled), obedient, responsive and playful. His puppy training classes start in a few weeks, but we’ve already started to train him, and he does the recall very well. We don’t want to risk him off the lead yet though until he is properly settled in. The seagulls round here have surprised him the most! We are so close to the sea that they fly over our garden screaming and squawking at each other all the time. We’ve just got used to it, but Kaiser was fascinated by them.

Yesterday was probably the first day that he felt like himself again. He would go on a trip round the house collecting things that he liked the look of and hiding them in his crate bed. He went for anything fluffy and soft, including a white very fluffy cushion from the sofa, a fluffy CD holder, my fluffy hair band, the list goes on…. He’s a really lovely dog, which I’m so pleased that we were able to save from a life of misery and suffering. I just wish we could have brought more dogs back with us. At least when we are ready to get him a companion, we’ll know where to go…

It’s a shame that we had to miss the Funky Raw Festival this year that our good friends Lara and Matt have organised, but Kaiser would probably freak out seeing crowds of people at this stage as he has only been used to seeing one person at a time whilst in the kennels. Can’t wait to hear all about the festie from our friends….

I'm soooo excited.....

2008-08-14T19:54:00.003+01:00

We’re getting our Greek beach rescue dog, Kaiser, tonight! It’s been a long day to wait for him despite being in Hampstead for most of today coaching a new celebrity, but more about that in due course…

We rescued the German Shepard-cross when he was about 5 weeks old, last October when Tom and I were on holiday in Greece. I can’t believe that the time has come for us to meet him again. I’m sooo excited!!!! Will keep you all posted…

My lectures at Bristol Vegan Fayre 2008

2008-07-21T16:53:00.002+01:00

If you weren’t able to make it to this years Bristol Vegan Fayre, clips from my lectures during this event have now been added to you tube…

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

My Re-Written Wedding Song

2008-07-04T20:11:00.005+01:00

I cried on our wedding day, because I thought “what the bloody hell ‘av I done!”

Just kidding, Tom’s reading this over my shoulder as I write, so I’m just being provocative. As I’ve said before, and I’ll say time and time again – it was the happiest day of my life. It was a highly personal and spiritual experience that was profound, the venue pouring with beautiful people that we have a deep connection with and who truly mean something in our lives. It’s for this reason that I don’t want to put too much of our experience on Youtube, as I feel it kind of exploits the union and intimacy that we felt. This is the only clip that will appear. During our hand fast ceremony Tom and I exchanged gifts to one another. My gift to Tom was a rewritten version of Alanis Morissette’s great song ‘Head Over Feet’ which I got my dad and brothers to perform. Why didn’t I perform it? Because there isn’t a cat in hells chance of me getting up on stage to sing – and I cant play a music instrument to save my life.

Our wedding was a family affair with no creature excluded, including our dog. You can see her waltzing around in the clip. During the hand fast ceremony she lay across my feet, so I couldn’t move!

Oh, and check out the bit when I trip over the microphone wire (at the very end) like a total pro...

Enjoy!

Recovery From CFS

2008-07-01T20:07:00.004+01:00

I am delighted to be part of this fantastic project. Alex Barton is the lady responsible for collecting 50 moving stories of how Chronic Fatigue Syndrome sufferers have gone on to overcome their illnesses and live normal lives. When Alex asked me if I would submit my story for the book I was thrilled and honoured. I hope that it makes a difference. I wish there had been a book around like this when I was bed bound, as it makes for inspirational and motivation reading. If you are suffering with Chronic Fatigue, or know someone who is, I strongly recommend this great book (I’m not just saying this because my stories in there!!) :0)

What causes CFS?

Today I’ve been thinking a lot about what my friend Lisa told me. She also suffered from CFS, and we both do quite a lot of research into the possible causes of this disease. Apparently, CFS in a person under 30 yrs is brought on by trauma whilst in the mother’s womb. Lisa’s mum had her appendix out when she was 6 weeks pregnant, which is understandably traumatic for the developing embryo. My mum’s dad died during the latter stages of pregnancy when she was expecting me. This is bound to have affected me dramatically, as my mum was understandable distraught about losing her beloved dad. I’m going to carry on looking into this theory, and will present any other interesting findings.

Natural Health Magazine

2008-06-26T15:48:00.008+01:00

Natural Health mag asked me to provide them with an ‘expert’s opinion’ for their 3 page article titled ‘The Acid Test’ (June 2008 issue). I like Natural Health, it’s always quite a varied and interesting read...

Click on the article to enlarge

The Guardian - Is Meat off the Menu?

2008-06-23T20:02:00.003+01:00

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Yes says Raj Patel: growing food for animals is a waste of resources in an overcrowded world.

Read the article here

Tiscali Stats

2008-06-23T10:41:00.007+01:00

I got an email this morning from Tiscali. Here is an excerpt:

"We got around 1700 clicks to the brownie video on Friday (20th) with a 71% completion rate which is fantastic! It just goes to show that there is a big interest in this kind of thing and people do want to live a healthy lifestyle."

Tiscali

"Yey, yey, yey, yey, yey" - Jess Fenton :0)

Me on Tiscali (again..!)

2008-06-20T23:27:00.004+01:00

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Everyone who knows me knows that I have a real thing for Raw Chocolate Brownies. It’s a kind of acceptable addiction. I could eat them for every meal, everyday for a year. I make all different types and dehydrate them sometimes, to make them go all beautiful and crispy. Tiscali wanted to film me making a batch of Brownies, and then they put the clip on the front page of their site today. The clip will stay on the site permanently, just not on the front page. I’m wearing the t-shirt bough by my brother-in-law and future sister-in-law (although nothing’s formally been announced, so I could be accused of marring them off)…

My Purple Power Cake on Tiscali

I've finished My Booky Wook!

2008-06-16T20:41:00.004+01:00

I’ve been really drawn to reading recently, so have managed to plough through a small pile of books which I have been meaning to read for a while. None of them raw or even health food related, but still excellent reads. Whenever I have had a spare hour it’s been book in one hand and a cuppa of Peppermint in the other!

The book that I have just finished reading, literally 5 minutes ago is ‘My Booky Wook’ which is the auto biography of comedian Russell Brand. A friend of my older brother went out with Russell Brand for a number of years, so one of my main motivating factors to get the thing read was to spot her name! I did, and fell in love with his vocabulary, ideologies and bad boy ways in the process. I highly recommend it; the beginning is a little glum, when he talks about his dysfunctional childhood. I’m quite sensitive to that as I love children and hate to think what some kids have to go through. An excellent read though, I’m going to try and get my copy signed if possible….

I have Stephan Fry’s auto biography winging its way from Amazon as we speak. I can’t wait to start it. I love Stephan Fry, and think that he is currently the cleverest person on TV. Imagine what would happen if he got himself onto a 60 - 80% raw diet? His IQ would poll volt off the scale!

King Kaiser

2008-06-16T20:35:00.004+01:00

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Total Raw Food had to cancel my Delectable Desserts workshop in August as it clashed with the arrival of King Kaiser, the dog that we rescued from the beach in Greece. His paperwork will be complete that same weekend, so we have to drive to somewhere in Europe to get him. I’m excited but nervous too. I’ve heard from his handler that he’s a bit of a whirlwind of naughtiness at the moment. Here is a snippet of an email I received today:

“Kaiser is in the clumsy, annoying destructive stage that German Shepherd puppies usually go through as they grow up. He always takes his water bowl and throws it around his kennel, and has already destroyed 2 bowls, leaving them like crumpled aluminium foil!!!”

