Metalic eyes

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Originally uploaded by mariecandme

On Christmas day I thought I would go all festive with metallic eyes. Only the instructions in the December issue state that with silver you don't wear mascara. This has it's pros and it's cons. The cons were that I just looked a bit odd. I love mascara, in my head its that little touch that makes me look feminine. The pro however, is that at 2:30 am, when husband was still awake playing Wii after drinking countless beers and 1/3 of a bottle of limoncello - I hadn't rubbed my mascara all over my face as usual when I'm tired.

Banoffee Pie

I made the Carnation cheat's banoffee pie last Saturday to take round to Blondie's for the X-factor semi final. The only problem was, Blondie had laid on such a great savoury spread with hot apple brandies. The thought of desert filled us up, so I left it there... and have on good authority from Blondie that it was very nice. Not bad, especially as it was the sort of pudding my mum could make, and she's not cooked since 1995.

Getting a head(band)

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Originally uploaded by mariecandme

Today I have decided to dress up as Madonna for work, Net headband.. check (as per this month's fashion pages), blue mascara - check.. now where did I leave that Toblerone bra?

5 point plan to survive the party season

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Originally uploaded by mariecandme

I tried to follow the advice on how not to get too drunk at a work party on Wednesday. Clad in my little black dress, with my bag on a chain in metalic shoes (So far, so Marie Claire), I had every intention of having a glass of water between drinks, sticking to long drinks and not letting anyone fill up my glass. I also started to keep a tally (as advised) of all the booze I was drinking.

As you can see, the first drink was between the hours of 12 - 1 (Vodka and coke), then a beer between 3pm - 4pm. I picked up the pace a little with a vodka and a wine between 4pm and 5pm, then really built up speed between 5-6 when the table ran out of water.

After 6 it all went a bit wrong, it was taking the bar so long to serve people I decided to bulk buy 6 Vodka and cokes so I didn't have to go back an queue.

The next thing I know, husband had come to pick me up armed with half a chicken split and I insisted we go to Kendals and buy each other perfume??!! What the hell??

Hence the question mark from 7pm - 8pm onwards. Maybe this is something I need to get the hang of?!

Clothes Show

Last Saturday was my maiden trip to the Clothes show live. My friend Mrs Z is a clothes show veteran, so I contacted her a while ago to see if I could meet her down there and we could go round together.

I wasn't sure what to expect, I though that the Clothes Show was all high end designers showing off their new collections and as a result be crawling with fashionistas in outfits that look like they beaten half to death with a rolled up copy of Dazed and Confused magazine. So what better place I thought, to don my tartan jumpsuit. Surely this of all places is where such a an outfit would be accepted... embraced even?!

My day started at 6:30, dragging myself out of bed to get ready and be out of the door for 8am. I was supposed to be at the Clothes Show for 10 in order to catch the fashion show, but a nice little traffic jam on the M6 put a stop to that.

As I got off teh bus and walked into the NEC, it dawned on my that the Clothes Show is less of a fashion event and more of a trolley dash. The majority of girls were wearing clothes built for speed. Footwear that can get you from one discount brand store to the next, buying up bags and bags of stuff you didn't know you needed.

I felt, like a big tartan twat.


Mrs Z and 3 of her friends met me after the show and we quickly formulated a plan to get to Irregular Choice in a methodical fashion. This was Mrs Z's 6th year, so she was armed with cash, had booked our table for lunch and knew exactly what to do and where to go to get the best out of the gazillions of stores.

After promising myself I wouldn't buy anything, I was caught up in consumption vacuum! There was no walking away from the stalls and counting to 10, there was no forming a 5 point plan on how to get out of debt.... only me, squealing that I'd managed to negotiate my Sister's and my cousins Christmas pressies for over 50% less that they should have been.... then trotting off to another store to buy essential items such as the "Hair Boustier"... yes that's right a plastic thingie that helps you create a beehive. At the time of purchase, I faintly remember mouthing to the the sales woman "Wow, what an amazing piece of product design". For fuck's sake - someone punch me now!

After a morning of shopping, and a heroic amount of time spent by Mrs Z in the irregular choice store, we went for lunch (Thanks for my treat Mrs Z!!) in the prefab restaurant. After lunch I needed to get back on the road as I was off down to Devon, but managed to get lost for a further half an hour in the maze of clothes and inappropriately dressed teens.

Next year I'll be taking 2 essentials - money and comfy shoes.

Christmas List

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Originally uploaded by mariecandme

Husband has been having trouble knowing what to get me for Christmas, even with massive hints such as "I like this, in this colour, from x website" etc etc. The December list urged me to put a black bag from next on my Christmas list - so I have, along with some other ideas for Husband. (most outside of our £50 budget!). I'll send him the link to this page and see what appears on Christmas day!

