The Cosmo fashion Awards kicked off at 8.30am yesterday for the third year and this year was more exciting than ever after Justine Southall announced that the categories were tighter than ever after 1st, 2nd, 3rd was scrapped in favour of Winner and Highly Commended.
Kensington Roof Gardens once again played host and the all important canapes included: Salmon n cream cheese, fruit skewers and pastries...tasty.
The awards kicked off in usual style and the winners were:
Denim: River Island
Lingerie: La Senza
Playwear: Karen Millen
Ethical Retailer: People Tree
One stop shopping: Next
Sexiest Heels: Faith
Workwear: Dorothy Perkins
Jewellery: Accessories
Sports: Nike
Best Bargains: Boo Hoo
Online retailer: Asos
Lust designer: D & G
Bags: New Look
Watches: Guess
Curves: Evans
I think the awards were pretty spot on and after chatting with a few friends we left with our goody bags and were pleased to find enclosed, some rather delish little treats.
T-shirt from Missimo, Rollasole shoes, make-up from Elf and yummy Thorntons chocs were definite highlights! Not a bad way to spend your morning tbh ;-)
Friday, 5 March 2010
Up early and attending the Cosmo Fashion Awards 2010, was not a bad way to start the day...especially considering the sun the shining like a bitch!
Set in Kensington Roof Gardens, the creme da la Creme of Fashion PRs and insiders all gather round to bitch, snitch and admire/compare outfits. I went in for grey and red ensemble in the form of pencil skirt and very high heels.
Canapes: Salmon n cream cheese, fruit skewers, pastries..
Beverages: Juice, tea and coffee...
Set in Kensington Roof Gardens, the creme da la Creme of Fashion PRs and insiders all gather round to bitch, snitch and admire/compare outfits. I went in for grey and red ensemble in the form of pencil skirt and very high heels.
Canapes: Salmon n cream cheese, fruit skewers, pastries..
Beverages: Juice, tea and coffee...
River Island
YUM. River Island. You blow me away once again.
Every year you come up trumps and this season is no exception - beautiful, unique shoes and exceptional accessories. Take a peek...
Every year you come up trumps and this season is no exception - beautiful, unique shoes and exceptional accessories. Take a peek...
£29.99, £74.99 and £36.99
The tiniest details can make a massive difference to any outfit - I will be teaming these beautiful t-bar flats with a cute little gunmental dress. Bliss - if only this sunshine was a little warmer.
Friday, 19 February 2010
I cannot wait to fall down the Rabbit hole that is Alice in Wonderland. I have, along with millions of other Alice and Tim Burton fans, been waiting for the arrival of this majestic 3D masterpiece for quite some time.
'Drink me' glass bottle necklace £30
Gold plated Pocket Watch earrings £14
Silver plated Pocket Watch earrings £14
Brass Key bangle £30
Ladies Alice in Wonderland t-shirt £24.99
Ladies 'I beg your pardon' t-shirt £24.99
All items are available from http://www.truffleshuffle.com/
I watch the trailer on Flixster on my iphone, at least once a week to keep that momentum going; it really has turned into something of an obsession.
Not only that, Alice is one of my favourite books and Disney films and as a youngster I played Alice in a school play, so the history goes a long way back.
As part of my Alice quest, I have been on the hunt for Alice goodies and have come across some delicious little treats on Truffleshuffle .com - my absolute fav place for all things retro!
'Drink me' glass bottle necklace £30Gold plated Pocket Watch earrings £14
Silver plated Pocket Watch earrings £14
Brass Key bangle £30
Ladies Alice in Wonderland t-shirt £24.99
Ladies 'I beg your pardon' t-shirt £24.99
All items are available from http://www.truffleshuffle.com/
I can say with absolute conviction that I will be purchasing several of these goodies - namely the glass bottle as it is deliciiooous!
Amazing.
K
Wednesday, 3 February 2010
The quest for the perfect hair stylist...