Lucky that Tom and I thrive from a challenge.

Yaoh Environmental Awards 2008

2008-06-02T13:14:00.006+01:00

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A massive thankyou to all our customers who voted for us in the Yaoh Environmental Awards as Best Vegan Raw / Superfood Supplier 2008. Thanks to you guys, we are delighted to announce that we came in second place (missed first by only a few percent.) Out of all the other nomonees, we are the youngest company, so it's good to see all our hard work, and continual media appearances, pay off by everyones kind support!

1st place - Yaoh
2nd place - Total Raw Food
3rd place - The Raw Chocolate Company

Thanks again!

The Total Raw Food Team x

Tiscali TV

2008-05-26T15:53:00.006+01:00

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Check me out on Tiscali TV, the first piece of media under my new name!!! It doesn't really feel like me yet...
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Tiscali got in touch after I put my Purple Power Cake up on our recipe archieve in February - I think they liked it after they tried it out. How great is that? An huge company like Tiscali requesting me to demo a raw, superfood fuelled, vegan cake! It's all getting out there. This is probably the most famous raw vegan cake. First Channel 5 News three times in one day, and now Tiscali TV! If it's helping people on their journey to rawdom, then it's fine by me.

We Got Married!

2008-05-20T23:11:00.012+01:00

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On 17th May 2008 at 2pm in Brighton, UK, my beloved soulmate Tom Fenton became my husband, and I became Mrs Fenton! We both agreed that it was the happiest day of our lives. We had two professional photographers there throughout the day, so more pictures will follow, as soon as we get copies. Here's a few taken by relatives for now....

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Raw Choccie BIRTHDAY Truffles

2008-04-05T11:41:00.006+01:00

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It's was my big brother's birthday yesterday, and he was 29! We weren't too sure if we would see him over the weekend so I went out and bought him a pressie, and Tom wrapped it up and sent it to him. He missed the post person as he was having a lie in, so his pressie is waiting at his local post office. He changed his plans and is now coming over, so I made him some Raw Choccie Truffles, so at least he has something from us until he gets his hands on his pressie on Monday!

I might demo these Truffles during my next raw food workshop, as they're soooo DELECTABLE!

Lifescape Magazine

2008-04-02T20:10:00.008+01:00

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I was asked to write a regular column on raw health for Lifescape. I was delighted as I LOVE Lifescape mag. It's the coolest read for the modern person trying to live a natural eco life. Here's my first article to kick things off...

The Green Parent Magazine

2008-04-02T19:31:00.007+01:00

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The Green Parent magazine contacted me and asked me to write a feature on raw food, with some of my recipies. They also featured me on the inside page as one of their contributors. At first I felt a bit unqualified for such a magazine as I'm only 25 and don't have any kids, but I suppose my time as a nanny before Total Raw Food Ltd was born accounted for something... Slight error on my fourthcoming ebook, it's not called Raw Chocolate, but it is called Delectable Desserts. What it is with me being associated with raw choc so much!?

Healthwise Magazine

2008-04-02T19:08:00.008+01:00

A very sceptical jurno interviewed me for this issue of Healthwise mag. By the end of the interview she was sounding quite excited about raw chocolate, and I was very pleased about that. She said that she had been researching raw chocolate for quite some time now and thought that it sounded too good to be true, as some websites contain so many claims that are not properly backed up or even proven! She wanted to get my thoughts on the raw chocolate break through for the article that she was putting together, so here it is....

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Our next event - Total Raw Food 2008 Training Day

2008-03-16T18:00:00.004Z

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I am really excited, as I’ve recently been working on our forthcoming Total Raw Food 2008 Training Day to make it the best event that we have ever done! I want it to be next weekend now, and not have to wait until April...

We only have a few places left as it is almost sold out. If you are planning to come, please book ASAP to get one of the last places. We always limited the number of guests on our events, as we want everyone to get the most out of the day. See you there with a very hungry tummy….

Josh Fenton

2008-03-04T08:52:00.004Z

Tom and I went to meet Josh for the first time at the weekend. He is Tom’s brother and wife’s first baby. Aw, he was really cute and little. Both mum and dad are doing incredibly well and have taken to parenthood like naturals. Anna has already got her figure back, and he it’s only been 4 weeks!

Kaiser at 7 months

2008-03-03T08:34:00.004Z

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Kaiser is now 7 months old, and the size of a full grown German Shepard - he is going to be massive! We wont be getting him until the summer, which feels like ages away. He seems very happy and friendly and Tom and I just can't wait to get him settled here in the UK.

Read his story here...

Me on LBC Radio

2008-02-27T11:02:00.004Z

LBC Radio have asked me to appear live on their station this Sunday (2nd March) to talk about my ebook Total Raw Food, and my forthcoming ebook Delectable Desserts (which is due out later this year). Tune in online from 3pm to listen live….

2008 Total Raw Food Training Day

2008-02-27T09:41:00.006Z

...I’ve recently just announced our next raw food training event: 2008 Total Raw Food Training Day, which I am so excited about!
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Here are the details:

Saturday 19th April
11am – 5.30pm
The Earthship, Brighton, East Sussex

The amazing venue

We are so fortunate to have been given exclusive use of the The Earthship, the UK’s first eco-build, which took Stanmore Organics 6 years to develop. It’s an amazing building, set in the heart of the beautiful Stanmore Park, and the perfect place to run our Total Raw Food Training Day.

What we'll be getting up to together

We are going to be enjoying a raw lunch together, along with some interesting and thought provoking raw food workshops, not to mention the food demonstrations and tasters! Read more about the day here...

Total Raw Food shop

As usual we will have the shop there too, so you can buy your products at great prices, free of any postage costs!

Hurry, places are limited for this event

Make sure you book early as all our events in the past have entirely sold out.

BBC Radio Suffolk

2008-02-12T19:33:00.000Z

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I will be on BBC Radio Suffolk tomorrow (Wednesday 13th Feb) at 11.10 am talking about raw food. Click here to listen live!

Congratulations!!

2008-02-04T13:52:00.000Z

Anna (my sister in law to be) the wife of Matt (Tom’s big brother) has just birthed baby Joshua Fenton! We all knew that they were having a boy, but they wanted to keep the name a surprise. About 2 days ago I said to Tom that they would call him Josh. I was guessing but I just knew it. I had nothing to back it up, so I almost didn’t say anything, but now I’m so glad I did, or else everyone would be saying – yeah, right you knew! :0)

True Love

2008-02-03T10:42:00.000Z

I saw this blog entry that Sarma, from One Lucky Duck wrote last year. I thought it was beautiful, so I have included it below for more people to benefit from...

" When you're in love, make sure you love that person for who they are, not what they do for you, or what you want them to be, or do, or how you want them to make you feel. Love without expectations. Love without worrying so much about the future. It feels really good that way. And love all the people around you out of compassion. Love people who don't know better. Love even people who are not nice to others, because those people are probably in pain. Find a way to fill yourself up and feel secure enough to open your heart. That's when the good stuff happens. Love makes the world revolve. Put it out there and it comes back to you. And it feels nice.