The December List

Fashion
Give your scribblings a high fashion spin with a beautiful, limited edition Smythson notebook by hot London designer Erderm, from £115…. No all you sane people out there – that isn’t a typo. That is a cool ton for a notebook. Maybe all you poor sods that have been made redundant in the worst recession ever to be seen by this country…. can trot off and buy one to take notes in your next interview? What a joke.

Put this amazing bag on your Christmas list – Referring to a £28 faux croc painted black bag.

Sequins are big this month for the party season. I already have some muted ones, maybe I need some sparkly ones? Maybe I can customise something with sequins as I’m quickly running out of cash.

Justify your Whistle’s Love – le sigh, so pretty and so outside of my budget.

Shoe Heaven: Metallic shoes – Phew, I have gold and silver so will get them out!
Dance-Floor Hits – this winter’s classic black heels adorned with delectable detail. I have a pair of black shoes adorned with a bambi – take that for detail!
Colourful soles: Put the bling back into your step with these bright buys. Or I could get my lovely bright green KG heels for a little party.
Prety Pumps: Keep your feet firmly on the ground without compromising on style. Bummer – having one size 6 and one size seven foot always means you have to compromise on style – because you need to be strapped in.

Get aheah – get a headband. I already have a great one, with a net Madonnaesque bow. It can come out for a little trip.

Brocade parade: Give your outfit instant opulence without a flashy price tag. There is a £34.99 borcade skirt in River Island that I could get.

Seduction: Turn up the heat with these stylish but sexy looks. Referring to a mass of sequins, draping, tailoring

Get seriously glitzy for Christmas at marieclaire.co.uk/diamante

Cocktail Hour: Referring to partying in style in an LBD, lace accessories and dramatic sparkle.

Finishing clutches: From sequined to feather, oversized to petite, these chic bags are sure to make your outfit dazzle. For more great party shopping picks go to www.marieclaire.co.uk/shopping. I shall be getting my oversized clutch out then!

Discover my Jewellery personality

From Dusk till Dawn fashion story

Let it shine fashion story
Give thanks for Spanx – I certainly will, I love my stomach sucker inners!










Beauty

Culture
Meet our newest blogger, Lianne Gutcher – read blog.
Watch this face – Lilly Collins (Phil Collin’s daughter) – I’m following on twitter, at least I think it’s her!

Follow the Hot Metal make up looks

Follow the Glow Getters top to toe radiance guide.

Follow the easy party eyes guide.

Add a daring flash of colour to your LBD (referring to red lippy)

How to look expensive: Eighties Glamour.

Follow 5 steps to beautiful hands

Channel Lauren Bacall (not going to happen with my hair!)

Spoil your senses by:
Meeting friends for afternoon tea. I won’t be doing it in London as suggested because I have no free days to get there.
Enjoy a beauty treat: It suggests recreating sultry eyes, I shall get Mac to do this for me.
Cosy up: A new scarf updates your look – that’s lucky as I bought one from Gap a few weeks ago!




Competitions

Win a shopping trip to New York – Done
Win a spar day for 2 – Done
Share your shopping tips at mareiclaire.co.uk/accessory awards – Done (Ugg Australia comp)

Relationships
Find a new friend – This refers to a website called fridaynightsucks.com. A website for people who have moved to a new city and want to fins some people to go out will. I’d invite someone to come out for my birthday – but it’s a London centric website.

Share my infidelity experience at www.marieclaire.co.uk/infidelity

Share the pleasure: Get £10 off a Phillip’s (Yes, the same guys that make shavers and tellys) sex toy. At £60 I would want it to make me a brew afterwards!


Home
Entre the face of Habitat Competition.

Visit the Christmas Tree Man – this is a fantastic Idea. You can order a tree which is delivered via an environmentally friendly courier service, then they take it away after new year’s day, replant it and then you can get it again next year. I LOVE this idea, the question is can we afford it 

Visit canon.co.uk/takestories

Cook the mini banoffee pies in the Carnation advertorial.

Cook Kimberley Walsh’s Christmas Menu

Follow Jane Packer’s Festive home tips.
1. When choosing festive flowers, go for big blooms like hydrangeas.
2. Introduce a new colour or style of bauble each year. It makes the season feel so much more exciting!
3. Always hang a festive wreath on the font door as it ads a nice welcome to your home.

Cook the chocolate and pear tart recipes


This is in relation to a story on Peru and how climate change is devastating the local communities:
Walk to the corner shop, buy energy saving lightbulbs and turn the thermostat down 1 degree. Visit direct.gov.uk/actionco2 to see other ways to reduce our carbon footprint and support Oxfam’s appeal to get the government to back a UN deal that will avoid temperature rises. In order to do this I need to got to a March in London on the 5th of December, but in this same issue, Marie Claire has stated I mustn’t miss the clothes show live, which I have a ticket to on the 5th!


Health
In relation to an article on how to avoid the Christmas minefield and not crack up..
To avoid dodgy gifts: According to Glenn Harrold, my hypnotist friend on Twitter, the best thing to do is laugh it off to diffuse the situation before starting work on him so he gets it right for next year. I know husband has got it right for me this year, because I went out and bought some stuff, brought it home and said “This is what you have got me for Christmas” Simples!

