Friday 30 September 2011

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge vist the Royal Marsden Hospital

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited the Royal Marsden Hospital on September 29th.














Wednesday 28 September 2011

The Toronto Star's Top European Royal Couples

Kate and William made another best-of list this week, this one for Coolest Couples of the summer of 2011.
Frankly, It would have been difficult for them not to crack that list considering their profile, but then again they only finished third in the Parade.com poll, behind Will Smith-Jada Pinkett and Jennifer Garner-Ben Affleck.

Go figure. Hardy seems fair to lump royals in with Hollywood types, so we've emerged with a new list, stacking up the sexiest European royal couples (well, as sexy as royals are allowed to get anyway). William and Kate are an automatic on this list too, so to keep the list interesting we'll make our Top 5 a Top 6. (Or Kate Plus 5, if you will).

 6. Denmark's Crown Prince Frederic and Princess Mary

Prince Frederik-Princess Mary
Happy-go-lucky bachelor Frederic, heir apparent to the Danish throne, finally settled down to wed an Australian marketing consultant, Mary Donaldson, in 2004. The couple has four children. Mary habitually makes the lists of the world's best dressed women and has become a much admired woman in her adopted country for the efforts she made to made sure she learned the Danish language.


5. Jordan's King Abdullah bin Al-Hussein and Queen Rania

Queen Rania

This pair has been married since 1993 and have four children. Fashionable and outgoing, they have also been the subject of corruption allegations and are living in an Arab world that is undergoing huge upheaval. In a region where royalty has become suspect, they still manage to maintain high public standing at home and abroad. The ever-photogenic Rania is the world’s youngest queen at 41 and one of its most energetic. She leads a variety of domestic and international causes largely focussed on education.

4. Spain's Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia

Princess Letizia and Crown Prince Felipe

Felipe, Prince of Asturias, is next in line for the Spanish throne. He and Princess Letizia have been married since 2004 and have two girls. Two unusual aspects to this couple. One, Letizia had been married before, albeit briefly. Second, she was a journalist before marrying Felipe. Sort of a Spanish version of 'sleeping with the enemy.'

3. The Netherlands' Prince Willem-Alexander and Princess Alexander

Maxima
This is a couple that got off to a rocky start. Maxima is the daughter of a politician who was a minister in the repressive regime of Jorge Videla. She met Willem-Alexander in 1999 and controversey about her father's past dogged them after they announced their marriage in 2001. Neither of her parents attended the wedding. Despite stumbling out the gate, the couple has emerged as one of Europe's most popular couples, displaying an uncommonly common touch in their everyday lives as raise their three daughters. Maxima was even named the most popular Dutch royal, even beating out Queen Beatrix.

2. Sweden's Prince Daniel and Crown Princess Victoria

Princess victoria-Daniel Westling
Crown Princess Victoria is next in line for the Swedish throne and for her consort she chose Daniel Westing, a personal trainer. Like the case of Will and Kate, the marriage of these two in 2010 prompted a spike in interest in the Swedish royal family. That popularity heightened more last month when it was announced the couple is expecting their first child in March 2012.

1. Britain's Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge


Prince William and kate

No need to get too much into this couple. Their slow journey into royals duties seems to only heighten the public's interest in their lives. The couple maintains a home in London's Kensington Palace, but they manage to spend most of their time in Wales, where they lead very non-royal lives. Kate's emergence as a fashion trend-setter -- whole websites are devoted to what she wears -- makes her a constant presence in the media even when as she tries to hide from the spotlight. They are clearly the couple by which the royals are being judged these days and, so far, they are earning high marks. Perhaps the only thing that will top their ratings is the announcement of their first child.

Article from: http://thestar.blogs.com/royals/

The Duchess of Cambridge Shops at Top Shop

The Duchess of Cambridge has almost direct access to The Crown Jewels. She wore the Queen's Cartier Halo tiara on her wedding day, and borrowed her grandmother-in-law's maple leaf brooch for her official trip to Canada.

But refreshingly down-to-earth Kate is not yet past hesitating over buying a pair of £8.50 earrings.

