Old Fashion Girl

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A Modern Fairy Tale about Wedding Shoes – (Chapter 2) Loves Secrets

Helen had tried on her beautiful shoes with the dress that, Brigid, her mother-in-law to be had given her the cloth for. In the mirror it was as if she had been transformed into something otherworldly. She had topped off the outfit with a pearl tiara which reflected the light wonderfully and with the matching wedding shoes made by that strange little cobbler.

There was a soft tapping at the bedroom door. Helen snapped out of the dreamlike state she was in to hurriedly change and pack the clothes away. ‘Just a minute’ she called every few seconds.

‘Oh come on sweetheart let me in’

At last – the outfit safely hidden in a box in the wardrobe- she turned the key.

‘Can’t I even have a sneak preview?’

‘No, it’s bad luck’

‘I’ll tell you something about bad luck,’ he said mysteriously.  ‘Remind me to tell you what my mother told me as a child ‘

A voice called from below. ‘I’ll tell you after dinner. Come on.’

*                             *

Brigid, Sean’s Mother, had asked her not to tell Sean about the cloth.

‘It was handed down from generation to generation. It will be a lovely surprise.’

Helen was quite surprised herself by the gift, as she had been convinced that Sean’s mother was not at all pleased with this match.

Later, as she and Sean sat holding hands on a deep sofa in the hotel bar, Sean told Helen how an ancestor had dared to marry one of the fairy folk and hence had been cursed by the Fairy king.

‘Oh gosh, what was the curse?’

‘You’re taking this seriously.’ Sean warned with a smile.

‘Oh come on you’ve started now’

‘Well, we are cursed to marry our own until we die out according to the story.’

‘But you’re marrying me.’ Helen exclaimed.

‘Yes, exactly.’

After a lengthy silence broken only by Sean contently sipping his beer, Helen asked, ‘But how were they supposed to prevent you marrying out?’

‘Oh something about a magic bolt of cloth, can’t remember. The bride gets carried off by the fairy king or something’ he laughed.

Helen just sat with her mouth open while picturing that beautifully ethereal wedding gown, shimmering, shimmering.

(follow the wedding shoes link to find the other chapters and continue reading)

Ladies Fancy Dress: Think beyond the sexy

It’s Halloween Eve, 2010. Dressed in a Sexy Vampire costume, the typical no-money-half-arsed effort with sexy gratuitously thrown in, I wait with baited breath for my best friend to arrive en route to a party. He presently shows up on my doorstep clad in nothing more than a green mankini. Not only has he decided to sport this dubious garment (homemade, I have been reliably informed), but he has painted himself yellow and is wearing a green swimming cap and clutching a wand. He has decided to spend Halloween dressed as a magic lizard. Obviously.

But that is the great thing about fancy dress. At its very core is the sense of illusion, disguise and complete anonymity. Pretending to be someone you’re not; something you can never be, or perhaps simply a better version of yourself. For one night only you can display a side of yourself that you would never normally show: a social outcast transformed into a sex goddess with the help of a pre-packaged, mass-manufactured Jessica Rabbit costume. A nervous breakdown calling himself a magician. A dull Nigel metamorphosed into a psychotic Patrick Bateman complete with slicked back hair and an even slicker business card. Magic.

Three blue, human-shaped stains were left on my friend’s wall in the aftermath of Halloween ‘09. It transpired that a triumvirate of gate-crashing Smurfs from the party next door were the culprits; they were subsequently lumped with the bill for painting over the blue-tinged blobs they had left.

Women seeking ladies fancy dress costumes face two choices: they can either go as something sexy or they can go as something sexy. For boys, the purpose of fancy dress is frankly to shock, whether this is trying to outdo each other in terms of grotesqueness or seeing how much flesh they can get away with showing before they can be considered naked. The latter objective is one that’s also shared by the girls. No matter what the occasion or costume, it has to be sexy. As a case in point, try browsing the Halloween section of any fancy dress website and seeing if you can find a single outfit that doesn’t have a sexy twist to it. It would appear that the first question to cross any woman’s mind when searching for a costume is ‘What type of slut should I go as?’ ‘Fess up, ladies – you know it’s true.

