tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64126892661979917972024-03-05T17:45:31.141+00:00Second Hand RoseRamblings of a girl who was born in the wrong eraSecond Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.comBlogger127125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-83819814960663519242017-04-04T17:06:00.001+01:002017-04-04T19:56:13.938+01:00Never seen before Jackie Kennedy letters sold at auction<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrXvYZj9LeTkpg_b7Cq0c61lLT_rFYDAopFK8RHhOFUz2-TnrRcTSYlNVZtfsM-kQbt7RGJbKzOUfUaqBDLhIqlYab8o-YbWq7GiIbEW2BxFPrcZYK5rWriCUj1Ex_uKPyy61lpjkQuuo/s634/Photo%25252020170404170807027.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrXvYZj9LeTkpg_b7Cq0c61lLT_rFYDAopFK8RHhOFUz2-TnrRcTSYlNVZtfsM-kQbt7RGJbKzOUfUaqBDLhIqlYab8o-YbWq7GiIbEW2BxFPrcZYK5rWriCUj1Ex_uKPyy61lpjkQuuo/s385/Photo%25252020170404170807027.jpg" id="blogsy-1491331951885.9897" class="alignright" width="385" height="288" alt=""></a></div><div> The recently discovered letters between the beautiful Jackie Kennedy and a besotted British lord desperate to marry her, have been sold at auction for £98,808 ($123,000). </div><div>Yes I know that does seem a ridiculous amount of money for some paper with words written in ink on, but she was and still is a prevalent icon. Particularly her amazing wardrobe.</div><div> </div><div>They were sold at Bonhams auction in London last week (29th March) to an anonymous individual private collector.</div><div> </div><div> </div><div>The handwritten letters had been kept hidden away in two official red Government despatch boxes for more than 40 years, at the Harlech's family estate at Glyn Cywarch in Gwynedd, Wales. Bonhams UK Deputy Chairman Harvey Cammel, explained that the keys for the boxes were nowhere to be seen and in the end they decided to call a locksmith. I'm guessing using a hair pin Nancy Drew style wouldn't work then. </div><div>He explained that when they opened the case, which probably hasn't been opened in 30 years. "It was one of those astonishing moments when you can't quite believe what you're seeing." and it was "a real, true discovery." Now that is a great day at the office.</div><div> </div><div>There were handwritten letters not just from Jackie, but by JFK and other members of the family as well. The letters are part of a 19-strong collection which also included a note from Prince Philip's uncle Lord Mountbatten and correspondences between US Presidents and past British Prime Ministers.</div><div> </div><div>The collection includes Jackie Kennedy's rejection letter to David Ormsby-Gore - the 5th Baron Harlech and one of JFK's most intimate confidantes - after he asked her to marry him because she saw him 'like a brother'.</div><div> </div><div>For decades gossip magazines and writers have speculated how close Jackie Kennedy and David Ormsby-Gore were. Rumours of romance between the pair swept through Washington in the late 1960s, with one leading US newspaper proclaiming him 'The Man Most Likely To Win Jackie'. These letters give us a great insight into their relationship, how close they came to marriage and why Jackie decided not to marry him. <br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-uyKpFiUMc5I/WOO6fjmjC4I/AAAAAAAAP70/h0PZ6kmEOGA/s634/Photo%25252020170404162257691.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-uyKpFiUMc5I/WOO6fjmjC4I/AAAAAAAAP70/h0PZ6kmEOGA/s408/Photo%25252020170404162257691.jpg" id="blogsy-1491331951813.8186" class="alignleft" width="408" height="326" alt=""></a></div><div> </div><div><p>David Ormsby-Gore was a diplomat and held a number of government ministerial positions in the Foreign Office. He resigned in 1961, so he could take up the post of British Ambassador to the United States until 1965. The friendship between the families actually dates back to the 1930s, when JFK's father Joseph was US Ambassador to Britain and the collection of letters demonstrates the closeness between the families.</p><p>The letters show the story of a relationship that builds between Lord Harlech and Jackie Kennedy over a period of three to four years until 1968.</p><p> A deep friendship was formed through grief after the president's assassination in 1963. They then grew even closer when David's wife Sissy died in May 1967. The letters really reveal their deep and growing connection amidst the pain of losing their spouses and Jackie was very sympathetic to David's grief and the tragedy he went through.</p><div><p>After his wife died Jackie wrote him a letter to try and offer him some comfort. She wrote: <em> 'Your last letter was such a cri de coeur of loneliness - I would do anything to take that anguish from you. You want to patch the wounds & match the loose pairs - but you can't because your life won't turn out that way.'</em></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie9cDGiC3o2O-yW-gYYcfPJtcekwE3RlIhX_-U0dde4ijc_XsHtUxSZv4LAr5ZmM0GsNTrB2_eSy8ZJhGJ3PlUaJecSkc1gSrzzWHqeiV3OxDK1eXu2qfz07CG7SAK__I25oZ7LHeHLIM/s634/Photo%25252020170404162257674.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie9cDGiC3o2O-yW-gYYcfPJtcekwE3RlIhX_-U0dde4ijc_XsHtUxSZv4LAr5ZmM0GsNTrB2_eSy8ZJhGJ3PlUaJecSkc1gSrzzWHqeiV3OxDK1eXu2qfz07CG7SAK__I25oZ7LHeHLIM/s398/Photo%25252020170404162257674.jpg" id="blogsy-1491331951896.6992" class="alignright" width="398" height="319" alt=""></a></div></div><div><p>He reportedly proposed a 'secret marriage' in 1968, but she turned him down. She then wrote him a rejection letter while she was on Aristotle Onassis's yacht (who she ended up marrying) explaining why she had chosen not to marry him.</p></div></div><div>In her letter she wrote: <em>'You and I have shared so many lives and deaths and hopes and pain - we will share them forever and be forever bound together by them.</em></div><div><em>'If ever I can find some healing and some comfort, it has to be with someone who is not a part of all my world of past and pain - I can find that now - if the world will let us.'</em></div><div> </div><div><em>'We have known so much & shared & lost so much together - Even if it isn't the way you wish now - I hope that bond of love and pain will never be cut. 'You are like my beloved beloved brother - and mentor - and the only original spirit I know - as you were to Jack. 'I just wanted to tell you all that love has so many different way.'</em></div><div> </div><div>Jackie later said her husband (JFK) used to claim that David 'was the brightest man he'd ever met'. If she married him she would have had to move her children and life to the UK. However, when she married Aristotle Onassis she could keep her family in New York. A year after Jackie married her new husband, Lord Harlech married Pamela Colin, a US journalist who had an uncanny resemblance to Jackie.</div><div> </div><div><p>David died in 1985 from injuries sustained in a car crash. Senator Edward Kennedy, Jackie Onassis and other Kennedy family members attended his funeral. In 1995 when Jackie was dying of cancer in her New York apartment, she reportedly spoke of her regret that she did not accept Lord Harlech's proposal.</p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-BqNZK7HescU/WOO6iWBZtPI/AAAAAAAAP8A/Gl10bS_I6KE/s800/Photo%25252020170404162257679.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-BqNZK7HescU/WOO6iWBZtPI/AAAAAAAAP8A/Gl10bS_I6KE/s264/Photo%25252020170404162257679.jpg" id="blogsy-1491331951886.8972" class="alignleft" width="264" height="333" alt=""></a></div><div> The discovery of these letters is poignant since it coincides with the year of the 100th anniversary of JFK's birth. The amount of money the letters went for, shows there is still extreme interest in the Kennedy family and you can't beat a love story, especially one that contains handwritten love letters. </div><div> </div><div>If you want to find out more information about the Bonhams auction and other aspects of it, including the political letters you can do so <a href="https://www.bonhams.com/press_release/23328/" target="_blank" title="here">here</a>.</div><div> </div><div>Here are just a few programmes you all need to know about:</div><div> </div><div><u>Need to watch:</u> There is a programme on tomorrow (Wednesday 5th April) on Channel 4 at 9pm about Marilyn Monroe: Auction of a Lifetime which tells her life story through some of her most personal and glamorous possessions. You will be able to catch up with this on 4 On Demand, so don't worry if you miss it.</div><div> </div><div><u>Need to catch up on:</u> On Sunday night a two part documentary called Spying on the Royals started on Channel 4 at 8pm. It revealed new evidence that brings to light one of Britain's most controversial espionage operations, when spies tailed the royal family and tapped their phone calls. It includes information about Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson ,one of the most shocking controversies the royal family have ever dealt with. You can catch up on Episode one <a href="http://www.channel4.com/programmes/spying-on-the-royals/on-demand/64591-001" target="_blank" title="here">here</a>.</div><div> </div><div>I hope you've enjoyed learning a little more about Jackie Kemnedy and have hopefully seen a little more of the person behind the iconic suits and pillbox hats.</div><div> </div><div> Second Hand Rose</div><div>XxxX</div>Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-31068037109158395992017-03-08T13:07:00.001+00:002017-04-06T20:59:31.536+01:00International Women's Day 2017: Some formidable women who fought for our freedom<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3ZekyeluIzVMQnHerI65qVNhoNwgS4OhxRlZFR-YyL57mpNO2P7Mo235PfUfHVYmHTU6OT2rnEmn1IjZ1V_93Q5MZ5tbYN-KT9laPJa57C-tx8u05VSDy317trJNg-LReQnPHKU3irZI/s388/Photo%25252020170308122654488.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3ZekyeluIzVMQnHerI65qVNhoNwgS4OhxRlZFR-YyL57mpNO2P7Mo235PfUfHVYmHTU6OT2rnEmn1IjZ1V_93Q5MZ5tbYN-KT9laPJa57C-tx8u05VSDy317trJNg-LReQnPHKU3irZI/s316/Photo%25252020170308122654488.jpg" id="blogsy-1491508723407.9448" class="alignright" width="316" height="226" alt=""></a></div><div> Today marks the 106th International Women's Day, an important day for all women across the globe. </div><div>The day was set up in 1911 when women were not equal and they were expected to cook and clean all day, plus this was without the help from Mr Muscle as well. </div><div> </div><div>Over the next decade the day was recognised in many countries including Austria, Denmark, Germany and Russia, women were fed up of just having a pinny as their main outfit, sadly there wasn't ASOS in those days.</div><div>In the millennium IWD was recognised in even more countries including Afghanistan, Kazakhstan and Mongolia. </div><div>Now annually on the 8th of March thousands of events are held throughout the world to inspire women and celebrate achievements. These include business conferences, political rallies, fashion shows and they even have a special Google doodle created for them, now that's serious stuff.</div><div> </div><div>Nowadays most of us growing up are used to being treated equally by people and there isn't a silly attitude that all us women can do is cook and clean, speaking for myself that's not true, definitely not the cleaning part. We are allowed to flourish and become whatever we want from pilots to doctors, fashion designers to astronauts, no one gets in our way. </div><div> </div><div>Of course there is still some prejudice, especially in male dominated jobs like banking, flying and law, but every year there is more of a balance and as the crusty old gits retire, us women are ready to take their place with our kick arse heels or flats and favourite lipstick. </div><div> </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_WOAp2MZP44/WMACGzCQvuI/AAAAAAAAP7c/6dHb9KNI7sk/s277/Photo%25252020170308130733760.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_WOAp2MZP44/WMACGzCQvuI/AAAAAAAAP7c/6dHb9KNI7sk/s277/Photo%25252020170308130733760.jpg" id="blogsy-1491508723408.2734" class="alignleft" width="277" height="182" alt=""></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getty Images</td></tr></tbody></table><div>In a relationship women were expected to obey their husband and were not allowed an opinion. Now it seems that women sometimes are the ones that wear the trousers in a relationship, well we do know best after all! I think all of us take the opportunities available to us and the attitudes of people for granted. We owe the generations of women before us a lot. I'm not talking about feminists chucking their bra off, I mean the Suffragettes and women in World War 1 and World War 2, these three main events really changed how women were thought of and are often forgotten about.</div><div>It's a shame it took two world wars and several decades for women to be properly accepted in the work place and not have to just be a housewife, but these events started us on the road to equality, I think the women involved deserve a giant tin of Fox's Biscuits, don't you?</div><div> </div><div><u>The Suffragettes</u></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Wx5oLaH6mB8/WL_4u0O6xLI/AAAAAAAAP7E/OuCjoxxGoPM/s451/Photo%25252020170308122654511.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Wx5oLaH6mB8/WL_4u0O6xLI/AAAAAAAAP7E/OuCjoxxGoPM/s264/Photo%25252020170308122654511.jpg" id="blogsy-1491508723388.0674" class="alignright" width="264" height="270" alt=""></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">National Archives</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Years before the Suffragettes in the UK, there were women campaigning all over the world to be able to have the right to vote, with New Zealand giving the vote to women in 1893. </div><div>In the UK on the 10th October 1903, the Women's Social and Political Union held its first meeting and declared the situation was so serious, it would have to pursue extreme measures to get the government's attention. </div><div> </div><div>There was another group called the Suffragists who were also campaigning, but believed in calm protests, no chucking their shoes at the police, I mean why would anyone want to ruin their shoes?? The union soon became nicknamed the Suffragettes and began chaining themselves to railings, making a scene in the House of Commons, smashing windows and harassing politicians, which often resulted them landing on that big 'Go to Jail' square on the Monopoly board, going straight past 'Go' and entering jail. Sadly it wasn't as easy as rolling a double with the dice or paying the bank £50 to get out of jail, you can see I'm an avid Monopoly fan. </div><div> </div><div>They were force fed to prevent them from going on hunger strike, which often left them leaving prison looking gaunt and skinny, well that's one way to lose the Christmas Turkey weight. The Suffragettes did this so the public would see how skeletal they looked and how bad they were being treated, so the public would be on their side. </div><div> </div><div>One of main Suffragettes was Emily Pankhurst, along with her two daughters Christabel and Sylvia, who helped set up the cause. Emily was arrested many times and went on hunger strike herself, resulting in violent force feeding. In 1913 the Government created the 'Cat and Mouse' Act, this meant that hunger striking prisoners were released until they were healthy again and were re-arrested.</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbkHmXJWbdl6XQqstnJ6aaduSphyYYreRLjVsf6rqGddEKdWLG0ojVqVxFfKrMg5wlzQSP7P2wby2jFFqGXPDa0PfvFCnR9xsHzUQafV-8U74LsHRFN4q7Nad9spV33eIXWE5T4aLQ4es/s318/Photo%25252020170308122654514.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbkHmXJWbdl6XQqstnJ6aaduSphyYYreRLjVsf6rqGddEKdWLG0ojVqVxFfKrMg5wlzQSP7P2wby2jFFqGXPDa0PfvFCnR9xsHzUQafV-8U74LsHRFN4q7Nad9spV33eIXWE5T4aLQ4es/s318/Photo%25252020170308122654514.jpg" id="blogsy-1491508723388.4163" class="alignleft" width="220" height="318" alt=""></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wikipedia</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Women were so committed to the cause that they put themselves in danger, particularly Emily Davison. Emily was killed in 1913 when she threw herself under the King's horse at the Derby, as a protest at the government's failure to grant women the vote. It is not known whether she was trying to pin a Suffragete sash on the horse or decided to be a martyr to the cause. Thankfully nowadays there are less dangerous ways to protest, like poking all the politicians on Facebook and incessantly tweeting them for instance.</div><div> </div><div>Eventually after 15 years of campaigning, women over 30 were granted the right to vote and in the 1918 General Election women were allowed to stand as candidates. This was a huge turning point in the history of women becoming as equal as men, so thank them next time when you have a vote at work, even if it is over who makes the tea.</div><div> </div><div><u>World War One</u></div><div>World War One helped women become more equal, the Suffragettes agreed with the Government that they would stop stamping their feet in order to help the war effort, so the women in prison were released. As men got in their hunky uniforms and went off to war, women put on some work clothes, their most authoritative voice and replaced the men to do the jobs they had left behind.</div><div> </div><div>During the war the employment of women increased by over 1.6 million, with 200,000 women being employed in the government and over half a million went to work in offices. Women also worked as conductors on buses and trams and a quarter of a million got their fingers dirty and worked on the land. Over 700,000 women worked in highly dangerous munitions factories and had to work with immense concentration, no gossipping about the girl with the funny haircut then. </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-PLS08h6YVLA/WL_4tP0lMZI/AAAAAAAAP68/hbKOdm7pL9M/s608/Photo%25252020170308122654519.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-PLS08h6YVLA/WL_4tP0lMZI/AAAAAAAAP68/hbKOdm7pL9M/s223/Photo%25252020170308122654519.jpg" id="blogsy-1491508723422.8623" class="alignright" width="223" height="283" alt=""></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getty Images</td></tr></tbody></table><div> They had to do heavy work too like unloading coal, stoking furnaces and building ships. Women also fancied wearing a uniform and joined the Army such as the Women's Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC), the Women's Royal Air Force and the Women's Royal Navy Service (WRNS), they certainly didn't just sit at home doing some crochet. During these four devastating years women became more accepted in the workplace and people actually realised that there brain wasn't full of cotton wool and they could operate machinery and dig up a potato or two.</div><div> </div><div>The problem was that after men came back from the war they wanted their jobs back, so women were sadly forced out of work and sent back to ironing sheets all day. Women that were lucky enough to stay in their jobs had a problem with getting fair treatment and being treated equally by men. Their pay packet was different, even if they were doing the same job. Many women sadly lost their husbands, brothers, fathers etc in the war, so they now had to start fending for themselves. After the war women were encouraged to go back to the kitchens, but it was the start of them becoming more independent and the beginning of people believing that they could work and look after themselves and not just cook and clean all day.</div><div> </div><div><u>World War Two</u></div><div>World War Two was really the turning point for women and they played a vital part in the war. In between the wars, in 1928 women were granted the right to vote for over 21s, just like men. </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHZDLgUsh7zO3dHSkjhWxsfCOiPNVFjN6eEjggNd_HWAjRq-MQXp2KJg6CZ1No1QoR9GjBc_iugpsJOpLyZGRqkxwgFsyGk2heVJaOeGvn1SMHYMLIKsSO-5bVn9j5VNhlMf4TCGXgvoc/s882/Photo%25252020170308122654522.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHZDLgUsh7zO3dHSkjhWxsfCOiPNVFjN6eEjggNd_HWAjRq-MQXp2KJg6CZ1No1QoR9GjBc_iugpsJOpLyZGRqkxwgFsyGk2heVJaOeGvn1SMHYMLIKsSO-5bVn9j5VNhlMf4TCGXgvoc/s391/Photo%25252020170308122654522.jpg" id="blogsy-1491508723408.3389" class="alignleft" width="391" height="309" alt=""></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wikipedia</td></tr></tbody></table><div> To help the war effort women joined organisations like the Land Army. Their job was to keep Britain from starving by harvesting the land. German u-boats sunk ships entering Britain that were bringing food and goods, so everything was scarce. In 1940 a million tons of food were sunk by the Germans, I think that's a reason to put Hitler on the naughty step, don't you? How dare he deprive us of our biscuits and Spam. </div><div> </div><div>So this meant that food had to be rationed and as much food as possible was grown on the land, that's an awful lot of chipped nail varnish and dirt to scrub out of your nails.</div><div> </div><div>Women also decided to go and work in factories doing anything from making ammunition, uniforms and aeroplanes. Women also joined the Armed Forces again such as the now known (WAAF) Women's Auxillary Air Force, the female part of the army the Auxillary Territotal Service (ATS) and the (WRNS known as WRENS) Women's Royal Naval Service. I wrote about the WRENS in my <a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/wrens-exhibition-some-seriously-amazing.html" target="_blank" title="">last post</a> and today they are having a special event to mark IWD with Princess Anne, the Admiral Chief Commandant for Women in the Royal Navy officially launching the exhibition.</div><div> </div><div>Some women were members of the SOE (Special Operations Executive) and were used as secret agents being parachuted into occupied France. Their work was extremely dangerous and could easily lead to torture, capture and death. Their job was to find out anything they could to support the planned landings in Normandy in June 1944. Their stories really are amazing, two famous members of the SOE that were captured and tortured and were awarded the George Cross are Violette Szabo and Odette Hallowes, who's stories you really should check out. They are truly amazing and would definitely deserve to sit down with Piers Morgan to talk about their life stories or go on Desert Island Discs.</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWQUZBsVaENzvE435KY4DpzwYhD1NUY4ngwkYhb8BOWXMZZXAdtw501cTOQ_sq7CjBKf_DEQuaJa-FDtPn2qgrcivJdy3Nuqt8mJOWvyAPuW3D9h3rQQj2m4LVS_GXRjvGRTiToGJj_Cc/s480/Photo%25252020170308122654526.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWQUZBsVaENzvE435KY4DpzwYhD1NUY4ngwkYhb8BOWXMZZXAdtw501cTOQ_sq7CjBKf_DEQuaJa-FDtPn2qgrcivJdy3Nuqt8mJOWvyAPuW3D9h3rQQj2m4LVS_GXRjvGRTiToGJj_Cc/s256/Photo%25252020170308122654526.jpg" id="blogsy-1491508723428.0022" class="alignright" width="256" height="288" alt=""></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">National Women's History Museum</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Again women took over the jobs that men had left to enter the military, but they were pushed out of them and many wanted society to return to the comfortable norm, with women staying at home. But this war showed again how capable women were, from growing vegetables to being a spook, they were a huge part of the war and this proved that women were able to work and help themselves.</div><div> </div><div>Slowly over the years women have become more independent and the idea that they will just be a housewife and the men will work has become a rare thought and a lot of women now live happily and independently. </div><div> </div><div>I wrote a post in 2014 for International Women's Day highlighting some ground breaking amazing women, who are a wonderful reminder for us all that you can be whoever you want to be and stand up for whatever you believe in. From scientists to activists and fashion designers to actresses, you are bound to feel inspired after reading about these amazing women <a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/women-who-changed-our-lives-from-make.html" target="_blank" title="">here</a>.</div><div> </div><div>Hopefully over the next few decades women will become more independent and more equal in every country across the world. It's all about having equality and the ability to choose whichever path you want to take in life. Whether it's full on career, a stay at home Mummy or a mixture of both, we should not be judged or feel pressured by society to fall into a specific category or have children, we are no longer seen as just breeding machines who make a good Victoria sponge.</div><div> </div><div> So next time when you are applying for your dream job remember those women who heavily campaigned for our rights, spent hours creating ammunition, getting their hands dirty on the land and even parachuting into France risking their lives, so you could follow your dreams. Remember the women across the world who still to this day are not treated equally and are forced into a subservient lifestyle.</div><div> </div><div>Finally, remember you are a woman and you can do anything you want, even if that means buying a whole Alexander McQueen wardrobe and having a Christian Louboutin shoe room with topless pictures of Bradley Cooper in, I'm sure as well as me there are more women out there who dream of that.</div><div> </div><div>Second Hand Rose</div><div>XxxX</div><div> </div>Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-14476422594651739782017-02-19T20:49:00.001+00:002017-02-21T10:05:46.360+00:00WRENS Exhibition: Some seriously amazing Navy women<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQAUFvpYd709OocaEG38nus4-lAgmLuWpOf00cwWZxWwU29i-8YAwPfHQWwg0Npv2Jzefak72YWRvKqFl2CgN8Xog8weexMPn4Z-u25DoT-YQsXXn_AZMRsAd61HP65KVL62a0u6wy1N0/s1200/Photo%25252020170219203607039.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQAUFvpYd709OocaEG38nus4-lAgmLuWpOf00cwWZxWwU29i-8YAwPfHQWwg0Npv2Jzefak72YWRvKqFl2CgN8Xog8weexMPn4Z-u25DoT-YQsXXn_AZMRsAd61HP65KVL62a0u6wy1N0/s500/Photo%25252020170219203607039.jpg" id="blogsy-1487671536092.6423" class="alignright" alt="" width="500" height="167"></a></div><div>An exhibition was opened yesterday (18th February) to celebrate the contribution from women who worked in the naval services, particularly during the wars. It is called 'Pioneers to Professionals: Women and the Royal Navy’ and will tell the untold stories of servicewomen dating back to more than 250 years, when women’s contribution were unspoken, disguised and unofficial. This year marks 100 years since the Women's Royal Naval Services (WRNS) was formed. These ladies were known as WRENS and had some serious girl power. The spice girls have nothing on these inspiring ladies.</div><div><p> </p><div>It was formed during the First World War to release men to serve at sea. They were the first of the three services to officially recruit women at the time. It was disbanded when the war ended and women went back to being housewives, but was re-formed in 1939 when war broke out again. By December 1939, 3,000 women had joined up. You may have a relative that was a WREN and have heard some brilliant stories from them. If you have please leave a comment below, I'd love to hear them!</div><div>I spoke to my Grandma about this the other day to see if any of her five sisters joined up and hoped I could tell you a poignant story. One of them was a WAAF (Women's Auxillary Air Force) and another a land girl, but none were WRENS. However, she told me that she wanted to join up because she liked the uniform and fancied hanging around a load of yummy sailors, but thought she wouldn't be able to deal with the sea sickness, it's was a tough choice for her apparently. Poignant enough?</div><div> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimU8AKRYIlmnH3jtEebY55NTes5bEVAyR9tAHo5H4dQAEoEb4tD3M1LxQ4ZbfeiwTOGfbXQ-luFIvrefdxgQy7zvIeoLSJ0T9YCxfazAM9yBQkay81xQXDot3mFtUoT3PkCkyTJ3daLXM/s800/Photo%25252020170219204207133.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimU8AKRYIlmnH3jtEebY55NTes5bEVAyR9tAHo5H4dQAEoEb4tD3M1LxQ4ZbfeiwTOGfbXQ-luFIvrefdxgQy7zvIeoLSJ0T9YCxfazAM9yBQkay81xQXDot3mFtUoT3PkCkyTJ3daLXM/s241/Photo%25252020170219204207133.jpg" id="blogsy-1487671536034.4026" class="alignleft" alt="" width="241" height="374"></a></div><div>In December 1941 the government passed the National Service Act which allowed the conscription of women into war work or the armed forces. Women could choose to join the WRNS or its military or air force equivalents, the ATS and the WAAF. Initially single women and widows without children between 19 and 30 were called up, but later the age limit was pushed up to 43. Women who had served in the First World War, including Wrens, could be conscripted up to the age of 50.</div><div>The recruiting slogan was 'Join the Wrens today and free a man to join the Fleet.' As the Navy expanded, so did the WRNS and women took on tasks that were previously considered beyond their capabilities.</div><div> </div><div>Their duties included driving, cooking, clerical work, operating radar and communications equipment and providing weather forecasts. The Naval Censorship Branch was staffed by WRNS clerks and censor officers and either worked in mobile units or in London. Many Wrens were involved in planning naval operations, including the D-Day landings in June 1944.</div><div> </div><div>Also Wrens who could speak other languages were drafted to stations around the coast to intercept and translate enemy signals. Wrens also worked at the Government Code and Cypher School at Bletchley Park where German and Japanese codes were broken. Pretty good for women whose days used to be spent cleaning the house and looking after their husbands.</div><div> </div><div>Although few served at sea, Wrens did operate small harbour launches and tugs close to shore. Some Wrens were trained to serve as pilots on D-Day, taking the smaller ships across the Channel and towing disabled vessels back into port for repairs, which were often carried out by WRNS mechanics. Thousands of Wrens also served in overseas units.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-jh7lqimZIBCYVRvGd2h6ykRQJhGWs9zaQeKCbXGsWQcGdTCuA0ps_m9eQesNuXzmPHDhYTNHpR8RpcVPHP_egtxp00L5ghEZPlCtFmjqU-dTdXyQYq4EYY0Y1RgKnCvsxcPzN9cNPR8/s1200/Photo%25252020170219203607042.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-jh7lqimZIBCYVRvGd2h6ykRQJhGWs9zaQeKCbXGsWQcGdTCuA0ps_m9eQesNuXzmPHDhYTNHpR8RpcVPHP_egtxp00L5ghEZPlCtFmjqU-dTdXyQYq4EYY0Y1RgKnCvsxcPzN9cNPR8/s373/Photo%25252020170219203607042.jpg" id="blogsy-1487671536070.6753" class="alignright" alt="" width="373" height="281"></a></div><div>By 1944, 74,000 women were Wrens doing over 200 different jobs. Sadly, 303 Wrens were killed on wartime service. After the war the WRNS was made a permanent part of the Royal Navy, but women did not serve in Royal Navy ships until the 1990s.</div><div>In 1993 the WRN was disabanded and the 4,535 women working as WRENS were integrated into the Royal Navy and able to serve on HM ships at sea and able to climb to all ranks and rates. The contribution of women in the wars really helped women to flourish in the navy and still have an impact in women's freedom in the Navy today.</div><div> </div><div>The exhibition will illustrate the role of women in the navy and many wonderful objects will be on display to demonstrate them in an official capacity, showing their leisure time and even how they dealt with pregnancy. Objects range from a rare First World War Ratings uniform to an oboe owned by a member of the Royal Marine Band Service. There will also be a naval officer’s maternity dress and photographs from the early day of the WRNS.</div><div> </div><div>The exhibition is on for a year at the National Museum of the Royal Navy in Portsmouth and a special event is being held on International Women's Day on the 8th March. You can find more information and buy tickets <a href="https://www.nmrn.org.uk/women" target="_blank" title="">here</a>.<a href="https://www.nmrn.org.uk/women" target="_blank" title="here"></a><a href="https://www.nmrn.org.uk/women" target="_blank" title="here"></a></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-H-5w96n7FKM/WKoByI3y6zI/AAAAAAAAP3E/3N2FAisFrIQ/s700/Photo%25252020170219203607045.jpg" target="_self" style=" "><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-H-5w96n7FKM/WKoByI3y6zI/AAAAAAAAP3E/3N2FAisFrIQ/s500/Photo%25252020170219203607045.jpg" id="blogsy-1487671536113.6584" class="aligncenter" alt="" width="500" height="334"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All photos courtesy of the Royal Navy Museum website</td></tr></tbody></table><div> </div><div>There are so many amazing and inspirational stories, with women no longer being overlooked. Such as, in the 18th century at least 20 women pretended to be men, so they could be part of the Navy. One woman even managed to hide her identity for over 11 years, which is astonishing! At least,you wouldn't have to shave your legs every week.</div><div> </div><div>Historically women have undertaken a huge range of jobs and have exceeded expectations countless of times. The exhibition comes just at the right time as the government have announced that women will soon be able to join any branch of the Royal Navy, including close combat roles. Very different to a hundred years ago when the WRNS motto was 'Never at Sea'.</div><div> </div><div>Whether it was women 250 years ago pretending to be men, WRENS working in many different jobs in the wars or women in the Navy in the present day, they are truly inspirational women who we should recognise for their tenacity, resilience and kick arse spirit.</div><div> </div><div>Second Hand Rose</div><div>XxxX </div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div style="text-align: right; font-size: small; clear: both;" id="blogsy_footer"><a href="http://blogsyapp.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://blogsyapp.com/images/blogsy_footer_icon.png" alt="Posted with Blogsy" style="vertical-align: middle; margin-right: 5px;" width="20" height="20" />Posted with Blogsy</a></div>Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-61253620228026944242017-01-26T14:18:00.000+00:002017-01-26T14:18:55.435+00:00Gifts Galore<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;">
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I know this post is incredibly late and it's over a month now since we were all stuffing our face with copious amounts of mince pies and pigs in blankets. But who doesn't want to be nosy and see what people got for Christmas? I'm still reading a book set around Christmas, so I figured I could still write a post about it.</div>
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Yes I have books that are set around Christmas time, including a Murder She Wrote one with Jessica Fletcher saving the day once again. I save them up all year to read in my Christmas pyjamas and eat Lindt balls into the triple figures. I'm sure that makes me really high up on the coolness scale. </div>
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I had a great time with my family and was truly stuffed with my Mum's amazing cooking. These New Year's Eve puddings were to die for! I didn't ask for many presents this year, as I don't have much space in my tiny room (hint hint parents) for more things and frankly I couldn't decide what on earth I wanted.</div>
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Whilst looking at swatches for nail varnish to give my sister for Christmas, I came across this absolutely gorgeous ring.</div>
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Thankfully the blogger mentioned where it was from, so I went on the site <a href="http://www.stelladot.co.uk/" target="_blank" title="">Stella & Dot</a> straight away. I've really been loving rings I can stack & wearing multiple small ones. Even though I'm not too keen on gold jewellery, I like the muted gold thin rings with stones in or other decorations, which you can wear several of at the same time. </div>
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Mr Boyfriend calls me Mrs. T after the bloke in The A-Team who wears all the gold jewellery. I used to wear big rings, but ever since my parents gave me my beautiful sapphire and diamond ring for my 21st birthday, the rings I wear have changed somewhat.</div>
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The rose gold Páve Spear ring was £29 and there were matching earrings available, which were beautiful and the matching necklace that I found on eBay as they didn't stock it on the website anymore. </div>
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I adored the ring but deliberated for so long, as I've never spent that amount on one piece of jewellery before.</div>
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I normally buy stack packets-10 rings normally for less then a tenner. After everyone telling me to treat myself, I finally decided to give in & asked Father Christmas for the jewellery. The fact that I found the Pavé Spear earrings and necklace on eBay for a much cheaper price then the RRP helped to convince me to ask for them.</div>
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I found the earrings for £25.25 including p&p when at the time they were normally £40 (along with £4.95 p&p). I managed to get the necklace for £31 instead of £50, which I was pretty pleased about. I can't wait to wear them, they look so beautiful. </div>
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I got some really snugly pyjamas from my parents and cosy slippers from a friend. My Mum picked me out some cute Millie Mae vintage pattern style socks, some nice lacy underwear and a pack of cat themed underwear. That'll stop Mr Boyfriend having to deal with me debating for 15 minutes about whether I should spend £4 on a pack of underwear in Tesco's every time we go there.</div>
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My parents bought me Five go to Brexit Island, a satirical take on the legendary Famous Five books by Enid Blyton that I adored as a kid, have some CDs of and have one of the books to read on my iPad. Yep, I'm a cool kid. </div>
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The book is actually written by Bruno Vincent and there are several in the series, include Five Give up the Booze and Five Go Gluten Free.</div>
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I also received the book How to get Rich, which will hopefully help increase my shoe collection.</div>
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My parents also gave me a Sew Style:Vintage Magazine with two gorgeous vintage patterns enclosed. I'm trying to expand my collection of vintage magazines and at a local Christmas Fayre I went to with my Mum, I found a Vogue magazine from October 1953, which I will show more of sometime, it's beautiful. </div>
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To put my growing collection of vintage magazines in they also bought me an A3 Presentation Book to put them in. They're too big for an A4 booklet as magazines and newspapers were bigger then.</div>
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I'm hoping to do a nice painting or drawing for the front of the presentation book when I get the time. Either that or get my artist on hand Mr Boyfriend to do it for me. It's amazing what a flutter of the eyelashes and a meal cooked by my Mum will get you.</div>
