🌍 Balance and go ⚖️

+ electric classic car conversions and clever things to do with all your leftovers

Jul 27, 2025

Welcome to BRiMM, the collective, journal and planet-positive shop that’s here to help you live a lower-impact life, without life feeling less

We’ve got a jam-packed newsletter for you this week, but before we get into that:

Thanks to everyone who came to our film screening of Common Ground and panel talk on Wednesday. It was great to meet some of you in person! Details for our next event are coming very soon.
Today is the last chance to take our survey and give us some vital BRiMM input. We want to hear from you! More on that below.
Not a BRiMM member yet? Join now and you’ll be the first to hear about future get-togethers, read our Journal and shop our products.

And subscribe to this newsletter for free if you haven’t already, to receive new posts, support our work and hear about all the exciting stuff before anyone else.

This week’s theme is… balance 🧘

We’re about to head into August, a month when many of us start switching off, even if that’s just a little bit. When we take some time off work, school and our usual routines, it gives us the space and opportunity to connect to people and places in ways we can’t when we’re rushing around dealing with the minutia of everyday life. Even if you’re still working – because unlike much of France and Italy, we don’t tend to take the whole month off – you might find that many of your colleagues are away, giving you the luxury of a little more brain space than usual. Nice.

As we collectively embark on the great August reset it got us thinking: can we achieve and continue that same sense of clarity when we head back into our routines in September? And can having a better work-life balance also benefit the planet?

There’s no doubt that COVID was a catalyst for us to rethink the way we work. Or, for that matter, don’t work. As Zoe Williams wrote in the Guardian in 2021:

Maybe anyone with a sense of purpose and direction can work from their bedroom, perched on an ironing board, and you only need IRL colleagues if you’re aimless and chaotic. But that conversation is actually standing in for (and masking) a more profound one about work itself. “Hustle culture” – working all the time, finding your fulfilment and identity there, pledging yourself to your employer like a serf, having a side-hustle to plug any gaps, configuring yourself as an instrument of productivity – has taken quite a hit over the past 18 months.

Lockdown, coupled with the fact that we realised it can be more productive, is why WFH culture caught on with such vigour. It tapped into the mindset that nothing is more valuable than our spare time, whether we use it to take care of our wellness or simply to make our everyday lives more efficient. Here at BRiMM, we certainly appreciate the opportunity to get a few washes drying on the line during the time we might otherwise be commuting, rather than having to chuck everything in the tumble drier. Perhaps you’re able to use that extra hour to do a yoga class and connect with your local community, bringing a sense of zen to your working day. You might simply do a store cupboard audit and properly plan some healthy dinners for the week, instead of wasting what’s on the turn in the fridge (we’ll cover clever leftovers later). In just a few days you could lower energy use and prevent food waste, all while keeping your mind and body in check. It only takes the smallest things to tip us back into balance, after all.

Of course, not everyone is able to work from home, and studies have shown that a shorter working week could be the way forward, a model that is being spearheaded by the organisation 4 Day Week Global. Participating countries, including Denmark, Iceland, The Netherlands and Australia just so happen to rank very high on the Happiness Index. Coincidence? It’s catching on in the UK: a council in South Cambridgeshire voted this week to move permanently to a four-day week, citing an independent report that showed 21 out of 24 services had improved since the new way of working was trialled. Just think of all the life balancing things you could do with an extra day. Maybe you’d get into saunas and cold plunges (see Slomo’s pop-ups and London’s Sauna and Plunge for details), or scratch that lifelong birdwatching itch by joining a club. You could take up a slow hobby like this week’s playlist curator Georgie Carter, whose spare-time sewing skills won her a place on a certain well-known UK television show.

However you work and play, we recognise that balance is also the key to successfully living a more positive life. We can’t all get everything right, right away, because until the systems we all have to use are also in balance, it’s almost impossible to live better, perfectly. It’s another area where we should give ourselves a break. We’re striving to make it all easier for you though, with the BRiMM Journal. Whether it’s on the subject of food, beauty, travel and beyond, we’re here to help you rebalance your life habits to be more in tune with the Earth and nature. We want to equip you with everything you need to navigate life with a lower impact, and enjoy yourself while you’re at it.

Team up, tune in and let’s turn the tide,

BRiMM x

BRiMM JOURNAL: NEW IN

We’ve got some great new reads over on the BRiMM Journal this week. First up, we’ve put together a list of the ultimate joy-inducing podcasts, as recommended by our collective.

We’re also excited to have our first feature from motoring journalist Jason Barlow, the longest-standing editor-at-large of BBC Top Gear magazine and a former presenter of the TV show, as well as a GQ contributing editor of more than 25 years. He’s been delving into the world of electric classic car conversions and asking, is it correct to remove the combustion engine in favour of an electric powertrain?