Essentially, the feeling of complete liberation that is imparted by fancy dress has gotten to us. The plethora of possibilities that arise from an invite to a costume party send us into such an innate panic that reverting to the tried and tested his ‘n’ hers outfits is the only solution we can think of. So, here’s a challenge: This Halloween, let’s mix it up – let’s dress up for dressing up’s sake and screw this sexy/scary malarkey and wear whatever we damn well want to, not what we’re expected to wear. Hell, let’s all go as magic lizards.

Ladies Grooming products

One Ladies Grooming Product that most women own is a hairbrush. This can be thought of as one of the earliest, if not the first prototype, Ladies Grooming Product and it has a long history indeed. The Hair brush is such an essential part of any wardrobe and so essential that few ever care to wonder where it originated from.

There are very few references to the hairbrush in history. In the time of Ancient Rome, men and women of nobility and gentry wore brilliantly coiffed wigs over their own natural hair. In these times, it is relatively safe to presume that both men and women utilized these grooming aids as a way to keep their hair and wigs in place.

These earlier hairbrushes were probably made from natural bristles such as wild boar or porcupine depending on the time frame in history or area. Boar bristle grooming aids or hairbrushes facilitated the purpose of detangling, styling and transferring the hair’s natural oil or sebum and distributed it evenly from root to tip. Basic design of the hairbrush has remained the same throughout history although the products used to make them have changed over the years. The design of the hairbrush consisted of a paddle or handle and bristles or teeth.

There are many other Ladies Grooming Products that were used throughout history that are still familiar to us today. One of the key factors in Ladies Grooming is the removal of unwanted hair. The idea that the removal of unwanted hair is good hygiene, as well as simply for cosmetic purposes, is nothing new; only the methods and tools used to do the removing have changed over time.

The ancient Egyptians were known to have excellent forms of razors made of flint or bronze. They also used a method of depilatory called sugaring. A sticky paste (bees wax was sometimes used) would be applied to the skin, kind of like waxing. Then a strip of cloth was pressed onto the paste and yanked off, removing the hair.

Ancient Civilisations further advanced their technology for hair removal by conditioning the bronze with some sort of solution, oil for example, before applying the razor.

The first safety razor protected the skin from all but the very edge of the blade and was invented in the late 19th century by a Frenchman, Jean-Jacques Perret, who was inspired by the joiner’s plane. In 1875 it was marketed by the Kampfe Brothers as “the best available shaving method on the market that won’t cut a user like straight steel razors.”

In 1901, the American inventor King Camp Gillette, with the assistance of William Nickerson, invented a safety razor with disposable blades. Over time many such products were marketed as Ladies Grooming Products. Initially, women mostly shaved their legs and underarms, but over time with an expanding product range, Ladies Grooming Products have been developed to depilate even the most sensitive areas of their bodies. One of the initial pioneers in this area was the Remington Corporation which began producing Electric Shavers aimed at women. Over time other manufacturer such as Philips, Babyliss and Vidal Sassoon have also developed products aimed at Ladies Grooming and today the market has more variety than ever before.

Modern corner sofas

Let your bridal tiaras reflect the real proud you

There are not many people who don’t like to dress up, isn’t it? Take any country on any part of the world and you’ll find its people who love to dress up themselves or dress up their children or spouses in different costumes. And when it comes to different occasions, such as parades and beauty pageants, they just go crazy and come up with the most stylish, weird or even funny costumes. These costumes often make you stare at it in amazement or laugh uproariously. And one item that generally accompanies such costumes is crowns or tiaras. And if you are imagining the typical shining tiara you are mistaken. They come in different shapes, sizes and colours that would make you wonder from where the wearers found these items.

Today, it is not a rare instance to find little girls with their faces glowing with make-up for different beauty pageants to please their parents who are eager than them for the first prize. These little ones are ready to do back flips and other similar tricks on the stage with the hope in their minds that one day they would be wearing the crown of Miss United Kingdom or Miss United States or ever Miss Universe! And their hope is shared with the same intensity with their parents as well. Sometimes they are not even little girls who are the giggling and shy kind. They might be football or basketball players who would be eager to join their parents on a hunting tour. Toughness is just one of the many attributes they have.

