Invest in New Year Relationships and Joseph Joseph clever kitchen design
Andrew Bluett-Duncan
Director
With Christmas and the New Year finally behind us, I suspect you could well be breathing a quiet sigh of relief. Lovely though it all is, it can be a lot. The noise. The obligations to include so and so, the absolute need to see both sides of the family, the relentless togetherness.
The importance of friendship
Julia Samuel has been talking about this post-festive lull and she made a point that struck a chord with me. She pointed out that we may feel oddly isolated after all the bustle, or conversely, quietly grateful to have some space again! Both are perfectly normal, she suggests. But her advice, now that things have quietened down, is that possibly the single most powerful thing you can do for your wellbeing is to invest in your social connections. So no, not the obligation driven sort we’re often knee deep in at Christmas but developing the friendships that actually matter to you. Maybe going out of your way (maybe even out of your zone of comfort) to find new ones.
You know, people who actually feed your soul (not those who drain it).
Conversations that go beyond small talk.
Social connection, she reminded me, is one of the strongest predictors of both physical and mental health. The long-running Harvard study I’ve mentioned before in these pages, along with a raft of others, shows that people with strong relationships (a good marriage, real friends, proper connections) live longer, happier, and more fulfilling lives.
Why? Because when we feel safe and connected, our nervous system relaxes. We release oxytocin, the bonding hormone, which reduces stress and anxiety, strengthens the immune system and even dulls pain, both emotional and physical. In other words, connection quite literally changes our biology. It makes us more resilient.
Isolation does the opposite. We ruminate. We lose perspective. Everything feels heavier. But when we connect, when we allow ourselves to be vulnerable and honest, we realise we’re not alone, that others have the same or different problems, and life becomes miraculously more manageable.
As an aside, I’ve long felt that the phrase “mental health” carries an unfortunate weight to it. Simon Sinek offers a much better alternative. He’s coined the term “mental fitness” which I rather like. It suggests something that we work on, maintain, and sometimes struggle with. Not something broken or something to be ashamed of. Not unhinged. Just out of shape!
One sobering final thought though. Chronic loneliness, she said, can be as harmful as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Feeling excluded even registers in the brain like a physical blow.
Food for thought.
To product
This week Joseph Joseph have a few sensible offers worth mentioning.
This week Joseph Joseph have a few sensible offers worth mentioning.
Nest 9 Plus Bowl Set, £60.00 now £42.00
Available in two colourways: a mixed colour bright and cheerful set, or a calmer blues set. Inside you’ll find:
• 2 bowls (the big one could comfortably bathe a small child),
• a colander,
• a sieve, and
• a set of 5 cup measures.
Both bowls have non-slip silicone bases. The smaller bowl has measurements on both sides (fl oz and ml), which is excellent in theory. In practice, on the darker colours they’re harder to read. My advice? If you’re over 40, choose the blues set. Much easier on the eyes.
Use code JOSEPH26 to bring the price down further to £35.00.
Cut & Carve Extra Large, £30.00 now £24.00
This is the biggest version of their Cut & Carve boards, in black. Gently sloped on both sides to catch meat juices, which can then be poured off neatly from either corner. One side smooth, the other spiked. A carving board one minute, general chopping board the next. Simple, clever, and properly thought through, as you might expect from this design house.
Priced this weekend at £19.50.
Elevate knife blocks
These knife blocks are cleverly designed so that the knives can be 'removed forwards' out of the block rather than having to be lifted out, making them suited to counter tops that sit under cupboards.
Additionally rather than a typical square footprint, they have a wider but shallower form, thus taking up less usable space on your counter top.
The blocks come in bamboo or black plastic.
The black plastic block contains a handy knife sharpener that seamlessly in the body of the block itself. The sharpener although quite not of the quality of a Horl or Minosharp, has two wheels (one coarse and one fine) and should do a reasonable job at maintaining an edge on these blades.
The bamboo blocks don't include a sharpener but arguably make up for it in their rather more attractive appearance.
With the bamboo block you can choose, plastic handled knives with a very distinctive 'Joseph Joseph' aesthetic (coloured handle tops and all) or more classic looking stainless steel handles instead.
OK that’s it for this week.
But just in case you’re interested I’ve already taken a leaf out of Julia’s book.
Had coffee with a friend who I hadn’t seen in a year, dreaded dance lesson (I do it as it pushes me way out of my comfort zone) arranged for this week, and going to the theatre with two dear friends in a fortnight’s time….beat that, if you will!
I hope you have a pleasant and peaceful weekend and your friendships flourish.
I hope you have a pleasant and peaceful weekend and your friendships flourish.
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