Author Archives: Frostie

Celebrity Cookbooks Popular at Christmas, But Remain Unwrapped

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OCADO, has revealed that despite stocking up on the latest celebrity cookbooks ahead of the Christmas season, one in ten Brits admit to never even opening them, with almost half (41%) of us only pulling them off the shelf when they need to make ‘something special’.

Even though half of the population say that they own at least four cookbooks, research from the online grocer reveals that busy lifestyles mean Brits don’t have the time to rustle up a meal from scratch, let alone break the spine on their mountain of cookbooks, with five per cent of those quizzed claiming that they don’t spend any time at all cooking each day.

However it seems as though the humble recipe book is not dead, with Ocado predicting that cookbooks are set to be a staple stocking filler this festive season, including the new titles from Jamie Oliver, Nigella Lawson and Heston Blumenthal.

Meanwhile, Ocado have also reported that sales of celebrity cookbooks have risen by 250% this year alone. Mouth-watering reads are also beginning to eclipse must-read erotica with the diet cookbook from The Hairy Chefs arousing more interest than 50 Shades of Grey, pushing sensationalist author E.L James off her throne on number one bestsellers lists.

Despite half of Brits showcasing exotic cookbooks on their shelves, findings reveal that the meals most regularly cooked are traditional classics like Spaghetti Bolognaise (60%), meat & two veg style roast dinners (54%) and sausage and mash (48%), with only a handful of Brits regularly taking on more exotic dishes such as Thai curry (16%) or Paella (10%).

Over a quarter of British foodies admit to tuning into at least two food programmes a week, with Masterchef (56%) and Great British Bake Off (34%) being firm favourites in the nation’s homes. However, despite immersing themselves in celebrity cook books and TV shows, when quizzed how long they spend preparing and cooking grub, a staggering 78 per cent said they managed to prepare breakfast, lunch and dinner in less than 30 minutes.

Jason Gissing, Ocado co-founder states: “We know that Brits love to buy all of the latest celebrity cookery books and enjoy watching recipes being created on TV, but many of us just don’t have the time to recreate delicious meals for ourselves. At Ocado you can browse recipes from some of the UK’s top chefs, shop for ‘must have’ cookery books and order ingredients for delivery straight to your door. Plus Ocado offers everyday products alongside rarer, hard to find ingredients, making it quick and easy to buy everything you need all in one place, so you can spend your time creating your own delicious masterpiece.

Christmas customers also can make their life even easier by shopping for their family gifts and festive fare in one simple click – forget the queues and the festive rush!”

For further information on Ocado’s own selection of tasty recipes and ingredients, visit www.ocado.com/webshop/recipes/.

Spotlight Fashion Models Launch

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Spotlight Fashion Models Launches their Brand with a Charity Event and a Catwalk Show in Aid of the Terrence Higgins Trust.

On the 22nd of September 2012, just after London Fashion Week SS13, Spotlight Fashion Models, a recently formed fashion agency, launched their brand holding a private, glamorous, charity event at the Kensington Roof Gardens.

The profits made on the night were given in aid of the Terrence Higgins Trust, a British charity aiming to reduce the spread of HIV and promoting good sexual health.

Shakeel Rabbaney, Laura Moore, Sola Cash and April Banbury were the designers showcased on the occasion. Nomy Khan, director of Spotlight Fashion Models, wore a trendy-chic black suit with silver accessories and a tiny white fashion silk scarf.

Ms Pily Mirazi, founder of the company, went for a very classy and stylish, long red dress with sparkling, crystal stones nicely shaping her chest area. Manpreet Singh Flyinglion, at Di Gran Moda, designed Pili Mirazi’s dress.

The event was, hosted by Heaven Afrika (former model and Big Brother 2011 participant), which, despite her 8 months pregnancy, energetically kept the guests entertained through the night during the catwalk show first and later in between live performances.

Diet and delicious Skinnie Minnie Cupcakes by Serendipity Cottage were served on the night.
Spotted in attendance – above numerous fashionable guests like Melo, the finest UK Johnny Depp lookalike – Sara McLean (winner of Miss Edinburgh 2010 and former Miss Scotland 2011 runner-up) together with Shievonne Robinson (ex playboy bunny), both former Big Brother 2012 contestants and, super sexy footballer Rimmel Daniel, working the catwalk in underwear. Well, who could ask for anything more?

Spotlight Fashion Models, said Mr Khan and Ms Mirazi, are now planning even more successful future fashion events to promote new fashion designers.

More info of the company available at: www.spotlightfashionmodels.com

Written by Paola Berta
Photography by Guido Vera


 

Stand Up to Cancer – C4 and Cancer Research UK

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Hi my name is Alex, I (along with many others) am currently volunteering to work on Stand Up to Cancer (SU2C)- the most exciting campaign Cancer Research UK has ever done, resulting in Channel 4’s first  live fundraising event on 19th October. Our aim is to raise millions of pounds and get the nation to Stand Up To Cancer.

