Easy like a Sunday evening

It's one of those Sundays. You know the kind I mean, the kind where it rains all day and then by about 6pm summer decides to make an appearance. Well hence the rain, not much has been on the agenda for today. I reaffirmed my love for James Cameron's Avatar (amazing film, if you haven't watched it yet, you're missing out) and celebrated the return of the sunshine with a bit of Luther Vandross; a song that was kindly planted into my head at the beginning of the weekend by one of my lovely vino drinking friends. I reminisced about the past year by flicking through the hundreds of photos that are now housed on my Facebook profile and decided which ones to print, all ready for moving into my new house in September. My recent adventures include London Fashion Weekend and Paris. How apt that today I am wearing my 'I love Paris' tee (madatory purchase). Oh and don't forget the infamous Adventure Week. See earlier posts.
I also discovered Kevin Bridges, a newcomer Glaswegian comedian. I see big things happening for this 23 year old. Have a look for him on YouTube if you fancy a giggle.


Avatar:




Luther Vandross, Never too much:

Back to the Forties

I was looking back at old photos yesterday and my hair has seen its fair share of changes in the last year. From long to mid-length to  pixie crop, to assymetrical, sweeping fringes dyed brown and back to chesnut and now back again to the old faithful bob. Just look at Silver from 90210 and you'll understand my aim.  

For SS10, the Alexander Wang side plait would be just lovely, but a simple ponytail is a struggle for my wee short hair cut. But fear not, I have been experimenting. Today my inspiration came from the forties, a decade which stylistically is perfect. Prim and proper, elegant, preened to perfection and a time when all women screamed 'siren'.  So I opted for victory rolls (My sister said it looked more 80s but it was definitely 40s!). More simple than they look, I just back-combed the front sections of my hair and rolled them back, bobby pins and hairspray completed the look.

A sweep of burgundy lippy and I was ready for the off. Didn't quite find my navy officer to dance the night away with though, better luck next time.

Here is screen icon Rita Hayworth fashioning the look.

SATC: London premiere

It is finally here. Out in cinemas nationally tomorrow, Sex and the City 2 has got any savvy fashionista slash liberated modern woman on tenterhooks.

After seeing the fabulous red carpet outfits for the New York premiere earlier this week, the show's four female stars were sure to not disappoint.

And they lived up to expectations. All four looked dazzling, each opting for very different looks, all by different designers.

Kim Cattral went old school Hollywood glamour with waved locks and red lippy while Kristen Davis and Cynthia Nixon wore simple classics which suited their figures and colourings beautifully.

But, as always, SJP aka Carrie Bradshaw, stole the show. Well you couldn't miss her if you tried. She outdid her hat worn at the SATC1 premiere and opted for a towering black headpiece (not keen). While attention was drawn to the Philip Treacy creation, her dress by the late Alexander 'Lee' McQueen was equally stunning. She wore a black armband, said to be a tribute to the late designer.

So the outfits have been and gone and the anticipation for the film is reaching its climax. Let's hope it doesn't disappoint. I won't be going to the lengths of these fans though. I think I'll just book tickets and pop along to the Imax.

Emma Watson sad at Harry Potter coming to an end

Harry Potter actress, Burberry model, Brown University student and fashion's front row attendee, Emma Watson wowed once again at the National Movie Awards last night.

The 20 year old wore a cute little tweed playsuit from Karl Lagerfel SS10 collection.

Teamed with bow-fronted Christian Louboutins she looked just too cute, but still very fashion forward.

Emma said the she was very sad that the filming for the Harry Potter films iscoming to an end in two weeks after nearly a decade of playing the role of bossy witch Hermione Granger. "It feels like someone is dying," she said.

Just browsing

Asos.com is like a tube of pringles. Once you pop you can't stop. And foolishly I fell for it. I refrained from purchasing though. I'm being good. But how lovely is this dress. Summer hols ahoy!

And it's only a tenner!

Home sweet home (with good company)

I always think that you have fun not by where you go but by who you go with. Of course a good destination is always a plus but being with your friends is sure to bring a smile to your face.