Everything from the Rolls-Royce Corniche to the Jaguar E-type and even the DeLorean DMC-12 is thoroughly explored, and here’s a clue about the outcome:

As Charles Rolls himself noted, ‘the electric car is perfectly noiseless and clean. There is no smell or vibration, and they should become very useful when fixed charging stations can be arranged.’ That was in April 1900, so we can assume he would have approved.

→ FIND OUT MORE

Take our survey, WIN a Reset Box!

Today is your last chance to take our survey. We want you to help us make BRiMM the best it can be, because we’re a community and everyone’s voice matters. We believe we can make a real difference. But we’ll only be successful in this if it works for you.

This quick survey will help us understand what’s resonating, what’s missing and how we can make BRiMM the best version of itself. It takes less than 5 minutes to complete, so it’s really easy. The best bit? As a big thank you, you’ll be entered into a draw to win a Reset Box of your choice worth up to £193.

→ TAKE THE SURVEY

Helen Kirkum photographed by Francis Augusto

The BRiMM Life Questionnaire: Helen Kirkum
We’re delighted to be catching up with the incredibly clever Helen Kirkum this week. Creative director Helen is a trailblazer when it comes to footwear innovation, rescuing old (and odd!) trainers from landfill and transforming them into covetable sneakers. She’s also a big part of the BRiMM collective, leading our community and events.

The independent coffee shop that makes you happy
”A pal took me to Found Hope, in Hither Green: it was so cute and the fresh sandwiches were incredible.”

Causes you give to every month
”Recently my charitable donations are focused on aid to Palestine.”

Favourite planet-positive products and why
”Apart from my HK crossbody bag in stone, I also love my Label Hjem trousers made from upcycled shirts. The coolest thing I always think about wearing meticulously crafted upcycled garms is that they never fail to start a conversation. I love the side-eye on the tube when people try to figure out what your trousers are made from – it provokes a deeper thought about process and manufacture.“

Quote to live by and who said it
”‘You can only do what you think is right at the time’, from my beloved Nana Iris.”

Do you have a message you’d love to share with the collective?
”The world is extremely tough and overwhelming right now, be kind to yourself and listen to nana.”

The full interview with Helen will be live on our Journal soon – in the meantime check out our latest full Q&A, with model and sustainability advocate Isabella Charlotta Poppius

FROM THE COLLECTIVE

Becky is planning to escape to this secret lavender garden, an hour outside London. There are only limited slots available (which is what makes it so special!) so be sure to book in advance

Hannah is borderline obsessed with this performance artist on Instagram who poses as street rubbish to highlight the problem of litter

Christabel has been tempted to hop on a train to the south coast because Nick Cave donated 2,000 of his own books to Oxfam in Hove earlier this week

We love to hear what our collective is finding. Share your links with us in our Substack chat or send us an email

THIS WEEK’S LINK RECCOS

LOVE YOUR LEFTOVERS
Food writer Elly Curshen – AKA Elly Pear – is an inspiration to follow on Instagram, particularly when it comes to tackling food waste. As well as delicious vegetarian recipes and the answers to your top culinary questions (can you freeze hummus?), her Rollover Leftovers series will give you ideas for all the nearly-off bits in the fridge, including even those chip shop chips you can never finish.
→ GET COOKING

SLOW IT DOWN
In this new book, Slow Down Or Die: The Economics of Degrowth, French economist Timothée Parrique challenges the notion that endless economic growth is the answer to most of society’s problems. In fact, our obsession with it is actually speeding up social and ecological collapse. Instead, how can we measure our economies by how well we provide for each other in a just, equitable and planet-positive society? Pick up a copy to find out.
→ BUY THE BOOK

WASTE NOT: WANT
We all know that second-hand fashion is booming, but what to do with your clothes and accessories that are too worn-out or stained to be resold or repaired? Loom app connects you with one of over 100 designers who can create something new using materials from your unused wardrobe. Hannah from the team recently used them to turn an old suede dress into a highly useful tote bag.
→ TRANSFORM SOMETHING

A SUMMER CURRY

We’re huge fans of Meera Sodha, the food writer whose books are well-thumbed and sauce-spattered in our kitchens. This spinach and paneer dish is a delightful balance of warm spices, fresh tomatoes and spinach (we’ve also successfully used a glut of rainbow chard we happened to have in the garden). Swap the paneer for tofu if you want to make it vegan.

→ MAKE ME

MUSIC FOR ALL MOODS

What could be a more balanced career than DJing at festivals while launching your own upcycled fashion line? Georgie has a set at next weekend’s Camp Bestival and has just started selling her wares via her Instagram Keep Collective. She has curated this playlist for us, which will take you seamlessly from chill to thrill.

The carbon footprint of an email depends what device you use to open it, but sending you this one used about 3.5g of carbon.

You made it to the bottom! Congratulations, now have a look at our new website and send us feedback to share what you think.

If you liked the above, do kindly leave a ❤️ . It will help circulate it more widely. You could even share it with anyone you think might like it. Thank you!

Share The Planet Positive edit