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I also received some Coté vouchers for me & the man to enjoy a nice meal with, as well as a Tastecard from my brother. He bought me one last year and I was a little worried I wouldn't get enough use out of it. However, I managed to save £234 on it overall, so was very keen to renew it. My sister also gave me an ASOS voucher which I'm looking forward to using.</div>
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My parents also gave me some new belly button rings and some lovely stud earrings. I received some chocolate, but it's mysteriously disappeared <strike>into mine and the man's mouth.</strike> I adore chocolate cherry liqueurs, which I only have at Christmas time and I was like an old lady eating two before I went to sleep every night. That was the extent of my alcoholic binge over Christmas.</div>
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I couldn't bring myself to open this beautiful little handbag with chocolate shoes in, but caved in. I'm saving the Choccywoccydoodah coin my brother gave me for when I reach a certain target I'm trying to achieve. I'm turning it into a gold medal and doing a victory lap around my neighbourhood with it.</div>
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Mr Boyfriend bought me a beautiful vintage record player for Christmas in 2014 and I've been trying to collect records ever since. Luckily I have a shop that sells the right records near me for £1 each, as there isn't much demand for them. I was given some 78 RPM Records by my chiropractor who is also a good friend of mine. <br />
One of them includes 'Have I told you lately that I love you' by Bing Crosby and The Andrews Sisters. I'm a huge fan of The Andrews Sisters, to me they were the original girl power, in a time when the world was so male dominated. The other records include Johnnie Ray and Billy Cotton & his band. She also bought me a little lunchbox as a joke present, because I always take my lunch to my appointment & she's sick of seeing my sushi, even though it's vegetarian! I take it everytime now & am thinking about putting my name & age on it, you know like your Mum did when you were at school! My elderly neighbour who I'm very friendly with, who I've taught how to use her computer & email people,kindly bought me a lovely makeup bag, perfect to put my lipsticks in.<br />
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My boyfriend's generous Mum and step Dad bought me some Vans with a really cute flamingo print on and some socks to match. I'm looking forward to trying the shoes out with outfits when it's not so muddy. They also bought me a Fat Face scarf gift get which includes body wash, body lotion and a gorgeous printed scarf.</div>
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His lovely sister and boyfriend gave me a Ted Baker mini must haves set which includes body lotion, body spray,body soufflé and bubble bath. His thoughtful Dad and girlfriend gave me a beautiful bottle of Ghost Moonlight Perfume which I'm looking forward to wearing out, it's a great floral and fruity smell. Yes people, I have fabulous "in-laws".</div>
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Mr Boyfirend bought me a lovely Lipsy makeup kit for day and night and a Lipsy 12 Days of Beautiful set. I've always secretly wanted an advent style calendar that contained makeup, but they were always so expensive. When I asked him about how he chose what to get me, he said he went into Debenhams and asked for some help to find a present for me as there were so many products available, which I find adorable. His housemate told me that when he got home, he was all excited about the presents he had bought for me-cuteness overload. I didn't actually know Lipsy did makeup kits, but these are great and contain a variety of must have makeup products.</div>
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The last presents I received were these gorgeous bomber jackets. I had been debating about buying this burgundy F&F velvet bomber jacket for months now, so my Mum insisted she bought it for me for Christmas, probably to stop me going on about it. I'd seen ones like it, particularly in River Island which were double the price. It also had great reviews online, so I agreed to add it to my list. It was £29 but after Christmas it was reduced to £15, so I took the first one back and bought another one. While buying it I came across this absolutely beautiful Vero Moda Gold Scalloped Bomber Jacket, reduced from £50 to £25. </div>
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I used the rest of the money from the velvet jacket that was leftover and some of the money that my Grandma gave me for Christmas. It's even more beautiful in person and both jackets are very comfortable and warm. They're still available so I highly recommend them. They're also a little stretchy,so are great if you've got thick layers on underneath or big boobs. The velvet bomber jacket has now been reduced to £12 and also comes in black. I'm not ashamed to admit that I sit in bed and just stare at the gorgeous gold scalloped jacket on my clothes rail, I'm so glad I decided to buy it as it's so beautiful in person. I've given you the direct links to them below.</div>
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I hope you've all enjoyed having a good nosey at the presents I received. I'm sorry this post is so late, I still feel slightly in the post Christmas slump, but I'm not sure if that's because I keep having to walk past boxes of biscuits and chocolates that are leftover from Christmas and try to avoid them. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and have had a good start to the new year and not broke all your new year's resolutions just yet.</div>
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Second Hand Rose</div>
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XxxX</div>
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Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-40219135800513289732016-09-21T16:49:00.001+01:002016-09-22T20:11:25.976+01:00National Cupcake Week: Chocolate Rose Cupcakes
<div>This week is officially National Cupcake week, the 8th annual one organised by British Baker magazine, absolute geniuses. It is from the 19th-25th September, so you have plenty of time to stuff your face still. It has been a hashtag on Twitter this week and quite frankly I think it should be on the news. So I wanted to share a recipe with you for Chocolate Rose Cupcakes that I made a while ago.</div>
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<div>The recipe is from the Home Sweet Home recipe book by The Hummingbird Bakery, which contains some great recipe inspiration. These cupcakes are full of flowery fabulousness and has a gorgeous chocolatey taste with a surprise custard inside. What more could a cake lover ask for?</div>
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<div>This recipe has several components which can seem overwhelming at first, but you don't need to do them all in one day. The cake contains a Rose water custard which can be made the day before, just remember to put it in the fridge and not leave it out in a warm kitchen, salmonella isn't much fun.</div>
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<div>You can also make the cakes the day before you put them all together, as well as the buttercream. I decided to add some crystalised rose petals as decoration, which are super easy to make and can be a good excuse to either treat yourself ,or <strike>demand</strike> ask that special man or woman in your life to buy you some. Just call me the cake Cupid.</div>
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<div><u>Cakes:</u></div>
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<div>When I make a sponge I usually use my Mum's tried and tested recipe of using the same number of oz for each ingredient and half the number of eggs. E.g. 6oz of butter, self raising flour, sugar, 3 eggs and 1tsp of baking powder for a 6 inch cake, which equates to around 12-14 cupcakes. I then bung it all in (that's a technical term by the way) the food processor and go back to raiding the biscuit tin and dreaming of Bradley Cooper. However this recipe requires a little more attention, you can still consume an obscene amount of biscuits while making it though.</div>
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<div> 1. First you need to preheat your oven to 170C which is 325F or gas mark 3 and pick yourself out some gorgeous muffin cases.</div>
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<div>2. Mix the butter, flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt together in an electric mixer to form a crumb-like consistency. You can use a bowl and a non eletric whisk, but if you are able to it is best to use an electric whisk, otherwise you are going to need some serious Popeye muscle. You also need to sift the cocoa & flour to get some air into the mixture, but if you're letting electricity do the hardwork you don't need to bother.</div>
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<div>3.In a jug mix together the milk, eggs and rosewater by hand.<br>
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<div>4. This part may seem a bit laborious, but it forms a great batter, so be patient with it and try not to get distracted by thoughts of Daniel Craig smothered in cake batter, yummy or what.</div>
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<div>Pour half the milky mixture into the crumb mixture on a slow speed until it's all combined.</div>
<div>Then speed it up and beat the batter until it's smooth, thick and lump free. No one wants clumps of flour in their sponge.</div>
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<div>5. Turn the speed back down and gradually add the rest of the milky mixture.</div>
<div>Remember to scrape the sides down regularly when you are mixing the batter.</div>
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<div> Don't worry if your mixture is different to any that you've made before. No need to panic that it's pretty watery, it's meant to be. If yours isn't you need to keep mixing until it is.</div>
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<div>6. A good way to get the mixture into your beautiful cases is with an ice cream scoop, it helps you bake even cakes so there isn't a fight over the biggest cakes. It depends how big your scoop and cases our, but mine work out around 2 scoops per cake.</div>
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<div>7. Bake them in the oven for 20-25 minutes which is a perfect amount of time to check out the new Oasis collection. Make sure the sponge is bouncy to the touch and you can use a skewer to know they are cooked inside, as it will come out clean when you dip it in the sponge.</div>
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<div>8. Leave them to cool for a while in the tin, as this will make sure the cases stay tight around the cake.</div>
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<div><u>Custard:</u></div>
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<p>1. Place the milk and the rosewater in a saucepan and bring it to the boil.</p>
<p>2.In a bowl mix together the egg yolks (keep the whites for the roses), sugar, flour and cornflour to form a paste. If it needs a little oomph to unstiffen it you can add 1 tablespoon of the hot milk.</p>
<p>3.When the milk has boiled remove the pan from the heat and mix 4-5 tablespoons with the paste.</p>
<p>4.Pour it back into the pan with the rest of the milk and return it to the heat.</p>
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<div>5.Put those arm muscles to good use and whisk it as fast as you can for 3-4 minutes to make sure the flour and cornflour are fully cooked. Be careful not to overcook your custard, otherwise the eggs may begin to scramble.</div>
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<div>L6. Remove from the heat and pour the custard into a baking tray, cover with cling film and set aside until it's completly cool.</div>
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<div><u>Buttercream:</u></div>
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<div>1.Mix the icing sugar, cocoa powder and butter on a low speed until it's all combined.</div>
<div>2.Before you give into temptation and eat it all, add the milk and rosewater while mixing on a slow speed.</div>
<div>3.Put the speed on turbo power and beat the buttercream until it's light and fluffy.</div>
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<div><u>Crystallised Rose petals:</u></div>
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<div><p>These taste exactly how roses smell and are great for when you'd rather get on with eating your cakes, instead of spending hours decorating them.</p></div>
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<div>You will need around two roses depending on how many petals you want to crystalise and how big your roses are. I originally wanted to only crystallise around 25 petals and estimated that there were 12-14 petals on each rose. It turned out that there were 29 on one rose and 23 on another. </div>
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<div>So I suggest before you say bye bye to the stem, take apart one rose at a time and you may be surprised how many petals are on one rose. There are lots of flowers that are edible which you can crystalise if you don't fancy buying any roses or cutting them out of the garden (yeah, sorry about that Mum.)</div>
<div>If you have the luxury of a garden you maybe surprised how many of your beautifully grown creations you can actually eat. <a href="http://www.thompson-morgan.com/edible-flowers" target="_blank" title="Here">Here</a> <a href="http://www.thompson-morgan.com/edible-flowers" target="_blank" title="Here"></a> is a great guide on what flowers you can add to your dishes.</div>
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<p>1.Paint your petals with egg white both sides to make sure the sugar sticks. You should only need one egg white, so you can freeze the rest or put them in something else.</p>
<p>2.You can either just dip the petals in the sugar or use a spoon and tap off any remaining sugar on the sides of the bowl. Your hands may get pretty sticky so have some wet kitchen paper or a flannel handy.</p>
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<div>3.Leave them to dry for a minimum of two hours in a warm room on a sheet of greaseproof paper. An airing cupboard can also help speed up the process and you will know they are dry when they feel hard and brittle. </div>
<div>Don't feel you have to use them all as decoration now because they will keep for several months, maybe even a year if you store them in an airtight container with kitchen or greaseproof paper in between layers. </div>
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<div><u>Putting the custard in the cake:</u></div>
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<div>1. After you've let your cake and custard cool, take a knife and carve a small hole in the middle of the cake. I use a cake hole maker Father Christmas gave me, who I believe bought it off eBay. He's pretty thrifty these days.</div>
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<div>2. Spoon lots of custard into the centre of the cake and place the piece of sponge you cut out back in the hole. Don't worry if your custard seems thicker then you'd expect it to be, it's ok and will still taste great.</div>
<div> You can trim the cake you've put back if you want to, but the buttercream will cover it.</div>
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<div>I had quite a lot of custard left over, even though I squashed as much as I could into my cakes. If this happens you can put it in the freezer and use it in another batch of cakes. Any excuse to make some more spongey goodness.</div>
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<div><u>Finishing touches:</u></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: none;"> For a simple way to apply your buttercream use an ice cream scoop. Dollop (another technical term) some on the top of a cake and use a knife or pallette knife of you have one to smooth it out while turning the cake. This will help the buttercream form a swirly shape.</div>
<div>Finally place a petal on the top and enjoy one of your creations, or two or three or even four, let's make it half a dozen.</div>
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<div> I hope my explanation doesn't seem like a load of gobbledygook (Delia I'm not) and you don't end up tearing your hair out and crying into your rose water. Using rose as a flavour may seem a little daunting to use and I was ominous to try it. It really does taste good, goes well with the chocolate sponge and the taste or smell isn't overpowering. I really hope you've enjoyed this recipe and I wish you lots of luck with making these beauties. Oh and if you have any leftover buttercream, I'll happily eat it for you.</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lSFeYRjFRpY/V-KsBFGUDdI/AAAAAAAAPvE/MG1fw1a_SxE/s2048/Photo%25252020160921164908555.jpg" target="_blank" style=" "><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lSFeYRjFRpY/V-KsBFGUDdI/AAAAAAAAPvE/MG1fw1a_SxE/s500/Photo%25252020160921164908555.jpg" id="blogsy-1474571477640.517" class="aligncenter" alt="" width="368" height="398"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A giant lemon cupcake I made with lemon buttercream swirl roses and fondant flowers, decorated with pearls and encased in a purple chocolate case.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div> Second Hand Rose</div>
<div>XxxX </div>
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<div style="text-align: right; font-size: small; clear: both;" id="blogsy_footer"><a href="http://blogsyapp.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://blogsyapp.com/images/blogsy_footer_icon.png" alt="Posted with Blogsy" style="vertical-align: middle; margin-right: 5px;" width="20" height="20" />Posted with Blogsy</a></div>Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-52972694954583577042016-08-22T14:02:00.001+01:002019-11-05T20:06:20.539+00:00High Street Vintage Inspired Swimwear: 1960s-1990s <div>
In my last post I wrote about swimwear from the <a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2016/08/high-street-vintage-inspired-swimwear.html" target="_blank">1920s-1950s</a> and how you could get the updated look on the high street. This post contains swimwear from the 1960s-1990s with ruffles, Moroccan prints, string bikinis, racer backs and high leg swimwear. Get ready to show off some skin and pull off some groovy tan lines.<br />
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<u>1960s</u></div>
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In the 60s surfing, surf music, and beach party movies were everywhere, so everyone wanted to recreate the looks they saw on screen. Bikinis became a lot more popular and the belly button was properly exposed for the first time, shock horror!<br />
By the late sixties swimsuits had revealing side mesh net panels, ruffles or cut out midriffs, filled in with see-through plastic rings. Sorry ladies, its time to do some leg lifts.<br />
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Fabrics were mainly Nylon or Lycra, so zips were no longer needed and they were able to easily stretch and be pulled on like a pair of knickers. No one wants to spend half an hour jumping up and down trying to squeeze into a bikini do they?</div>
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These bikinis with the ruffles and bright 60s style prints are perfect. I love the bikini tops that have cut-outs on them, which show off some skin. If you want to cover up more, the light pink cut out printed outfit is perfect. The gorgeous bikinis with holes on the side remind me of the plastic ring aspect of swimsuits in the 60s, just modernised. I've found some great bikinis with mesh panels, including halter styles and skimpier bikinis. I absolutely adore the dark blue bikini with the mesh top, it's so sexy and the white and black bikinis with the ruffles combine two 60s swimwear trends. Plus they have a little diamond finish along the top of the ruffles which add some sparkle to your swimwear.<br />
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The bikinis with the cut out panels help turn the 60s trend into a modern look with both tops and bottoms having cut out sides. The bottom row of bikinis continues on the mesh theme, but is a hole cut out type of mesh, so shows off more skin. If you'd rather cover up a little more, you can go with the more supportive ones and the less skimpy ones. Wearing all these bikinis, especially the ones with holes, cut-outs, mesh and hole mesh detailing, you'll get some seriously unique tan lines.<br />
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<u>1970s</u></div>
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With the 70s being full of free love and hippies, swimwear got on the bandwagon becoming more revealing with triangle cups and fashion designers bringing in string bikinis, with bottoms fitting on the hips. It was all about showing your assets off and being oh so sexy was the aim. Some women even wore sheer swimsuits, now that takes some serious confidence, that or too many Martini's.<br />
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Women wearing string bikinis were shown in popular magazines, such as Sports Illustrated making them even more lusted after due to the sexual revolution of the late 60s. There was no hiding those extra Custard Creams now.</div>
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If you don't fancy the Playboy bunny sheer costume look you can work these bikinis and costumes I've found here.<br />
Prints were big in the 70s, particularly Moroccan style prints, Aztec ones and tie-dye, so give these a tribute with these superb pieces. I love the first bikini top which has fringing on the ties, as fringing was another big trend of the decade, there are also some bottoms with fringing ties I've added. The two printed bikinis with frill tops and the pink floral one with a ruffle trim are beautiful and unique.<br />
The halter neck style ones are gorgeous, the white paisley one with a ruffle trim just screams this decade. I love the mustard coloured ones, the one with the floral pattern and the tie-dyed one. The colour mustard was everywhere in this decade.<br />
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Crochet was a massive trend in the 70s and these two halter neck bikinis include two trends, one with tie-dye and the other with denim, which was also everywhere.<br />
There's more crochet with the mustard bikini in the top row, which also comes in a rose colour and a stunning cream crochet swimsuit. I love the swimming costumes I've found if you want to cover up a little more, but still rock the trend. These floral swimsuits are beautiful and the scarf print twisted wrap bandeau swimsuit is gorgeous.<br />
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The 70s is going to continue to be a huge trend this summer, so one of these pieces is bound to be perfect for you.</div>
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<u>1980s</u></div>
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In the 1980s, the thong bikini was introduced mainly due to Playboy bunnies, thanks very much Hugh Hefner, no more second helpings of pudding for us.<br />
With supermodels like the beautiful Christie Brinkley and Cindy Crawford appearing everywhere looking gorgeous and aerobics and other exercise becoming a popular hobby, the athletic build became a body type that was sought after by women.<br />
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Bandeau bikini tops were worn a lot, along with racer T backs styles, to show off toned arms and backs, with shoulders and backs being the focus. For some women it was all muscles and abs.<br />
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In contrast to the athletic look, a low cut bodice was often worn and bikinis and swimsuits with a high leg, showing off a women's sex appeal. Due to Pamela Anderson running along the Baywatch beach with her assets in a sexy red swimsuit, they got revitalised with the use of neoprene. Gone were the days of your Grandma doing knit one pearl two to make you a woolen swimsuit.</div>
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You can get the athletic look with these array of racer T back bikini's, whether you fancy going for a pattern, contrasting colours or just going for a plain colour, there are some great ones here. If you want to still work the athletic look in a bikini, yet still be a little sexy these two neon racer back bikini's with mesh inserts and the black and nude mesh bikini are perfect.<br />
I've found two great sporty style swimsuits, one that is stereotypically sporty with a racer back and another one that has a graphic print with a high neck and low back, but still great for the sporty look.<br />
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These gorgeous strapless bandeau bikinis with bold colour blocking and the bikini with a bright print, will show off those abs you've been working on and gorgeous strong shoulders. If you haven't been hitting the gym, don't worry you will still sparkle in these.<br />
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For the low cut bodice, high leg look, there's this gorgeous black bikini and some fabulous swimsuits to choose from, including an olive coloured one and a Pamela Anderson style red one, so start practicing running along the beach with your hair flowing in the wind.<br />
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There is also this seductive black one showing off a <strike>hint</strike> massive amount of side boob which also has a tantalising open back, hey if you've got it flaunt it girl.<br />
I love the pink one with a print and the gorgeous blue one that has a lace up front, which is bound to get you noticed, oh so sexy.<br />
I included both of these silver metallic high leg ones, as it reminds me of the real party vibe that was going on in the 80s, so you can continue that at the beach or at the pool. One of these 80s style pieces is definitely perfect for lusting over the hotel waiter in.</div>
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<u>1990s</u></div>
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In the 1990s there were lots of small string tops and criss-cross halter necks showing off cleavage, this meant that boob jobs became pretty popular in this decade.<br />
There were lots of stripes, prints and bright and bold colours. The one piece stayed popular with high leg lines like the 80's and zipped fronts. They also contained lots of cut-outs, criss-crosses and halter necks like the bikinis. Bikinis also had high V-cut bottoms too, so there was still no hiding from the dreaded bikini wax, sorry ladies.</div>
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Since the 90s has become such a popular trend the past few seasons, there are some great swimsuits out there to re-create it. I've found some fab bright and bold bikinis with a criss-cross style, some string tops and also some halter necks to give you some more support such as the black Boohoo criss cross halter neck bikini. I love the pink and black swimsuits with the criss cross detail across the tummy and the straps and the other swimsuits with criss-crossing on the side, or just a small amount on the tummy area, like this gorgeous blue one. The two black criss-cross wrap around style swimsuits with neon colours are great, as well as the two neon coloured swimsuits with mesh inserts.<br />
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I've included some high leg low cut bodice swimsuits with a zip, as well as a gorgeous periwinkle keyhole cutout halter neck design. I simply love the beauty of the low cut bodice high leg blue swimsuit with the gorgeous detailing around the bodice, Liz Taylor would be jealous of it.<br />
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Swimwear has evolved a lot over the past hundred years and now we can cover up any wobbly bits we have or flaunt our curves as much as we want. From bandeau bra bikinis and high waisters to high V-cut bottoms and intricate criss-cross designs, we can conquer any style we like and pull off any swimwear trend.<br />
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I really hope I have helped you find something. Whether it's at the beach or at your local swimming pool, with these and the swimwear from my <a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2016/08/high-street-vintage-inspired-swimwear.html" target="_blank">1920s-1950s post</a>, you are bound to feel like you've just walked off a catwalk, just without the 7 inch stiletto heels you can barely walk in.<br />
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Second Hand Rose<br />
XxxX</div>
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Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-28693954797402075132016-08-05T17:46:00.000+01:002019-11-05T19:11:35.698+00:00High Street Vintage Inspired Swimwear: Great looks to get your hands on: 1920s-1950s <div>
Us ladies pack so much for our holiday, we apparently squeeze over 44 items into a suitcase and only wear half of them. Personally that majority of those 44 items for me would be shoes. Six bikini's are packed for a fortnight and only three are used.<br />
We obsess about having the perfect summer body with the TOWIE lot encouraging us to do 'No Carbs before Marbs', but who wants to deny themselves a Krispy Kreme, I know I can't.<br />
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Wearing a bikini on the beach is our own version of having a catwalk, we can't all model for Dior. We imagine ourselves strutting our stuff in a gorgeous bikini making us look like Kate Moss with 4 inch wedges on and impeccable hair. The reality is that we stumble on the sand with our heels on doing a Naomi Campbell style fall and our hair gets blown about by the sea wind making us look more like a windswept Sheepdog then Miranda Kerr.<br />
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These days there are so many things you can wear on the beach, bikinis, tankinis, monokinis hey, even a mankini if you want, there's so many varieties. But women haven't always had so much of a choice.<br />
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Before 1915-1920 women wore black, knee-length, puffed-sleeve wool dresses worn over bloomers or drawers trimmed with ribbons and bows. Not great for getting a tan in. Thankfully heavy fabric swimsuits were reduced and became more athletic and androgynous looking, due to women swimming more. So I'm starting my how to get the look post at the 1920s.<br />
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<span style="color: blue;">*PLEASE NOTE* </span>If you are not on a mobile or tablet and can hover over the pictures some may say sold out, but if you click through you will see the item is still available in other sizes. I don't know why it's doing that, but please click through anyway if you find one you love!</div>
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<u><br /></u><u>1920s</u><br />
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In the early 1920s women’s bathing suits finally changed into a one piece garment with a long top that covered shorts. Though matching stockings were still worn, swimwear began to shrink and more flesh was exposed from the bottom of the trunks to the tops of the stockings, let the squats and leg lifts begin. As women became more liberated due to the Chanel wave in fashion, they put their long skirts at the back of the cupboard and the athletic look was well suited to this era.</div>
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They were made of wool jersey, so became pretty heavy when you got out of the water and often small shoes were worn with this look, while women posed on the beach.<br />
The fashion was to have a striped, spots or an abstract pattern, even then women knew how to use patterns to hide those lumps and bumps.<br />
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I've found these gorgeous swimsuits for you to try and achieve the look. Get the trend with boy type shorts, but modernise it by showing off more of your lovely assets as well with slightly skirted swimsuits that became more popular as the decade went on & into the 30s. I love the nautical style La Redoute one, as it was a trend that was popular in the 20s. The patterned ones are super cute and can help hide any wobbly bits you may have.
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<u>1930s</u><br />
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Catching the sun and having gorgeous tanned skin became a hobby in the 30s. Swimsuits changed from being made of wool jersey to Lastex stretchy cotton. Prints became even more popular along with ribbons or belts around the waist. </div>
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The one piece was made shorter with boy shorts still around and little over skirts becoming popular, along with an exposed v-neck. No more brown face and white bodies for these ladies. <br />
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Hollywood stars began to pose in swimsuits and having the latest fashion became top on the list of a woman's priorities, that and building their shoe collection.<br />
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I found these beautiful pieces, some with little skirts to help hide your thighs. I love all the belted ones as well as the floral swimsuit (when you hover over it, it says sold out but it's not completely, so still have a look if you're interested & fingers crossed it will come back in more sizes.) It's tied with a wrap belt to help clinch the waist in and make you have a waist to rival Dita von Teese. The ones that don't have a belt but have great colour contouring to give the smaller waist illusion like a belt are fabulous. I love the V cut swimsuit with the striped V, it reminds me of the nautical theme that's popularity continued on from the 20s. The zig zag and floral swimsuit are a fabulous mix of colours and also help give the colour illusion slimming effect. Wearing one of these you'll definitely blag yourself your very own Clark Gable.</div>
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<u>1940s</u></div>
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Due to the devastating war along with meat, vegetables and all the important things in life such as chocolate, there was a shortage of fabric. Skirts were shortened and women had to make do and mend. This resulted in women and factories having to make smaller swimsuits with cutout midriffs. The tankini was born and women had a lot more options in styles, with halter, bandeau bras, skirted bottoms and shorts available. Bottoms were high waisted and covered the tummy button and were low on the hips showing off all those leg lifts they'd done since March, don't worry no thongs just yet ladies, so relax. They were worn with wrap shirts, button through dresses or simple towelling dresses hiding any wobbly bits.<br />
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This was the decade when you were able to mix and match colours, patterns and styles. Two pieces became extremely popular by the end of the decade and pin ups such as Rita Hayworth were seen flaunting their curves in them. I mean who doesn't want to look like the lovely Rita?</div>
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The first bikinis appeared just after World War II. Early styles were not much different from tankinis, except that they had a gap below the breast line allowing for a section of bare midriff. They were named after Bikini Atoll, the site of several nuclear weapons tests, for their supposed explosive effect on the viewer. Then, any man would go weak at the knees at the sight of flesh so the name is pretty appropriate.</div>
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The looks I've found reflect the 1940s style, but with a modern twist. I love the halter neck style ones and the tankinis around at the moment which are great for covering up, but still getting a tan. They include high waisted bottoms and I love all the ones that you can mix and match with that I've found. I particularly love the ASOS black floral one with the peplum frill. The peplum was a big style statement in the 40s on clothes, so it combines that style with the high waisted style as well as being great at helping to hide any wobbly bits you're conscious of. I know in your head you may not automatically think high waisted means sexy but don't worry, you won't look like you've got granny pants on with these beauties.</div>
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<u>1950s</u></div>
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With stars like Marilyn Monroe becoming famous in the 50's with their beautiful bodies, swimsuits became more curvaceous and fitting. Corset manufacturers who were drastically losing business due to changing fashions saw a gap in the market, with making swimsuits to hide a woman's faults, with stretch tummy control panels to hold in the stomach, padded cone shaped bra cups and boning to give bust support. A wide range of fabrics including lined cotton, stretch Lastex and elastic ruched nylon were used. Bandeau and strapless low cut styles became very popular. Zips were used in the centre back of swimsuits to create a corset like appearance. Thankfully Marks and Spencer amongst others have taken over this role now, so it's ok if you have another biscuit, or two or three.<br />
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Hair was really important to a fifties woman and they didn't want to get their hair wet and all frizzy whilst swimming. Lavish bathing caps covered in flowers, petals and rubber spikes became essential beach accessories. Just like iPods and plenty of Pringles are these days.<br />
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Yes ladies, you can now show off some proper cleavage, now with so many top styles to choose from. I adore the red Figleaves swimsuit with the Bridget Bardot style neckline, so gorgeous. I adore the lower cut swimsuits, deeper V's and moulded cup swimsuits that make a one piece look oh so hot. The tankini's that are now more structured, lower necklines and some with tummy control will help you look super lean. I love the House of Fraser spotted bikini top which I have shown the swimsuit version of in my 40s section. It shows how far swimwear had come after the war.
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The high waisted bikini's with a zip, most with strapless tops take the zip from the 1950s and give it a modern twist, by having the zip in the front. I love all the prints, especially the ASOS bandeau style top bikini in the bottom row as it is such a bright celebratory multi-coloured geometric print and that's what the 50s were all about, celebration after the war. Even though the belly button wasn't seen until the 60s in swimwear, I think we can make an exception for this gorgeous bikini and some of the high waisters which sit just slightly below the belly button.