Happy Valentine's Day.

Love, Sarma and everyone at One Lucky Duck and Pure Food and Wine. "

Here we go...

2008-01-30T11:43:00.001Z

Thanks Jonny!

Purple Power Cake

2008-01-28T18:55:00.000Z

It’s been a crazy busy, yet really fun weekend! I realised today that some of my FREE recipes on my recipe achieve were a bit out of date (like nearly 2 years old) so I’m in the process of putting some fresh new ones up! To start things off, here’s the Purple Power Cake recipe, which was featured on Channel 5 News three times last week. I literally can not get enough of this right now. You should have seen me and Emma scoffing it on Sunday, like a pair of animals!

Channel 5 News Website

2008-01-26T17:43:00.000Z

I dont know how long Channel 5 will keep this up on their website for, but if you missed my appearances on the news last week you can click here to watch it for yourself!

Channel 5 News Tomorrow

2008-01-23T16:31:00.000Z

I haven’t posted for a week or so, as I’ve been just a little busy here on the coaching side of things, with it being January and all that! I just thought that I’d let you know that I’m going to be on Channel 5 News tomorrow. The pre recorded clip is going out 3 times in the day – 11.30, 5.30 and 7pm. I’m going to be talking about my raw food lifestyle to over 2.5 million viewers…. Happy watching!

Vegan Environmental Awards

2008-01-13T21:03:00.000Z

I'm delighted that our company which I founded 2 years ago, Total Raw Food Ltd, has been nominated in the Yaoh Vegan Environmental Awards for 'Best Vegan Raw/Superfood Supplier.' Please vote for us each month until 31st May!

Raw food radio interview tonight

2008-01-13T19:56:00.000Z

Just to let you know that I’ll be on 106 Jack FM at 9.30pm tonight talking all about raw food!

Expensive Mistake

2008-01-13T15:40:00.000Z

My dad was rushing around trying to get all of his jobs done last weekend when he pulled into a petrol station and grabbed the wrong fuel nozzle, filling his tank up with diesel instead of petrol! The car broke down about 20 metres later, just up the road from where Tom and I live. Apparently 1 in 5 recovery breakdowns are due to this very expensive mistake – which has cost my mum and dad £7,000 to repair! In fact, the car is being fitted with a new engine as I write this..

If 1 in 5 breakdowns are due to this, then you would have thought that they would have invented a way that stops people from selecting the wrong nozzle by now - other than just the colour in SOME stations (not this one, as all the nozzles are black!) Think about all those old engines - what an unbelievable waste of landfill space and money.

Health Food Junkies

2008-01-13T14:42:00.000Z

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It was really interesting to watch Health Food Junkies the other night, the programme which featured Suki, Kate, Reuben, Ethan and Zachary and a nice couple who I have been told are in fact Total Raw Food customers! Ohh, I wonder if that was our Maca he pulled out the draw…

Suki told me that they edited out lots of her laughter, and took the colour down, which she though made her look grey. This was a crazy thing for them to do. Maybe the cameras couldn't cope with Suki's radient raw glow or something! But the bit when she was bouncing on her rebounder, outside her flat, was fun and bright. It showed her beautiful true colours.

I thought that it was really positive how raw food got a 30 min slot on prime time TV, although I think that the producers could have been so much more positive - that eary background music, which gets played in movies when aliens land on the wrong planet, was doing my head in! :0)

It would have been great if they could have left the wee drinking part out, and not tied it in with the raw food diet. I would hate the general public to think that you have to do this to be healthy!

I bumped into Kate at a party last night and she seemed pleased with it all. It was good how she got the last word about health in there over the voice over presenter!

Post Christmas Recovery Smoothie

2008-01-09T21:16:00.000Z

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Feeling like you need to kick start 2008? I'm inviting you into the recipe invention room of our house, where I create my unique raw food recipes for my ebooks, events and private coaching clients.
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Start your day as you mean to carry on, and try this quick and easy recipe...

Journalist Enquiry - National Magazine

2008-01-09T13:42:00.000Z

We have been approached by a UK journalist who is looking for a male / female in a mainstream “high powered” job who has transformed their life on a raw food diet, for a positive raw food article. You will need to have a clear ‘before’ and ‘after’ picture, and be willing to briefly share your story in a national magazine. Please fill out our contact form with your name, address, contact teephone number and profession and someone will be intouch.

Jack FM Interview Rescheduled - Next Week Same Time

2008-01-07T09:32:00.000Z

Sorry to all of you who tuned in to listen to my interview with Jack FM last night. They rescheduled the slot at the last minute until next Sunday. That’s the media for you! Hopefully you’ll be able to catch it then.

Me on 106 Jack FM

2008-01-05T10:48:00.000Z

Just a quickie this time to let you know that I’m going to be interviewed live on 106 Jack FM this Sunday 6th January (tomorrow) between 8 – 10pm…

Me in a Daily Mail (Link)

2008-01-03T15:38:00.001Z

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Here is the link to the article...

Me in a Daily Mail 2 Page Spread

2008-01-03T13:05:00.000Z

So I get a call from Lowri Turner this morning saying that the Daily Mail are running a 2 page spread about her week on a raw food diet, which I coached her through. I knew that they would run it in January when everyone goes all health conscious. She tells me that the DM have changed the article and made it sound harsher than she had originally intended. Someone in the office went to get me a copy, and I read it carefully.

It’s not the best press I have ever had (as I have been really fortunate with the media features so far), althgough I am spoken kindly of. When Lowri approached me to coach her through her week of going from a SUKD (Standard UK Diet) to 100% raw Vegan I advised her against it. It’s too much too soon for most people. She was very set on the idea, and reassured me that she was ready for it. I knew that her challenge wasn’t exactly going to be a walk in the park for either of us. She struggled, and didn’t contact me for help when she needed it, despite what the article said. Everything was over exaggerated, and Lowri commented to me about how good the food was, bar a few recipes that had turned out wrong, due to her not following them properly. She lost weight, her skin glowed and hey - she’s still alive to sell the story!

I am happy with the article because it raises awareness of the raw food diet. I knew right from the start that it was going to slam raw food, because the story would have been a rubbish read if she had of sung it’s praises – this is the Daily Mail for goodness sake!

I'll put the article up when I get the chance... If you do go out and buy it it's on Pg 64 - 65

Give It To Me Raw

2007-12-29T09:43:00.000Z

So, those of you who haven’t heard… Give It To Me Raw has recently been created, the worlds first Facebook / Mysapce for raw foodists! I love it; it’s easy to use, looks good and already has over 700 members. It has the best forum ever, and you can upload your own pictures, videos, blogs etc. Get yourself a page, like I have just done, and be my friend!

Time for Chocolate

2007-12-26T16:53:00.000Z

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This has been such a relaxing Christmas. I’m loving the time I’m taking to breath and relax. I made a raw chocolate cake the other day for everyone. Here is a slice with one of our new raw chocolate cake spoons that my mum bought for us.

The New Engagement Ring

2007-12-25T17:29:00.001Z

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Here's to those of you who asked to see it!

Merry Raw Christmas 2007!

2007-12-25T16:25:00.000Z

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For our raw vegan Christmas feast this year we had Raw Burgers with Cranberry Sauce, Onion Gravy and a Kale and Avocado Salad. For dessert we had my Mince Pie Tart recipe. I got full really quickly, as we don’t often eat food as ‘gourmet’ as this. So I’m having more tomorrow – or later tonight!

