Posted by admin on Apr 1, 2011 in
beauty,
books,
Celebrity,
lists,
news,
random The Royal Wedding is almost upon us and Kate Middleton will soon be exchanging her surname for ‘Windsor’ or Mr and Mrs Prince William. Whether you’re a staunch royalist or find the whole things a waste of time, there’s one thing you won’t be able to avoid. Well, two things actually if you count people’s opinions on the subject.
The second unavoidable occurrence of this wedding is the HUGE amount of tat that will be sold in conjunction, with everyone eager to make sure they have got their eBay fill worth of products. Coaster, tea towels, all the usual tat will be rolled out, but amongst those spectacularly undesirable pieces of merchandise (Kate and William coaster anyone?) is the truly overwhelming in terms of relevance to the subject matter. You can’t blame companies for wanting to get some of the moolah that will be floating around, but these Royal Wedding tie ins are truly embarrassing.
Kate the Royal Wedding Fairy
This is a book about a fairy called Kate, who is a royal wedding fairy was created by Daisy Meadows. It’s the latest in the line of Fairy books she has written, but though the words ‘sell out;’ are never mentioned, this particular fairy isn’t quite the same as ‘Emma the Easter fairy’ or her ‘Florence the Friendship fairy’ books.
The story descriptions is as follows: ‘Kate the Royal Wedding Fairy makes sure that all weddings are happy and magical! But when mean Jack Frost steals the True Love Crown, the Fairyland royal wedding is sure to be a disaster. Can Kirsty and Rachel find the crown so the royal couple will live happily ever after…? I wonder what the name of the Royal Prince is?
Kiss Me Kate Beer
Castle Rock Brewery have created a limited edition Royal Wedding beer called ‘Kiss me Kate. I actually find this idea rather cute, as we Brits do love our booze, I just find the pink label and hearts decorating it a little sickly. It will be available on draught and from Morrisons stores during April. The head brewer says, ‘Kiss Me Kate will be elegant, tasteful and British to the core. It’ll be brewed to 5%, pale in colour and, we’re sure it’ll be the ideal way to toast the couple’s future happiness’. Not that Ms Middleton would ever drink beer though, I reckon she’s a white wine spritzer kind of girl. Find out more from Castle Rock Brewery here. Read more…
Tags: Crown Jewels condoms, Kate Middleton, Lydia Leith, Prince William, Royal Wedding, Royal Wedding novelty souvenir, Royal Wedding souvenir
Posted by admin on Mar 30, 2011 in
beauty,
Television 
The premise of Bridalplasty is in the name, and I can’t decide whether I’m appalled or amazed by this blatant over marketing of such a preposterous but authentically real concept. Seriously, you have to give some kudos to the creators of this show, if only for the sheer balls it must have taken to successfully pitch and then bring this idea to fruition, as I imagine that the concept was littered with red tape from the start.
Take everything you know about reality TV, and highlight the worst possible aspects of it. Forget the life affirming journeys and the people who learn to love each other and head 180 degrees in the other direction. Look at people who are so desperate for attention they’ll do anything to be on TV, add in some serious backstabbing, a therapist surgery’s worth of mental health problems and a bunch of eating disorders for some extra zest. Add a dash of the gruesome (achieved with doctors in masks and some surgery action) and you have the bare bones a Bridalplasty- where the aim of the show is to change the bride to be into someone her future husband won’t recognize.
Who cares if he loves you, if you don’t love yourself? Let Bridalplasty change you into somebody you can love- but only if you’ll bare your soul on national TV, sharing your deep secrets, sexual proclivities and backstab any girls you befriend. OK with that? Great, you’re the perfect candidate …
I’ll start by describing the bare bones of the show to you, so your mind can circle the various points of disbelief.
-12 women, all engaged to be married in one house.
-Each week, the women battle it out Top Model style to be the ‘Top bride’.
-Each bride to be gets something each week (a ring/cake/dress) that goes in her ‘bridal closet’ to be claimed if she wins the show.
