London, women and the Olympics

Before the Olympics started, I was this Londoner - grumpy and dreading the impact it would have on our over-burdened, creaky transport system.  But I loved the games and ended up watching more sport in the last two weeks than the rest of my life put together.  I've even become an armchair expert in a number of sports which previously I was unaware of.  So what happened?

I think the change started with the Opening Ceremony.  I knew a number of people working on it, so I watched the show from start to finish.  And what fun it was!  I just adored the extravagant, joyful silliness of it all - the Industrial Revolution set in Hobbit land; tributes to the NHS AND the victims of the July 7 bombings; British music; Mr Bean and the Queen parachuting all in one show, not to mention that magnificent Olympic Flame sculpture.  I was so, so proud of all my friends on it.  I know how much hard work they'd put into it and it went off absolutely flawlessly.  Whisper - I even had a swell of patriotic pride.

London really stepped up to the mark.  The whole city really did look its best, everyone was happy and cheerful and for the most part, the transport worked well.

And then of course there're the athletes.  There's something compelling about watching human beings at the height of their abilities push themselves to the limit.  I loved Jessica Ennis's win as well as Mo Farah's runs.  Not forgetting Usain Bolt's astonishing victories.  And as for Nicola Adams - wow!  The first woman to win the first Olympic women's boxing tournament.

One of the things that's really impressed me is how generous and gracious both the winners and the losers were.  Every person has acknowledged the debt they owe to the people around them - coaches, family and friends and everyone has paid tribute to their fellow athletes.  The losers have so often apologised for letting people down which, I initially found very strange, but when I thought about it, I realised what a brave, big hearted thing to do it is.  It's about accepting the responsibility for failure fairly and squarely, without blaming anyone.  Such a contrast to the selfish, petulant, 'Me first, nothing's my fault' culture that prevails today, especially amongst overpaid footballers.

In many ways it was the women's games.  Women were competing for the first time from Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan and Palestine.  Women's boxing was an Olympic sport for the first time.  Finally, it really felt that women's sport, (and by association women in general) was really considered equal to men's.  A rather sexist colleague of mine, who made it clear before the games started that he regarded women's sport as nothing but something to keep the girlies happy whilst the men got on with the serious stuff, became an ardent supporter of the British Judo medallist Gemma Gibbons.  He bored everyone with the information that 'she'd won with a broken thumb, y'know' until we had to tell him to shut up.

Finally, an open plea to all editors - I'd really like to see more women like this in my magazines.  Beautiful women with strong, powerful bodies who've achieved incredible things.  Not vacuous, emaciated, media hungry idiots like the Kardashians et al who've never achieved anything worthwhile in their lives.

Jessica Ennis, Olympic gold medallist in the women's heptathlon.

Image via http://elizabethswardrobe.tumblr.com

Victoria Pendleton, Olympic gold medallist in the women's keirin.

Image via http://fashioneditoratlarge.blogspot.co.uk

Nicola Adams, Olympic Gold medallist in the first Olympic women's boxing tournament.

Image via http://www.examiner.co.uk

Hero beauty product - Maybelline Dream Fresh BB cream

I know I'm late to the party but BB creams - wow!  Or more specifically Maybelline Dream Fresh BB cream.

Image via boots.com

I knew I was going to like it as soon as I tested it in Boots.  The colour (medium) blended seamlessly with my skintone and the dry, parched skin on the back of my hand felt instantly hydrated.

I have weird skin, a mixture of very dry and congested.  I generally find that regular foundation dries out my skin & flakes around the really dry bits.  I know - attractive.  I was very pleased to find out that the BB cream kept my skin feeling constantly hydrated all day. Needless to say, it didn't flake either.  It just gave me a smooth, fresh look.  The slightly reddish bits of my complexion weren't obscured, just blurred, which was fine with me.  I prefer to be able to see the texture of the skin because it gives a fresh natural look.

You can use it with or without moisturiser.  I chose to use it on top of my moisturiser but I think that it'd be fine if I skipped the moisturiser.

Interestingly I also received rather a lot of compliments the first couple of times I wore it.  The words 'radiant' and 'well' were used rather a lot...

The only criticism I have is that I could only find it in 30ml tubes.  I found I needed to use rather a lot per application, consequently it's run out too quickly.

You can buy it in the UK for £7.99 and in the US for $8.99.

P.S.  I haven't been paid either in money or products to write this review.

Jubilee weekend in London

The Jubilee weekend is here.  

I was initially indifferent to it but I must admit, I'm now rather looking forward to it.  The flags, bunting and general air of excitement is infectious.

It was rather touching today to see ordinary people displaying uncharacteristic patriotism - the shelf stacker in the supermarket with a huge Union Jack flag over his shoulders; the phalanxes of school children proudly displaying the crowns/flags/pictures of the Queen that they'd made in school as they walked down the street; the street next to me with bunting strung the entire length.

I will be working on an event taking place on one of the boats taking place in the Jubilee Boat Parade but I'm contractually obliged not to talk about it.  Suffice to say, I do hope the weather holds out.

Once the parade is over, I plan to spend the rest of the weekend attending street parties and relaxing.