I am pretty fussy. I like things a certain way, although many would say I am fairly laid back. Sill things really...I like my bacon crispy; coffee has to be strong and creamy, coke has to be Pepsi, kisses have to be slow and fierce or fast and passionate (none of that inbetweeny crap) and post-its have to be pink. Based on all of this - my choice of hairdresser has taken a beating over the years. My friend was perfect until she gave up and since then I have flitted and flirted between stylists, looking for someone who engages with me, gives me the perfect hairstyle and comes in on budget. 
Luckily, I have found the perfect hairdresser. Back in November I blogged about a fabulous stylist at Saks, Kings Hill, Kent. Silly Melon, as she is affectionately known - otherwise known as Mel has cured my stylist phobia and I am in hair heaven.
She is the one stylist I have happily and excitedly returned to (as opposed to grudgingly, cos they kinda got it right at my last appointment...) and every time I am glad I did.
The team welcome you with big smiles, coffee (strong and creamy! YUM) is always on offer, the gossip is always interesting and most importantly the girls who look after you seem to have robot memories - "I remember last time you were doing this/that/the other" A-M-Azing...
So next on my list at Kings Hill:
Nails
Spray Tan (clearly the daylight hours are getting longer - I need to start prepping!)
Eyebrow tint
Here's to the hair!
Saks Hair and Beauty, David Lloyd Leisure, 21A Kings Hill Avenue, West Malling, Kent
ME19 4UA. 01732 843445
Luckily, I have found the perfect hairdresser. Back in November I blogged about a fabulous stylist at Saks, Kings Hill, Kent. Silly Melon, as she is affectionately known - otherwise known as Mel has cured my stylist phobia and I am in hair heaven.
She is the one stylist I have happily and excitedly returned to (as opposed to grudgingly, cos they kinda got it right at my last appointment...) and every time I am glad I did.
The team welcome you with big smiles, coffee (strong and creamy! YUM) is always on offer, the gossip is always interesting and most importantly the girls who look after you seem to have robot memories - "I remember last time you were doing this/that/the other" A-M-Azing...
So next on my list at Kings Hill:
Nails
Spray Tan (clearly the daylight hours are getting longer - I need to start prepping!)
Eyebrow tint
Here's to the hair!
Saks Hair and Beauty, David Lloyd Leisure, 21A Kings Hill Avenue, West Malling, Kent
ME19 4UA. 01732 843445
Reiki
I am excited by the news that I will be learning the mystics of Reiki. I have had Reiki twice now and both times I have come away feeling blown away by the feelings that surge throughout me afterwards - as well as feeling better and healthier.
The Royal Day Spa in Tunbridge Wells will be my centre of learning, but as I know so little at the moment, I am offering you a little insight into the world of Reiki, via one of the senior therapists at the spa.
Reiki - What is it?
Reiki is a hands on healing method, used to channel life force energy. The practitioner giving reiki, channels the energy through the body and out of the hands to treat the recipient or themselves.
The main benefits of Reiki:
Encourages the bodies natural ability to self heal
Functions on a mental, spiritual, physical and emotional level
Helps to balance the bodies energy
Strengthens the body and soul
Helps to rid the body of accumulated toxins
Reiki has a logic of its own, knowing where and to what extent it is required.
It works with not only people but animals and plants
Is an extremely pleasant and safe healing method
It can help with depression and any physical or mental illnesses
Can help grieving family members and to release past emotional pain
The history of Reiki:
It is believed that a man called Mikao Usui who was born back in August 15th 1865 in the Yamagata of Gifu prefecture Japan. Usui was looking for a way of knowing one's life purpose and to be content, and despite all his exhaustive research, he could not find away to achieve this state. The monks advice, promoted him to go to mount Kurama and carry out a 21 day tendai Buddhist meditation and fast called the lotus repentance. According his memorial stone, he experienced an enlightenment or 'satori' that led to the development of reiki. So it is said that reiki is represented in Japan in the early part of the last century.