It’s our first Christmas in East Sussex, so we’ve spent the day with my family (except Luke, my little bro, who’s working in Taiwan as an English teacher). I’ve never, ever had a Christmas without him, but change is all good.

We're Engaged!

2007-12-20T13:33:00.000Z

We were sitting in Terre a Terre eating our raw vegan meal, when Tom only went and proposed to me! I couldn’t believe it, I was (for once in my life) speechless. He got down on one knee and everything, in front of everyone on a Saturday night. It was our 2 year anniversary. The ring is beautiful white gold, with one big diamond, and lots of little ones on either side. I’m so happy; I’ve been on a total high ever since.

We’re going to go all out for an eco wedding, and have already started looking at venues. All the best ones seem to be booked for 2008, so we are aiming for a summer 2009 ceremony instead. Tom and I are spiritual, not religious, so it won’t be in a place of worship. We both love nature especially trees, so it would be great to hold it in a venue set in a forest or something like that where we can have the ceremony and reception in one place to minimalise the travel. I’ve decided on the colour schemes already, but I’m going to try and keep it a surprise for Tom, although I’m not too sure I’ll be able to. Only a few best friends and my mum know what I’ve got in mind. I’ve also drawn up a guest list, and the numbers are well into the hundreds – much more than I thought we would have, but I want us both to have everyone there who means something to us.

Weddings can be quite environmentally unfriendly if you’re not careful, so this is something that we are going to be paying loads of attention to, as we want our celebration of love to include the planet too. We did talk about getting married on a white sandy beach, but the thought of the pollution caused by flying out all our family and friends, and selves would be crazy! Instead it will be a UK wedding, with a honeymoon somewhere nice.

All the food is going to be locally sourced and I might grow some of it in advance myself. The flowers will be seasonal and as local as possible too. When I was 18 I was a model for a bridal company, so I know which styles I prefer. I love the designer Maggie Sottero, as her gowns are so beautiful, and the fit is superb, with often no alterations even needed for most of her collection. The thing is that I want a dress made out of either ethical silk (where the silk worm isn’t killed as part of the process) or hemp. Not too sure what I’ll do about this yet, but we shall see!

I’m having quite a few bridesmaids, so I’m going to choose dresses that they can wear again afterwards to justify the energy spent creating them.

Invitations will be printed on recycled paper with vegetable based inks, and the confetti will be either fresh petals or biodegradable.

We want to write our own unique vows to each other, to make it as personal to us as possible. There are a few legal lines that you have to say by law, like “Jess, do you agree to take Tom to be your lawful wedded husband?... I do” etc. But other that this you are free to say whatever you want (within reason I should imagine!)

That’s all I can think of for now, but I’ll keep you updated on how the planning goes. Ohhh, I love a good wedding…

Kaiser's getting BIG

2007-12-14T13:37:00.001Z

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These are the new piccies that have been sent of our Greek beach rescue super dog, Kaiser. He is growing fast, and has more than doubled in size since we resuced him on our holiday in October. He is now 4.5 months old, and transformed from a fluffy baby bear to a lean graceful dear! Ohh, I can’t wait to get my arms round him when he lands in Germany. I’m going to pick him up, and drive him home. Greece to Germany is the shortest and safest route for furry friends to travel. Otherwise their sedative wears off and they are left petrified, dehydrated and alone in the hold of the aircraft. I wish I could be with him during the flight, but they don’t allow passengers down there. Tom and I are really looking forward to giving him all the love that he rightfully deserves. Rock on May 2008!

Me on The Veggie Show!

2007-12-14T13:20:00.000Z

Just a quick update to let you know that I’m going to be interviewed on The Veggie Show by Karin Ridgers, via Gateway FM. It’s tonight between 7-8pm, and can be listened to via their website. We’ll be talking all things RAW…

My story in Get Fresh!

2007-12-12T22:03:00.001Z

As some of you already know, the latest edition of Get Fresh! is now out. I was asked if I would write my story of how I began my raw food journey. This is actually the first time that I have ever published my account of it – including my ‘before raw’ picture! You will see in the media section that lots of journalists have interviewed me about how I overcame Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) or M.E, but there has never been 100% accuracy and detail, until now...

I have had quite a few readers email me about the story that ran, to express their thanks, as they have / are suffering from the debilitating condition that is known as CFS. I wont put any quotes up, as some of the letters were quite deep and personal, which I fully respect.

My Raw Christmas Ebook

2007-12-10T12:05:00.000Z

Long time no write! I’ve been filled with pre Christmas busyness, trying my best to tie up some projects this side of Christmas, training new staff members, finding a new location (as we’ve already outgrown our current premises) and still maintaining some sort of a social life!

Our Christmas Raw Food Workshop was a lovely success and saw the beginnings of blossoming friendships between people. As we unfortunately had to turn down many customers after the event sold out, we decided to bring you Jess Michael’s Christmas Raw Food Training - your very own Christmas day 4 course raw meal planner! The great thing about this ebook is that it comes with its own shopping list and helpful tips and hints on how to have the most enjoyable raw Christmas meal, within the context of typical cooked family and friends’ environment.

This ebook has been on sale for only a week, and this is what customers have been saying…

“Thank you for making your Christmas workshop available to all. I really wanted to come but I live in the US. Now I can still enjoy my first raw Christmas. Jess, you are such an inspiration to me. Heartfelt thanks.”

Carrie, USA

“I received the ebooks almost instantly. I have already had a Christmas food rehearsal with my friend, and we were delighted with the way our food turned out. My favourite is the dessert. I will of course be eating this more that once per year. I am looking forward to getting started on Tom’s ebook, and your other ebook too.”

Jenni, Cambridge

“Wow, I’m loving Jess Michael’s Raw Food Training for Christmas. This is the best raw vegan Christmas guide out there! Please pass on my huge thanks; she has really helped me out.”

Simon, London

“Just when I was searching the net, wondering what I should make this year for our festive gathering, I came across this book by Jess Michael. Thank you, thank you, thank you, you have really made my Christmas so much easier. The shopping list is so helpful.”

Joan, Manchester

“I was so disappointed when I couldn’t get a place on your workshop, but most grateful that you decided to publish the recipes. I look forward to trying them out. Please pass on my regards to Jess and the rest of your staff.”

Dionne, Bristol

Lowri Turner Goes Raw Vegan!

2007-11-28T20:31:00.000Z

The latest celebrity client I have added to my portfolio is Lowri Turner. I use to watch her present a TV programme which was set in a shopping centre when I was at university. When she called me up and asked me to help her go raw I was excited...

"Jess was brilliant at demonstrating all the equipment I needed to go raw and showing me how to do some of her recipes. I definitely wouldn't have coped without her".

Lowri Turner - journalist and broadcaster

SOLD OUT - Raw Chocolate Goddess Training

2007-11-28T20:10:00.000Z

So our Raw Chocolate Goddess Training for January has been live on the website for under 1 week, and has now completely sold out. This is brilliant and I can’t believe it. It didn’t even get a mention in our monthly newsletter, as it was planned to go in our December news! This has been the quickest sell out that we’ve ever had!

