Beat the blues: get bright and beautiful with Susanna Reid’s terrific turquoise look
/It's been a quiet week on here, due to me ending up in hospital dehydrated from norovirus. Not the most fun time. Needless to say I'm too tired to be blogging right now, so in the meantime please enjoy this guest post with some pre-party season tips.
The news may be gloomy, but BBC Breakfast presenter Susanna Reid brightened up the red carpet with this bold outfit. Susanna has recently been strutting her stuff in the latest series of Strictly Come Dancing, and although she's said she finds the moves tricky to pick up, her sunny personality, can-do attitude and fancy footwork have won her plenty of fans.
Viewers familiar with her professional television persona have come to see that there’s more to this reporter than current affairs. Even away from the dance floor, Susanna's fun and quirky nature shine through in this turquoise outfit accented with glitzy silver accessories.
Pick a colour
Susanna leaves the little black dress behind and makes a strong style statement with her bright colour choice. This outfit is not for the wallflowers, as it draws the eye from tip to toe. The aqua dress beautifully emphasises Susanna’s golden tan and brunette locks, while the simple cut and sparse accessories keep her looking bubbly rather than tacky. Channel Susanna's bold style with this v-neck drape dress. Not quite as bright as her turquoise number but still certain to grab attention, the gentle powder blue and draped design make this a fun and flattering alternative to the LBD for party season.
Twinkle toes
These sparkly silver peep-toe courts are an excellent match for Susanna’s killer platforms and the perfect accompaniment to a statement dress in any colour. If you’re looking for a little less twinkle or a lower heel, check out the range of court shoes from Isme, with shades and styles to complement any outfit including this season’s pastels and tartans.
Perfect pins
Susanna opts for a bare-legged look to show off her flawless tan and well-defined calf muscles. If you’re brave enough to bare your pins for a party, consider using a tinted body lotion or getting a light spray tan to even up your skin tone. Even if you decide to cover up with skin-coloured tights, exfoliate daily with a body brush using long strokes towards the heart, and put plenty of moisturiser on your legs at night to keep them looking smooth and soft. If you don't have time to hit the exercise bike every day, your high heels will make your legs look longer and slimmer, no workout required.
Accessorise wisely
Follow Susanna’s lead and choose a belt that matches your shoes, finishing with sparkly but subtle jewellery to keep the look simple but perfectly coordinated,
Fresh-faced, tanned and beaming, Susanna’s bright look has an air of the holiday feel about it. It might not be possible to squeeze in a relaxing spa break or even just a day off before dressing up for your special occasion, but a dash of bronzer and a bright smile are just the ticket for completing this chic and confident ensemble.
Turn Your Kid's Bath Into a Disco & They Splash the Dirt Away
/This underwater light show from IWantOneofThose.com is a nice stocking filler at £7.99 It can be set to cycle colours, or remain on one relaxing shade.
It's one of the gifts in IWOOT's huge 3 for £20 offer, a handy way to get lots of the fiddly presents out of the way in one swoop.
Reindeer Shaped Nut Cracker
/The Stellar Rudolph Nutcracker. Leave it out as a threat to Santa to show what you'll do if he doesn't bring the right gift! Get yours from Amazon or Palmers' Stores.
A Lidl Bit of Christmas Magic
/Last night my boys and I attended a Lidl Christmas launch event in James Streer South, Belfast. Lidl's top chef Ian Orr supplied us with a savoury and sweet buffet of delights, all straight from the supermarket shelves. He also served up a starter of crab claws, and a main meal with traditional turkey with roasted chestnuts.
The desserts all got a definitive thumbs up from little Michael. I've already a mental shopping list of the delights we tried made. The deluxe collection arrives in store around 25th November.
Do You Like Glitter? What about Taxidermy? How about Both Combined at a bargain price?
/Spotted in B&M Springhill, Bangor store. A cherry red, glitter encrusted stag's head, as part of their Christmas range. Also available in gold glitter or silver sparkle. The best part is the price, only £7.99 and it's the kind of decoration I would keep up all year, as my house is a zoo of real taxidermy.
It isn't available to buy through the B&M website just yet, but pop into your nearest store or email them to stock it if you love it like I do.
"Fancy a Bespoke Sofa for the Bridge, Dave?" HelloSofas.com Build You Your Futuristic Sofa for, 'Spaceship Home'
/I spend an awful amount of time on my sofa. So do you I expect. I'm writing this whilst curled up on our brown leather couch. It's worthwhile investing in a good sofa. Cheapy sofas won't last long, so you are better off spending a sensible chunk of money on something perfect that won't fall apart in two years' time.
HelloSofas.com make each sofa specifically to your measurements, with dozens of fabrics and colours to choose from. I picked my favourite designs that wouldn't look out of place in a space ship. Very city-living cool, or bachelor pad corner sofas for gathering round the XBox.
£2,499 for this super luxurious circular sofa
Juicy orange leather family sofa. Little bit Mad Men late 60s style
If that is too much orange for you, how about a splash of colour along with sleek white leather for £1,399
The Parma sofa comes in a variety of colours and pulls apart to make three soft stools
The ritz in red is £929 Would look super in a large kitchen due to its 1950s' diner feel
The Barcelona would look at home in an expensive boutique hotel
Green, my favourite. This one is completely Mad Menesque
Very sleek
What do you think of this one? A masculine feel, reminds me of Formula One racing car design.
Finally the Milan. Remember any colour combination and any size and numbers of seats you desire
The Blog Post in which I'm Really Late to the My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Party
/I new I'd like the relaunch of My Little Pony for a few reasons. The manag-sequel reimagining of the 1980s' cartoon series of my youth is highly heralded as superb from young and old. The clever and funny themes explored in My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic has gathered the makers a rather unusual adult following. Male adults who are obsessed with the characters call themselves, "bronies" as in 'bro' and 'ponies'.
So with the Internet littered with Pony memes and macros, I assumed I would enjoy the actual cartoon. All that has stopped me seeing it until now is not having a Sky channel that shows it. This week Netflix added the My Little Pony Equestria Girls film, and loved it. I've a feeling I will get sucked into the series too, so I will have to get the DVDs.
I've left comments open on this post, for once, or you can tweet me if you want to share the love.
So next, do I buy myself a My Little Pony T-shirt?
or men's boxers?!
Or, a Build-a-Bear Workshop my little pony of my very own?
or just get myself some replica hooves? By the level of fandom I've discovered online for the ponies, I'm pretty sure this isn't the weirdest merch available either :-S