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I hope you've enjoyed this post and found something that you can rock on the beach, a lot of these are in the sale so you can easily blag yourself a bargain. I will be doing the 60s-90s in my next post. I want to say thank you so much to all the lovely people who took the time to read my last post about my beautiful Jasper which you can read <a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2016/07/a-letter-from-heart-to-my-darling-jasper.html" target="_blank">here</a>. I'm especially thankful for all the amazing comments, they really mean a lot to me and my family. I've read them many times, so thank you so much for leaving them.<br />
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I hope I've helped you find the perfect swimwear for your holiday, this summer we are meant to be having, or even one in the sale for next year's holiday. If you are a regular at the swimming pool, I hope I've helped you find a new outfit that is sure to get that hunky lifeguard's attention. Watch out for my next post, that's when swimwear will start to get tinier and brighter! You better start doing those squats!<br />
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Second Hand Rose<br />
XxxX<br />
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Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-52123276153715719972016-07-18T13:35:00.001+01:002016-07-19T10:42:05.363+01:00A letter from the heart to my darling Jasper<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfjXuqPiornQWO3LhH37wQiAjBKet0rDXsYl3U8W4xuFzVrHQ3R-SydHeqA63JnSYaeSWUQyzSDXcPdmkFHfq_DM1YEondCm1erOAG-QMDDM-Qnp9DkIrI-1MoBnWy2bTpVH_L7Rrpkz8/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133230655.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfjXuqPiornQWO3LhH37wQiAjBKet0rDXsYl3U8W4xuFzVrHQ3R-SydHeqA63JnSYaeSWUQyzSDXcPdmkFHfq_DM1YEondCm1erOAG-QMDDM-Qnp9DkIrI-1MoBnWy2bTpVH_L7Rrpkz8/s500/Photo%25252020160718133230655.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035911.2227" class="alignright" alt="" width="238" height="319"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My 21st</td></tr></tbody></table> <div>Hi everyone, this has been a very difficult post for me to write and has taken a few days to do as it's still very upsetting to me, I hoped to post it last week. I thought it was time to explain an aspect of what has been going on in my life and one of the reasons I've been on a blogging break. I never ever wanted to have to write this post, but sadly I've had to, life can be so harsh and I'm sure to non pet owners I seem completely crazy! So get ready for a letter (essay) to my beautiful bow tied wearing cat, hopefully some laughs and an awful lot of photos.</div><div> </div><div>To my darling Jasper (our lubbly boy),</div><div> </div><div>Last Thursday (the 14th July) marked a year since we had to say goodbye to you. A day I was dreading and one I thought would never come. I knew logically you couldn't last forever, but in my heart I didn't think such a cat full of character and life would be beaten by something so every day as death.</div><div> </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgdl6dF8qN_uN7uxF9osd7rWBDY4SvgaXHSPgcQ_frWayJdyTnUk8iCrs-zcIBYTiJAbWNJu7_c6ZHTKoQfLkF5j11rzr1bKlKfFpPzz5e-fap5t61Zel-aFUPcu3GJ5x1d5FjdxP9Qpc/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133231266.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgdl6dF8qN_uN7uxF9osd7rWBDY4SvgaXHSPgcQ_frWayJdyTnUk8iCrs-zcIBYTiJAbWNJu7_c6ZHTKoQfLkF5j11rzr1bKlKfFpPzz5e-fap5t61Zel-aFUPcu3GJ5x1d5FjdxP9Qpc/s500/Photo%25252020160718133231266.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035917.878" class="alignleft" alt="" width="300" height="225"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">When he decided to sit on my lap for 90 minutes</td></tr></tbody></table><div>I'm so sorry we had to say goodbye to you, it was one of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make, it was for all of us. I hope that when the time came and when you drifted off to sleep you were dreaming about prawns and sardines and laying by the fire. I hope that having us all around you stroking you, kissing you and telling you how much we love you for the hundredth time that day was some comfort to you. </div><div> </div><div>It was so hard to watch your breathing get slower and your eyes glaze over and seeing those horrible yet normal reflexes and breathing noises your body was making for a while. It made it seem like you were still with us, a cruel twist I wasn't expecting. Even though the vet said you wouldn't have felt them it felt like you were clinging on to life and yet we were ending it. Watching my beautiful baby slip away was heartbreaking and still haunts me, but there was no way I wouldn't have been there for you, after all we'd been through so much together I wasn't going to leave you now.</div><div> </div><div>When I realised you were really gone out of our lives the grief was overwhelming, it was so hard to go home without you. I realised I would never be able to look into those beautiful eyes again or hear you purr. What gave me some comfort was that you looked so peaceful in your big fluffy bed, all wrapped up in your blanket and just like you were asleep. Beforehand when we were all giving you cuddles, crying and handing you around, you must have wondered what on earth was going on. </div><div> </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ANnZHqGXxdg/V4zMgLX38nI/AAAAAAAAPqY/dcHwDKLLk7g/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133234509.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ANnZHqGXxdg/V4zMgLX38nI/AAAAAAAAPqY/dcHwDKLLk7g/s500/Photo%25252020160718133234509.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035901.811" class="alignleft" alt="" width="180" height="240"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">No wonder the printer broke!</td></tr></tbody></table><div>It was so difficult on the drive to the vets when you were acting like my furry friend all interested in what was going on outside and being your usual nosey self. We did everything we could for you, but we didn't want to wait to say goodbye to you when there was no Jasper left in you and you were just a shell of yourself. You still obviously had so much zest for life, but your age was catching up with you.</div><div>I read a quote online on one of the many sleepless nights that I had worrying about you and questioning whether us keeping you alive was right.</div><div><em><br></em></div><div><em><u>'<strong>There will come a day when you have no decision, you must let them go...that is usually one day too late'.</strong></u></em></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5B0QuThI-xdnxg8RzV6mWSZcme2BffRKPhldC5PCuYK2UgLTY8z2jkNIzfevu8Qfb1cDGZn9UAVdb3rDopMeaZYvK67FcxAfcwveQJD0NCWuS5iJ9S41Ne0kkufBAfoXhIyt_RBp-bck/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133234938.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5B0QuThI-xdnxg8RzV6mWSZcme2BffRKPhldC5PCuYK2UgLTY8z2jkNIzfevu8Qfb1cDGZn9UAVdb3rDopMeaZYvK67FcxAfcwveQJD0NCWuS5iJ9S41Ne0kkufBAfoXhIyt_RBp-bck/s500/Photo%25252020160718133234938.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035898.5134" class="alignright" alt="" width="180" height="240"></a></div><div><em> </em></div><div>We all loved you so much and didn't want you to suffer at all. I'm so sorry I had to give you pain medication, use needles on your precious body and give you tablets, which even with two teeth you still managed to bite my fingers and give me some impressive looking scars! In my heart it still feels like it was just yesterday that we had to say goodbye and I miss you every single day, we all do. The house hasn't been the same since and feels so empty without you, well you did own it didn't you. </div><div> </div><div>You came into our lives so unexpectedly 9 1/2 years ago and firmly made your mark within a couple of hours. To be honest since you were 15 at the time we thought we would only have you for a couple of years, but oh no not you my furry monkey. You had us wrapped around your paw for 8 1/2 years, having us all at your beck and call and bringing so much delight into our lives, even if you did eat everyone's food. You lived to the ripe old age of 23 1/2 which was 111 in cat years, not bad going for a cat that did zero exercise and had breath so smelly you could probably make someone faint if they got too close. Oh how I miss that smelly breath.</div><div> </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdx9m6xXom7nmRIFGUD84Aryfua-fQNch0foXyxJN9-DO5jHXngzqwKCUN6M2ZHpw29TjA53yGcAjL4qFQ9YymP_Akjby_NKwtg9cDwSqjaObj_wTfJhR_AAl97Rx98c_rmgYTJsyq7oY/s146/Photo%25252020160718133234990.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdx9m6xXom7nmRIFGUD84Aryfua-fQNch0foXyxJN9-DO5jHXngzqwKCUN6M2ZHpw29TjA53yGcAjL4qFQ9YymP_Akjby_NKwtg9cDwSqjaObj_wTfJhR_AAl97Rx98c_rmgYTJsyq7oY/s146/Photo%25252020160718133234990.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035939.0896" class="alignleft" alt="" width="146" height="120"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">His 1st day</td></tr></tbody></table><div>You settled into your new home in 2007 so easily. You came from a household with two adults and three cats (both pretty scatty) to a house where you were the only cat with five adults to become your slaves, so I think you were pretty happy to finally get all the attention. I remember the second day we had you Mummy & I went to Pets at Home to buy you some things for your new home and we came back and you were laying stretched out on the conservatory table like you owned the house. When we told you to get down you just looked at us and swished your tail, you owned this house in less then 24 hours.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-k3lMQMR7ptw/V4zMjrTEi2I/AAAAAAAAPqk/6CSr1CBfRGI/s640/Photo%25252020160718133235065.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-k3lMQMR7ptw/V4zMjrTEi2I/AAAAAAAAPqk/6CSr1CBfRGI/s500/Photo%25252020160718133235065.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035955.0735" class="alignright" alt="" width="242" height="181"></a></div><div> Up until the last six months of your life you were still acting like the crafty Jasper we knew and dearly loved. Trying to get food out of everyone, meowing like a donkey, demanding to be groomed several times a day or just sat with, loving raspberries being blown on your stomach, going in the garden walking on Mum's precious flowers and leaving a stinky present there and then running back in the house, scooting around the table on three paws as you were scared of the wind. </div><div> </div><div>There were times when you got a lot better in those months and raised our hopes but things would go downhill again, it was such a roller coaster. I have a blog post in drafts that was '10 things that make me happy' and obviously you were at the top of the list! I wrote it in May & said that you'd been ill, but were back to your normal vibrant self and I was filled with so much hope that things were under control. Just two months later we had to say goodbye, I can't bring myself to delete that damn post that I wrote with you snuggled up to me.</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNgT_9GvzVHO1d1pa7vn5u_wKZ3JOrIzGeoklqaJXVws4Gi4xEllE2vNhnt7jLvwBUuExJcAa4a77L-TsgZqpuMBW6qDJk_8zRErfqyTMxnwAVI9FCfvEQgWTipp8TYIb6jxcGdb8gtgo/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133235423.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNgT_9GvzVHO1d1pa7vn5u_wKZ3JOrIzGeoklqaJXVws4Gi4xEllE2vNhnt7jLvwBUuExJcAa4a77L-TsgZqpuMBW6qDJk_8zRErfqyTMxnwAVI9FCfvEQgWTipp8TYIb6jxcGdb8gtgo/s500/Photo%25252020160718133235423.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035885.8098" class="alignleft" alt="" width="250" height="187"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Doing his dinner time laps</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Every dinner time you would do laps around the table, trying to get food out of us which you always managed to do. You conned me out of half my breakfast most mornings and some of my lunch when you get your paws on it. I miss you eating my macaroni cheese and licking the bowl that had baked beans or spaghetti in and you having a tomato beard afterwards, as well as your marmite beard that was a regular occurrence. I miss us having to save you custard and your Mummy making you your own piece of Marmite toast to eat.</div><div> </div><div> I miss you taking up all the room wherever you decided to lay and on my bed and you sitting on my legs stopping the blood flow to them as you were so heavy. I was so happy when you were around for my 21st in 2014 and loved eating any food you could get your paws on. I don't think many people can say that at their 21st birthday party their cat is a year and a half older then them! </div><div> </div><div>I miss the way you used to lie in front of the fire with your legs in the air stealing all the heat and how you would run to the fire as soon as you saw the guard being moved. You got so close, we were terrified we were going to set your whiskers on fire with the match. You had the fire on when you wanted no matter what time it was or season, we all had to sit there sweltering in June while you enjoyed it stretched back and relaxed.</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv-qvEhEGAlO4HolIyIgWLp-ZeNxiXJbFDxk_10c5NQWciGJYPwfJ9u-UfHtZ6ABmmVyp1LVQgpU8QnT8vkcf9gXaYjPEZZE80n64mssKFd6KRh5Ce8gI_FRV9r2mUw0k4I-3OzW8Eil4/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133235734.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv-qvEhEGAlO4HolIyIgWLp-ZeNxiXJbFDxk_10c5NQWciGJYPwfJ9u-UfHtZ6ABmmVyp1LVQgpU8QnT8vkcf9gXaYjPEZZE80n64mssKFd6KRh5Ce8gI_FRV9r2mUw0k4I-3OzW8Eil4/s500/Photo%25252020160718133235734.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035980.3499" class="alignright" alt="" width="282" height="211"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In heaven by the fire</td></tr></tbody></table><div> </div><div>I miss how you always used to try and eat off people's plates when one of us ate in the sitting room. As soon as they put them down, you were the King of craftiness and even if you were asleep you'd start moving your nose and your whiskers would start twitching. You'd be right there waiting before any of us had taken our first bite. I miss how you made out you were unable to open a pulled to door and just used to meow and stare at it for ages until someone gave in, yet miraculously when dinner was being cooked, you managed to get out of the room and I miss seeing your paw curved around the door and you slowly sneaking in or out.</div><div> </div><div> I even miss when you used to dribble when you were being groomed and when you used to use the side of my laptop and my iPad cover as your Jasper scratcher. I still have the stains from the dribble on my laptop & can't bring myself to buy a much needed new iPad case as you loved it so much.</div><div> </div><div> I miss your selective arthritis that was bad when you had to go upstairs, but not bad when you could smell food, sadly that arthritis didn't become so selective and became such a problem for you. I hope you liked all the heat pads we put on your legs and massages I would give you to try and ease the pain. You seemed to like them and towards the end it was the only time I would hear you purr, that or if it was prawn time. </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvoJ776refhdEJyvt1e82ujOpEhReeuZPlPsnS_1Xt5j8o6LR2tzCk6AyrJS73Gfqk0gh-9CiZhd_N5VqjTXBtsMO3A7rUHb8gWH51TAAzbbkKTv5CUPEroUrsLWlnAgQ-FPUM_Dek6yY/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133236048.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvoJ776refhdEJyvt1e82ujOpEhReeuZPlPsnS_1Xt5j8o6LR2tzCk6AyrJS73Gfqk0gh-9CiZhd_N5VqjTXBtsMO3A7rUHb8gWH51TAAzbbkKTv5CUPEroUrsLWlnAgQ-FPUM_Dek6yY/s500/Photo%25252020160718133236048.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035973.9165" class="alignleft" alt="" width="198" height="264"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trying to pinch some food-Chorizo!</td></tr></tbody></table><div> When your beautiful body was letting you down, my mission in the day was to make you comfortable and try and get you to purr. That's all I wanted, to see the cat I loved so dearly happy. I believed I could get you better, I believed what the vet was saying was just ifs and maybe's, after all to me you weren't just a normal cat you were Jasper, you could beat anything.</div><div> </div><div>But when I saw you not being able to jump up onto the stall to climb on the sofa anymore, or not be able to reach down for your food or just collapse in a heap, it broke my heart.</div><div> </div><div> My first question in the morning to your Daddy a.k.a Chief Slave was 'How's Jasper?'. I said it with knots in my stomach hoping you were ok and had survived the night. I'm sorry you had to put up with our never ending chats before you went to sleep, when I snuggled you all up in your bed and told you how much I loved you. Selfishly I had to do that for myself because I was so scared that I wouldn't get to look into your eyes again. I held my breath every morning when I was awake early (I often was as I'd be worrying about you) when Daddy went downstairs just waiting to hear your meow when he opened the kitchen door. If I didn't hear it straight away I'd get so anxious and then when I finally heard that meow I so desperately miss, the relief was overwhelming.</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLmPPodifsMBcJAo-K7h4m9Ls_s_OPXRmdXPn8Dt8f5U7kXpMOO7Ju5j9NuiBrUayojtMIn8sxudncQBm0BC_Mc6K_wvDF-9-sBsMeeY5SeUrM6gqdmmHbNyEzGzImvLCsjcwcFajuRec/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133236338.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLmPPodifsMBcJAo-K7h4m9Ls_s_OPXRmdXPn8Dt8f5U7kXpMOO7Ju5j9NuiBrUayojtMIn8sxudncQBm0BC_Mc6K_wvDF-9-sBsMeeY5SeUrM6gqdmmHbNyEzGzImvLCsjcwcFajuRec/s500/Photo%25252020160718133236338.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035923.068" class="alignright" alt="" width="233" height="175"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eating Custard on his own placemat!</td></tr></tbody></table><div> </div><div>I hope when on the nights you were really bad and I stayed downstairs with you right next to me, checking on you every hour you felt some comfort. I remember the time you got a bug and you weren't eating or drinking and I tried giving you 5ml of water every 20 minutes all night to keep you hydrated, as I knew when a cat got dehydrated they could go downhill so quickly. The vet told me I probably saved your life doing that and you lived 22 months longer, so that loss of sleep and eye bags those few nights you were with me were definitely worth it.</div><div> </div><div> I could see you weren't ready to go yet, there was still a hell of a lot of fight left in you. Afterwards when you were better and yourself again with your donkey style whail back to perfect working order that we were so glad to hear again, you wanted to be with us even more, just sitting with us would make you purr. You'd come into a room and demand us to follow you, while you ran to your mat to be sat next to, be stroked and you'd be so happy. </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWtRX0g0vxIWGNz9yqAOyYz_zLhU0M2jHAtEEoprCGNd7FMQ9zP4X0TkvNMaA9NThDinob3AVhv7Js_nAZXJrAEe6ckebkyUnNVeAWVLfsdudlO2CmJxJMAVUpXh44QaYvn4UWULYNvng/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133236637.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWtRX0g0vxIWGNz9yqAOyYz_zLhU0M2jHAtEEoprCGNd7FMQ9zP4X0TkvNMaA9NThDinob3AVhv7Js_nAZXJrAEe6ckebkyUnNVeAWVLfsdudlO2CmJxJMAVUpXh44QaYvn4UWULYNvng/s500/Photo%25252020160718133236637.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035979.633" class="alignleft" alt="" width="300" height="225"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Owning the fire</td></tr></tbody></table><div>The thing is my beautiful sweetheart you weren't just a cat to me or to any of us. You helped me through some of the hardest heart breaking times of my life and your fur was used as a tissue more then Kleenex so many times, it was my comfort blanket. If I had a bad day all I needed was a Jasper cuddle and everything seemed okay.</div><div> </div><div>You made our world brighter with your cunning personality and the funny things you used to do. I miss watching you sleep having a dream and moving your paws about and whiskers. I even miss your loud snoring. I miss your purr that would start before you even got a cuddle or food, because you knew what was coming and the purring for such a long time afterwards. You just wanted to be with us all the time, you would set the pace of the household and we just went with it. </div><div> </div><div>You used to sit on my bed with me while I wrote my articles for Vintage Life or blog posts and I miss my furry ghost writer so dearly. I've only just been able to start blogging again as you were such a huge part of it and was often mentioned. For months I couldn't bring myself to blog or talk to certain people as I was worried they'd ask about you and I just couldn't get the words out, it just hurt too much in my heart, so silly I know. </div><div> </div><div>You made such an incredible impact on my life, I don't know how I would have got through some of the hard days without you by my side, purring away at me making everything I was worried about seem so trivial, as you were made so happy by just the simplest things in life.</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj95b6-v4s_L4ihMLIZ-ypncl6elrE63gxKKjf7Bgm1TYHCNvTNON1cPS32sWR9oqzL9eAnlNIpC_kv8Es-nY5fKxWuJMVg893PP4YpHZKIy2zCogmuPxo6H2bkckPns-JGKOgBir80Fqo/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133236966.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj95b6-v4s_L4ihMLIZ-ypncl6elrE63gxKKjf7Bgm1TYHCNvTNON1cPS32sWR9oqzL9eAnlNIpC_kv8Es-nY5fKxWuJMVg893PP4YpHZKIy2zCogmuPxo6H2bkckPns-JGKOgBir80Fqo/s500/Photo%25252020160718133236966.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035968.8457" class="alignright" alt="" width="300" height="225"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Helping me write</td></tr></tbody></table><div> You're still the screen saver on my phone and iPad by the way (don't worry they won't change for a long time) and you have left a serious paw print on my broken heart, you have on all of ours. </div><div> </div><div>When I had an Echo done recently to look at my heart, I told my Dr (who probably thinks I'm crazy) they might find a paw print on it. It must have been right deep inside as they didn't see it. We now have a bauble with pictures of you in it that goes right at the top of the tree at Christmas, so the fairy has been fired.</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zrPxiMrb57o/V4zMxqzmL7I/AAAAAAAAPrE/ZHT3jfk5KF8/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133237309.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zrPxiMrb57o/V4zMxqzmL7I/AAAAAAAAPrE/ZHT3jfk5KF8/s500/Photo%25252020160718133237309.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035955.2627" class="alignleft" alt="" width="213" height="264"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In memory of him</td></tr></tbody></table><div> </div><div>We also have a frame with a picture of you, your bow tie that you so charmingly wore, your paw print and some of your fur and your grooming brush you so dearly loved right next to the fire with your pewter cat casket. We've even put it in front of the fire a couple of times when we've had it on as we know you'd like to be laying there, yeah I know completely crazy.</div><div> </div><div><p>We are still finding your fur on our clothes and everywhere else around the house and will continue to for a long time. I have so many pictures of you (around 2,000) as you well know, you were a right little poser and some videos of you. I can't bring myself to delete a photo that's blurry or has bad lighting, silly I know. I just wish I took more videos of you when you were healthier.</p></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfzfKyBStJI9e2z7jADItU4vn2IrnB94hkczZZKA4MRJjAT5UojXycJPG1ndm__U-_lEWZY2ZmZy2mIrBsQuLDFo1FYnOb7v0I7r5DWI-A3D9nGMuOVRfanJWjfP9ifq-KxcxCpJTfwbA/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133237787.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfzfKyBStJI9e2z7jADItU4vn2IrnB94hkczZZKA4MRJjAT5UojXycJPG1ndm__U-_lEWZY2ZmZy2mIrBsQuLDFo1FYnOb7v0I7r5DWI-A3D9nGMuOVRfanJWjfP9ifq-KxcxCpJTfwbA/s500/Photo%25252020160718133237787.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035965.3154" class="alignright" alt="" width="205" height="274"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Head of the table</td></tr></tbody></table><div> You gave us so many laughs and continue to as we recall stories of you jumping on the table to eat the Christmas turkey when no one was looking and when you used to scavenge food off of our neighbours and I walked down one of their drives once and you walked up it, just looked at me and carried on walking licking your lips so proudly. We laugh about how crazy it is that you were technically a senior cat (7+) even before the millennium, you 90s child you! </div><div> </div><div><p>We talk about how you used to sun yourself in the garden, how much you loved the Gazebo, how you walked around the garden with Daddy when he watered the garden and when you used to wait in the driveway every night until everyone was home. We laugh about when we were going away in 2013 you sat in the suitcase meowing and then curled up in it, spending over four hours in it. </p></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgemz6Y1ToWcSESyGKGn_4vDIjYqQluN86dLpnAvEZeisN2HPrC_IaWNH5BNYpkVzmgRm60p_pbLLD8-DwsQZnDmRWxvYtkj_NMEbiCLBtnZVUlI3h-R0g7f0a8zgLajf0cocfCmKoQMqI/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133238178.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgemz6Y1ToWcSESyGKGn_4vDIjYqQluN86dLpnAvEZeisN2HPrC_IaWNH5BNYpkVzmgRm60p_pbLLD8-DwsQZnDmRWxvYtkj_NMEbiCLBtnZVUlI3h-R0g7f0a8zgLajf0cocfCmKoQMqI/s500/Photo%25252020160718133238178.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035929.4175" class="alignleft" alt="" width="300" height="225"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trying to nab some Chinese takeaway</td></tr></tbody></table><div> We laugh about when you had been given liver or king prawns the day before and then refused to eat your cat food the next day and just meowed all day standing next to your bowl. The longest you lasted was late afternoon or early evening at the most.</div><div> </div><div><p>I miss having you in the car with me, as every time I would drive up the drive you would saunter along and walk all the way around the car and meow at the door, so I had to end up opening the door and letting you in.</p></div><div> </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-119h_YCeIto/V4zM3RqJgfI/AAAAAAAAPrQ/fbTeM4xKams/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133238485.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-119h_YCeIto/V4zM3RqJgfI/AAAAAAAAPrQ/fbTeM4xKams/s500/Photo%25252020160718133238485.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035971.0405" class="alignright" alt="" width="180" height="263"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trying to test out my baking!</td></tr></tbody></table><div>We miss finding you hiding in the downstairs cupboard Jasper Potter and how when we had prawns as part of a meal, no one barely got to eat any as you would con them out of everyone. I miss not being able to leave any food alone even for just a second as you would eat it, including buttercream, you were my chief cake tester. I laugh about when I was carrying you like a baby and went to the fridge to get some Quorn Ham, put several pieces in my mouth to hold as my hands were full and you leapt up and took a massive bite out of them, making them instantly yours.</div><div> </div><div> I miss being able to hold you in my arms like a baby or sitting up in my arms and dancing around the room with you. I miss telling people about my wonderful cat and seeing their shock at how old you are and hearing them laugh as I recalled your crazy antics.</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSjvIRoAmOaf6IgLZKS93zsyNx4AB2pAATRauI7diCRSR0aWhf6x5jsIXVVP9kwa1HOAIgYKx-RFoqxLdLdIyfuFBTqemjH5Z1M4obVGOmB3k7FYzrIJByPJT_Y6j3SVyvQXWnGHMauqE/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133238871.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSjvIRoAmOaf6IgLZKS93zsyNx4AB2pAATRauI7diCRSR0aWhf6x5jsIXVVP9kwa1HOAIgYKx-RFoqxLdLdIyfuFBTqemjH5Z1M4obVGOmB3k7FYzrIJByPJT_Y6j3SVyvQXWnGHMauqE/s500/Photo%25252020160718133238871.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035915.5457" class="alignleft" alt="" width="238" height="178"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">His suitcase protest</td></tr></tbody></table><div>I even miss sitting next to you on a two cushion sofa with you having one cushion to yourself and you pushing your legs into me to get more and more room. I miss when all five of us were all in the room & two of us sometimes three had to squash up on one cushion, while you had the other one to yourself. None of us had the heart to move you.<br></div><div> </div><div>I miss hearing you on the landing in the morning meowing your head off and I miss our during the night snuggles when we used to stay at Grandma's when the parents went away and you slept on my bed and I'd be woken up by these whiskers brushing my face or the stench of your breath and fur in my face. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYzfZ23ZIA-N9zeUsv0_6mS6dBB4WtoetXG93SV9UnDHuAOgw_nR6B4vOktrNELShp7lcvQ62u5e8mEEIX7sPh_Xmc_Zk_wbjHKyoOXcBl0ZbQwRxXh1yLT8kUgctHa2IEWSxYBgiJyxk/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133239212.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYzfZ23ZIA-N9zeUsv0_6mS6dBB4WtoetXG93SV9UnDHuAOgw_nR6B4vOktrNELShp7lcvQ62u5e8mEEIX7sPh_Xmc_Zk_wbjHKyoOXcBl0ZbQwRxXh1yLT8kUgctHa2IEWSxYBgiJyxk/s500/Photo%25252020160718133239212.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035949.537" class="alignright" alt="" width="257" height="193"></a></div><div> I miss when I'm anxious or at any emotionally draining appointments and not finding your fur on my clothes and feeling like you're there with me. I miss just walking past you and you doing that little trill you used to do just to say hello and how when everyone went to bed you wanted to be stroked by them all first. </div><div> </div><div>I miss the times when you didn't want to go to bed and I'd put you in bed but somehow you'd escape (so much for not being able to open doors!) and I had to run after you and you'd run onto your mat and demand to be groomed, sometimes it took four escapes to get my feisty 23 year old baby to go to bed.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVCYhSnd56VfFwivfUbkQt5a-yOj9ap9ChlfB0cv_eqw0R69l2KusDhJWEgBjQI-IiSiG1VfCer6FOwhGLbYz2EUNrF0-dqkwZJPEcCXG0JWUzlVPALQpyUeYLCLJFvdbQsQVnSMWPeNA/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133239540.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVCYhSnd56VfFwivfUbkQt5a-yOj9ap9ChlfB0cv_eqw0R69l2KusDhJWEgBjQI-IiSiG1VfCer6FOwhGLbYz2EUNrF0-dqkwZJPEcCXG0JWUzlVPALQpyUeYLCLJFvdbQsQVnSMWPeNA/s500/Photo%25252020160718133239540.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035936.8516" class="alignleft" alt="" width="300" height="225"></a></div><div>I miss writing your name in cards to people with a little message from you and trying to draw around your gigantic paw and I miss when you would stay on my bed all day with me, or when I was at college I would come home and you'd still be on my bed, but even more stretched out then you were at 7am when you got on it. </div><div> </div><div>I miss getting your fur in my ring and all over my wool. I haven't been able to do any crochet as my wool is covered in your fur, or FairIsle knitting that you loved watching me do and playing with the balls. The only projects I've been able to start or complete are ones that don't include your fur and that's not many!</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lwG_Hp2oMlY/V4zM-xwQ1iI/AAAAAAAAPrg/3O7BVgMxtw4/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133239927.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lwG_Hp2oMlY/V4zM-xwQ1iI/AAAAAAAAPrg/3O7BVgMxtw4/s500/Photo%25252020160718133239927.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035935.744" class="alignright" alt="" width="180" height="240"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eating his Yo! Sushi!</td></tr></tbody></table><div>I miss hearing you coming on the wooden floor when you needed your claws cutting, we used to call you 'Stiletto Fred' and I miss hearing the landing creak and then hearing you come into my room, every time you did I would smile to myself. When I hear creaks on the landing now or downstairs I still automatically think it's you. When I'm in the house by myself I have to have the radio or TV on as every noise makes me think it's you for a second. I miss having you to come home to, even if I've only been out for an hour and I miss when I go to Yo! Sushi bringing you back a takeaway of Salmon home which you loved.</div><div> </div><div>I could go on forever about how many things I miss about you. You had such a cheeky personality and made this house an incredibly happy one with your presence for 8 1/2 years. I will never ever forget you and when I had to say goodbye to you I cried so incredibly hard, it felt like we had lost a human family member and not just a furry one. </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-LuAMpwIViYuuyKHAbV9oxRjbj9NQ6lxZqwmJoli9tg6_zUCzKxhAe2ETKeV_KDorfgUs3MoWm24er15gH8QjSQzbmOx3SEEn-JkcY-MNtvCQpvKWLW6vfzlrjtHMqh11XRS2vRIuAIs/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133240253.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-LuAMpwIViYuuyKHAbV9oxRjbj9NQ6lxZqwmJoli9tg6_zUCzKxhAe2ETKeV_KDorfgUs3MoWm24er15gH8QjSQzbmOx3SEEn-JkcY-MNtvCQpvKWLW6vfzlrjtHMqh11XRS2vRIuAIs/s500/Photo%25252020160718133240253.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035948.891" class="alignleft" alt="" width="248" height="186"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Licking Marmite out of the jar!</td></tr></tbody></table><div> </div><div>For weeks my days felt empty as before hand they had become so revolved around caring for you, looking after you and making you as comfortable as I could. I still have days and moments where I cry for you and just want to cuddle my little tiramisu so tight and never let go. I just have to tell myself you're no longer suffering and my little pumpkin, I would never ever want that.</div><div> </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir-6ThESSRHx2RF3u3b1j63633agJSg17Zk0anr5IvUmQEy8W3AjKp1AURN-A4xavl04Ka3Y7dH46uA7cxTCCf-FTKWHqDGiG94T4NOxPFt96Us_24lMcYp8FdZ9hzvRfHyfT_Dc3cTw4/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133240609.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir-6ThESSRHx2RF3u3b1j63633agJSg17Zk0anr5IvUmQEy8W3AjKp1AURN-A4xavl04Ka3Y7dH46uA7cxTCCf-FTKWHqDGiG94T4NOxPFt96Us_24lMcYp8FdZ9hzvRfHyfT_Dc3cTw4/s500/Photo%25252020160718133240609.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035968.168" class="alignright" alt="" width="220" height="294"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cuddles in the car</td></tr></tbody></table><div>On Thursday we had a meal full of prawns (apart from me, but you would have loved my Quorn chorizo) dedicated to you that you would have loved. </div><div> </div><div>Thank you for being with me through the hardest and most extreme times of my life and helping heal the pain that I couldn't put into words. Thank you for making me smile so wide and laugh so incredibly hard hearing about what you've been up to when I've been out and seeing you being your mischievous self. </div><div> </div><div>Every day I wake up wishing it was all just a terrible nightmare, but sadly it isn't. I no longer have my furry baby snuggled up to me, who refused to grow up and still showed kitten like behaviour and a huge zest for life at such a ripe old age.</div><div> </div><div>Mr Boyfriend, you know the one you use to sit on all the time and wake up if he was staying over, isn't very happy I have more photos of you in my room then him and I will be putting even more of you and me up. I don't actually have any of him in there, so you're winning in the photo contest. </div><div> </div><div>He gave me a vintage locket to put photos of me and him in for our 5th anniversary, but I'm pretty tempted to put ones of me and you in it, which he surprisingly isn't too happy about! He does admit he misses you though, just not your bad breath and you being his wake up call by walking all over him.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zaF7phwkuVk/V4zNFLHQD6I/AAAAAAAAPrs/SQrNhDZfroQ/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133240940.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zaF7phwkuVk/V4zNFLHQD6I/AAAAAAAAPrs/SQrNhDZfroQ/s500/Photo%25252020160718133240940.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035991.3623" class="alignleft" alt="" width="283" height="213"></a></div><div> </div><div>I'm sure my heart will heal in time, but Jasper my beautiful boy we will never ever forget you. You've made a mark on our lives that will never be forgotten. The house sure does smell a little better without that awful breath of yours though.