Now comes the best part – it is the same old girls whom we find a few years later wearing the best bridal tiaras with their shining wedding gowns, demanding things to go the way they want. They often make their own parents wonder where they learnt some of their tricks and the confidence and leadership qualities they are showing now. Right now, they are totally in charge of their wedding, themselves and anything that is happening in their lives. So here is what we could tell them – just put that bridal tiara on your head with pride and joy! You are just being who you want to be and there is nothing better than that.

Is this the future for Bridal Accessories?

Have you seen how many children are dressed up for their aunt’s/cousin’s/even their mother’s  wedding these days, and all of them in faux fur or satin? The things you can buy for children: those tiny little ballet shoes or, what are they called, oh yes, communion shoes; then there’s the little gathered handbags or purses, as we like to call them here. Even babes in arms are dressed in style with lacy tights and sweet little shoes. I mean we’ve been used to bride’s maids and page boys but now everyone has to get in on the act. What happened to just wearing your best outfit on the day?

Wow; the pressure the happy couple must be under to get everyone dressed just right. I wouldn’t be surprised if, in the future,  it became fashionable for the bride and bridegroom to take on responsibility for every guest’s apparel  and that it becomes  de rigueur to have every coat, dress, suit, pair of shoes and man’s suit under the heading of ‘bridal accessories’ and therefore all matching in style and colour coordinated. Can you imagine a bride who may be particularly fond of expressing herself with deep purple outfits forcing little old aunt Agatha to dye her feather boa; or the mother of the bride searching for  matching moccasins for granny because she insists that “they’re the only things that are comfortable with my bunions”? I must say, I’m quite looking forward to it and I’ll definitely be taking some photographs, but then, all my daughters are well past the age when I would have to pay for it.

Buying Diamonds Online

With all of the potential for scams concerning
diamonds, buying diamonds online almost
seems unthinkable! However, you actually
can purchase diamonds online, without any
problems as long as you are careful.

First, think about your reasons for wanting to
purchase the diamond online, as opposed to
making a purchase from a local jewelry store.
The most common reason is price. Due to
low overhead costs, online jewelers and
wholesalers are able to offer lower prices.
However, you must be careful sometimes
a price that is too low is a sure indication of
a scam.

One of the best things about purchasing
online is the unlimited selection. When
shopping offline, you are limited to the
selection in the stores in your general area.
Online, there are no limits. But again, you
must use a great deal of care and
consideration before handing your money
over to someone that you cannot see and
have never met!

Before shopping, learn as much as you can
about diamonds especially cut, color,
clarity and carat weights. When you are
knowledgeable about diamonds, it will be
harder for a con artist to rip you off. Once
you know more about diamonds, you will be
ready to start shopping.

Take your time. Dont purchase the first
diamond that you see that interests you.
Instead, look for similar diamonds for sale.
Do some comparison shopping to find the
lowest prices. Once you have found the
lowest price, start doing your investigation.
You know about diamonds, youve found a
diamond that you love, and youve found the
lowest price but you are still quite a ways
away from actually purchasing that diamond!

Ask about the sellers credentials, such as
professional jewelry associations that they
belong to. View and print the sellers return,
refund, and upgrade policies. Also inquire
about additional services, such as settings
and mountings, sizing, and free shipping. Do
a search for customer reviews on this
particular company around the Internet. Also
check with the BBB Online to see if there have
been any complaints.

Ask for a diamond grading report from an
independent laboratory such as GIA, HRD,
EGL or AGS. You should see this before
making a purchase. Finally, use a reputable
escrow service for high dollar diamonds
preferably one that will have the diamond
appraised while it is in their possession. The
seller sends the diamond to the escrow
service, and you send the money to pay for
the diamond to the escrow service. The
escrow service has the diamond appraised,
sends the diamond to you, and sends the
money to the seller. This is the surest way to
protect yourselfagain, make sure that you
use a reputable escrow service!

