BookWorm Beauty - 2012 Book Review

At the moment I cant get enough chick literature! I know some people may turn their noses up but no one can deny wanting a fun, easy read to forget about the stresses of everyday life!  

This book was recommended to me by my twitter buddy Sophie, who LOVES a good girly read! I have to say, I had read some books lately from this genre, all started out good but ended up having a rushed ending which was quite unbelievable and unrealistic!!! I hate not being able to finish a book, but then I hate a half hearted ending as the author has reached their word count!

Sophie recommended The Beach Cafe by Lucy Diamond. 

Evie Flynn has always been the black sheep of her family - a dreamer and a drifter, unlike her over-achieving elder sisters. She's tried making a name for herself as an actress, a photographer and a singer, but nothing has ever worked out. Now she's stuck in temp hell, with a sensible, pension-planning boyfriend. Somehow life seems to be passing her by. Then her beloved aunt Jo dies suddenly in a car crash, leaving Evie an unusual legacy - her precious beach cafe in Cornwall. Determined to make a success of something for the first time in her life, Evie heads off to Cornwall to get the cafe and her life back on track - and gets more than she bargained for, both in work and in love... 

I loved this book!!!!!!!! On a dinner hour, I would drift away to the sunny beaches of Cornwall and join Evie to try and figure out her life in general, all with the generous gift of the cafe from her recently deceased Auntie. The author really pulls you into the story, and at time I forgot about the piles of snow outside my window!!

I loved Evie's character as she was hopeless with making life decisions until they were forced upon her, then realising she was on the right path! This is a fairly predictable book, but you cant help but love it! I would LOVE the life that Evie has, developing a run down cafe into a social haunt for all the locals. Not only does she run a successful cafe, but she introduces social evenings and that is where you get to meet different characters.

My favourite part was when she knew she was going to give her all to the cafe and slaved over her first cake....next day someone drops it. This would also be my luck! There are a few quirky moments which really makes you love this book and Evie!

There are a few things I expected to happen and could have made the story a bit more believable. Such as Evie was a admin temp, but from there she goes to running a business, there are a few hiccups but you would expect more, many more that is not something easy to do! I also expected run in's with environmental officers, but it seems she was well clued up on health and hygiene! This is just me being picky and cynical maybe as it is a lovely book, with some fantastic, well developed characters.

I would give this book 9/10 as it gave me the perfect escape I needed from this cold snowy weather! I would definitely read another book by this author. I loved her style of writing, so easy to get into, but then I couldn't put the book down. Cant wait to see what else Sophie recommends to me.......thanks Sophie!!!!

What Claire Thinks;

Looks like I could well be starting my very own book club.....although my reading is shocking at the moment Kellyann would be so disappointed in me!!

We're Going on a GHOST Hunt....with Mysteria Paranormal Events

Yes, you read my title correctly, we are going on a GHOST HUNT this Friday night! not just any old ghost hunt, oh no, one organized with Mysteria Paranormal Events and Medium John Blackburn to the notoriously haunted Samlesbury Hall, Lancashire with a group of twenty people for an engagement party. 

First of all I don't believe for one minute that anything out of the ordinary will happen (I say that boldly now!) I am going with an open mind, warm clothes, a head torch and my husband (to firmly hold when I am scared to death after seeing something out of the ordinary!). 

 

Our friends are getting married at Samlesbury Hall in 2013, just to be that little bit different they fancied doing a spot of ghost hunting as their engagement party.... arriving at 20:00 and leaving at 04:00am twenty of us spend the night in the hall with a medium and paranormal activity team.

I must say at this point that this will not be the first visit to the Hall, or my last. I was lucky enough to spend the night in the Lodge on site and at the time of our stay we did a midnight walk around the grounds and through the woods....that was bad enough, the grounds were ok, I freaked at the woods! (God help me on Friday).

Just to make things even more interesting my friend and I are completing a 1 hour vigil (alone) in this room 

where in the mid-1500s a priest was followed to the hall by soldiers and discovered secreted in one of the priest holes. He was dragged out and beheaded on the spot. Legend has it that the ill-fated priest’s blood stained the floor of his small room so intensely that nobody was able to wash it away – no matter how hard they scrubbed. As such, the room was bricked up for some 200 years until it was reopened in 1898. Even then, servants refused to remain in the house until the floorboards were replaced.