So after a massive two week break (shocking for a student) from a night on the tiles, my lovely friend Laura and I painted the town red (cliche totally intentional).

The two of us spent the whole night chatting, sipping student priced cocktails and dancing until our feet couldn't take any more. Seriously, I am feeling the pain today. In my feet that is. I was sensible and ended the night on water.

We ventured to the diamond strip in Newcastle, ending up in Madame Koo's. Nice.

The night lived up to my new mantra; it't not where you go, it's who you go with. Good company is good crack. Simple.

And if you're interested, I wore this:

(with a super sized wicker clutch)

SATC: New York Premiere

Just look at these lovely ladies.

My solution

After much deliberation and wardrobe changes, I decided the answer to my smart/casual question was to keep things nice and simple throwing in one of this season's hottest trends; the denim jacket.

I wore these:

Alexa has landed

If only Mulberry would make us all limited edition bags christened with our very own name.

The new Alexa bag by Mulberry is set to be this seasons biggest trend hit. Inspired by Brit-girl Alexa Chung, the new gold Mulberry costs £795 and is available at Selfridges. At that price you would have to REALLY love it, but who wouldn't?

This is not the first celeb inspired bag to become a major hit however. The Birkin bag inspired by Jane Birkin is still today one of the most sought after arm candies.

What to wear?

It's the old smart but casual dilemma. Don't you hate it when you ask for a dress code, the answer being 'smart but casual'. What does that mean?

So tomorrow I have a job interview (woop!) at a bar. That's the dilemma inducing part, it is for a bar job.

Obviously, when attending an interview of any sorts you want to dress smart but one doesn't want to over do it.

I'm thinking black skinnies. That's as far as I have got so far.

While I ponder and clamber through the piles of clothes that are now scattered across my bedroon post-outfit search. Here is an image from Google, the result of a smart but casual search. This time Google didn't really assist.

For more pondering, take a look at Hilary Alexander's take on the smart but casual phenomenon. Click here.

SATC2 slammed by critic

The premiere may still be days away (28th May if you didn't already know) but Sex and the City 2 is already causing some controversy.

Big-time reviewer, the Hollywood Reporter said that the film conjures up a 'scathing portrayal of Muslim society'.

In the sequel to the first smash hit movie based on the leading TV series, Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda leave New York and head to Abu Dhabi where their adventures and sex fuelled stories are the forefront of the action. The Hollywood Reporter deemed such scenes as innapropriate and 'anti-Muslim.

Officials in the United Arab Emirates had already denied the production team permission to film within the city – as did Dubai - and instead the Abu Dhabi scenes were recreated in Morocco, according to the Daily Mail today.


Writer and director Michael Patrick King admitted: 'Abu Dhabi was like: ‘You know, the UAE is not really ready to have four sexually liberated American girls filmed here’.’

Kim Cattral (Samantha) has said that the Muslim country embraced the idea of four liberal woman. She said: "You wouldn't think they would but they did."

Abu Dhabi is currently consedering whether to ban the film.

Despite the rising controversy and problems that the film could face in Muslim countries, the anticipated sequel is sure to be a box office hit in the UK.

The film premieres in London's Leicester Square on Thursday.

SATC: Anti-Muslim?

Keeping me going

My weekend started with this:

...and ended with this:

Lovely.

Anyone else watch An Audience with Michael Buble on ITV1 last night? Just. Brilliant.

A Gaga gallery

My self professed love of Lady Gaga got me thinking. After strorming onto the music scene with 'Just Dance' two years ago she has made quite the impact. I am not just talking about an impact on the music industry (you've got to love the bring back of groove disco pop), but I am more focused on her unmissable wardrobe choices.

Designers such as the late Alexander McQueen and Armani have jumped at the chance to dress the eclectic New Yorker and it seems that she is never shy to rise up to the couture challenge.

Memorable looks include gimp-style masks, lace masks dripping with fake blood, foot high hair pieces shaped like lightning, taped nipples under a sheer top and of course she is never one to shy away from a leotard. At the 2009 VMAs Gaga showcased three eccentric outfits including the aforementioned blood ensemble and what seemed to be a white birds nest surrounding her face.

