Something old, something new....

It's my twin sister's hen weekend this weekend in Brighton! My older sister and I have bought this lovely little pin for the bride-to-be as a pre-wedding gift. This gift perfectly fits the tradition 'Something old, Something new, Something borrowed and Something blue' all on one safety pin that she'll be able to wear under her wedding dress. Isn't it lovely? 

We found the pin on www.ohsocherished.co.uk. If you're looking for unique occasion gift ideas, there are some great products!

Siri to keep you company in future cars

Discovery News reveals that Siri, the voice assistant from Apple, will be put in cars in the near future- so we can ask our niggling questions as we drive and send our messages safely and legally. Apple says that the system will be "eyes free" so it will reduce the distraction it causes the driver. The phone's screen won't light up when a voice command is received, for example.

Apple announced the move at its Worldwide Developer Conference where they revealed that BMW, General Motors, Mercedes, Land Rover, Jaguar, Audi, Toyota, Chrysler, and Honda were the car manufacturers who will implement it first. It's likely to hit the first production models in the next 12 months. 

Pretty cool, huh?

Image: Apple

Hair sewing

I saw this over at Cosmopolitan and was inspired, what a genius idea! I am forever using and losing hundreds of hair grips to secure my layered hair off my face so how's this for a solution: hair sewing!

International stylist Kevin Murphy came up with this creative new way to secure an up-do. By using a needle and thread, he creates beautiful styles which not only hold much better but are also more texturally harmonic with your hair - no more metal grips stabbing your skull!

Of course, before you start stabbing your skull with metal needles instead, buy Kevin's hair sewing kit which he has launched. The kit comes with two plastic needles and durable linen thread in black, brown and blonde.

Click here to learn how to create styles using hair sewing yourself. You will definitely need a willing friend to help you!

Kevin Murphy Sewing Kit, £12.95.
Call 01282 613413 for your nearest KEVIN.MURPHY salon or visit www.kevinmurphy

 

 

Amazing travel offer: Cruise to Norway

I have always wanted to go to Norway and sail among the snow-capped fjords and gaze at the dancing Northern lights from a log cabin in the Artic circle. I've found a great deal on Travelzoo for a 4-night mini cruise departing in August for only £199. You'd be sailing to the wild Orkney Islands fist before docking at beautiful Bergen.

Bergen, perched on the west coast of Norway is described by Lonely Planet online as a "beautiful, charming city". The town offers stunning views from Mt Fløyen and is a natural base for exploring the surrounding fjords. It is also home to the Hanseatic Wharf, Bryggen, an ancient wooden wharf area of markets, small museums and old wooden houses.

I'm so tempted!

Go to Travelzoo to find out more.

Good news: Danny Boyle goes for 'countryside' in the capital for Olympics opening ceremony

Danny Boyle, director of 'Slumdog Millionaire' and '127 Hours', has unveiled his countryside concept for the 2012 London Olympics opening ceremony. This is pure Boyle's vision, to be named "Green and Pleasant" and will feature a real oak tree, fields, meadows and streams with real farmyard animals grazing on the land. There will be a menagerie of 30 sheep, 12 horses, three cows, two goats, 10 chickens, 10 ducks, nine geese and three sheepdogs. I hope they won't be freaked out by the noise of the million-watt sound system and the 80,000 fans watching in the stadium! 

There will be families having picnics, people playing cricket on the village green and what I think is the best part of the quirky set- four giant clouds suspended by wires which will rain down (if the British weather doesn't do that by itself).

The set will also feature a Glastonbury Tor and two mosh pits: one representing Glastonbury and the other, Last Night of the Proms (or the 'posh pit'). Boyle hopes they will do battle and "face off each other during the evening".

Shakespeare's 'The Tempest' is another influence on the show and is about 'a land recovering from its industrial legacy'. Europe's biggest bell will ring to signal the start of the show, as bells did in London to signal peace at the end of WW2. The enormous bell is inscribed with a quote from Caliban 'Be not afeard, the isle full of noises'.

The opening ceremony is predicted to have a worldwide audience of one billion people and will involve a cast of 10,000, including NHS nurses, to bring Boyle's vision to life.


Although the model looks like a school project in its present state, I hope the final show will be spectacular in a quirky, imaginative way. I was surprised by Boyle's choice- I thought it would be, ummm...cooler. It seems a little too quaint, a little too 'Daily Mail' and not representative or dynamic enough. Is this the Britain we want to portray to the world? It looks a bit like Teletubby land from here. Boyle has said  “It is not an easy challenge to get the opening ceremony right, how can you present something that feels decent and people recognise as being truthful, but yet is a celebration?” I did hear he's teaming up with Underworld, whose rave music featured in Trainspotting. I think Boyle probably has some surprises up his sleeve. It will be green and pleasant, no doubt. If it's slick, the show could be special!

Dad's Day gift inspiration

        Fathers are appreciated on Father's Day. ©iStockphoto.com/Debi Bishop

Time to show your Dad what he means to you! Father's Day: skeptics say it's another commercial cash-in, but how can appreciating your father, father-figure, grandfather, be anything but a nice thing. They deserve it, surely.