</div><div> </div><div>All my eternal love,</div><div> </div><div>Your youngest slave of the pack ie. The one you used to steal loads of Quorn from and use her Tangle Teezer as a grooming brush.</div><div> </div><div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pg89tFT5FUE/V4zNHaNjXUI/AAAAAAAAPrw/1uPRNgoNm-o/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133241280.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pg89tFT5FUE/V4zNHaNjXUI/AAAAAAAAPrw/1uPRNgoNm-o/s500/Photo%25252020160718133241280.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921036003.9072" class="alignleft" alt="" width="280" height="210"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD_OHOIkqnB_avYDLpXffsudmy8zpnAeMQ0nnSvgAg3kfiUsFRlN9VUHNK5Q7rgY9mZA0VrWs_QO8ysVdoxTMDQ41jnkhJyK96lLFkmTkj-HSa00e63BSwTN5kYmKscBqID_2CxCZWztQ/s640/Photo%25252020160718134001818.jpg" target="_blank" style="text-align: right;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD_OHOIkqnB_avYDLpXffsudmy8zpnAeMQ0nnSvgAg3kfiUsFRlN9VUHNK5Q7rgY9mZA0VrWs_QO8ysVdoxTMDQ41jnkhJyK96lLFkmTkj-HSa00e63BSwTN5kYmKscBqID_2CxCZWztQ/s500/Photo%25252020160718134001818.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035958.0947" class="alignnone" alt="" width="280" height="210"></a><span style="text-align: right;"> </span><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-4jExaBgYeEk/V4zOYAVF5mI/AAAAAAAAPsQ/Paet-iKXzoI/s2048/Photo%25252020160718134056094.jpg" target="_blank" style="text-align: right;"><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-4jExaBgYeEk/V4zOYAVF5mI/AAAAAAAAPsQ/Paet-iKXzoI/s500/Photo%25252020160718134056094.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035914.0996" class="alignnone" alt="" width="280" height="210"></a></div><div> </div><div> Thank you so much to everyone who has taken the time to read this, I know it was pretty long! I first properly introduced Jasper on my blog when I was just trying to get it going which you can read <a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/i-think-its-about-time-you-all-met-my.html" target="_blank" title="">here</a>. I know I may seem silly or ungrateful being so upset about a cat who lived until 23 1/2, when people lose their pets at much earlier ages. However, to us he was only 8 1/2 as we didn't have him all his life and he had so much personality,he really was the sixth member of the family, just with paws instead.</div><div>I also hope this might be able to help someone who is facing making the agonising decision we had to make. I still read the quote I included to remind myself we did the right thing. I promise my next blog won't be so long!</div><div> </div><div>If you do have a pet please go and cuddle them extra tight, even if it is a snake. Make memories with them, take pictures and videos and try to cherish every single second you have with them, even if they do eat your furniture and scratch your carpet.</div><div> </div><div>Second Hand Rose</div><div>XxxX</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAiEbMiyX21Asn1wVN7_BS8qZs2VORpldLXJd6HVQGhnSkJrMt8EUv6hgiCr23NiiDr6vNUVswZ14kZs2HLz3CHdsYxC7TVZhPmYd-THDh3d0WcMbdbFlUirIle0zBbBWpJcvO4E8P33Y/s2048/Photo%25252020160718133241548.jpg" target="_blank" style=""><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAiEbMiyX21Asn1wVN7_BS8qZs2VORpldLXJd6HVQGhnSkJrMt8EUv6hgiCr23NiiDr6vNUVswZ14kZs2HLz3CHdsYxC7TVZhPmYd-THDh3d0WcMbdbFlUirIle0zBbBWpJcvO4E8P33Y/s500/Photo%25252020160718133241548.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035972.665" class="alignnone" alt="" width="280" height="210"></a> <a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-33QQoqoVqS4/V4zOKnXxzrI/AAAAAAAAPsI/ipNvDS2pk8k/s2048/Photo%25252020160718134002244.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-33QQoqoVqS4/V4zOKnXxzrI/AAAAAAAAPsI/ipNvDS2pk8k/s500/Photo%25252020160718134002244.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921035947.079" class="alignnone" alt="" width="306" height="230"></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO01gozZJjgNcCtNmDnmCGRWHXBvqBwp_fgmsWHKrsLTOYyAQrNMNwdDIZHx_YqC3JcfjQoyqRvukVdUFACKL-7dQw1jJaHxoC1C6CGmw8-9XBJcyD4RFW79huxEcMZA5_CqDOaPGf5jA/s2048/Photo%25252020160718134056398.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO01gozZJjgNcCtNmDnmCGRWHXBvqBwp_fgmsWHKrsLTOYyAQrNMNwdDIZHx_YqC3JcfjQoyqRvukVdUFACKL-7dQw1jJaHxoC1C6CGmw8-9XBJcyD4RFW79huxEcMZA5_CqDOaPGf5jA/s500/Photo%25252020160718134056398.jpg" id="blogsy-1468921036010.2156" class="alignnone" alt="" width="280" height="210"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stuffing his face with prawns!</td></tr></tbody></table><div> </div><div style="text-align: right; font-size: small; clear: both;" id="blogsy_footer"><a href="http://blogsyapp.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://blogsyapp.com/images/blogsy_footer_icon.png" alt="Posted with Blogsy" style="vertical-align: middle; margin-right: 5px;" width="20" height="20" />Posted with Blogsy</a></div>Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-71602779885159367802016-07-07T14:56:00.001+01:002016-07-07T15:00:52.526+01:00A celebration of Miss Marilyn Monroe: Contains many gorgeous unseen photos<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRFQFj96qLX9sfalLCtuZWJaxKEn29e1ac2cPkQ0CLMKbHP67ZgpcJaKrmqAGU-bZWmw7sXttgF-CL5cl2ILOB4y9lLmUFqRqWy_fBaktkZ9elL0qkS-Phyphenhyphen3LXcpAEtt4uLxdgmkbeSFg/s787/Photo%25252020160707130557686.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRFQFj96qLX9sfalLCtuZWJaxKEn29e1ac2cPkQ0CLMKbHP67ZgpcJaKrmqAGU-bZWmw7sXttgF-CL5cl2ILOB4y9lLmUFqRqWy_fBaktkZ9elL0qkS-Phyphenhyphen3LXcpAEtt4uLxdgmkbeSFg/s218/Photo%25252020160707130557686.jpg" id="blogsy-1467900002315.7383" class="alignright" alt="" width="218" height="278"></a></div><div>On the 1st June this year it would have been the gorgeous Marilyn Monroe's 90th birthday, so it wouldn't have just been Queen Lizzie's official birthday we'd have been celebrating last month. Sadly though on the 5th August 1962 Marilyn passed away at the age of just 36. It would have been great to have seen how she aged and see her beauty radiate throughout the years. </div><div> </div><div> The world is still in love with Marilyn, who at the time was one of the most beautiful and fascinating people in Hollywood, but also incredibly fragile. We have her films to pour over and never seen before photos are still being unearthed. There is still so much intrigue into her death and many conspiracy theories, she has become one of history's most enduring stars.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbfF8gaMugKEyLmUsx9HpppL86XwBferDoT72tdMYPyj8b7Uj_xDUhhcU2HObXhlhyphenhyphenjphMBlPjw90h0ofv4ADa3pJIK94ZAzGzrmUStbdjhqVnIsGGPVkvNRFRuuqEaP6GLlynG5s6lhE/s748/Photo%25252020160707130557678.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbfF8gaMugKEyLmUsx9HpppL86XwBferDoT72tdMYPyj8b7Uj_xDUhhcU2HObXhlhyphenhyphenjphMBlPjw90h0ofv4ADa3pJIK94ZAzGzrmUStbdjhqVnIsGGPVkvNRFRuuqEaP6GLlynG5s6lhE/s236/Photo%25252020160707130557678.jpg" id="blogsy-1467900002264.986" class="alignleft" alt="" width="236" height="192"></a></div><div> </div><div>Throughout June, Marilyn's birthday was celebrated in a pop-up photo exhibition at The Showroom Presents in Fulham, so I hope some of you managed to go and see it. It was presented by the Playboy Club London and online gallery ONGallery, where you can still have a look at the <a href="https://ongallery.com/en/" target="_blank" title="">photos</a> as the prints are available to buy from £100 to around £5,000, just search for Marilyn.</div><div> </div><div> The show was called 'The Happy Birthday Miss Monroe Collection' and covered 16 years of her life, featuring well known and rarely seen images. Prints ranged from ones taken in 1946, when she was still Norma Jean Baker in LA, photos taken in studios or on set and photos taken by Bert Stern in 1962 which has now become known as "The Last Sitting" taken six weeks before she died.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYMnfffk8PQrZud7j9Zs8IxYsdBM-N2wdUqpWFZMy23-9enzUnFxuNPd2yYDiEZUUwCzFAYIOPz1h-FUPK0NNKwYnTs3L65I97l8WY8LwpzieJyQZBw7u1LjqlYx0tUPYLsiSdLfDdpok/s1206/Photo%25252020160707130557644.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYMnfffk8PQrZud7j9Zs8IxYsdBM-N2wdUqpWFZMy23-9enzUnFxuNPd2yYDiEZUUwCzFAYIOPz1h-FUPK0NNKwYnTs3L65I97l8WY8LwpzieJyQZBw7u1LjqlYx0tUPYLsiSdLfDdpok/s181/Photo%25252020160707130557644.jpg" id="blogsy-1467900002236.1958" class="alignright" alt="" width="181" height="228"></a></div><div> </div><div>Bert Stern took around 2,500 photos of her for Vogue over a three day period, which he published in a book called Bert Stern: Marilyn Monroe: The Complete Last Sitting in 1982 and again in 2000. The photos were fashion ones, portrait and nudes, of which only 20 were ever published, ones which we've become to know Marilyn by. The book included all 2,571 photos and is probably the largest tribute there is to her.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Ubonv5oTmH8/V35GSxCIG4I/AAAAAAAAPnQ/300jgPkcYFs/s624/Photo%25252020160707130557622.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Ubonv5oTmH8/V35GSxCIG4I/AAAAAAAAPnQ/300jgPkcYFs/s220/Photo%25252020160707130557622.jpg" id="blogsy-1467900002333.7927" class="alignleft" alt="" width="220" height="168"></a></div><div>So it's great that some more photos have been released to the public from that shoot. The images include ones that Marilyn didn't like and had drawn a cross through the negative. All these pictures from the last sitting became very poignant just a few weeks later.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtyvfrJ3zoAHO9w5PWfjBSpAOVA_POUsVsgnM7AhO-xVSTjwJxY6qb5Ap-Pyu_v0jpE7Y4zLYgRrxyRBRoW1YCbuTx_ynBASDn1apmxL0yoTr9o-FlfyXHULMy3S9V_eVm5oTvGkqyYTw/s2048/Photo%25252020160707130557668.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtyvfrJ3zoAHO9w5PWfjBSpAOVA_POUsVsgnM7AhO-xVSTjwJxY6qb5Ap-Pyu_v0jpE7Y4zLYgRrxyRBRoW1YCbuTx_ynBASDn1apmxL0yoTr9o-FlfyXHULMy3S9V_eVm5oTvGkqyYTw/s299/Photo%25252020160707130557668.jpg" id="blogsy-1467900002337.3525" class="alignleft" alt="" width="299" height="350"></a></div><div> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLzkfPsFtZPDfw3z3EK5_OviyCfEagaTGyIiYZmNrzye8sTuvn49zwssKAVBS7qKlwxfKALbV3W7AU6cnLEihTsNkYJJXqZWk43aqcGUupFsAiZRtvErB2ti7-J3IkBP7EQFO-7gCs4nY/s1024/Photo%25252020160707130557674.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLzkfPsFtZPDfw3z3EK5_OviyCfEagaTGyIiYZmNrzye8sTuvn49zwssKAVBS7qKlwxfKALbV3W7AU6cnLEihTsNkYJJXqZWk43aqcGUupFsAiZRtvErB2ti7-J3IkBP7EQFO-7gCs4nY/s235/Photo%25252020160707130557674.jpg" id="blogsy-1467900002272.624" class="alignnone" alt="" width="235" height="340"></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiSn1T8ZjzZ9BXkFa__TbvUSKTPZhz9P1gCBIoJZUTNmKie1QniVriv1gAmhOd60WTnWjgqY0Fnaa7S0EU5g6QbyYkb4QkHoqnjndBNpyFZVKU5GK46y_vmsEqZUy8zGFYuP7upMTJ_Ro/s1443/Photo%25252020160707130557632.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiSn1T8ZjzZ9BXkFa__TbvUSKTPZhz9P1gCBIoJZUTNmKie1QniVriv1gAmhOd60WTnWjgqY0Fnaa7S0EU5g6QbyYkb4QkHoqnjndBNpyFZVKU5GK46y_vmsEqZUy8zGFYuP7upMTJ_Ro/s225/Photo%25252020160707130557632.jpg" id="blogsy-1467900002282.047" class="alignnone" alt="" width="225" height="338"></a></div><div> </div><div>There were other images in the show from over 50 photographers including Andy Warhol's pop artist famous technicolor portraits and one of the most iconic photos of Marilyn taken by Frank Worth. It is the photo of Marilyn with her billowing white dress she wore in the 1955 film, The Seven Year Itch. The original picture sold for auction for a record breaking $4.6 million in 2011.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmUZvkNYCOXk8ikvoH_9y3RxTWpe6fwI-7TuHpgzM_cKl1wzB5NmeqwWqIghwMhV1lBWs0EBEiR40L3MoYInkjnHT4F14Nm258MRHIfcFdohDJmR8I56G_47lTT3lxF1jS0wCVuBwS3C4/s1240/Photo%25252020160707130557627.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmUZvkNYCOXk8ikvoH_9y3RxTWpe6fwI-7TuHpgzM_cKl1wzB5NmeqwWqIghwMhV1lBWs0EBEiR40L3MoYInkjnHT4F14Nm258MRHIfcFdohDJmR8I56G_47lTT3lxF1jS0wCVuBwS3C4/s280/Photo%25252020160707130557627.jpg" id="blogsy-1467900002304.407" class="alignleft" alt="" width="280" height="320"> </a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9v5fFBCY5caFv1WTDkWYSAj9Fsx0yJjBXhkGQtrO_24mriPAVCdEenoAEinRm750so4-dGa1YzDt9-accTUNhAMdYV7yEJAhOmuHqPw7BOiEnxwcHlHKsIsJeGbFoRDnsNHp_pio3OuI/s2048/Photo%25252020160707130557682.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9v5fFBCY5caFv1WTDkWYSAj9Fsx0yJjBXhkGQtrO_24mriPAVCdEenoAEinRm750so4-dGa1YzDt9-accTUNhAMdYV7yEJAhOmuHqPw7BOiEnxwcHlHKsIsJeGbFoRDnsNHp_pio3OuI/s250/Photo%25252020160707130557682.jpg" id="blogsy-1467900002304.591" class="alignnone" alt="" width="250" height="320"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqO1q3kF-JZPFbhyWKdIg8p3D9J4N8Y9dCVIRzPJnmDPEMy34KYFNVxX3Un_iUQlorAknOB3t3tGlHRD-heiSogAkD14DVZ9YjhlxeaEaDiyYZFAR7IHdN3OPvBvd7PJLD6wy7UKt9gcc/s1187/Photo%25252020160707130557664.jpg" target="_blank" style="text-align: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqO1q3kF-JZPFbhyWKdIg8p3D9J4N8Y9dCVIRzPJnmDPEMy34KYFNVxX3Un_iUQlorAknOB3t3tGlHRD-heiSogAkD14DVZ9YjhlxeaEaDiyYZFAR7IHdN3OPvBvd7PJLD6wy7UKt9gcc/s250/Photo%25252020160707130557664.jpg" id="blogsy-1467900002253.6711" class="" alt="" width="250" height="320"></a></div><div> </div><div> There were rarer images included in the collection, such as one signed by Hugh Hefner, which was a naked shot of Marilyn celebrating her first Playboy Sweetheart of the Month award, which helped launch Playboy's global success. For you ahem <em>serious</em> Marilyn fans sorry to disappoint but I'm not showing that photo, I don't want my blog to become one of <em>those</em> kind of sites that people search for, they'd be pretty disappointed once they see my obsession with vintage fashion and love of Rock Hudson.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq6C64t1AHJuHkWyh3aHS0sjN33rM0R4VoabmsQNdZd4n-8t8wvzwcN-1cg2NDFU-4_x6oDb2gzMUHf8B3MhoejitfamaPSkcP7_Sw4A8wPordGrJX9D57sB5l796XWl1pOT_cN9jQRTc/s660/Photo%25252020160707145644013.jpg" target="_blank" style=""><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq6C64t1AHJuHkWyh3aHS0sjN33rM0R4VoabmsQNdZd4n-8t8wvzwcN-1cg2NDFU-4_x6oDb2gzMUHf8B3MhoejitfamaPSkcP7_Sw4A8wPordGrJX9D57sB5l796XWl1pOT_cN9jQRTc/s300/Photo%25252020160707145644013.jpg" id="blogsy-1467900002314.1453" class="alignnone" alt="" width="300" height="300"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZJzmsyxBnIdYtgozi-cUdPbVZw1U6RoLCx2F-ekePAgIHM8cD5vNokoF1q12cgYSAr-Ap-qVPHiBD-ETga85R9DA0urBPDX7TAOi9Lfij9RoiWHHL7P5TO48UsIss-j5apP6w31OD9X8/s964/Photo%25252020160707145839010.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZJzmsyxBnIdYtgozi-cUdPbVZw1U6RoLCx2F-ekePAgIHM8cD5vNokoF1q12cgYSAr-Ap-qVPHiBD-ETga85R9DA0urBPDX7TAOi9Lfij9RoiWHHL7P5TO48UsIss-j5apP6w31OD9X8/s280/Photo%25252020160707145839010.jpg" id="blogsy-1467900002332.7954" class="alignnone" alt="" width="280" height="300"></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgerkqopz-ijkQb7r1SXG9V5vB-iQRVNce4pYV0fYG2sG5tDKw50FzRHI9QfCHm0IWANUFlmltqHlcrMmA5YkrNLfStUPRMcBtYRKj8yjtuAiuBZU1k9H1GnDRM0JEmgyOBq1FxU7e6SOQ/s1261/Photo%25252020160707145958171.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgerkqopz-ijkQb7r1SXG9V5vB-iQRVNce4pYV0fYG2sG5tDKw50FzRHI9QfCHm0IWANUFlmltqHlcrMmA5YkrNLfStUPRMcBtYRKj8yjtuAiuBZU1k9H1GnDRM0JEmgyOBq1FxU7e6SOQ/s500/Photo%25252020160707145958171.jpg" id="blogsy-1467900002333.991" class="alignnone" width="220" height="300" alt=""></a> </div><div> As well as celebrating Marilyn (even though I'm over five weeks late) I just want to take this chance to pay tribute to the beautiful Caroline Aherne who died last Saturday. For those of you who don't know who she is or are in a different country she was one of the greatest comedy writers, performers and actresses in the UK. </div><div> </div><div>Even though I knew Caroline was battling cancer for the third time in her life (she was even born with cancer), it came as a complete shock that we lost such a majestic talent at just 52 years old. Including Victoria Wood we've lost two wonderful comediennes to cancer in just a few short months, who should still have been with us for decades to come. </div><div> </div><div>I'm a little too young to remember her in the Mrs Merton Show (thankfully I've been able to watch it on YouTube this week), I loved seeing Caroline in repeats of The Fast Show and especially adored her in The Royle Family which changed comedy formats forever. Who would have thought a family sitting around the TV just talking about general life would be so hilarious and win several BAFTA Awards. </div><div> </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW22KTyeTbjhYsCzAwumEs5sXjoW1edqDh3xCipo2pEOkp1DCGbpSjR1eR6nKF3ckuqtHdoBWA-ZjGitbLdU8fQe10v-7Pk-bdUclNzT70Z5WS1Xj2NKIKZOJ1CcJwyjVDx9KynjLq56U/s624/Photo%25252020160707145644090.jpg" target="_blank" style=" "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW22KTyeTbjhYsCzAwumEs5sXjoW1edqDh3xCipo2pEOkp1DCGbpSjR1eR6nKF3ckuqtHdoBWA-ZjGitbLdU8fQe10v-7Pk-bdUclNzT70Z5WS1Xj2NKIKZOJ1CcJwyjVDx9KynjLq56U/s500/Photo%25252020160707145644090.jpg" id="blogsy-1467900002308.959" class="aligncenter" alt="" width="500" height="281"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of bbc.co.uk</td></tr></tbody></table><div>I've watched interviews with her and after having such hardships in life and so many of them, she radiated so much strength and humour. I'm so sad there won't be anymore of The Royle Family to indulge over, but thankfully there are three series and several specials we can reminisce in. Also the interviews her and Craig Cash her writing partner who also played Dave did for the documentary 'The Royle Family: Behind the Sofa' are just brilliant, it's lovely to see the rapour they had. </div><div> </div><div>I think the whole nation, especially fans of The Royle Family should all raise a plate of Dairylea on toast to her. Caroline, you really will be sorely missed. I hope you, Victoria Wood, Ronnie Corbett, Terry Wogan, Alan Rickman and Harper Lee are having a hell of a party up there dancing to Bowie and Prince performing. Now that would be one hell of a party.</div><div> </div><div>Second Hand Rose</div><div>XxxX</div><div> </div><div> <em><font size="2">Photographers shown include: Ed Croneweth (LA photo), Douglas Kirkland (bed photo), Milton Greene, Bert Stern, Frank Worth, Eugene Kornman (halter neck dress) among others.</font></em></div><div><em><font size="2"><br></font></em></div><div><em> </em></div><div>Here are some other articles I've written about Marilyn: </div><div> </div><div>- <a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/marilyn-monroe-exhibition-full-of.html" target="_self" title="">A Marilyn Monroe Exhibition</a></div><div> <a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/few-weeks-ago-i-blogged-about-oh-so.html" target="_self" title="">-Hollywood Legends Auction: Unseen Marilyn photos</a></div><div><a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/delicious-unseen-marilyn-monroe-photos.html" target="_self" title=""> -Gorgeous unseen Marilyn photos</a></div><div><a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/marilyn-monroe-anniversary-juicy-gossip.html" target="_self" title=""> -Marilyn Monroe anniversary of death: Includes facts and quotes from her</a></div><div><a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/marilyn-monroe-intimate-exposures-yes.html" target="_self" title=""> -Marilyn: Intimate Exposure Exhibition: Photographs by Bruno Bernard</a></div><div> </div><div style="text-align: right; font-size: small; clear: both;" id="blogsy_footer"><a href="http://blogsyapp.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://blogsyapp.com/images/blogsy_footer_icon.png" alt="Posted with Blogsy" style="vertical-align: middle; margin-right: 5px;" width="20" height="20" />Posted with Blogsy</a></div>Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-2404464667694734492016-06-03T13:42:00.001+01:002016-06-05T16:45:10.060+01:00Chanel's Cuban Resort Show 2016/2017: Full of bright colours & Cuban love<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0SJj5Hti9UY/V1F0khW6eTI/AAAAAAAAPl0/1UXcDIGncfM/s2000/Photo%25252020160603131321993.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0SJj5Hti9UY/V1F0khW6eTI/AAAAAAAAPl0/1UXcDIGncfM/s479/Photo%25252020160603131321993.jpg" id="blogsy-1465141490161.3215" class="alignright" alt="" width="479" height="275"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of www.harpersbazaar.com</td></tr></tbody></table><div>On the 3rd May Chanel showcased their Resort collection for 2016/2017 in Cuba. It was Chanel that started the concept of traveling to exotic locations for Resort shows. Now Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Dior have joined in on the idea of travelling to some luxurious location to show off their Resort collections, anything for some sun.<br></div><div> </div><div>I realise this show was a over month ago and I'm terribly late about writing about it, I've had bits of pieces of it written for a while,so I have been trying. But even though it's late, who doesn't like looking at gorgeous Chanel clothes?<br></div><div> </div><div>Since relations were restored between Cuba and the United States in 2015 the country has provided inspiration for a host of designers. Karl Lagerfeld was the first to actually take a show on the road to the island nation, which he first told the press about in October 2015. The event was also the first time Chanel had staged a show in Latin America.</div><div> </div><div><p>Karl is one of the industry’s truly iconic designers, at the helm of two global brands (Chanel & Fendi) that he helped revitalise, as well as his own brand and has a pretty cute cat called Choupette to go with it. Lagerfeld said the Resort line was inspired by Cuba's "cultural richness", but it can be questioned if that is a romanticised version of an early 60's fantasised Cuba,since 11 million people live off $20 (£13.87) a month and food is scarce.</p><div><p> </p></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV_aXH1kG_8TwZYFbn-dy7yFsL6b6zVzgOLFAFDXmZvXETL315EFYXWX1m6E7JJLeG4FNy4ad_obTTdEPGKsLh992TJbiuErCttxLsjjCTHQ8A866p3prP6OPKyt37saF8_vcXc1BEUvE/s1170/Photo%25252020160603131322008.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV_aXH1kG_8TwZYFbn-dy7yFsL6b6zVzgOLFAFDXmZvXETL315EFYXWX1m6E7JJLeG4FNy4ad_obTTdEPGKsLh992TJbiuErCttxLsjjCTHQ8A866p3prP6OPKyt37saF8_vcXc1BEUvE/s346/Photo%25252020160603131322008.jpg" id="blogsy-1465141490128.0984" class="alignleft" alt="" width="346" height="230"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of www.luxetipsmag.com</td></tr></tbody></table></div><div>The American fashion press who flew into Cuba for the Chanel Resort show landed two hours before the first U.S. cruise ship to have docked in Havana from Florida, the first such crossing in more then 50 years.</div><div> </div><div>Chanel invited seven hundred guests to the open-air street show on a promenade turned into a catwalk for the Cruise collection, even though Chanel goods are not even sold in Cuba. They would cost well beyond the average Cuban wage.</div><div> </div><div><p>The worlds celebrities such as Tilda Swinton, Vin Diesel and Gisele Bündchen, amongst others in the fashion world such as Anna Wintour, Carine Roitfeld arrived in a multicoloured convoy of the city’s classic candy paint open-top Buicks, Cadillacs, and Oldsmobiles. The owners tooted their horns through the streets of Old Havana, while people came out to line the streets and crowds stood on dilapidated balconies and rooftops waving. The locals gave such a warm welcome to a super-luxurious brand and the wealthy women who were wearing it, even though the communist country is a poor one.</p><p>However, residents were frustrated that they were held behind police lines around the event venue and could only watch from behind the security cordon lines. Despite this there was still a huge level of excitement from the residents, after all it is a Chanel runway show.</p></div><div> There was a French-Cuban singing group called Ibeyi, who are twin sisters and were recently seen in Beyoncé's infamous Lemonade video. Now onto the collection, the clothes were exquisitely made, but were relatable, wearable and had a youthful and joyful feel to them.</div><div> </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-MtCw1rzW56s/V1F0itvMrZI/AAAAAAAAPlk/7EwrSMs51G8/s800/Photo%25252020160603131322000.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-MtCw1rzW56s/V1F0itvMrZI/AAAAAAAAPlk/7EwrSMs51G8/s387/Photo%25252020160603131322000.jpg" id="blogsy-1465141490122.351" class="alignright" alt="" width="387" height="288"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of www.fashionisers.com</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Guests sat on park benches in the open air of the tree-lined Paseo del Prado, watching the models leisurely walk down the promenade in beautiful Chanel creations. There were black close fitting waist length jackets over wide-legged cuffed trousers, showing some Coco Chanel Twenties and Thirties style, when Cuba first became a popular cruise destination.</div><div> </div><div>There were beautiful calf length 50's style swirly skirt dresses made of lace and organza. There were also some relaxed floaty dresses, neatly belted that were made of a material with Cuban 50's styled cars on. The gorgeous print was also used in other dresses and suits and also on a man's robe. There were also 50's style suits and wide ties.<br></div><div> </div><div>There were flirty full printed skirts, crocheted summer dresses and skinny long tube dresses adorned with macramé (string knotted in a decorative pattern.) There were sleek tailored pieces full of bursts of colour, which was only right as Cuba is a city of colour with the vibrant painted streets of Havana. There were lots of bright pinks, yellows, coral oranges, greens, turquoises and blues. </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhglrSgHdRqnBv4CtUmOlDiKCVYjtEfi2SzPNOiFMDDuWNYs_SF4fonDJ9D1wgOQyps2rB0iSZaoqMIgaG7B7yQ8nfVRGQHp-Beicfsl_Zeev1RuhxV16odxLVxgDZhCuoDjD2Tjgv81Pk/s1600/Photo%25252020160603131322011.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhglrSgHdRqnBv4CtUmOlDiKCVYjtEfi2SzPNOiFMDDuWNYs_SF4fonDJ9D1wgOQyps2rB0iSZaoqMIgaG7B7yQ8nfVRGQHp-Beicfsl_Zeev1RuhxV16odxLVxgDZhCuoDjD2Tjgv81Pk/s425/Photo%25252020160603131322011.jpg" id="blogsy-1465141490198.011" class="alignleft" alt="" width="425" height="400"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of www.coolchicstylefashion.com</td></tr></tbody></table><div>There were also some sequin encrusted statement pieces and dresses that were lemony-oranges, peachy-pinks and greeny-blues. Amongst the bright colours there was still plenty of white, black and military like olive green.</div><div> </div><div>There were lustrous cha-cha style numbers and a t-shirt worn by many models in different ways, which is bound to become a streetwear staple in the upcoming months, Chanel's "Viva Coco Libre". It was styled casually with long skirts and relaxed jeans, but also worn with the iconic Chanel tweed jacket for a more formal style.</div><div> </div><div>A lot of craftyness went on with fab knits, fringing and macramé weaves on more then a few items. The Chanel embroiderers have had their work cut out decorating sleeves with dense layers of tattered fabric, influenced by the rumba sleeves of Cuban dancers.</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ubtK9EqkDpk/V1F0hylUNTI/AAAAAAAAPlc/w9JqiQO78PA/s700/Photo%25252020160603131322003.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ubtK9EqkDpk/V1F0hylUNTI/AAAAAAAAPlc/w9JqiQO78PA/s383/Photo%25252020160603131322003.jpg" id="blogsy-1465141490150.1152" class="alignright" alt="" width="383" height="293"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of fashionistas.com</td></tr></tbody></table><div> </div><div>The traditional Cuban shirt with flat pleats the Guayabera that has pockets, shoulder tabs and flat pleats was featured by Karl, who re-designed it in a variety of ways. The shirt came in a soft and sheer design as well as crisp and textured one. The designer made it an easy to wear blouse for the day paired with rolled up chinos. It was also shown in a more selacious way made of black transparent material and worn with a flared skirt.</div><div> </div><div><p>Karl also re-designed the great Cuban classic Che Guevara military beret having a sparkly black version in the show with the Chanel emblem instead of a star. Many models wore Panama hats with Chanel camellias tucked into the hatbands.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;" caption="Courtesy of www.fashionisers.com"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjynVhjdPwSW9EumyaJsY-xW66GldYCPv_3iez-dvOlkLD1S2-SRyDyTG-1ZtqL3ApQLZxrtjJXOS6tnuQsBsCvjqbXm6jfZo9NMsHdxnloHNte4j4vEQeHUD07yefxhTtKEMiZ3faW0tM/s700/Photo%25252020160603131321997.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjynVhjdPwSW9EumyaJsY-xW66GldYCPv_3iez-dvOlkLD1S2-SRyDyTG-1ZtqL3ApQLZxrtjJXOS6tnuQsBsCvjqbXm6jfZo9NMsHdxnloHNte4j4vEQeHUD07yefxhTtKEMiZ3faW0tM/s353/Photo%25252020160603131321997.jpg" id="blogsy-1465141490207.8225" class="alignleft" alt="" width="353" height="269"></a></div></div><div> The show was one of the most relaxed ones in years which also showed in the choice of footwear. Models wore flat brogues and typical Cuban flip-flops and slides that Cuban people wear every day. Accessories included cigar boxes as women's evening bags, tropical brooches and 'Coco Club' backpacks. It was very feminine with all the right accessories.</div><div> </div><div> The iconic Coco Chanel boyish feminity was part of the show, it was Parisian chic infused with a Latino theme, light-hearted with very wearable clothes, no avant gardé pieces here. The show was a cheerful one and as it ended it broke out into a carnival where the models, audience and the local band all danced together. It was a refreshingly different relaxed show with Cuba's old-world charm and warmth well suiting the collection, with a joyous celebration of everything Cuban taking centre stage. Yet you could feel Coco Chanel so strongly in every look, you knew it was a Chanel show. You can watch the video of the show <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6PEVrQNk4w" target="_self" title="">here</a>.</div><div> </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-LeRFOKR2nnQ/V1F2RtZMxhI/AAAAAAAAPmA/ZxC7YtQti8E/s673/Photo%25252020160603132103790.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-LeRFOKR2nnQ/V1F2RtZMxhI/AAAAAAAAPmA/ZxC7YtQti8E/s348/Photo%25252020160603132103790.jpg" id="blogsy-1465141490227.2751" class="alignright" alt="" width="348" height="241"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of www.vo-plus.com</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Again I'm sorry this is such a late post, I hope you are still all interested in it and lusting after all the clothes as much as I am. Birthday fairy please take note.</div><div> </div><div>Second Hand Rose</div><div>XxxX</div><div> </div><div style="text-align: right; font-size: small; clear: both;" id="blogsy_footer"><a href="http://blogsyapp.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://blogsyapp.com/images/blogsy_footer_icon.png" alt="Posted with Blogsy" style="vertical-align: middle; margin-right: 5px;" width="20" height="20" />Posted with Blogsy</a></div>Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-65033113334399654472016-05-15T21:51:00.001+01:002016-05-16T18:12:16.072+01:00The Met Gala 2016: Full of metallics, robot arms and light up dresses<div>
I was meant to blog about this last week, but have been busy sorting out a very special lady's birthday, no not the Queen but she's as important, my beautiful Mumma Bear. I will blog about aspects of her birthday at a later date, that's if she lets me. Trust me you don't want to get on the wrong side of Mummy SHR, death stare is an understatement.<br />
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On the 2nd May the most decadent and exclusive couture event of the year was held, the Met Gala. Anyone who's anyone and also people who aren't really anyone would adore to get an invitation to this magical event. Even some A-list celebrities have described the evening as surreal and a place where dreams come true, so it's highly unlikely any TOWIE stars who will go the opening of an envelope will be getting an invite anytime soon.<br />
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Officially it's the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute Benefit's extravaganza held on the first Monday in May to raise money for the Costume Institute, which is the only part of the museums department that has to fund itself. It consists of an elaborate red carpet with a hell of a lot of stairs for stars in tight somewhat awkward costumes to have to walk up, which can be amusing in itself. The Met Gala hasn't always been so lavish and full of A-list stars.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP1ixj3Fmw1w3-nbrZ_0mZ72EKOBeFGhDY2Tex2t4DPocDSIZRMWKbrOLaP61zO1C1eLsE_8fTFKCI2CriTGVyuf7GF8MxZuwQVf42QRivH_z2qk38lMwKwmc3DPkOLIhfm7WRNwJQOco/s640/Photo%25252020160515215049506.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignright" height="274" id="blogsy-1463405833165.661" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP1ixj3Fmw1w3-nbrZ_0mZ72EKOBeFGhDY2Tex2t4DPocDSIZRMWKbrOLaP61zO1C1eLsE_8fTFKCI2CriTGVyuf7GF8MxZuwQVf42QRivH_z2qk38lMwKwmc3DPkOLIhfm7WRNwJQOco/s500/Photo%25252020160515215049506.jpg" width="417" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Met Gala 1948: Courtesy of ursulinemagazine.com</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br /></span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">It all began in December 1948 when a publicist called Eleanor Lambert started the gala, called then the 'Costume Institute Gala'. It was started as a philanthropic endeavour and all the people who were part of New York Society were invited. Women paid $50 ($505.39 or £351.97 in 2016) to wear gowns from the Costume Institute's archive. That doesn't seem too much to spend on wearing one of the archives beautiful gowns. </span></div>
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Then in 1960, the event was called the “Metropolitan Museum Fashion Ball” which hosted a select group of celebs and Manhattan’s elite members of society. In 1971 when Diana Vreeland who worked for Vogue became a consultant to the Costume Institute to the Museum and took the gala to a new level, charging $150 ($891.42 or £620.81 in 2016). The gala became more extravagant, more people then just a few celebs and New York society were invited, such as a lot of A-list actors, musicians and politicians. The idea of a theme for the event began, the theme of dress each year coincided with the exhibition that was taking place at the museum that year. Themes allowed for guests to dress accordingly to the theme in ostentatious constructed outfits to illustrate the theme of the event. Themes throughout the years included 1973-1974 The World of Balenciaga, 1974-1975 Romantic and Glamarous Hollywood Design and 1979-1980 Fashions of the Hasburg Era Austria-Hungary. The success of the event rose and it ended up being called "The Party of the Year".<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsVtDfO5NHYLe8LqDZbzDIqguYTQiXUpkvu1mGZNHLS2IfArNRwq75EZKjFuLgd6tm87x_EiI3iqtle_F3bXvw6x8dLz9M0qBMVgPx7PVr_z9E4-YhnBd9g3CNNQXITTRZI4LYcHgdZpM/s922/Photo%25252020160515215049648.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="251" id="blogsy-1463405833090.981" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsVtDfO5NHYLe8LqDZbzDIqguYTQiXUpkvu1mGZNHLS2IfArNRwq75EZKjFuLgd6tm87x_EiI3iqtle_F3bXvw6x8dLz9M0qBMVgPx7PVr_z9E4-YhnBd9g3CNNQXITTRZI4LYcHgdZpM/s500/Photo%25252020160515215049648.jpg" width="401" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Angela Lansbury & Jackie O: 1979-1980 "Fashions of the Hasburg Era"<br />
Courtesy of shrimptoncouture.com</td></tr>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> Pat Buckley took over as chairwoman in 1979 and then in 1995 the most powerful and influential woman in fashion took over as chairwoman, Anna Wintour, the editor of American Vogue. </span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">She transformed the Met Gala into what is has become today an, event everyone is dying to be invited to.</span></div>
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Anna has been at the driving force in turning the Met Gala from a local philanthropic event into a spectacular heavily photographed affair that is globally reviewed, critiqued and talked about. People from the arts, fashion, film, politics, business, music and high society attend the gala. It has become a major fundraising event for the museum and raised $12.5 million in 2015. It also serves as an opening celebration for the Institute's annual fashion exhibit and following the gala, the exhibition runs for several months.<br />
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Anna Wintour oversees both the benefit committee and the guest list, with her staff helping her assemble the list of invitees. The annual guest list includes 650-700 people which makes those elaborate Sweet 16 parties on TV we used to watch on MTV look like tea parties. The cost of a ticket rose to $30,000 (£20,823) and $275,000 (£190,883) this year for those outside the official guest list, to increase the exclusivity of the event. The party and exhibit this year are sponsored by Apple, so all the money will go to the Costume Institute.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cher- 1985-1986 Costumes of Royal India<br />
