Sarah Wilson, Author at Sarah Wilson

my Sunday Life column comes to an end…to make way for…

February 2, 2017December 12, 2011 by Sarah Wilson

…Well, a few things.

Straight up, I’ll be filing my final Sunday Life column this week.

Almost 130 experiments in how to make life better…you’d hope I’d have found an answer, hey?? I kinda have, but that’s for another time.

A publisher once said to me, “Never do a column for more than two years. The first year you find your feet, the second you find your voice and after that you repeat what you said in the first two years.” I tend to agree.

And as many of you who read this blog know, I’m not one to hang on to things. I like to move where my voice keeps fresh.

elizaveta porodina photos my Sunday Life column comes to an end...to make way for... — Photo by Elizaveta Porodina

So, from the New Year, I’ll be working on a bunch of new projects (TV and print), as well as ebooks.

Yes, ebooks.

I’ve been really rather thrilled with how rewarding ebook publishing is.

[For those new here, my ebook I Quit Sugar ebook went on sale about 8 weeks ago and has been hitting good spots around traps.]

Ebooks are a direct conversation. They help directly. They share authentically. They deliver what I want to share straight to where I want to connect.

Ebooks are new – according to Darren at Problogger, who is something of an international expert in this kind of thing, there are only about 20 or so bloggers making a living from ebooks here. So no one really knows where it will wind up. I’m the first “traditional” journalist to enter into it…I’ve been told.

Some general thoughts:

Media – and life in general – is moving faster than ever. Everything is speeding up. Flux is our permanent state now. I find this exciting.

They call my generation the bridging generation. We Gen Xers…we’ve had to bend and straddle and dance back and forth as we adjust from the ways of yore to, well, this new multifaceted, layered, messy, instant, constant, technology-based way.

I hand wrote my law essays at uni, but was the Tech Head in my office when the internet arrived while I was doing my newspaper cadetship at News Ltd.

why the paleo diet works

January 10, 2012December 11, 2011 by Sarah Wilson

This week in Sunday Life I eat like a caveman

Of all the self-imposed guinea pig antics I’ve subjected myself to for this column, this week’s might be regarded as my bravest. For it entailed eating, oh-glory-be-yes, fat.

In a fat-fearful world, my no holds barred consumption of chicken skin, the crackling and the 3cm of subcutaneous tissue on my pork belly, several teaspoons of butter on my veggies, whole cups of full cream milk, chunks of ghee and avocado each day has freaked the innards out of most in my culinary orbit. And yet (boldly! fearlessly!) I’ve persevered with this particular experiment for three whole months.

Turn to the person to your left, and the one to your right. I’m betting one of you is making friends with your egg yolks right now, having picked up on what’s been dubbed the “paleo” or “caveman” diet. Images of loin clothes and bone gnawing aside, the diet boils down to something pretty innocuous: not eating anything fiddled with.

So, no grains, no additives, no sugar, no grain-fed meat, no mucked-around-with fat-reduced dairy.

And instead the unadulterated foods of our ice-age forebears. The subsequent claim is that doing so makes us healthier, thinner and live longer, a claim I had to test for myself.

friday giveaway: a papillionaire bike worth $700

October 23, 2018December 9, 2011 by Sarah Wilson

Another generous Friday giveaway…and what a cracker it is this week. Yes, we’re giving away a Papillionaire old-school treadlie. Just in time for summer! Not only is she very pretty, this Papillionaire bike is: a fully customised Sommer bicycle valued at almost $700 powered with a 3- speed internal hub (yes, gears!) an upgraded … Read more

a christmas gift guide #2 (plus some super reader offers)

December 8, 2011December 8, 2011 by Sarah Wilson

Since last week’s guide went down like brandy with Grandma after Christmas lunch, I thought I’d do another.

photo1 a christmas gift guide #2 (plus some super reader offers) — photo via Shannon Martin

Again, not a definitive list. Just some stuff I thought you’d like and that supports supporters of this blog and/or have a snappy, ethical slant. Enjoy!

merfins by Oceanika

For your mer-obsessed daughter, from $115. Kazzie’s a Byron chick who dreamt up this idea – eco mermaid fins for kids – a number of years ago. They’re made from recycled rubber, in a factory that uses environmentally sensitive practises and machines. I’ve seen kids swim in these things – they actually swim like dolphins. Check it out in this YouTube clip

