Sweet Home Alabama

You gotta love Alabama Whitman (played by Patricia Arquette) in the film True Romance, who else could pull off trailer-trash chic with such pizazz? The key to her look is kitsch accessories, bold colours, garish animal print, killer cowboy boots, Farrah Fawcett style flicks, and plenty of flesh-flashing. Don't forget the obligatory sunnies, red lippie and if you have a pink cadillac knocking around all the better!

Cow-print, neon turquoise and red nails actually working! Who'da thunk it?

Lady in red, red, red



Peasant chic with an 80's vibe...interesting

The Perfect Pimms

The sun is shining (shock horror) and people are dressing like it's summer so what better way to make the most of the rays than with a mighty jug of Pimms? Here's a so-easy-it's-embarrassing recipe for the perfect pitcher of frickin' delicious Pimms:

Take a jug and fill it with ice, mix one part Pimm’s No. 1 with 3 parts chilled lemonade, add some mint, cucumber, orange and strawberry. Et voila, perfect Pimms every time!

A Life in Colour: Steve McCurry

Get yourself down to the Gallery of Photography in Temple Bar, Dublin quick-smart to check out the phenomenal work of American photojournalist Steve McCurry. Best known for his image 'Afghan Girl' that appeared on the cover of National Geographic magazine, McCurry has crossed the globe from Beirut to Afghanistan to Cambodia and the Philippines capturing startling and touching images. Here are just some of the amazing images included in the exhibition which runs until the Sunday, 24th April:

A Boy on a Bicycle at Banteay Srei, Angkor, Cambodia, 1999

Geisha in Subway, Kyoto, Japan, 2008

Afghan Women at a Shoe Store, Kabul, Afghanistan, 1992

Never Go to Bed Angry!

THE best Sex and the City monologue of all time me thinks. Enjoy!

The Modern Bill Doyle

If you are not familiar with the work of Irish photographer Bill Doyle then get thee to googling stat for a taster of his tremendous body of work. Some of Dolye's work was recently on display at IMMA as part of 'The Moderns' exhibition and he has also been the subject of a retrospective at the Irish Gallery of Photography. A guide to the recent IMMA exhibition is currently available on the IMMA website.

Doyle, a former postman, became a fully-fledged photographer after winning a competition in 1967. His images quickly rose to iconic status, earning him the illustrious reputation as the “Irish Cartier-Bresson”. Doyle sadly died last year, aged 85. Here are some of his photograph's that will live on:

Anglesea Street, 1978 

Jameson Distillery, May Lane, Dublin, 1963

Mansion House, 1970

"You Don't Wanna Hold Her Hand, You Wanna to Dick Her!"

The immortal words once uttered by Jefferson Airplane frontwoman Grace Slick, pictured here with singing legend Janis Joplin.  This was Slick's response to 'I Wanna Hold Your Hand' by The Beatles, in which Slick stated during a BBC documentary: "Of course you dont wanna hold her hand, you wanna dick her!". She looks cool, she sounds cool and she wrote 'White Rabbit' for God's sake! Grace Slick, I salute you.

Paraben Panic

Lately I've come across a heap of products that claim to be 'paraben free'. So it got me thinking:

1. What in God's name are parabens?                    
2. Why are some products free of them?
3. Should I chuck all my other products that contain parabens?

After much research (i.e. Googling) parabens are basically chemicals that are used as preservatives in a range of cosmetic and pharmaceutical products from shampoos and moisturisers to make-up and shaving gels.

The sudden prohibition on parabens stems from the fact that some have been found (in extremely low concentrations) in breast cancer tumors. Also, some parabens have the ability to mimic estrogen, a hormone known to play a role in the development of breast cancer. Please don't panic though - there has been no sustainable evidence found that links parabens and cancer with many studies proving that parabens are practically non-toxic. Despite this many would agree that further research into the safety of parabens is needed.

For those of us still a bit sceptical over the use of parabens fortunately there are a wealth of paraben free products on the market. La Roche Posay, Vichy, Burts Bees and Origins are just some of the mega-skincare brands offering paraben free products. If in doubt http://www.paraben-free-skincare.com/ is a good resource for all things paraben related.