So, a little novelty present, a thoughtful gift or planning to splash your cash? 

Here's some inspiration...

Decantus Wine Aerator

L'eau D'Issey Pour Homme Eau De Toilette

Shaving Brush

Team GB football

Cashmere socks

X-Mini Portable Speaker

Beer Connoisseur Gift Box

Sherlock Series 1 & 2

Don't Break the Bottle 

Bear Grylls Two All-Action Adventures

Karlsson Wall Clock DIY Passe-Partout 

Amazon Kindle

Montezuma's Radical Bar Collection

Wall Map Sticker

Bungee Birdfeeder

Othello Board Game

Self Stirring Mug

Good film: The Awakening

‘The Awakening’ (released 2011) is a classic, beautifully shot, ghostly story set in the survivor-guilty and scarred aftermath of WWI.  The film starts in London, 1921, when a headstrong ghost de-bunker, Florence (Rebecca Hall), is asked to investigate the spooky happenings at a remote Cumbrian boarding school. The mysterious death of one of the young pupils and rumours of a ghostly boy haunting the school has caused fear and panic in its staff and students. Florence, haunted herself by the death of her fiancé, tries to methodically unravel the mystery at Rockwood school, but her own rational beliefs are broken down as the plot spirals to a chilling climax.

Florence’s character is layered by her own personal contradictions (she is trying to disprove something that she wants to be true) as well as her passionate romance with the school’s headmaster and war-hero Robert (played by Dominic West). Unusual for a psychological horror, there is real tenderness and understanding between them that gives the film far more depth than the normal 2D horror scarefest. 

The film has the predictable components: an isolated old house, bangs in the night and creepy kids, which give chills down the spine and jumps and gasps. The psychological element of loss and loneliness gives the film poignancy though, and the classy set pieces as well as the quality of the high-calibre British cast, make this a stand-out haunted house movie. 
    

Watch the trailer here: The Awakening    

Loreal BB moisturiser freebie!

Try Loreal Revita Lift Repair 10 BB cream for free just by registering with Loreal at: 

Loreal Revita Lift BB

This BB multi-tasking, multi-perfecting moisturiser enhances skin tone and provides silky even coverage as well as promising to target the 10 signs of ageing. I'm a big fan of BB creams and I would definitely recommend this cream. 

Wondering what the 10 promises are to younger-looking skin?:

1. Wrinkles appear reduced

2. Skin feels firmer

3. Covers Imperfections

4. Enhances Skintone

5. Skin surface appears even

6. Skin feels smoother

7. Illuminates Complexion

8. Hydrates for 24hrs

9. Covers Age Spots

10.Protects Against UV

Loreal Revita Lift Repair 10 BB cream is available in light and medium tones at Boots.

Good hotel # 1: Marlin Apartments (London Bridge - Empire Square)

Looking for a hotel to stay at in London? How about a luxury apartment and plenty of dollar left in your purse? My boyfriend and I, during a weekend away, stayed at the Empire Square Marlin Apartments near London Bridge and they were amazing value, especially as we booked so last minute.

The innovative Empire Square Marlin Apartments are luxurious and tastefully decorated. The views of the city offered from the higher apartments provide a romantic, iconic backdrop for your stay. The suite's are fully equipped with a new, clean kitchen, packed with amenities; an open plan living area and a separate very comfortable bedroom. The choice of lighting adds the extra touch - homely or romantic, your choice. 

Borough tube station is a stone's throw away and the West-end is only a half-hour trip from there. We dressed up for the theatre package we had booked: dinner at the Sitaaray (a flamboyant fragrant Bollywood-themed Indian restaurant) and then watched The Woman in Black at the Fortune Theatre (cramped but atmospheric).

The Empire Square Marlin Apartments are ideal for a short city break in the capital. The blurb on the Marlin chain's website boasts that the landmark development has won lots of design awards and has been critically acclaimed for its style, finish and minimisation of its carbon footprint. This boasting is definitely justified though. Their emphasis is on light and space with floor-to-ceiling windows dressed with flowing light voile curtains which, in a crowded, hectic city, is a haven. 

These apartments are a contemporary vision and much better than any overpriced tiny hotel room we've stayed in in London. Check in and check out!

Empire Square Marlin Apartments

Good TV: Livin' la vida loca - Ricky Martin wins The Apprentice

Ricky Martin (real name Richard, but chooses to go by the Latin popstar's name), has won The Apprentice to become Alan Sugar's partner with a £250k cash injection into his start-up pharmaceutical recruitment company. Ricky revealed that he is giving up his leotard and the oiled world of amateur wrestling to focus on making his business a success. Apparently there's no room for 'The Fitness' in business. 


Ricky beat fellow candidates: Tom, Nick and Jade to the prize, after a series of gruelling interviews/character assassinations (my favourite episode of the series) from Sir Alan's sadistic advisors, and Margaret (still better than Karen). Claude was on top form and out to kill. Ricky's personal statement deserved the shoot down - how did this application form even get him selected for the show? In it, he compares himself to Thor and started babbling about being descended from God before likening Sir Alan to the Godfather. Claude pounced on the statement that he wanted to teach an old dog (Sir Alan) new tricks. Sir Alan replied "Woof!"


