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Tis the Season - My Top 5 Christmas Movies

I haven't posted much lately, I've been rather busy with the marketing for my new novel The Poppy Garden, setting up The Poppy Garden Appeal to raise money to provide care for service personnel and finishing up with my day job for Christmas. Now it's time to sit back relax and enjoy a Christmas movie or two - it would be rude not to.  So here on the eve of Christmas Eve are my top five Christmas moves. 1.  Holiday Inn  Bing Crosby Singing White Christmas My all time favourite Christmas movie is Irving Berlin's Holiday Inn.  Produced in 1942, staring Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire and featuring my favourite Christmas song, 'White Christmas'.  I remember sitting with my Grandfather on cold, probably rainy Saturday afternoons watching old movies while toasting marshmallows by the fire, this became one of my favourites.  My Grandfather also had a similar look to Bing Crosby so I think that memory always warms the heart especially at Christmas. The movie

The Poppy Garden, Me and The Brylcream Boy

I'm a writer - but what does that really mean?   I tell stories, but where do they come from?  I've always been obsessed by stories, ever since I was a child. If I wasn't reading them I was writing them or acting them out.   If there wasn't a story in my collection I wanted to read then I made it up and told it to myself.    As I got older I started writing ideas down and then slowly they evolved in to books or screenplays.   The book I'm publishing next month is something different for me.   I think it's the first time in my life I've told a story with out some kind of twist or mythic/adventure element.   It's the first drama I've ever written and it's probably going to be one of the most personally important books I'll ever write.   I started this project two years ago - I know that's a long time to be working on one book.   But I had to get it right, because its for someone very special.   I spent a great deal of my ch

Dealing with Disappointment - Working Life

So, there are times in  life when things happen that disappoint you for whatever reason.  As human beings and individuals we all have ways of reacting to those things.  This week for me has been one of those weeks where I've had to deal with a Work Life disappointment. I'm a novelist, first and foremost, but to pay the bills I also have a full time job in a 'professional' environment.  It's in this job that I've found myself disappointed this week.  It's been building for a while, with the current economic climate all business are looking at how to save money and stay profitable.  The industry I work in is no different and they have been making plans, changing things and consulting with personnel on how/why they should do things. This week they made their announcement of change and parts of how this was managed was disappointing to me.  The detail isn't important for this post, the point is how I deal with that issue. 1. Be Professional You have

Elemis - Skin Care

My last post explained where I sit when it comes to brand loyalty.  I'm in the middle. I like to know what I'm using works for my skin be it make up, skin care, or nail varnish.  It's hard for me to find products that work with my sensitivity, so I tend to find a brand and stick with it if it works.  I also however need a back up plan and sometimes I just need to change a product as it's not giving me the results I want.  Right now, I'm experimenting, now this can prove costly unless you know who to ask.  For me I learned a long time ago to try before you buy if at all possible.   I don't want to be left with a product that's cost a fortune but sits on my shelf because it doesn't suit my skin.  There are a number of brands who will take things back - I had such an experience last year with Bobbi Brown, they were great after I suffered a reaction in refunding my purchase but I had to prove my reaction to them before I could get my money back w

Is there such a thing as Brand Loyalty and what creates it?

When I watch beauty Vlogs on YouTube or read a beauty blog I am always surprised by how many people brand hop.  When I first started wearing make-up as a child it was about what colour you liked - it was the 80's and I was around seven so blue eyeshadow made sense.   Once I hit my teens and my skin started breaking out and becoming more sensitive I tended to go for the products aimed at my age and skin type - Clearasil anyone? But then as I left school and all that baggage behind me I moved on to more luxury brands that matched my skin. I remember experimenting with brands including Clinque and Dior which just didn't work for me, before settling on Lancome, which I used for around ten years.  Ten years is a long time to be loyal to a product and it wasn't just one product either. I used the whole range, from skin car through makeup everything I had was Lancome - why?  Well at the time I started using it, being brand loyal was a bonus. Your skin care and makeup were tail