To avoid getting too pissed: Don’t drink on an empty stomach, eat a sarnie before I go out and don’t start drinking before I get to the party. There is also a 5 point plan to stay on the right side of disaster.

1. Stick to long drinks – wine as a spritzer, draft beers, or well diluted vodka tonics.
2. Alternate alcoholic drinks with water or low cal soft drinks
3. Don’t allow your glass to be topped up before you have emptied it.
4. Find out about how many units of alcohol is in my drink
5. Pace yourself, be aware of how many drinks I’m having an hour.

To avoid piling on the pounds

Plan ahead – thing about how many dinners lunches and parties you are going to. Cut out snacks and treats (there goes the 5 small meals a day then!) and when it comes to canapés avoid anything with pastry and fill up on crudités without the dips. In addition to this, go out for a daily walk and don’t veg in front of the TV.

To avoid money problems
Dr Holden advises: To avoid spending, on anything, walk away from the shop and count to 10. Once the spending urge has finished, write a 5 point list of my biggest financial worries and pledge to get to grips with them and write a debt busting plan after Christmas. The advice then goes on and tells you to buy Dr Holden’s Book “be happy” for £9.99…… I am walking away from my computer….. I am counting to 10… I am thinking it’s a bit of a joke to tell you to buy something to help you stop buying er…. Things.. FOR GOD’S SAKE!


Travel

Other
5 things not to miss

Children in Need – Oops! Missed it!
The Nutcracker @ the Royal Ballet. There is NO way I can make this between now and the end of the December.

Christmas lights switch on – Did it! See photos on previous post.

David Hockney 1960 – 1968 a Marriage of styles: Hmm this is in Nottingham, again not sure when I’ll have any time to do this.

Clothes show live: I have my ticket and will be meeting Mrs Z on Saturday in my jump suit!

Watch Bright Star at the Cinema

Listen to Robbie Williams: Realty killed the video star

Watch the Queen on channel 4 – bah , the last episode was today and I missed it! (So I’ll watch Gavin and Stacy as advised instead)

Read a book – any bloody book!

Dream a little dream

Sometimes, does your brain weird you out? Often, I wake up from particularly obscure dreams and wonder how my brain came up with such fantastically weird situations.

I believe that you can learn things through your dreams, but I’ve never taken the time to really analyse them. So I was happy to see that part of November’s challenge was to keep a pad by the side of my bed and write down my dreams when I woke up. I then had to work through them to fathom out what they all meant.

The ones that particularly stood out to me over the 30 days were really vivid. They included watching a colony of Puffin / Toucan like birds with my mum. I figured that was likely because the Life program on BBC 1 had been about birds that week.

I also dreamed I was stood in a shower, throwing wine glasses at Husband (who kept morphing into Sharon Osborn) whilst I stood in a shower shouting at him. This was easy to work out, he was supposed to be getting up early that morning to go to the glaziers an pick up a table top… but he was down stairs, completely drunk at 5:30 am listening to music. So even in my sleep I was pissed off at him! (No – he didn’t get up at 7 like he was supposed to.)

The one dream that stood out to me was only a couple of nights ago though. Lodger and I stumbled on an old disused room in a mill. For £2 a week we could rent it out as an art studio, so we did. We loved it in there and were arts and crafting to our heats content – then we left the room to go and find our friend’s to show them. But when we returned, we got totally lost, no matter where we looked we couldn’t fond the room…

What does it all mean?

I feel like I’m losing my creativity! And I bloody well do! I took creative routes all the way through my education - right up until uni. Then I got a job in Media, and slowly but surely I’ve become deskilled and stifled in the areas which I’m most passionate about. It hit home quite a bit and it’s got me thinking about flexing my creativity again. I don’t want to be end up as one of those old ladies that knits dolls to go over loo rolls just to express myself.

3 Course Disaster

This month the 3 course diner party menu came courtesy of Anjum Anand and I fucked it up royally:

Tandoori wild mushroom and goats cheese salad: Um, I forgot 3 ingredients and plated up enough to feed 6 rather than 3.

Prawn Biryani: After coughing my guts up whilst cooking all the spices and covering my top in the sauce, I eventually served up a plate of charred food looking like Rab C Nesbit.

Buttermilk panna cotta with blackberries: Although this is my favourite pudding from all the menus so far… I didn’t use buttermilk because I couldn’t get any and Husband found a massive lump of solid gelatine in his..oops. When I added the warm blackberries, it melted the top of the pudding and it all started to curdle together. As appealing as baby sick.

I still smelled of the burned biryani nearly 24 hours later and I haven’t dared put it in my food diary due to the heroic amount of oil involved. Bless Lodger, she ate everything without complaint, Husband on the other hand approaches meals as if he were a judge on master chef. I got a full critique of the meal whilst daydreaming of happily shoving a panna cotta up his jacksie.