For a long time in the west, people thought reiki had died out in japan and that the reiki that was left was to a lady called Mrs Takata. Mrs Takata was a very strict reiki master, who taught reiki to her students, but made the burn all information and symbols taught to them after they had spent years studying them. This was to stop anyone from stealing and corrupting the reiki teaching.
The information we now have about the original version of reiki comes from a number of different sources, and two of the mot well known of these are frank Arjava Petter and Hiroshi Doi. Arava Petter is a WWestern reiki master who lives and works in japan and has published 3 books based on his research there. However more detailed information has been made available in the west by a Japanese man called Hiroshi Doi.
What you might call the original reiki from Japan is very different from western reiki. The basis Of Japanese reiki combines three activities: daily energy exercises, hand scanning and intuitive techniques and regular spiritual empowerment. Reiki trainees would have to practice daily exercises called Hatsu-Rei-Ho which is designed to strengthen and purify there reiki empowerment, increasing their effectiveness of reiki channelling.
The western form of reiki is almost a copy from Japanese reiki, but is just snippets of information that has slipped out of the Japanese masters hands. However because the information the western reiki is a small amount, it has allowed us to develop the and play with the reiki energy and is just as effective as the Japanese style reiki.
There is a lot more to reiki than we have yet experienced. Reiki that is being used, has produced amazing results and changed many peoples lives in incredible ways. There is a lot more information that we have yet to learn, so this is a very exciting time to be involved in reiki blessings!
I look forward to keeping you updated with my progress. K
The Royal Day Spa in Tunbridge Wells will be my centre of learning, but as I know so little at the moment, I am offering you a little insight into the world of Reiki, via one of the senior therapists at the spa.
Reiki - What is it?
Reiki is a hands on healing method, used to channel life force energy. The practitioner giving reiki, channels the energy through the body and out of the hands to treat the recipient or themselves.
The main benefits of Reiki:
Encourages the bodies natural ability to self heal
Functions on a mental, spiritual, physical and emotional level
Helps to balance the bodies energy
Strengthens the body and soul
Helps to rid the body of accumulated toxins
Reiki has a logic of its own, knowing where and to what extent it is required.
It works with not only people but animals and plants
Is an extremely pleasant and safe healing method
It can help with depression and any physical or mental illnesses
Can help grieving family members and to release past emotional pain
The history of Reiki:
It is believed that a man called Mikao Usui who was born back in August 15th 1865 in the Yamagata of Gifu prefecture Japan. Usui was looking for a way of knowing one's life purpose and to be content, and despite all his exhaustive research, he could not find away to achieve this state. The monks advice, promoted him to go to mount Kurama and carry out a 21 day tendai Buddhist meditation and fast called the lotus repentance. According his memorial stone, he experienced an enlightenment or 'satori' that led to the development of reiki. So it is said that reiki is represented in Japan in the early part of the last century.
For a long time in the west, people thought reiki had died out in japan and that the reiki that was left was to a lady called Mrs Takata. Mrs Takata was a very strict reiki master, who taught reiki to her students, but made the burn all information and symbols taught to them after they had spent years studying them. This was to stop anyone from stealing and corrupting the reiki teaching.
The information we now have about the original version of reiki comes from a number of different sources, and two of the mot well known of these are frank Arjava Petter and Hiroshi Doi. Arava Petter is a WWestern reiki master who lives and works in japan and has published 3 books based on his research there. However more detailed information has been made available in the west by a Japanese man called Hiroshi Doi.
What you might call the original reiki from Japan is very different from western reiki. The basis Of Japanese reiki combines three activities: daily energy exercises, hand scanning and intuitive techniques and regular spiritual empowerment. Reiki trainees would have to practice daily exercises called Hatsu-Rei-Ho which is designed to strengthen and purify there reiki empowerment, increasing their effectiveness of reiki channelling.
The western form of reiki is almost a copy from Japanese reiki, but is just snippets of information that has slipped out of the Japanese masters hands. However because the information the western reiki is a small amount, it has allowed us to develop the and play with the reiki energy and is just as effective as the Japanese style reiki.