Most recently, Gaga has turned to recyclable fashion, using coca cola cans as hair rollers and sunglasses made from smoking cigarettess. Each to theirs own.

Singer song-writer Gaga (real name: Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta) has been playing the piano since age four and began writing in her teens. The 24 year old is today one of the music industry's most treasure stars, thrashing both US and UK charts.

Her album 'The Fame Monster' is a permanent resident on my iTunes.

To date she has already won two Grammy awards and more than a handful of other accolades.

Gaga's journey to fame has excelled at a glorious pace and she is still going strong. Her music is a breath of fresh air and her talent is undeniable but equally as impressive are her wild but wonderful outifts. Here are some of her creations (complete with a substantial collenction of wigs), take a look and judge them for yourself.

 

 

Can't get enough

of David Guetta. What a hero.

Aside from winning the award at the WMAs for the World's best DJ, his remix of the Black Eyed Peas' I got a feeling just NEVER gets old.

So just for you, here it is:




Party anyone?

Music's gone Gaga

My love for Lady Gaga can only expand. You either love to hate her or hate to love her. As cliche as it is, I love to love her.

She is different, very talented, doesn't take any crap from anybody and of course she is totally nuts.

She snapped up more than a handful of awards at the World Music Awards this week and rightly so.

World Music Awards 2010 winners:


World's Best Single: Lady GaGa - Poker Face

World's Best Album: Lady GaGa - The Fame

World's Best Pop/Rock Artist: Lady GaGa

World's Best New Artist: Lady GaGa

Best-selling US Artist: Lady GaGa

 
Impressed? I am.
 
Okay so she didn't make it to Monaco to pick up her five gongs, but still. I'm sure if she was there, she wouldn't have gone un-noticed.
 

See the stylist

And the worst dressed of the evening goes to Bronagh Waugh. Sorry love.

Best of the soap crop

It was the soap star's time to shine on the red carpet last night and here are some of the best dressed of the evening.

Gemma Merna in a floor length hot pink gown with matching lips.

Katherine Kelly went for a simple burgundy bandaeu dress. Love the blonde bob.

Sexiest female, Michelle Keegan was bang on trend in nude.

Hollyoaks' Nathalie Emmanuel showed off her fab curves in this gold gown.

Sammy Winward showed us simple is best in this gorgeous red dress. Nude accessories completed the look.

Tiana Benjamin in assymetrical tangerine.Gorge.

One of the best looks of the night, Hollyoaks Zoe Lister actress tipped the top of the fashion stakes in monocrome assymetrical frock with lovely on trend pastel pink peep toes.

The awards saw special guest appearances from Aussies Gabriella Cilmi and Neighbours' Toadfish, Paul O'Grady, Gavin and Stacey's Joanna Page and Sally Lindsay.

The City never looked so hot

Two years since the absolutely fabulous Sex and the City the movie 1, the girls are back.

If the excitement of the sequel isn't enough, check out the outfits in the trailer alone. Expectations are set high and they are sure to be fulfilled.

Date in diary: 28th May

The British Soap Awards 2010

Move over the Oscars, the Bristish Soap Awards are here.

The 2010 ceremony hosted by Philip Schofield will celebrate the talent from Britain's soaps.

The evening's most prestigios award for soap of the year, which Eastenders has for years dominated will also be announced (Come on Corrie!).

But a firm eye on the evening's dresses will of course be held.

Watch this space.

Destination Five: Re-living the childhood

Whoever said fun and games were just for the kids were wrong. What better way to end a week of adventures by joining them and splashing around at Sandcastles Indoor Water Park, Blackpool.

While I was admittedly excited to take to the slides, I did also have some doubts about how exciting the park would actually be. Wet and Wild in South Shields, Newcastle is a lot to live up to and I haven't been there since God knows when- so for a 20 year old uni student, Sandcastles had a job to entertain.

And entertain it did. After donning my new H! by Henry Holland (see Destination Four entry) swim suit, I took to the slides, the wave pool, the world's longest water slide rollercoaster (apparantly) and finally the relaxing steam room and sauna. Not bad for a day in Blackpool.

