Lil Smith

My partner and I are in France for the day, in Lille and we have a possible business meeting in Bruges, but the U.K. has a quarantine rule for people coming back from Belgium, but not sure how it works for if we go to Belgium tomorrow, come back to France in the evening and go back to the U.K. the following day. Would we still need to self isolate? 

I am a cake designer and patisserie chef and have had my small market stall for a few years. I want to expand my business and get branded packaging and so far anywhere I’ve contacted charges insanely high prices for customised packaging. My design is just one colour, and pretty straight forward. I’ve even thought about using a sticker on normal white boxes for my products. But I don’t even know where to find decently priced bulk order cake boxes. I’ve been trying to look for a wholesaler similar to makro that only specialises in cake supplies where I can physically go to, but don’t know any around London. I would be grateful if someone could help point me to the right direction! 

Thanks again! 

I am a macaron chef, and I have an increasing number of clients asking for vegan macarons. Now I have mastered making the shells without egg whites, but I want to provide the same quality ganache for the inside as my ordinary macarons. Usually for the ganache, I boil cream with my chosen fruit/chocolate/flavour, depending on the filling, add corn flour to thicken and then add white chocolate (which I've substituted with vegan white chocolate) ...when my mixture cools down, I usually add around 50g of butter to give it a thick consistency plus added flavour.. what can I use which is affordable and practical, since I have to produce around 1000 macarons a week!

thanks vegan community!

I have a small business as a trader, selling macarons in various markets, and I was thinking of starting a postal service for deliveries...but I'm finding IT hard to find suitable packaging that looks good and is secure enough so the macarons won't break, because they're quite fragile! Does anyone know of a good wholesaler that do anything of this nature?

Many thanks,

So before anything, please don't preach me about this diet not being healthy or a crash diet or a fad etc! I am only 2-3 kilos above my ideal weight and I came across this diet which is loaded with fruit and veg which sounds way more appealing than for example a keto diet or a low fat / low carb diet...cause i get to eat as much fruit as I want! Although, this is purely experimental, since I have a curious nature and need to find out by myself if diets work or not...MY REAL question is...when do you actually get to see results? I have been on it for two days and I have only lost half a kilo...do you have to follow it religiously? I had a handful of walnuts yesterday for example

And two cups of coffee with no sugar but 100ml skimmed milk...does that stop the diet from working? Other than that I have stuck with the plan...(maybe I haven't drank 10 cups of water every day, but I have drank more than usual!) .. Also...the website says tht you can have as many fruit and veg as you want on day 3, but in every diet plan I've seen, there is always a limited amount of fruit that has been allocated to a person as a guideline (one cup of melon, or two apples and an orange for instance!) can you go over that limit? Can you have an extra bowl of raspberries and maybe a mango? What are the actual limitations? I do always try not to go over 1200-1250 calories daily anyway as I'm 5'2 and 57kg! Any help from personal experience would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

I am in the process of starting a chocolate/muffin/other baked goods business, and will be selling items of that nature at food markets and online. I have got a food hygiene certificate from the council and permission to sell my goods at boot fairs etc, but I was just wondering if there is a law regarding allergy advice labeling. Is it necessary? I was thinking of just ordering a stamp which has the two main allergy advice notices on there 'May Contains Traces of Nuts' and 'Contains Gluten' , but is it required by law to put anything else on there? It's tricky to do an ingredient list, because each item has different ingredients, and different fruits and flavours are used in the baking process of each product.

Any advice would be appreciated :)

I have been invited to audition at a reputable casting agency, and they want to tape me...the sides are tiny, I only say 2,3 words and with very minimal action. I was wondering if there are any useful tips for when they tape you at auditions? Any specific do's and don't's?

And is there anything specific that can boosts my chances at in front of camera acting?

I'm mainly a stage actor, so I'm used to monologue auditions and workshops!

I am 5'3, 55.5 kg, female and I want to go down to 53kg as my ideal summer weight. My body size ratio is Chest 32", waist 26", and Hips 33"...I want to lose an inch or two over all!