Jade was torn to pieces in the interviews, found lying and hiding her A-Level grade 'N' in Business Studies. Her unoriginal business plan for a telecoms company selling on leads was described as "grubby". I think she should follow her drunken jellies idea - I can see that selling. A lot more fun than calling up hard-up people to recover debt too. Nick's lofty idea for software that orders all the ingredients for a recipe at one click was compared more to an academic MBA than a serious business proposal. They also questioned the demand, who has the time to do that? Nick thinks he's on to a winner though, after 5 years, he reckoned that he could turn Sir Alan's £250k into £1.45 billion! Clueless! Besides, unless he was badly edited, I didn't see much of Nick's contribution all series.

Tom was Ricky's only major competition in the final. Tom has been sophisticated and professional throughout the series and right on the mark strategically too. Yes, he's had Daddy's investment banker money to fund his wine broker business but at 23, to be running a £1.25million turnover company is impressive. It's rather depressing to be the same age as him! His business plan- a £25million hedge fund where the liquid asset is wine- was reviewed as superior. Nick said this business could be "electric" and has the potential to bring massive returns. But Sir Alan has never risked anyone else's money and as a pensioner, isn't prepared to start now so the hedge fund idea was rejected as too risky. If Sir Alan was 20 years younger, he probably would have chosen Tom but he wanted a safe experienced pair of hands who wouldn't need babysitting. Ricky's desire, experience and passion won out, once he'd cut out the wrestler bravado. Ricky did grow on me and I think he was a worthy winner.


It was only a shame that Adam didn't make it into the final, I so want to know what his business plan was! The highlight of the series has to be Adam and Tom's big day out to the vineyard - "English Wine Sparkling, sorry, I mean, English Wine Sparkling". 

Good news: the Royal River Pageant

I'm not normally that patriotic or that in favour (or care) of the monarchy, but watching the thousand boats wave themselves up the Thames, I felt a bit red, white and blue. Starting this blog magazine on the Jubilee Weekend, there has to be some reference to the Queen. Not least in thanks for the extra day off work.

The pageant is a royal operation in itself, organising the boats in unpredictable weather, from small dragon boats rowed by cancer survivors, to working boats, military ships, house boats to the crown jewels of the flotilla, the Gloriana, rowed by ex-servicemen and Olympic medallists and the Royal Barge. The red and gold adorned Barge, hosting the Royal family, has been decked up inside like an Orient Express carriage. This has been in no way half-baked, it is eclectic and eccentric as maybe, Britain does best. I heard Australia have tried going bigger and better with a 5000-boat Pageant, but then they don't have the Thames to contend with. Besides, I think the Queen is worth more than 4000 boats.

The Queen looks regal and dignified in pearl white, covered in Swarovski crystals, whilst the Duchess of Cambridge wears a fitted red dress and a tartan scarf, a concession to the weather. Red is the favoured colour for most of the ladies. Royal blue is notably under-represented. The crowds watching on the banks wear fetching waterproof ponchos and hold Union Jack umbrellas. The rain is typically driving down in contrast to the hot sun of last weekend. As ever, Britons brave the downpours like we are accustomed to do as the cameras became more and more misty. Well it had to rain, didn't it, it wouldn't be British otherwise! 

As the pageant passes under the raised Tower Bridge, it reminds me that the Royal family are a constant in British culture and I quite like this. The National Anthem and fireworks from Tower Bridge are the finale. This River Pageant is a carnival, not Rio, but pompous British-stylee, which kicks off a patriotic summer for Britain. 

Our way of celebrating - a bottle of champagne from our warm and dry home, cheers! 

Good wine # 1: Willy Willy Shiraz - 2010

This Aussie Shiraz is a true berry-licious treat. The red's smooth richness warms and satisfies. Cassis fruit and spiced blackberries round the taste and has you grabbing for the next purply-red sip. The deep ripe fruitiness and syrupy liquorice undertones give this Shiraz its unique character. We enjoyed the bottle all by itself but it would complement lamb dishes like a match made in heaven. I imagine it would also go down well with a meaty barbeque on a warm summer's evening.


Willy Willy (yes, I'm not sure where its name originated, it does make it awkward when listing my favourite wines) is made in the Riverina region in New South Wales, Australia. Its creator, wine maestro Bob Berton, has been in the industry for nearly two decades and since investing in his own cellar back in 2006, hasn't looked back.

This sumptuous Shiraz is completely irresistible  - try it, berry berry nice!

Available for £7.99 at Laithwaites 

full glass

Hi, welcome to myfullglass.blogspot.co.uk!

full glass is a new and fresh blog magazine. The magazine’s focus is on the good stuff in life: good food, good wine, good places to visit, good films, good news… there’s plenty of tips and recommendations for you too. So sit back with a full cup of tea (or glass of wine) and enjoy! Why should your glass be only half full?

Helen