Courtesy of shrimptoncouture.com</td></tr>
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There is one way to get into the gala without a ticket, if a brand invites a celebrity to be their guest and sit at their table. Non negotiable the celebrity has to wear clothes from that brand, so the brands try and get the best celebrities. You will find that the celebrity has the designer as their date, such as last year Jeremy Scott took Katy Perry and Marc Jacobs took Cher. <br />
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The only other way to get in without having to save up is that Anna Wintour often invites up and coming designers who might not be able to afford a pot noodle let alone a ticket to the Gala, so it shows she does have somewhat of a heart.<br />
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There is a waiting list to even get on the invite list and whether you're invited has to do more with achievement and beauty (but I don't think anyone would admit the last part) rather then how much money you have. Anna has say over every invite and attendee, even if a brand buys a table it cannot choose everyone who sits at the table. The brand must clear it with her and Vogue, she oversees every detail, down to the timed entrances for guests, the word controlling comes to mind.<br />
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This year the exhibit is "Manus x Machina" nope me neither. It's all about fashion in the age of technology and Jonathan Ive, chief design officer of Apple, Taylor Swift and Idris Elba were on the committee. The theme is meant to celebrate the beauty of both hand-made haute couture and machine made clothing. Technology is becoming a big part of fashion with laser cutting, laser design and 3D printing, so high fashion and high functioning technology which some call "android couture" (I bet Apple weren't too pleased) are merging more then ever before.<br />
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Generally, it is advisable to play it safe and just get really, really dressed up. Each year celebs don't have to follow the theme and can just get really, really dressed up instead, but it's a bit like going to your friends 60's party where everyone has dressed up and all you've done is put on a slightly shorter skirt then normal.<br />
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So this Met Gala there were dresses with hand-sewn metallic details, fairy tale dress trains, metal robot arms and some beautifully coutured gowns and stars that lit up the red carpet, literally. <br />
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There were tables set up with beautiful rose china inside the Temple of Dendur containing a rose archway inside the Museum. Celebrities were allowed to admire the exhibit and celebrities had the possibility to film short videos in the Vogue "ManusxMachina experience" photo booth, which had wild light displays, techno music and even a director, just like the photo booths you've been in at a friends wedding then.</div>
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My Verdict: Yes, there were some beautiful gowns with amazing detail, but mostly I was pretty underwhelmed due to either lack of effort or predictability. It's like the stars didn't follow the memo or simply understand it. A lot of them turned up in dresses that were gorgeous but only had the tiniest amount of detail to go with the theme or none at all and let's not even talk about Madonna or Lady Gaga, can we have the Lady Gaga at the Oscars back please! Anyway, I've rattled down all the dresses to a top five, with some extra ones being deserved a mention.</div>
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Naomi Campbell: Wore a dazzling Roberto Cavalli jewel encrusted glittering charcoal coloured gown, with a large cut-out at the waist, making us all feel bad for not doing our crunches. The dress had a stunning fishtail train which was embellished with silver sequins running along the seams. <span style="color: purple;">Photo from eonline.com</span></div>
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Jourdan Dunn: Wore a Balmain corset-like creation that has a futuristic feel so her gown was in tune with the theme. The model shimmered in the figure hugging slim-fitting column glittery silver gown, also with cut-outs. The dress contained thousands of intricate rhinestones and was simply beautiful. She also featured ash and lilac highlights in her simple yet amazing looking bob haircut, which went perfectly with her dress. <span style="color: purple;">Photo from dailymail.co.uk</span><br />
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Ciara: Simply sparkled and shined in a jewelled illusion gown by H&M. She also debuted silver hair for the Gala, which made her look like the hottest Grandma I've ever seen. I adore the jewelled creation by H&M, but I don't think we will be finding the couture dress in any of our local H&M's anytime soon, sadly. We will just have to stick to their skater dresses and basic tank tops and dream. <span style="color: purple;">Photo from usmagazine.com</span></div>
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-BsEv1AjJSXo/VzhlUSa16LI/AAAAAAAAPio/tldfD1YJlFU/s1222/Photo%25252020160515130208955.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="315" id="blogsy-1463405833113.322" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-BsEv1AjJSXo/VzhlUSa16LI/AAAAAAAAPio/tldfD1YJlFU/s500/Photo%25252020160515130208955.jpg" width="217" /></a></div>
<div caption="Courtesy of eonline.com">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of justjared.com</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of eonline.com</td></tr>
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Nina Dobrev: Wore a champagne tulle gown made my Marchesa that was embellished with floral appliqué and shimmering beads. There were a lot of flying birds and botanical features in the fine gold thread work scattered within the mirror fragments.</div>
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I like this dress as it doesn't go with the generic metallic silver look of the night, but still contains aspects of the theme, it isn't just a beautiful dress with no content. Nina also had a nude metallic clutch bag and headpiece made by Marchesa and look at the back of that dress, it's just simply stunning.</div>
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Claire Danes: Was the highlight for me but she wasn't even mentioned on some best dressed lists, it was all the generic silver ones and Kanye with his ripped jeans, I mean this is the Met Gala, he could at least have worn a suit! </div>
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Back to Claire she collaborated with Zac Posen to create a powder blue ball gown that had a gorgeous silhouette. The dress was hand sewn and made with organza & fiber optics to create a dress that glowed inside the Gala. This was a high-tech garment combined with beautiful hand made artistry and encapsulated the theme the best for me. If you're a Homeland fan, I don't think we will be seeing Claire as Carrie Matheson wearing this running after terrorists anytime soon though.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of telegraph.co.uk</td></tr>
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So they are my top five, but there are a couple more that deserve a mention for their creativity. <br />
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Karolina Kurkova wore a gown that was created by Marchesa who collaborated with IBM Watson and the dress included 150 hand-placed LED lights. IBM analysed hundreds of images assosciated with Marchesa dresses to learn the brand's colour palette & correlated this data with the analysis of social media sentiment, yeah my heads hurting too. Anyway it was wearable technology with changing coloured LED lights, it was so wearable she couldn't even sit down in it! She must have had pretty sore feet by the end of the night!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of Elle.com</td></tr>
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Emma Watson collaborated with Calvin Klein and the Green Carpet Challenge to create a sustainable red carpet look. It was a monochrome look with a full skirt that actually had trousers underneath, with a fitted bodice and off-the-shoulder sleeves. The outfit was made from recycled plastic bottles and Emma wanted to use the Gala as an opportunity to highlight the advancements in Eco fashion. Everything from the lining to the unique yarn, which was also created using plastic bottles, was made from sustainable materials. Now that is a commitment to Eco fashion and was a great twist on the theme.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqUHSzheGpGZSyDmhfAlNh88gHERrbheNt5yicUU_ZWouJCRmhABQDHtI4TQ_oarV8CX7nz0GpkzoNli-Pwyq_zwFiOmw5zLo6RywsPPup9NSI0BcMvIrm33l4N1UddQ6InB6W1HvZRQc/s1024/Photo%25252020160515160903153.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignright" height="320" id="blogsy-1463405833130.611" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqUHSzheGpGZSyDmhfAlNh88gHERrbheNt5yicUU_ZWouJCRmhABQDHtI4TQ_oarV8CX7nz0GpkzoNli-Pwyq_zwFiOmw5zLo6RywsPPup9NSI0BcMvIrm33l4N1UddQ6InB6W1HvZRQc/s320/Photo%25252020160515160903153.jpg" width="209" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of hautetoday.com</td></tr>
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I'm not sure how this dress goes with the theme, but I just want to give a shout out to Adriana Lima in a Giambattista Valli Haute Couture dress as I adore the 50's style full skirt look of it and the red lipstick to go with it.<br />
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For me these ladies above beat some of the other obvious dresses on show at the Gala out of the park and even though there were some that looked stunning such as Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, they didn't really embrace the theme completely, they just had a pretty dress and if there is any event you go all out at its the Met Gala. It's not the time to wear a simple fitted dress.<br />
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What were your favourites from the Met Gala? Apart from Tom Hiddleston, Bradley Cooper and Orlando Bloom in tuxedos of course. Drool overload.</div>
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Second Hand Rose</div>
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XxxX</div>
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<img height="96" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-JACi96i1Hl4/VznNAxmAXLI/AAAAAAAAPkg/sZdDyAKyBUw/s200/Photo%25252020160516143658187.jpg" style="left: 567.61px; opacity: 0.3; position: absolute; top: 2375.09px;" width="52" /><img height="96" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-JACi96i1Hl4/VznNAxmAXLI/AAAAAAAAPkg/sZdDyAKyBUw/s320/Photo%25252020160516143658187.jpg" style="left: 257.66px; opacity: 0.3; position: absolute; top: 2457.16px;" width="52" />Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-14832730728219207312016-04-20T14:28:00.001+01:002016-05-16T15:10:04.267+01:0018th-24th April: The week you can change the fashion world<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of fashion revolution.org</td></tr>
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From the 18th-24th April it is Fashion Revolution week, which is asking people to question where their clothes have come from. The week began after 1,134 people were killed and over 2,500 people were injured on the 24th April 2013, when the Rana Plaza complex tragically collapsed in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The garment factory collapsed due to structural inadequacies and since then people have been trying to change the way our clothes are made. You can find out <a href="http://fashionrevolution.org/">here</a> how you can get involved and even just tweeting a brand and asking #whomademyclothes will help bring some awareness and make brands accountable.<br />
However, also this week H&M have launched their own initiative called World Recycle Week, which some people have branded insensitive to be held on the same week. H&M aim to collect 1,000 tonnes of unwanted clothes via its ‘Garment Collecting Initiative’, frankly that's probably the amount of clothes I have in my wardrobe put together.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of hm.com</td></tr>
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They launched this idea in 2013 and all of its 3,600 stores around the world are taking part. You can do your bit for charity and planet earth by taking in any old unwanted clothes into the stores. These don't have to be H&M clothes and can have holes in, be stained (thanks Piri-Piri sauce) and they'll even take your holey old socks you've been wearing for the past four months, now that's commitment. You can also take in old sheets and towels you've been stacking up and give all these items a second life.</div>
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For a bag of items you bring your are given two £5 gift vouchers to use when spending £25 or more on your next shop, so what better inspiration can there be to have a good old sort out.</div>
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All donations will be sorted at one of seven sorting plants worldwide and either sold in second-hand stores or re-used as cloths or upholstery or recycled to become new fabric and hopefully new H&M items we will all be dying to snap up. Recycling just one shirt can save 2,100 litres of water, so you (maybe accidentally) getting rid of that dreadful curtain like flowery shirt your boyfriend bought that one time will be doing some good.</div>
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Since the initiative a.k.a hell of a good idea started in 2013, 28,000 tonnes of unwanted clothing has been collected, which is amazing. Millions of clothes are put in landfills every day and 95% of them could have a new life, so H&M are trying to bring about the end of clothing landfills. And you thought they were only good for bralets and skater dresses.</div>
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The hip-hop artist MIA is the face of its #WorldRecycleWeek campaign and has released a new video to coincide with the campaign. You can check the video out and more details out about H&M's World Recycle Week <a href="http://www2.hm.com/en_gb/free-form-campaigns-s03/6pd-world-recycle-week.html">here</a>.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of letsrecycle.com</td></tr>
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H&M say they want to 'Close the Loop' in textiles for fashion, recycling unwanted garments to create recycled textile fibres for new products. <br />
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A 'Close the Loop' collection was produced in September 2015 containing recycled denim and other items made up of 20% recycled cotton from collected clothes and 80% organic cotton. </div>
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Simply put they want to be able to turn old unwanted clothes into new ones without using additional materials and you can help in their project by taking in your unloved clothes into your nearest H&M store this week and receiving the two £5 vouchers. You can the give yourself a big pat on the back for helping the planet, or just let yourself have an extra piece of cake, your choice. </div>
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I'll probably be opting for the cake.</div>
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Second Hand Rose</div>
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Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-73181394502407304472016-04-17T20:46:00.001+01:002016-05-16T15:12:29.881+01:00Two programmes you NEED to watch: The Durrells and Home Fires<div>
I've been meaning to blog for ages and have been desperate to write, but weeks turn into months and sometimes life gets in the way and you have to take your attention away from the latest ASOS sales and drooling over Bradley Cooper, well almost.</div>
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I've been racking my brains for what to start back with as my first post and two period based TV programmes that I'm in love with right now seemed the perfect subject.</div>
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<u>The Durrells</u></div>
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The Durrells is about a family who suddenly up sticks from Bournemouth to start a new life on the gorgeous Greek island of Corfu. The series is based on the trilogy of autobiographical novels by Gerald Durrell, which focus on four years of his family's adventures in Corfu between 1935-1939, so this is perfect for all you 30s fans and it's really interesting see ing what another country was like during those years.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Both pictures courtesy of The Radio Times</td></tr>
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Keeley Hawes (Life on Mars) plays the worn out mother Louisa who is sadly a widow and decides to start a new life for her children. She has four unruly children Larry 21, Leslie 18, Margo 17, and Gerry who is 11 and really does not have a lot of money, so decides the best option is to uproot them all. Well it's much better then constant drizzly days in Britain.</div>
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The series is on Sunday's on ITV at 8pm and contains six episodes. There have already been two (three if you're reading this after Sunday!) on but you can easily catch up on the ITV Hub <a href="http://www.itv.com/hub/home-fires/2a2158a0007">here</a> (you may have to sign up to this.)<a href="http://www.itv.com/hub/the-durrells/2a4156a0001" target="_blank" title="here"></a></div>
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They are great episodes and watch out for some yummy eye candy. If you loved The Darling Buds of May, then you will love this as it has that warm hearted feel to it and their family continues to grow animal by animal as they are rescued. </div>
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The family struggle to adapt to life on the island, living in an incredibly basic house with no electricity and lots of other things go wrong in the house, but it is a cheap earthly paradise. The children try to set their Mum up which proves to be an interesting experience, no Tinder in those days. There is some Greek eye candy you should definitely look out for. This series really is a funny gentle captivating series, perfect for Sunday nights. I mean who doesn't want to watch an island paradise, set in the 1930s with the odd yummy Greek to drool over and I'm not talking about Feta cheese here ladies.</div>
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<span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><u>Home Fires:</u></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></span><span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The second series of Home Fires started a couple of weeks ago and I was so excited to know it was back as I loved the first series. It is about the life of the women in the Women's Institute on the Home Front during the Second World War. It is set in a small rural community called Great Paxford in Cheshire where everyone knows everyone's business. The series was inspired by the book Jambusters by Julie Summers and has an all star cast including Samantha Bond and many other fabulous actors and actresses.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-variant-caps: inherit;">The first series was set between September 1939 and early 1940 and that is just about where series two picks up, in the summer of 1940. The village is caught up in the Battle of Britain and the country is bracing itself for invasion so the women are attempting to hold things together. Czech soldiers have also set up camp just outside the village which provides some surprising friendships for some of the women. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-qFKn8lIRV-w/VxPlJLtR_vI/AAAAAAAAPgs/RN-4hNOx76M/s620/Photo%25252020160417203343018.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="302" id="blogsy-1460922624423.0576" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-qFKn8lIRV-w/VxPlJLtR_vI/AAAAAAAAPgs/RN-4hNOx76M/s500/Photo%25252020160417203343018.jpg" width="500" /></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-variant-caps: inherit;">As well as the war to deal with the women are facing their own personal challenges and conflicts, with loved ones being lost or declared missing, secrets being discovered and reputations being blemished. The Women's Institue really help keep the women and village together and help each other through hard times. This programme is perfect for all of you interested in that time era, the fashion is amazing and it shows really how the women kept the home fires burning. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-variant-caps: inherit;">It's on Sunday's on ITV at 9pm, just after The Durrells so you can be in vintage heaven for two hours. You can catch up on the last two episodes (again three if you're reading this after Sunday night!) on the ITV Hub <a href="http://www.itv.com/hub/home-fires/2a2158a0007">here</a>. If you're unable to access the ITV Hub then you can stream them, tvmuse.com is a good place to start and has links for the first series of Home Fires if you really want to get into it or you can read the episode summaries on Wikipedia. I suggest you do find out what happened in series one as the story continues on for series two.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-variant-caps: inherit;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-variant-caps: inherit;">These are two programmes I suggest you watch even if you're not into the whole vintage thing as The Durrells is light hearted and peaceful and Home Fires is full of drama and beautifully written. So curl up with a packet of chocolate biscuits and enjoy some great tv, perfect for a Sunday night before a week of work and trying to avoid eating far too many slices of cake.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-image: none; border: 0px currentColor; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-variant-caps: inherit;">Second Hand Rose</span></span></span></div>
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Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-66487552116738132462014-07-10T13:45:00.000+01:002014-07-10T13:45:22.986+01:00My 21st Birthday: Part 1- Full of surprises & one very lovely boyfriend<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;">
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On the 22nd June I turned the ripe old age of 21. I at least now have to act like an adult, even if I feel like a kid inside who thinks about chocolate cake just a little too much. For the past few months I have been having a quarter life crisis dissecting every part of my life, questioning everything including whether I need yet another pair of heels to add to my shoe collection. I was being continuously asked by my family what I wanted for my birthday and how I wanted to celebrate getting older. Apparently a box set of The Darling Buds of May and a big bar of Dairy Milk wasn't quite enough.</div>
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All I knew was that I wanted to do something that I would remember for years to come, that I could tell my future cats and ducks all about. Every week I was asking Mr. Boyfriend what he was planning/ giving me for my birthday and every time I would get a very short response hiding any hint of what he was up to. Even depriving him of an extra chocolate eclair one time didn't make him crack. He was so evasive about it all and what he said kept changing and contradicting itself. One minute we were doing something the week before my birthday, then it was the week after and then the same weekend. It didn't take Miss Marple to work out that he hadn't exactly figured it out yet or organised everything, or so I thought.</div>
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As the weeks went on I became more rattled and started resigning myself to the fact that my man was not the type that would whisk me away somewhere and I was preparing myself to a life of restaurant coupon vouchers and predictably. He would just say to me "you never know, I might be", let's just say organisation isn't exactly his strong point, it's taken me over three years to get him to start writing lists so I wasn't expecting much. Don't get me wrong I wasn't hoping for anything big and it wasn't about the cost or the extravagance at all. It was more about the sentimentality and the thought involved, but having to tell our future children that he gave me a book token for my 21st just didn't quite cut it.</div>
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The week before my birthday I tried to probe him once more and received no information or clues. I may have told him more then once that he was really disorganised and I bet Bradley Cooper would have had it all figured out by now. An hour later I received a text from him that said 'Keep Saturday & Sunday free and make sure you pack an overnight bag.' So like any other normal woman I sent him a barrage of questions wanting every last detail but I just got 'I said...' and then the same text.</div>
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All week I tried to squeeze some more detail out of him and all I was told was that there were two locations and he was picking me up early Saturday afternoon and I needed to bring something nice to wear. So I spent the rest of the week on ASOS trying to find a perfect outfit whilst wracking up a pretty impressive bill in the process. Thank god for free returns.</div>
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I told my family about it and they all shared in my excitement and inquisitiveness about my weekend and came to the conclusion that he'd just gone on lastminute.com the night he text me. When I told my Grandma her face lit up, I think I got the soppy old romantic gene from her. Her first thought was that he was taking me to Gretnor Green. </div>
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For several months I had been trying to convince her that it was incredibly unlikely that he would propose on my 21st. Her reasoning was that because she got engaged on her 21st that meant I would too. I tried to explain to her that a) this is not the 1950s when people had a life expectancy of around 65 and b) has she seen the price of weddings recently? The days of spam sandwiches and cheese and pineapple hedgehogs at wedding receptions are long gone.</div>
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So on Saturday 14th June I painted my nails, tweezed my eyebrows and packed my case, which was then repacked with a few more extra pairs of shoes and waited to be picked up by my very own Casanova. All the way to our secret destination I wasn't allowed to look at the sat nav or ask any questions about where we were going. After many anxious Google maps tracking minutes later we arrived in beautiful Brighton.</div>
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The sound of the seagulls was so cathartic and the smell of the sea was intoxicating. My curiousness grew and after trying to find a parking spot among all the millions of one way streets we arrived at The Amsterdam Hotel. Mr Boyfriend even wheeled my bright pink flowery bag for me, such a charmer. The hotel was beautiful and we had an amazing room and a great view of the sea and the pier. The hotel was right on the seafront and you only had to walk across the road to reach the pier. I was then quickly told to get ready and constantly asked the time every few minutes by a very nervous and fidgety Mr Boyfriend.</div>
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After I'd applied a couple of extra coats of mascara, applied my new MAC Ruby Woo lipstick and changed my shoes about six times, I was ushered into a taxi. We arrived at the glorious Havana restaurant which was beautiful from the outside and even more so on the inside. You can assume pretty much in life that any restaurant that has a fountain will not be serving up the usual bacteria on toast. As we were eating at an early bird special time we had some spicy nuts and hundreds of olives, washed down by a few cocktails in the bar first. </div>
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What can I say, we are old gits who want to be home in time for our mugs of cocoa. Mr Boyfriend treated himself to several cocktails mainly because of the names such as the 'Zombie', he's a pretty big 'The Walking Dead' fan and has made me watch some horrific movies in the past three and a half years. Because of him Zombie sheep have occupied my nightmares for far too long.</div>
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We then had a delicious meal starting with a mezzanine platter of flatbread, humous, sour cream, a breaded humous parcel and more yummy olives. I then had an incredibly yummy Mushroom Risotto while Mr Boyfriend stuffed his face with chicken. During the meal the waiter offered us some bread using a fork and spoon and beforehand he pulled my chair out and lay my napkin on my lap. Now I bet they don't do that in Burger King.</div>
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We were both pretty stuffed after all our thousands of olives and gorgeous food, so decided not to have a pudding. In the restaurant there was also a grand piano and a saxophonist. We slowly walked back to the hotel and had a lovely walk along the seafront.</div>
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It was beautiful walking along the seafront even though I did underestimate how many streets we had to walk. Mr Boyfriend kept insisting we get a taxi and even offered to carry me at one point. But I didn't fancy a trip to A&E with his broken back being part of our weekend away. It was like being in a different world. The air smelt and felt different and it was lovely being so close to the sea and having several fish and chip shops within a mile radius.</div>
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The next day we stopped at a pub called The Plough Inn in Pyecome on the way back home. Even though it was Father's Day there was luckily a table spare for us. Before I went away my Grandma gave me some money to spend on the weekend, so we had a lovely meal using that. I had some delicious vegetable Fajitas that my dining companion was continuously eyeing up and ended up stealing some of in the end, he's a right greedy gannet.</div>
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I had a wonderful weekend and it was lovely exploring Brighton and spending time with my Mr Loverman.</div>
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I was filled with a lot of happiness and my positivity had been revived. So what if I'm not a perfect size 8 and my life hasn't quite gone exactly to plan? I have a best friend, boyfriend and true love who very luckily are all the same person and that's good enough for me.</div>
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Plus he looks pretty hot all dressed up too.</div>
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Second Hand Rose</div>
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XxxX</div>
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Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-65715291935171007612014-04-14T19:43:00.000+01:002014-06-30T11:36:04.191+01:00Fashion & Flowers
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtmLzNWCIkWXMDH9TZRt5NAzyoxd4Nov07NfB8pEikh2ofexmw0OQOP2xiaeUWI1ztrOBQWF7gqNF0sTLlUokBvIM4A0LyTQkl0kgclGMRkXxG1FFF5_Xrd9Iy9fh7hu7VNgzlyR_pfok/s381/Photo%25252020140414183955.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtmLzNWCIkWXMDH9TZRt5NAzyoxd4Nov07NfB8pEikh2ofexmw0OQOP2xiaeUWI1ztrOBQWF7gqNF0sTLlUokBvIM4A0LyTQkl0kgclGMRkXxG1FFF5_Xrd9Iy9fh7hu7VNgzlyR_pfok/s232/Photo%25252020140414183955.jpg" id="blogsy-1404124527235.3057" class="alignleft" width="232" height="321" alt=""></a></div>
<div> For many years flowers and gardens in general have been a great inspiration for fashion designers. Every year on the catwalk there are enough flowers on show to create a frenzy in the bee world.</div>
<div>Zuhair Murad created an enchanted garden with a floral painted background for his Spring/Summer Couture show. Camellias, roses and peonies amongst many other flowers were featured on garments and a wedding dress in the collection had over 25,000 flowers appliquéd onto it. Now that's an awful lot of needle threading.</div>
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<p>Dior are also great lovers of what Mother Nature has created. Who can forget John Galliano's Couture Fall/Winter 2010 collection, that was full of horticultural brilliance? There were corseted ball gowns that were hand painted with bright and majestic colours, with layers upon layers of chiffon and silk-tulle. The collection was simply mesmerising, it's like a chic floral paint by numbers.</p>
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<div>The new head of design Raf Simmons seems to be more then happy to carry on the pollen infested trend as well. The Spring/Summer Couture 2013 show was set out like an enchanted garden with bushes and hundreds of flowers. The clothes were made up of lots of tulle with hundreds of flowers, petals, blossoms and lilypads appliquéd. The 2014 Couture show was set out like a hanging garden with bright coloured flowers, orchids and wisteria hanging from the ceiling. That man must watch an awful lot of Garderners World.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dior Spring/Summer 2013</td></tr>
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<div>This is not just a recent trend that has started in the past few decades though. There is now an exhibition at the <a href="http://www.gardenmuseum.org.uk/page/fashion-and-gardens" target="_blank" title="Garden Museum">Garden Museum</a> in London until the 27th April, that is looking into the world of how gardens have inspired fashion for centuries. </div>
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<div>As far back as the Jacobean era women were entranced by the beautiful colours of flowers. Dresses worn at the royal court were embroidered with images of flowers from overseas. The exhibition also looks at when and why some flowers were popular at different times such as camellias in the 1840s, sunflowers in the 1890s and not forgetting the flower power craze of the 60s and 70s.</div>
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<div>There are some rare pieces of artwork, collages, neddlework and garments on show for many centuries. Designers including Christopher Bailey, Alexander McQueen and Phillip Treacy with his glorious hats, show how what we grow in our gardens can be a lot more chic then just compost and worms. </div>
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<div>There are examples and images of floral couture, including Yves Saint Laurent featured jackets with embroidered Sunflowers and Iris's that were in his Couture 1988 show. Valentino's Spring/Summer Couture 2013 show had a garden theme with wrought iron park gates being a main inspiration. There was lots of organza and fabric that was embroidered with flowers, butterflies and birds. </div>
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<div>There is also a feature on how people over the centuries have dressed to tend to their much loves gardens. While unfortunately you can't really wear a Dior ball gown to tend to your roses in, you can still look fashionable and chic. Now beat that Monty Don.</div>
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<div>There are some great floral and garden themed pieces on the high street too, so you can incorporate the look into your outfit. Either go full blown with a floral dress or tone it down by just incorporating the theme into your accessories. Think more garden party chic and less Mrs Doubtfire, even though she is a pretty cool chick.</div>
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<div style="width:600px;margin:0 auto"><div style="position:relative;"><a target="_blank" href="http://www.polyvore.com/floral_frenzy/set?.embedder=3633118&.svc=copypaste&id=119230190"><img src="http://cfc.polyvoreimg.com/cgi/img-set/.sig/dP14BPQWNGmOmyqzequ4wQ/cid/119230190/id/eg_nnVjG4xGJFN7OSbYPRA/size/c600x487.jpg" id="blogsy-1404124527269.8416" class="" width="600" height="487" alt="Floral Frenzy"></a></div></div>
<br><div style="text-align:center"><small><a target="_blank" href="http://www.polyvore.com/floral_frenzy/set?.embedder=3633118&.svc=copypaste&id=119230190">Floral Frenzy</a> by <a target="_blank" href="http://secondhandrose1234.polyvore.com/?.embedder=3633118&.svc=copypaste">secondhandrose1234</a> </small></div>
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<div>Second Hand Rose</div>
<div>XxxX</div>