I hope your weekend is fun, wherever you are.  x

Neals Yard London

When I'm working in Covent Garden I love finding bolt holes where I can go and relax far from the craziness.  Neals Yard is one of those places.

I think it's the contrast between the old buildings and the hippy vibe that I find so appealing.  

Visiting Minehead in Somerset

One of the best things about my job is the opportunity it offers for travelling.  I've been lucky enough to visit all the major cities in Europe and many places beyond.  In someways, though, I think that the places I enjoy the most are the tiny, off-the-radar spots which I wouldn't think of going to under normal circumstances.

Last weekend, I was working in Minehead on the Somerset coast.

I'll admit, I wasn't holding out much hope.  The name itself, 'Minehead' conjured up images of depressed ex-mining towns with pollution, decay and feral youths.

Well, I'm pleased to report, I was wrong.  Minehead's lovely.

The weather was a typical English spring - grey and slightly misty.  I know that a lot of people wouldn't like this but I think it makes everything romantic and intimate.

Minehead's a small town.  It only took me about 20 minutes to walk along the beach to the hill in the picture.

The beach was full of interesting finds.

There was a lot of driftwood.  According to Wikipedia, these are the remains of an ancient submerged forest.

The tide went out a very long way, about half a mile.

There was some pretty little cottages towards the harbour.

I loved this little church.  The building adjoining it to the left was a pub.  I guess it's a case of sinning and repenting without having to walk too far.

The harbour.

There was a small nod to the gaudiness of an English seaside resort...

but generally the town was pretty and quiet.  Worth a visit, in my books.

Useful Things, Beautiful Things on Pinterest

I've just joined Pinterest and already I'm hooked.

Image via http://blog.shareaholic.com/

Pinterest is the fastest growing website in history, taking just under two years to break the ten million visitor mark.  The premise is very simple - you add a 'pin' button to your computer which allows you to pin images you like and arrange them into themed boards.  People can either follow you or follow individual boards.  They can repin your images and comment on your pins.  What's great is that clicking on the pinned image takes you to the source website so there's no danger of plagiarism.

It's handy if, for instance, you're planning on redecorating your house and you're browsing the internet for inspiration.  Instead of saving a load of individual links, you pin the images onto one board, then refer back to them later.

Entry is by invitation only so if you'd like to join, either leave a comment or email me and I'll send you an invitation.

If you'd like to follow me on Pinterest, here I am - http://pinterest.com/beautflthngs/

Film review - The Woman in the Fifth

I'll have to admit, I'm a sucker for a French psycho drama so I was rather looking forward to seeing 'The Woman in the Fifth'.

Sadly it fell far, far short of my expectations.

In brief, an American writer, Tom Ricks (Ethan Hawke) arrives in Paris to 're-connect' with his estranged ex-wife and young daughter.  He turns up at their apartment and it becomes apparent that his ex-wife has a restraining order against him for reasons that are never properly explained.  He flees when she calls the police, jumps on a bus, falls asleep and wakes up in one of the roughest parts of Paris to find that all his belongings except his passport have been stolen.

Now at this point, you & I would have gone to the embassy or the police to report the theft but no, he wanders into a nearby cafe and orders a coffee with the handful of change he has in his pocket, gets chatting to the Polish waitress Ania and asks her if she knows of any rooms he could rent.  She introduces him to the Arab cafe owner Samir. Personally I'd have taken one look at Samir's rather sinister bulging eyes and ran for the hills but our erstwhile hero tells him that although he'd like to rent a room, he has no money to actually pay the rent and just like that, Samir lets him have a room for free, so as long as Tom hands over his passport.  There's no explanation as to why a seemingly intelligent person, with all the options and freedoms that an American abroad possesses, would do such a thing and thereby commit himself to a life of exploitation and abuse but he does.

SPOILER ALERT.
This is cue for a number of rather irritating dead end story lines;
Tom goes to a lawyer and starts a custody battle for his daughter that will cost him €10,000 that he doesn't have.  There is a single scene in the lawyers office then nothing more.

He takes on a job as a security guard for Samir.  Every time he lets people into the building, (who, incidentally, can only enter if they say the correct code), there's a lot of screaming & banging and the light in his office dims.  One night he ventures out of his office, sees a lot of blood in the corridor and runs away.  And that's it.  No explanation, no follow up.

He also starts stalking his daughter, lying on his grotty bed watching the trains pass by his window, fighting with his neighbour about flushing the toilet and begins a love affair with a mysterious wealthy woman, Margit, (Kristen Scott Thomas).  She's the woman in the fifth arrondissment of the title, (even though her address is actually in the second).  It's a long time since I've seen such a badly written character.  She's all cliche and no substance.  It's a mystery why the extremely talented Kristen Scott Thomas took on such an awful part.  I can only assume she had an enormous tax bill to pay or something.

Image via telegraph.co.uk

I'm not going say anything more just in case you do want to see the film.  It's not all bad by any means - I did like the fact that it portrayed a side of Paris that's a million miles away from the picture postcard tourist version.

I can see what the film was trying to do - explore mental illness and delusions but personally I think it was done far better in Black Swan and even Midnight in Paris.

*Amended 2/3/12*