The young royal shopped at Topshop on High Street Kensington, West London on Monday evening. And although she splashed out more than £100 on three items, she left an extra pair of earrings with the cashier at the last minute.
That extra £8.50 obviously seemed just a little too decadent.

It is the first time Kate has been spotted in her local Topshop, which is just a couple of minute's walk away from her London residence, Kensington Palace.

And although the staff were discreet while the Duchess browsed the rails, as soon as she left the cashier made an announcement to inform the staff that they had just served their future queen.

Kate mega-fan, and gushing fashion blogger Ashlin, from getwhatkatewore.com, was behind the Duchess in the queue for the tills.

She said: 'I was so starstruck that I was shaking and I had to ask myself “am I alive?”.'
Kate, who had a wallet through of rewards cards, splashed her cash on a trendy teal spot pencil skirt (£38) that was seen on dozens of fashionistas at London Fashion Week.

She also bought a more classic cobalt-blue velvet trim boucle jacket (£65) and a pair of golden roundish earrings with a feather motif.

The pair of earrings the Duchess changed her mind about at the last minute were large oval golden studs

Kate's newest skirt and earrings are already sold out, and the Topshop jacket is now only available in size 14.

Reality TV star Kendra Wilkinson might be the first to recreate the look. The former Playboy bunny is so keen to dress like the young royal she has hired UK stylist Nikki Pennie, who is credited with having introduced Kate to Issa.

Ashlin, who had just popped into Topshop to return a dress, said: 'According to the cashier, Kate was actually in the store for a bit browsing and even went into the fitting rooms to try her clothes on.'

The salesman was also impressed by how down to earth Kate was:

'She was low-key and casual – she seemed so normal,' the Topshop staffer who served her told People magazine. 'She was really chilled out despite some customers in the queue behind her saying, "Oh my God it’s her" and pointing – she didn’t seem fazed by it all and she was really sweet.'

Kate will step out on a more official engagement tomorrow, when she opens a children's cancer center at the Royal Marsden Hospital with her husband, Prince William.
Perhaps it will be the first outing for that lovely teal skirt?


Here are the items that she purchased:




Above left, the earrings Kate purchased, the pair on the right are the ones she left behind




Article is from the Daily Mail: (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2042779/Kate-Middleton-shops-Topshop--hesitates-8-50-pair-earrings.html).

Thursday 8 September 2011

"One NEVER counted one's calories: The Queen Mum's favourite recipes, including After Eight ice cream and tipsy tart"


Dubonnet and gin before lunch. Martinis at 6pm and Veuve Clicquot champagne with dinner. Her favourite recipes came doused in double cream, expensive liqueurs and brandy syrups — and yet she lived to be 101.

The Queen Mother had a remarkable appetite for food and drink. This week sees the publication of A Taste Of Mey, a collection of recipes — with a foreword written by the Prince of Wales — from former staff and guests at the Queen Mother’s Scottish residence, the Castle of Mey.


Oeufs Drumkilbo

A picnic favourite of Her Majesty’s, Oeufs Drumkilbo is described as ‘a posh prawn cocktail and egg mayonnaise wrapped into one’. The dish provided hearty ballast for afternoons of vigorous walking in Scotland, and was served at the wedding breakfast of Prince Andrew and Fergie.

Modern twist: The dish featured prawns and eggs, like this one
Modern twist: The dish featured prawns and eggs, like this one

SERVES 6

450 ml mayonnaise
4 diced hard boiled eggs
225g prawns (cooked but chilled)
225g diced lobster (cooked but chilled)
3 diced tomatoes (skinned and de-seeded)
1 dessertspoon anchovy essence
6 drops Tabasco sauce
1 dessertspoon tomato puree
4 sheets leaf gelatine
150 ml warm fish stock

Soak the gelatine in cold water, then dissolve it in the fish stock and allow to cool. Place the mayonnaise in a bowl and add half the cooled gelatine. Add all the other ingredients to the mayonnaise mixture and stir carefully to combine. Place it in a china or glass bowl and chill until set. Glaze with the remaining gelatine, decorate at will and allow to set. Serve with fingers of brown bread, mustard and cress.