I have started running between 40-50 minutes a day, on 0% Gradient, but between 9-11 KMPH, on a treadmill every day. I do a jog/walk/jog/walk to keep my heart rate up. I managed to get down to 55kg after 4 days of running, but yesterday, even after a 700 Calorie work out (500 in the morning, 200 in the evening) and eating my net calorie of 1300, I went to the cinema and had a pack of pick n mix sweets, which probably took me over 2000 calories! Today I weighed myself and I'm 56.2 again...and I feel like all my week's effort has been in vain, and now I have to do another week to lose that half a kilo! Why is it so much easier for the scales to go up in numbers? I don't even know if I'm eating correctly, sticking to my BMR etc...I am not good with the macro (fat/carbs) counts...but I do eat healthy...I never ever eat fast food, I eat a lot of fruit and veg...I eat mostly grilled food...my only downside is that I love nuts...and sometimes the occasional sweet or chocolate (like last night!) ...

Will I lose weight if I carry on the diet/exercise regime I am on? Sticking to a net calorie of 1300...(Without ruining it with pick and mix of course!) , I would do weights, and I know it's a great way of building muscle and boosting metabolism, but the idea just doesn't appeal to me! Thanks!

I am 5'3, 55.5 kg, female and I want to go down to 53kg as my ideal summer weight. My body size ratio is Chest 32", waist 26", and Hips 33"...I want to lose an inch or two over all!

I have started running between 40-50 minutes a day, on 0% Gradient, but between 9-11 KMPH, on a treadmill every day. I do a jog/walk/jog/walk to keep my heart rate up. I managed to get down to 55kg after 4 days of running, but yesterday, even after a 700 Calorie work out (500 in the morning, 200 in the evening) and eating my net calorie of 1300, I went to the cinema and had a pack of pick n mix sweets, which probably took me over 2000 calories! Today I weighed myself and I'm 56.2 again...and I feel like all my week's effort has been in vain, and now I have to do another week to lose that half a kilo! Why is it so much easier for the scales to go up in numbers? I don't even know if I'm eating correctly, sticking to my BMR etc...I am not good with the macro (fat/carbs) counts...but I do eat healthy...I never ever eat fast food, I eat a lot of fruit and veg...I eat mostly grilled food...my only downside is that I love nuts...and sometimes the occasional sweet or chocolate (like last night!) ...

Will I lose weight if I carry on the diet/exercise regime I am on? Sticking to a net calorie of 1300...(Without ruining it with pick and mix of course!) , I would do weights, and I know it's a great way of building muscle and boosting metabolism, but the idea just doesn't appeal to me! Thanks!

What is my ideal calorie range to lose weight?

I am female, 5'3, 27 year old and weight 122lbs, and I want to lose 6lbs.

I use my fitness Pal to try and stick to a 1200 net calorie diet...I walk at least half an hour every day and I have recently started Bikram (hot) yoga, which is 90mins every morning...I know some sources say you burn 500/600 a session doing Bikram, but I just enter 250 for it in MFP... Today for example I burned 88Calories from walking and 277 from Bikram...and I consumed roughly 1750 calories...making my net calorie intake 1395...is that too much or too little if I want to lose weight? Do I only need to be concerned with calories or do I have to pay attention to the fat/carb content as well? I always end up having a high carb diet from eating too many fruits! I have no idea what's right and what's wrong anymore with so many different theories online!

I am female, 5'3, 27 year old and weight 122lbs, and I want to lose 6lbs.

I use my fitness Pal to try and stick to a 1200 net calorie diet...I walk at least half an hour every day and I have recently started Bikram (hot) yoga, which is 90mins every morning...I know some sources say you burn 500/600 a session doing Bikram, but I just enter 250 for it in MFP... Today for example I burned 88Calories from walking and 277 from Bikram...and I consumed roughly 1750 calories...making my net calorie intake 1395...is that too much or too little if I want to lose weight? Do I only need to be concerned with calories or do I have to pay attention to the fat/carb content as well? I always end up having a high carb diet from eating too many fruits! I have no idea what's right and what's wrong anymore with so many different theories online!

Am I doing it wrong? I've started doing hula hoops (weighted), I used to be really good at it as a child and I still haven't lost the skill...I can go for an hour without dropping it once, and I'm doing a moderate work out...but I'm not getting tired through out that hour session...my stomach muscles feel hot afterwards, but I don't sweat or go out of breath! Does this mean it's an ineffective work out? Or does even this level of exercise with hula hoops make a difference?