GoodBye Summer...Hello Autumn

Summer is on the wane now September is here, although there is talk of an Indian Summer next week.  For me however I'm ready for the cooler weather, heat has never been a best friend to me.  I'm pale skinned and I take after my grandad when I get too hot.  It just doesn't agree with me.  I like a few weeks of summer but clammy nights takes it toll on me as sleeping when you're just too hot is not easily accomplished. On the no so selfish side, it's also a lot better for my dog, Hero, when it gets cooler, his thick fur coat becomes more helpful than a hindrance. Besides, being born in September also makes me an autumn child, there's just something about the start of this season that is rather exciting.  So this blog will be me discussing why it is I love this season.... 1. The colours of Autumn Summer is bright and bountiful, the colours are amazingly bright, light and cool.  You wear clothes that are light in shade, aqua and yellow look brilliant in

Romeo & Juliet - Branagh @ The Garrick (NTL Production)

I love theatre, have done all my life.  There's something so intense and intimate about sitting so close to the performance, embraced by it but on the periphery not an intimate part but a part of the collective with an impact on the performance. It's not always possible to get to the theatre to see the performance you want, I don't live in London so travelling there to see a show is not always possible.  So when I heard that National Theatre were doing a live feed of Kenneth Branagh's Romeo and Juliet I ensured I got my tickets quick smart. Not only do I love seeing Shakespeare performed - that's what it was written for after all, but I'm a fan of Kenneth Branagh.  I loved and studied his Henry V and have enjoyed his work throughout my child hood and more recently in films like The Boat that Rocked. The cast for this production is also a major draw; Juliet Lilly James has been growing as an actress and wowing audiences since playing Lady Rose in Do

In The Kitchen - My Take on Rustic Lasagne

I love comfort food; it makes you feel all warm inside.  Once of the meals I love to make as comfort food is hearty rustic lasagne.   Originally I learned to make this when I was around ten or eleven, I had a bit of an obsession with Italian food so I started to experiment.  Over the years I've tweaked, changed and adapted my recipe.   This version was partly inspired by the brilliant Mary Berry and uses wraps as a pasta substitute and partly by my mindset of trying to eat as many vegetables as I can.  Hopefully you'll enjoy!  Ingredients to make four servings  Mince 500g (steak mince at 5% Fat)  Olive oil (1tbsp)    Two medium Red Onions    2 Carrots    Frozen garden Peas    Mushrooms (Button or chestnut)  Broccoli    Green Beans    Tomatoes  Beef stock (1 cube)    Worcestershire Sauce (to taste)   Sugar tsp.    Tomato Passata 500g  1 cup Water    Fresh Basil  Mediterranean Wraps    Grated Cheese    Red Wine    Garlic Step 1  I st

Summer Favourites

Okay, I know right now it hardly feels like summer - I'm still wearing jumpers and a coat!  But I do have some summer make up loves that I wanted to share. My first is the Clarins Lip Oil, this has been out for a while but there is a new flavour out now called Red Berry which I'm loving.  I leaves my lips with a light reddish tint, feel gloriously rich when putting it on and last ages.   My lips which can sometimes feel dry especially at the moment as the temperature is all over the place feel moisturised and soft when using this.  one bottle (0.23 fl oz) is lasting me around three months.  At £19 this may seem a bit excessive for a lip balm but it does go a long long, gives a great summer shine and tastes lovely.  The sponge applicator is soft and swipes the product on evenly and doesn't leave a sticky residue. My second Clarins product is the Summer bronzing compact.  I've been using this for the last two months to give a subtle glow, partly to convince my very

The Art of Cleaning Make Up Brushes

I love makeup.  I have worn it everyday since I was about 8 or 9 years old.  I've tried hundreds of ways of applying my make up, experimented with colours and changed my look from heavy to light to somewhere in between over the years. The one thing that's always remained a constant though is on a regular basis cleaning my tools.  My grandfather always said you can tell a good workman by the way they treat their tools.  I'm careful with my make up brushes and renew them every few years as they start to loose hair and shape. Currently I have two sets which I use combined, this also allows me to have one set cleaned and using a second set while they dry.  I have sensitive skin and I can always tell if I've left it too long between cleansing sessions.  Usually I try to wash my brushes once a week, usually they are okay for two weeks, longer than that I start to notice my make up isn't as smooth as I like and my skin may start showing signs of breakouts. To clean m