Tipsy Tart

SERVES 8

100g dates chopped
150ml boiling water
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
125g butter softened
225g sugar
1 egg beaten
150g plain flour
For the syrup:
100g sugar
50ml water
1 teaspoon butter
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
25ml brandy (and a drop more to taste)

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas 4 and grease a 20cm pie dish. Soak the dates in the bicarbonate of soda and boiling water till soft.


Leave to cool. Cream butter and sugar together with the egg. Sift dry ingredients into mixture, fold in, then add dates and walnuts. Place it into a pie dish and bake for about 30 minutes (until a skewer comes out clean).

For the syrup, dissolve sugar and water on the stove until the mixture has thickened a little.

Remove from the stove and stir in vanilla essence, butter and brandy. Pour syrup over tart and serve with cream or ice cream


Read the full article: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2034919/The-Queen-Mums-favourite-recipes-including-After-Eight-ice-cream-tipsy-tart.html

Wednesday 7 September 2011

The Ancient Art of Face-Reading

The Daily Mail reported today that it is said that you can tell a person's personality by looking at their facial features.

Here's what the Mail said about Kate (The Duchess of Cambridge).

She has a wide jaw, a short wide forehead, a small nose, long flat eyebrows and large eyes, and so that makes her an "earth face".

These are the traits of an earth face:

"Stability and security are your watchwords. You’re methodical, practical and down to earth. Withdrawn and shy, you take a while to open up, but once you’ve let someone into your life you are utterly loyal and steadfast.

Earth energy is associated with jealousy — you feel things very deeply and take  a long time to forgive betrayal. Totally reliable, you’re perceptive and thoughtful and won’t don’t do anything in a hurry.


You aren’t interested in quick fixes, so although others may think you slow and plodding, you do things your own way and in your own time. You have a strongly-developed sense of justice and a clear sense of right and wrong.


The Duchess of Cambridge has a typical earth face with her well-developed jaw, long eyebrows and deep-set eyes. She has very high standards, is hard-working and utterly loyal.

She will offer comfort and steadfast reassurance to her husband. William has a lot of wood energy in his face. He’ll be reckless and enthusiastic for new projects, but not that keen on seeing them through.


Catherine will have a calming influence on him. Earth people value family above all else and dedicate themselves to ensuring that their loved ones are safe and secure."


To see what your facial features reveal, click here for the full article:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2034843/Is-personality-written-face-Revealed-new-book-ancient-art-face-reading-.html


Tuesday 6 September 2011

"Why a young virgin must not look a lusty man in the eye... and other compelling lifestyle advice for the Englishwoman of 1740"

The Daily Mail reports that a new rare book has surfaced, one of a didactic nature of the "Fairer Sex" in the 1700s.

"She that listens to wanton discourse has violated her ears.

This stern warning may sound a little severe – but in 1740 it was seen as essential to preserving the honour of many a blushing maiden.

It is among hundreds of pearls of wisdom dispensed in one of Britain’s first  self-help books, written to help women resist life’s temptations.

Grandly titled The Lady’s Companion: or an Infallible Guide to the Fair Sex, it features advice on everything from baking to fending off the advances of lusty men.

The rare book, which has just surfaced in a private collection, claims to be essential reading for ‘virgins, wives or widows’.

Experts believe it is one of the earliest examples of the modern self-help book – proving that while many things have changed in the last three centuries, we’ve always had a weakness for so-called ‘expert advice’.

Among the gems on offer is a warning to virgins that having impure thoughts is a ‘deflowering of the mind’.

Meanwhile wives are advised that their duty to their husbands is ‘first to his person, secondly to his reputation; thirdly to his fortune’.
 

The volume would have originally cost around three shillings but is expected to fetch up to £2,000 when it goes on sale at Bloomsbury Auctions in London on September 22.

The sale also features Britain’s most extensive collection of historical cookbooks, some of which date back to the reign of Henry VIII.
One, A Perfect School of Instructions for the Officers of the Mouth, was published in 1682 and includes a bizarre recipe for a tart containing the entire body of a tortoise.

The author of The Lady’s Companion, whose name is not recorded, aims to advise women at three stages of their lives – as ‘virgins, wives or widows’.
Those who fall into none of the categories – the spinsters – are given the alarming warning: ‘An old maid is now thought such a curse.’