A Brief Haunted History; (courtesy of Environmental Graffiti)

There is a Samlesbury spectre that enjoys far more infamy – the lady in white. Thought to be Lady Dorothy (or Dorothea) Southworth, her tale is one of romance and tragedy. Lady Dorothy fell in love with a dashing young man from the de Hoghton family. Unfortunately, the de Hoghtons were as strongly Protestant as the Southworths were Catholic and neither house wished a union with the other. Consequently, Dorothy and her young beau were refused permission to marry. Defying their families, the lovers continued to see each other in secret, meeting along the Ribble’s winding banks or amid the shade of nearby woods, and it was there that they concocted a daring plan to elope. They hoped that once they were married their families would be forced to respect their vows and their love for one another. Alas, the naive arrangement was not to be made good, for their scheme was overheard and the tale relayed back to Samlesbury Hall.

On the night of the planned elopement, Dorothy’s brother waited in ambush for the rendezvous to take place. As soon as young de Hoghton arrived, Dorothy's murderous sibling sprang forth from his hiding place and killed her lover on the spot along with his two retainers. The trio of corpses were hastily buried under the cover of darkness within the grounds of the Hall’s chapel. Dorothy witnessed her lover’s violent death. Legend says that she was inconsolable and had to be sent to a convent overseas where she descended into grief-fuelled madness. Sources state that three bodies were unearthed in the late 1800s when a "land drain or road works necessitated excavation". Could this have been the luckless trio slain by Dorothy’s ruthless brother?

It seems that Lady Dorothy’s spirit has lingered on at Samlesbury Hall, perhaps tethered to the grounds by her tragic torment. Many witnesses have claimed to have had encounters with a white lady flitting across the estate on clear nights, or floating down one of the hall's many corridors, sobbing for her lost love.

For centuries there have been many reports of the white lady, weeping and wailing, and even walking solemnly through the grounds to meet a “young knight who receives her on his bended knee, and he then accompanies her along the walks. On arriving at a certain spot, most probably the lover's grave, both phantoms stand still and as they seem to utter soft wailing of despair they embrace each other, and then the forms rise slowly from the east and melt away into the clear blue of the surrounding sky.” Indeed, so often is the white lady encountered that she has garnered widespread infamy. 

So just remember when you are all cosy in your bed on Friday night, I will be there with John Blackburn, Mysteria, my head light torch, warm blanket and camera, pretending to be Yvette Fielding and running to hide in the car!!!! with the White Lady hot on my tail.....I bet you can't wait to hear all the goings on....with vigils, table tipping and seances we are in for  a night of frightful fun!!

So lets recap! One Medium, One Priest/Monk and the White Lady.....lovely!!

 So yes, as I have said.....I am most certain everything will be fine.....watch this space and listen to my screams....mwah ha ha ha. We will have enough equipment on site to pick everything (if anything) up and I believe there will be a DVD of the event too (OMG).

I promise to post after the event. Wish me luck!!

SPECIAL OFFER AT GROOM

Groom Hire would like to offer your readers 20% OFF ALL SUIT HIRE during February 2012.

In the last 12 months Groom Hire has seen a move towards more traditional morning tails.  Groom offer tails in black, silver, grey, brown and even ivory! They also offer a wide range of other styles of suit, including black tie.

Groom have 5 stores across the North West: Manchester, Liverpool, Warrington, Wilmslow and Chester.

Groom’s stunning collections of suits and accessories have been brought together using the finest fabrics, co-ordinating immaculate colours with design and fit, so you can be sure that you will find the right outfit whatever the occasion.

Groom also offer a bespoke service but they find that their unique range of ready to wear Savile Row style suits offers the discerning customer the bespoke look without the price.

Unique to Groom is their bespoke waistcoat & tie making service – to hire or buy. With over 500 shades of silk to choose from Groom are able to coordinate your menswear whatever your colour scheme!

Groom also operate a Price Match Policy – for additional peace of mind.

www.groomhire.co.uk

My Magical Corner - Where The Magic Happens

Fancy seeing a small piece of magic? wondered where I work and create all my lush designs? want to see what all my lovely brides get to see when they pay me a visit?