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<div style="text-align: right; font-size: small; clear: both;" id="blogsy_footer"><a href="http://blogsyapp.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://blogsyapp.com/images/blogsy_footer_icon.png" alt="Posted with Blogsy" style="vertical-align: middle; margin-right: 5px;" width="20" height="20" />Posted with Blogsy</a></div>Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-86352791697261807642014-04-06T20:05:00.001+01:002014-04-11T10:48:28.744+01:00Mother's Day: A piece of cupcake<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-1H-lBEUC1fs/U0Ghr-xv0uI/AAAAAAAAOoo/3wIcP_uKesQ/s2048/Photo%25252020140406194743.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; "><img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-1H-lBEUC1fs/U0Ghr-xv0uI/AAAAAAAAOoo/3wIcP_uKesQ/s283/Photo%25252020140406194743.jpg" id="blogsy-1397209395458.923" class="alignright" alt="" width="283" height="376"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jasper looking suave for Mother's Day</td></tr></tbody></table><div> Last Sunday the whole Second Hand Rose family got together to celebrate the beautiful lady of the house, our dear Mummy. Even Jasper straightened his bow tie and demanded an extra groom.</div><div>My brother and sister came home to appreciate all she does for us and I'm sure all the yummy food available was a pretty big incentive too.</div><div> </div><div>The four of us including Jasper clubbed together and bought her some lovely flowers, including pink roses, gerberas and lillies. It was a made up bouquet which my Dad helped us put together from separate ones, so we didn't have to pay for loads of unwanted greenery, Alan Sugar would have been proud.</div><div> </div><div>We also bought her some lovely fabrics, as she is a quilting demon.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAuMgY61U_A-fRdZZiNfVKNiqFHLyUPY8ZhOYCsSVTzFGhTwgddDr7OjHdMENjgBfDR-lzQKWx5Oc3NUAvKd4F-QhJCgp2280T7T2pA109YU7hC47S8m2aWqvjJpzxJnTVskAUuqOxPcQ/s640/Photo%25252020140406194743.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAuMgY61U_A-fRdZZiNfVKNiqFHLyUPY8ZhOYCsSVTzFGhTwgddDr7OjHdMENjgBfDR-lzQKWx5Oc3NUAvKd4F-QhJCgp2280T7T2pA109YU7hC47S8m2aWqvjJpzxJnTVskAUuqOxPcQ/s300/Photo%25252020140406194743.jpg" id="blogsy-1397209395441.2954" class="alignleft" alt="" width="300" height="225"></a></div><div> </div><div>Now to the most important part, the food. My Mum made a lovely meal and some homemade bread for sandwiches as part of our afternoon tea, my family couldn't get anymore English. My contribution included several kilos of buttercream and cake mixture all magiced into some cupcakes. </div><div> </div><div>For Christmas I received several recipe books from my family and friends. I didn't just get the books that were on my list, I also received some from lovely people who I have forced my creations on in the past. Getting recipe books is a bit like getting smelly stuff as presents. You don't know whether they are saying please make something that is actually edible or we already love what you make, here are some more recipes to make us some more delicious creations, fingers crossed for the latter.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmRmr717ULl1Vzpmq-8Ff_6pfR8gY4fjmgpbZNcJM3POuRnqePc3ugXoDgylSs_4qKlITUzvQohyphenhyphenYQPcBbt2v8RFcr9kd6aOb8rb64HtlPtoWr8vR92XZXxCWJ2OI1WEIvTjfyQj84q9M/s2048/Photo%25252020140406194808.jpg" target="_blank" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmRmr717ULl1Vzpmq-8Ff_6pfR8gY4fjmgpbZNcJM3POuRnqePc3ugXoDgylSs_4qKlITUzvQohyphenhyphenYQPcBbt2v8RFcr9kd6aOb8rb64HtlPtoWr8vR92XZXxCWJ2OI1WEIvTjfyQj84q9M/s393/Photo%25252020140406194808.jpg" id="blogsy-1397209395426.4607" class="aligncenter" alt="" width="393" height="295"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4v9ptQT99tMbH-RKsF543WVOjNT9zDtHD49hJUVcty8UFDYoKClhvQe50lwlSOiuiPGIrxj746tIwl0PEt05arg-tBaP7vbzwHotTNl4wy0jZsBGqt81x-Azwf_dLfeZMlgoX-SFHUaU/s2048/Photo%25252020140405124115.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4v9ptQT99tMbH-RKsF543WVOjNT9zDtHD49hJUVcty8UFDYoKClhvQe50lwlSOiuiPGIrxj746tIwl0PEt05arg-tBaP7vbzwHotTNl4wy0jZsBGqt81x-Azwf_dLfeZMlgoX-SFHUaU/s353/Photo%25252020140405124115.jpg" id="blogsy-1397209395500.5405" class="alignright" alt="" width="353" height="264"></a></div><div> </div><div>I'm afraid to say that these are the first cakes I have made this year and the first time I have used one of my new recipe books. I decided after much cake drooling to use the book Home Sweet Home from the very popular Hummingbird bakery. Recipes in the book include Custard Cream cupcakes and Chocolate truffle cookies amongst many other mouthwatering ideas. </div><div> </div><div>For Mother's Day I decided to ask the two mothers in my families lives, my beautiful Mum and my 83 year old Grandma who acts like a teenager. My Mum fancied Ginger Chocolate cupcakes and my Grandma asked for White Chocolate and Raspberry cupcakes. With this one the recipe had cranberries in, but I changed it to raspberries and added chunks of white chocolate into the batter, what can I say I'm a bit of a cake making rebel.</div><div> </div><div>Normally when I make cupcakes I use the same recipe I use to make a cake. If I want to make 12-18 cupcakes I will think of it as a making a 6 inch cake. The recipe I use is incredibly simple which I have learnt from my Mum the cake pioneer, which Mary Berry has copied. For a 6 inch cake I would use 6oz of self raising flour, butter, sugar and 3 eggs, with 1tsp of baking powder. I would just bung it all in the food mixer and get back to raiding the biscuit tin and dreaming of Bradley Cooper.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE2Cu5vCQ1lhgzv_SS5qgF9dw2OUBT4VVpCP-yuAJ5vC20WzSob2hwcVcjd4RdMMHDBSG75VYzEW7lWtnt_5UtEKERaJtINgkNeYHE3eJFXdFDEc8efCfRU6LpbPYo7iuP96UmFdS6HPE/s2048/Photo%25252020140406194743.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE2Cu5vCQ1lhgzv_SS5qgF9dw2OUBT4VVpCP-yuAJ5vC20WzSob2hwcVcjd4RdMMHDBSG75VYzEW7lWtnt_5UtEKERaJtINgkNeYHE3eJFXdFDEc8efCfRU6LpbPYo7iuP96UmFdS6HPE/s300/Photo%25252020140406194743.jpg" id="blogsy-1397209395508.1147" class="alignleft" alt="" width="300" height="225"></a></div><div> </div><div>But with these recipes which included plain flour, a mahoosive 1tbsp of baking powder and some salt thrown in, it was a completly different process. The measurements for all of the ingredients were different and you mixed the dry ingredients together separately while the wet ingredients had a party of their own. </div><div> </div><div>After making breadcrumbs in the food processor out of the butter, sugar and flour, I then had to gradually mix half the mixture of egg and milk into the breadcrumbs. I then had to leave it to beat fast for a few minutes and then put the rest of the egg and milk mixture in, along with any added flavourings. It was a bit of a laborious process and did hinder my biscuit eating somewhat, but the mixture was made into more like a batter then the thick mixture I'm used to. I used an ice cream scoop to put the batter into the cases like the book suggested. This helped to have equal cupcakes and stop it all going over the floor and my amazing Del Boy apron.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6408CTaKi2G8K7xWbDetZg5mvLgJyJt8eEmNDiP6xvPUDYj_0SwiPMBVI4-AuskmMVk5LPByqL1PN-bcEpeY-hy27-5Ow46JEMrcn9hHHVnt7SN02NkAIp4kRBiorc3uGNzL5U8IA43M/s2048/Photo%25252020140406194743.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6408CTaKi2G8K7xWbDetZg5mvLgJyJt8eEmNDiP6xvPUDYj_0SwiPMBVI4-AuskmMVk5LPByqL1PN-bcEpeY-hy27-5Ow46JEMrcn9hHHVnt7SN02NkAIp4kRBiorc3uGNzL5U8IA43M/s262/Photo%25252020140406194743.jpg" id="blogsy-1397209395426.209" class="alignright" alt="" width="262" height="197"></a><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-I40FA-jOZ5I/U0Gh_EY-bPI/AAAAAAAAOo4/2xCLpZgH_78/s2048/Photo%25252020140406194743.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-I40FA-jOZ5I/U0Gh_EY-bPI/AAAAAAAAOo4/2xCLpZgH_78/s300/Photo%25252020140406194743.jpg" id="blogsy-1397209395419.8696" class="alignleft" alt="" width="300" height="225"></a></div><div> </div><div>I baked them for around 25 minutes and acted like I was on the Bake Off and sat next to the oven staring into it praying to the cake gods, while listening to my 1940s CD. Both batches of cakes baked well, so I got my icing sugar ready and made enough buttercream to satisfy even Jasper for a good few days. </div><div> </div><div>For the ginger chocolate cakes, I made chocolate buttercream and added some finely stopped stem ginger. For the white chocolate and raspberry ones, I added melted white chocolate (what was left of it) and made 1 and a half times the recipe. I was concerned that because of the design I was doing on the cakes, I wouldn't have enough. Plus I am pretty fond of licking the bowl out too.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOgRsgAcAotxAuScNxRPqQFO-uyjaumOGxmoCDTUTiP5RLzVLunvPR1HR-5XFbWCiFBlQ1NUHtrLg-bgRZtSko3pxWN3xw2SR6MiCNv4CFNQajoMqzEuBJYwQm6EYodxzk7yhN4I9zWYo/s2048/Photo%25252020140406194743.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOgRsgAcAotxAuScNxRPqQFO-uyjaumOGxmoCDTUTiP5RLzVLunvPR1HR-5XFbWCiFBlQ1NUHtrLg-bgRZtSko3pxWN3xw2SR6MiCNv4CFNQajoMqzEuBJYwQm6EYodxzk7yhN4I9zWYo/s268/Photo%25252020140406194743.jpg" id="blogsy-1397209395498.1655" class="alignleft" alt="" width="268" height="357"></a></div><div> </div><div>I coloured just over a third of the white chocolate buttercream purple and put it in a piping bag with a Wilton 2D tip, along with the rest of the white and piped it into roses. The tip wouldn't work properly at first and I nearly had a meltdown, but my Mum saved the day and found that there was a piece of plastic in the tip so it wouldn't work properly. I know it sounds pretty pathetic to get so upset over decorating cakes, but it makes you want to cry into a bowl of icing and watch Bridget Jones if it doesn't work out properly. </div><div> </div><div>The cakes were meant to be two toned, but it's pretty difficult to get it completly two toned to start with, so one or two turned out more purple then others. I actually had a lot of buttercream left over, which was quickly put in the freezer by Mummy Second Hand Rose, as she could see that I was making a bee line for the bowl. I added some glitter on the top of them to make them sparkle and it's also pretty amusing to see your family sitting there with glittery lips.</div><div> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3aAKjTcp2qpcyFUGTDN3-txq1VTjU705Z2jNvGxVwu7Dv8sPtZ-6pghr0kt48owpUaEIhUMv5ZW_xCJQNzKrTZKmF5HqsDugiUqB51j5YY6MYxMvcs0AXDbffZyZjQnHfwVmGaPxvThw/s2048/Photo%25252020140406194808.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3aAKjTcp2qpcyFUGTDN3-txq1VTjU705Z2jNvGxVwu7Dv8sPtZ-6pghr0kt48owpUaEIhUMv5ZW_xCJQNzKrTZKmF5HqsDugiUqB51j5YY6MYxMvcs0AXDbffZyZjQnHfwVmGaPxvThw/s300/Photo%25252020140406194808.jpg" id="blogsy-1397209395500.7515" class="alignright" alt="" width="225" height="300"></a></div><div>For the Chocolate Ginger ones I used one of my bigger pipes, as I was worried about the ginger getting stuck in the bag and it exploding everywhere. I don't think my mum would be too happy if her kitchen was covered with chocolate buttercream. I made swirls with it and added some silver balls. I put them on the vintage cake stand that I sourced for my mum for Christmas. We found the plates a few years a go at a Vintage Fair which you can read about <a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/vintage-fair-full-of-clothes-hats-and.html" target="_blank" title="">here</a> and she loved them so much I set about sourcing the cake stand and some other pieces. They were hard to find, especially good condition ones, but luckily there was someone that lived less then half an hour away from me who wanted to sell a lot of her set.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-hZvYXdwUtw0/U0GiMLKPZHI/AAAAAAAAOpI/B3qwfovQTaw/s2048/Photo%25252020140406194743.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-hZvYXdwUtw0/U0GiMLKPZHI/AAAAAAAAOpI/B3qwfovQTaw/s326/Photo%25252020140406194743.jpg" id="blogsy-1397209395512.9756" class="alignleft" alt="" width="326" height="434"></a></div><div>It's safe to say that everyone enjoyed the cupcakes and they didn't last for long. My furry critic Jasper also loved them and rather enjoyed having glittery whiskas. </div><div> </div><div>I recently introduced my Mum to Pinterest and she now keeps blaming me for her spending so much time on there. She loves looking at quilts and embroidery to find inspiration for her own. Plus the fact that there are hundreds of photos of Daniel Craig on there that seem to fuel her addiction too. </div><div> </div><div>She is currently making me a very unique quilt, some cushions and some curtains for my bedroom. I will definitely blog about these to embarrass her as much as she embarrasses me every time an issue of Vintage Life comes out and she insits on telling the whole world about me writing for it. For Christmas I framed the first article I did for them way back in November 2012 with the front cover, my profile photo and my advert, which quickly got her all teary.</div><div> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8LtGer1nnhkcko7EF87KhOFtXEkjlkNsST9j45kmmLpOC3zKee9B1RHrjNLU9sa2WeHIynlNo89nVLZGHrd5XUKvTKpw3KiZoMf4qhwMMfR3lM7sxMEWKVTwSPQVkTrA9a0pSMk00FPA/s2048/Photo%25252020140406194659.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8LtGer1nnhkcko7EF87KhOFtXEkjlkNsST9j45kmmLpOC3zKee9B1RHrjNLU9sa2WeHIynlNo89nVLZGHrd5XUKvTKpw3KiZoMf4qhwMMfR3lM7sxMEWKVTwSPQVkTrA9a0pSMk00FPA/s342/Photo%25252020140406194659.jpg" id="blogsy-1397209395494.1868" class="alignright" alt="" width="342" height="256"></a></div><div>We hope you had a lovely Mother's Day, Mummy Second Hand Rose. We all love you so much and are incredibly grateful for all your love, kindness and of course your brilliant cooking. Now go back to Pinterest and oogle at Daniel Craig for another hour.</div><div> </div><div>Second Hand Rose</div><div>XxxX</div><div> <a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-7M452bPObkI/U0e43Cj68BI/AAAAAAAAOqU/8Qf-vEG5MIM/s2048/Photo%25252020140411103950.jpg" target="_blank" style="line-height: 1.3em;"><img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-7M452bPObkI/U0e43Cj68BI/AAAAAAAAOqU/8Qf-vEG5MIM/s352/Photo%25252020140411103950.jpg" id="blogsy-1397209395451.4832" class="alignnone" width="352" height="264" alt=""></a></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div style="text-align: right; font-size: small; clear: both;" id="blogsy_footer"><a href="http://blogsyapp.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://blogsyapp.com/images/blogsy_footer_icon.png" alt="Posted with Blogsy" style="vertical-align: middle; margin-right: 5px;" width="20" height="20" />Posted with Blogsy</a></div>Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-8644110906921573332014-03-11T17:21:00.000+00:002014-03-11T17:21:33.638+00:00Women who changed our lives: From make up to spying<div>
Women all over the world celebrated International Women's Day on Saturday, where they united to celebrate the empowerment of us feminine beauties. We can have babies, go to war, <span style="line-height: 1.3em;">run businesses and even make men do the washing up sometimes, now that definitely deserves a celebration.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">There are so many women in history who deserve so much recognition for there determination, their spirit and quest for change for the better. </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Here are just a small amount of the women who we should have a piece of cake for, any excuse for sponges goodness.</span></div>
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<u>Coco Chanel</u></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh312FnHNHPPW-4h3rfvDqeGBCUG-YpuiuCwDArG8jY_VPJP4FWLzB9HgtY94wDyt6Miep0mTtuicEt6aKGkml2j4Y5ltaJw_1lNaj3X8iGBt6S4yvB_nRQz0SfNjOzoMqKKLnGsB711Rk/s460/Photo%25252020140311161918.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="241" id="blogsy-1394558406370.1064" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh312FnHNHPPW-4h3rfvDqeGBCUG-YpuiuCwDArG8jY_VPJP4FWLzB9HgtY94wDyt6Miep0mTtuicEt6aKGkml2j4Y5ltaJw_1lNaj3X8iGBt6S4yvB_nRQz0SfNjOzoMqKKLnGsB711Rk/s460/Photo%25252020140311161918.jpg" width="385" /></a></div>
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This lovely lady was the founder of one of the most luxurious and iconic brands. She liberated women from having to wear a corset, that would squeeze everything and stop them being able to eat thirds of pudding, which is a complete travesty. She began the androgynous casual chic look with long trousers and comfortable shirts, that had never been seen before.<span style="line-height: 1.3em;"> </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Coco also created the Chanel No.5 fragrance, which is adored by many women across the world, along with the famous Chanel suit, bag and the idea of the little black dress. Thank you Coco for improving our smell, our wardrobe and most of all being able to have as many biscuits as we like, the woman is an empress.</span></div>
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<u>Amelia Earhart</u></div>
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<a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-gukJ8brZhA0/Ux83jZ0hPMI/AAAAAAAAOWE/OrnCmv1M7sI/s374/Photo%25252020140311161918.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignright" height="271" id="blogsy-1394558406359.977" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-gukJ8brZhA0/Ux83jZ0hPMI/AAAAAAAAOWE/OrnCmv1M7sI/s374/Photo%25252020140311161918.jpg" width="214" /></a></div>
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Amelia was the first female pilot to fly across the Atlantic Ocean on her lonesome. She had a spirit for adventure and set many world records and became the 16th woman to be issued a pilot's licence. I<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">n 1935, she became the </span><span style="line-height: 1.3em;"> first person to fly from Hawaii to the American mainland. This resulted in her becoming the first person to fly solo anywhere in the Pacific and also the first person to solo both the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean. </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">She also developed clothes for women pilots, with her first creation being a fashionable flying</span><span style="line-height: 1.3em;"> suit. It had loose trousers, a zipper top and big pockets. So not only was she the Queen of the skies, she was fashionable in doing so.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;"><u>Margaret Thatcher</u></span></div>
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Love her or loath her, dear old Maggie was a pioneer. She was the first female prime minister the UK had ever had. In the late 1970s the country was at the brink with strikes, power cuts and a failing economy. She turned the country around with much opposition and wore some amazing outfits in doing so, with some great power suits and pussy bow blouses. She had pretty good taste in handbags too.</div>
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<u>Marie Curie</u></div>
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Marie Curie was the first woman to be awarded the Nobel Prize in 1903, with her husband Pierre, for their work on radiation. She also won it again in 1911 by herself, after her husband was killed. Not only did she discover new elements, but her and Pierre's work was crucial in the development of x-rays in surgery. Marie faced great opposition from male scientists and did not get the respect from them that she so greatly deserved. </div>
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Her work in WW1 saved many lives, equipping ambulances with x-ray equipment and she also held training courses for medical staff and taught them vital new techniques. Marie paid the ultimate price for her work by dying from Leukeamia that was bought on by the exposure to high-energy radiation. She helped save countless lives and still continues to do so.</div>
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<u>Katharine Hepburn</u></div>
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Katharine Hepburn was a film star for more then 60 years and was a great inspiration to women. </div>
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In the era of glamour, Katharine went against the grade and wore casual clothes. She was very much a tomboy and was very athletic. Her signature look was <span style="line-height: 1.3em;">high-waisted trousers and button-down shirts, making her an early style icon of the androgynous</span><span style="line-height: 1.3em;"> look. Katharine made it acceptable for women to wear trousers on a daily basis. </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">She appeared on film, stage and television with many varied roles, playing strong-willed woman. Katharine received four Academy Awards for best actress, which is the most an actress has ever won. In 1999 she was named by the American Film Institute as the greatest female star in Hollywood. </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">I've written about her sassy style in more detail, which you can take a nosey at <a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/katharine-hepburn-true-fashion-rebel.html" target="_blank" title="here">here</a>.<a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/katharine-hepburn-true-fashion-rebel.html" target="_blank" title="here"></a></span></div>
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<u style="line-height: 1.3em;">Helena Rubinstein</u></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Helena Rubinstein was the queen of beauty and advised women on what make up to wear to enhance their look. She opened a beauty salon in Mayfair and launched her own make-up range in 1909. Helena showed women how to use pigments to highlight their features. Word spread and women of all classes flocked to her shop. </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">She created the first tinted matte face powder and the first blusher. By 1923, Helena was producing more then 70 popular lines of cosmetics, one of them being her famous body slimming creams and had competition from Elizabeth Arden, when the business expanded to America. </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">She created the world's first waterproof mascara in 1939, her Contour Lift Firming product and her first oil in water emulsion, Lanolin Vitamin Formula. Helena's empire is now owned by L'Oreal and is still loved by many women worldwide.</span></div>
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<u>Rosa Sparks</u><br />
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Rosa was an African- American civil rights activist who was known as "the First Lady of civil rights" and "the mother of the freedom movement". In 1995 Rosa refused to give up her seat in the 'coloured section' for a white person, because the white section was full. She was arrested and fined for violating a city ordinance. Her defiance became known as the Montogomery Bus Boycott and she became an international icon against racial segregation. </div>
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She was an inspiration to people who wanted freedom and gave them hope. Her work contributed to the end of legal segregation, that laced the way for equality.</div>
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<u style="line-height: 1.3em;">Billie Holiday</u></div>
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Billie was a beautiful Jazz singer and songwriter. Her mix of vocals and jazz instruments, started a trend for mixing them both and "changed the art of American pop vocals forever". She was known for her popular songs such as 'Lady in Satin' and 'Crazy He Calls Me'. Billy has been entered into the Grammy's Hall of Fame and has won several awards for her beautiful voice. Billy is known as the greatest ever female jazz singer. </div>
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<u>Marie Stopes</u></div>
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In 1918 Marie wrote her first book 'Married Love', which was highly condemned due to its sensitive subject of a couples intimate relationship. It was very popular with the public though, it was the Fifty Shades of Grey of the time, expect without the whips and chains. She received hundreds of letters from women asking relationship and family planning advice and as a result, she opened the first family planning clinic in the UK in 1921. It offered a free service to married women that was never availble before and provided women with a choice. </div>
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She set up several more clinics around the country that still provide help for women today. The organisation also help women from Ireland to receive an abortion, as it is heavily restricted there. They believe women have a right to a choice and support them whatever decision they make.</div>
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<u>Audrey Hepburn</u></div>
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With her iconic dainty features and talent, Audrey is one of the world's best known actresses. She is famous for the films Sabrina, Roman Holiday and who can forget Breakfast at Tiffany's. She became a UNICEF Ambassador and travelled to third world countries, and set a trend for other stars. So not only was she a beautiful actress, she was devoted to helping people, plus she looked amazing in a little black dress too</div>
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<u>Florence Nightingale</u><br />
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">With her main accessory being a lamp on her nightly rounds, she quickly became known as '</span><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">The Lady With the Lamp”. Florence nursed wounded soldiers during the Crimean War and saved many lives, with her insistence on clean conditions. So next time you go to the hospital and there's a hot male nurse for you to drool at, thank old Florence.</span></div>
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<u>The Suffragettes</u></div>
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The Suffragettes were a group of women who believed in equal rights for women and campaigned relentlessly for women to be able to vote in elections and have their say. They were so dedicated to the cause they risked their lives and their freedom. After 15 years of campaigning, women over 30 were granted the right to vote and stand as candidates in the 1918 General Election. <span style="line-height: 1.3em;">This was a huge turning point in the history of women becoming equal as men, so thank them next time when you have a vote at work, even if it is over who makes the tea.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;"><u> Dame Elizabeth Taylor</u></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWNcZRbrxcuRAVgsPAqZkjjJiqYiPRO7fHB_yL4_rtCPmGOv8u8dAOF-2xRGn4pE3popbKIA-NNGC9n9zk8q9XT8wJI7LXyYLf3FYWDMWwOnvbmZnyMpXFd6ItETBo47Yhxh8HiYWmOzE/s500/Photo%25252020140311161918.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="249" id="blogsy-1394558406370.273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWNcZRbrxcuRAVgsPAqZkjjJiqYiPRO7fHB_yL4_rtCPmGOv8u8dAOF-2xRGn4pE3popbKIA-NNGC9n9zk8q9XT8wJI7LXyYLf3FYWDMWwOnvbmZnyMpXFd6ItETBo47Yhxh8HiYWmOzE/s500/Photo%25252020140311161918.jpg" width="193" /></a></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">With an impressive jewellery collection which you can see <a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2011/09/father-christmas-if-youre-listening.html" target="_blank" title="here">here</a> and gorgeous gowns, Elizabeth is one of the most well known actresses and star icons. She was well known for her glamorous lifestyle, natural beauty and who can forget those violet eyes. With films like Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and Cleopatra making her famous, everyone was interested in her. She was married eight times and twice to Richard Burton who she appeared with her in 11 films, that girl must have really loved wedding cake. </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Elizabeth campaigned for HIV and AIDS programmes after her beloved friend Rock Hudson died and set up her own foundation, raising $270 million for charity and providing much needed help to victims.</span></div>
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<u>Special Operations Executive</u></div>
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During World War Two there was an organisation set up that was involved in top secret missions, such as espionage, sabotage and to gain vital information. There were 55 female agents, including Violette Szabo, Pearl Witherington, Eileen Nearne, Nancy Wake, Odette Hallowes and one of the longest serving British agents, Nancy Granville. </div>
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These women risked their lives on a daily basis and some were even killed when their cover was blown. These brave women did some great work and found out vital information to help us win the war. The Gestapo learned not to mess with these beauties, these ladies meant business. </div>
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<u style="line-height: 1.3em;">The Queen</u></div>
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She has been the head of the country and the colonies for more then 87 years now. She has done some great work for charity and our little island. Everyone's favourite grandmother's style has evolved over the years and she has worn some amazing outfits which I've written about <a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/60-years-of-queens-fashion-from-flowing.html" target="_blank" title="before">before</a>, all worn with her trusty bag. <span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Plus she has a pretty impressive collection of hats too.</span></div>
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Are there any ladies that you think can kick some arse and have made an impact to our lives in someway? </div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">All of these women mentioned have impacted our lives in some way and we should all be grateful for the risks they took, the work they have done and the barriers they broke. Besides, who could live without waterproof mascara? The Panda look really isn't that great.</span></div>
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Second Hand Rose</div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">XxxX</span></div>
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Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-89912734862120451292014-03-05T13:30:00.001+00:002014-03-05T13:31:45.211+00:00Two birthdays for two special people: WARNING: Contains cute cat overload!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheF95cJ1lnIaXQ4dVpiXVeZJLJrIcLAd8BAwG6fq9GWS5fhEd4hJTbK2PSo6iOPiCXS9GVNwhmT1N27D5rTEv9Q8ylKX41oW8HVdN6Hc63th0XyJXM3v-lQ1AWTCQ0mj-gn4YTrbITt6g/s2048/Photo%25252020140305130830.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheF95cJ1lnIaXQ4dVpiXVeZJLJrIcLAd8BAwG6fq9GWS5fhEd4hJTbK2PSo6iOPiCXS9GVNwhmT1N27D5rTEv9Q8ylKX41oW8HVdN6Hc63th0XyJXM3v-lQ1AWTCQ0mj-gn4YTrbITt6g/s329/Photo%25252020140305130830.jpg" id="blogsy-1394025905098.7673" class="alignright" alt="" width="329" height="247"></a></div><div> I've been wanting to start blogging again for months, but the weeks quickly turned into months. I had things I wanted to write about, but didn't know what to start with as my first post back. I figured the end of February was a little too late, to talk about Christmas, even though it was full of amazing food. I really want to get back into blogging and writing frequently, so unluckily for you, you may be hearing more from me and my ever growing shoe collection.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-8Tt2-dsTnfs/UxcicO9m98I/AAAAAAAAOT0/SABpTuYX2Lc/s2048/Photo%25252020140305130830.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-8Tt2-dsTnfs/UxcicO9m98I/AAAAAAAAOT0/SABpTuYX2Lc/s327/Photo%25252020140305130830.jpg" id="blogsy-1394025905135.9817" class="alignleft" alt="" width="327" height="245"></a></div><div> </div><div>So why not dip my toe in the blogging water again, with a post about two of the loves of my life. Let's start with the very furry one that is, my cat Jasper. Now I'm sure this will make me sound like a crazy cat lady who is obsessed with their cat, but the little furry monkey is so incredibly adorable, it's difficult not to fall in love with him! </div><div> </div><div>Anyone that doesn't love Jasper is banished from the household and we have all agreed that we couldn't go out with someone who didn't love the big ball of fluff. While this may make us seem incredibly weird, he is a huge part of our lives and part of our family. Plus he acts like he owns the house and we are his staff, so it would be pretty difficult to be in this house without falling under his spell.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-88NMJ34bOeg/UxcjFX2NowI/AAAAAAAAOUU/XVG-1URBY8c/s2048/Photo%25252020140305130830.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-88NMJ34bOeg/UxcjFX2NowI/AAAAAAAAOUU/XVG-1URBY8c/s258/Photo%25252020140305130830.jpg" id="blogsy-1394025905099.8152" class="alignright" alt="" width="258" height="194"></a></div><div> </div><div>Last week Jasper turned 22. We don't know the exact date he was born, as we got him from another family, who had sadly misplaced his birth certificate. We know he was born in 1992 though, so we celebrate his birthday on the day he came into our lives. He got several presents, many extra cuddles and enjoyed a lovely meal and is very fond of his new bow tie.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-5QJ8JZZc4BE/UxcjIbB4lsI/AAAAAAAAOUc/L2xnSK2sXIw/s2048/Photo%25252020140305130830.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-5QJ8JZZc4BE/UxcjIbB4lsI/AAAAAAAAOUc/L2xnSK2sXIw/s180/Photo%25252020140305130830.jpg" id="blogsy-1394025905132.9312" class="alignleft" alt="" width="180" height="240"></a></div><div>Jasper made our house his home when he was 15, when my Dad took pity on him as he would have gone to the cats home otherwise. There didn't seem much hope for a 15 year old cat, with two teeth and smelly breath, so my soppy father rescued him, so he could have a home for a couple of years. We thought this would be two years if we were lucky, but seven years later Jasper is still very much alive and is incredibly healthy for any cat, let alone a cat his age.</div><div> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><span style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-ULt0xpQTAEM/UxcjTgj8E_I/AAAAAAAAOU8/SHMuPUGTEt4/s185/Photo%25252020140305130830.jpg" id="blogsy-1394025905141.0847" class="alignright" alt="" width="185" height="247"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-ULt0xpQTAEM/UxcjTgj8E_I/AAAAAAAAOU8/SHMuPUGTEt4/s2048/Photo%25252020140305130830.jpg" target="_blank" style="line-height: 1.3em; clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; display: inline !important;">.</a></span></div><div><p>He has a very slight heart murmur and arthritis in his hip, which seems to suddenly flare up when he needs to walk up the stairs, but is absolutely fine when he races down the stairs for food or sprints in from the garden on two paws, because he is scared of the wind.</p></div><div>Jasper has us all wrapped around his little paw and he knows it. His day consists of being fed far too much human food, sleeping on someone's bed, having lots of cuddles and being groomed several times. He has a grooming pose and calls for us, just so he can have some attention. He gets upset if he is in a room by himself and cries until you go and sit with him and cuddle him, what ever you're doing doesn't matter.</div><div> </div><div>I could talk about our baby forever, but then I definitely will deserve the term crazy cat lady.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBt6imzoVSxmFAlx_h4XZN-CEZf3HWKKEJztyNF3rRGizE5_vFNmQHON3vsritsrdO8re4OEX0H4Xe1AwkW0KzZP8N5zQwjfwPxXV0vc5lsKTTtmJRK9tOgq8KwdeWs496NFZn_Kib8ZY/s2048/Photo%25252020140305131043.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBt6imzoVSxmFAlx_h4XZN-CEZf3HWKKEJztyNF3rRGizE5_vFNmQHON3vsritsrdO8re4OEX0H4Xe1AwkW0KzZP8N5zQwjfwPxXV0vc5lsKTTtmJRK9tOgq8KwdeWs496NFZn_Kib8ZY/s300/Photo%25252020140305131043.jpg" id="blogsy-1394025905183.8972" class="alignleft" alt="" width="300" height="225"></a></div><div> </div><div>Now my other love of my life had a birthday last week as well, although he is slightly less furry. That is my dear Daddy Second Hand Rose. I am incredibly close to my dear young Daddy and spend a lot of time with him. He can always put a smile on my face, regardless of the situation and is one of the funniest people there is. </div><div> </div><div>He is always there for me and when he was working always managed to be home early to spend time with us and has provided us all with amazing starts in life. Along with my Mum he is a tower of strength and has always been there for me when I've needed him the most.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOAp5HJdWLBe-_J90wzyuytPSzLsDZA5dlS2hNKJ1vv8je8v6rdsueIg22ZL05OslAqEVRuCQyFWzh37DC6vuOjrEqlqU2F4AXLLhM8IAFP7DllPHkAAcifvR_iksPldlO_6IAiuphZw4/s1024/Photo%25252020140305130901.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOAp5HJdWLBe-_J90wzyuytPSzLsDZA5dlS2hNKJ1vv8je8v6rdsueIg22ZL05OslAqEVRuCQyFWzh37DC6vuOjrEqlqU2F4AXLLhM8IAFP7DllPHkAAcifvR_iksPldlO_6IAiuphZw4/s339/Photo%25252020140305130901.jpg" id="blogsy-1394025905125.287" class="alignright" alt="" width="339" height="254"></a></div><div>We have a lot in common and have the same logical mind and sense of humour. We like to play cards together and he has recently started to teach me to play Bridge. We watch a lot of comedy and are always quoting lines from our beloved programmes. I do think my Dad has spent far too much time in a house full of women and a non masculine cat though, as he loves The Millionaire Matchmaker and is amazing at painting nails and dyeing hair.</div><div> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm-Xu1QQcbt_jtx_191zyUfhqCbSTJ9T7fSRJgIDTugHMVnw77exDwyueIkR0iVTZBmFjXNhlzqxN23BsJas-OEK0_cT7L-HFoebKfpgi-qio-De2RomxNoJc6JmU-VSh1AkJ88t1W8BA/s2048/Photo%25252020140305130943.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm-Xu1QQcbt_jtx_191zyUfhqCbSTJ9T7fSRJgIDTugHMVnw77exDwyueIkR0iVTZBmFjXNhlzqxN23BsJas-OEK0_cT7L-HFoebKfpgi-qio-De2RomxNoJc6JmU-VSh1AkJ88t1W8BA/s330/Photo%25252020140305130943.jpg" id="blogsy-1394025905180.2153" class="alignleft" width="330" height="247" alt=""></a></div><div>So happy birthday to two of my favourite men. I feel incredibly lucky to have you in my life and if you weren't here, I definitely wouldn't smile half as much, or have anyone to give me a manicure either.</div><div> </div><div> </div><div>Second Hand Rose</div><div>XxxX</div><div> </div><div style="text-align: right; font-size: small; clear: both;" id="blogsy_footer"><a href="http://blogsyapp.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://blogsyapp.com/images/blogsy_footer_icon.png" alt="Posted with Blogsy" style="vertical-align: middle; margin-right: 5px;" width="20" height="20" />Posted with Blogsy</a></div>Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-10017876000668864182013-11-08T14:12:00.001+00:002013-11-08T14:15:37.426+00:00A plea to sponsor the lovely Kathy B: Cuffed for Cancer<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgidIN3R2MinOmnXD1dbZlsodZP6asMukFB9ErwNB6ARwxfIsq84aKDja-R6wkluxeo3l1ODaR8fqQDRB1R0OZc5_oUt-qZghag8OrpYF0rmD5se9Y8UaFKVj-ZGkSo3C_PdxDCMZYRMFw/s400/Photo%2525208%252520Nov%2525202013%25252014%25253A04.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgidIN3R2MinOmnXD1dbZlsodZP6asMukFB9ErwNB6ARwxfIsq84aKDja-R6wkluxeo3l1ODaR8fqQDRB1R0OZc5_oUt-qZghag8OrpYF0rmD5se9Y8UaFKVj-ZGkSo3C_PdxDCMZYRMFw/s346/Photo%2525208%252520Nov%2525202013%25252014%25253A04.jpg" id="blogsy-1383920106220.3843" class="alignright" alt="" width="346" height="315"></a></div>