NEW Raw Food Coaching Packages

2007-11-27T15:05:00.000Z

I am delighted to finally be able to launch a wider selection of coaching packages to make raw food and lifestyle coaching far more accessible within the mainstream market. Over the past 2 years my coaching practise has grown rapidly, and I have been delighted with the interesting challenges and clients that I have been fortunate enough to work with. Helping others to improve on their raw food journey is a huge passion of mine, which has helped me achieve a client success rate of well into the high 90%s.

NEW exciting coaching packages

Although I remain as flexible as before, I am now able to offer the following packages to help you achieve the results that you’re after. I feel very strongly that life is too short not to be living out your dream, as we are all empowered individuals who have the ability to create changes, regardless of how big or small.

Quick and easy email support

This has been designed for customers who want easy and efficient support delivered straight into their inbox. I get many enquiries from people who work in open plan offices and would like to receive support whilst they are at work. Email consulataions are ideal for this.

At Total Raw Food we receive a huge number of daily emails from people asking very general raw food related questions. We have a note on the website that states that we are unable to answer these types of enquiries due to staff time. For the first time ever, if customers want answers to these sorts of questions I will allocate a time slot to personally answer your individual questions.

Sometimes, especially when embarking on something new, or for general encouragement, clients like more frequent support to help keep on track. This is why I have launched the 30 day daily and weekly support plan, which is available in both email and telephone communication. You can now get the help you need to keep you on track.

One to one Telephone Consultations

Most clients opt for 60 minute telephone consultations, however to make sessions as flexible as possible, we are now offering 30 and 90 minute time slots too.

Similar to the daily and weekly email support, there are both 15 and 30 minute daily and weekly coaching calls available. These will be scheduled for the same time Monday – Friday and will help you remain focused on your planned raw food and lifestyle goals and aspirations.

Live Consultations

Sally, my fabulous PA is frequently forwarding me emails from clients that want personal workshops. As I am doing more and more of these we decided to feature the details on the website. Consultation prices are for 1-3 people, and are great fun. Currently I do many live consultations for birthday treats, further learning, hen parties and general get togethers. Prices for larger groups are available upon special requests. Please fill out our contact form with your individual requirements.

What types of people do I typically coach?

My client profiles are extremely varied. I think that I have coached most ‘types’ of people, which includes –

Families
Working parents
Single professionals
Married professionals
Students
Teenagers
Retired couples
Retired singles
Celebrities
Blue Chip organisations

Laugh, love and live your dream…

Raw Chocolate Goddess Training 2008!

2007-11-27T12:15:00.000Z

In 2006 Total Raw Food Ltd ran the UK’s first raw chocolate workshops pretty much monthly. In 2007 we found our energies being directed in other areas of the business, so we only held one workshop last January. Since then, emails have been flying in asking when our next Raw Chocolate Goddess Training is likely to be. So for a special start to 2008, we would like to announce our January event. Now that our team is gradually growing we have the woman power to focus on the areas that you really love.

If you are interested in coming please book early, as we do have a large database of customers who have expressed an interest in the possibility of this event happening for a long time now. This is a special mention for my blog readers to get in their quick, before our December newsletter goes out. Places for this event are very limited, and are on a first come first served basis. Our events all completely sell out in usually under a month, so hurry if you want a ticket!

We are going to be creating lots of raw chocolate recipes including cakes, biscuits, ice cream, solid chocolate shapes etc. I need people to arrive hungry, as you’ll never have enough room for the tasters otherwise. These workshops are a fantastic way of meeting others who are on the same path as you. When we ran the workshops in 2007 we were always delighted with how friendly, enthusiastic and fun the audience was, so I can’t wait for this….

Me on BBC Identity

2007-11-27T12:13:00.000Z

I want to say a huge thank you to Jonny, because he has edited and posted my Identity appearance on You Tube. The frame that You Tube decided to display is of the UK’s tallest man. Enjoy…

Star Traders

2007-11-27T11:46:00.000Z

I had such a great family weekend as my cousins and aunty and uncle came over from Surry to hang out. My big bro works in television and is currently working on a new programme called Star Traders. He came along driving the Star Traders van that is used for filming whilst they are on the road. It’s so cool, it looks like a usual white van on the outside (with the Star Traders logo all over it) but on the inside it is set up like a mini TV studio with a table, 4 comfy chairs, X Box 360, Sky Plus etc. We went out on a lovely walk and had to drive to where we were going first, so we got a ride in the back. And it was so exciting!

Although Tom and I do have a TV now, we hardly ever watch it. It’s on for maybe 2-3 hours a week. I’m going to make sure I tune in to Star Traders though, so I can see my big bro on it.

The Green Parent Magazine

2007-11-25T22:47:00.000Z

The Green Parent, the Uks leading green lifestyle magazine, ran a feature on Raw Chocolate in their December / January issue (20). They taste tasted a load of different raw chocolate bars currently available on the market, in search of the best brands and went on to feature Real Raw Chocolate.

Total Raw Food: The Complete Guide for Beginners

2007-11-22T17:52:00.000Z

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I’ve been really excited all day (no change for me there then) because Total Raw Food launched my first ebook today: Total Raw Food: The Complete Guide for Beginners. This has been in the pipe line for a long time for me, but I’ve been so busy with coaching etc that it has taken me a while to actually finish it off. I’m so pleased that it is now finally out there and flying off the vitual shelves as we speak!

About my book

With over 150 easy to read pages, Total Raw Food: The Complete Guide for Beginners will:

- Enable you to gain vital information on why you should follow a raw food diet.

- Reveal the best way possible to get you on your way with raw foods.

- Inform you of the foods that should be avoided, some of which may be in your daily diet.

- Provide you with the extra support needed in setting up your raw food kitchen.

- Explain the key pieces of raw food kitchen equipment.

- Detail how to eat out on a raw food diet, and enjoy it.

- Educate you on some of the most beneficial foods on the planet.

- Outline any supplements that you may need to boost your health.

- Inform you of how to heal yourself, and take your health to the next level.

- Provide you with over 30 delicious quick and easy raw food recipes.

All this for just £12.99! Click here to find out more.

Why I love ebooks

I love ebooks because they have less of an impact on the environment. Some readers choose to print them out, but not everyone does, therefore there is far less overal paper wastage. As there is no physical delivery too, they reduce the foot print, with there being no parcel going through the usual delivery system.

2007-11-14T15:21:00.000Z

This diary / blog is about to be 2 years old next month, which I find really hard to believe. I can’t believe how much my life could possible change within just 24 months. It’s so great.

I’ve got some really exciting, full-on projects spinning at the moment. My days have been full, along with my evenings, fitting everything in. I was moaning the other day about it getting dark too early, and my friend pointed out that it was actually a good thing. It means your evenings seem extra long! Oh, what would I do without wise Lisa?

Total Raw Food Training - The Christmas Event

2007-11-05T22:16:00.000Z

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Our Christmas Event is now totally SOLD OUT with just under a month to go. I can't wait to meet everyone; we're going to have such a laugh!

Where's Sonny??

2007-10-31T12:47:00.001Z

...........................................Cher ....................................Me

So I’ve just watched the BBC Identity programme that I was featured on as the person who ‘lives off raw food.’ It was filmed a few months ago, and ended up being aired when I was away on holiday. Loads of people have got in touch about it, so when my copy landed through my letterbox this morning I just had to have a look!