Now you can, let me share with you my magical corner, let me enchant you with my wonderful pictures showing you where all the magic happens. Together with a whole heap of magic and creativity we have created a perfect haven for me to work in, reinvented old furniture, added lots of charm, a lick of paint here, a dash of femininity there.

I hope you are loving my floral notice board that cost under £10.00 to create, I have yet to populate it with all my inspiring pictures and sketches.

I have even shared my award with you, which I am so very proud to of won and as you can see it sits proudly amongst my work!

Exclusively MALE! One of the Groomsmen

I am delighted to have GROOM feature on my blog for the second time, this time around they are sharing some very fabulous top tips to helping all of you lovely men decide on your wedding attire. There is even an amazing special offer currently running too.....see below for details!!!

Choosing your bridal gown is usually one of the most exciting preparations during your wedding planning stage.  Chances are your groom would not spend the same time or effort it took you to pick your gown in deciding what to wear at your wedding.  However, his attire should be as well chosen as your gown (without upstaging your bridal gown, of course); after all, it is his wedding, too.  Here are some tips to help you and your groom, in choosing his wedding attire.

It is also customary for all the other male members of the bridal party to wear similar attire, although the groom’s attire is often a little different from the groomsmen. There are many ways to distinguish the groom from the rest of the bridal party.  Typically, colour is a good way to do this. For instance, a groom could wear an ivory waistcoat tie to match the bridal gown, and then use different coloured waistcoats and ties for the rest of the wedding party, perhaps to match the bridesmaids. This puts together a very even, attractive look.

Recent fashion trends have changed a lot; and so has the way of the wedding wear, too.  Here are some recent trends:

The latest in-vogue look for men is traditional and elegant. The overall effect is conservative, tailored and distinguished. For formal weddings, we are seeing a real trend toward traditional, slim fit morning tails (see photo) in a wide range of colours including black, silver, grey, navy blue, brown and even ivory!  

The trend for less formal weddings is still strong with roughly half of the wedding outfits we hire are fitted lounge suits or Albert style suits (¾ length jacket). For destination weddings and daytime summer weddings, we see a lot of cotton and linen suits. For evening weddings, we are doing a lot of silver or charcoal grey and navy blue suits.

Wedding colour trends to watch in 2012 include: teal, orange, mustard, antique blue, deep red, latte, lavender, charcoal and sage. Pink is also as popular as ever!

We are also seeing very few tuxedo shirts with traditional pleats or a bib front.  Most guys are opting for a more simple, updated style (see photo).

Day cravats are bang-on-trend - suitable for wearing beneath a shirt, they make a fashionable alternative to wearing a tie. These cravats are very easy to tie, just a simple end over end knot is needed, and then simply shape the cravat to suit. Polka dots & paisley designs are selling like hot cakes at the moment!

Accessories are increasingly being used to make the wedding party look unique and make a fashion statement. Silk pocket squares (to match the cravat), quirky cufflinks, silk scarves and even bowler hats are all proving very popular.

Groom Hire would like to offer your readers 20% OFF ALL SUIT HIRE during February 2012.

Groom have 5 stores across the North West: Manchester, Liverpool, Warrington, Wilmslow and  Chester.

Groom’s stunning collections of suits and accessories have been brought together using the finest fabrics, co-ordinating immaculate colours with design and fit, so you can be sure that you will find the right outfit whatever the occasion.

Groom also offer a bespoke service but they find that their unique range of ready to wear Savile Row style suits offers the discerning customer the bespoke look without the price.

Unique to Groom is their bespoke waistcoat & tie making service – to hire or buy. With over 500 shades of silk to choose from Groom are able to coordinate your menswear whatever your colour scheme!

Groom also operate a Price Match Policy – for additional peace of mind.

www.groomhire.co.uk

Stores; Warrington, Wilmslow, Liverpool, Chester and Manchester, full address details are online.

Fresh Inspiration: HOT Rock Chick Mood Boards

It appears more so these last few years that people are moving away from the traditional style weddings and looking for an alternative theme, many are challenging the 'vintage tea party' or 'ultra chic country garden affair' but what about the 'hot rock chic' theme? has this been considered too.

I have pulled together some more beautiful mood boards to tempt you into trying something a little more unique and memorable for your big day.

I hope I have inspired you.