<div> My amazing love of my life blogger <a href="http://iamkathyb.blogspot.co.uk" target="_self" title="Kathy B">Kathy B</a>, who I will happily marry one day and make as many cakes for as she can eat, is raising money for an incredibly worthy cause. On the 18th November her and a friend are going to be handcuffed together for a whole 24 hours, to raise money for the <a href="http://www.tuesdayoharafund.co.uk/index.php" target="_blank" title="Tuesday O'Hara Fund">Tuesday O'Hara fund</a>, which help support young adults, while they are fighting Leukeamia and other horrible cancers. </div>
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<div>The cause is very close to Kathy's heart as her dear friend Emily has been diagnosed with Leukeamia for the second time in just a few years. I remember when Kathy first tweeted that her friend had been diagnosed and I was upset to hear that Emily had been diagnosed again. Kathy wrote an incredibly moving letter on her <a href="http://iamkathyb.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/my-embo.html" target="_blank" title="blog">blog</a> to her friend, which proves even more how much of an amazing and beautiful person Kathy is.</div>
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<div>When you have a serious illness, some people around you don't know how to deal with it and act like you're a zombie. It really does show you who your true friends are, who treat you exactly the same as before and it means so much that they are there for you and supporting you. Luckily for Emily, she has Kathy to help her fight like hell against this nasty illness, with a smile on her face and a tummy full of chocolate.</div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAK4EJ11kcGRWymHyfHQYU3BC5bX0DrcHd56EUmOtZxKJJ-_CgvMNne_OTNMFomVSQA0ADDFdEcp6y8Z71hJt707BKix_ukY0STqy0jNgkOjlG6yNv4gso0YwtMeNuTn2IT1Sotv1Ukeo/s1400/Photo%2525208%252520Nov%2525202013%25252014%25253A05.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAK4EJ11kcGRWymHyfHQYU3BC5bX0DrcHd56EUmOtZxKJJ-_CgvMNne_OTNMFomVSQA0ADDFdEcp6y8Z71hJt707BKix_ukY0STqy0jNgkOjlG6yNv4gso0YwtMeNuTn2IT1Sotv1Ukeo/s500/Photo%2525208%252520Nov%2525202013%25252014%25253A05.jpg" id="blogsy-1383920106299.6836" class="alignleft" alt="" width="467" height="155"></a></div>
<div>The Tuesday O'Hara fund was set up after Tuesday lost her four year battle with Leukeamia in 2007 aged 21. Tuesday's parents set up a charity in their beautiful daughters honour to support other families and sufferers. Their<span style="text-align: -webkit-center; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> aim is to raise funds to help cancer sufferers under financial hardship and their families and friends, in any way they can. </span></div>
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<div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); text-align: -webkit-center; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.3em;">Their ultimate aim, is to raise enough money to facilitate the Pevensey Ward/ Proposed adolescent unit located in Eastbourne District General Hospital, with equipment that will make young people between eighteen and thirty stay in hospital as comfortable and homely as possible. You don't need Terry Wogan in a spotty suit to tell you that it's a worthy cause.</span><br>
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<div><span style="text-align: -webkit-center; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Cuffed for Cancer takes place between 18th-24th November, which Kathy and her friend are taking part in. Please please please donate some money to this incredibly worthy cause, even if it just a small amount. You can do this <a href="https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/cuffedforcancer" target="_blank" title="here">here</a>. As Tesco say, every little helps. None of us know when we are going to need the support of charities like this, for our loved ones and even ourselves. When battling an illness it can make people</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); text-align: -webkit-center; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.3em;"> feel so alone, so any help from people that know and understand what you're going through is greatly appreciated. </span></div>
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<div><span style="text-align: -webkit-center; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Plus if you donate some money, tweet about the cause or share it on your blog, I'll happily give you a big squeeze and some homemade cupcakes.</span></div>
<div><span style="text-align: -webkit-center; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Now that is an offer surely no one can refuse.</span></div>
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<div><span style="text-align: -webkit-center; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Second Hand Rose</span></div>
<div><span style="text-align: -webkit-center; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">XxxX</span></div>
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<div> </div><div style="text-align: right; font-size: small; clear: both;" id="blogsy_footer"><a href="http://blogsyapp.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://blogsyapp.com/images/blogsy_footer_icon.png" alt="Posted with Blogsy" style="vertical-align: middle; margin-right: 5px;" width="20" height="20" />Posted with Blogsy</a></div>Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-30784813697558674462013-10-17T15:57:00.001+01:002013-10-18T13:50:06.748+01:00 Dita Von Teese Von Follies: Not a pair of Granny pants in sight<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-DfcuorGLkFw/Ul_v-jIWuaI/AAAAAAAANag/-2MasNBR040/s841/Photo%25252017%252520Oct%2525202013%25252013%25253A20.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-DfcuorGLkFw/Ul_v-jIWuaI/AAAAAAAANag/-2MasNBR040/s300/Photo%25252017%252520Oct%2525202013%25252013%25253A20.jpg" id="blogsy-1382097737911.8162" class="alignright" width="300" height="397" alt=""></a></div>
<div> Now if you have read my blog for a long time, you will know that along with me being obsessed with Rock Hudson and being very fond of eating pickled onions, whilst having a bubble bath, I have quite a big girl crush on the delectable Dita Von Teese.</div>
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<div> I wrote ages ago about the clothing line that she bought out two years ago, but now Dita has added, to her very gorgeous Von Follies lingerie range with a new collection. </div>
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<div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The AW13 Sheer Witchery collection is inspired by Halloween, but you won't be seeing a white sheet with holes in anytime soon. The collection has vampish black lace overlayed on nude satin and sheer mesh sections on the bra cups. Corsets, bras, thongs, briefs, slips and garter belts are available, so you can add some va va voom to your underwear draw.</span><br>
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<div style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-ZUmapT6DMPg/Ul_v9k7OTOI/AAAAAAAANaY/04kBF6qmHRg/s843/Photo%25252017%252520Oct%2525202013%25252013%25253A21.jpg" target="_blank" style="line-height: 1.3em; clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; display: inline !important;"><img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-ZUmapT6DMPg/Ul_v9k7OTOI/AAAAAAAANaY/04kBF6qmHRg/s300/Photo%25252017%252520Oct%2525202013%25252013%25253A21.jpg" id="blogsy-1382097737846.5745" class="alignleft" width="300" height="399" alt=""></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr7tKQzZcvG3oh6LuFPAi8UEY8rdNlsI39NJg2RLCVE9JLjf_9GbY4_yKH4o4_1Vnv9h0Cdol9noBX4h5JFaBqjroUyiVPT7VzQ55sBzpZDf-Pa_2mQ95TtOMagnHKEeqWqyNdQTlVYc4/s314/Photo%25252017%252520Oct%2525202013%25252015%25253A07.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr7tKQzZcvG3oh6LuFPAi8UEY8rdNlsI39NJg2RLCVE9JLjf_9GbY4_yKH4o4_1Vnv9h0Cdol9noBX4h5JFaBqjroUyiVPT7VzQ55sBzpZDf-Pa_2mQ95TtOMagnHKEeqWqyNdQTlVYc4/s282/Photo%25252017%252520Oct%2525202013%25252015%25253A07.jpg" id="blogsy-1382097737929.3823" class="alignright" width="282" height="375" alt=""></a></div>
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<div> <span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Dita is obsessed with lingerie and has been collecting pieces since she was 16. Her collection has been very popular and was even included in Paris Fashion Week, with models from Alexis Mabille's show wearing one of her fabulous bras, lucky models. </span></div>
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<div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The collection is exclusive to <a href="http://www.asos.com/search/Von-follies?hrd=1&q=Von+follies#parentID=-1&pge=0&pgeSize=36&sort=3" target="_blank" title="Asos">Asos</a> and <a href="http://www.debenhams.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Navigate?storeId=10701&catalogId=10001&langId=-1&lid=%2F%2Fproductsuniverse%2Fen_GB%2Fproduct_online%3DY%2Finsearch%3D1%2F%24s%3DVon%5Cu0020follies%5Cu0020&ps=max&sid=*min_price" target="_blank" title="Debenhams">Debenhams</a>, with prices ranging from £9 in the sale to £70 for an amazing lace corset, more reasons for me to exploit my bank card.<br>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0BALTIOMf45BGls7xqKDi_wDMkqwGlPhgmL1OHfI-UdiBOsBLV5iSwzrS0WEbAXR5AOoggXK2sdjeTNIUh8C5JQQqAl-MsyOQg79347gFUTNJPDrXcbNkrBGKIy23qG7e5G9nzMXRgSw/s390/Photo%25252017%252520Oct%2525202013%25252015%25253A28.jpg" target="_blank" style=""><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0BALTIOMf45BGls7xqKDi_wDMkqwGlPhgmL1OHfI-UdiBOsBLV5iSwzrS0WEbAXR5AOoggXK2sdjeTNIUh8C5JQQqAl-MsyOQg79347gFUTNJPDrXcbNkrBGKIy23qG7e5G9nzMXRgSw/s390/Photo%25252017%252520Oct%2525202013%25252015%25253A28.jpg" id="blogsy-1382097737937.0613" class="alignnone" width="293" height="390" alt=""></a><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Eznp-AkJR_Y/Ul_1hS0E83I/AAAAAAAANa0/uHvynyC28gI/s390/Photo%25252017%252520Oct%2525202013%25252015%25253A28.jpg" target="_blank" style=""><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Eznp-AkJR_Y/Ul_1hS0E83I/AAAAAAAANa0/uHvynyC28gI/s390/Photo%25252017%252520Oct%2525202013%25252015%25253A28.jpg" id="blogsy-1382097737914.7637" class="alignnone" width="293" height="390" alt=""></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: none;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Dita designed her range so that women of all shapes and sizes could feel amazing about themselves. When her range was first unveiled last year she had a runway of her pieces in Australia, which included very beautiful and healthy models of different sizes looking amazing. The range is available in sizes UK8-16 and from an A to E cup, I've fallen in love with the woman even more.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.3em;">Dita says that "Every woman should have a really great set of lingerie, especially in black" Now even me with my monkey pyjamas, can channel my inner Dita for a day, but ever so slightly less elegantly.</span></div>
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<div> </div><div style="text-align: right; font-size: small; clear: both;" id="blogsy_footer"><a href="http://blogsyapp.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://blogsyapp.com/images/blogsy_footer_icon.png" alt="Posted with Blogsy" style="vertical-align: middle; margin-right: 5px;" width="20" height="20" />Posted with Blogsy</a></div>Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-50600470977918604472013-10-12T11:10:00.001+01:002013-10-12T11:16:52.138+01:00Cakes, Writing and a hunky man in a pink apron<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-uaTDTJzjeYQ/UlkfintY4fI/AAAAAAAAM0c/BD0NSgUsK74/s2048/Photo%25252013%252520Sep%2525202013%25252017%25253A04.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-uaTDTJzjeYQ/UlkfintY4fI/AAAAAAAAM0c/BD0NSgUsK74/s500/Photo%25252013%252520Sep%2525202013%25252017%25253A04.jpg" id="blogsy-1381572602971.5867" class="alignright" alt="" width="284" height="403"></a></div>
<div> I was meaning to blog last week about Fashion month, but I have had four deadlines for Vintage Life recently, as I have been writing two articles for the November issue and ones for Christmas. Nothing like writing about pigs in blankets to get you into the Christmas spirit. I fancy watching one of those awful Christmassy movies now with actors you've never heard of, that even Jasper would refuse to watch with me. If it doesn't have Bradley Cooper in, he's not interested. </div>
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<div>If you have read one of my latest posts about Mr. Boyfriend staying over, I am thrilled to announce that I did not burn the house down whilst cooking him a romantic-ish meal. Although I will admit, that a washing up bowl and a plate was harmed in the process (oops, the parents don't know about that one yet).</div>
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<div> I did rather enjoy trying to be a domestic goddess to be honest and it was nice to know that after work Mr. Boyfriend was coming home to me, god I sound like I'm in one of those trashy Christmas movies, I've watched far too many.</div>
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<div>While desperately trying not to lose my newly painted nails to the dreaded cleaning products, I made a cake for my parents anniversary. I decided to make a lemon and blackberry sponge, from all the thousands of blackberries that have been collected on one of my family's many foraging trips. </div>
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<div>I had Mr.Boyfriend as my helper looking very dishy in a bright pink apron if I don't say so myself, peeling and squeezing lemons. I've got use his muscles to my advantage somehow. </div>
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<div>To cover the cake I used a new technique that I haven't tried before. I made a lavender coloured Swiss buttercream that was lemon flavoured. Unfortunately, my helper had to go at the most vital point of the process, so I had to whisk eight egg whites over a pan of water by myself, that really was a work out and a half. </div>
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<div>After nearly not being able to use my arms ever again, I had to mix in tiny cubes of butter one at a time, which was certainly a labourious task and difficult when you've just done the most exercise, that you've done in three years. </div>
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<div>It was going perfectly and then I added the lavender colour along with some lemon juice and both my heart and meringue sank. The stupid thing became this purple dotted slimy mess, any baker knows that this is incredibly frustrating. </div>
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<div>I thankfully carried on mixing it and the beautiful food mixer worked its magic and the mess suddenly transformed into this beautiful light and fluffy lavender buttercream, my cake fairy godmother was definitely helping me out that day.</div>
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<div><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">I filled the cake with the filling and gave it a slight covering, so the decoration would go on easily. I piped the buttercream on the cake, well what was left of it anyway, after I'd eaten a load of it. </span></div>
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<div><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">I'd never done this technique either, but it was surprisingly easier then it looked or I thought it would be. Don't you just love things that aren't as difficult as they look?</span><br>
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<div> Unsurprisingly I ran out of some buttercream for the centre, so I decorated the top of the cake with red fondant roses that I had made in the evenings, whilst watching Ronnie come back to the square in Eastenders and had Jasper snoring in my ear. I also made around 30 rose petals, which I decorated the board with.</div>
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<div>I was very happy with my cake and couldn't wait to give it to my mum and dad. I went in with my brother, sister and Jasper to buy them a Fortnum and Mason's Afternoon Tea voucher, which came all wrapped up in a gorgeous box. </div>
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<div>It's safe to say that Mummy and Daddy Second Hand Rose along with the rest of my family and Mr. Boyfriend were very happy with the cake and it even got Jasper's approval, as he loved the buttercream, this was evident by his slight purple beard after stuffing his face with it.</div>
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<div>Talking of Jasper, he has gone from strength to strength after his little bug and is back to full health, happily eating everything in sight and lapping up all the attention. He was given liver last week as a treat and then went on strike the next day and wouldn't eat his Gourmet salmon and shrimp food, because he wanted more of the liver, he's a total diva.</div>
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<div> <span style="line-height: 1.3em;">The latest Vintage Life magazines have come out and I have written all about hats through the decades for Her Vintage. I was very happy to receive the new His Vintage Life, because it's the first issue that an article I've written has featured in the His edition. </span></div>
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<div><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">I was very excited when Postman Pat put it through my letterbox last Friday, he's such a cool dude. Plus all the hunky men in it did make it an added bonus, especially for Grandma Second Hand Rose who spent a very long time reading it.</span></div>
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<div>I wrote about ways to Impress a Vintage Lady, providing tips on making any man seem like every ladiedream man. It was certainly different to go from writing for girls to boys and I did consider changing my name to Second Hand Roy but finally decided against it, plus it would look a bit odd in the writers section with my picture next to it.</div>
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<div>I also now have an advert in both of His and Her Vintage Life for my blog, Twitter and eBay which I'm very excited about! Del Boy would be proud.</div>
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<div> <span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Within the past couple of weeks, I have been learning how to play Bridge. My fabulous teacher a.k.a my Dad has been teaching me, so I can play on a Tuesday with his Bridge babes. </span></div>
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<div><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Jasper loves watching us play and is my little helper and I swear he gives me signals. He's practicing his meows, exercising his paws and is making his breath extra smelly as we speak, now that really is a distraction.</span></div>
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<div>Second Hand Rose</div>
<div>XxxX</div>
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<div> </div><div style="text-align: right; font-size: small; clear: both;" id="blogsy_footer"><a href="http://blogsyapp.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://blogsyapp.com/images/blogsy_footer_icon.png" alt="Posted with Blogsy" style="vertical-align: middle; margin-right: 5px;" width="20" height="20" />Posted with Blogsy</a></div>Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-68205706496944615812013-09-23T17:31:00.000+01:002013-09-23T17:31:40.917+01:00Fabulous Fashionistas: Six women that are fun,fashionable and feisty<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4GwrY3avvsx4_fPfzgjN7FWBlRZ1uIzC1KUqyUK9AEn79tpvk3QQCnBrQDaFL3AKSIgociCOq73ud3oBEhTdNejNoCthmGDd9uGB6TdDKi3mjrFtD1WXBWkEXgyHNlrKz-o4993-2viA/s412/Photo%25252018%252520Sep%2525202013%25252012%25253A38.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="aligncenter" height="301" id="blogsy-1379952655599.0154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4GwrY3avvsx4_fPfzgjN7FWBlRZ1uIzC1KUqyUK9AEn79tpvk3QQCnBrQDaFL3AKSIgociCOq73ud3oBEhTdNejNoCthmGDd9uGB6TdDKi3mjrFtD1WXBWkEXgyHNlrKz-o4993-2viA/s412/Photo%25252018%252520Sep%2525202013%25252012%25253A38.jpg" width="535" /></a><span style="line-height: 1.3em;"></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;"><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Last Tuesday Channel 4 showed the most amazing documentary, which you can catch up on 4OD on Demand and YouTube. It was called Fabulous Fashionistas and was about women in their 70s, 80s and 90's, who refuse to give up on life and keep going, one fashionable step at a time. The women featured were there own person, with amazing fashion taste and an eye for picking out bargains, plus there wasn't a bottle of fake tan or injection of Botox in sight.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU9oR_EpY9FHXiupfeYOqFvD8V-0fy4SSdOgxx1fj1vs_BmMDJWExeJtgq-sg0nXdBrW4pWPVn_cEOc3Af0cDMcQr1h5DfLg538RjVn2LQ-WZS-ORdUYFgjEOHn3P3ej7_Y_-vOFw9URY/s1600/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A39.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignright" height="453" id="blogsy-1379952655556.6118" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU9oR_EpY9FHXiupfeYOqFvD8V-0fy4SSdOgxx1fj1vs_BmMDJWExeJtgq-sg0nXdBrW4pWPVn_cEOc3Af0cDMcQr1h5DfLg538RjVn2LQ-WZS-ORdUYFgjEOHn3P3ej7_Y_-vOFw9URY/s500/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A39.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
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Here is a little about the women featured:</div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Name: Bridget Sojourner</span></div>
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Years young: 75 </div>
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Job: Ageism campaigner</div>
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Style: 'Pioneer of colour'</div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Shopping list: Flowing vibrant dresses, DM's, headscarves, costume jewellery.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Despite only having a pension of £100 a week, Bridget still manages to look extremely stylish with her eye-catching costume jewellery and glamourous hats. Bridget loves going to charity shops and searching through all the rails for clothes. She is a stickler for price though and when asked what her most expensive item she's bought was a £4 of Doc Martens. Four quid for a pair of DM's? The woman is a treasure finder!</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">With her beautiful curly hair decorated with bright scarves, she explains that 'How I look is to do with my identity and the fun of it. It's nothing to do with looking younger.'</span></div>
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ujVimRgJfYI/UkBnSDgqOZI/AAAAAAAAMYM/tEn016VmVoM/s1600/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A39.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="320" id="blogsy-1379952655567.5635" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ujVimRgJfYI/UkBnSDgqOZI/AAAAAAAAMYM/tEn016VmVoM/s320/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A39.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-ba1uQd6xdsio7S76X5-JuObnhFwzz9GwmyyTvLgmgWA2eLgsNaMURC0yzgFwexB9l1vra6H0JG5G5kn99tzDoYnlfUwQGJGEv4ei0nYwVjt_abZAa_yMwst7wwuy3PCkkXB7jECPxvc/s500/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A40.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="" height="300" id="blogsy-1379952655544.4778" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-ba1uQd6xdsio7S76X5-JuObnhFwzz9GwmyyTvLgmgWA2eLgsNaMURC0yzgFwexB9l1vra6H0JG5G5kn99tzDoYnlfUwQGJGEv4ei0nYwVjt_abZAa_yMwst7wwuy3PCkkXB7jECPxvc/s500/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A40.jpg" width="199" /></a>Bridget is a lifelong campaigner and her recent project is to campaign against ageism. She does this by wanting to spread the word in magazines and by trying to find some modelling.<br />
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Bridget says: "People stop me everyday in the street, amazed that I look so stylish at my age. The insidious ageism in our society says that you become invisible as you get older and that’s what I’m fighting against visually with my clothes." "I want older women to believe they can do and wear anything. I’m still waiting for the call from Channel 4 asking me to read the news." I'd go shopping and take style tips for her anyday.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3u92Uvnh0O740lT77gRDEYLB62mMGe-ADWTb4OIxJdk1jKjF2j6HQHyPFDIbLuWY2MsGKRMj6zLvy9V82363S-s7_ypF6Ims_-XLy8gPAclj2X0vg8NGRjJoKUNv22AS4UMeB86a3KDE/s687/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A40.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignnone" height="320" id="blogsy-1379952655529.3289" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3u92Uvnh0O740lT77gRDEYLB62mMGe-ADWTb4OIxJdk1jKjF2j6HQHyPFDIbLuWY2MsGKRMj6zLvy9V82363S-s7_ypF6Ims_-XLy8gPAclj2X0vg8NGRjJoKUNv22AS4UMeB86a3KDE/s320/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A40.jpg" width="211" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirv_1TvUidsQdYKIHtj-YPIlQygvcsy82flW3NYabO-rDeyUm8xcm5oZWmfjJTLTyFNzt8VR6yU4SLVTBvoYzi4VtfzjkNgRlJkHJMrbRmNB3eBmFztQ8ePHnSso0vPqDMXKwQ99o-gtU/s960/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A40.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignnone" height="320" id="blogsy-1379952655603.3782" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirv_1TvUidsQdYKIHtj-YPIlQygvcsy82flW3NYabO-rDeyUm8xcm5oZWmfjJTLTyFNzt8VR6yU4SLVTBvoYzi4VtfzjkNgRlJkHJMrbRmNB3eBmFztQ8ePHnSso0vPqDMXKwQ99o-gtU/s320/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A40.jpg" width="212" /></a><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">Name: Baroness Trumpington</span></div>
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Years young: 91</div>
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Job: Conservative life peer</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP0agTqePbiPPxDGevCPdNgRSIuLXEUGRLxo0rDa49xb3UktG23jy3sHzXMkz2c9Nj9SRZl2ElCS1ocy3X8fUiB_ADGelBcUQpOBhu4W7M2ym8qOIGakr95leFZMYiG7jUB0cuvySOrjw/s450/Photo%25252021%252520Jun%2525202012%25252011%25253A47.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignright" height="270" id="blogsy-1379952655607.922" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP0agTqePbiPPxDGevCPdNgRSIuLXEUGRLxo0rDa49xb3UktG23jy3sHzXMkz2c9Nj9SRZl2ElCS1ocy3X8fUiB_ADGelBcUQpOBhu4W7M2ym8qOIGakr95leFZMYiG7jUB0cuvySOrjw/s450/Photo%25252021%252520Jun%2525202012%25252011%25253A47.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
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Style: "Lucky if it hits the spot"</div>
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Shopping list: Anything from a catalogue.</div>
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Baroness Trumngton is the oldest of the group, but that doesn't mean she is any less stylish. She is over going shopping and is now addicted to catalogue buying. The woman is an incredibly intelligent and very witty character and became an internet sensation when a video of her on YouTube showed her giving another peer the V sign, because he was talking about her age. The Baroness makes a point of refusing to go quietly and is regularly sitting listening to the debates on the Lords' red benches, always looking stylish.<br />
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In 1989 she became the oldest ever women to be appointed a Government minister. When she became the Minister of Agriculture, she didn't have time to go shopping anymore so started ordering from catalogues and hasn't put them down since. She cheekily notes that the catalogue even has men in it! <br />
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<a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-cAMu3T3Xve4/UkBjGQgsMYI/AAAAAAAAMWc/w7dW0rSMlBk/s720/Photo%25252019%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A38.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="274" id="blogsy-1379952655539.832" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-cAMu3T3Xve4/UkBjGQgsMYI/AAAAAAAAMWc/w7dW0rSMlBk/s500/Photo%25252019%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A38.jpg" width="182" /></a></div>
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Baroness Trumpington explains that she was brought up looking at people who wore lovely clothes. During the Second World War the Baroness worked as one of the amazing women at Bletchley Park in the intelligence sector. She says that: "You did these awful shifts and you wore whatever was comfortable. You certainly didn't bother with appearance" I doubt they were wearing trackies, hoodies and Uggs though.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWUPLBQjx6LbvZERt4eBDtINhpNoINY5WzjcBTf49kYPe22Enwy1xjfF4xdMiq6o91mKGIl1mOW3EbUvoJgttz3c9EXRHL28gSqo2pDMOPBLBHCzUSdqNYxftg-ZpMSJ7At_0IG8zAlQU/s1700/Photo%25252018%252520Mar%2525202013%25252011%25253A23.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignright" height="270" id="blogsy-1379952655572.9797" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWUPLBQjx6LbvZERt4eBDtINhpNoINY5WzjcBTf49kYPe22Enwy1xjfF4xdMiq6o91mKGIl1mOW3EbUvoJgttz3c9EXRHL28gSqo2pDMOPBLBHCzUSdqNYxftg-ZpMSJ7At_0IG8zAlQU/s500/Photo%25252018%252520Mar%2525202013%25252011%25253A23.jpg" width="180" /></a>Like Bridget she finds bargains cheaply, but of one of her favourite items being a three-piece wool trouser suit, that she bought from Harrods about 20 years ago. There's nothing like spoiling yourself.<br />
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">The Baroness describes that: "Women have a very difficult time in politics, but I've never felt that I have to wear something specific to be taken seriously. There are some particularly odd numbers dress-wise in the House of Lords, but it has no effect on their excellent speeches." Her fashion tip is "Simplicity is the key. There is nothing like a single rope of cultured pearls to dress up something drab. They're not expensive and they're all in the catalogues." How right you are Baroness.</span></div>
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Name: Daphne Selfe</div>
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Years young: 85</div>
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Job: Model</div>
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Style: 'Classy funky'</div>
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Shopping List: Styles from past decades, that she has collected over the years.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhok43SUiLo4V5nedlX7UcIhsDmg3jZPXfuxsdUefCxCHm3h263YS62nweas1s9kZf-VBmnDni0AoUh2mwqLAbkd4VcW0Ito-aw_GO_8IkxTXOHl3IE3b_iFugYSZNb5-nXJfENuTiFc5k/s634/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252013%25253A14.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="aligncenter" height="295" id="blogsy-1379952655612.5579" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhok43SUiLo4V5nedlX7UcIhsDmg3jZPXfuxsdUefCxCHm3h263YS62nweas1s9kZf-VBmnDni0AoUh2mwqLAbkd4VcW0Ito-aw_GO_8IkxTXOHl3IE3b_iFugYSZNb5-nXJfENuTiFc5k/s400/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252013%25253A14.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYGekaEjkHabx659UgJ_8qFRVU1v3ju2aaB0jMoLwDG9pHoY45AkNq-fHFOAPBMt2h6lUkDGkf0VLg0kFjSB8yG2yjsDDhVqywkMlLrJONOzuPQfLVBLtJlnJYA2w5eemeZF1fQo2EObU/s1700/Photo%25252012%252520Mar%2525202013%25252015%25253A09.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="270" id="blogsy-1379952655620.0598" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYGekaEjkHabx659UgJ_8qFRVU1v3ju2aaB0jMoLwDG9pHoY45AkNq-fHFOAPBMt2h6lUkDGkf0VLg0kFjSB8yG2yjsDDhVqywkMlLrJONOzuPQfLVBLtJlnJYA2w5eemeZF1fQo2EObU/s500/Photo%25252012%252520Mar%2525202013%25252015%25253A09.jpg" width="180" /></a><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">If you're likely to recognise any of these women then it will be Daphne. She is the world's oldest supermodel and has appeared on the cover of Italian Vogue. Daphne is one of the faces of TX Maxx, doing several photo shoots with them and has filmed several adverts. Trust me, if you've seen the adverts, you will remember Daphne. Not for her age, but for her style, elegance and beautiful smile. Daphne has gorgeous grey locks that tumble down her neck beautifully, which get her a lot of work. She worked as a model in her twenties and stopped to have children.</span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">When most women are sitting doing a wordsearch, at seventy years old Daphne was rediscovered and asked to walk at London Fashion Week. Ever since then she has been more in demand then ever and has walked catwalks and starred in photoshoots all over the world alongside the top models. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmPH_lkO2-68emReAEba6iAfJ3awJU_aflj7C7Zy6BQjb3mCNDft5eQiMtcZSdWi806w7CbIWwaWTB6eGEP62GWadGInNF8s9-XV2UXu6u7MjlMTgAnqNhYdqmfd23B_BYJTveTTT8TU4/s423/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252013%25253A13.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignright" height="373" id="blogsy-1379952655609.9226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmPH_lkO2-68emReAEba6iAfJ3awJU_aflj7C7Zy6BQjb3mCNDft5eQiMtcZSdWi806w7CbIWwaWTB6eGEP62GWadGInNF8s9-XV2UXu6u7MjlMTgAnqNhYdqmfd23B_BYJTveTTT8TU4/s423/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252013%25253A13.jpg" width="270" /></a></div>
<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Daphne has accumulated some amazing pieces and items over the years, she has a wardrobe to rival the likes of Cara Delevigne's. </span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">When she was eighty three, she did a photo shoot for Oxfam's Big Bra Hunt, in which she wore </span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); line-height: 1.3em;">the iconic conical bra and corset made by Jean Paul Gaultier for Madonna's Blonde Ambition tour in 1990. Brave isn't the word and before you think 'oh there must have been loads of airbrushing done.' No there wasn't, not even a smidgin. </span><br />