I am a 27 year old female, 5'3...I have always been around 52-53kg my whole adult life, but in December I had a very stressful time when my dog got severely ill and my boyfriend broke up with me in the middle of that dilemma, and I went through a really stressful time and as a result lost Half a stone in about two weeks and started constantly spotting for a month...when I pulled myself together again, I went off the pill in January...but since then, I have had no period (I am not pregnant I've done 3 tests!) and my weight is going up at an alarming rate! I've darted up to 55kg from 51kg in about a month, I can see it on my body too, and my boobs have got bigger and my hips...not only I don't eat as much (or as care free) as I did pre December, I've been more careful with what I eat, I exercise more, and live healthier...but my weight keeps going up! I've booked an appointment with my GP next week but I'm putting a kilo on every week! This has never happened to me! Is this normal? I'm scared I'll be another 2,3 kilos bigger by next week!!!

My ex, who claimed I was the love of his life and whom I left a 6 year relationship for last year, because I was fooled by his words, left me in December, because despite me telling him I would always stay friends with my ex of 6 years, he used that as an excuse to break up with me, because we went through 2 weeks of arguments, when my dog of 15 years was severely ill and dying and for a small period of time he didn't come first...and I wasn't in a good state of mind...

When he so abruptly broke up with me right before Christmas, I started researching personality disorders and his behaviour matched perfectly with that of a Narcissist...and not so surprisingly, he came back to my life after three months, emailing me and saying I will always have a special place in his heart and that he was hurt and didn't know why we didn't work!(even though he was the one who dumped me, despite me drowning in a sea of self blame and apology, far more than my fair share, to save us!)

So I wrote him a letter explaining how he only wanted smooth sailing, and couldn't deal with a mild rough patch, and he wrote an email back blaming me even harder and more brutal than before, calling me abusive!!then I tried explaining to him how this wasn't true, providing him with facts and memories that contradicted his silly excuses, and afterwards, he seems to have stopped his mind games finally..can a narcissists come back to your life but his ego stop him from accepting any responsibility still?

I am a 27 year old female, 5'3...I have always been around 52-53kg my whole adult life, but in December I had a very stressful time when my dog got severely ill and my boyfriend broke up with me in the middle of that dilemma, and I went through a really stressful time and as a result lost Half a stone in about two weeks and started constantly spotting for a month...when I pulled myself together again, I went off the pill in January...but since then, I have had no period (I am not pregnant I've done 3 tests!) and my weight is going up at an alarming rate! I've darted up to 55kg from 51kg in about a month, I can see it on my body too, and my boobs have got bigger and my hips...not only I don't eat as much (or as care free) as I did pre December, I've been more careful with what I eat, I exercise more, and live healthier...but my weight keeps going up! I've booked an appointment with my GP next week but I'm putting a kilo on every week! This has never happened to me! Is this normal? I'm scared I'll be another 2,3 kilos bigger by next week!!!

My ex, who claimed I was the love of his life and whom I left a 6 year relationship for last year, because I was fooled by his words, left me in December, because despite me telling him I would always stay friends with my ex of 6 years, he used that as an excuse to break up with me, because we went through 2 weeks of arguments, when my dog of 15 years was severely ill and dying and for a small period of time he didn't come first...and I wasn't in a good state of mind...

When he so abruptly broke up with me right before Christmas, I started researching personality disorders and his behaviour matched perfectly with that of a Narcissist...and not so surprisingly, he came back to my life after three months, emailing me and saying I will always have a special place in his heart and that he was hurt and didn't know why we didn't work!(even though he was the one who dumped me, despite me drowning in a sea of self blame and apology, far more than my fair share, to save us!)

So I wrote him a letter explaining how he only wanted smooth sailing, and couldn't deal with a mild rough patch, and he wrote an email back blaming me even harder and more brutal than before, calling me abusive!!then I tried explaining to him how this wasn't true, providing him with facts and memories that contradicted his silly excuses, and afterwards, he seems to have stopped his mind games finally..can a narcissists come back to your life but his ego stop him from accepting any responsibility still?