There is a lot more to reiki than we have yet experienced. Reiki that is being used, has produced amazing results and changed many peoples lives in incredible ways. There is a lot more information that we have yet to learn, so this is a very exciting time to be involved in reiki blessings!
I look forward to keeping you updated with my progress. K
Tuesday, 26 January 2010
Interview: Beauty PR Lucy Dartford
Beauty interview:
Lucy Dartford
Public Relations
Age 26
Having studied Fashion Promotion at the University for the Creative Arts
(UCA) in Epsom I immediately knew PR and marketing was an area I wanted to further explore. I really enjoyed networking and meeting new people.
On leaving uni, I worked at a leading fashion, beauty and lifestyle PR company working as an intern. Worked long hours and didn’t get paid but watched, listen and learnt how a real PR company was run.
I worked closely with everyone from account execs, account managers through to the directors and further developed the skills I learnt at university, for example, writing press releases, launch parties, copy-writing etc I got stuck in as much as the job allowed. I was then promoted to PR Assistant and started to get more involved in various accounts. It was at this stage that I knew beauty and fashion was my forte.
Due to the size of the company and low salary, developing within this company was looking difficult so I chose to go my own way. Within my time at
at this PR company, I had personally built up my own contacts database and had a strong understanding of how this industry worked. I had also formed several close relationships with various journalists and magazine editors
In order to get some money together and consider the possibility of working for myself, I worked as a make up consultant for YSL. It was during this time that I was approached by Jinny Lash, the eyelash extension specialists.
The company director knew of my previous PR experience and needed a strategy
that would inject some excitement into her brand. I devised and pitched a PR
strategy with the previous knowledge from university and my time at the initial PR company. I was then appointed PR consultant for Jinny Lash and began my campaign.
Over time i achieved some good results, which were echoed in sales and dramatically increased revenue and gave me the buzz to continue and achieve more. During this time, i began researching other PR companies and hired a graphic designer to design my own company corporate ID. On registering myself as a PR consultant, my corporate ID was then fed into various marketing material such as business cards, letter head etc
Through my work with Jinny Lash, I joined forces with numerous companies such as Ann Summers/ Knickerbox and previewed the eyelash technique at their press days. This offered me a platform to reconnect with various journalists/ editors and reintroduce myself as a freelance PR consultant. It was around this time that Jinny Rainbow, sister company to Jinny Lash also enlisted my services.
During my time with Jinny Lash and Jinny Rainbow, I was head hunted by Tracie Giles, CEO of Tracie Giles International, and N0.1 Harley Street. Having seen the results I was achieving for the Jinny brand, we joined forces.
I have now been operating for approximately 6 months and have since been approached and pitched for 3 more brands: 2 beauty brands and 1 fashion house. I have also enlisted a fantastic web design team who will launch my website end Feb.
Highlights have included:
-Achieving high quality editorial in consumer press including Tatler, Marie Claire and The Daily Mail which resulted in impressive profit growth and SEO rankings -Working with various celebrities to achieve some great endorsement -Working alongside high profile companies and brands for various promotions including Juicy Couture perfume launch, Ann Summers/ Knickerbox press days and OK celebrity parties -being interviewed for TV and radio shows, Wedding TV being the most recent -being interviewed and photographed for Boots magazine and Essentials magazines (both out in Feb I believe) -Assisting in the growth of the Jinny brand and launching brand into Selfridges and other major retail locations
What you love most:
I really enjoy being my own boss. I am free to use my own knowledge and intuition to devise various PR campaigns and strategies. I get a huge sense of satisfaction when a strategy is successful and love to exceed client expectations. I love meeting new people and have the privilege of working with some of the worlds most inspirational women and men everyday. There is nothing better than waking up and loving what you do.
Challenges you face day to day:
Sometimes there just doesn't seem to be enough time in the day!
Working for myself means I do everything myself! From press releases to last minute press requests to updating reports, I have to be on the ball and available at all times of the day which can often continue late into the evening and weekends. I also have to constantly recalibrate and readjust my company expenditure with imperative databases and portals such as Gorkana and Beauty4media.