The MerFin Package, which includes MerFins, swim tights and bikini, is priced from $174.00, or the MerFin alone starting from $115.00. Get em here.

the art of actively doing less (+ a Women’s Weekly shoot)

October 23, 2018December 7, 2011 by Sarah Wilson

Shall I share some sweet irony with you? Or perhaps you’ll call it muddled, unfocused hypocrisy? Recently I flew to Sydney to appear in this Australian Women’s Weekly Christmas shoot below. Myself and a bunch of other (too?) oft-photographed ladies were asked “what’s the perfect gift that money can’t buy”. I said: “rest”.

As usual, the trip was frenetic and involved air-conditioned hotel rooms and flights and running late and chemical-ly makeup (although the team decided to go with a “natural look” for me, which is always a bit of a narcissistic conundrum when you’re the oldest and biggest on the shoot!). By the time I got to the studios I was, well, very unrested. And unanchored.

That night I lay awake in my hotel room unable to sleep. I hadn’t slept for weeks (months?). And in that moment I realised I had to put my book project on hold, which I shared with you here.

I needed rest. I had to really commit to getting it. I had to get real.

Irony…hypocrisy…whatever…truth comes and finds you.

Since all this I’ve had to have a good think about rest.

Resting is not just putting our feet up on the couch when we collapse in a heap, exhausted. Resting is a responsible way of living.

wheat free! sugar free! Take-to-Christmas treats

August 10, 2018December 6, 2011 by Sarah Wilson

A few months back I connected with Lee Holmes who told me she was writing a cookbook. She asked if I’d “endorse it”. For some niggly, gut-based reason I had a very sound feeling about what she was doing…Lee has an autoimmune disease and has healed herself through diet. She sent me some recipes from her book…and I thought, This Is The Book We All Need.

Cut to today. Supercharged Food – 90 recipes that don’t contain gluten, wheat, sugar, yeast or dairy – is out now. It’s rare that I’d want to cook every recipe in a book (I’ve already played with several, including lavender tea with almond milk!!), so choosing a few to share with you here was an indecisive’s conundrum. But I thought it might be nice to share two that are perfectly geared for toting on the annual schlepp to the stodge-fest that is family Christmas…so you don’t have to be tempted by bloody mince pies.

butternut cookies

150g coconut flour
1/4 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons stevia powder, plus extra to dust
a pinch of sea salt
200g cashew butter
4 organic eggs, lightly beaten
2 1/2 teaspoons natural vanilla extract
2 tablespoons coconut oil
2 tablespoons coconut milk (try Lee’s homemade version, recipe in her book)

Preheat the oven to 175 C and grease a baking tray.

In a bowl, mix together the coconut flour, baking powder, stevia and salt.

a very cute bike fashion find

December 5, 2011 by Sarah Wilson

To be honest, being safe on a bike is mostly about being visible. I ride to be seen. Which is to say, I ride obviously. I ride so cars know I’m there. I take off at traffic lights from up front, I ride on the road (not on footpaths where reversing cars can’t see me) and I ride brightly. And so it is that I just love this little creation from Melbourne label Culture Cycle:

Crocheted. Glow-in-the-dark. Bike fashion.

Culture Cycle is a seriously kooky range of handmade crocheted bits and pieces, intertwined with reflective yarns that light up at night.

Cool, light and safe.

Angelina is the chick behind the brand and is a keen rider who runs cycle tours in Sydney and Melbourne where, at the end, you sit down and…very cute…crochet. Crochet and cycling and coffee. Seriously.

She tells me she uses yarns that she sews into her products, for high visibility day and night. One is as thin as the cotton that you use in a sewing machine and its made from glass beads. It’s highly reflective and when it’s crocheted into products it’s difficult to see in daylight. The other is a double sided flat ribbon which is equally as reflective and is quite visible in daylight so it offers great opportunities to make textured products.

I have a set of lime green cuffs and this wrap vest (below), which is fine enough to scrunch up in my bag, pretty enough to wear over my t-back singlet or a dress and versatile enough to wear as a scarf, a vest or a wrap.