So the fun and games previously dedicated to the under 16s were for the day mine. I think I did the student body proud by tackling the most 'daring and dangerous' rides at Sandcastles. Daring and dangerous. Check.

Destination Four: Planning for summer essentials

The light nights and sunny afternoons are finally here meaning one thing and one thing only. It's time to start thinking about that all important holiday wardrobe. Since we are not blessed with Amazonian temperatures on our lovely island that is the UK, holidays abroad are what we look forward to. And it is at this time of year that the yearning to lie on a beach sipping cocktails and soaking up the rays really kicks in.

So what better way to start the holiday fever than to purchase beach wear. Okay, so some of us may still be fighting that Christmas bulge, but with new season swimwear styles making their appearance, it's hard not to think about what you will be strutting around in on the sands.

Adventures of the week temporarily aside, I braved the Debenhams Mega Day sale in search of the perfect beach outfit for this summer. And what a success it was.

H! by Henry Holland swimwear range is just lovely. Girly prints and kitsch 40s style frills make for a collection that is pretty, flattering and oh so desirable. The price tag (even without the discount) is one that even my purse-strings can handle.

Twenty percent off and irresistible tendencies meant me leaving the store with both a bikini and a swimsuit (something I haven't worn since about the age of three).

Henry Holland, you did me proud. Sunny afternoons in a British park? Nah, bring on the beach.

A little taster

Despite leaving a lot to be desired, The Last Song spurred a YouTube frenzy. Here is the OST for the film, which will promptly be added to my iTunes.

Stick to singing, Miley!

Destination Three: Orange Wednesdays are a must

Give me a cheesy rom com chick flick any day and I’ll be a happy bunny. But there are a few conditions; the acting has to be good, the script also, there must be a happily ever after and a tear shed somewhere is always a plus. But Miley Cyrus in The Last Song may have skipped a few of these steps.


The Last Song sees stroppy, but talented teenager Ronnie (Cyrus) going to stay with her father in Georgia for the summer where she meets Will, the wealthy, volley ball playing beach hunk. Predictability takes over and the plot unfolds into summer love affair in no time. Ronnie lets go and finds her true self, reigniting her relationship with both her family and Will.

Granted, there was a happily ever after and it is a definite tear-jerker, but Miley may consider sticking to singing rather than acting. The first twenty minutes of the typical teen rom com were awkward to watch and once settled into the plot, the acting doesn’t really get much better. More so you get used to the awkwardness rather than actual improvements by the cast. The script didn’t help either. Woodenly acted one-liners and cheesy declarations of love combined with cheesy backing music make for one and a half hours of cringe.

The Hannah Montana star did shine musically by playing the piano and singing for the movie’s soundtrack. No doubt about it, the girl has talent, but the role in this particular film shed a more amateur light onto her. She seemed to lack the art of different expressions for different emotions, making her look uncomfortable in her own character’s skin for the cathartic parts of the film.

Despite the poor script and weak and unconvincing acting for parts of the film, the plot (although utterly predictable) does put a smile on your face. The easy to watch nature of the film makes for a nice getaway with the girls and allows you to go all gushy inside.

A cheesy rom com chick flick is exactly what The Last Song is. The recipe for chick flick success is not matched due to the lack of acting skills and a poorly devised script, but for a tear and the odd laugh it ticks all the right boxes.

2/5

Destination Two: Wigan

So what does the great North West have to offer? I have ticked off Liverpool, Manchester, Preston, Blackpool and other small towns in the region but Wigan was all new.

A short journey away and the search for one of Wigan's main attractions, Wigan Pier was on the top of the agenda.

The town was pretty eerie, it was really quiet and apart from kids coming out of school and a few more people there wasn't really anyone about. However, a nice mooch around the town centre offered pleasantries that I didn't really expect. I think I expected a run down, industrial style town, but it was nice, clean and quite atmospheric (despite the lack of human life of course).

After being mis-directed by tourism signs to the Pier, we eventually stumbled across what we assumed was the attraction. Again not what I expected. I wouldn't even call it a pier really. More like a river embankment, but lets not split hairs.

