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Gaby's Bakery - Lemon Mascarpone Easter Meringues

Gaby's Bakery - Lemon Mascarpone Easter Meringues

April 05, 2025

If you're looking for decorative dish for Easter then this is an easy recipe and fun to do with the kids. The boys used the excess for decorations so we had a farmyard of furry chicks all round the kitchen. 

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Gaby's Bakery - Mini Egg Easter Brownies

Gaby's Bakery - Mini Egg Easter Brownies

March 29, 2025

The salon is decked out in Easter decorations now, so I thought it would be seasonal to have some fun with a most loved brownie recipe. Kids will want to help but you'll need to keep an eye on the sweets...

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Size Isn't Everything

Size Isn't Everything

March 28, 2025

How can I get more volume in my hair?” is a question so often asked and I’d like to clarify an important distinction between size and body.

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Holding Spray

Holding Spray

March 25, 2025

It’s at high-pressure events that our salon professional products really come into their own. Take the humble Holding Spray in the Van Clarke range. “Tut tut. A hairspray’s a hairspray”, you may say.

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Heavenly Body

Heavenly Body

March 22, 2025

This light texturising mist effortlessly vamps up your hair in seconds, giving enviable body, volume, and airy texture to finish and lightly hold your style. Extracts deliver powerful antioxidants to maintain moisture and protect colour, without leaving the hair feeling heavy or clogged.

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The ‘Drug Pushers’ of Haircare – Creating a cycle of need and addiction

The ‘Drug Pushers’ of Haircare – Creating a cycle of need and addiction

March 06, 2025

“What’s he going to tell us now?” I hear you say. “Taliban warlords make shampoo in their poppy fields! Colombian cartels launch new crack-cocaine conditioner!”

Not quite, but...

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Gaby's Bakery - Upside-down Blood Orange Cake

Gaby's Bakery - Upside-down Blood Orange Cake

March 06, 2025

These are the last months of plentiful blood oranges which go to make this recipe such a mouth-watering treat.

The fruit has crimson or blood coloured flesh which comes from the anthocyanins, a family of polyphenols. The red colour comes when the fruit develops with low overnight temperatures as in the Mediterranean winters, so peak season is February to April.

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Gaby's Bakery - Mediterranean Egg Muffins

Gaby's Bakery - Mediterranean Egg Muffins

March 01, 2025

A short trip away from sweet this week with a moreish egg muffin. Michael is my normally obedient taster but wasn't responsive when I gently proffered one at him. "Taste this." I said. "I'm not in the mood for savoury and I've just brushed my teeth."

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Winter Sun - Vietnam - in search of authenticity

Winter Sun - Vietnam - in search of authenticity

February 28, 2025

Globalism, has given us identikit cities worldwide. A seeping monoculture squeezing out heritage and diversity, leaving streets dominated by similar constructions and the same international brands. 

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Gaby's Bakery - Blueberry Muffins

Gaby's Bakery - Blueberry Muffins

February 22, 2025

What have the Welsh ever done for us? Well, apparently muffins originated in Wales sometime in the 11th century and are now just about everywhere having been popularised by the Americans in the 19th century. You needn't go to the high street, as you can make a beautiful light fluffy version for yourself. Try this.

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How to Handle Curly Hair

How to Handle Curly Hair

February 14, 2025

Wavy and curly hair can be the most enchantingly gorgeous, but for some people it can be a beast to manage. Here we go through the whys and the wherefores.

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Gaby's Bakery - Valentine's Jammy Dodgers

Gaby's Bakery - Valentine's Jammy Dodgers

February 14, 2025

The Valentine holiday has origins in the pagan festival of Lupercalia, held in mid-February, to celebrate the coming of Spring. It included fertility rites where men would strip naked and sacrifice a goat, and a lottery where boys drew names of girls from a box.

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