-The Top bride gets to have the surgery of her choice and go to the ‘recovery room’ (pause where all other brides to be look sad and wistful).
-The three bottom brides spend the next 20 minutes (it’s a 1 hour show) convincing the other brides to be why they should stay in the show. (Formula changes a little as the contestant numbers decrease).
-Showdown at the RSVP ceremony where girls sit at the Bottom Brides tables. The other brides to be make a speech ‘This is sooo hard, etc’, and go sit at a table. The one with least votes goes home to the refrain of “Your wedding will still go ahead. It just won’t be perfect.” Oh no you didn’t!
The show is designed to make all the contestant objects of ridicule, as even when you feel the merest smidgeon of sympathy for them (one is an army bride and sobs about her fiancé being in danger) they then follow that up with talking about how perfect having their nose/boobs/stomach changed would completely improve and alter their life. Some girls are twiglets and talk longingly about liposuction whilst others basically seem to want to tear their skin off and stand inside someone else’s. Read more…
Tags: Bridal surgery, Bridal TV, Bridalplasty, reality tv
Posted by admin on Feb 7, 2011 in
beauty,
lists 
Everyone likes a little bit of pampering in their life, and the beauty salon industry is more than happy to take the cash off weary people. How do you make yourself stand out in the ever crowded industry though? You can offer salty snacks, complimentary massages- or you can go the novelty route and get the punters in for the weird and wacky treatments you offer. This is the route the following beauty salons have taken, and they’re certainly quirky enough to get me intrigued. What say you- snake massage or sauna in a tram?
Tram Sauna
Created from an actual tram, this sauna is based in Milan and lets visitors enjoy a relaxing time out with the views of the countryside around them. It was created by QC Termemilano (spa designers) to show how ‘relaxing’ travelling can be. I’m guessing they’ve never battled the Northern Line at 8am then…
Snake Massage
Those with a reptile phobia look away now, those with gothy tendencies, please sit up and get out your pen. The Ada Barak Snake Spa in Israel seem to think that snakes can provide you with a relaxing downtime experience, that soothes away your stresses. Personally, I think I’d find it hard to let go, but what do I know? Read more…
Tags: beauty salon, beer bath, snake massage, strange beauty, strange spa, tram sauna, Yunessun spa
Posted by admin on Dec 12, 2010 in
beauty,
lists 
We’re used to the beauty world being a tad out there (hey, we embraced Lady GaGa with open arms), but we tend to err on the side of accessibility when it comes to our products. We may like our mascaras innovative, but we want to actually be able to USE them, so having a wand that was 2cm high would be pretty useless. Well, that’s what you’d think anyway- but 2010 has proved the exception to this beauty rule. Welcome to a world where products are so pretty you can’t use them, and where hairdressing goes virtual. Here’s my guide to the top ten strangest beauty trends of 2010.
Lipsticks you can’t actually use
Makeup has always been considered an art form, with many people collecting new releases with the fervour they once assigned to the sticker books of their youth. Even though you may treasure those limited edition palettes, they still get some use- and then along came the new Paul and Joe lipsticks, Available in three shades (and a not to be sniffed at £16 from ASOS) they are so pretty and artistic that they stop being functional. Do you have it in your heart to destroy that cute kitty head? I don’t.. so that’s my money wasted then. Makeup is beautiful but it should also be functional, so let’s see a return to that- please?
