Sunglasses for Sun

When one is seriously famous, a gangsta rapper or a Parisienne Doyenne or one recovering from eye surgery, it may be deemed acceptable to wear sunglasses on a cloudy day or indoors. I, regardless of the status of the wearer, find it rather silly-looking, especially when the wearer is the imbecile, who on this very overcast day in the North East - and it's February for gawd's sake nearly drives her car straight into mine. She may simply be an appalling driver, with or without the sunnies, but they surely can't help!

Living North Live Event

Get yourselves along to the Living North Live Fair at Newcastle Racecourse 8-10th March 2013, for Interiors, Fashion and more...

Oscar-mania

Bit late getting this one in (those pesky gremlins!)now that it's Wednesday and things are back to normal! Both sides of the Atlantic had been whipped into a frenzy of frocks and wagers on who would win (the awards and in the fashion stakes). Biggest disappointment had to be Anne Hathaway's insipid pink number. My lovely dress of the night award goes to Alicia Vikander wearing Elie Saab - just beautiful.

Tech Trouble

Well, thanks to a few gremlins, there haven't been any updates for a few days. Hopefully they're all sorted out now! So, it's nice to be back, and welcome back all!

Sorry Service 2

Pasqualino's at the Theatre Royal. Their blurb states "family friendly, five star fresh food and service" - hmmmm, I think not. The ballet (see previous post) came with pre-show dinner, and the dinner was.....ok. Certainly not 5 star. For starters (forgive the pun) there was a young child in our party and the menu wasn't really suitable, yet despite being "family friendly" we were told they'd have "to see" whether it was acceptable for them to make her a pizza instead. Family friendly as long as the kids don't want to eat anything? Happily, the pizza was deemed a reasonable request, but then the drink order wasn't right, and the food order wasn't quite right, and some of the food wasn't cooked properly... Anyway, what might have been lost by the restaurant by having an inclusive dinner and show package, was made up for by the price of drinks - high. Oh, and I haven't even mentioned the service yet; I don't really want to, the restaurant doesn't want me to either.

Ballets Trockadero

I had a really lovely time at the ballet last night. Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo are quite simply not to be missed. Comedy mixed with beautiful dancing, some of these strapping men make lovely ladies. I've always appreciated the strength required of dancers, particularly those throwing their partners around with what appears to be great ease, but to see these men, lift another man right above their head and carry him, not only making it look effortless, but also graceful and beautiful...well, hats off to you guys. A fantastic show, well worth going to see if they're touring near you! www.trockadero.org

Fashion loses its edge?

Despite cooing over the VVB collection earlier in the week, I can't help but feel a bit let down by fashion of late. Where once eagerly awaited collections promised daring, the often brazen and avant-garde, there is now a same-ness, season after season. There is nothing with such a gob-smacking wow factor, that the masses are like cats on hot tin roofs, waiting for the look of the moment to filter down to the high-street; we know, without fail, that we'll have the choice of both military and cocoon coats in winter, the 'in' colour might be a surprise, ice-cream pastels in spring... I've just been alerted via Twitter, that there's a trend afoot - Rosie, Juno and Rita, all wearing...wait for it...suits! The nerve of them! I can hardly contain my excitement (sarc).

#VVB a/w 13

Absolutely loved the new collection, simple, elegant, want want want!

New Shoes

How lovely it would be to say I'd just bought a pair of Citoyenne Specchio Louboutin Heels, but alas, no. What I have bought is a staple, from that often maligned store, Clark's. So they might also cater for the slightly older, wider of foot customer, but..., they also so a very nice range of modern, practical, and more to the point, comfortable footwear. When one is running around all day, one likes to be smart; one doesn't like to be displaying agony lines from ill-fitting shoes on one's face. These are the best-fit shoes I've bought in ages.

Over-charging

So it's happened again - being over-charged in a store. I don't lnow about anyone else but it happens at least once a week to me. Fortunately I tend to be rather anal about checking receipts so any mistake is quickly rectified by customer services (the cashier has long been unable to handle this problem), but how many people don't bother? Just walk away without so much as a glance at the ticket? I worked out that last year, if I hadn't been so vigilant, I'd have been out of pocket to the tune of about £250. If that's happening to even just a small percentage of consumers, how much are stores making from their errors? Get checking - before leaving the store.

Sony NEX5

This camera has changed my life - it's my new best friend. Love it!

Fashion Fail

What a disappointment! Fashion at both the Baftas and the Grammys seems to have hit an all time low. Really hoping there's a raise of game for the up-coming Oscars.