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5M5rEeuIypA/UkBjPsJQ_XI/AAAAAAAAMXE/E4KyQZxOfU8/s463/Photo%25252018%252520Sep%2525202013%25252012%25253A51.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="277" id="blogsy-1379952655536.6865" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5M5rEeuIypA/UkBjPsJQ_XI/AAAAAAAAMXE/E4KyQZxOfU8/s463/Photo%25252018%252520Sep%2525202013%25252012%25253A51.jpg" width="183" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhszG1AopLA14Tilj5eIghTFwqgeTOmmh17UvtXJjOYOfUw4TtG2oY5wZqnye43zlJKJFIDcNM8dtLxw8P3GA3NeeXeAKhM5TOSmC3h5bSz30peY36efOrKpYFgxkSv3TxOQlB-puzSZT0/s423/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252013%25253A11.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignnone" height="320" id="blogsy-1379952655561.8774" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhszG1AopLA14Tilj5eIghTFwqgeTOmmh17UvtXJjOYOfUw4TtG2oY5wZqnye43zlJKJFIDcNM8dtLxw8P3GA3NeeXeAKhM5TOSmC3h5bSz30peY36efOrKpYFgxkSv3TxOQlB-puzSZT0/s320/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252013%25253A11.jpg" width="231" /></a><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Daphne explains that she "doesn't believe in being a slaved to the latest trends." Her top tip is you should wear what you love and what suits you. Daphne loved modelling again, as she loves clothes and "prancing up and down the catwalk and even better, I didn't have to wear high heels!" I bet all the younger models were uber jealous of that. </span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">She is an incredibly stylish lady and has a lot of wisdom about how to feel about yourself. </span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); line-height: 1.3em;">"Now that I’m older I approach fashion and modelling differently. I’m not perfect anymore, so I don’t worry so much. It’s very liberating. Getting old really does have quite a lot of advantages." Now we can all learn from that. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl7cPBqLaHMkUv-R10XVmaXFAougUMm2V3QMnr_3wRs3DEvUpNRr6gK0xy7gR76mrr50p0lHrPOWyIpkZWF-yMPfvUQJnYsM0G2WDFGBKabqCZSczE48002w28mhm-PohPRyx-onEVgz0/s678/Photo%25252018%252520Sep%2525202013%25252012%25253A51.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignright" height="406" id="blogsy-1379952655582.8254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl7cPBqLaHMkUv-R10XVmaXFAougUMm2V3QMnr_3wRs3DEvUpNRr6gK0xy7gR76mrr50p0lHrPOWyIpkZWF-yMPfvUQJnYsM0G2WDFGBKabqCZSczE48002w28mhm-PohPRyx-onEVgz0/s500/Photo%25252018%252520Sep%2525202013%25252012%25253A51.jpg" width="183" /></a><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); line-height: 1.3em;">Name: Jean Woods</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">Years young: 75</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">Job: Botique gift shop assistant</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">Style: Dr Martens with everything</span><br />
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); line-height: 1.3em;">Shopping list: LBD's- leather, logo </span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); line-height: 1.3em;">and statement tees, long</span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); line-height: 1.3em;"> grungy skirts and of course her </span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); line-height: 1.3em;">beloved DM's.</span><br />
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With her Mary Quant/ 20s style fringe and love of Doc Marten boots paired with flowing dresses, she completly changes the perception of how a Grandma should look. With her leather LBD's and all round grungy style, you will not see her in sensible old lady shoes and elastic trousers anytime soon. Jean explains that "I have always been interested in fashion, but more so as I have got older."<br />
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Jean definitely has the right attitude as she says " I like to dress as I want to dress. When I put something on, I don't think ' will anybody think I look good?'. "I just decide in my own mind whether I look good- I don't really care about other people."<br />
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Jean lost her husband after being married for over fifty blissful years and was completly heartbroken. She needed to find something to fill the empty days, so decided on her son's advice to apply for a job with Gap. She was hired straight away and worked there for a year as their oldest employee. Jean now works in a Boutique advising customers and almost certainly giving them lots of fashion tips and advice.m</div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">Jean hopes her being on TV will show people that life doesn't stop the day you pick up your pension. She says that "If it shows older people that life is there for grabbing and that you have to take that plunge, then I will be happy." Jean keeps herself active by running three times a week, even though she has had an operation on her knee and is styled to perfection whilst doing it. Her grandchildren ask her for tips on how to look stylish and she says that </span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">"I’ve definitely become edgier as I’ve got older. I’m not sure I would have worn a floaty Topshop dress with Dr. Martens thirty years ago, but these days they’re my staple items." Any Grandma that wears Dr Martens is a fashion icon.</span></div>
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Years young: 73</div>
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Job: Artist</div>
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Style: "Don't wear beige, it might kill you'</div>
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Shopping list: Chunky bangles, costume <span style="line-height: 1.3em;">jewellery, black</span><span style="line-height: 1.3em;"> clothes to wear under hand made coats.</span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal;">Sue was originally a cookery book writer, but after writing her 27th book, decided she wanted a change and became an artist and moved to London from New York. She had never tried art before and suddenly she was drawing, painting and creating amazing sculpture like pieces. Sue now has a studio and sells her creations, that are adorned with dolls, buttons, broken jewellery and anything she can find that she thinks she can use.</span></span><br />
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To say she has her own original style, is an understatement. With her bold red glasses and chunky plastic jewellery, her look is a way of expressing her art and herself. Sue wears all black, so she finds it easy to decide what to wear, but then completly overhauls the look by wearing the most amazing beautiful handmade coat style cardigans, full of symbols and bright colours.</div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">She enjoys making her own clothes which she describes as a "release from the tyranny of fashion".</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;">Sue definitely has her own look and owns it completely. She is an inspiration to women that no matter what age you are and no. After how successful, you can completly change your life and find a new part of your life that you love and never even knew existed.</span></div>
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Name: Gillian Lynne</div>
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Years young: 87</div>
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Job: Dance choreographer</div>
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Style: Miniskirts are a must</div>
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Shopping list: Dark flattering colours, brown and black clothes and miniskirts.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Zx-Qdn8QY-fEuDLHvMLKjhFDES1aCS_rbHxXvKarhTZ4jGbMiBlgapVg5xO25QJE2Gbdp6QtOtYdWCIC8aFibqcBxS8bkiU8rmN9sOxKiae1V33NUYYes3QXLjbAPsFKqc8nSsvmAZE/s680/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A05.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="295" id="blogsy-1379952655624.5806" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Zx-Qdn8QY-fEuDLHvMLKjhFDES1aCS_rbHxXvKarhTZ4jGbMiBlgapVg5xO25QJE2Gbdp6QtOtYdWCIC8aFibqcBxS8bkiU8rmN9sOxKiae1V33NUYYes3QXLjbAPsFKqc8nSsvmAZE/s500/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A05.jpg" width="198" /></a></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Dance and theatre fans may recognise her as the choreographer extraordinaire, that has worked on many shows over the years and still has an extremely packed schedule. Gillian began her career by dancing as a ballerina in the 1940s. She then used her expertise to become a choreographer and this year was awarded an Olivier award, for her amazing work in the theatre. To look at her she really does not look her age at all. She looks good for someone that is at least twenty years younger then her. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFJ0afubE2VnRVgtFCJwRAqAm-NeKgXFgOR1XuNLYRPKL6Z3AWhHpuJml08c2gVd_CSEZVw2cFvEd2Gk6QgGkL89EYf5JVYuvMb9j_nsTbLMrorWFQdXAsZjadt821ywAuP74ch91KbeA/s625/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A04.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignright" height="320" id="blogsy-1379952655618.9172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFJ0afubE2VnRVgtFCJwRAqAm-NeKgXFgOR1XuNLYRPKL6Z3AWhHpuJml08c2gVd_CSEZVw2cFvEd2Gk6QgGkL89EYf5JVYuvMb9j_nsTbLMrorWFQdXAsZjadt821ywAuP74ch91KbeA/s320/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A04.jpg" width="254" /></a><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Gillian keeps fit by stretching for 40 minutes in the morning everyday and even though she has had joint replacements and her foot is held together by metal, she is still as supple as ever and can fit into her leotards from decades ago. She still loves to wear her miniskirts and leggings, she explains that</span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); line-height: 1.3em;"> "I know people probably look at the face and go 'oh dear' ,but my legs have always been my best asset. Why should I stop showing them off. I couldn't give a toss what people think.' And yes her legs are fantastic.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHqSuVsyGvz9fWQQSo-Uw1Di6jLTzOc2XxgEBn3hWLTi0dS9lzbMc1VSDAUXGtszwF5wJvueD3TNbHq4xUqLhBtQUIrwyyjo-udvfq_vt-w696UTgce2AZBKrV-CIjLl_eRvelKmpU2V8/s594/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A06.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="294" id="blogsy-1379952655573.4092" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHqSuVsyGvz9fWQQSo-Uw1Di6jLTzOc2XxgEBn3hWLTi0dS9lzbMc1VSDAUXGtszwF5wJvueD3TNbHq4xUqLhBtQUIrwyyjo-udvfq_vt-w696UTgce2AZBKrV-CIjLl_eRvelKmpU2V8/s500/Photo%25252023%252520Sep%2525202013%25252016%25253A06.jpg" width="196" /></a><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Gillian's advice is that "You mustn't let the ageing process in." It bothers her that as women get older, they let their posture go. 'You see them hunched over, looking downward. Everything seems to sag. They look dejected. My training as a dancer always taught me that you stand up straight and get those shoulders back." You heard it here ladies, stand with your boobs out and when you're 87 you'll look amazing too! </span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">When she's not working, Gillian has a very relaxed life with her husband of thirty five years, Peter. They got married when she was fifty two and he was twenty five. Peter says that he has never seen her as older then him, he just saw a fun loving person with a zest for life when he fell in love with her and she hasn't changed. </span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">You can tell that there is such a deep love and connection between them, however when they got married there was a lot of backlash. "My </span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); line-height: 1.3em;">friends thought it was positively indecent when we started to see each other, but since we are still together now, how silly they look now!" She says that all the people that had a problem with it are now either dead, or have been proven wrong. It's definitely true, you're as young as the man you feel!</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); line-height: 1.3em;">All these women have an immense zest for life and are determined not to give up their lives and passions, even though they are getting older. They are positive, strong women that love life and look stylish while doing so. They are women that we should look up to and see as an inspiration. They've lived a life and have experienced love and heartache, sorrow and the deepest of pain, but have come out at the end of it more determined then ever to live their lives and be themselves and that is true style and elegance.</span></div>
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Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-81049771779118044812013-09-10T17:40:00.001+01:002013-09-10T17:45:42.639+01:00Happy Birthday to my blog baby!! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Xg7qaeOvFBtBCK0TmGoi50LvStIXiQ6tqrqaqv7H2Zm3mXafrUYNJJgduiM8Wy9nuMiVZX_m7UsQ8TUUD3-TzUqS7DONApRlrXScrgLBYs44TJm206aM9yuQsKvNbuBayjQa4oXZfWI/s2048/Photo%25252010%252520Sep%2525202013%25252017%25253A14.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Xg7qaeOvFBtBCK0TmGoi50LvStIXiQ6tqrqaqv7H2Zm3mXafrUYNJJgduiM8Wy9nuMiVZX_m7UsQ8TUUD3-TzUqS7DONApRlrXScrgLBYs44TJm206aM9yuQsKvNbuBayjQa4oXZfWI/s350/Photo%25252010%252520Sep%2525202013%25252017%25253A14.jpg" id="blogsy-1378831351427.8765" class="alignright" alt="" width="350" height="263"></a></div>
<div> Last Tuesday my little blog blew out two candles on its birthday cake. Yes, we have now hit the terrible two's and its now turned into a toddler. I just hope it doesn't start throwing tantrums and demand to watch Peppa Pig.</div>
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<div> I honestly can't believe that it was two years ago that I began writing on here. Blogging has become an integral part of my life and whilst my blog is not necessarily as advanced as I'd have liked it to have been, I am extremely grateful for the 174 of you that come back to read time and time again, without me even having to bribe you. I feel truly honoured that you read my writing and your comments and views really do make my day. My blogging regime this year has been pretty rubbish, along with my 'exercise' regime and New Year's Resolution to eat less biscuits. I've basically had to taken a eight month break and just blogged a handful of times, but I'm determined to get back to writing on here at least twice a week, so sorry everyone you'll be seeing a whole lot more of me!</div>
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<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I originally planned to blog last week, but my other baby, the furry baby (a.k.a my ghostwriter) was not very well and all my attention and time was spent looking after him. I was relinquishing my inner desire as a child to be a Vet and was trying to give him a cat rehydration drink through a syringe every twenty minutes and was even having to force feed him king prawns, we never thought we'd see the day when he turned down a king prawn.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj479v04ln0c2i1mnozB9jt4yQRbcV1EBY5ohIuJLpgkeULkt-QYMHAVILivOUQq1QpC9O_GA60UxrFm-cF9cbsyl3c2R-V-pN1H5I4-lYbilc8afoqE6nHm9rJnz8w_TygMctSh1SrtmI/s2048/Photo%2525201%252520Sep%2525202013%25252020%25253A07.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj479v04ln0c2i1mnozB9jt4yQRbcV1EBY5ohIuJLpgkeULkt-QYMHAVILivOUQq1QpC9O_GA60UxrFm-cF9cbsyl3c2R-V-pN1H5I4-lYbilc8afoqE6nHm9rJnz8w_TygMctSh1SrtmI/s500/Photo%2525201%252520Sep%2525202013%25252020%25253A07.jpg" id="blogsy-1378831351432.0632" class="alignleft" alt="" width="343" height="175"></a><span style="text-align: right; "> </span><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-YAAzV4QQEkk/Ui75oIi3G0I/AAAAAAAALlU/JArOSZ5uTxs/s2048/Photo%2525207%252520Sep%2525202013%25252019%25253A15.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-YAAzV4QQEkk/Ui75oIi3G0I/AAAAAAAALlU/JArOSZ5uTxs/s221/Photo%2525207%252520Sep%2525202013%25252019%25253A15.jpg" id="blogsy-1378831351472.2578" class="alignright" alt="" width="221" height="166"></a></div>
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<div>Thankfully Jasper is back to his usual soppy, noisy, greedy self and lapping up all the attention and milking it as much as he can. He's not very happy that he's not getting tuna, fresh king prawns and Salmon Terrine to eat every day now. He's loving all the extra cuddles, kisses and grooming he is having and is fully back to doing his donkey impression every time he wants something. I was determined not to give up on my baby, even though he is twenty one and 104 in cat years! I stayed up with him all Sunday night feeding him Whiskas milk to make sure he didn't get too dehydrated before we took him to the Vet which was terrifying and Monday night I gave him electrolytes every hour. I went shopping to try and find him something that he would eat, I even bought baby food in case he fancied that instead of his normal cat food. Yes ladies and gentleman, I'm officially an old cat lady.</div>
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<div> It was an incredibly nerve wracking and stomach clenching experience and I feel like I aged eighty years in four days, so that cat owes me some anti-wrinkle cream, big time. He slept in my room for four nights whilst I tended to his every need. I slept around him, so if he wanted to lie at the top of my bed, I was lying across my bed, soppy isn't the word. He wasn't particularly happy when he had to go back to his usual sleeping habits of sleeping in the kitchen in his 'spaceship'. He pathetically meowed at me as I was going up the stairs and I could hear him from my bedroom, how parents leave their kids at nursery I do not know.</div>
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<div>The latest issue of Vintage Life came out last week as well and I'm excited to show you all my latest article. It's all about handbags through the decades, starting from the 1900s to the 1980s. I stop at the 80s as writing about the 90s, the decade I was born in as 'vintage' is just far too depressing. I already have Mr. Boyfriend telling me every day I'm half way to forty as it is.</div>
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<div> I have also been baking again, what can I say I want to be Mary Berry, what with her amazing talent and fabulous Zara blazers. It was my lovely chiropractor's birthday, so I made some lemon cupcakes, filled with lemon buttercream and iced them with buttercream in all different colours on the top with an icing tip to make them look like Hydrangea's, which I'm obsessed with at the moment. I then put them in some little flower pots that I had, decorated the pot with ribbon and made some ladybirds, flowers and butterflies out of fondant to put on the cakes and to decorate the board with. All that watching Garderners World with my parents every Friday night must be rubbing off on me.</div>
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<div>This week it's Mummy and Daddy Second Hand Rose's 33rd Anniversary. I can't believe that my mum has put up with my Dad's incessant sniffing and chucking his toe nails behind the bed and my Dad has put up with my Mum's awful time keeping for that long!! They are still very much in love and have gone away for a few days this week to feel young again, personally I think it's going to take a lot more than that. </div>
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<div>So my sister and Inhave been left in charge of looking after King Jasper and making sure the house doesn't burn down. Jasper keeps going into my Mum and Dad's room and looking all over for them and meowing, what can I say he loves his Mummy and Daddy.</div>
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<div>Mr. Boyfriend is also staying for a few days, so he can help me do things when my sister is busy and be here with me when she's gone to make sure me and Jasper don't get captured by the Bogey man. </div>
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<div>Since we've been unable to have a holiday, either due to money or me not being too well, this will be the longest time in one go that we have spent together. Four days and three nights, might not seem a lot, but trust me it is when the person you are with sees everything as a toy and ends up breaking anything and everything in sight. So this is our first proper go at domestic bliss-ish. Mr.Boyfriend works Monday, Wednesday and Thursday nights, so it does mean we get a break and I can sit and watch crappy Romcoms and moan about how unrealistic they are with my sister and Jasper of course.<br>
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<div>I am planning to cook a meal tonight, so I'm hoping it's not a complete inedible disaster and I have to call out the fire brigade, although frankly I wouldn't mind seeing some hunky firemen up close in the flesh. </div>
<div>So wish me good luck and oh if you see the air filled with smoke, don't worry it's probably my burnt Tagliatelle.</div>
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<div>Second Hand Rose</div>
<div>XxxX</div>
<div> </div><div style="text-align: right; font-size: small; clear: both;" id="blogsy_footer"><a href="http://blogsyapp.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://blogsyapp.com/images/blogsy_footer_icon.png" alt="Posted with Blogsy" style="vertical-align: middle; margin-right: 5px;" width="20" height="20" />Posted with Blogsy</a></div>Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-21111103056072643102013-08-19T11:13:00.001+01:002013-08-19T12:09:28.330+01:00Cars, Cake and one very greedy pussycat<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzparW-hKZQrxjK5i3d6YYZNOENG2Lmco3WaoyBYGAylrijxd03IkXbaPiRxHG1-G3KiSw2Q3qEoXc7k9yFtO_syG_avNHS90suv7rS9M1XNNiEPcxqo3JtmvM_PVp9Nasu1iGOfZAAvM/s300/Photo%25252018%252520Aug%2525202013%25252012%25253A28.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzparW-hKZQrxjK5i3d6YYZNOENG2Lmco3WaoyBYGAylrijxd03IkXbaPiRxHG1-G3KiSw2Q3qEoXc7k9yFtO_syG_avNHS90suv7rS9M1XNNiEPcxqo3JtmvM_PVp9Nasu1iGOfZAAvM/s300/Photo%25252018%252520Aug%2525202013%25252012%25253A28.jpg" id="blogsy-1376910568726.4692" class="alignright" width="246" height="185" alt=""></a></div>
<div> Last Sunday Mr.Boyfriend and I, along with Mummy and Daddy Second Hand Rose spent the afternoon drooling over an array of vintage cars, double dating with your parents is so in right now.</div>
<div> We went to The White Dove Collector's Transport Show in Kingsley. The show raises money for the local hospice every year, so is a great cause, plus it's an excuse for people like me to squeal over the site of a VW Beetle. The show contained a range of cars, motorcycles and scooters from all different eras. There were also commercial vehicles and military vehicles from the war, sadly no hunky men in uniform though.</div>
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<div>The show had live music, trade stalls and an auto jumble sale, so Mr.Boyfriend was in his element.</div>
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<div>Along with dreaming of owning a Morris Minor, I've been channeling my inner Mary Berry. It was my sisters birthday a few weeks ago and she is an amazing pianist, so I made her a pink piano cake. Of course my cat Jasper had to be involved somehow, so I made a fondant version of him and laid him on the piano in his usual chilled out position.</div>
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<div>I also made some cupcakes last weekend and filled them with either Nutella or my amazing Mumsy's blackberry and apple jam. We have some beautiful Hydrangea's in the garden at the moment, so I used them as my inspiration and decorated them to look like purple and blue Hydrangea's. I had a problem with the plastic bags I was using breaking three times, I bet that doesn't happen to Nigella! They were delicious though and went down well with everyone, including Jasper.</div>
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<div>I've been trying to concentrate on writing my book, trying to post on my blog and writing for Vintage Life, note my sticker on the page top right, I'm very proud to have it there! I have done over thirteen articles for them now and now they're starting a His Vintage Life, so I'm excited to write for a different audience. It is hard to go from writing about handbags, shoes and how dreamy Rock Hudson is, to writing about cars, suits and toys.</div>
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<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigW0dz5EV5JkmlEAPpFtXns-YjsA8h4ZnTy-o-3gH-HNRGLfYdAIm1CnnMP9W9npFATluJLjsCDpoPqR1oacUK5XCsacAbgnaBlQowEZYCXhTiDxo7tbtoCW1yT3SRXAAJFk9zrjv732I/s2048/Photo%25252018%252520Aug%2525202013%25252013%25253A09.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigW0dz5EV5JkmlEAPpFtXns-YjsA8h4ZnTy-o-3gH-HNRGLfYdAIm1CnnMP9W9npFATluJLjsCDpoPqR1oacUK5XCsacAbgnaBlQowEZYCXhTiDxo7tbtoCW1yT3SRXAAJFk9zrjv732I/s300/Photo%25252018%252520Aug%2525202013%25252013%25253A09.jpg" id="blogsy-1376910568759.14" class="alignnone" alt="" width="300" height="401"></a></div>
<div><h1 style="margin-bottom: 12px; font-weight: normal; "><p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 20px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">e White Dove Collector’s Transport Show was conceived over a d</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-SfcGEZSXu5U/UhHz-144HDI/AAAAAAAAK74/ujGEi93mRNE/s2048/Photo%25252013%252520Jul%2525202013%25252013%25253A45.jpg" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-SfcGEZSXu5U/UhHz-144HDI/AAAAAAAAK74/ujGEi93mRNE/s306/Photo%25252013%252520Jul%2525202013%25252013%25253A45.jpg" id="blogsy-1376910568779.293" class="alignleft" alt="" width="306" height="228"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8seEWegIQbB0djvZ2aIJ4KlEH1twqtMXiIan2Tj0L_YqEUfB71WnZBc_nQZDN86QNFSJR8uSOYE5ppoFviw8wwGVsDEs7pgF1CGaPzeRT-CJAqolq2T_OMNILGIU8WCi_FYw11MjXXnw/s2048/Photo%25252013%252520Jul%2525202013%25252013%25253A45.jpg" target="_blank" style="text-align: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8seEWegIQbB0djvZ2aIJ4KlEH1twqtMXiIan2Tj0L_YqEUfB71WnZBc_nQZDN86QNFSJR8uSOYE5ppoFviw8wwGVsDEs7pgF1CGaPzeRT-CJAqolq2T_OMNILGIU8WCi_FYw11MjXXnw/s332/Photo%25252013%252520Jul%2525202013%25252013%25253A45.jpg" id="blogsy-1376910568751.5034" class="" alt="" width="332" height="247"></a></div>
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<div>Finally I want to say thank you to you all so much for taking the time read my <a href="http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/the-real-me-and-where-i-been.html" target="_self" title="About Me">About Me</a> post. I received some lovely comments and tweets sending lots of support and many much needed cuddles. </div>
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<div>I got such a lovely email from another blogger the other day and I am so deeply touched and grateful to every one of you for being there. They're are millions of people who blog every day, but it can still feel like a small close knit friendly world. Whole heartedly I send my deepest thanks to every one of you.</div>
<div>Now I would offer you some cake, but it appears a little furry thing has eaten it all, I can't imagine who that is.</div>
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<div>Second Hand Rose</div>
<div>XxxX</div>
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<div> </div><div style="text-align: right; font-size: small; clear: both;" id="blogsy_footer"><a href="http://blogsyapp.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://blogsyapp.com/images/blogsy_footer_icon.png" alt="Posted with Blogsy" style="vertical-align: middle; margin-right: 5px;" width="20" height="20" />Posted with Blogsy</a></div>Second Hand Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12937657828552984478noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6412689266197991797.post-38995042218812545912013-07-23T11:42:00.001+01:002013-07-24T11:47:29.519+01:00Baby Cambridge's name: From Horace to Harold, a guide to vintage boy's baby names<div style="text-align: left;"> </div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">So while I was scoffing over a packet of Custard Creams yesterday, trying to top up my tan, I spent my time looking at the odd's of the Royal Baby's name with Daddy Second Hand Rose, Waynetta 500/1 anyone? </div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">Yesterday the whole world was gripped with the great Kate wait finally coming to an end. At 4.24pm Kate, with probably immaculate hair and nice Reiss pyjamas on gave birth to a baby boy that will be known as the Prince of Cambridge.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">I'm sure I wasn't the only one that was hoping for a girl, so we could carry on the girl power that was started by the babies great grandma and has been carried on by the likes of Margaret Thatcher and let's not forget, the Spice Girls. Plus just think of the amazing wardrobe that baby girl would have had, George ASDA clothing I think not.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">Over a hundred thousand pounds has been bet on the child's name, that along with its hair colour, first girlfriend/boyfriends name, first word (Where's my gin and dubbonet? being my favourite) and how old it will be when it's first nightclub photo will be taken. If it's jolly old Uncle Prince Harry has anything to do with it, it will be before it goes to its first Mummy and Me class.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">So the next big question is what are the new parents going to call the third in line to the throne? The name could take days if not weeks to be told to the world, so we all have plenty of time to speculate over it's first name and several middle names like it's Daddy.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">Well Ladies and Gentleman, I don't think we are looking at a North West situation here, although King Kong would be amazing. The name is probably very likely to have royal connotations and refer back to someone in the history of the family, with George being 7/4 and James at 4/1, the likelihood of Rumpelstiltskin at 500/1, is very slim unfortunately. </div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">Within the last few years, vintage old fashioned names have become increasingly popular. Billie Piper called her two sons Winston James and Eugene Pip whilst Selma Blair opted for Arthur for her little man.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">Grandma and Grandad names have been on the rise the past few years. The Gertie's and Doris's are no longer only found in the local bingo hall, they are on roundabouts wearing their mini Boden. Alfred's and Stanley's are not just betting on horse races, they are trying to put marbles up their nose whilst watching Cars for the 8th time.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">With programmes like Downton Abbey and Upstairs Downstairs becoming loved by many, names like Albert and Horace are set to be on the rise. Mad Men has made Donald and Roger be on the list of baby names, along with Harold.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">If you take a look at the popular boys names in the UK in 2013 so far, there are a lot of old fashioned names in the top 20 including Jacob, Alfie (Alfred), Oscar and Issac all making an appearance. As a writer I'm obsessed with baby names. I scour over hundreds of names trying to find the perfect one for the characters I write about and try and make the name fit the person. So if you see me on Mumsnet.com Mr.Boyfriend don't worry, you don't need to start buying the sparkly baby grows just yet.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">There seems to be a one hundred year rule with names. Ones that were popular </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">a century ago, are now having the cobwebs blown off them and are being brought back to life. Names associated with our great grandparents and grandparents, such as Rose and Arthur are becoming a lot more common. </div>
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<div style="text-align: left;"> Names from our parents generation like Roger, Carol and Nigel are not seen as favourable anymore. However, in a couple of generations time people could be cooing over baby Tracey and Ian. Taking a picture of them with a 1mm thin iPhone, that has a 30 megapixel camera of course.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">So Kate and William, if you fancy hopping on the 'Granddad chic' bandwagon for baby Cambridge, here are a few ideas for you from decades gone by.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;"><u>1900s</u></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">Boys:William, John, George, Thomas, Arthur, James, Charles, Frederick, Albert and Ernest.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">Names had to be strong sounding and be perfect for a bank manager or lawyer.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;"><u>1910s and 1920s</u></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">Boys: In the 1910s the top names didn't change for boys. Who wouldn't love to snuggle a little baby Ernest? Other names in the top fifty are Stanley, Edward, Leonard and Henry.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;"><u>1930s</u></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">Boys: In the 1930s Donald crept higher up the list, maybe due to Donald Duck becoming popular in 1934. Come on Kate, doesn't everyone want to be named after a cute duck in a sailor suit?</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;"><u>1940s</u></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">Boys: John, David, Michael, Peter, Robert, Anthony, Brian, Alan, William and James</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">As you can see, post war names changed a lot and boys names really did sound like the cast of Coronation Street. So maybe they're not perfect for the baby's very own Coronation in decades to come. King Alan does sound pretty cool though.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;"><u>1950s</u></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">Boys: David, John, Stephen, Michael, Peter, Paul, Robert, Alan, Christopher and Anthony.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">It was the first time Christopher was in the top 10 along with Paul and Stephen. </div>
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<div style="text-align: left;"><u>1960s</u></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">Boys: David, Paul, Andrew, Mark, John, Michael, Stephen, Ian, Robert and Richard.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">Due to Beatlemania, John and Paul were extremely popular, King Ringo does have a certain ring to it you must admit.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;"><u>1970s</u></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">Boys: Paul, Mark, David, Andrew, Richard, Christopher, James, Simon, Michael and Matthew.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">Boys names didn't really change much, people were too busy tye dying their T-shirts. The names just went up or down the list, well they do say you can never change a man.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;"><u>1980s</u></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">Boys:Christopher, James, David, Daniel, Michael, Matthew, Andrew, Richard, Paul and Mark</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">Even though the 80s were full of flamboyant clothes, hair and shoulder pads, male names remained traditional. No Barnaby's or Caspar's just yet.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;"><u>1990s</u></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">Boys: Jack, Thomas, James, Joshua, Daniel, Matthew, Samuel, Joseph, Callum and William.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">The 90's saw a real trend for more biblical names for boys, I don't think there were many Jesus's though.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;"><u>2000s</u></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">Boys: Oliver, Jack, Harry, Alfie, Joshua, Thomas, Charlie, William, James and Daniel</div>
<div style="text-align: left;"> Oliver is still at the top spot for popular names, along with names like Alfie and Harry.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;"> Old fashioned names are set to become even more popular, say bye bye to Apple and Maddox and hello to Horace and Albert. I hope if any of you are having a baby boy this has helped you in making a decision in what to call your little Prince.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">Over a hundred years so many things have changed, along with baby names. I hope you've all enjoyed this peek into the past and I hope this helped you Kate and William if you're struggling to decide what to call your little bundle of history. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">Oh and p.s.,Kate if you could get your hands on some Alexander McQueen gems or Jimmy Choo shoes for me, I'd be eternally grateful.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">Second Hand Rose</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">XxxX</div>
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