I think that it’s fair to say that I look more like a younger Cher than I do a Jess Michael! No one has told me that I look like Cher for about 2 years, so I thought that I was over it. Between the ages of 18 and 23 years of age I used to get told up to 12 times a day by various people (taxi drivers, people in bars and clubs, random people on the street) that I looked like a young Cher. Then I watch myself standing on a 20ft podium, and I totally see it myself. How weird is that? I’ll try and get a ‘still’ up on this site to see if you can see what I mean.

Identity cont...

Just for the record I don’t eat raw flesh, I have been this way for ages, and promote a RAW VEGAN diet. I think that the contestant thought that I ate anything raw. They edited out the bit where Eunice, the first ever bond girl, stepped back on her podium and landed on the floor. As I peered down at her lying on her back, I realised that she was still holding the pose that they told her to stay in. Now that’s dedication to the job! They also edited out another golden clip, where contestant’s friends, who were on the panel to help him, got in an argument as to whether I (number 11) was ‘the bond girl!’ I think that a swear word was used, so they cut the entire bit. Boo hoo, I was standing there with my mouth dropped open in amazement. I couldn’t believe it. Looking at the tape, I would have thought that they’d be arguing as to whether I was Cher’s secret daughter or not!

Rescuing Kaiser

2007-10-19T16:55:00.000+01:00

On the second day of our holiday we were romantically walking along the beach, hand in hand, when I spotted something laying half in the sea, and half on the sand. “Look!” I shouted “It’s a baby seal.” We ran towards it. As I laid my hands on its baking hot dark body, and rolled it over, we soon realised that the little lump wasn’t a baby seal. It was in fact a young puppy!

I immediately swept the puppy up into my arms, and gasped in horror over how hot his coat was, and how limp and lifeless his little body was. His eyes were rolling and were milky in colour. His stomach sloshed, and was heavily bloated. He let out a little groan, and tried to struggle, so I placed him on the sand, where he began violently throwing up, and then ravenously eating sand and drinking seawater. We knew straight away that we had to get this little puppy some help, and as we took a step back to look at him, he limped frantically after us.

He was covered in mud and sand. I don’t know how long he had been there for, but it soon became clear that he had been trying to survive on sea water and sand alone. Tom urged us to get him back to our apartment as soon as possible. He was floppy and wilting fast in the heat of the day. I had to give him to Tom to carry, as he was a dead weight. We sneaked him up to our apartment where I lay a towel on the floor and placed him on it. I nearly cried as he just slumped into a ball, with barely enough energy to sit up. I tried to get the fluids down him, whilst Tom dashed out to buy dog food. He was so thirsty that he drunk over half a litre of water in one go, and then fell asleep on me until Tom returned.

When Tom came back with food he lay down by the dish as he mustered up the energy to eat. The little pup was starving. After about 10 minutes he found the energy to start walking around, and then even started playing with us. We started feeding him lots of small frequent meals, and as much fresh mineral water as he needed. It seemed that he had a lot of seawater to flush out, as he spent the whole day and evening weeing. By 9pm he was asleep and out for the count, so we made him a little bed on the low shelf underneath the coffee table, and Tom carefully put him to bed, wrapped tightly in a towel. He was exhausted, and we just sat there watching him all evening, trying to work out what to do with him.

At about 6am he woke up and Tom went out to the living area to see him. He was so grateful and got all excited. Tom tried to put him back to sleep in his new bed, but he was beside himself with excitement. I jumped out of bed to see what was going on, and as he approached me, his little tail was wagging madly. As we sat there cuddling him, it became apparent that his inflated, bloated stomach had gone right down. With just the help of some love, reiki, clean water and food. We went back to bed, and he followed, and lay down on the floor next to my side of the bed, where he slept through until about 9am.

Tom had seen an advert in a local guide about a lady who takes in stray dogs and cats. I gave her a call, but she said that she couldn’t take him in, as she was absolutely full, with over 40 dogs. She gave us the number for John a friend of hers who is also passionate about helping stray animas. He told me that he will look after the puppy at this boarding kennels, whilst he organises a dog passport for him to be allowed into the UK. It just so happened that John would be passing through our area in a couple of day’s time.

We kept the beautiful puppy, which we decided to name Kaiser (pronounced Ky-zer) in the apartment for a few days and nights, taking him out in Tom’s rucksack for walks in the countryside, whilst the cleaners were round. Very quickly his personality started to shine, and he became a loveable rogue, who we nicknamed ‘the chunky monkey.’ He walked like a baby bear, and was so cuddly and wholesome. Tom and I fell in love the moment we rescued him from the beach. He must have been dumped, because he was about 10 weeks old, and there is no way he would have survived on sea and sand, in 25 degree heat. Like I said, he was also a chunky puppy, so it’s obvious he had been fed up until some point.

We went over to Julies to meet John, so that he could borrow a crate to take Kaiser to his. The moment Julie saw him, she laughed and said “oh my god, he’s going to be a big-un! Look at his jowls!” We got a taxi from our resort to her house, which also looks like a boarding kennels, full of rescued dogs. We had to hide Kaiser to get him into the taxi, as it’s no secret that many Greeks hate dogs. We used to walk about with him in Tom’s rucksack on our chest, with his head and a paw poking out. As he was getting fed constantly, he started to get noticeably stronger, and put up more of a fight when we had to temporarily put his head in the bag to sneak him in past reception!

We were dreading the taxi journey. Tom kept the driver talking, whilst I got in the back with Kaiser in the rucksack. I quickly put my seat belt on and let Kaiser’s head and paw poke out. The taxi was noisy, with loud walkie-talkies and bleeping going off all the time. The bag was also on the floor, between my legs, where I held him securely between my feet, and comforted his head in my hands. He looked petrified with his eyes open wide. I couldn’t talk out loud to him in case the driver was to turn around, so I just kept saying in my head to him “Good boy, it’s OK, you’re going to be fine.” Within minutes he had stopped struggling and had fallen asleep, as I held his head, and stroked his cheek. Tom and I were amazed at how cooperative he was being. I wouldn’t have blamed him for going crazy, since the last time he was probably in a car was when he was getting dumped at the beach, no doubt!

Soon after we arrived John turned up to take him back to his until he would be old enough for the pet passport scheme to get him into the UK. We all stood there from a distance as the 40 dogs barked from their runs. John explained what would have to happen in order for him to qualify for the passport, how much it would cost us and everything else we needed to know. I was sad to see him go off, but the guided tour around Julies rescue centre helped keep my mind off it, and realise just how lucky Kaiser had been for us to find him before it was too late.

Julie currently has 2 separate litters of puppies, a room with a very timid dog who was recovering from being spaded, one pen with about 8 medium sized dogs in it, one massive pen with about 10 very large dogs in it, and about 10 smaller runs with numerous little dogs, not to mention a room with 2 tiny kittens, that Tom and I held as she cleaned them out. The whole experience was mind blowing. Julie was stretched to the full, constantly working with the dogs, and undertaking cat neutering programmes, remarkably all out of her own pocket. This is a lady who cares like mad. She apologised profusely for not being able to take on Kaiser, but we could see with our own two eyes why. We knew that Kaiser was in good hands with John, who is a professional dog trainer, and bestselling dog-training author.