Nail Varnishes you can’t afford
There’s a certain luxury element to a lot of beauty purchases, with many brands deliberately setting a high price point so seem more aspirational. You have expensive though- and then you get ridiculous. Models Own, a brand known for their wallet friendly nail range joined d=forces with Frost of London ( a posh Bond Street store) to create a Gold Leaf polish that costs £83,000. Yes, all those zeroes were correct. The varnish is made to order, so they don’t have loads of bottles sitting around, and they’ve released it as a bit of a PR stunt- pushing you towards the £5 ready to wear version of this expensive bottle. Still, you have to wonder, is this going to be a trend we see more of? I really hope not. Read more…
Tags: Beyonce, Busy Scissors, fish pedicure, Models Own, strange beauty, Urban Decay, Vajazzling
Posted by admin on Nov 29, 2010 in
beauty,
opinion,
technology 
Vouchers used to be the way forward in terms of discounts. Everyone likes to get something for nothing, and Pizza Express has made a killing in recent years with their 2 for 1 voucher offers, and buy one get one for a £1. True, the waiters there may have HATED this (I have this on good authority) but the public loved it, and the Pizza Express chains have been very successful. Money off coupons also prospered, and in a much more high profile way than the ’10p off next washing powder‘ purchase. Websites such as MyVoucherCodes and Quidco prospered, and magazines printed 10% and 20% money off coupons. Everyone was happy- the retailers, the public, and the economy flourished. In the last year or so, we have seen a change in this market, as vouchers are now taking a backseat and the Mobdeal is king.
What is a Mobdeal? A Mobdeal is a deal that relies on a certain number of people to sign up to it, in order for it to be followed through. Regualr viewers of shopping channels on TV will have no problem in understanding the concept, as it’s a popular selling tool. X number of items are offered for x price- but only if 100/200/2000 people sign up to buy it. Once that ‘tipping point’ has been reached, everyone who has registered that they would like to buy the deal gets charged. This selling method is gaining popularity, and could potentially be seen as killing the discount code market. In a sense, it’s even more beneficial, as the deals only get used when they’ve reached x amount of people, which helps showcase new brands and clients, and allows people to experience good value deals, which they can then relay onto their friends. It’s a switch towards collective buying and purchasing, away from the more individualistic model that vouchers offer.
The first major push towards this way of selling online (with the mobdeal branding) in the UK came in January 2010, with the launch of the Wahanda Mobdeals. They specialize in offering discounted beauty and spa treatments and packages, which allow the consumer access to a wider range of options that might have been out their price limit- plus get them on the site, where they can buy extra items. It offers brands the exposure they need to get themselves more clients, and searches and offers are tailored by region. Since Wahanda got on board with this selling model, this idea has reached other industries, and you can now get gadgets, homeware and activity days for less. The Mobdeal is a USA selling method, which the British have been keen to embrace, as many sites have since sprung up which follow this structure. Read more…
Tags: Groupola, Groupon, Gruupy, Mobdeal, Wahanda
Posted by admin on Oct 18, 2010 in
beauty,
geekery 
Living in central London generally tends to mean that cars are rather redundant, as you can often get around more quickly by using the tubes and buses- or even walking, should it be rush hour.This bizarrely lovely creation makes me wish I still owned a motor, as I’d love to primp up my car with long feathery lashes. Called ‘CarLashes’, they adhere to the lights of the car like fake lashes do to the eyes and make your ride look rather feminine. I know people who give their cars names, this is just taking that step further… Read more…
Tags: carlashes, girly car
Posted by admin on Oct 18, 2010 in
beauty,
opinion 
Fashion Week is meant to be a dazzling display of creativity and ingenuity and showcase the best and the brightest that we have on the planet. Clothes that make it down the runway will inspire new trends and fashion statements, and ensure that the Primarks of the world get to work at creating cheap knock offs very quickly. Amongst all the loveliness, there are some questionable choices, and none moreso than in the world of beauty. We’ve seen trends that are meant to inspire, but I’d say avoid at all costs. Here’s my rundown of the Fashion Week Beauty Trends that are a total fail.
The Double eyebrow look, as seen at Pam Hogg S/S 2011 (pictured above)
This show featured fierce looking models, with fiery eyes and slick hair.. but all anyone could notice was the strange twig like eyebrow they were all sporting. Beauty fail alert.
The Black Eye Chic look as seen at Bora Aksu S/S 2011 at London Fashion Week
This show featured models in cool printed tunics with flowing locks.. and what looked like a black eye. I can’t see the ‘Punched in the face’ look ever working as a style statement, so go easy on that eyeliner. Read more…
Tags: Fashion Week Beauty, London Fashion week
