Time for a Tea Party

"Goodnight, Sweetheart"

2009-11-20T23:58:00.006Z

I think it's sad that age old traditions are getting lost, and I especially realise this as I sit cross-stitching an extremely intricate design on a Friday night and day-dreaming about victory rolls and how much shorter my hair would have to be to do them sucessfully.

I don't mind a break from the past every once in a while, don't get me wrong. Infact, I'd be lost without my mobile phone, but some things need to be preserved.

How many young women cannot sew a button or stitch or hem? It's not hard, I learnt it at my Nana's knee. I do admit to loosing the knack of darning socks and fixing holes in stockings, but some things just take priority when you're below average height and always fiddle with buttons until they fall off.

How many young people can write properly? I know that my handwriting is not the best in the world, but I can spell and I can write in a joined script. My younger sister has the most horrific "handwriting" now, and I am seriously considering getting her a handwriting work book for Christmas. Many schools and colleges are now relying more and more upon computers, the art of looking in the reference section when you do your homework is well and truly lost among the under eighteens.

How many young people can read? How many read for leisure? When comments are made on Emily Bronte's Romantic (look, a capital "R") Wuthering Heights such as "is this in old english or modern understandable english" you know that something has gone wrong. Terribly wrong. And that they don't understand what Romantic means as opposed to romantic is just... Pathetic. I am lost for words with this one. What is happening?! Hint: the cover was redesigned to resemble Twilight.

Make Time for Friends

2009-11-10T22:23:00.007Z

Everybody knows that a good friend is a friend for forever.

Chances are, your friends know everything about you, and the best friends know even more, like that time last year... You've had lots of fun times together, and yeah, a handful of not-so-fun times, but they've still been there for you. Always.

Today's society and culture doesn't really provide for good, quality time spent with friends. You work long hours and spend even longer hours stuck in traffic. At the end of the day, you only really have time for you, and even then it's just to slouch on the sofa and eat and sleep.

But, that's not the life you want, is it? You want to spend time with the people you love, the people you can really talk to. You need to unload every once in a while. And why not once a week?

Set one day a week aside for friends. It doesn't have to be a whole day, just a few hours. And you will not regret it. Just being able to bitch about that girl at school or work immediately cheers you up, because that's what cheers everyone up. Maybe meet up in a cafe and grab a coffee or, better yet, a tea. Or meet for some window shopping or even real shopping (lucky you!) because your friends will be honest when your bum looks big in that skirt or dress. Why not crash at one of your houses and share a bottle of wine? And then, when you're rather tipsy, order a take-away and stuff your faces.

If you have seperate groups of friends, then you'll just have to try harder: either bring them together or set aside different times for each. Your choice really.

You don't want to lose the people you care about, your secret confidences, your friends. So don't let it happen. Even if it's just a chat on the phone, don't let your friends disappear from your life, and don't let your life take over and stress you out.

What Happened to the Leading Lady?

2009-11-08T18:40:00.013Z

Once upon a time, the leading actress of a film was someone who oozed talent from their very soul. They didn't just play a character, they became that character. They were beautiful and pure and real.

Perhaps it's because times are changing, and with it the perception of beauty, and perhaps it's because I'm stuck in some time-warp, but the leading actresses of today leave very little to be praised and a lot to be desired.

Judy Garland is a perfect example of what a leading actress should be. Lets step back seventy years and see her as Dorothy Gale in what has became the most famous adaptation of The Wizard of Oz. She was a stunner, she poured her heart and sole into the role, and she became Dorothy.

By today's standards, especially in the world of film, our dear Dorothy is "fat". But by 1930s/1940s standards, she is just breathtaking. Do a quick comparison between her and Disney's Snow White (1937) and the resemblence is simply adorable.

You certainly wouldn't find those cubby little arms in films today!

Infact, today you'll find delightfully concave looking limbs, where orange skin is streched across a frame of bones and jutting hips are all the rage. The leading actress has very little to do apart from look "sexy", showing off as much flesh as possible and posing for over-photoshopped publicity photographs. A perfect example is screen diva and lads mags favourite Megan Fox.

Of course, there are exceptions, but they are hard to find and determine. The film industry seems to delight in "defining" beauty, and I feel it is now taking it to extremes. Everyone's perception of beauty is defined by what they see and how images are presented to them. I suggest bringing out all of the good old films of the pre-1980s and asking yourself what you think beauty is.