8 days later we hired a car and did the 2-hour drive into the mountains where Kaiser was staying. We were so excited to see him. When Illious, the guy who takes care of Kaiser, opened his run up little Kaiser, like us, went mad with excitement! I tried to pick him up twice, but he was so excited he just couldn’t stop weeing. Finally, we managed to cuddle him. It was amazing how much weight he had put on in just over a week. It was incredible. He was also more playful than ever – and his teeth were sharper too. He also looked even more like a bear cub.

We spent 8 hours at Johns that day, playing with Kaiser, and hearing all about the other dogs, donkeys, horses, fowls, dear, circus lions etc that he had rescued in the past. The ‘before and after’ pictures of some of the animals were heart breaking, yet incredible. When I have more time I will go into more detail about some of them.

The rest of our holiday was fantastic, although both Tom and I found the Mediterranean attitude towards animals too much to bear at times. There were stray dogs, puppies and cats everywhere, and it broke our hearts. We would feed them as often as possible, and some would come and lie with us on the beach as we sunbathed. The Greeks thought we were absolutely mad, but we’re just total animal lovers.

Holiday!

2007-10-19T16:48:00.000+01:00

We’ve just returned to reality after a brilliant and much needed holiday. We went to Greece for a 2-week stint of relaxation. Despite Tom and I being together for nearly 2 years, this was our first holiday together.

As it was coming to the end of season, the weather was a little unpredictable, but we were so pleased to finally escape together that it wasn’t too much of a problem. We met some lovely people out there, holidaymakers and locals, which added to the fun and games.

It’s got to be said that the quality and variety of raw food out there where we were staying was really poor. Back at home we have unlimited fresh bio dynamic, organic food from our wholesaler, so it was a bit of a shock to the system. We found ourselves struggling, and life’s too short not to enjoy your first holiday in 2 years, so we stuck to cooked vegan food, with fruit during the day. Both Tom and I have been pretty much 100% raw vegan for a good number of years, so going back to cooked foods was really weird. The restaurants were great, and went out of their way to cater for our vegan needs. Tom and I have never actually seen each other eat any cooked food before, so the first time we indulged, we sat there in the restaurant like 2 giggling children. You kind of had to be there, but it was hilarious.

I started getting ill whenever I ate wheat, with my glands and throat swelling. It was really painful, but I was never good with wheat and gluten. It was really interesting tasting foods that I hadn’t touched in 6 or so years, but the novelty soon wore off, and we began dreaming of raw pizza, raw quiche and big green salads and juices!

We’re now home, and as we returned to Brighton, I fell in love with it all over again. We had a raw food delivery waiting for us in our fridges (one fridge is never big enough for 2 raw food junkies) and I’m as happy as larry. I loved every minute of being out in Halkidiki, and now I love every minute of being home. Especially our bed, I’ve never slept in a bed as comfy as this one, last night felt like I was sleeping

on a fluffy cloud.

Total Raw Food Training - The Christmas Event

2007-10-02T17:44:00.000+01:00

So much to write... So little time! So I had better keep it short!

We ran the Total Raw Food Day event at the weekend. The group of people that came together were absolutely brilliant. We laughed about all sorts of non—food related subjects, made raw food, ate and had fun. Before I knew it the day was over, and we were all left in wonder, not being able to believe how great everyone was!

We have had so many requests to run another training day this year, manly from people who couldn’t get a ticket for the last event. I can’t believe we totally sold out in 2 and a half weeks. After we had requests from people who came to the event at the weekend for another training day also, we decided that we had better do another one this year. So here it is, Total Raw Food Training – The Christmas Event!

The first 7 people to book get a FREE Real Raw Chocolate Pack worth £15.20. There are only a few of these packs left.

'Raw Chocolate' Word Banned!

2007-09-19T18:38:00.000+01:00

So we’ve now been officially warned about the use of the word ‘Raw Chocolate’ in our marketing literature. According to trading standards no such product exists! This is because chocolate has to contain refined sugar – no bars of mine will ever contain refined sugar! Therefore we must only use the description ‘Raw Cacao Confectionary’ when relating to our bars. Luckily our trade name is ‘Real Raw Chocolate’ which is fine, as it is a trade name and not a description. I kind of get the feeling that the government really doesn’t want people to learn about healthy alternatives!

Total Raw Food - Breaking News.... :0)

2007-09-19T17:02:00.000+01:00

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From the latest Total Raw Food Newsletter. Sign up here to receive it.
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3 Brand NEW Real Raw Chocolate Bars

Due to the success of our existing collection of Real Raw Chocolate Bars, we now have 3 BRAND NEW exciting bars to add to our Raw Cacao collection!

Real Mint – Handmade Raw Cacao Confectionery with a Mint Choc Chip
Real Mint is a fresh and familiar option for any chocolate lover, allowing for a pleasure both unique and stimulating, a rarity not to be missed.

Real Orange – Handmade Raw Cacao Confectionary with a hint or Orange
Real Orange draws on the popularity of this distinct and sharp zingy flavor that will allow any Chocolate Orange lover to enjoy in total innocence.

Real Vanilla – Handmade White Raw Cacao Confectionary with Vanilla & Raisins
Real Vanilla, with its subtle hint of Vanilla and mouth watering crunch, captivates the senses with its fulsome flavors and irresistible light texture.

New Look Packaging

What’s more is that we now have new and improved packaging throughout our entire collection! Each bar also weighs in at a slightly heavier 40g, giving you excellent value for money at £2.85 per each!

Out with the Old and In with the New!

Unfortunately due to the 'Novel Foods' Legislation, we are no longer able to manufacture bars with Suma as an ingredient. Real Silver was loved by many, so we've now improved the bar by adding our very own Sundried Maca Powder instead!

NEW Real Raw Chocolate Special Offers

NEW bars, NEW offers! Save £££ on our great new offers when you try the collection for yourself!

Save 10% off the RRP when you try the entire collection
Buy 10 bars and get 1 FREE
Buy a mixed box of 30, and save 15% off the RRP

Raw Cacao Bars in your local health food store

The original Real Raw Chocolate bar collection can now be found in well over 50 stores up and down the UK and within the EU. If you would like to see our range in your nearest shop, please contact us with their details. Alternatively retailers can buy from our UK distributor, Marigold Health Foods (020 7388 4515), or directly from us.

Delivery

The complete NEW collection will be ready for dispatch on Thursday 27th September. You can pre-order these flavours online via the website, or by calling 01273 248 697. Any other products ordered at the same time, will be dispatched as usual.

So You Think You're Healthy?

2007-09-12T21:20:00.000+01:00

So, loads of people who I meet for the first time ask me what exactly is Raw Lifestyle Coaching, so now you can see what I dooo…

I shot this video clip with the best TV crew ever, under very ‘special’ circumstances. We laughed through the entire shoot too! I love working with fun people.

I got the opportunity to explore what I do as a profession, and investigate some ‘typical’ clients within my portfolio. I like this clip because it’s a lighthearted peek behind the scenes to my Raw Lifestyle Coaching practise. It’s fun and fast, which reflects how I coach.

In an ideal world I would do an extra day per week coaching, but Total Raw Food demands my attention, as it’s expanding so rapidly (we’ve taken on 2 members of staff in the last 10 days!) I love both sides of my job though, as it’s so full on.