Bracelet a Fashion Statement For Eternity

Bracelet is a piece of jewelry that embraces the wrist and enhances the beauty of a slender hand. The name bracelet is taken from the Latin word brachile, which means of the arm. Bracelets give an exotic look and there is no woman who wouldnt want to show off this ornament dangling from her wrist.

Bracelets have been worn for a long time. Our ancestors wore bracelets made of wood, beads, stones, bone strips etc. Bone strips were formed into rings and then fastened in a circle with metal clasps. Metal and ivory were also used in the 4th century.

There are several superstitions associated with bracelets in several parts of the world. Some believe that certain bracelets ward off evil, while others believe they bring good luck. There is a Greek superstition where mothers make bracelets (Martis) with red and white string and tie them on their childrens wrists on March 1st. They believe that wearing these bracelets will ensure that the sun does not burn their cheeks and they remain pink in color. After midnight, they are thrown into a bonfire.

Bracelets in the modern day are made of a variety of materials. They are made from precious metals like gold, silver, platinum, palladium, and white gold. Precious gemstones set in precious metal bracelets, bestow grandeur and incomparable elegance. To make them more affordable to the common man, they are even made with cheaper materials like plastic, beads, glass etc. Bangles are also a form of bracelets, which are used extensively in India. These can be in plain form or set with stones. When bangles made of glass are worn together they give out a tinkling sound that is beautiful. Every material known to man is used in the making of bracelets.

There is a bracelet for almost every occasion and even sports are not left behind. There are charm bracelets, tennis bracelets, sports bracelets, slap bracelets etc. Colored silicon rubber is used in the production of sports bracelets and this trend has been started by Lance Armstrong, in the form of wristbands, for cancer awareness. The tennis bracelet is also called a thin line diamond bracelet. They are thin and elegant and have a symmetrical pattern of diamonds. When talking about tennis bracelets, Chris Evert, the tennis star comes to mind as she was not only famous for her bracelets, but she is said to have lost one during the US Open in 1987 and the game had to be paused while she searched for her precious bracelet. This is when the tennis bracelet name was given to the thin line diamond bracelets. Charm bracelets contain charms like little hearts, fairies, angels, crosses etc. These charms have a meaning and signify something important in the persons life.Bracelet is a piece of jewelry that embraces the wrist and enhances the beauty of a slender hand. The name bracelet is taken from the Latin word brachile, which means of the arm. Bracelets give an exotic look and there is no woman who wouldnt want to show off this ornament dangling from her wrist.

Bracelets have been worn for a long time. Our ancestors wore bracelets made of wood, beads, stones, bone strips etc. Bone strips were formed into rings and then fastened in a circle with metal clasps. Metal and ivory were also used in the 4th century.

There are several superstitions associated with bracelets in several parts of the world. Some believe that certain bracelets ward off evil, while others believe they bring good luck. There is a Greek superstition where mothers make bracelets (Martis) with red and white string and tie them on their childrens wrists on March 1st. They believe that wearing these bracelets will ensure that the sun does not burn their cheeks and they remain pink in color. After midnight, they are thrown into a bonfire.

Bracelets in the modern day are made of a variety of materials. They are made from precious metals like gold, silver, platinum, palladium, and white gold. Precious gemstones set in precious metal bracelets, bestow grandeur and incomparable elegance. To make them more affordable to the common man, they are even made with cheaper materials like plastic, beads, glass etc. Bangles are also a form of bracelets, which are used extensively in India. These can be in plain form or set with stones. When bangles made of glass are worn together they give out a tinkling sound that is beautiful. Every material known to man is used in the making of bracelets.