Stand Up To Cancer – Live
Bringing together a unique mix of entertainment and fundraising, a super-sized group of celebrities will come together to show their support for Stand Up To Cancer. Alan Carr will front a very special chat show with the green room from heaven whilst Davina hosts a high stakes version of The Million Pound Drop, aiming to raise big for Stand Up To Cancer. And throughout the night, Dr. Christian will be on hand to explain the science behind incredible new cancer trials and meet those whose lives depend on breakthroughs in cancer research.

I’m sure you’ve seen the ads! If not it’s worth a look (see below)

http://www.youtube.com/user/standuptocanceruk?feature=results_main

Stand Up To Cancer began in the USA in 2008, and has since raised millions of dollars for cancer research, with the money focused on bringing more effective treatments with fewer side effects to patients quickly. Now Channel 4 and Cancer Research UK are bringing Stand Up To Cancer to the UK, and we want you to join us now, get involved and donate!

If would like to get involved or donate please take 1 minute of your time to look at the online shop: http://shop.standuptocancer.org.uk/
to see if you would be interested in purchasing one of the many items on sale -ranging from £1-£30
The proceeds go towards boosting the number of cancer trials and accelerating new cancer treatments for UK patients.

If you do decide to make a purchase and support the cause please could you send me 1) your name,2) along with the item/s you bought and 3) your customer REFERENCE number to this email: alexandra.yardley@cancer.org.uk These details are purely to track the number of sales that take place, you will not receive any direct mail etc…

Thank you again for your time : ) every little helps us!

Canterbury Shoes | Fashion

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Here at Frost we love comfort. We think these shoes are cool and comfy.

Canterbury, are a traditionally a rugby brand but also offers a wide range of high performance men’s and women’s sports clothing alongside more recreational sportswear. Canterbury have just released a new Lifestyle collection- which include their new casual footwear range.

 

Staying true to Canterbury’s brand heritage, each style is named after towns in New Zealand and have touches of the unique ‘Uglies’ tradition with each shoe having different coloured heel, tongue or inside. Each style is designed for comfort, with the Canterbury logo clearly displayed on either the side panel or heel and are available in three different colours- ensuring Canterbury’s renowned quality and style continues off the field. 

Daisy Lowe & Alexa Chung dance the night away at Belvedere Kenzo party

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An abundance of famous faces and industry greats turned up at the Belvedere Kenzo Party to launch the Kenzo Fall Winter collection at Liberty of London.

Celebrities included Daisy Lowe, Alexa Chung, Henry Holland, Gizzi Erskine, Sophie Sumner and many others. Guests were treated to a set by up and coming act Blood Orange who got the crowd dancing and saw Alexa Chung and Daisy Lowe strut their moves during his cover of Prince’s ‘I Wanna Be Your Lover’.


 

Breast Movement Changes As We Age

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Miss Debbie Risius of the Research Group in Breast Health


Older women are less likely to experience vertical breast bounce when exercising than younger women, according to the surprise results of a study at the University of Portsmouth.

The study, the first to study breast movement in women aged from 45 to 65, also measured breast ptosis (sag) but found that the amount of sag did not have any bearing on the amount of breast movement.

Miss Debbie Risius, of the Research Group in Breast Health has presented her findings at the Royal Society of Medicine’s Helal and Harries prize meeting.

Miss Risius said: “I was surprised by these results which clearly show the more mature breast moves in a completely different way to a younger breast.

“The findings may indicate a need for a sports bra to be designed specifically for mature women.

“Specially designed bras may help support mature breasts more effectively and also encourage older women to exercise more regularly. Our earlier studies show older women are less likely to own a sports bra and less likely to take part in energetic exercise than young women.“

Miss Risius’s study looked at movement in the breast when subjects walked bare breasted on a treadmill for two minutes. Miss Risius initially thought that older women would experience more breast movement, and therefore associated breast pain as a result of exercising, than younger women.

However the study actually found that older women experience less vertical movement than younger women. Miss Risius suggests this is due to older breast tissue being less elastic, and therefore having less bounce than younger tissue.

Miss Risius said: “If you imagine an elastic band, when it is new it is very springy and flexible, and when it is stretched it bounces back with a lot of energy. An older elastic band is less flexible, and is not as springy when it is stretched. This is similar to the differences between younger and older breast tissue.”

Twelve participants aged between 45 and 65 years were compared with twelve women aged between 18 and 25 years. All were a size 34D.

The University of Portsmouth has been studying breast biomechanics since 2005. This new research contributes to a large existing body of work carried out by the Research Group in Breast Health.

Previous research has found that breasts bounce to maximum levels of 21 cm during exercise. During walking, a woman’s breasts move the same amount in and out, up and down and from side to side (33 per cent in each direction). But when a woman starts to jog or run movement is split: 51 per cent of movement is up and down; 22 per cent side to side and 27 per cent in and out. The overall pattern of the movement is a figure of eight. It is estimated that more than 50 per cent of women experience breast pain when exercising.

 

Why men aren’t like frogs, and dating isn’t a numbers game

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By Jenni Trent Hughes. Relationship Expert at eHarmony.co.uk

 

 

There are so many myths out there about love and dating that when I talk to both singles and couples, I’m always amazed by the power these old sayings wield over us. A phrase that’s been passed on by a parent or trusted friend is often taken as gospel. And the one such myth I hear trotted out the most is that you have to kiss a rather depressing amount of frogs before you find a prince.