As I was walking through a field the other day eating wild Blackberries I realised that I’m the happiest that I think I’ve ever been. Tom has a lot to do with this.

Total Raw Food Training Day - Now Fully Booked

2007-09-08T13:08:00.000+01:00

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I’m really looking forward to running our next event, which is now fully booked! We only announced it around 3 weeks ago, so it’s the fastest filled event that I’ve ever done! So excited.

Raw Food UK

2007-09-05T21:50:00.000+01:00

I’ve just joined the Raw Food UK forum. It’s a UK based forum that has been set up by one of my Raw Chocolate Goddesses, Debbie Took. Debbie came along to one of the Raw Chocolate Goddess Trainings last year (I can’t remember which one though.)

I like UK based things like this. It’s so important to support the UK raw food movement as much as possible, and it’s a great way to meet more raw people, and hear lots of different opinions! You can also email thisgeneration@btinternet.com, if you have any problems getting signed up.

I might post something, when I get the chance...

The Update

2007-09-05T21:39:00.001+01:00

Festival of Life was so cool this year, I just loved it, and everything about it was fun, especially the wonderful sweeties that were working on our stand. I talked both days. The talk on Saturday was in the Parish Hall, which was a large ecohy space, with high walls, and no microphone. So by the time I had finished shouting over the top of the drumming that was going on outside for an hour and a half, I had almost lost my voice!

My talk on Sunday was quite entertaining too. It was all flowing beautifully and everyone was smiling, until I had an anti raw fooder walk in half way through. He wanted to know if you’re your organs shrunk on a raw food diet, if you were to come off a cooked food diet. As I was trying to establish what kind of cooked food diet he might be referring to (junk food daily, or a Vegan cooked diet, free of wheat, gluten and refined sugar perhaps) he started venting his anger in life in the direction of raw foodists, saying that this is a drastic diet etc etc. I ended up politely encouraging him to leave, as he was too angry to be in the room, and listen to the rest of the talk quietly. A few members of the audience started to have a go at him too, and I didn’t want it to end in a big brawl!

That’s never happened to me in a talk before, yet I do quite a lot of public speaking these days, so I was aware that the time might come. It was great though, as it helped people in the room bond, and we even had a bit of a laugh about it, as the guy was so off the wall. It actually didn’t faze me, as I’m so passionate about what I speak about. I believe in everything that I say 200% and I have full confidence in a raw food diet. If anything, this kind of thing strengthens my feeling of self, and helps me take my journey to the next level. I’ve been getting some fab emails too following on from the talk, which is lovely.

BBC Identity

2007-08-31T21:50:00.000+01:00

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I’ve just been given the correct date for BBC Identity! Tune in on Wednesday 3rd October @ 5.15pm, BBC 2.

Just promise not to watch me on a 50 inch High Definition plasma screen!

Festival Of Life

2007-08-31T21:41:00.000+01:00

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I’m going to be at the Festival of Life tomorrow. I’ll be speaking both days, but my main talk is tomorrow – can’t wait!

· Saturday 2.30pm - 4pm - Raw Food, Raw Chocolate! (Parish Hall)

· Sunday 1pm - 2pm - Eating a Raw Vegan Diet For Sustaining Your Body and Our Planet
(Sustainability Room)

As Total Raw Food are one of the sponsors of this event, we’ll be there on a stand too, it would be rude not to! :0)

Come and say hi, I love meeting you guys and i'll try not to bite….

Coming Soon...

2007-08-29T11:14:00.000+01:00

Oops we were all given the wrong day for the broadcast of Identity! So sorry to those who were waiting for it to come on, but it was the wrong episode. I’m not too sure what date the episode I am on will be shown. But after it’s on, I’ll put it up for you to see… :0)

Endorsement By Econiche Magazine

2007-08-22T19:25:00.000+01:00

Endorsement By Vegan Magazine Autumn 2007

2007-08-22T18:40:00.000+01:00

My Real Raw Chocolate Bars are in the current eddition of The Vegan magazine, the price is wrong but we'll let them off!

Dark fruit and veg may fight colon cancer cells....

2007-08-21T19:55:00.000+01:00

Check out this article from The Telegraph, featuring Purple Corn Powder - we've been trying to tell you all along! :0)
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Click here to read!

Me in Econiche magazine!

2007-08-21T17:18:00.000+01:00

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© 2007 Econiche and Total Raw Food Ltd. All rights reserved
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Econiche magazine recently ran a 3 page spread about Total Raw Food and me. They did an interview, and then featured two of my raw recipes, which are going to be available along with many others in my forthcoming book!!

I’ll get this article up in the media archive as soon as I get a chance. In the mean time just click on the pages to read…

Please note that in the Raw Pizza recipe, it is supposed to read "1/4 cup of Sun Dried Tomatoes and 1/4 cup of Hemp Oil" instead of a cup of each!!!

The Total Raw Food Training Event

2007-08-16T20:55:00.000+01:00

I’m well aware that here at Total Raw Food we’ve been more than a little quiet on the raw food event front this year, so we’ve got something very special lined up for you!
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Total Raw Food Training! 29 Sept, 11am - 5.30pm, £65
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I’m really looking forward to this as it’s going to be a very interesting event indeed. After the success of last years 'Total Raw Food Day,' for the first time ever, Tom and I are inviting you into our Brighton home, for you to see before your very eyes how easy it is to create raw Vegan domestic bliss! :0)
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Total Raw Food Training is a one-day workshop, with lunch included. I’m going to be demoing my current favourite recipes, which you’ll be able to throw together for yourself, friends and family in no time at all. Tom and I are going to be addressing all aspects of a natural lifestyle, as well as the food side. We’ll be addressing the mental, spiritual and social impacts of living on raw foods. Not to mention stuffing you with ridiculous amounts of tasters throughout the day! This really is the best way to meet lovely like minded people, just like you...

Numbers are restricted for this event, so please book your ticket as soon as possible to avoid disappointment. You can book online, or call 01273 248697, 9am - 6pm, Mon - Fri

What’s wrong with wrinkles anyway?

2007-08-07T17:21:00.000+01:00

This article from Raw Gaia is sooooo true! Love it, love it, love it!!!

My university dissertation was based on this subject, as it’s an area that really interests me. The angle that I investigated was along the lines of to what extent does the media play a part in eating disorders amongst women. Most importantly via the exposure of unattainably thin models / media icons, and the increased use of airbrushing!

Granny Smith, is as sweet as an apple...

2007-08-06T19:32:00.000+01:00

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I've been thinking about Granny loads recently, she was going to come down from Doncaster and visit us in Brighton soon, but shes having problems with walking. The cartelage in her knee joint has almost worn away, and all the doctors seem to want to do is o-p-e-r-a-t-e! It drives me crazy!

Granny is 82 yrs old next month, and appart from her leg she's like a spring chicken. My friends just love her, because she has a very good sense of humour. She's also very up to date with interesting (and entertaining) current affairs... Oh gran is so cool.. When she makes it down I'm going to give her some internet training, as she wants to get herself on line.

Check this beauty out....

2007-07-28T00:38:00.001+01:00

Tee Hee!

One of my mates emailed this to me recently and it made me laugh so much! I had to share it. I wish I could see your face as you watch it! You Tube should invent a version called ‘Your Face,’ which is a webcam of people faces as they watch funny clips! It’s just a thought…