A soft drink next to the river / canal later, the sights of Wigan had for that day been exhausted and dinner time at home called.

A short-lived expedition admittedly, but a one that checked another North Western town off my list. It's always nice to see somewhere new after all.

Destination One: The Lake District

When I woke up and looked outside, the Great British summer was smiling right back at me. Yes, it was raining. Typical.

But have no fear, we had a plan and we would stick to it. First stop on our week of adventures was Windermere in the Lake District.

So dressed for the weather we headed out. When I say dressed for the weather, my wardrobe doesn't really accommodate for hiking conditions, so I donned levis, a hoodie and a leather jacket; warm and moderately sensible. I give myself credit for my comfy and practical black boots though.

But when we arrived at our Cumbrian destination, coincidentally the wettest place in Britain, it was dry and pleasant. I wouldn't go as far as to say that it was summery, but it was nice enough.

A walk around the lovely countryside town of Windermere and an adventure around the lake where the wildlife is so tame that it literally sits on the pavement and lunch in a small and quaint cafe right next to the lake- lovely.

We must have walked around four miles taking in the sites and sampling local delicacies including afternoon tea with scones, nougat and hand-made flavoured marzipan.

We even had a look around the Beatrix Potter museum, where childhood memories were relived and the story of Peter Rabbit was happily reminisced upon.

The Lake District is lovely. Nice for a walk, lunch and a general mooch. Be prepapred for a bit of a walk though. British holiday destinations aren't complete without the hike from one sight to another and this one is no exception.

Adventure week, i think so!

University is over for another year (gasp!) and there is cause for some low bugdet celebration.

Although my summer plans for 2010 are, well, planned, there is a bit of waiting around to do before we get to those festivities. Cue boredom.

So, what better way to get out and about than to explore the Great British destinations. When I say Great British, I am kinda refined to the North West, but fret not, adventures can be had and when armed with some super girlies, a laugh a minute is certainly on the cards.

The self-named Adventure Week has commenced and there is plenty of fun to be had.

I'll keep you posted.

Destination number 1: The Lake District, Cumbria

Can we all be this good on the job?

Go to ElleUK online fashion pages and see what the ELLE team wears to work.

A long shot from black trousers and a blouse, I love it.

See what they are wearing at http://blogs.elleuk.com/author/wearstowork/

SamCam, what happened?

Ok, so she is possibly the next lady to move into Number 10 and in all usual manners she appears dressed elegantly and carrying a classy persona.

But what happened when Samantha Cameron chose her outfit for the all important Election Night?

The loosely fitting, lilac dress looked awful (if I am brutally honest).

She may be five months pregnant, but this dress did nothing for her figure at all. Gathered around the boobs, high neckline, and then falling to a slight tulip shape at the bottom. Not good.

Kudos for the shoes though.

A little something

to brighten your sunday afternoon.

I love this image. And so will you.

Come on, come out to play

With Spring/Summer trends hitting the high street quicker than you can say summer holidays, its hard to decide what to spend your pennies on. Granted, if we could, we would take it all, but as my mammy says: "money doesn't grow on trees."

This season, I am loving the playsuit. Making its come-back from season's past the 40s inspired playsuit is just too cute. A playsuit-wearing lady may run into some difficulties when nature calls, but this is a small price to pay.

Seen on the catwalk at SS10 shows, the high street has offered some lovely sensibly-priced versions of the trend. And if your money tree really is looking rather bear, faithful Primark has some canny options too.

Here are some of the best I have found:

topshop: £35

topshop: £38

<3 Mango: £42.90

new look: £20

                          topshop: £75 (great for evening)

river island: £29.99

Whether rain or shine, throw on a leather jacket when the sun isn't shining, and come out to play.

Will.i.am: "The most beautiful woman in the world"

Love this pair.

Cheryl Cole (slash Tweedy?) has kicked off her arena solo tour supporting the Black Eyed Peas.

BEP lead man Will.i.am is the brains behind Cheryl's debut solo album and it is rumoured that the pair will be working on her second together.

The pair met each other when Cheryl performed for him on his solo single 'Heartbreaker'.