 

We’re certainly lucky to live in a world full of options. From takeaway coffee to sandwiches or TV channels, we’re so spoilt for choice it’s easy to think quantity is a good thing when it comes to dating too. That there’s a cornucopia of men out there, and if we dine out with enough of them we’ll hit upon that perfect needle in the haystack.

 

But as Plato very wisely said: “a good decision is based on knowledge, not on numbers”. If we know a bit about what we’re looking for then we won’t waste lots of time and energy on those so-called frogs. Here are my thoughts on dating myths I think are at best a bit silly and at worse damaging to our self-esteem and chance of finding real love:

 

“You have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find your prince”. The majority of women I meet with that attitude tend to wander the streets aimlessly kissing a heck of a lot of undesirables.  In many instances their frogs turn into lizards but almost never a prince. A prince is born a prince; he is not born a frog. So make sure you kiss princes with potential, not frogs, and if a frog should come along disguised as a prince, then learn from the experience ready for the next time.

 

“Dating is just a numbers game…”

Numbers games rely on chance. Would that then mean that finding love should be compared to roulette or poker? I think we can agree that all of those are tremendously risky activities over which you have and little control over the outcome. The idea that the more people you date the more chance you have in succeeding is misleading; laying a few pounds on which horse wins a race won’t make too much difference in your life if it goes wrong. However an overly cavalier attitude towards dating will provide less than stellar results. It’s about quality not quantity; dates with people that you have instant chemistry with, not endless dates with people because you ‘might as well’.  While it shouldn’t be approached with the precision of a military campaign it deserves more respect and attention than thinking of it as a game or a gamble.

 

“There are plenty more fish in the sea.”

We’ve most likely all heard this one before, delivered as good news from well-meaning friends when we’re emerging from a break-up or trying to get over someone. Though meant as a positive, it does seem to suggest that there are so many people out there that it’s easy to move swiftly on to the next ‘fish’. In fact, break ups or disappointments take time to get over, so don’t let yourself be rushed. Reflect on what’s best for you, and what you can learn from your relationship. Then, when the time comes to return to the dating scene, you’ll be able to use this knowledge to your advantage.

 

“Men are like parking spaces, all the good ones are taken and the others already have ‘Mother & Child’ painted on them” Absolute nonsense. This sort of self-defeatist attitude means that you are crying over the end of the movie before you’ve even bought your ticket. There are just as many wonderful available men out there as there are women. You just need to know where to look and probably even more importantly how to look.

 

“I can’t go on any more bad dates. I would rather be home alone than out with some guy who sells socks on the internet” Never give up. Your next date might turn out be your last ‘date’ because he might be The One. Don’t stop dating, just start dating differently. Don’t go out on any old date just because you’ve been asked. Accept or initiate dates only when you genuinely believe there is an opportunity for an enjoyable time. If you think there is little or no chance that you will have a good date then don’t go in the first place, what’s the point? Find the middle ground where you’re giving a person a chance just be sure they’re worth it in the first place.

 

We should never stop sharing beliefs and thoughts with our friends as we help them along that road, but let’s just make sure these are helpful and positive pearls of wisdom that will keep us enthused and optimistic on that journey.

Applying to university or college next year? Read these top dos and don’ts

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Applying to university or college next year? Read these top dos and don’ts from UCAS.

 

Applying to university or college next year? Read these top dos and dont’s by Cathy Gilbert, Director of Customer Strategy at UCAS

Do – research your university and degree course choices carefully before applying. For me, that should include going to open days as well as looking at the online information. You’ll spend three or four years studying in higher education, so you should be really passionate about the course content and your chosen place of study.

Do – remember the UCAS application deadlines. The first date on the horizon this year is the 15 October deadline for applying to Oxford and Cambridge, and for courses anywhere in medicine, dentistry, veterinary medicine and veterinary science. The key deadline for most other courses is 15 January next year. You’ll have to send your application to us by this time to be certain of consideration.

Do – make the most of the help available from UCAS on ucas.com. Working through our Six steps to applying will make the process much easier. You can also watch videos on UCAStv featuring students who have already started and been through big events like Freshers’ Week. If you have a burning question at any stage of the process why not ask our team of experts on Twitter (@ucas_online) and Facebook (/ucasonline)? You’ll get a clear answer back very quickly.

Don’t – forget that some universities and colleges will ask you to sit an admissions test in addition to the standard qualifications. The Admissions tests section of the UCAS website will help you understand some of these and the UCAS bookstore has guides dedicated to many of them.

Don’t – be tempted to submit a copied personal statement or one downloaded from a website. Thankfully, only one percent of applicants did this last year. UCAS is quite clear that personal statements should be an applicant’s own work, although we do advise that parents and teachers check them over. Our computer system has tens of thousands of personal statements on file and similarities will be flagged up to the universities.

Don’t – panic about tuition fees. There is a wealth of information out there to help you understand the costs of higher education – and remember you won’t have to pay anything upfront. You can visit the Student finance section of our website to find out more, or visit Moneysavingexpert’s Students section.