The Future:
Moving forward and on launching my website, I hope to expand and perhaps take on another member of staff.
Lucy Dartford
Public Relations
Age 26
Having studied Fashion Promotion at the University for the Creative Arts
(UCA) in Epsom I immediately knew PR and marketing was an area I wanted to further explore. I really enjoyed networking and meeting new people.
On leaving uni, I worked at a leading fashion, beauty and lifestyle PR company working as an intern. Worked long hours and didn’t get paid but watched, listen and learnt how a real PR company was run.
I worked closely with everyone from account execs, account managers through to the directors and further developed the skills I learnt at university, for example, writing press releases, launch parties, copy-writing etc I got stuck in as much as the job allowed. I was then promoted to PR Assistant and started to get more involved in various accounts. It was at this stage that I knew beauty and fashion was my forte.
Due to the size of the company and low salary, developing within this company was looking difficult so I chose to go my own way. Within my time at
at this PR company, I had personally built up my own contacts database and had a strong understanding of how this industry worked. I had also formed several close relationships with various journalists and magazine editors
In order to get some money together and consider the possibility of working for myself, I worked as a make up consultant for YSL. It was during this time that I was approached by Jinny Lash, the eyelash extension specialists.
The company director knew of my previous PR experience and needed a strategy
that would inject some excitement into her brand. I devised and pitched a PR
strategy with the previous knowledge from university and my time at the initial PR company. I was then appointed PR consultant for Jinny Lash and began my campaign.
Over time i achieved some good results, which were echoed in sales and dramatically increased revenue and gave me the buzz to continue and achieve more. During this time, i began researching other PR companies and hired a graphic designer to design my own company corporate ID. On registering myself as a PR consultant, my corporate ID was then fed into various marketing material such as business cards, letter head etc
Through my work with Jinny Lash, I joined forces with numerous companies such as Ann Summers/ Knickerbox and previewed the eyelash technique at their press days. This offered me a platform to reconnect with various journalists/ editors and reintroduce myself as a freelance PR consultant. It was around this time that Jinny Rainbow, sister company to Jinny Lash also enlisted my services.
During my time with Jinny Lash and Jinny Rainbow, I was head hunted by Tracie Giles, CEO of Tracie Giles International, and N0.1 Harley Street. Having seen the results I was achieving for the Jinny brand, we joined forces.
I have now been operating for approximately 6 months and have since been approached and pitched for 3 more brands: 2 beauty brands and 1 fashion house. I have also enlisted a fantastic web design team who will launch my website end Feb.
Highlights have included:
-Achieving high quality editorial in consumer press including Tatler, Marie Claire and The Daily Mail which resulted in impressive profit growth and SEO rankings -Working with various celebrities to achieve some great endorsement -Working alongside high profile companies and brands for various promotions including Juicy Couture perfume launch, Ann Summers/ Knickerbox press days and OK celebrity parties -being interviewed for TV and radio shows, Wedding TV being the most recent -being interviewed and photographed for Boots magazine and Essentials magazines (both out in Feb I believe) -Assisting in the growth of the Jinny brand and launching brand into Selfridges and other major retail locations
What you love most:
I really enjoy being my own boss. I am free to use my own knowledge and intuition to devise various PR campaigns and strategies. I get a huge sense of satisfaction when a strategy is successful and love to exceed client expectations. I love meeting new people and have the privilege of working with some of the worlds most inspirational women and men everyday. There is nothing better than waking up and loving what you do.
Challenges you face day to day:
Sometimes there just doesn't seem to be enough time in the day!
Working for myself means I do everything myself! From press releases to last minute press requests to updating reports, I have to be on the ball and available at all times of the day which can often continue late into the evening and weekends. I also have to constantly recalibrate and readjust my company expenditure with imperative databases and portals such as Gorkana and Beauty4media.
The Future:
Moving forward and on launching my website, I hope to expand and perhaps take on another member of staff.
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