There is a bracelet for almost every occasion and even sports are not left behind. There are charm bracelets, tennis bracelets, sports bracelets, slap bracelets etc. Colored silicon rubber is used in the production of sports bracelets and this trend has been started by Lance Armstrong, in the form of wristbands, for cancer awareness. The tennis bracelet is also called a thin line diamond bracelet. They are thin and elegant and have a symmetrical pattern of diamonds. When talking about tennis bracelets, Chris Evert, the tennis star comes to mind as she was not only famous for her bracelets, but she is said to have lost one during the US Open in 1987 and the game had to be paused while she searched for her precious bracelet. This is when the tennis bracelet name was given to the thin line diamond bracelets. Charm bracelets contain charms like little hearts, fairies, angels, crosses etc. These charms have a meaning and signify something important in the persons life.

Reflections on the Back to School Fashion

We use various ways to express ourselves. We either use words or we use other symbols. We make use of signals, we make use of gestures and we also make use of fashion to tell the world what we want to say. When we put on our clothes for the day, it is like we are declaring to the world our attitude for the day. This is the reason why it is so interesting to observe the back-to-school fashion preferences of people. The back to school fashion preference of a person shows who he will be for the whole term in a nutshell.

There are those people who wear practically the same thing they did in the last term. The bad thing about this is that this could be an indication of little to no personal growth in the past term. This could be an indication that the person did not mature in the past year. What could make this worse is if that person had been wearing the same fashion for more than 5 years. That could be an indicator of a serious problem.

The positive interpretation of this could be that the person has matured enough to have found his or her identity in life. This type of back-to-school fashion could indicate that a person is already perfectly happy with the image that he or she presents and that they feel no urge to change. It could also be an indication that the person has had a great past year and wishes to recapture that year.

There are people who exhibit great changes in their back to school fashion. There is also a good side and a bad side to this. The good interpretation of this is that the person has experienced an epiphany. A change in back-to-school fashion could be an indicator that a person has reached a new level of maturity and is ready to face the world with a new attitude. He or she could be declaring to the world that he or she is a new person, changed for the better and willing to tackle the world head on.

There is also a dark side to this change in back-to-school fashion. A person could have suffered from an event so cataclysmic that it required the person to reject his or her old personality entirely. A drastic change in back-to-school fashion could be akin to a person screaming, I am not who I used to be. It will not happen to me anymore! not all changes are good and not all changes are bad. That fact must be understood.

There are students whose back to school fashion is based on what a certain group is wearing. The positive side to this is that it indicates social acceptance. A person who has this type of back to school fashion shows that he or she is sociable and knows how to make friends with at least a certain group of people. However, this could also be an indication of a lack of initiative. People who dress the way others do may do so because they dont really have any idea of what to wear. They let their groups decide their fashion because without the group, they really have no idea who they are.

Now you know that back to school fashion is a great indication of who a person is.

Accentuating Your Look With Crystal Earrings

For women, a well-chosen pair of earrings can pull together a beautiful outfit. Nothing emphasizes an elegant hairstyle, gorgeous neckline, or healthy glowing skin like a pair of dazzling earrings. And as more and more women have come to discover, crystal earrings go a long way to providing sophistication, style, and versatility.

Diamonds may be a girls best friend but they can also be very expensive. And very expensive earrings are not to be worn everywhere because, quite simply, the risk of losing or damaging them is too great. Crystal earrings, however, while affordable, can be just as lovely as a pair of diamond earrings. Their affordability allows you to purchase several pairs that you like without having to worry about their safety. Also similar to diamonds is the versatility that crystal earrings offer. Whether you are dressed up or down for casual daytime wear or elegant evening wear crystal earrings will complement your outfit without overshadowing it.

But just because they are versatile doesnt mean that crystal earrings are boring. Their beauty lies in their simplicity but the styles and colors in which they come in are extensive. You can find crystal earrings in a variety of beautiful colors, shapes, and sizes. Whether you prefer studs or drop design, youll always be able to find the crystal earrings you desire.

Crystal earrings can be found everywhere from the corner jewelry shop to your nearby department store. Styles and prices range depending on where you shop. You can also find a beautiful selection of crystal earrings online that you can purchase from various Internet shops. And in this scenario, there is also the added convenience of shopping from home.

Crystal earrings make a wonderful gift for someone you love or a lovely treat for yourself. Whether youre wearing jeans or an evening gown you will always look sophisticated and well put together with a pair of crystal earrings.