In the chapter titled Duty of Virgins, young girls are told: ‘Every indecent curiosity or impure Fancy is a deflowering of the mind…she that listens to wanton discourse has violated her ears.’

And when in the company of lusty men, they are advised not to look them in the eye, as ‘one careless glance gives more advantage than a hundred words’.
For wives, there is a whole chapter on A Wife’s Behaviour to a Drunkard – which simply advises them to grin and bear it.
It reads: ‘We will suppose that the Husband loves Wine more than is Convenient…but a wife may still live without being miserable.’

The tips are just as grim for widows, who must spend their remaining years faithful to ‘his body, his memory and his children’.

But while it is far removed from modern self-help books, experts say the guide gives a vivid portrayal of women in 18th century society.

Justin Phillips, a specialist at the auction house, said: ‘The book was generally for ladies in the middle to upper classes. Perhaps they might be newly wealthy and aiming to better themselves.

‘It paints a picture of a society where the man is at the head of the household, but clearly it was the lady that was running it.

‘Self improvement was just as important then as it is now – the desire to “Keep up with the Jones”.’
He added: ‘Of course, a lot of the things it warned of probably went on behind closed doors anyway.’"


Link: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2034104/Lifestyle-advice-Englishwoman-1740-hammer.html

Friday 2 September 2011

Pippa Middleton Gets a Ticket!

The Daily Mail reports today that Pippa Middleton recently got a ticket. It was also not so very long ago that her car got clamped! It seems like Pippa doesn't mind paying big time for a prime parking spot!


Pippa's most recent car-park incident


Getting clamped in Chelsea


Read the full article: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2032889/Pippa-Middleton-gets-parking-penalty-warden-tickets-BMW-convertible.html

Thursday 1 September 2011

Dress Like the Duchess of Cambridge for Under $100!

Check out Cosmo's site for tips on dressing like Kate!



Click Here: http://www.cosmopolitan.com/celebrity/fashion/kate-middleton-style-for-less

Zara and Half-Sister Together

"Newlywed Zara Phillips and her half-sister Stephanie, 13, daughter of Captain Mark Phillips and his American wife Sandy, were pictured together at the Burghley horse trials in Stamford, Lincolnshire, yesterday.
Stephanie was a bridesmaid at Zara’s wedding to England rugby star Mike Tindall in July and both sisters are expected to compete in the 50th anniversary three day event.

Zara has another half-sister on the other side of the world, who she has never met – Felicity Tonkin, 26, the love child of Captain Phillips who lives on a farm in New Zealand with her mother, Heather.They appear to share a passion for horses – Zara is a world champion three-day eventer and Felicity is an equine vet."



Read the full article: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2032397/Zara-Phillips-big-hug-half-sister-Stephanie-13.html

The Duchess of Cambridge and Pippa Middleton First to Try Lancome's New Product!

According to the Daily Mail, Kate and Pippa are among the few people who will try Lancome's new product first!

"The Duchess of Cambridge and her sister Pippa are to become the first among a lucky few in Britain to get their hands on a new 'miracle' beauty cream.
The two have been sent Lancome's Visionnaire serum, a new product in such high demand that it has generated waiting lists of thousands across the nation.
But Kate and Pippa - along with Harry Potter star Emma Watson, 21, who is an ambassador for the skincare brand - managed to bypass the months-long lists after being sent bottles of the product, which devotees claim is so effective at correcting skin imperfections that it eradicates the need for Botox.

An insider at the brand confirmed that the Middleton sisters and Emma Watson, 21, had been sent bottles of Visionnaire, saying that as 'loyal customers' of Lancome, they would have been sent the product to try as a 'goodwill gesture'.

The Duchess of Cambridge has long been a fan of Lancome - ahead of her wedding she was spotted replenish her stocks of the brand's mascara and Hydra Zen moisturiser."


Which Lancome Mascara do you think that the Duchess buys and wears? I think it might be the brand's Mascara called "Hypnose"


Read the full article: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2032547/Duchess-Cambridge-Pippa-Emma-Watson-try-Lancomes-miracle-cream-Visionnaire.html