But check out these wrist cuffs

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my interview with Nicholas Sparks on what makes love work

October 23, 2018December 4, 2011 by Sarah Wilson

This week in Sunday Life I discuss The Notebook

If you ever find yourself in the laundry at a party skewered against the tub of stubbies by some eye-glazing, go-nowhere conversation, try this tactic. Ask everyone’s thoughts on The Notebook. In my experience everyone has a take on this 1996 novel, turned into a film in 2006. And it’s always pleasantly diverting.

I mean, most of us admit to only having half-watched the movie, and only to witness Ryan Gosling work his magic. Right? Blokes will say their wife made them do it. But in the next breath they’ll confess it made them cry. I know an ex-world number one light heavyweight boxer who’s watched it 14 times and a burly fireman who’s seen it nine. Both cried every time. Which is a phenomenon in itself.

But what I find interesting when I spike party small talk with such a conver-bomb is that invariably women say they love the film because the female protagonist Allie – who’s faced with choosing between first love Noah and her posh, sweater-n-chinos fiancé – eventually goes with her heart. Chicks love this.

Blokes, however, say they get all prickly-eyed because the dude who sticks to his belief that he’d found his girl (and built a house in readiness for her return) wins the day. The nobleness entailed in this and the fact he stands by Allie through all kinds of calamities hits a waterworks nerve for men. Chicks also love this.

Choosing to go with your heart, and determined, stoic nobleness – it’s fundamental Venus vs Mars stuff. But at the core of both takes is the same principle, I think. A “good” decision was made. And committed to. Simple! Phew!

Since seeing the film myself, I’ve always wanted to know author Nicholas Sparks’ take on love. Is he a romantic? A cynic? This week I got my opportunity during his visit promoting his seventeenth novel The Best of Me.

a christmas gift guide (plus some special offers for readers)

December 6, 2011December 1, 2011 by Sarah Wilson

Oh goodness, it’s a month to Christmas. I have the smell of pine needles in my nose, the taste of prawns and cherries in my being (both staples at our Christmas lunch), and I’m priming myself for the after-lunch delirious wrestle with my brothers.

image via Shannon Martin cards

I’m not a big fan of mass present-buying. Consumerism is something I actively avoid. All that said, gift giving is lovely, especially if it’s mindful. So I’ve decided to share some ideas I’ve accumulated over the year: products that grabbed me, or are mindfully made and have a touch of quirky expression to them, or are made by friends of this blog. I’ve even secured a few special offers for readers on this blog. Happy Crazy Season!

1. exfoliating cleansing bar by Miessence

Something for your brother: $9.95. I love this exfoliating Cleansing Bar ( in both geranium + tea tree). Soap-on-a-rope that’s good enough to eat, making a simple, all-round gift. Miessence products are possibly the most legitimately toxin-free products on the planet. EWG’s cosmetic database rates it in their top 5 brands and it’s a local (Queensland) company run by one very passionate Narelle.

As a lovely Noel gesture, Narelle is offering readers here 30% off any Miessence purchase over $100 (buy a few soaps for friends and family!). Details here, and make sure you use the code SWB, from December 01 – 25.

Tuesday Eats: how to poach an egg…

August 10, 2018November 29, 2011 by Sarah Wilson

Honestly, you shouldn’t be allowed to leave home not knowing this critical life skill. But, alas, some do. And then you email me. And so I post a little guide…

how I poach an egg…

Fill a shallow pan (a small frying pan that has a lid) with water. Bring to boil.
Add a dash of white or rice vinegar – it helps the egg whites to congeal. Don’t worry if you don’t have any.
One at a time, break the eggs into a teacup, then tip from cup into the water. Do a few eggs at a time if you like.
Turn off the heat immediately and cover tightly. Leave 3-4 minutes.
Remove with a slotted spoon.

BONUS TIP: You can poach eggs a few days ahead and store in a bowl of cold water in the fridge! They’ll keep several days.

put a poached egg on top…

This little parcels of goodness are designed to plop ontop of a meal that is otherwise a little lacklustre/lacking in protein/lacking in goobiness

Try this:

Using the hot egg water after you’ve removed the eggs, steam up some frozen peas and chopped zucchini. Place in a bowl with a tin of tuna, some shallots (green onions) or red onion finely chopped and capers, eggs on top.
While the eggs are poaching saute some garlic and silverbeet (that perhaps you’ve already presteamed and frozen). Toss in some parmesan. Put in bowl, eggs on top.
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