DOLLPHANE, CAN I HAZ TEA SET PLZ?

2009-11-07T17:05:00.005Z

Just incase you ever read this DP, it'd be a fabulous idea. And I will not stop bugging you until we get a tea set. Bwahahaha. I mean it.

My lovely tea obsession is drifting over into Miss Bimbo (which is a fabulous game and community by the way) and now my dear little Bimbo wants to drink tea.

We've just had a fabulous Slumber Party theme come out, and I really want to buy lots of stuff. The lingerie is gorgeous, I want some in real life! But I can't but anything, because I'm saving for that bloody sweet-as-a-nut mansion in France. I was hard pressed to keep myself civil there, as I won't have enough before the end of the year and I doubt I will have even by my birthday!

Just incase anyone wants to donate, I'm Corazie on Miss Bimbo *winkwink*

Oh, and I've been listening to Vera Lynn a lot. I hope Mother Dearest gets me the album for Christmas. "We'll Meet Again" makes me want to cry. Scrap that, it makes me cry.

I do belive that I just lost faith in fashion

2009-11-06T23:23:00.001Z

It is a sad, sad time right now.

My faith has been slipping for a while now, what with the denim leggings and cropped t-shirts and furry jackets. But now, my faith is gone. G.O.N.E.

Just look at this! It's all vile. And it's all "hot" in the world of fashion.

Well, thank you very much beloved designers, but I do not want to walk around dressed as Big Bird's bad haircut. Perhaps, if you cut it down until it was a shrug, then I may wear it on occassion, but that £412 dress ain't going near me.

Vivienne Tam's tye-dye dress is a waste of good silk. Why could it not have been left alone? I may have long hair, but I'm not a hippy and so I'm not high enough to ever, ever wear that dress.

Perhaps the biggest disappointment of all is Christopher Kane's biker jacket. Yet another waste of silk, and at £790 I almost choked. This would only look good on the divas of the fashionista world, and only then because their See by Chloé studded ankle boots are giving them a hint of salvation.

Crazy ideas

2009-11-06T21:18:00.000Z

I've decided to write to a few "famous" people and ask if I can take their picture. If I even get a response, I will be over the moon, and I won't really care if it's a "no ta".

I love documentary photography, it's what I'm all about really, and I've been exploring and experimenting with the genre, bringing new ideas and concepts in to it. And that's why I want to take some pictures of "famous" people. Failing that, I'll have to stick to "Paparazzi" and my dear friend Hayley shall never be without a camera bearing shadow!

It makes everything better

2009-11-06T14:56:00.001Z

Oh yes. Tea, it would seem, is the antidote for all of the worlds problems. So why not try it for yourself and see what happens. You're sure to smile!

Are you cold? Have a nice cup of tea.

A man getting you down? Have a nice cup of tea.

Fell unutterably depressed? Have a nice cup of tea.

Work piling up all around you? Have a nice cup of tea.

The apocalyse rearing its ugly head? Have a nice cup of tea.

Add some honey for extra sweetness and a slight sugar high. Or have some biscuits. Hey, you could even go all out, go the full hog, and enjoy Afternoon Tea. John Lewis does an absolutely fabulous example of this comfortably quaint tradition, and it's rivals Fenwicks are not far behind with the quality and taste.

But you don't need to spend that much on enjoying a good cup of tea. You don't even have to wear the Regency style dresses. A large box of Yorkshire Tea tesbags will only set you back a few pounds, and it's dark yet subtle falvour is fabulous. Just throw the tea bags in a teapot while you cut some scones and get the clotted cream out of the fridge.

Whittard of Chealsea is a little more expensive, but the exquisite leaf blends are really something else. The Jasmine is my favourite, I enjoy watching the little flowers hydrate and expand in the strainer. If you want to really indulge, they even do a range of flower-based teas, where you can watch a full bloom literally bloom in your tea cup. Magic.

If traditional black tea is not your thing, Alwnwick Apothecary do a simply fabulous range of handblended green leaf teas. My particular favourite is the Detox tea, with nettle and dandelion. You don't even have to travel to buy them, as they are now avaliable online. Just search on google.